Best Albums of 2016
Ranked by our critic's grades, best first.
BlondeAlmost no drums, almost no structure, and the best written album anyone released in that decade.Read the review
The Life of PabloA gospel record, a rap record and a mess, released unfinished and then edited in public for weeks afterwards.
ViewsEighty one minutes of a man being cold at you, and the record whose sound the rest of pop spent two summers borrowing.
LemonadeA breakup record that refuses to stay one, and the album where the biggest pop star alive chose to be legible.
A Seat at the TableAnger delivered at a whisper, and it is the most controlled album anyone made about race that decade.
JefferyTen tracks named after other people, a dress on the cover, and the most joyful thing he has made.
Puberty 2Distortion, a saxophone and a drum machine, and the best writing about wanting anyone had done that year.
Birds in the Trap Sing McKnightThe darker, tighter sequel to Rodeo: one giant single, a run of very good ones, and a mood that finally has somewhere to go.
Lil Uzi Vert vs. the WorldThirty two minutes of pure sugar rush. The moment the whole style arrived.
King Push - Darkest Before Dawn: The PreludeA short, grim holding pattern that is better than most people's actual albums.