Best Albums of 2012

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Explore the best albums of 2012, based on over 2 million album rankings across 60,000 charts.
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2012 year summaryThe best artists of 2012 were Kendrick Lamar, Tame Impala, Frank Ocean, Beach House, Death Grips, alt-J, Fiona Apple, Lana Del Rey, Swans and Grimes.

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Good Kid, M.A.A.D City

Kendrick Lamar

"I'm tempted to call this The Wall of hip hop. Kendrick Lamar's insight into a troubled life in Compton gets better as the album moves forward. It's definitely something I had to pay close attention to. good kid m.A.A.d city is better listened through completely. It tells a story." Reply

NubbinBased | Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +13 votes (13 helpful | 0 unhelpful)

Year of Release:

2012

Appears in:

1,593 charts

Rank Score:

20,809

Rank in 2012:

Rank in 2010s:

Overall Rank:

Average Rating:

Comments:

"Lonerism is one of the few albums in this life that I'd dare label as a perfect album, and no, this didn't happen after my first listen. I discovered Tame Impala back in high school during their Innerspeaker days, and I was instantly captivated by their mix of alternative rock with some old schoo...""Lonerism is one of the few albums in this life that I'd dare label as a perfect album, and no, this didn't happen after my first listen. I discovered Tame Impala back in high school during their Innerspeaker days, and I was instantly captivated by their mix of alternative rock with some old school 60s/70s rock vibes. Needless to say, I highly anticipated their follow up at the time. After giving it a listen upon release, I pushed it aside, not really feeling the new sounds. It sounded like Tame Impala, but it was trying to be something else. Every now and then I would give it a few more listens, extending all the way to the end of 2014. Through all of those listens, the only song that really stood out to me was Apocalypse Dreams, because it reminded me of the Innerspeaker Tame Impala. During late 2014, my first break up, and as the feeling of loss and loneliness started overwhelming my life, I gave it another listen, and that’s when it all lined up. The album started making sense. It’s hard to understand certain themes in here being a kid and all, without knowing what losing others is like. Song after song, it felt like Kevin Parker was suddenly narrating my life. I started digging deeper through the lyrics, realizing that someone else (Kevin) had once felt the exact same way in some regard. Ironically, I started feeling less lonely. Music like this might sound depressing to some at first, but I believe it’s made like that for a reason. As you read through the relating lyrics and listen to the incredible sounds being thrown at you, you can’t help but smile every once in a while. It was truly a healing experience. By the end of that year, the album had become a nearly perfect one to me, but not quite. There were still some songs and themes that didn’t make sense to me, and as I’ve transitioned into adulthood, the themes have become more apparent, and I can suddenly view the album in more than one way. It’s no longer just an album about the feeling of being alone, loving someone, or losing someone. And it became apparent with the song that I was listening to the most the whole time, Apocalypse Dreams. The lines “Everything is changing, and there’s nothing I can do” mean more to me now as an adult, as I realize that we’re just a small part of huge universe that is constantly changing, both space wise, and Earth-wise. And while you think of that, you suddenly want to lay in bed in a fetal position and cry about it, but at the same time, it really makes you think of what it is that you’re doing with your life, and who you truly care about, and what your life would be without those people. And in the end, it makes you appreciate everything just a tad bit more, and essentially, enjoy your unique experience with the gift of life. This is how Lonerism has affected me, and I can go on and on. But there aren’t many other albums that I can say this about. 10/10 " [+] Reply

billymkay | Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +9 votes (9 helpful | 0 unhelpful)

Year of Release:

2012

Appears in:

1,465 charts

Rank Score:

13,776

Rank in 2012:

Rank in 2010s:

Overall Rank:

Average Rating:

Comments:

"Grower of the year. It's a really chill album. I find myself playing this in the morning when it's raining, with a cup of coffee. It might be a weird comparison, but he's like the Stevie Wonder of our time (if Stevie wonder was in Wu-Tang or sumthin). This is the only actual album I've purchased ..." [+] Reply

Hayden | Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +5 votes (6 helpful | 1 unhelpful)

Year of Release:

2012

Appears in:

1,006 charts

Rank Score:

8,435

Rank in 2012:

Rank in 2010s:

Overall Rank:

Average Rating:

Comments:

Bloom

"The "pop" in "dream pop" is accentuated significantly, but don't let that fool you -- the hooks are catchy and earwormy yet don't play on the nerves. Definitely their best album." Reply

sophialeviev | Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +7 votes (7 helpful | 0 unhelpful)

Year of Release:

2012

Appears in:

894 charts

Rank Score:

7,663

Rank in 2012:

Rank in 2010s:

Overall Rank:

Average Rating:

Comments:

"MC Ride has evolved into a beautiful butterfly" Reply

- | Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +24 votes (24 helpful | 0 unhelpful)

Year of Release:

2012

Appears in:

694 charts

Rank Score:

6,760

Rank in 2012:

Rank in 2010s:

Overall Rank:

231

Average Rating:

82 (978 votes)

Comments:

An Awesome Wave

alt-J

"This album sweeps over you like a wave. I would tell you what kind of wave, but I'm pretty sure you already know." Reply

FlorianJones | Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +8 votes (8 helpful | 0 unhelpful)

Year of Release:

2012

Appears in:

733 charts

Rank Score:

6,039

Rank in 2012:

Rank in 2010s:

Overall Rank:

271

Average Rating:

78 (1,015 votes)

Comments:

The Idler Wheel Is Wiser Than The Driver Of The Screw And Whipping Cords Will Serve You More Than Ropes Will Ever Do

Fiona Apple

"Should be rated higher. This album is ridiculously slept on. Incredible vocals, experimental singing and instrumentation, soulful lyrics. There are lines here that just make me cry because they're so good. If you rate this lower than a 8.5/9/10, I strongly recommend you revisit it." Reply

sophialeviev | Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +5 votes (5 helpful | 0 unhelpful)

Year of Release:

2012

Appears in:

634 charts

Rank Score:

5,058

Rank in 2012:

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Overall Rank:

Average Rating:

Comments:

"Lana Del Rey is a polarizing figure both on and off record. I had listened to a few of her songs before this record came out, and decided I wasn’t a fan. A lot of talk about her concerns her lips, the hype surrounding her, her terrible Saturday Night Live performance (I thought the criticism was ...""Lana Del Rey is a polarizing figure both on and off record. I had listened to a few of her songs before this record came out, and decided I wasn’t a fan. A lot of talk about her concerns her lips, the hype surrounding her, her terrible Saturday Night Live performance (I thought the criticism was a bit exaggerated, for what it’s worth), her lips, and most importantly, her lips. None of that has anything to do with Born to Die. I’m a huge Kanye West fan. Now, Kanye certainly isn’t the most likable modern celebrity. The president himself is on record calling Kanye a jackass. But if I let his antics affect the way I feel about his music, what good does that really serve? I’d just be missing out on a lot of great hip-hop. I set out to look at Born to Die without any irrelevant pre-conceived notions. I had all but forgotten what I disliked about Lana’s music until spinning this album. It becomes abundantly clear early on, however. The first track, “Off to the Races”, gives you a very good impression of whether or not you’re going to like the rest of the album. Born to Die as a whole seems to play out as a hip-hop album that isn’t really a hip-hop album, and that’s because each track seems to be layered with a hip-hop-influenced beat with Lana’s vocals on top of it. She’s excellent at structuring her songs, but there are some minor irritations. This track’s chorus, for example, features her very whiny, childish, high-pitched yelps. It might not bother every listener, but it certainly grates on me. On the strength of the songwriting, the track is decent as a whole, but it could easily have been much better if it didn’t suffer any setbacks. Another problem is more evident in the title track, which takes into account the artist as a whole. A lot of the criticism of Lana comes from the fact that she’s a bit of a sham. Her lips and her days-of-old persona come into question, much the same way as I question the weak, boring synths that layer this track. The beat tries to be something it’s not, and it doesn’t work. It becomes very apparent if you listen to the Clams Casino remix of this song, which I would urge you to track down. Due to his excellent production, I find the track superior to any of Lana’s unremixed cuts. Once again, the song as a whole turns out well due to Lana’s inherent skills with crafting pop songs, but it’s a very noticeable flaw. The album continues on with many of the same problems, which become less forgivable as it continues onward. I feel like it draws a very strong comparison to Tyler, The Creator’s Goblin from last year. Goblin was an album that received a lot of hype that seemed to disappoint many people—myself included. Like Goblin, the beats just don’t seem up to snuff, and a lot of the album’s elements seem forced. Lana has a lot of good, fresh ideas, but she also does a lot of things that don’t stick. I think if she were to work with a producer like Rick Rubin—someone talented, but also someone that wasn’t afraid to tell her when something doesn’t work (about six tracks in, I could already tell that the rest of the album would feel unnecessary)—we could have a masterpiece of a pop album on our hands. As is, the album is potential without realization." [+] Reply

- FuturoDispari | Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +4 votes (5 helpful | 1 unhelpful)

Year of Release:

2012

Appears in:

523 charts

Rank Score:

3,979

Rank in 2012:

Rank in 2010s:

Overall Rank:

417

Average Rating:

72 (881 votes)

Comments:

The Seer

Swans

"I don't "get" it, but somehow it sounds great." Reply

eclab | Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +9 votes (9 helpful | 0 unhelpful)

Year of Release:

2012

Appears in:

521 charts

Rank Score:

3,458

Rank in 2012:

Rank in 2010s:

Overall Rank:

493

Average Rating:

81 (668 votes)

Comments:

10.

Visions

Grimes

"This girl has some serious talent. Too bad people won't start appreciating this album for another 20 years. Grimes is on to something and I wouldn't be surprised if she takes the world by storm in the near future." Reply

mayonaise93 | Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +4 votes (6 helpful | 2 unhelpful)

Year of Release:

2012

Appears in:

555 charts

Rank Score:

3,041

Rank in 2012:

Rank in 2010s:

Overall Rank:

562

Average Rating:

77 (731 votes)

Comments:

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Total albums: 1,000. Page 1 of 100

Best Albums of 2012 composition

Artist	Albums	%

Various Artists	9	1%
Robin Burnett	3	0%
Burial	3	0%
Green Day	3	0%
Neil Young	3	0%
Frank Zappa	2	0%
Andrew Bird	2	0%
Show all

Country	Albums	%

	464	46%
	185	19%
	60	6%
	42	4%
	36	4%
	34	3%
	31	3%
Show all

Compilation?	Albums	%
No	971	97%
Yes	29	3%

Live?	Albums	%
No	976	98%
Yes	24	2%

Soundtrack?	Albums	%
No	990	99%
Yes	10	1%

Best Albums of 2012 chart changes

Biggest climbers Biggest climbers in top 100 since last month
Up 12 from 86th to 74th Born And Raised by John Mayer
Up 6 from 99th to 93rd Open Your Heart by The Men
Up 4 from 102nd to 98th Metz by Metz

Biggest fallers Biggest fallers in top 100 since last month
Down 5 from 63rd to 68th Night Visions by Imagine Dragons
Down 5 from 89th to 94th Dark Eyes by Half Moon Run
Down 3 from 77th to 80th Electra Heart by Marina And The Diamonds

New entries New entries in top 100 since last month
Up 4 from 102nd to 98th Metz by Metz

Leavers Leavers from top 100 since last month
Down 2 from 100th to 102nd Get Disowned by Hop Along

« View best albums of 2011View best albums of 2013 »

Best Ever Artists

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10. Nirvana