Top 100 Music Albums of 2019 by 
babyBlueSedan 
Some people measure the passage of time with each birthday, I do it with each year chart intro I write. As always, here are the dumb rules I follow:
1. Everything I listen to will be here because I am a completionist
2. The comments will vary wildly in quality and effort
3. Everything rated 70 or higher will someday work its way into my collection. Anything rated 65 or maaaaybe 60 is still recommended but I probably thought it had "consistency problems" or "no real standouts"
4. I've gotten a bit more critical with my rating scale because I noticed I rate 80% of albums a 65, so there may be a few more lower-rated albums this year
- Chart updated: 05/29/2020 17:15
- (Created: 01/23/2019 01:52).
- Chart size: 100 albums.
There are 2 comments for this chart from BestEverAlbums.com members and Top 100 Music Albums of 2019 has an average rating of 89 out of 100 (from 7 votes). Please log in or register to leave a comment or assign a rating.
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65/100
Thanos disintegration hip hop
I want to rate this one higher because it keeps drawing me back in with it's bleak, vaguely hip hop landscapes but every time I put it on I get bored halfway through. There are some great parts, like the second track and the pole switch interlude, but also long stretches of...nothing. If it was more beats and less collage I'd like it more. [First added to this chart: 06/15/2019]
Thanos disintegration hip hop
I want to rate this one higher because it keeps drawing me back in with it's bleak, vaguely hip hop landscapes but every time I put it on I get bored halfway through. There are some great parts, like the second track and the pole switch interlude, but also long stretches of...nothing. If it was more beats and less collage I'd like it more. [First added to this chart: 06/15/2019]
3
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65/100
UK Hip Hop
My biggest comparison for this album would be last year's Saba album, which I was not a fan of. The first reason for that comparison is that I really like the production. The first track has a cool flute sound going on, and the tracks all have some sort of extra thing like that to enhance them. It can get a bit busy at times, and there are too many strings, but overall it works.
The second reason that comparison came to mind is that the lyrics here feel like they're supposed to be much deeper than they are. There's a lot of socially conscious stuff, which I appreciate, but a lot of her lyrics are pretty surface level stuff about the dangers of gun violence and such. It's not that big of a deal, but it's a little distracting when you know exactly what she's going to be rhyming words with.
The one difference with the Saba album is that I really like Little Simz as an MC. She has a lot of swagger, a great flow, and she sounds fearless when rapping. I just wish this album felt a little bit more impactful. It's undoubtedly a very personal and well-thought out album, but I'm never able to make it to the end and still be invested in it. [First added to this chart: 03/30/2019]
UK Hip Hop
My biggest comparison for this album would be last year's Saba album, which I was not a fan of. The first reason for that comparison is that I really like the production. The first track has a cool flute sound going on, and the tracks all have some sort of extra thing like that to enhance them. It can get a bit busy at times, and there are too many strings, but overall it works.
The second reason that comparison came to mind is that the lyrics here feel like they're supposed to be much deeper than they are. There's a lot of socially conscious stuff, which I appreciate, but a lot of her lyrics are pretty surface level stuff about the dangers of gun violence and such. It's not that big of a deal, but it's a little distracting when you know exactly what she's going to be rhyming words with.
The one difference with the Saba album is that I really like Little Simz as an MC. She has a lot of swagger, a great flow, and she sounds fearless when rapping. I just wish this album felt a little bit more impactful. It's undoubtedly a very personal and well-thought out album, but I'm never able to make it to the end and still be invested in it. [First added to this chart: 03/30/2019]
Year of Release:
2019
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,607
Rank in 2019:
Rank in 2010s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
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65/100
Indie alt-country?
There are a bunch of different directions I could take this write-up, and against my better judgement I'm going to try them all instead of focusing on one. First off we have the members of this band. Stranger in the Alps was my favorite album of 2017 and Me & My Dog was one of my favorite songs of 2018, so you could say I'm a pretty big fan of Phoebe Bridgers. On the other hand, we have Connor Oberst. I've heard one Bright Eyes album and only gave it one listen because I had no opinion on it. So the amount I care about both artists is a bit unbalanced, and rather than approaching this as an amazing team up I'm approaching it as Phoebe's next album, which is...the wrong way to approach it, I admit. While this still has the same wit and self-deprecation as the rest of Bridgers's work, it's very different musically, at least as different as vaguely indie rock/folk can be. So my first struggle with this album is that it's a new direction from one of my favorite artists that I'm not really big on.
Secondly, I think I'm a guilty of giving up on artists when they go a direction I wasn't expecting or didn't care for. I remember writing off albums by Everything Everything (A Fever Dream) and Vince Staples (Big Fish Theory) in 2017 only to come around to them eventually and put them on par with the rest of the artists' stuff. So part of me worries that I'm doing the same thing hear. I'll honestly admit I wanted another Stranger in the Alps, and this album makes me slightly scared I won't get it. I've also got a bit of FOMO as Bridgers is getting bigger and I'm not really along for the ride. So even after three lukewarm listens I worry that I'm prejudiced against this album and should just let it go.
But thirdly, the issue I have with this album is that it contains almost nothing of what made me fall in love with Bridgers's music in the first place. Stranger in the Alps was such a revelation for me because of how restrained and slow-burning it was despite packing so much of an emotional punch. It felt so understated, but at the same time you could hear rage and sorrow bubbling under the surface. BOCC is a lot more straightforward musically, as it's basically a straight indie rock record. Which isn't really bad per se, but none of these songs really catch my ear even after multiple listens. There's no sudden climaxes like in "Georgia," no weird feedbacky intros like in "Killer." There is the weirdly synthy "Exception to the Rule," which suffers both from feeling really out of place and from having some of the worst lyrics on the album. And there's the suddenly rocky "Big Black Hearts," which sounds like a rock song by someone who has no idea how to write a rock song. The rest places it fairly safe, and it's telling that my favorite songs - "Chesapeake" and "Didn't Know What I Was In For" - lean the closest to Stranger in the Alps.
And more than anything else, I liked Bridgers for her lyrics. I loved how she blended really general emotions with really specific details that framed everything. This album feels a lot less vulnerable lyrically, as in all of the messages are really standard and just feel like vague platitudes. It also feels a bit preachy in places, which may just be me. I'm also not a fan of the dual vocals. I don't hate Oberst's voice (but I kind of dislike it), but I wish he would just let Phoebe sing. "Chesapeake" would be even better if Oberst would keep quiet and let her sing. I'd even be fine if the vocals were split evenly between the tracks, but their voices just don't sound good together.
So those are my probably terrible opinions. Maybe I'll come back to this one at the end of the year and enjoy it more. But until then I feel a bit let down and somehow guilty. Music is confusing, eh? [First added to this chart: 02/14/2019]
Indie alt-country?
There are a bunch of different directions I could take this write-up, and against my better judgement I'm going to try them all instead of focusing on one. First off we have the members of this band. Stranger in the Alps was my favorite album of 2017 and Me & My Dog was one of my favorite songs of 2018, so you could say I'm a pretty big fan of Phoebe Bridgers. On the other hand, we have Connor Oberst. I've heard one Bright Eyes album and only gave it one listen because I had no opinion on it. So the amount I care about both artists is a bit unbalanced, and rather than approaching this as an amazing team up I'm approaching it as Phoebe's next album, which is...the wrong way to approach it, I admit. While this still has the same wit and self-deprecation as the rest of Bridgers's work, it's very different musically, at least as different as vaguely indie rock/folk can be. So my first struggle with this album is that it's a new direction from one of my favorite artists that I'm not really big on.
Secondly, I think I'm a guilty of giving up on artists when they go a direction I wasn't expecting or didn't care for. I remember writing off albums by Everything Everything (A Fever Dream) and Vince Staples (Big Fish Theory) in 2017 only to come around to them eventually and put them on par with the rest of the artists' stuff. So part of me worries that I'm doing the same thing hear. I'll honestly admit I wanted another Stranger in the Alps, and this album makes me slightly scared I won't get it. I've also got a bit of FOMO as Bridgers is getting bigger and I'm not really along for the ride. So even after three lukewarm listens I worry that I'm prejudiced against this album and should just let it go.
But thirdly, the issue I have with this album is that it contains almost nothing of what made me fall in love with Bridgers's music in the first place. Stranger in the Alps was such a revelation for me because of how restrained and slow-burning it was despite packing so much of an emotional punch. It felt so understated, but at the same time you could hear rage and sorrow bubbling under the surface. BOCC is a lot more straightforward musically, as it's basically a straight indie rock record. Which isn't really bad per se, but none of these songs really catch my ear even after multiple listens. There's no sudden climaxes like in "Georgia," no weird feedbacky intros like in "Killer." There is the weirdly synthy "Exception to the Rule," which suffers both from feeling really out of place and from having some of the worst lyrics on the album. And there's the suddenly rocky "Big Black Hearts," which sounds like a rock song by someone who has no idea how to write a rock song. The rest places it fairly safe, and it's telling that my favorite songs - "Chesapeake" and "Didn't Know What I Was In For" - lean the closest to Stranger in the Alps.
And more than anything else, I liked Bridgers for her lyrics. I loved how she blended really general emotions with really specific details that framed everything. This album feels a lot less vulnerable lyrically, as in all of the messages are really standard and just feel like vague platitudes. It also feels a bit preachy in places, which may just be me. I'm also not a fan of the dual vocals. I don't hate Oberst's voice (but I kind of dislike it), but I wish he would just let Phoebe sing. "Chesapeake" would be even better if Oberst would keep quiet and let her sing. I'd even be fine if the vocals were split evenly between the tracks, but their voices just don't sound good together.
So those are my probably terrible opinions. Maybe I'll come back to this one at the end of the year and enjoy it more. But until then I feel a bit let down and somehow guilty. Music is confusing, eh? [First added to this chart: 02/14/2019]
Year of Release:
2019
Appears in:
Rank Score:
277
Rank in 2019:
Rank in 2010s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
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65/100
Synth pop
After a pretty forgettable opener, this thing kicks it up to 11 with the line "So I heard the bad news, nobody loves me and I'm gonna die alone." The song that lines opens is pretty good, but the next one - "Stayaway" - is even better, combining a fantastic hook with really detailed lyrics about letting go and moving on. After that, this takes a rather large dip in quality as nothing until the closer is very memorable. Recommended for pop fans, if the middle was at all better I'd rate this better. [First added to this chart: 09/15/2019]
Synth pop
After a pretty forgettable opener, this thing kicks it up to 11 with the line "So I heard the bad news, nobody loves me and I'm gonna die alone." The song that lines opens is pretty good, but the next one - "Stayaway" - is even better, combining a fantastic hook with really detailed lyrics about letting go and moving on. After that, this takes a rather large dip in quality as nothing until the closer is very memorable. Recommended for pop fans, if the middle was at all better I'd rate this better. [First added to this chart: 09/15/2019]
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65/100
Dance Pop
This was never going to be another EMOTION, which is probably a good thing because not getting stale and all that. The early singles are probably my favorite songs, but none of them really blow me away. There's a weak stretch in the middle after six very strong songs, though it picks up again at the end. After a few listens I'm throwing a 65 on this because it hasn't truly grabbed me.
I revisited this for end of the year list season in the hope that I would come back to these songs and it would be like rediscovering a lost friendship or something. It wasn't. If anything, these songs have grown off of me in the past six months. This just feels more restrained than EMOTION and never really lets loose, and while I described a lot of my favorite albums this year as "restrained" this is not one that benefits from it. [First added to this chart: 07/04/2019]
Dance Pop
This was never going to be another EMOTION, which is probably a good thing because not getting stale and all that. The early singles are probably my favorite songs, but none of them really blow me away. There's a weak stretch in the middle after six very strong songs, though it picks up again at the end. After a few listens I'm throwing a 65 on this because it hasn't truly grabbed me.
I revisited this for end of the year list season in the hope that I would come back to these songs and it would be like rediscovering a lost friendship or something. It wasn't. If anything, these songs have grown off of me in the past six months. This just feels more restrained than EMOTION and never really lets loose, and while I described a lot of my favorite albums this year as "restrained" this is not one that benefits from it. [First added to this chart: 07/04/2019]
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65/100
Country (indie) pop
This is a really pleasant album that suffers a bit from a lack of variety. Overall the songs sound great, a nice mix of country twang and more standard pop and indie tropes. Webster has a really soft voice that carries the songs well and really sells the lonely, lovelorn lyrics. There's one song where she sings about only loving her dog but not even knowing if her dog loves her and it's pretty sweet.
But like I said there's not a ton of variety (except for that final track, where the hell did that come from?) and a lot of the songs suffer from repetition. The second song feels like it gives up halfway and just repeats the same line over and over, and while it's the worst offender a few of the other ones do the same thing. [First added to this chart: 07/04/2019]
Country (indie) pop
This is a really pleasant album that suffers a bit from a lack of variety. Overall the songs sound great, a nice mix of country twang and more standard pop and indie tropes. Webster has a really soft voice that carries the songs well and really sells the lonely, lovelorn lyrics. There's one song where she sings about only loving her dog but not even knowing if her dog loves her and it's pretty sweet.
But like I said there's not a ton of variety (except for that final track, where the hell did that come from?) and a lot of the songs suffer from repetition. The second song feels like it gives up halfway and just repeats the same line over and over, and while it's the worst offender a few of the other ones do the same thing. [First added to this chart: 07/04/2019]
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65/100
Who? rap
I would be more surprised at the guy from Future Islands putting out a great rap album if he hadn't been popping up on Milo and Open Mike Eagle albums for the past few years. He's very technically skilled, and he sounds almost conversational when he raps. The production is great of course - it's Kenny Segal after all. I will say this suffers a bit in that a lot of the songs are similar and there are no real standouts. After one listen I didn't think I'd go back but it held up for a couple more. I don't plan to go back to it, but I'm hopeful he can become a better songwriter and make something that stands out more. [First added to this chart: 11/14/2019]
Who? rap
I would be more surprised at the guy from Future Islands putting out a great rap album if he hadn't been popping up on Milo and Open Mike Eagle albums for the past few years. He's very technically skilled, and he sounds almost conversational when he raps. The production is great of course - it's Kenny Segal after all. I will say this suffers a bit in that a lot of the songs are similar and there are no real standouts. After one listen I didn't think I'd go back but it held up for a couple more. I don't plan to go back to it, but I'm hopeful he can become a better songwriter and make something that stands out more. [First added to this chart: 11/14/2019]
38. (=)
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65/100
Robot pop
The first two thirds of this album is pretty swell but there aren't any standout WOW tracks, though there are a few really good ones. The last third or so was something I really didn't like. [First added to this chart: 09/15/2019]
Robot pop
The first two thirds of this album is pretty swell but there aren't any standout WOW tracks, though there are a few really good ones. The last third or so was something I really didn't like. [First added to this chart: 09/15/2019]
Year of Release:
2019
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,003
Rank in 2019:
Rank in 2010s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
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65/100
Dream emo (dreamo?)
I was a defender of American Football's 2016 album, but looking back I think that was mostly because I really wanted the album to be good. I still enjoy listening to it, but it's one of those album where I can't really defend it outside of me being a fan of the band. Like if I had to describe to someone why they should listen to it I couldn't come up with much (aside from "I'm as blue as the sky is gray" being the best emo lyric of all time that is).
So I appreciate that the band tried something new here, because this really doesn't feel like their other albums. The opener, which is great, is pretty much a straight dream pop track and finds their sound feeling much bigger than normal. And this carries through to the rest of the album, which feels beautifully spacey, and the female vocals that appear on a few tracks certainly help.
Which is why I feel bad for not loving this as a whole. American Football have always been just a bit cheesy, but song titles like "Uncomfortably Numb" and "Doom in Full Bloom" are really pushing my limits. The former is especially annoying because it's based on a reference that's barely interesting the first time you read it, let alone the fourth time Mike Kinesella has sung it. "Doom in Full Bloom" at least has some nice horns at the start, though anytime the band breaks out a trumpet now I just feel like they're trying to recreate "Summer's End."
There's also the slight problem that...I don't really like dream pop. Every song on this album, barring the opener, is about two minutes too long, and those extra minutes are filled with repetitive guitar parts that build atmosphere but don't feel substantial. I enjoy listening to them all, but halfway through each song I feel myself waiting for the next one to start. If this was a bit more concise I think I would love it. [First added to this chart: 04/14/2019]
Dream emo (dreamo?)
I was a defender of American Football's 2016 album, but looking back I think that was mostly because I really wanted the album to be good. I still enjoy listening to it, but it's one of those album where I can't really defend it outside of me being a fan of the band. Like if I had to describe to someone why they should listen to it I couldn't come up with much (aside from "I'm as blue as the sky is gray" being the best emo lyric of all time that is).
So I appreciate that the band tried something new here, because this really doesn't feel like their other albums. The opener, which is great, is pretty much a straight dream pop track and finds their sound feeling much bigger than normal. And this carries through to the rest of the album, which feels beautifully spacey, and the female vocals that appear on a few tracks certainly help.
Which is why I feel bad for not loving this as a whole. American Football have always been just a bit cheesy, but song titles like "Uncomfortably Numb" and "Doom in Full Bloom" are really pushing my limits. The former is especially annoying because it's based on a reference that's barely interesting the first time you read it, let alone the fourth time Mike Kinesella has sung it. "Doom in Full Bloom" at least has some nice horns at the start, though anytime the band breaks out a trumpet now I just feel like they're trying to recreate "Summer's End."
There's also the slight problem that...I don't really like dream pop. Every song on this album, barring the opener, is about two minutes too long, and those extra minutes are filled with repetitive guitar parts that build atmosphere but don't feel substantial. I enjoy listening to them all, but halfway through each song I feel myself waiting for the next one to start. If this was a bit more concise I think I would love it. [First added to this chart: 04/14/2019]
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65/100
Boom bap
This is pretty solid but didn't blow me away. Favorite part is Rapsody calling JID out for using the word "bitch" if only because it makes me wonder if it was planned or not. [First added to this chart: 09/15/2019]
Boom bap
This is pretty solid but didn't blow me away. Favorite part is Rapsody calling JID out for using the word "bitch" if only because it makes me wonder if it was planned or not. [First added to this chart: 09/15/2019]
Total albums: 100. Page 4 of 10
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Top 100 Music Albums of 2019 composition
| Artist | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
 |
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|
|
| Big Thief | 2 | 2% | |
| Quelle Chris | 1 | 1% | |
| Blu & Oh No | 1 | 1% | |
| Waste Of Space Orchestra | 1 | 1% | |
| Vampire Weekend | 1 | 1% | |
| Purple Mountains | 1 | 1% | |
| Young Thug | 1 | 1% | |
| Show all | |||
| Country | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
73 | 73% | |
 |
11 | 11% | |
 |
6 | 6% | |
 |
3 | 3% | |
 |
2 | 2% | |
 |
1 | 1% | |
 |
1 | 1% | |
| Show all | |||
Top 100 Music Albums of 2019 chart changes
| Biggest climbers |
|---|
 Up 4 from 23rd to 19thReflections by Hannah Diamond |
| Up 3 from 21st to 18th OOFIE by Wiki |
| Up 3 from 18th to 15th Guns by Quelle Chris |
| Biggest fallers |
|---|
| Down 13 from 12th to 25th Ghosteen by Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds |
| Down 3 from 19th to 22nd Ventura by Anderson .Paak |
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Other year charts (from the 2010s) by babyBlueSedan
Top 100 Music Albums of 2018 by babyBlueSedan (2020)Top 100 Music Albums of 2017 by
babyBlueSedan (2020)Top 100 Music Albums of 2016 by
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babyBlueSedan (2020)Top 30 Music Albums of 2013 by
babyBlueSedan (2020)Top 16 Music Albums of 2012 by
babyBlueSedan (2020)Top 17 Music Albums of 2011 by
babyBlueSedan (2020)Top 12 Music Albums of 2010 by
babyBlueSedan (2020)Top 100 Music Albums of 2019 ratings
89/100 (from 7 votes)
where:
av = trimmed mean average rating an item has currently received.
n = number of ratings an item has currently received.
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AV = the site mean average rating.
N.B. The average rating for this chart will not be reliable as it has been rated very few times.
Showing latest 5 ratings for this chart. | Show all 7 ratings for this chart.
| Rating | Date updated | Member | Chart ratings | Avg. chart rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
95/100  | 01/12/2021 11:17 |  Larcx13 | | 86/100 |
100/100 | 08/05/2020 12:01 |  Purplepash | | 88/100 |
 80/100 | 11/15/2019 07:30 |  mickilennial | | 77/100 |
| 100/100 | 11/09/2019 15:26 |  Mattdup279 | | 88/100 |
| 85/100 | 10/06/2019 05:27 |  Arthurknight | | 89/100 |
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95/100
From Larcx13 01/12/2021 11:17
Larcx13 01/12/2021 11:17
Once again, good work put in. I just cant stand IGOR at all....
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80/100
From mickilennial 11/15/2019 07:31
mickilennial 11/15/2019 07:31
Solid list. Interesting to see some artists as high as they are, but I really like the commentary and placements.
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| Best Artists of 1977 | |
|---|---|
| 1. Fleetwood Mac | |
| 2. David Bowie | |
| 3. Pink Floyd | |
| 4. Television | |
| 5. Sex Pistols | |
| 6. Steely Dan | |
| 7. Billy Joel | |
| 8. Bob Marley & The Wailers | |
| 9. Bob Marley | |
| 10. The Clash | |
| 11. Iggy Pop | |
| 12. Kraftwerk | |
| 13. Wire | |
| 14. Ramones | |
| 15. Elvis Costello | |
| 16. Electric Light Orchestra | |
| 17. Talking Heads | |
| 18. Meat Loaf | |
| 19. Suicide | |
| 20. Fela Kuti |