Artist: Sade
Year: 1985
Genre: Soul, Jazz
Restraint yields great results. Such a cool, measured record with impactful emotional peaks.
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Artist: Sade
Year: 1985
Genre: Soul, Jazz
Restraint yields great results. Such a cool, measured record with impactful emotional peaks.
Artist: Eyeliner
Year: 2015
Genre: Vaporwave
Approximately two seconds after hitting play for the first time I thought "Ah, yes, this is ketamine music."
Artist: Kuedo
Year: 2011
Genre: Synth, Footwork
I have done so much ketamine to this album. So much.
Artist: Solareye
Year: 2018
Genre: Hip-hop, rap
This one unfortunately didn't seem to get much of an audience. A very spiritually conceptual album with wonderful (Scottish) lyricism and funky beats. Love letter to the genre, to writing/poetry and to the horror and beauty of existence.
Artist: Elton John
Year: 1973
Genre: Piano Rock, Pop Rock
Almost wall to wall bangers. Just, please skip Jamaica Jerk Off.
Artist: Makeup and Vanity Set
Year: 2015
Genre: Synthwave
One of my favourites for years. So far as I can tell it's pretty obscure (at time of writing, one rating on AOTY), but I think it's a lovely dark synthwave album.
Artist: The Gyuto Monks Tantric Choir
Year: 2008
Genre: Religious, Buddhist Chanting
I would suggest actively listening to this and... seeing what happens
Artist: Trim, Pinch
Year: 2025
Genre: GRIME AIN'T DEAD
It seems widely reported that Trim (Trimothy, Taliban Trim...) is a huge asshole, which probably explains why he never blew up despite being a great MC and one of the few still holding the torch for the UK grime scene.
Artist: Sam Redmore
Year: 2022
Genre: Electro, Afrobeat, Latin, Funk
Joyful, danceable, lovely. It's nice to listen to music that isn't dark and miserable sometimes.
Artist: Park Jiha
Year: 2025
Genre: Ambient, Korean Folk, Post-Minimalism
Beautiful, melancholy, rich. Korean folk instruments are cool.
Artist: King Skinny Pimp
Year: 1996
Genre: Gangsta Rap, Southern, Memphis
I mean, it is what it is.
Artist: Danny Brown
Year: 2025
Genre: Experimental Hip Hop, Hyperpop, EDM
Danny's sobriety album. I find myself feeling proud of him, which is cute. Great collaborators lead to some very fun things.
Artist: Painkiller
Year: 1992
Genre: Grindcore, Free Jazz
WWUUUWWUWUUWW-WBAAAAAAH FWUUUU-WUAAAAHHH *unintelligible screaming* FWUOOOOOOOOOO
Artist: Freddie Gibbs, Madlib
Year: 2019
Genre: Gangsta Rap
My favourite booty-spreading, life-loving rapper. Like, shrugging off your asshole being posted as revenge porn is highly based.
Gotta say, the art sucks.
Artist: Danny Brown, JPEGMAFIA
Year: 2023
Genre: Glitch Hop, Experimental Hip Hop
My favourite autistic ass, weird-voiced rapper and my favourite easily triggered rapper collab, yay.
Artist: Juan Gabriel
Year: 1990
Genre: Mariachi
Probably the best live album I've ever heard. Amazing performance, arrangements and audience. Any time I listen, I'm thinking "Shit, I wish I were there".
Artist: Anna von Hausswolff
Year: 2025
Genre: Spiritual awe, ecstasy and dread
Waited for this to drop for months, and then... didn't listen to it. Until after the first ayahuasca ceremony, at which point I realised I'd apparently been waiting for just the right moment.
Artist: Haircuts for Men
Year: 2025
Genre: Barber beats
Barber beats are a big, vaguely guilty pleasure. HFM does great work (and has consistently aesthetic art), but this is one of my favourites. Listen to the descent 2.
Artist: Joe Hisaishi
Year: 1993
Genre: Soundtrack, cinematic classical
One of my favourite films, and one of my favourite soundtracks. I love his Ghibli works too, but the Beat Takeshi stuff takes it for me. Hana-Bi's OST is also excellent.
Artist: DJ Screw
Year: 1995
Genre: Screw
What if pre-vaporwave, but for hiphop, kind of?
Artist: The Alan Parsons Project
Year: 1976
Genre: Prog
Impeccable prog. Prog particularly seems to lend itself to concept albums? That's like, all these guys did. It slaps.
Artist: Death's Dynamic Shroud
Year: 2015
Genre: Vaporwave, kinda
Surely one of the most autism-coded groups out there. I like all their work, but this remains a standout.