lola listns

If anything good at all came out of 2016 it was incredible albums! From Drake and Beyonce to Broods and AlunaGeorge, 2016 was a year of incredible music which made this list pretty difficult to make. To clarify, i'm not a music critic. This list is completely based off of how albums made me feel and how they carried with me over time. This post and this whole blog isn't from a critics' standpoint, its from a music lovers standpoint. So without further ado, here is Lola Listns' top 10 albums of 2016!

#10 AlunaGeorge: I Remember

I don't think Iv'e ever heard an AlunaGeorge song that I don't like, and that's why I was so excited for their second album. They are always being featured to other artists' songs (Jack U, Kaytranada, Disclosure), so I was anticipating what their new album would sound like and curious how it would differ from the first one.  Sure enough, they took their sound and production to the next level. 'I Remember' is such a catchy, easy-to-love album. Songs like Full Swing, I Remember, My Blood, In My Head...pretty much every song on the damn album makes you want to listen over and over again. I can't tell you how many times iv'e randomly sang "YOU KEEP ROBBING MY HEART LIKE A BANK, NO THANK YOU, NO THANK YOU!"

#9 Rihanna: ANTI

The first thing that captured my attention about this album is that island vibe throughout. I felt like we knew something like this would be coming from her. It's not that she's never done the island thing, but its the first time that her whole album has the sound.  ANTI has the 3 elements that we love about Rihanna, but taken to the next level....#1 her voice. This album reminded me that Rihanna can sing as she showcases with 'Love on the Brain.' #2 her sexy lyrics. It wouldn't be a true Rihanna album without them as shown in 'Sex With Me.' Lastly #3 is her fearlessness as shown in songs like 'Bitch Better Have My Money.' I think this is the album we needed from Rih Rih for her to prove her growth and versatility.

#8 Kaytranada: 99.9%

99.9% can transport you to a few decades back yet take you to the future at the same time. Im always craving an album that has minimal to no words on it that I can just easily listen to. This album provides that for me with its mix of eclectic sounds and instrumentals. That bass line on "TRACK UNO' is so incredible and that's just the first song. It gives you a good sense of what the rest of the album experience will be like and that experience is a happy and dance filled one.

#7 Phantogram: Three

I first started paying attention to Phantogram when I came across their song "My Only Friend.' I think it's a beautiful song, and while I knew about them this is the song that got me to pay attention and listen (and love) their second album. I anticipated the release of their third album and when it dropped I was not disappointed. This album really showcases Sarah's unique voice and Phantogram's lyrical depth. I will likely go more into that on a separate blog post, but for now know that this album deserves a listen or 10 if you haven't already.

#6 Beyoncé: Lemonade

Yes, I know what you're thinking..."Lemonade is #6!?" I know, I know. This is something I really thought about. Almost every major music publisher made Lemonade the #1 album of the year and my God does it deserve to be, but for me and the way I write this blog it isn't #1. By any other standards, yes it is absolutely the #1 album of the year, maybe even the last 10. It's perfect, but for me I can't make it #1 just because it deserves to be #1. I see Beyonce as the mega superstar that she is. She's almost not even human, so I don't connect with her music in an intimate way as I do other artists that are more accessible and have a closer connection with their fans. To be honest, I didn't get to spend as much time with this album as I would have liked to since it's not on Apple Music or any other streaming service besides Tidal. At the end of the day Beyonce is queen, and this album is what I think is her best work that had a beautiful visual album to accompany it, but I will always feel more connected to the artists that are somewhat reachable.

#5 Warpaint: Heads Up

It all happened so fast for me and Warpaint. I just started listening to their music in 2016 and next thing you know I have their entire discography downloaded on my iPhone and I've binge watched all of their live performances available to me on Youtube. Because 2016 was the year of Warpaint discovery for me and they released their album 'Heads Up' in 2016, I couldn't make this list without them on it. You can read all about my discovery of Warpaint here, but know this poppier and louder version of Warpaint is worth listening to.

#4 Kanye West: Life of Pablo

Oh what to say about Kanye...I mean the man is a genius that's for sure and 'The Life of Pablo' is proof of that. I didn't think a hip-hop/gospel album was possible, but that's exactly what Kanye did and it's an ambitious work of art. The gospel elements really elevate this album and make it something that doesn't exist (at least not that i'm aware of). He has a way of allowing people into the way his staggered mind works with his music and each album is so different from the one before it. His evolution is clear from one album to the next. Kanye's lyrics mixed with the production, and incredible features took 'Life of Pablo' to the next level. Personally, its between this album and 'Dark Beautiful Twisted Fantasy' as my favorite Kanye album and that says a lot.

#3 Banks: The Alter

BANKS is one of my favorite songwriters of all time. Iv'e said it before and i'll say it again...I believe BANKS is one of the most important and skilled lyricist of our generation. She has this ability to look deep within herself and turn her pain and experiences into poetry. Her second album, 'The Alter,' is an example of that. A full post on BANKS will be coming out soon, but in short, this album is visceral and graphic. She has this ability to project her emotions in each song and make you feel what she is felling. The Alter is the next level of BANKS, a stronger more powerful BANKS.

#2 Solange: A Seat At The Table

'A Seat At the Table' is one of those albums that you need to spend time with. You need to listen to it over and over, pay attention and absorb it. I haven't fully done that to the extent that I need to in order to completely appreciate this album for what it is. Regardless, even without spending as much time with it as I need to, this album easily earned the #2 spot for me. Mind you, i've listened to it at least 20 times.It's an album with a strong message about being black in America all delivered to you with her soothing, soft voice and some funk. "Be weary of the ways of the world..."

#1 The 1975: I like it when you sleep, for you are so beautiful yet so unaware of it

Last, but most certainly not least, my #1 album of 2016 is 'I like it when you sleep, for you are so beautiful yet so unaware of it' by The 1975. I wrote a full post about this album here, but to start, I knew this was going to be my top album of the year after listening to it several times. The album is extremely expressive and honest, which as you may have noticed, is an important quality for me when it comes to music. The masterfully worded album has made me cry multiple times, both just by listening and also in person. Any album that can bring that kind of emotion out of me deserves to be #1. Matty really digs deep on this one and brings a level of sophistication to it that I didn't see on the last album.

I came to know of Warpaint after hearing their name around the online music space (blogs, websites, Twitter, etc) a lot. Typically, if I see a name many times I’ll eventually give them a listen. With Warpaint, I coincidentally first heard one of their songs, ‘Love is to Die,’ on Pandora right after I became interested in checking them out. It gave me a taste of what their style is, so I went and listened to their album 'Warpaint.’ Also, I had no clue they were an all female band, which I’ll admit makes them even more appealing. Who doesn’t love a group of talented women kicking ass at what they do?!.

There is something mysterious about this band. Their music is sort of blurry and not articulate, but it’s what makes them unique and interesting. Some of my favorite songs on that album are 'Drive,’ 'Disco//Very,’ and 'Keep It Healthy.’ After becoming intrigued by them I did a little research. For me it makes the listening experience much more enjoyable and meaningful when I know a little bit about the people behind the music. Anyway, I came across a Rolling Stone article about them and the writer described their music as 'layers of noise’ which I think describes their sound perfectly. Their songs feel organic, like they were just jamming out together at one of their houses and came up with these amazing songs.