We’re only halfway through, and 2024 has already given us more worthy alternative albums than we can easily fit on this list. The year began at full speed, with Green Day’s January release of Saviors, an album that perfectly sums up the Oakland group’s style at its best over the last three decades. In February, we were rocked by Chelsea Wolfe’s powerful goth-folk project She Reaches Out to She Reaches Out to She, the impassioned math-rock LP Wall of Eyes from Thom Yorke’s band the Smile, which earned them the bragging rights of Radiohead’s best side project.
As the year continued to forge ahead, we heard IDLES’ epic TANGK, Sum 41’s final album, the double-disc Heaven :x: Hell, experienced catharsis with Beth Gibbons, thrashed along with Gouge Away and SeeYouSpaceCowboy. Billie Eilish and Charli XCX took risks in the often sugary pop space, meeting it with blunt honesty and raw self-awareness.
Read more: 24 of the most exciting rising artists to watch in 2024
For AP, whether it’s post-hardcore, pop, grunge, or an amalgam of genres — the definition of alternative is ever-expanding, and inherently inclusive. That fact is as true as ever today. That being said, we’ve rounded up 25 of this year’s best albums, though it wasn’t an easy task. Find them below.
