Top 10 (so far)

Embarking on a mid-year rundown of 2015’s best pop albums so far is as much an exercise in mix-and-match diplomacy as it is a definitive truth. Within the various portals of “popular music” in 2015 are so many sounds, approaches, accents, instrumental varieties and ear-popping engineering feats that one tilt of the kaleidoscope yields wildly divergent patterns. I’ve constrained myself to focus on voices pushing at the edges of so-called popular music. The 10 essential records released so far in 2015:

One Little Indian Bjork, “Vulnicura” (One Little Indian). It’s tempting to describe “Vulnicura” as occupying its own virtual reality, except the theme of the Icelandic artist’s album is devastatingly real. Its focus is on her relationship with visual artist Matthew...

Social Experiment Donnie Trumpet & the Social Experiment, “Surf ” (self-released). Amid the gang violence and poverty of Chicago’s South Side, a collection of young soul, funk, hip-hop and jazz musicians has converged as the Social Experiment. Among the most prominent...

Spacebomb Natalie Prass, “Natalie Prass” (Spacebomb/Startime International). If we’re talking ear-worm loops, Prass’ self-titled debut of confident, memorable pop songs is my most spun record of the year. “My Baby Don’t Understand Me” mixes a mournful ode to...

RVNG Intl Holly Herndon, “Platform” (4AD). “Platform” is a curious record, composed entirely on laptop by sound artist and composer Herndon. She has studied composition at Mills College and sound at Stanford University’s Center for Computer Research in Music and...

Af termath Kendrick Lamar, “To Pimp a Butterfly” (Top Dawg Entertainment). A statement of purpose from an L.A. original, Lamar’s third album already has the makings of a classic, one courtesy of the most skilled, thoughtful and lyrically accomplished voice in...

Asthmatic Kitty Records Sufjan Stevens, “Carrie & Lowell” (Asthmatic Kitty). An emotional exploration of family, addiction, sacrifice and love, this is the pop composer and songwriter Stevens’ autobiographical look inward. It is named after his late mother, a lifelong addict...

Mercur y / Universal Chris Stapleton, “Traveller” (Mercury/Universal). Nashville songwriter Stapleton wanders the terrain where country music and soul intersect, an area occupied at various times by Ray Charles, the Band, Steve Earle and Willie Nelson. “Traveller” marks a...

ATO Records Alabama Shakes, “Sound & Color” (ATO Records). The second album eases in, as if to beguile its way into listeners’ hearts rather than storm in uninvited. A breathtaking statement that expands on the band’s rock ’n’ soul breakthrough debut in ways few...

Castleface Damaged Bug, “Cold Hot Plumbs” (Castleface). “Underground rock” in 2015 is so chaotic that whole realms thrive outside the purview of all but the most focused scenesters. The music made by Damaged Bug, the moniker of musician (founder of Thee Oh Sees)...

Epic Kamasi Washington, “The Epic” (Brainfeeder). Is this breathtaking triple album from the L.A. jazz saxophonist and composer an outlier on this list? So what. “The Epic” is a fluid mix of free jazz, post-bop, fusion and hip-hop. An overwhelming display...