There were many amazing albums this year. But only one band — with its debut record, at that — managed to sell out Red Rocks, sing the national anthem at a Broncos game, tour Europe and play The Tonight Show...twice. This band of Denver musicians let the world in on a long-kept city secret this year: Nathaniel Rateliff and crew are seriously talented. This is the band that played on its own rooftop at a backyard party. That produced an album that had Denverites singing along months before it was released. That sold out Syntax Physic Opera and the hi-dive in under three hours, then heard a packed crowd chant along to "S.O.B." at both. Yeah, there were many amazing albums released in 2015, but Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats was the best, and now the world knows it.
Readers' choice: Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats