Top Ten Albums of 2018 (Rolling Stone)

I'm actually shocked that the Rolling Stone folks had the editorial wherewithal to push the new Paul McCartney back to #11.  I figured this would be like a few years ago when they put mediocre Springsteen and U2 albums at the top of their annual list, either oblivious to the changing of the musical guard or obstinate in the face of shifting winds.  Now they've flipped it entirely, with a top five entirely made up of women and terrible (but immensely popular) rappers claiming top ten spots.  They can't win.

10. Drake - Scorpion.  I love this ridiculous quote from their review: "It’s a double album with no low points, and if you do find it beginning to drag a little, simply turn it into a playlist of your favorite tracks; Drake’s savvy enough to know that’s how you’d end up listening to it, and he pockets the streams either way."  How stupid is that?  "On the one hand, its perfect and has no bad tracks, but on the other hand, it has boring parts you should skip to make a better playlist.  In the end, who cares because Drake gets paid."  WTF?  This is a bad album of mediocre music.  "Nice for What" is the only redeeming song I can remember from it.

9. Kurt Vile - Bottle It In.  Hadn't tried this one yet, but I like it a lot.  Very loose and shaggy and cool.  I'm gonna add this one to my Q and do a real write-up of it.

8. Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper - ‘A Star Is Born Soundtrack’.  I need to see this movie.  The wife played the "Shallow" song for me the other day, with a load of expectations for me to swoon over how amazing it was, and its kinda just OK for me.  Gaga's voice is kind of fascinating.  I'd put her in the same category of the other pop star divas, but her voice is more powerful and less refined than someone like Katy Perry.  That song is like a blunt-force instrument, and she's more of a belter than a songbird.  But I think if I had seen the flick, I'd get the same context as the wife and it would sound better.  Anyhoo, just tried this album for the first time, and it has some good tunes.  "Maybe It's Time" is good, "Out of Time" has legit guitarwork, and "Always Remember Us This Way" and "Too Far Gone" are good stuff.  But then the album turns into bad, generic pop music, and it loses the thread, and I don't like it anymore.

7. Pusha T - Daytona.  Yep, a good album.

6. Travis Scott - Astroworld.  Dammit.  "Astroworld is a monument to excess in a year overcome with bloat."  That means the same thing, right?  Like, excess and bloat are both the same side of a negative, right?  This is terrible, even if the beats and transitions on "Sicko Mode" have grown on me over time.  Still bad rap though.

5. Ariana Grande - Sweetener.  Huh. Top five? Really?  I've heard several of these songs a bunch because my girls love her music to death.  I'll say this:

• "no tears left to cry" is enjoyable.  The beat and the flow of the vocals match well and its a groove.
• "God is a woman" sucks on socks sewn out of seaweed.
• "breathin" is annoying and I want it to go away.
• She named a fucking song "R.E.M" (without the final period) and I want to fight her to the death now BECAUSE ITS ALL ABOUT MEETING A STUPID BOY WHILE SHE'S ASLEEP AND IT HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH THE BEST BAND OF ALL TIME!!!  

So, overall, my review is Hell and No.  I do not like this album.  I'd rather her go more pop and less R&B.  That being said, I bopped to the "pete davidson" song (even if it hasn't aged well).

4. Pistol Annies - Interstate Gospel.  Yep, I talked about this one the other day in the look back at The Ringer's top ten.  Actually pretty solid.

3. Camila Cabello - Camila.  WTF, dude.  This album is actively bad, and her live show was super bad.  I loved the chance to take my kid to Cabello's show and hold her up near the stage and hear her earnestly singing along with Cabello, but beyond that, this album is not good.

2. Kacey Musgraves - Golden Hour.  Yes!  My number one of the year, and it finally made someone else's list!  great album.

1. Cardi B - Invasion of Privacy.  Well, I'm surprised.  Two of the four lists I've reviewed so far, with this album at the top.  I liked it, but best album of the year seems like a stretch.  Oh well, I'll go jam it a few more times!