Earth Walker's Favorite Music Releases of 2024
🎊 💿 📀 💿 🎊
Welcome to my year-end music list for 2024! There were tons of great releases this year, and these are my favorites. This year, much like the last two, I was focused on dance music, so there's definitely a bias in that direction. But fear not, I've included some fantastic rock, hip hop and pop releases as well!
The list is presented with singles first, followed by extended plays, followed by long plays. Within each section, the albums are listed in alphabetical order. My most favorite releases are marked with a gold disc.
As always, I recommend buying albums on Bandcamp or the artist's website if you enjoy them; this is the best way to directly support the artist. Buying merch or concert tickets is also good, and of course any artist would love it if you simply enjoy and share their music.
If we haven't met yet, hello! I'm a musician, DJ and overall music lover. You can find links to my online accounts here.
Enjoy the list, and happy holidays!
Singles
📀 All I Wanna Do
♥ Gojii ♥
Gojii's signature blend of blissful ambient sounds with frenetic garage house grooves is on full display here.
Come With Me
Flup Volta
This track has a nocturnal vibe, makes me feel like I'm exploring an abandoned building.
Enough (if found Flip)
if found
A completely unhinged Cardi B flip that mashes up Skrillex-style bass stabs with a slick rage beat.
📀 Love & Attention
Conducta
Loving the laid-back R&B vibes on this track.
Mother
Thick
A great slacker rock tune with some scathing lyrics regarding a dysfunctional relationship.
utakata
Snail's House
An enchanting blend of electronic and acoustic elements that spirits you away. Check out the music video for this single, the animation is gorgeous.
Workshop Dub
Traelmyx
I'm a fan of the chopped up vocals on this track, and it has a very fun atmosphere overall.
Extended Plays
By The River
Akosmo
The chirping of birds and a babbling brook are the accompaniment for this supremely relaxing beat tape. Great music to work or lie down to.
Dirt // Cain Instinct
Newgrounds Death Rugby
DIY punk act NDR grace us with two tracks featuring off-kilter rythmns and creative songwriting. Singer Daniel Jorgensen brings a raw, emotive energy to the band's music which I find very cathartic.
Disco Reworks Vol. 17
Never Dull
Disco won't be dead as long as Never Dull has something to say about it. His ability to craft a simultaneously nostalgic and fresh sound is very much appreciated.
Don't Think / So Good
MinaSheep
This project's sound evokes the brain of a young junglist which has been deep-fried by social media and video games (peep the Splatoon sample on "SO GOOD"). Home you're doing okay, MinaSheep, and thanks for the great tunes.
📀 Double Dip/Henk
Reso
If the term "tearout dubstep" means anything to you, you need this A/B release from Reso. The man continues to evolve his sound while staying firmly rooted in the UK dubstep style.
Funky Pills
Clikk
Can Japan make better UK garage music than the UK? Underground label Spraybox is working on it, injecting glossy, futuristic synths into the mix to great effect.
Rough Puff
Quadrant & Iris
Three crispy, grimey rollers are supplied on this rock-solid drum and bass EP. Variations on the typical drum and bass rythmn help the percussion stand out from the numerous high-quality releases from label C.I.A.
📀 Soul Kiss
Frost Children & Haru Nemuri
Frost Children and Haru Nemuri are a match made in heaven on this short and sweet EP that sees neon-glow dance beats collide with hardcore punk screams and menacing basslines.
Long Plays
345
boxkitty
An exploration of dance music's inner psyche, this South African artist showcases her ecclectic skillset on a variety of boundary-pushing electronic tracks.
Alice In Paris!
Seycara
Craving a bite of baguette in a charming cafe whilst gazing out the window at the Eiffel Tower? Well, what are you waiting for? Join Alice on her whirlwind trip to Paris while you get some work done at home.
att.
Young Miko
A forward-thinking reggaeton album that's full of attitude and complementary guest performances. Miko's stylistic versatility is on display as she offers classic and cutting-edge sounds from track to track.
📀 brat
Charli XCX
Rarely in this age of fragmented music culture do people rally around an album the way they did for Brat. That green screen color and stretched out Arial font were everywhere this summer, and so were the dancefloor bangers. "Club Classics" became DJ shorthand for "it's time to turn up". Deeper cuts shed some light on Charli's inner turmoils, notably in relation to the late, great Sophie (rest in peace).
Flight b741
King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard
King Gizz continues to ramble down the psych rock road, this time with a cowboy hat and harmonica. While it didn't immediately wow me as much as some of their recent releases (see "Petrodragonic Apocalypse"), this ended up being a great record to put on while hanging out with friends and family, due to its amiable honky-tonk attitude.
Funeral for Justice
Mdou Moctar
Sun-bleached guitars race overtop of continually shifting drumlines as Moctar's lyrics sharply call out France's colonial exploitation of Niger. The musical parallels between Mdou Moctor and Jimi Hendrix are undeniable, as the electric guitar is pushed to its limits on this record.
📀 GNX
Kendrick Lamar
A surprise release that came on the heels of a lengthy beef with Drake, GNX is a rock-solid set of hip hop tracks that shows Kendrick can make great songs without a grandiose concept behind them. KDot's unusual inflections and flows make for some memorable vocal performances overtop of instrumentals with old-school West coast flair.
King Of The Mischievous South, Vol. 2
Denzel Curry
Beginning with the sound of a cassette sliding into a tape deck, this mixtape sees Denzel throwing it back to his underground Florida roots. Tracks like "SET IT" and "G'Z UP" exemplify the aggressive style that put Curry on the map a decade ago.
📀 Ravepop
russelbuck
The soundtrack of my early college days was nightcore playlists on YouTube, which took dance remixes of b- and c-tier pop tunes and pitched them up into chipmunk vocal range. Russelbuck brings this style back to the club, adding massive bass lines crafted with laser precision and topping it off with an assortment of music memes. DIY pop tunes are interspersed throughout the track list, giving you time to catch your breath before the next high-speed rager.
Sapphic Crystal Love
Starmoon
Fuzzed-out basslines underpin breakbeat loops that sound ready to shake themselves apart. Wistful melodies float through the chaos, driving home an anxious melancholy that pervades Starmoon's work.
📀 Silence Is Loud
Nia Archives
Ms. Archives broke onto the drum and bass scene in a big way over the last few years with her retro, pop-infused jungle sound. A series of quirky music videos accompanied several of the tracks on "Silence Is Loud", featuring everyday scenes that reinforce the unpretentious and intimate vibe of Nia's music.
Star Tech
Nakura & Reia
Playing this album on some headphones with good bass extension is like strapping a pair of booster rockets full of positive energy to your head. Mostly sticking with a hardcore trance sound, some of tunes ("The Moment") venture into breakbeat hardcore territory, providing some welcome variation to break up the nonstop bass kicks.
True Magic
salute
Salute draws on a range of influences including garage house, disco and vaporwave to make this groovy record that seems like it could be the soundtrack to a fictional Plastation 2 racing game.
Unrealistic Project Roadmap
Halley Labs
Known for their experimental and conceptual works as well as their dedication to detail, Halley Labs creates an entire world out of Gameboyish sounds on this unique musical outing.