Gorilla vs. Bear’s ALBUMS of 2018

I was unreasonably psyched to find out that Earl's a big fan of Tirzah's Devotion, and it makes sense, as both of their incredible 2018 releases are built on flickering, soulful loops that create emotional, woozily immersive spaces that you want to inhabit forever. Like Donuts or Madlib's dopest mixtapes, the brevity and fleeting nature of these tracks are part of their vibey appeal: to quote Earl's Shabazz Palaces shout on opener "Shattered Dreams", it's a feeling more than anything else. And, of course, it helps that Earl is probably the best rapper of his generation.

05) ROBYN | Honey

If there's a loose common thread among my favorite records of this year, it's that they distilled the most beloved parts of my formative years -- i.e., all of the '90s -- into something that tugs at the nostalgia heartstrings while also feeling unmistakably current. In Robyn's case, she graced us with a luminous, elegantly grown-up update on twinkling tears-on-the-dancefloor pop-house that sounds as cathartic on headphones as it does in the club.

04) AMEN DUNES | Freedom

Amen Dunes' sweeping, transcendent fourth full-length record floored us at some much-needed times this year, usually in those solitary, introspective moments on late-night drives or long walks through the woods. I mentioned last winter how charmed I was by Damon McMahon's "vivid recurring themes and characters, timeless songwriting, and undeniable swagger", but it was the uncomfortably relatable, soul-baring emotion on the record's devastating and chill-inducing back half that made us keep coming back to Freedom, making it by far my most listened to stretch of music this year.

03) ROSALÍA | El Mal Querer

The most massive sounding record of the year, as Rosalía's dazzling voice elevates these brilliant, adventurous, conceptual Flamenco-inspired bangers that exist at our dream intersection of mainstream and experimental pop (shoutout to the o.g. El Guincho).

02) HELENA DELAND | From the Series of Songs "Altogether Unaccompanied" Vol. I-IV

As a general rule I avoided including records that I released on my label Luminelle on this list. But Helena Deland's exquisite and diverse series of songs "Altogether Unaccompanied" gets a pass, mainly because I fell in love with it before the label ever officially existed, and because it was the spark and ultimately a beacon and inspiration for what I wanted Luminelle to be about. Vividly evocative, timeless, genre-defying songs that span from shimmering, danceable synth-pop and gorgeous hushed folk, to brooding trip-hop and majestic, Radiohead-esque indie-rock, heralding the arrival of a singularly versatile songwriter with an undeniable voice.

01) TIRZAH | Devotion

The love is palpable on Tirzah's glowing, tender collection of self-described "straight-up love songs", created with her best friend and producer, the inimitable Mica Levi. I mentioned last summer that Devotion feels to me like a "romantic and distinctly modern take" on some of the '90s R&B I worshipped growing up. It's hard for me to articulate just how much I adore this record, other than to say it's the sweetest, most beautifully understated and endlessly replayable album I heard this year.

GORILLA vs. BEAR's ALBUMS OF 2018

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Filed Under: 2018, albums, albums of the year, amen dunes, aoty, ariana grande, best albums of 2018, earl sweatshirt, grouper, helena deland, lists, robyn, rosalía, tirzah

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