Best pop albums of 2014

There is life beyond “Milkshake,” Kelis Rogers’ game-changing 2003 hit. Renewed by motherhood, domesticity, home cooking, good friends and family bonds, the singer lets that intimacy permeate her best album yet in collaboration with TV on the Radio’s Dave Sitek. (Alex Garcia / Chicago Tribune)

Chicago Tribune

Dec. 3, 2014 9:38 AM PT

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Tribune’s Greg Kot picks the best pop albums of 2014.

Benjamin Booker, "Benjamin Booker" (ATO)

The songs on Booker’s debut album sound like letters to loved ones in crisis. They brim with caustic reflections on addiction, family strife and loneliness, delivered with stripped-down blues-punk grit. (Brian Cassella / Chicago Tribune)

Mary J. Blige, "The London Sessions" (Capitol)

The U.K. soul surge of recent years, from Amy Winehouse and Sam Smith, was in part inspired by Blige’s music and the way it merged tradition with street immediacy. (Mario Anzuoni/Reuters )

Run the Jewels, "Run the Jewels 2" (Mass Appeal)

Veteran MCs El-P and Killer Mike make “The Godfather II” of hip-hop sequels, an album that takes the buddy-cop-movie swagger of their 2013 debut and finds a deeper, more emotional perspective while retaining the sternum-cracking intensity. (Jose M. Osorio / Chicago Tribune)

The full-length debut by Tahliah Barnett weaves insinuating melodies and disturbing late-night reflections through spectral, minimalist soundscapes. Is it dance music? Avant-garde pop? A warped brand of R&B? If love is a drug, this is the soundtrack. (Chris Sweda / Chicago Tribune)

The Los Angeles quartet’s songs can take their time, but there’s purpose behind their patience, as subversive hooks float like incense through deceptively danceable grooves. (Chris Sweda / Chicago Tribune)