With the Salad Days of 2014 long gone, we're looking back on the music that defined the past 12 months. We've already counted down the year's 101 Best Songs , and now we've rounded up the 50 Best Albums. Expect to find our favorite Nikki Nacks and Brill Bruisers; a two-stepping, fire-spitting MC from Harlem; Los Angeles' principal lo-fi auteur; a bird-flipping British upstart; a number of literary post-punks; and the most bankable '80s baby. Brace yourselves: We're going 50 to 1, real quick.