What is the best rock album of the 2010s?

The decade stretched rock to its limits: bedroom indie, psychedelic synth-pop, post-punk revivalism, and folk crossovers all claimed the spotlight. Which one defined the era?

1

The Suburbs

Arcade Fire's 2010 Grammy-winning third album, a sprawling meditation on suburban life, nostalgia, and growing up.

2

Currents

Tame Impala's 2015 psychedelic pop album that redefined what rock could sound like, blending synths with introspective songwriting.

3

Modern Vampires of the City

Vampire Weekend's 2013 Pulitzer Prize-winning-adjacent album blending baroque pop, indie rock, and sophisticated lyricism.

4

AM

Arctic Monkeys' 2013 album fusing desert rock riffs, R&B rhythms, and Alex Turner's swaggering rock star persona.

5

Lost in the Dream

The War on Drugs' 2014 Dylanesque heartland rock album drenched in synths and elongated grooves, a critical breakthrough.

6

Blackstar

David Bowie's final album, released two days before his death in 2016, a fearless jazz-influenced art rock farewell statement.

7

A Moon Shaped Pool

Radiohead's 2016 orchestral, glacial album featuring tracks Thom Yorke had held for decades, culminating in True Love Waits.

8

Let England Shake

PJ Harvey's 2011 Mercury Prize-winning album examining British imperial history and war through autoharp and folk-rock arrangements.

9

Celebration Rock

Japandroids' 2012 album distilling the euphoria and catharsis of rock into eight fist-pumping, love-charged anthems.

10

Teens of Denial

Car Seat Headrest's 2016 lo-fi indie rock epic about college alienation, featuring brilliant guitar work and confessional lyrics.

11

Brutalism

IDLES' 2017 debut post-punk album about grief and masculinity, establishing the Bristol band as one of rock's most vital new voices.

12

Puberty 2

Mitski's 2016 indie rock album exploring loneliness, identity, and desire with razor-sharp lyricism and cathartic guitar bursts.

13

Blunderbuss

Jack White's 2012 solo debut that proved his songwriting talent extended far beyond The White Stripes, ranging across multiple genres.

14

Wakin on a Pretty Daze

Kurt Vile's 2013 sprawling, hazy indie rock album full of elongated guitar jams and laid-back, reflective songwriting.

15

Skinty Fia

Fontaines D.C.'s 2022 album exploring Irish identity and diaspora with brooding post-punk intensity and sophisticated arrangements.