SPIN's 25 Best Pop Albums of 2015

Short, sweet, and wildly kinetic, SOPHIE\'s debut album goes off like a chain reaction in a bouncy-ball factory. Stripping pop melodies and club rhythms down to their essence, the UK producer delights in detuned trance stabs and hiccupping freestyle on \"Bipp,\" and on \"Lemonade\" she unleashes teakettle squeal and hypnotic bubblegum pop. She can go dark: \"L.O.V.E.\" buzzes with ominous drones, and \"Msmsmsm\" is a maelstrom of metallic trap drums. But on \"Hard,\" \"Vyzee,\" and \"Just Like We Never Said Goodbye,\" playful rhythms and spine-tingling synths keep the mood positively giddy.

*Art Angels*’ opening trio of songs present a handy summation of Claire Boucher’s singular appeal. The operatic “Laughing and Not Being Normal” opens before making way for “California”. Ostensibly an irresistible country-twanged foot-tapper and easily the catchiest thing she’s recorded, its lyrics unload a bleak commentary on her industry’s treatment of female stars. Next up: the strident “Scream” featuring Taiwanese rapper Aristophanes and plenty of actual howling. Whether discordant and urgent (“Flesh without Blood”, “Kill V. Maim”) or dazzlingly beautiful (“Easily”, “Pin”), *Art Angels* is a Catherine wheel of ferocious pop invention and Grimes’ grandest achievement.

*Everything Is 4* sees the R&B dynamo working with an all-star cast—including Meghan Trainor, Jennifer Lopez, Stevie Wonder, and Keith Urban. While Derulo flexes his falsetto on the unstoppable opening anthem “Want to Want Me,” he harmonizes beautifully with Lopez in the summery, Matoma-produced pulse of “Try Me.” Just as impressively, Derulo makes memorable use of Wonder’s legendary harmonica and Urban’s unmistakable guitar moves on the hip-hop hoedown “Broke.”

Tove Stryke’s second album further cements her reputation as one of the most promising new pop stars to emerge out of Sweden. Like Lykke Li before her, Tove Stryke creates music both intelligent and adventurous. Crafting huge pop hooks and catchy refrains with casual nonchalance, there\'s still a sense of striving—and she delivers more than just throwaway chart music. Single \"Ego\" has a true earworm of a chorus, while the deadpan vocal delivery and nuanced production create an appealing air of detached cool. Tove Stryke has struck upon a sound that is addictive, clever and accessible.

This full-length debut is a colorful blast of attitude-packed R&B pop, spiced up with flirty rhymes (“Them Girls Be Like”), Mariah Carey samples (the ultra-catchy \"Like Mariah”), and guests including Kid Ink, Tyga, and Meghan Trainor. It’s the tunes when the distinct singers lean into lush vocal harmonies—“Reflection,” \"This Is How We Roll,” “We Know\"—where the album really shines.

Justin Bieber shows there’s art in resilience on his fourth studio album. After a turbulent 2014, *Purpose* sees the pop prodigy return with his strongest work to date—an atmospheric, introspective set that’s built on smart production and intimate songwriting. From the radiant “What Do You Mean” to the soulful, Skrillex-produced “I’ll Show You,” this is Bieber at his most vulnerable and honest. 

\"OctaHate” brought instant fame to Ryn Weaver—the track went viral and earned props by everyone from Paramore’s Hayley Williams to UK pop sophisticate Jessie Ware. Weaver’s debut full-length delivers on that song’s glittering promise. With help from Charli XCX, Benny Blanco, Cashmere Cat, and Passion Pit mastermind Michael Angelakos, *The Fool* is a collection of dynamic, self-assured pop. Detailed production makes \"Stay Low” and “Here is Home” pure headphone candy, while highlights like “Pierre” and “Sail On” transition from delicately crafted murmurs to maximalist anthems. Still, Weaver is the most captivating during album’s simplest moments, like the acoustic-guitar-backed elegance of “Traveling Song.”

Marina Diamandis has the kind of big, slinky voice that could easily silence a room. But Diamandis—the Welsh singer and instrumentalist behind Marina & The Diamonds—would prefer everyone up and dancing. *Froot*—her third full-length—is a giddy mix of new wave and propulsive electro-pop that feels both woozy and optimistic, like careening through a city at night in the rain. Lyrically, the album serves as an earnest ode to finding satisfaction in unlikely places. “I found what I\'d been looking for in myself,” she proudly announces amid the titanic hooks of “Happy.”

When hackers forced Madonna to release tracks from *Rebel Heart* early, it only drove expectations higher for the album, which comes in a standard 14-track version and a sprawling 19-track deluxe edition. The opening trilogy—“Living for Love,” “Devil Pray,” and “Ghosttown”—offer comfort food, melodies fans can take to heart, helped along by Diplo and Avicii. “Unapologetic B\*\*\*\*h” slides into reggae. “Illuminati” collaborates with Kanye West. “B\*\*\*h I’m Madonna” teams with Nicki Minaj. Chance the Rapper and Mike Tyson find their way into “Iconic,” while Madonna sings purely on “Joan of Arc.”

Singer/songwriter Martinez’s colorful personal style and multifaceted gem of a voice made an immediate impact on *Voice* viewers. Her debut album continues the trend, serving up sweetly arch noir pop not unlike that of Lana Del Rey if the latter abandoned hazy hues for candy colors. Martinez uses childhood tropes to symbolically get at adult subject matter—the fractured family of “Dollhouse,” the unfair focus on women\'s looks on “Mrs. Potato Head,” the effects of substance abuse in “Sippy Cup,” and, most importantly, the resilience of the titular “Cry Baby.”