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Albums That Made You Want to Join a Cult in 2019

From the self-care cult of Lizzo to Lingua Ignota's cult of vengeful women.

2019 saw a lot of fabulous releases, but which ones will stand the test of time?

While some albums are critically acclaimed but then rapidly fade into obscurity, others are so good that they could easily inspire cults. The albums on this list may not have been the year's most highly acclaimed, but they are the most likely to inspire (if they haven't already) massive cultural shifts and changes that will persist long into the 1920s.

1. Lingua Ignota — Caligula

Lingua Ignota's raging, heavy, monstrous Caligula mixes harsh noise with effects and lyrics that blend liturgical services with murderous impulses. It's a howl of rage that damns all abusers to eternal hell and suffering; and, at a time when women are getting tired of the inaction that accompanied #MeToo, Caligula could easily inspire a cult of women to take to the streets and take back what was taken from them.

LINGUA IGNOTA - DO YOU DOUBT ME TRAITOR (official audio)www.youtube.com

2. Lizzo — Cuz I Love You

The cult of Lizzo is already in full swing, and it looks like it's only going to continue to grow. Lizzo already has tremendous sway, and her lyrics are ubiquitous in Instagram captions and in politicians' Twitter feeds. As many of us resolve to get over self-hate and turn over a new leaf in 2020, Lizzo will certainly only gain notoriety and acclaim. It's easy to imagine a massive group of Twerking, face mask-using, body-positive Lizzo fans and imitators snapping selfies, going viral, and starting the defining cult of the next decade.

Lizzo - Cuz I Love You (Official Video)www.youtube.com

3. 100 gecs — 1000 gecs

100 gecs didn't mean for their album to go viral, but their absurd, chaotic collection of angsty electronica has sparked a revival movement for ex-scene kids who moved out of their small towns into big cities and immediately gravitated to the local noise venue. Like the best memes, the duo's meme-inspired album toes the line between hyper-seriousness and total parody, and ultimately it hits the perfect level of absurdity for what's going to be a very chaotic decade.

100 gecs - money machine (Official Music Video)www.youtube.com

4. Tyler, the Creator — Igor

The Igor wigs were one of this Halloween's most popular costumes, and it's likely that Tyler, the Creator and his Igor alter-ego aren't going away anytime soon. Tyler, the Creator was already powerful enough to inspire Frank Ocean to start his music career, and Igor was a master-class in the art of transformation—and really, who wouldn't follow him to the edges of the Earth?

IGOR'S THEMEwww.youtube.com

5. BTS — Map of the Soul, Persona

The BTS ARMY is already a kind of cult, and the group's powers are continuing to escalate. They're even going to ring in 2020 as special guests on New Years' Rockin' Eve in Times Square. If BTS asked their fans to do anything or cancel anyone, there's no real doubt of what would result, and in the 2020s as algorithms become the center of warfare, the ability to instantly get something trending is a unique and formidable superpower.

BTS (방탄소년단) 'DNA' Official MVwww.youtube.com

6. Kanye West — Jesus Is King

This one is contestable, because cult experts have reviewed Kanye West's Sunday Services movement and have determined that it doesn't really have the signs of an actual cult. It's just really, really born-again Christian. Whether you think Christianity itself is a cult is another discussion (but also, it is).

Kanye West - Jesus is King - Sunday Service Experience (The Forum - 11.03.19)www.youtube.com

7. Better Oblivion Community Center — Better Oblivion Community Center

Earlier this year, Phoebe Bridgers (emo-folk queen of the late 2010s) and Conor Oberst (emo-folk king of the 2000s) came together to create a cult-inspired emo-folk band about apathy, drunk nights out, and togetherness. They're definitely trying to recruit you, though it's not clear if BOCC practices any specific ideology or if they're just real sad about everything but still excited to hang out.

Better Oblivion Community Center - Dylan Thomaswww.youtube.com

What artists or albums would you follow all the way to Jonestown?

From Your Site Articles

Julia Thompson Captures Desire on "DNA" feat. Reo Cragun

Probing the chemistry of love.

Alt-pop singer-songwriter Julia Thompson debuts her first single of 2019, "DNA," featuring Reo Cragun.

Thompson explains the song's title, "There's always that someone in your life that becomes a part of who you are, that makes you who you are, and there is nothing you can do to escape. They become ingrained in your DNA."

With her music featured on Spotify's New Music Friday, Poptronix playlists, and MTV, Thompson joined forces with Cragun, whose collaborations involve G-Eazy, Flume, and Ekali, along with solo hits like "Thrilla" and "Holy."

"DNA" rides a trap-lite rhythm locked in with a piano's sensuous R&B savors. Cragun's silky falsetto balances Thompson's evocative voice, smoldering with unabashed desire. "I can't tell you to leave 'cause you're a part of me / Even when I can't see you out there / It's rushing / Through my bloodstream / It's in everyday / 'Cause you make up my DNA."

Follow Julia Thompson Instagram | Twitter | Facebook | Spotify

Backstreet's Back But We Wish They Weren't

The Backstreet Boys release new song "No Place."

The Backstreet Boys

By Jaguar PS/ Shutterstock

Backstreet's back...again. Their upcoming album, DNA, will be their first since 2013 and fans have already gotten a taste of what's to come with first single, "No Place." The song is accompanied by a video that feels like when acquaintances force you to watch their home movies, but it does prove that the members of BSB are now Dad hot, which is like regular hot, but slightly less so.

Backstreet Boys - No Place (Official Video)www.youtube.com

The song itself is wildly mediocre and cliched to the point of almost seeming intentionally lazy, like a love song written by way of Mad Libs. It often sounds like a list of weird brags about cities the group has been to, ultimately concluding that the proverbial "you" in the song is the best place of all the places, which is...boring. Granted, the song is very listenable, at least in that you kind of forget you're listening to it at all.

But perhaps most notable is the deeply uncomfortable music video featuring each of the group's members with their families. It almost works. Much of the footage is adorable and the children are having genuine fun with their respective fathers. In one moment, AJ McLean dances ballet with his two young daughters, and it becomes difficult not to feel some stirring of warmth.

However, the weirdest thing about the video isn't Howie Durough's startlingly deep V neck, or that it feels like a mash up of allergy medicine commercials, but that it comes off as a karaoke song. All of the BSB's voices are so obviously over-produced and autotuned that their mouthing along to the lyrics often verges on comedic. In one moment Kevin Richardson and his family stand on the edge of a cliff, staring into the distance arm in arm, softly murmuring the song's lyrics. It is so cringey you almost have to look away. At another point, AJ McLean stares lovingly at his wife, serenading her as the pair sit at their kitchen table drinking coffee. She looks so uncomfortable and unsure of what to do with her hands, you feel an urge to tell her you need help with the dishes just to save her from the situation.

It all raises the question: are the Backstreet Boys trying to rebrand? Do they recognize that tight jeans and dance moves just aren't in the cards anymore, so pseudo-country ballads and family man angling will have to do? Do they wear black socks with sandals?

Brooke Ivey Johnson is a Brooklyn based writer, playwright, and human woman. To read more of her work visit her blog or follow her twitter @BrookeIJohnson.

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