Introduction:

2018 was the start of something new.

The film industry, which had been starved of Asian/Anglo-Asian representation for so long, finally decided to give in. Crazy Rich Asians dominated the summer box-office worldwide. Searching, the first Hollywood thriller led by an Asian-American actor, was another successful experiment in filmmaking–proving that Crazy Rich Asians wasn’t just a one-hit wonder. Abroad, films like Hirozaku Kore-eda’s Shoplifters and Lee Chang-Dong’s Burning drew critical acclaim from around the world.

Perhaps this rise in representation sparked something online as well. In Australia, a few Asian-Australians created a small closed group on Facebook called “subtle asian traits”, which somehow expanded into an online community of one million people over the span of a few months. For the first time, Anglo-Asians all across the world realized that they weren’t alone in their struggles, and that people out there related to their estranged upbringings in Western countries. Memes about boba, Asian parenting, and shared experiences from growing up in an Asian household were validation that we weren’t as strange as what we once thought. We all had each other. From there, the group has expanded ten-fold, building communities where Asian/Anglo-Asian filmmakers, musicians, and artists could come together and share their work with each other.

That brings us to the music front. From the Intercom was only started in August, with the main goal of spotlighting Asian/Anglo-Asian artists in the media in the hopes that musicians wouldn’t be forgotten amongst all of the progress that was happening in the changing world. Since starting the website, I’ve discovered countless artists that I’ve fallen in love with–ranging from countries all across the globe. And if there’s one thing I learned, there are more Asian/Anglo-Asian artists out there than you think.

So without further ado, here are our 18 Best Albums of 2018.

Introduction | Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3

Li-Wei Chu

Li-Wei Chu is the chief editor of From the Intercom. When he’s not editing drafts and searching for new artists to cover for the website, he loves watching cult films, cooking, and listening to his ever-growing collection of vinyl records. You can follow him on LetterBoxd and make fun of his taste in movies here!