This was clearly the week for lots of publications to post their Best Albums of the Year lists, and here’s the one from long-running London-based music mag NME (who have been back as a bimonthly print edition since 2023). As you might expect, NME does favor artists from their neck of the woods, and their Top 50 Albums list includes IDLES, Fontaines DC, Kelly Lee Owens, Nia Archives, English Teacher, Kneecap, Bill Ryder Jones, Nilüfer Yanya, Beth Gibbons, The Cure, and, of course, Charli XCX, but there’s also MJ Lenderman, Waxahatchee, Kendrick Lamar, Beyoncé, Adrianne Lenker, Tems, Tyler the Creator, Amyl and the Sniffers, Sabrina Carpenter and more.
Check out NME’s Top 25 below and head to their website for the full 50 and requisite blurbage.
NME – TOP 25 ALBUMS OF 2024
25. The Smile – ‘Wall Of Eyes’
24. Ariana Grande – ‘Eternal Sunshine’
23. The Last Dinner Party – ‘Prelude To Ecstasy’
22. Adrianne Lenker – ‘Bright Future’
21. Ghetts – ‘On Purpose, With Purpose’
20. Confidence Man – ‘3am (La La La)’
19. Tyla – ‘Tyla’
18. Nemahsis – ‘Verbathim’
17. Clairo – ‘Charm’
16. RM – ‘Right Place, Wrong Person’
15. Mk.gee – ‘Two Star & The Dream Police’
14. MJ Lenderman – ‘Manning Fireworks’
13. Kneecap – ‘Fine Art’
12. Kendrick Lamar – ‘GNX’
11. Cindy Lee – ‘Diamond Jubilee’
10. Rachel Chinouriri – ‘What A Devastating Turn of Events’
9. Billie Eilish – ‘Hit Me Hard And Soft’
8. Mustafa – ‘Dunya’
7. Beyoncé – ‘Cowboy Carter’
6. The Cure – ‘Songs Of A Lost World’
5. Magdalena Bay – ‘Imaginal Disk’
4. Nia Archives – ‘Silence Is Loud’
3. English Teacher – ‘This Could Be Texas’
2. Fontaines D.C. – ‘Romance’
1. Charli XCX – ‘Brat’