THE 10 BEST ALBUMS
by JAMIESON COX
Dec 19, 2016
3 minutes
1. Frank Ocean, Blonde
Frank Ocean has become pop music’s leading ascetic, a less-is-more devotee who’d rather let his melodies do all the talking. Released after four years of increasingly interminable when-will-it-drop hype, Blonde finds Ocean leaving behind the rich arrangements and narratives of 2012’s Channel Orange in favor of radical simplicity: little percussion, unobtrusive guest stars, lyrics that are both stunning and opaque. “Nights” is a multipart suite—like Ocean’s previous “Pyramids”—given an acid bath and stripped to spare parts. “Solo” and
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