October 2024 Roundups: The Best Albums of the Month
Featuring Dawn Richard & Spencer Zahn, ELUCID, and Yasmin Williams, here are the best albums that came out in October of 2024.
October 2024 unfolded with a flourish of captivating music that echoed the season’s transformation. Autumn’s embrace and the nearing election heightened the atmosphere, setting the stage for November’s anticipated retrospectives. Before diving into the end-of-year reflections, we celebrate the remarkable sounds these recent days have offered. The music world surprised us with innovative experimental records and milestones from cherished Shatter the Standards artists. Jazz continued to shine brightly, contributing even more exceptional albums to an already impressive year.
Dawn Richard unveiled perhaps her most heartfelt album yet, and Samara Joy delivered a poised and compelling work. As we honor this month’s outstanding creations, let’s revisit the albums that stood out to us the most. Here are the ten best albums of October 2024.
Dawn Richard & Spencer Zahn: Quiet In a World Full of Noise
In Quiet in a World Full of Noise, Dawn Richard and Spencer Zahn present a dynamic musical atmosphere where Richard explores her life experiences. Zahn’s minimalist piano and expansive soundscapes lay the foundation for Richard’s intimate lyrics as she confronts themes of trauma, loss, love, and healing. Their unique artistic chemistry enables Richard to venture into experimental musical territory while Zahn’s instrumentation aligns with her adept vocals. Throughout the album, Richard’s vulnerable whispers, along with the orchestra’s dramatic swells, invite the audience into a deeply personal narrative—from the depths of heartbreak and grief to the practices that offer solace and the promise of new beginnings.
ELUCID: Revelator
ELUCID bursts with unrestrained energy on his latest album, Revelator, eschewing nostalgia for a raw, immediate sound. Collaborating with co-producer Jon Nellen, he melds experimental electronics, atonal samples, and live instrumentation to forge a chaotic auricular environs. Inspired by avant-garde jazz and uncompromising funk, ELUCID confronts societal decay, global conflicts, and personal resilience through his multifaceted lyricism. The album navigates between harsh, confrontational tracks and moments of respite, reflecting on family, love, and the struggle for meaning amidst turmoil. Revelator is a bold statement, challenging genre conventions and offering a unique perspective on our fractured modern world.
Immanuel Wilkins: Blues Blood
Inspired by Daniel Hamm’s heart-rending words—one of the Harlem Six wrongfully accused in 1964—the album looks into themes that remain unsettlingly relevant themes today. Co-produced with Meshell Ndegeocello, Immanuel Wilkins gathers his quartet featuring pianist Micah Thomas, bassist Rick Rosato, and drummer Kweku Sumbry. Guests like drummer Chris Dave, guitarist Marvin Sewell, and vocalists Ganavya, June McDoom, Yaw Agyeman, and Cecile McLorin Salvant join them in confronting ongoing racism, violence, displacement, class struggle, and oppression that continue to shape the lives of many in modern society. Blues Blood elevates 21st-century jazz, standing alongside influential works like Sonny Rollins’ Freedom Suite and Duke Ellington’s Black, Brown and Beige. “Motion,” with lyrics penned by New York-based singer June McDoom, delivered with limpid clarity, surrounded by atmospheric electronics as the ensemble extends across modern vocal jazz as Yaw Agyeman’s vocals soar over an abstract experimental piece that marries Afro-futurist soul with post-bop and modal jazz on “If That Blood Runs Fast.”
Yasmin Williams: Acadia
Known for her unorthodox guitar techniques, Yasmin Williams ventures beyond her acoustic roots, unraveling a dynamic sonic palette. This release introduces vocals, electric guitar, and an array of guest musicians, creating a multifaceted experience. From the exuberant opener “Cliffwalk” to the genre-bending “Nectar” and “Malamu,” Williams probes the depths of her creative reserves. The album showcases collaborations with folk artists, vocalists, and percussionists, each contributing to the rich fabric of sound. Acadia maps Williams’ artistic evolution and cements her position as an adept composer whose passion resonates throughout her most ambitious work to date.
Geordie Greep: The New Sound
The New Sound heralds a daring new era for Geordie Greep. This dynamic debut unravels as a kaleidoscopic patchwork of musical styles, melding salsa, mambo, and tango with echoes of Scott Walker. Greep assumes the role of a charismatic host, presiding over a different landscape that’s riveting and unpredictable. His distinctive vocal delivery, coupled with lyrics that sway between boisterous and self-deprecating, crafts an experience that’s simultaneously confounding and hilarious. Featuring Brazilian session musicians unacquainted with Greep’s previous work adds an element of spontaneity to the mix. The title track and “Through a War” highlight Greep’s knack for blending controlled chaos with sensuous rhythms. The epic 12-minute finale, “The Magician,” is a microcosm of the entire album, encapsulating Greep’s penchant for blurring the lines between reality and fiction.
Samara Joy: Portrait
Surrounded by an equally gifted ensemble, Samara Joy provides ample space for each musician to infuse their improvisational flair into the mix. On her blissful opener, “You Stepped Out of a Dream,” she delivers the main vocal and then seamlessly merges wordlessly into the band’s harmonies, soaring together before yielding the spotlight to a soloist. A highlight of the album is her daring rendition of Charles Mingus’ classic “Reincarnation of a Lovebird,” reimagined here as “Reincarnation of a Lovebird (Pursuit of a Dream).” While Mingus’ original 1960 version exudes a swinging, blues-inflected vibe, Joy transforms it into a Baroque, noir-inspired vocal masterpiece. Her arrangement features an extended rubato introduction sung unaccompanied, her voice a pristine, linear harmony that ascends to a radiant falsetto, heralding the band’s entrance. This awe-inspiring performance, like the entirety of Portrait, showcases the boundless scope of her artistry. This little big band setting allows Joy’s luminous, ascending vocals to intertwine seamlessly with the octet’s arrangements. Continuing the approach of her earlier works, she balances tender renditions of the American Popular Songbook with jazz standards enhanced by her original lyrics.
Tyler, The Creator: Chromakopia
So the newly found character Tyler, The Creator hits on the album’s intro as in his final form. The fact that a story is told here does not even open up at first hearing; at first, only a kaleidoscopic collection of sounds, atmospheres, and grooves opens up. As a rapper, producer, and curator, he is a hip-hop renaissance man who shows an impressive sense for the perfect meshing of texture and personality on Chromakopia. You feel that he celebrates and studies all the sounds you hear, that he has buried himself deep in them and, therefore, knows how to use them for his purposes. Tyler invites us to an imaginative reinterpretation of day-to-day life, providing a visceral landscape that embellishes mundane routines. Instead of being trapped in idle games or domestic chores, this album is a pungent reflection, turning monotony into observation. From the lyrical peregrination of "Rah Tah Tah," questioning identity complications, to the hopeful melodies in “Take Your Mask Off,” Tyler integrates an esoteric personal story with spirited beats. Through thoughtful melodic tones and emotional depth, he molds an experience that transforms daily tasks into an introspective art form, promoting personal revelations and self-realization.
Ché Noir: The Lotus Child
Ché Noir’s evolution as an emcee and producer is evident in The Lotus Child, where she fuses soulful jazz elements with gritty boom-bap beats. Themes of perseverance, empowerment, and personal reflection permeate “Shadow Puppet” and “Black Girl,” the latter featuring an engaging collaboration with Rapsody. Her lyrical skill is fully displayed, particularly in “Choices,” where she confronts her past with unfiltered honesty. The album benefits from thoughtful production, including a gospel-tinged boom-bap finale by Statik Selektah. With this project, Ché Noir continues to forge her path in hip-hop, showcasing her artistic advancement and reinforcing her stature as a compelling voice in the genre.
Benny the Butcher & 38 Spesh: Stabbed & Shot 2
Returning after the acclaimed Stabbed & Shot, the new album from 38 Spesh and Benny the Butcher reestablishes their spirited partnership with their long-awaited sequel. 38 Spesh’s steady and high-caliber output is most recently portrayed in Mother and Son, already hailed as a strong candidate for Rap Album of the Year in 2024. As part of the Griselda crew with Westside Gunn and Conway the Machine, Benny has been a defining force in modern hip-hop, disrupting prevailing conventions with offerings such as Burden of Proof and Everybody Can’t Go. The latter’s solo efforts occasionally lack the fiery drive he exhibits with Griselda’s producers and artists, something that only makes its return on “Internal Affairs,” crafted by Daringer. Despite this, each of his verses is consistently effective. 38 Spesh, acting as a resounding counterpart, matches Benny’s proficiency with potent lyrical skill, standing toe-to-toe with mainstream and underground talents.
Roy Hargrove: Grande-Terre
Roy Hargrove’s influential role as a post-Miles Davis trumpeter has left a marked influence on modern jazz. Departing at 49, his prolific legacy is a treasure hunt for archivists seeking his unheard works. Noteworthy among them is his posthumous Grande Terre album—an assembly of American, Cuban, and Guadeloupian musicians presenting a peppy fusion in jazz. This album, recorded in Guadeloupe, showcases talents like trombonist Frank Lacy and pianist Larry Willis. Each track, unedited and lively, affirms Hargrove’s sonic excellence. “Rumba Roy” opens with buoyant energy powered by Hernandez’s composition, while “Lake Danse” boasts Hargrove’s powerful horn. Delicate arrangements shine in songs such as “Another Time” and “Ethiopia.” The climax, “Priorities,” vibrates with celebratory intensity in every respect, closing the ensemble’s dynamic curiosity.
Bonus: Freddie Gibbs: You Only Die 1nce
Freddie Gibbs dropped You Only Die 1nce as his 2017 sequel of You Only Live 2wice, offering humor involving the devil without delivering genuine scares. This much-anticipated project gifts fans with his sharp and fearless lyricism two years after his acclaimed major-label album $oul $old $eparately. Kicking off with the wandering track “Status,” he serves up bold verses that resonate with his audience. He continues his habit of intense rapping over smooth beats, as heard in “Brick Fees,” with its gritty tales, and “Steel Doors,” which paints vivid, violent scenes. On “Walk It Off,” produced by 454, gunshots echo, but Gibbs remains unfazed, blending vocals and rhymes in a drug-dealing narrative. Touching on the rumors on his social media, “It’s Your Anniversary” dismisses personal conflicts and taunts rappers too timid to collaborate. In essence, this is Freddie Kane at his core.