2024: The Top 10 Albums (LPs)

10)

STATIONS

Saint Punk

Saint Punk's sophomore album might be a sleeper pick on this list, but honestly, it's a solid — more than solid — project. Primarily residing in bass house but unafraid to explore other genres like trap and drum n bass, "STATIONS" is a vengeful album, dark and gritty, and its first half was so strong that it blasted it up to edge a spot in this list. I don't think I've heard many albums of this style attempt it this well, but that first half honestly encapsulated its themeing incredibly well even despite the faults of the second half. It's not strongest thing ever, but Saint Punk grabs this #10 spot because "STATIONS" is still an intriguing album with clean production. Read the full review here.

9)

Stealing Fire

Virtual Riot

German electronic legend Virtual Riot, just coming off the remix package for his previous album "Simulation", collides with the equally legendary electronic label Monstercat for a full-length project, and that collision alone gives it enough name power to raise the bar of expectation rather high. But it's the diversity of "Stealing Fire" that gives it enough power to nab a spot on this list, hosting an array of genres from dubstep to midtempo to melodic house, each one of them produced flawlessly — and, notably, mostly solo. It might lack the narrative "Simulation" had, but I don't care, Virtual Riot strikes again. Read the full review here.

8)

The weight of the world

Syzy

"The weight of the world" has made ripples in the underground dubstep scene for a reason — because it's one hell of a project. Syzy's debut album is his most ambitious undertaking yet, and its creativity within the riddim sphere is undeniable. A melodic wreckage of emotion and a destructive scatterbomb of synthesizers, this project twists and turns and flings itself through hoop after unique hoop to land on its celebratory finale track.

It's not just the quality of the dubstep, nor is it the innovativeness of the production, that Syzy wields to make this such a strong album — no, it's arguably the emotion itself that "The weight of the world" thrives on — chaotic yet inherently powerful. This is one of those projects that stands out in the scene and just tries something different, and it does so very well. Read the full review here.

7)

Hyperdrama

Justice

One of the most groundbreaking albums this year was French house duo Justice's "Hyperdrama", a project that struck at the heart of modern pop. "Hyperdrama" resides quite stubbornly within the French house realm, challenging pop to get close, and the result isn't quite like the grimy club stompers Justice brewed all the way back with "Cross", but more of a dreamy pop fusion record with plenty of flair and an equal share of a club floor. With the inclusion of floaty and often catchy vocal features — including two Tame Impala collabs — alongside industrial rollers like "Generator", Justice have once again found their pot of gold, and "Hyperdrama" deserves all the critical acclaim it gets. Read the full review here.

6)

Get Off The Internet

Eliminate

Just as goofy as I expected, Eliminate's debut record is simply a ton of fun. Punchy stylistics, plenty of switchups, a heap of hard-hitting ideas and a particular affinity for sampling that intertwines nicely with a couple of vocal features, sourced from all over the music spectrum from bass house to hyperpop. It's both well-produced and an absolute blast to listen to — with its own helping of emotion, of course, and at the end of the day, what more could you want? Not much.

Eliminate's always had a bit of a quirky twinge to his music, and clearly nothing has changed with this project, but his production standards continue to grow and grow. But, I mean, this is just goofy, and I love it for that. Read the full review here.

5)

Mechanomorphic

Mr. Bill

Just as we saw Virtual Riot release his project on Monstercat, respected producer Mr. Bill does the same, and his product is considerably impressive. A ton of tracks and a ton of collaborators are what makes up the bulk of "Mechanomorphic", all underscored by Mr. Bill's trademark wonky sound design placed into a bass music context. There's absolutely no cohesiveness, true, but Mr. Bill has produced some of the best tracks of the year, and I think just on that metric, "Mechanomorphic" guarantees itself a spot on this list. But it's a testament to the perfect match of sheer production quality with boundless stylistic potential (of both Mr. Bill and his collaborators) that this mammoth project finds itself at #5. Read the full review here.

4)

A Little Something

Nigel Good

Two Monstercat albums in a row, but this time it's not a star joining the fray, but a star returning to it. In fact, Nigel Good is something of a legend in the Monstercat mythos, and "A Little Something" is his first release since his 2015 project "Space Cadet" — and it lives up to its predecessor. Believe it or not, but it does. Pristine sound design and immersive atmospheres fill the runtime of a cheerful coming-of-age project that is simply just beautiful. Not just beautiful, though, but engaging too, something that always finds importance in more laid-back albums like this, but Nigel Good expertly rids "A Little Something" of that issue and leaves no trace. This is the prequel album to "Space Cadet", and it fills that role without missing a beat. Read the full review here.

3)

Light Dancer

Hudson Lee

And into the top three we go. This was tied quite tightly with "A Little Something", but ultimately Hudson Lee's 2024 project edges it out for pure creativity. "Light Dancer" is about as abstract as an album can get, and Hudson Lee's ability to draw both from electronic synthwork and organic stringwork is uncannily good, resulting in a listening experience that sounds oddly offbeat and strangely satisfying.

Of course, creativity isn't the only thing holding "Light Dancer" up. It wouldn't be occupying the #3 spot if not for its immaculate sound design — an element that ends up as one of the most notable parts of this LP — or the natural, organic feel of the album as a holistic project. Offbeat, yet held to the highest of production standards, and tied together by strong themeing; now that's what I like to see. Read the full review here.

2)

The Third Kind

Dyatic

Much like the previous two, this top two was a tough fight, and it's ultimately Dyatic's "The Third Kind" LP that takes the second spot. But this is crazy, oh yeah, this is incredibly good. Dyatic's flow is incredibly engaging and never lets up throughout the project's runtime, and the underground heavy dubstep to match is equally good. Intense and aggressive, but not without ganders into alternative genres like bass house or glitch hop, "The Third Kind" embarks on an ominous exploration of the hollow Earth conspiracy theory. Dyatic's brash production holds up for the whole thing, but the truly captivating aspect is the story upon which "The Third Kind" sits atop, exercising serious narrative skills accompanied by deep and frightening lore. This is one of those albums that does something extraordinary, and in this case, extraterrestrial. Read the full review here.

1)

Tidal Memory Exo

Iglooghost

"Tidal Memory Exo" completely blows everything you know about music out of the water. That's because it's not designed for our ears. A sudden stylistic switchup for Iglooghost sees him craft a spectacular concept album that presents music from another dimension. Predicated upon the premise of a producer residing in an alternate world, a dilapidated town besides an ocean of filth, "Tidal Memory Exo" is Iglooghost tuning into a radio station from this strange post-apocalyptic landscape, and the result is absolutely phenomenal. Conceptually this may be one of the most creative albums to grace the electronic landscape in a very long time, and the sound design on this takes it up another several notches — glitchy and meticulously layered, mind-bogglingly complex and always reinforcing the offbeat grime rapping (of Iglooghost's own vocal) that guides the tracklist along. It's nasty, it's awe-inspiring, it's a concentration of brilliance in production mingling with some of the best conceptual innovation in the industry. "Tidal Memory Exo" just gets better and better with every listen, and it never lets up, not for one tune. Read the full review here.