The Phoenix’s Top Albums of 2024

Between bold songwriting and brat summer, 2024 was a musical bacchanal. The Phoenix’s staff assessed their favorite albums of the year.

“Imaginal Disk” by Magdalena Bay – Kevin Stovich

Magdalena Bay’s “Imaginal Disk,” released Aug. 23, is a project full of innovative ideas, instrumentation and intellect.

The pop duo melds electronic, pop and rock sounds to craft a sonically immersive experience. According to an interview with Variety, “Imaginal Disk” revolves around a character named True as she rejects the titular disk implanted in her forehead, instead searching for her own truth. 

“Watching T. V.” and “Cry for Me” are standouts, both crescendoing to musical explosions by their ends. Similarly, dance-pop anthems “That’s My Floor” and “Death & Romance” pull the audience to the center of an auditory dance floor.

What sets the record apart is the duo’s fearlessness in embracing more experimental strains of music, seen in the prog rock outro of “Tunnel Vision.”

“Imaginal Disk” invites listeners into a creative soundscape, straight out of the minds of Magdalena Bay. 

“Brat” by Charli xcx – Allison Treanor

Charli xcx is an artist of paradoxes — mainstream yet subversive, classic yet experimental and rave-ready yet radio-friendly.

Released June 7, “Brat” is Charli’s most bombastic and vulnerable work yet. From the over-the-top indulgent “Von dutch” to the quiet, authentic “I think about it all the time,” Charli explores — and innovates — pop music.

The success of “Brat” only adds to the paradoxes — it’s Charli’s first album to forego a desire for commercial success in favor of pure self-expression, she said in an interview with Apple Music. The now-iconic album cover was even initially pitched to save money.

Her vision paid off, as “Brat” combines every contradiction into the ultimate Charli album — every song equal parts star and human, future and past, neon green and jet black — and all Charli. 

“In Dreams” by Duster – Matt Sorce

With zero promotion or announcement, slowcore rock band Duster released their sixth studio album “In Dreams” Aug. 30.

The band’s late ‘90s roots run deep in the opening track “Quiet Eyes” — its patient rhythm and whispered vocals wearily attempt to recapture their 2019 success — though the remaining album diverges into unexpected sonic territory.

Tracks like “Starting to Fall” and “Baking Tapes” balance the drab lyricism of existential disconnection with shoegaze guitar arrangements the band’s recently explored — and seemingly mastered.

“Petals falling apart / And tumbling down / Stay with me a while / A while,” lead singer Clay Parton sings.

“In Dreams” proves Duster’s ability to evolve without hinging on the unhurried flow that made their early work so enduring.

“Charm” by Clairo – Faith Hug

The allure of intimacy is captured in Clairo’s July 12 release, “Charm.” 

Singer-songwriter Clairo’s signature hushed vocals nestle comfortably into velvety instrumental beds, radiating soft rock and jazzy warmth. 

Flirtatious lyricism in standout tracks “Second Nature” and “Juna” explore the butterfly-inducing, cheek-blushing amusement of being charmed by a lover.

“And once you get in my ear / I see kismet sinking in / It’s second nature,” Clairo sings in “Second Nature.”

With a ‘70s-inspired sound, Clairo embraces the freedom to experiment with instrumentation and theme. What results is her most realized, sophisticated record yet. 

“Only God Was Above Us” by Vampire Weekend – Audrey Hogan

Vampire Weekend comes home on their latest album, returning to the syncretic blend of piano and Afro-beats which comprised their first self-titled project.

“Only God Was Above Us,” released April 5, is marked by a melancholic reckoning of what it means to get old and lose the youthful spark of rebellion. The album does this in spite of, and alongside, a more youthful sound reminiscent of the band’s early days.

“Too old for dyin’ young / Too young to live alone / Sifting through centuries / For moments of your own,” frontman Ezra Koenig sings in “Classical.” 

This style of lyricism — rocking between the rigidity of aging life and the neverending push toward change inherent to the progression of time — brings something new to the adolescent stylings of an older Vampire Weekend.