PopMatters Staff

The 20 Best New Musical Artists of 2014

The 20 Best New Musical Artists of 2014

Travel back ten years ago to 2014 and discover the best new musical artists that lit up the year, and hear their latest music to see how they’ve evolved.

The 15 Best Americana Albums of 2014

The 15 Best Americana Albums of 2014

If forced to define Americana, it’s the one genre where honest craftsmanship is required, respected, and rewarded, something the best of 2014 lived up to.

The 50 Best Albums of 2024 So Far

The 50 Best Albums of 2024 So Far

The 50 best albums of 2024 offer sublime music as major artists return with new work and brilliant new sounds bubble up from the underground and worldwide.

Say It Loud! 100 Timeless Protest Songs

Say It Loud! 100 Timeless Protest Songs

PopMatters has scoured the musical spectrum for the best examples of protest songs, including anthems of great popularity and obscurity that resonate today.

Dancing in the Street: Our 25 Favorite Motown Songs

Dancing in the Street: Our 25 Favorite Motown Songs

Detroit’s Motown Records will forever be important as a hit factory and an African American-owned label that achieved massive mainstream success and influence.

The 20 Best Experimental Albums of 2023

The 20 Best Experimental Albums of 2023

The best experimental albums of the year highlight the breadth of human expression and take listeners to heretofore unknown realms in music, pushing boundaries.

The 20 Best Pop Albums of 2023

The 20 Best Pop Albums of 2023

The 20 best pop albums of 2023 radiate with unstoppable playlist power, much-needed sweet escapism, self-reflection, self-criticism, and killer melodies.

Between the Grooves of Prince’s ‘Purple Rain’

Between the Grooves of Prince’s ‘Purple Rain’

In 1984, funk rock legend Prince combined music and film into a major extravaganza called Purple Rain, and it went to the top of the charts for 24 weeks in a row.

The 75 Best Albums of 2013

The 75 Best Albums of 2013

Jump back a decade and revisit the best albums of 2013, a year that saw the debuts of major female artists Kacey Musgraves, CHVRCHES, Haim, and Savages.

The 15 Best Americana Albums of 2013

The 15 Best Americana Albums of 2013

Jump back a decade and visit one of the best years for Americana albums ever, including Jason Isbell, Neko Case, the Devil Makes Three, and the Lone Bellow.

The 80 Best Albums of 2022

The 80 Best Albums of 2022

Musicians were more active in 2022 and it resulted in a vast treasure trove of superb work. The best albums of 2022 pushed boundaries and are more varied than ever.

The 13 Best Pop Albums of 2022

The 13 Best Pop Albums of 2022

The 13 best pop albums of 2022 radiate with unstoppable playlist power, much-needed sweet escapism, self-reflection, self-criticism, and killer melodies.