Kacey Musgraves - Golden Hour

Kacey Musgraves softens and buries everything country about her music on the bland Golden Hour.

Jean Grae x Quelle Chris - Everything's Fine

Jean Grae and Quelle Chris have a yin and yang chemistry on Everything's Fine, one of the smartest, funniest, and most eclectic hip hop albums I've heard this year.

CZARFACE & MF DOOM - Czarface Meets Metal Face

Though a bit predictable and restrained, Czarface Meets Metal Face is a solid collaboration that's a cut above both parties' most recent work.

The Voidz - Virtue

The Voidz's everything-and-the-kitchen-sink approach to rock music results in a vibrant sophomore album.

Denzel Curry - "Sumo"

Denzel Curry has been teasing his new single, “Sumo,” for months. Back in October, he tweeted “SUMO FEAT. ??? COMING SOON” with an accompanying video clip of him performing the song at Camp Flog Gnaw. A studio recording of “Sumo” was finally debuted yesterday via Zane Lowe’s Beats1 radio. The Charlie Heat-produced song is just as wild and aggressive as the video made it seem, but there is no featured artist as Curry’s tweet implied.

“Sumo” is presumably the second single from Curry’s upcoming album, Taboo, which will follow 2016’s Imperial LP and 2017’s 13 EP. Curry tweeted in December that Taboo would be delayed with the explanation “you can’t rush art.” There still isn’t an official release date for the album.

-Owen Murray

The Weeknd - My Dear Melancholy,

My Dear Melancholy, is The Weeknd's least adventurous set of songs since Kiss Land.

Superorganism - Self-Titled

Though it could be more consistent and substantial, this debut album from Superorganism will probably go down as one of the year's most creative pop projects.

Tyler, the Creator - "OKRA"

On new loosie “OKRA,” Tyler, the Creator raps relentlessly over a bass-heavy beat that would be the envy of just about any SoundCloud rapper. The song was released with a wild, garish music video that has Tyler’s high-energy personality and vision written all over it.

Tyler himself described “OKRA” as a “throwaway track,” but it really sounds more like a victory lap. After the success of last year’s Flower Boy, Tyler raps about his Grammy nomination and other recent accolades in his long, bar-after-bar verses. While it’s clear that “OKRA” isn’t a precursor to an upcoming project, it’s definitely a worthwhile listen in itself.

-Owen Murray