#5: The Life Of Pablo by Kanye West
A little messy and lowkey all over the place, perhaps to mirror Kanye's state of mind. After all he has never been afraid to pour his heart out in everything he does. And painting is messy. The polished moments like Beam and Real Friends are out of this world. Kanye is most creative when he mixes different genres and uses his Frankenstein mind to put together a song using up to 6 different samples (Fade) The last addition Saint Pablo makes me teary every time.
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#4: This Is Acting by Sia
I didn't listen to this album until 5 or 6 months after its release. The concept sounded so contrived and Alive was cringeworthy. I finally gave it a shot and it was marvelous, and soon it became one of my favorite albums of the year. The album has an identity crisis but the songs are all amazing.
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#3: A Seat At The Table by Solange
I've always loved Solange and regularly jam to TONY, I Decided and the flawless True EP. Seat is unlike anything she's done before. She ditched her carefree and loving attitude to invite you to have a serious conversation, a much needed talk about being black and racial issues in 2016 Amerikkka. Of course no one would listen to her if the music wasn't amazing. With the help of the best Soul, R&B, Alternative and Hip Hop collaborators, she crafted some of the most magnificent tracks of the year, all beautifully written and intelligently produced.
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#2: Skeleton Tree by Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds
I'm a tortured soul and I live for sad songs. The sadder, the better. And nothing is as miserable as a man losing his son. The album is touching beyond words. It's like Nick went straight to the studio after the horrible news. All the emotions are sincere, graphic and raw. I was in pieces the first time I listened to it and I never stopped. It's so sad, so beautiful but very healing.
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#1: Blonde by Francesca Titanic
Channel Orange took a long time to grow on me and I was disgusted after listening to Endless. However Blonde is deeply personal, adventurous and trippy. I love how relatable all the lyrics are and how progressive the production is, mixing guitar with 808, piano and organs with Hip Hop. Despite all its layers, the album still feels like a minimalist effort that gets better with every listen.
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