But delivered as a mixtape on a streaming service, because that's how people do it nowadays

There’s something intrinsically different about putting together an ‘albums of the year’ list compared to a ‘tracks of the year’ list. On one hand, it feels slightly at odds to place such importance on the LPs when the numbers show that fewer people are listening to them, and fewer still buying them (unless it’s ‘The Greatest Showman’ OST). But then, there’s just something different about ranking songs against one another. Maybe it’s the brevity of a song format, or the colossal amount there is to consider. Often they can feel like a piece, when the album represents the full puzzle. Whatever it is, instinct tells us that boiling down 2018 into 100, or 40, or 20 songs just feels a bit shitty. Or a bit hard. Instead, we’ve put together this mixtape, and make it on Spotify and Apple Music. Some of it – but not all of it – appeared on our No Shit playlist on Spotify (which is updated every week), so if you don’t think our taste is complete crap that might be worth a follow. For those who don’t use those streaming services, there’s a full list below.

Everybody’s Coming To My House – David Byrne

Jeannie Becomes A Mom – Caroline Rose

Addictions – Lucy Dacus

Eus Keus? – Gwenno

Catch It – IceAge

Antidote – Preoccupations

Rosebud – U.S. Girls

Hot Pink – Let’s Eat Grandma

An Air Conditioned Man – Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever

Desire – Ought

Drab Measure – Crack Cloud

Curse of the Contemporary – LUMP

Perdida – Biig Piig

Flight Home – SHIRT

Game Changer – MIST

Preach – Ghetts

Pat Earrings – CASISDEAD

Come Thru – Ms Banks

Ladies – Slowthai

Pounce – Flohio

Just A Stranger – Kali Uchis

I See You Shining – Nines

I Can Speak Spanish – Jimothy Lacoste

Singularity – Jon Hopkins

Devotion – Tirzah

Helix – Kelly Moran

Noid – Yves Tumor

Ultra Clear Sound – Gabe Gurnsey

So Right – Marie Davidson

Perla – Glows

One More – Yaeji

Pick Up – DJ Koze

It Makes You Forget (Itgehane) – Peggy Gou

Hobby Horse – Gazelle Twin

Dunce – Ed Shrader’s Music Beat

The Oaks – Gaz Coombes

Short Court Style – Natalie Prass

How Did This Happen? – Bodega

Petrol Blue – Sink Ya Teeth

Starstruck – Sorry

Age of the Train – International Teachers of Pop

Fuckin ‘N’ Rollin – Phantastic Ferniture

Sports – Viagra Boys

Never Fight A Man With A Perm – Idles

Cake of Light – Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs

Raise Your Voice Joyce – Fucked Up

Doe-Eyed Girl – Bambara

Seeking Arrangement – Ditz

All Wordz Are Made Up – The Voidz

I Woke Up In A Fucked Up America – Lonnie Holley

Wrestling – Self Esteem

Like Sugar – Chaka Khan

Girlfriend – Chris

Nobody – Mitski

Darlin’ – Jackie Cohen

It’s All Gonna Be Ok – Ron Gallo

Destroyer – Lala Lala

Make Time 4 Love – The Goon Sax

The Dial – Squid

Hiding – Ian Sweet

Future Me Hates Me – The Beths

Millersdale – William Doyle

Jaam Ak Salam – Goatman

Hayley – Joskstrap

My Queen Is Harriet Tubman – Sons of Kemet

Blaxploitation – Noname

Problem Child – Hen Ogledd

Cash Out – Noga Erez

A Nation Of Bloodsuckers – Sons of Raphael

Friends in a Bubble Bath – audiobooks

Started Out – Georgia

Heavyweight Champion of the Year – Nilufer Yanya

Body – Julia Jacklin

Comeback Kid – Sharon van Etten

Suspicion – N0V3L

Outlandish Poetica – Jonathan Something

Violence – Parquet Courts

If You Know You Know – Pusha T

Make Me Feel – Janelle Monae

This Is America – Childish Gambino

Nothing Breaks Like A Heart – Mark Ronson and Miley Cyrus

Roll (Burbank Funk) – The Internet

In My View – Young Fathers

Four Out Of Five – Arctic Monkeys

Chasescene – Daniel Knox

Bells & Circles – Iggy Pop and Underworld

And also, check out our list of the top 40 albums from 2018.