What forms can pleasure take? Is it exclusively the province of serenity and happy thoughts? Or is it possible that political confrontation and discomfort are even more powerful venues for deriving pleasure? If there is anything that unites the music on our list of the best experimental records of 2016, it is the idea that aesthetic beauty and fun can come from unlikely places and from strange sources, be it the archival sounds of protests or the pitter patter of a washing machine. Perhaps the impetus of experimental music is to challenge, but spend some time with these records, and you’ll discover not just radically different ways of finding joy in the world, you’ll also be dumbstruck with the creative methods artists use to get to that sweet spot.