There were darker albums this year, and there were groovier ones, but nothing juggled the two quite like Forest Swords’ long awaited debut album, Engravings. On four central foundations — murky drones, hip-hop-inflected beats, spiraling guitar riffs, and ghostly vocal samples — Matthew Barnes gave us the album that the Dagger Paths EP promised. The songs revolve around those core elements, but shift their focus constantly, like on the vocal séance in “Gathering,” or the lonesome guitar in “The Plumes.” The moments when Barnes hits us with all of his strengths at full force, like in “Thor’s Stone,” result in some of the most mysterious and hypnotic music of the year. It came out in the sweltering summer days of August, but slap on a pair of headphones and this thing chills you to the bone. –Miles [LISTEN]