albums that defined my 2024: part two

This post quite late because I spent most of the holidays being ill. I hope everyone has had a peaceful time over the holidays, and are having a wonderful start to the new year. I’m excited to tell you about the rest of the albums I’ve loved this year.

brat by Charli XCX. 7th of June:

This year, brat has been the cultural moment. As someone who has been a Charli XCX fan for years, I find it amazing to see her get her recognition. brat has been so much more than just an album. It has been a movement, which is all for women being messy. brat has made it cool to be a party girl again. It’s worked as a nice contrast to the whole clean girl wellness movement on social media, as well as the Barbie pink and Taylor Swift trends of girlhood that were all the rage in 2023 (and also in 2024). If you’re chronically online, you’ll know what I’m talking about and if not you don’t need to know.

I wrote an essay about brat as well as Girl, so confusing featuring Lorde, which is my favourite song on all the versions of brat (there are 3). A beautiful and real representation of friendship and mental health, that we don’t often see in the mainstream. If you want to read me go in-depth on my Charli and Lorde obsession (the one subject where I have endless knowledge) here is a link:

Charli XCX gave the songs a new life with the remix album, where she gathered her favourite artists and let them do their own spin on the brat universe. My favourite besides Girl, so confusing featuring Lorde is Everything is romantic featuring caroline polachek, another one of my favourite artists. The song highlights all the beautiful parts of a seemingly ordinary night out in London.

When I saw brat live at Roskilde Festival, Charli had Caroline Polachek as her surprise guest. The remix was not yet out at this point, but they performed Charli’s remix of Caroline’s song Welcome To My Island - George Daniel & Charli XCX Remix, which I also adore. The energy in the festival tent was unlike anything I’ve ever felt before, and to witness those two influental alternative pop stars together was definitely one of my top moments of the year.

SPACE AGE COUNTRY GIRL by Agnes Hartwich. 14th of June:

Agnes Hartwich released her debut album SPACE AGE COUNTRY GIRL this year and it’s equal parts badass and devastating. She is an up and coming Danish alternative artist with influences like Arctic Monkeys, Wolf Alice, Lana Del Rey and Lorde. The production on SPACE AGE COUNTRY GIRL is outstanding and Agnes Hartwich is an incredibly talented songwriter. The album contains a mix of gritty indie rock songs as heartwrenching indie ballads.

It Is What It Is is one of my absolute favourite songs on the album. The song is a ballad about the end of a relationship, where the spark is gone and all you want is to get it back. It makes me feel uneasy and the production builds in quite an anxiety-inducing way as she is gaining acceptance of the fact that “it is what it is”. It captures the feeling deeply insecure because the person you love is not infatuated with you anymore.

I interviewed Agnes about the SPACE AGE COUNTRY GIRL, being a small artist and how she is working on building community for her fans. I’m really proud of how it turned out.

Charm by Clairo. 12th of July:

I am a massive Clairo fan and Charm is no exception. I’m impressed by the classical groovy style that she has built over the years. It sounds vastly different from the bedroom pop I originally fell in love with, more mature and refined.

Clairo knows how to make an album that makes you feel at ease. She knows how to put complexity into simplicity. I love how she puts her worries and her stream of consciousness into words. It feels like she is figuring it out along with the listener. There is no conclusion because there are no answers, just questions. It’s an album about finding joy in the small things. About noticing little details in relationships, with others and within yourself.

I’ve been listening to Charm loads, especially on vinyl. It’s perfect for getting ready, reading and relaxing. The record is simplistic yet layered and Claire’s words always hit just right for me. I’m seeing her in London in March and I’m ready to be charmed.

Short n’ Sweet by Sabrina Carpenter. 23rd of August:

Sabrina Carpenter has had countless great moments this year and they are all well deserved. She caught the public's eye when she opened for The Eras Tour and ever since she played Espresso at Coachella her rise has been non-stop.

Short n’ Sweet is a playful, sarcastic and fun pop album. It’s sexy in a way that's flirty, direct and ridiculous at times because it’s so over the top. My favourite songs are Bed Chem, Juno and Don’t Smile. Other than the more obvious hits, there are some hard-hitting tracks like Sharpest Tool, Dumb & Poetic and Lie To Girls. In these her raw and honest portrayal of modern (primarily heterosexual) dating culture is striking in a way that I know hits home for a lot of women.

I’ve been following her Sabrina since she was a child star and it’s exciting to see her get her flowers and handle fame with such grace. She now has the means to put on a massive show and execute her brilliant vision. From what I’ve seen that is exactly what she has done with the Short n’ Sweet Tour, which is coming to Europe this spring. In her tiny desk concert, she gives a stunning stripped-down performance of some of the songs from the record.

Imaginal Disk by Magdalena Bay. 23rd of August:

It’s a lie to say that this album defined my year because I discovered it in December, but it simply had to be included in this list. It’s the album all of the indie pop fans have been raving about, and I don’t know why it took me this long to catch on.

This album embodies this whimsical, playful and irresistible dance production that feels nostalgic and from out of space at the same time. This is what Dua Lipa meant by future nostalgia. It feels futuristic and also like a song I’ve heard a million times. Synth-pop so expansive it makes me believe in magic. I’m sure we will see Magdalena Bay’s influence in the future since the duo feels so ahead of their time. This song has a spacey indie-rock feel that I really enjoy. I’m excited to dance to it at Roskilde Festival this summer.

Late Start by Carol Ades. 27th of September:

Carol Ades has been one of my comfort artists for a few years now. She’s a brilliant songwriter who writes about her fears around growing up, intimacy as well as family dynamics. It’s clear that Carol has struggled a lot to grow into the confident and vulnerable artist she is today. The album is super dreamy and full of hope, combined with all the fear of the unknown that comes with transitioning from being a teenager into adulthood.

Late Start comes from a place of early/mid-twenties anxiety that feels so real and recognisable. My algorithm has been full of well-meaning advice videos about what you should and shouldn’t do in your twenties. It drives me insane but I’m still driven to these answers, even though they’re from people who don’t know me or my specific life situation. Late Start is about trying to understand yourself in a world that is trying to decide for you. Holding onto the idea that if you just “figure it out” you won’t struggle anymore. In the album Carol finds that the real magic is in the journey and the imperfections, however cheesy it may be. She filmed the music video for the title track in Stockholm, which feels very poetic to me, who lives in Sweden and feels a soul connection to her words.

What A Relief by Katie Gavin. 25th of October 2024:

Katie Gavin, lead singer of MUNA released her solo record called What A Relief this year. What A Relief is a stunning record about relationships, heartbreak and so much more. It has the classic sapphic yearning songs as well as some deeply personal writing from Katie. A great example of this is As Good As It Gets featuring indie-icon Mitski, a song about settling in a relationship and wondering if there is someone better out there. The Baton is about Katie’s mother and potentially having her own daughter one day. Sweet Abby Girl is a song about her dog that passed away too soon.

I am grateful that Katie took the opportunity to create a solo record. These songs are so personal to her that they wouldn’t fit as seamlessly in the MUNA universe. The stripped-down, folk and country vibe brings out a different side than the powerful electropop singer she is in MUNA. The fact that she’s able to do both is a testament to how talented of a musician she is.

Honourable mentions:

I’ve made a list of honorable mentions. This includes albums that I also enjoyed but didn’t have space for on this list, a lot of them I saw live. Some of them I didn’t get around to listening to as much as I would have liked:

• American Hero by Towa Bird

• LANA by SZA

• Vertigo by Griff

• DOING IT AGAIN BABY by girl in red

• This Could Be Texas by English Teacher

• Big Ideas by Remi Wolf

• Cacophony by Paris Paloma

• Older by Lizzy Mcalpine

• The Secret Our Bodies Hold by Asbjørn

I’m excited for all that 2025 has in store. I’ve planned a great concert lineup for myself in the new year. My goal is to continue to write on here consistently and continue connecting with other fangirls and music lovers.

There is also a lot of great music coming out that I’m excited about. So far, it seems to be a great year for indie music. Blondshell, Japanese Breakfast and Samia just announced new projects and released the lead singles. I’m constantly thinking about the upcoming Lucy Dacus music, there is actually a single coming out today as I’m editing this. It’s also no secret that I’m dying for the next Lorde album.

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