Top 100 Music Albums of 2016
by 
RockyRaccoon 
Also check out my 2016 Honorable Mentions chart: http://www.besteveralbums.com/thechart.php?c=30948
- Chart updated: 11/04/2025 15:45
- (Created: 01/08/2016 15:21).
- Chart size: 100 albums.
There are 10 comments for this chart from BestEverAlbums.com members and Top 100 Music Albums of 2016 has an average rating of 93 out of 100 (from 25 votes). Please log in or register to leave a comment or assign a rating.
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I'd have to say that I think not many people expected this out of Justin Vernon. The first two folky Bon Iver albums are probably still playing at a Starbucks somewhere, but with 22, A Million, Vernon has ditched the acoustic guitars for vocoded falsettos and glitchy electronics, and it's absolutely fantastic. My first thought listening to this was that I hear a little bit of Kanye, which makes sense considering their friendship and mutual admiration for each other. On this album, Vernon takes his insecurities, his doubts, his depression, his fear of mortality, and he turns them into sonic confidence, he puts them out on display for everyone, daring you to accept him for who he is. Plenty of folk artists ditch folk to move forward with their artistry, and Vernon is another in the same kind, progressing as an artist towards whatever he feels he needs to. This album is beautiful, unique, powerful, and honest. It's everything I didn't know I needed out of a Bon Iver album.
[First added to this chart: 10/03/2016]
Year of Release:
2016
Appears in:
Rank Score:
4,359
Rank in 2016:
Rank in 2010s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
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Inter Arma have done it. They've created a perfect album, the album that I knew they could create. You could hear the potential, especially in The Cavern, their release from 2014, but this, this is a whole other level for them. You can't pigeonhole Inter Arma to one subgenre, they're somewhere between post-metal, doom metal, and black metal. Call them what you want, they transcend genre or classification, and that's what makes them so incredible. This is metal that has the crushing weight of bands like Swans or Neurosis. Trey Dalton and Steven Russell are absolute masters on guitar, I had to actually stop what I was doing as "Potomac" ended, I was stunned, I don't remember the last time a piece of music affected me like that. This is one of the greatest metal albums I've ever listened to, a holistic, visceral work that radiates equal parts beauty and ferocity.
[First added to this chart: 07/14/2016]
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The way many artists (probably most artists) deal with terrible tragedy is by pouring it into their art. It's their way of expressing themselves, it's their way of letting everything out, and often times incredible art is born from horrible tragedy. That's the case with Skeleton Tree, an album made in the wake of the death of Nick Cave's 15-year-old son, who fell off a cliff last July. I've been listening to this album a lot, and it's heart-wrenching. The music is sparse, almost bordering on ambient at times, and you get Nick Cave, a man who's 58 years old, dealing with his ideas of life and death, dealing with an unbearable loss in the only way he knows how: through music. "I Need You" is perhaps the most beautiful song on the album, a song about the feelings of hopelessness in loss: "Nothing really matters when the one you love is gone". This album is just beautiful, it's tragic, it's honest, it's personal, it's a masterpiece.
[First added to this chart: 09/14/2016]
Year of Release:
2016
Appears in:
Rank Score:
4,446
Rank in 2016:
Rank in 2010s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
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No matter what he's singing, BJ The Chicago Kid (Brian James Sledge) is soulful. He has one of the smoothest soul voices I've heard out there, and everything he sings is with passion. Whether he's singing about going to church or intimate sex, he's doing it tenderly, and with soul. Lyrically, this album is great. Perhaps the highlight for me is "Church", a song in which Sledge talks about a woman who wants to "drink, do drugs, and have sex", but he's hesitant, because he has church in the morning. Honestly, I feel like that's kind of different, because you would expect the song to be about how he's down with that and they're gonna make love and do drugs or whatever, but it's not. We don't learn much about Sledge in the song, but we learn a lot about the woman, how she "doesn't want to be saved" (as Chance The Rapper says in his excellent guest spot), what she likes, what she doesn't like, she is the focus, not Sledge, which is different. Other songs like "Love Inside" and "The New Cupid" are about as smooth and soulful as it gets with great hooks. This album from top to bottom is excellent without a moment of filler (even the kind of corny "Resume" is pretty good). Sledge kills it vocally, and the guest spots from people like Chance and Kendrick Lamar are excellent, and don't overtake the songs, despite the relative fame of the guests. It's a fantastic album.
[First added to this chart: 03/01/2016]
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The thing that makes Mike Eagle so great is that he doesn't rap, he just talks to you and it happens to rhyme. That's the sign of good songwriting, whether hip-hop or otherwise, when the rhymes sound accidental, like it just coincidentally happened in the course of conversation. Mike Eagle has always been exceptionally good at communicating his thoughts, he unpacks his observations slowly in each song and draws you into the narrative of whatever he's saying. On this album, he goes anywhere from criticizing people's obsessions with their phones to talking about racial issues, and he does it all so effortlessly and so perfectly that you can't help but be captivated by him. Along with Paul White's 70s-inspired production, which is excellent and accents Eagle perfectly, we have one of the best, if not the best, hip-hop albums released this year.
[First added to this chart: 04/05/2016]
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Comeback albums can be difficult. Often times, they can be disappointing, as our favorite musicians sometimes don't age well, and they put out an album that screams "Hey remember how cool we used to be?!" Or, sometimes, our favorite musicians haven't lost their step at all, and they make another fantastic album, as is the case here with A Tribe Called Quest. It's sad, obviously, that Phife Dawg died before this album came out, but it's wonderful that he was able to do some recording for it before he died, his contributions are just as excellent as you'd expect. The whole group is in top form, Q-Tip kills it on virtually every track, and the album feels like a Tribe album. East coast hip-hop mixed with some jazz and a little bit more, produced excellently so it doesn't sound dated. The live instrumentation is fantastic, this album features not only a cavalcade of famous rappers (Busta Rhymes, Andre 3000, Talib Kweli, Kanye West, Kendrick Lamar), but also Jack White and Elton John oddly enough. And you know what? It works. It works really well. There's no better way for Tribe to go out than with this album, proving that they are truly one of, if not the, greatest hip-hop groups of all time.
[First added to this chart: 11/15/2016]
Year of Release:
2016
Appears in:
Rank Score:
3,423
Rank in 2016:
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Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
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There are few album releases that will come with the fanfare that a new Radiohead album comes with. People go over each Radiohead release with an intense fervor that is almost unmatched in music, some claiming it to be a revelation of music, others claiming it to be self-indulgent crap, but as with most things, the truth is somewhere in the middle. This is a fantastic album, it really is. It's far better than Radiohead's previous effort, The King Of Limbs, which, while a good album, felt more like Thom Yorke and his backup band rather than a Radiohead album. It felt more like The Eraser Part II. But this is a Radiohead album, this is the band together making music like only they can. This is distinctly Radiohead, yet simultaneously, builds upon their previous releases rather than rips from them. This is Radiohead exhaling slowly and trying to relax, they're not paranoid anymore, they're not jumpy, they're calm. Each and every song flows into the other, making for one cohesive work of art that will meld itself with you, completely surrounding you and enveloping you. Some of the best Radiohead songs we've heard in a long time (including album closer "True Love Waits") are on this album, and it makes for a fantastic addition in the discography of one of the greatest rock bands in history.
[First added to this chart: 05/11/2016]
Year of Release:
2016
Appears in:
Rank Score:
15,143
Rank in 2016:
Rank in 2010s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
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The Body is one of the most prolific and interesting doom metal bands out there. Their take on noisy doom has resulted in some of the most frightening and interesting metal albums in the past few years. Full Of Hell, on the other hand, is a more noisy, grind-oriented metal band. So what happens when they come together? You get one of the most frightening, harrowing metal albums I've ever heard. This whole album is so disorienting, it's like the aural representation of pain and despair. Rarely has an album ever made me feel so physically uncomfortable, but this one did. The Body and Full Of Hell blend their sounds perfectly, at some points the album feels more doom-oriented, and at others it sounds more grind-oriented. It's like the two bands are constantly attacking each other trying to establish dominance. They even take on a Leonard Cohen song ("The Butcher") and pummel it beyond all recognition. It's a seriously powerful album, it shows the depths of pain and anguish in the human soul. It's a heavy listen, but an amazing one.
[First added to this chart: 05/05/2016]
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While this album is only 27 minutes long, it leaves a major impact. Jean-Michel Blais spent two years improvising on his piano every day, and the result is this album. If I had any criticism of this album, it's that I wish it was longer, because each track is so excellently done. Blais' music is accessible, light, and melodic, but still effective. While the piano is the main focus of this album, there are all kinds of other things that Blais adds, whether it's some field recordings, a little cello, whatever he adds just makes the song that much more interesting. Sometimes cinematic-sounding albums can be a little slow, soundtracks are obviously meant to accompany something else, and this album could easily work as a soundtrack, but it's a rewarding listen on its own as well. It's calming and beautiful.
[First added to this chart: 05/11/2016]
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I've always thought that Solange would forever live in the massive shadow of her sister, I thought that she would forever be known as "Beyonce's sister" rather than just Solange. But she had started making waves before this album, and with A Seat At The Table, she has surpassed anything her sister has done (in my opinion). That may be a bold statement, but this is an album that warrants that. This album makes a statement without being sententious, it's subtle, but not so subtle that you can't hear what it's saying. This album refuses to be defined by anyone's terms other than Solange's, this is her album, make no mistake. This is an album very obviously made within a specific time and place, within a specific movement. Solange deals with being black in America today, she handles it not by saying "screw you" to everyone else, but by saying "here's what life is, let's think about it". There are a few spoken word parts, skits I guess you could call them, that fit perfectly with the album. They talk about what Solange's mother sees as the absurdity of reverse racism, a few clips of Master P interviews, and a story from Solange's father about the integration of Alabama schools in the 60s. Overall, this album is excellently done both musically and lyrically. It's a powerful album that also grooves well, it has a great balance and a unique identity.
[First added to this chart: 12/14/2016]
Year of Release:
2016
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,866
Rank in 2016:
Rank in 2010s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Total albums: 100. Page 1 of 10
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Top 100 Music Albums of 2016 composition
| Artist | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
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| Nyck Caution | 1 | 1% | |
| Wode | 1 | 1% | |
| Moon Hooch | 1 | 1% | |
| Danny Brown | 1 | 1% | |
| White Lung | 1 | 1% | |
| Bat For Lashes | 1 | 1% | |
| Solange | 1 | 1% | |
| Show all | |||
| Country | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
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| |
55 | 55% | |
 |
12 | 12% | |
 |
8 | 8% | |
 |
6 | 6% | |
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4 | 4% | |
 |
3 | 3% | |
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3 | 3% | |
| Show all | |||
Top 100 Music Albums of 2016 chart changes
| Biggest fallers |
|---|
| Down 1 from 49th to 50th Trance Frendz by Ólafur Arnalds & Nils Frahm |
| Down 1 from 50th to 51st What One Becomes by Sumac |
| Down 1 from 51st to 52nd Wode by Wode |
| New entries |
|---|
| Lovers, Part 1 by Timecop1983 |
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RockyRaccoon has created 71 other 2016 year charts - click here to explore them all.
Top 100 Music Albums of 2016 ratings
Average Rating = (n ÷ (n + m)) × av + (m ÷ (n + m)) × AVwhere:
av = trimmed mean average rating an item has currently received.
n = number of ratings an item has currently received.
m = minimum number of ratings required for an item to appear in a 'top-rated' chart (currently 10).
AV = the site mean average rating.
Showing latest 5 ratings for this chart. | Show all 25 ratings for this chart.
| Rating | Date updated | Member | Chart ratings | Avg. chart rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ! | 12/18/2025 08:50 | Juneof44 | 53 | 83/100 |
| ! | 04/21/2024 20:36 |  HoldenM | 480 | 95/100 |
| ! | 04/21/2024 11:02 |  Tamthebam | 645 | 85/100 |
| ! | 04/21/2024 10:10 | Johnnyo | 2,557 | 80/100 |
| ! | 02/13/2022 13:19 |  sszwalbenest | 30 | 79/100 |
Rating metrics:
Outliers can be removed when calculating a mean average to dampen the effects of ratings outside the normal distribution. This figure is provided as the trimmed mean. A high standard deviation can be legitimate, but can sometimes indicate 'gaming' is occurring. Consider a simplified example* of an item receiving ratings of 100, 50, & 0. The mean average rating would be 50. However, ratings of 55, 50 & 45 could also result in the same average. The second average might be more trusted because there is more consensus around a particular rating (a lower deviation).
(*In practice, some charts can have several thousand ratings)
This chart is rated in the top 1% of all charts on BestEverAlbums.com. This chart has a Bayesian average rating of 93.2/100, a mean average of 95.2/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 96.3/100. The standard deviation for this chart is 7.7.
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Top 100 Music Albums of 2016 comments
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From 
ForegroundNoise 02/17/2020 08:20 | #247888
ForegroundNoise 02/17/2020 08:20 | #247888
Comprehensive, detailed, varied. It boggles my mind how a single person can know a year so intimately. This is more than just an assembled list; each album has clearly been given due attention before its placement. There's just the right balance of familiar and obscure too, a surprise from someone whose overall chart has a fair bit of classic rock. This might as well be from a one-man music publication - I'll be sure to pay your charts more attention in future!
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +2 votes (2 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From 
JulianR 03/09/2018 08:10 | #210451
JulianR 03/09/2018 08:10 | #210451
What a fantastic chart!
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +2 votes (2 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From 
Daydreamer 04/14/2017 15:08 | #189261
Daydreamer 04/14/2017 15:08 | #189261
This is great, I love the fact that you rate acclaimed and famous albums and the unknown ones the same. I hope to learn from your charts since I've never heard about a bit portion of stuff here.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From AMBNTnoises 11/11/2016 14:59 | #178289
There are a lot of fantastic albums on this chart, and a lot that I have to go listen to. Based on the albums that I have listened to on this chart, I'm excited to check out the other bands listed.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From 
Graeme2 10/12/2016 07:09 | #176739
Graeme2 10/12/2016 07:09 | #176739
Plenty to check. Very handy with the all the info too. Good stuff.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From 
mickilennial 06/10/2016 14:57 | #168397
mickilennial 06/10/2016 14:57 | #168397
"This is an album that sounds like maybe it's at peace with itself" - probably because it's Richmond Fontaine final album? :F
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From mickilennial 06/07/2016 18:10 | #168128
mickilennial 06/07/2016 18:10 | #168128
There's a lot here for me to look into, and already a bit I disagree with. Seems like it could be particularly interesting how this shifts as the second half of the year comes through. Will be looking through this lots.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From RockyRaccoon 05/05/2016 14:53 | #165251
RockyRaccoon 05/05/2016 14:53 | #165251
@dbz - dude that's awesome, lucky you.
And yes you need to check out that BJ Chicago Kid album, I'm interested to see what you think.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From RockyRaccoon 03/24/2016 18:16 | #162429
RockyRaccoon 03/24/2016 18:16 | #162429
u da best apple
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From 
Applerill 03/24/2016 13:41 | #162413
Applerill 03/24/2016 13:41 | #162413
y r u so smrat :'(
I was originally rating this so you could eventually rate my 2016 chart, but your comments once again show that I'm not worthy. Amazing job, Rocky, especially as your picks are just as extraordinary as what you write about them.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
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