These Are The Best Album Covers of 2018

Photo: Tony Anderson (Getty Images)

The coolest album covers of 2018 were a varied group, with rock, hip-hop, and movie soundtracks all outdoing themselves.

Album covers are an under-appreciated aspect of music. Many artists are content to slap their face and the title on the album and call it a day. That’s understandable, as making the album surely takes a huge amount of creative energy.

But sometimes, bands or artists view the album cover as an extension of the music and go the extra mile. That’s when we get great cover art like these 15 albums.

Check out the best album covers of this year.

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Best Album Covers 2018

Cardi B: 'Invasion of Privacy'

The cover of Cardi B's first full-length album, Invasion of Privacy, reflects what's inside. It's fun, full of confidence, and instantly classic.
Vince Staples: 'FM!'

Hearkening back to a time when album covers were bright and fun, FM! lets everyone know Vince is here to party.
Spiritualized: 'And Nothing Hurt'

Set on Mars, the lone man by the mountains offset by dots and dashes would make an amazing poster. It's a great cover to a solid album.
Janelle Monae: 'Dirty Computer'

Proving once again that she's a star, Janelle Monae's cover for Dirty Computer has the confidence to be understated. It'd be easy to go bombastic, considering what the album behind it delivers.
Tunng: 'Songs You Make At Night'

A myriad of colors and shapes make this cover a little confusing at first. That may be intentional, as Songs You Make At Night isn't super approachable at first, either.
F*cked Up: 'Dose Your Dreams'

A Watchman-styled smiley face rising from a smoldering city sets the perfect mood. F*cked Up nails it with this one.
High on Fire: 'Electric Messiah'

While the figure's green eyes stare through your soul, the person on the stairs appears to be getting disintegrated. Metal album covers FTW.
Nicki Minaj: 'Queen'

Only a few artists would be willing to pose as Cleopatra, let alone this exposed. Nicki Minaj not only goes for it, she kills it, proving she really is a Queen.
Kids See Ghosts: 'Kids See Ghosts'

An epic collaboration between Kanye West and Kid Cudi deserved an equally strong album cover. It got one in spades.
Travis Scott: 'Astroworld'

Looking like one part amusement park and one part sculpture, Astroworld invites listeners into a universe centered on Scott.
Royal Tusk: 'Tusk II'

Featuring both style and dismemberment, Tusk II has it all. The band's brutal approach reflects its heavy riffs.
Thom Yorke: 'Suspira'

With the bright contrast of pink and blue, it's hard to believe Suspira is a soundtrack to a horror film. Perhaps that's the point.
Cowboy Junkies: 'All That Reckoning'

A young child in a flooded basement, with low lighting. Effective? Yes. Terrifying? Absolutely.
Daughters: 'You Won't Get What You Want'

A promise or a threat? The cover of You Won't Get What You Want asks: why not both?
Kendrick Lamar: 'Black Panther'

Superhero movies aren't exactly subtle, and with the hopes riding on Black Panther it could have been easy to go loud for the soundtrack cover. Lamar wisely chose not to and gave us one of the coolest covers in years. The music wasn't bad, either.