2014 is halfway done and for music fans, it's been a great one so far. Over the last six months, we've spent countless hours listening to albums from a wide range of musicians that we've loved for years as well as just now discovering. Click through to see our picks for the 25 best albums of the year so far ... and make sure you add these to your listening stacks if you already haven't!
Stand-Out Tracks: "No Rest for the Wicked," "I Never Learn," "Silver Line"
Why It's Great: The Swedish songstress' third album is a dark, deep plunge into a heart-wrenching breakup—but it's not all doom and gloom. While track titles like "Never Gonna Love Again" and "Sleeping Alone" encompass the subject matter, Li's uplifting melodies and moving production give the LP a much-needed sense of hope and optimism. The 28-year-old's vocals also shine, proving she's no longer the squeaky-voiced, shy girl from her debut single "Little Bit," but a wiser, weathered woman; best heard on the acoustic torch ballad "Love Me Like I'm Not Made of Stone."
Fun fact: Following her critically-acclaimed Youth Novels and Wounded Rhymes LPs, Li said I Never Learn is the final installment in her trilogy of album releases chronicling "a woman in her twenties and her search for love and herself." -Jeff Benjamin
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