2023 | 2022 | 2021

My Top 10 Albums of 2021

This year felt like a little bit of a return to normal for music. Last year's releases definitely carried a heavy influence from COVID-19, and despite things that I'm sure will look weird in 5-10 years like everyone being masked in Silk Sonic music videos, I didn't feel that as much this year.

Every year, I think the hardest part of doing this list is writing the little blurbs for each of the albums. I'm not the greatest writer, and find it even harder to write about things I'm really excited about for whatever reason. My girlfriend suggested that I try just describing them like I do to her, since according to her I'm pretty good at that. I'm not sure if she's just being nice to me or not, but I'm going to go with that.

Anyways, I thought I'd start this list with some tracks that really stuck out to me this year, presented in no particular order:

And now, my top 10 albums of 2021...

I'm not sure Tyler really needs an introduction, but the man just doesn't miss. Tyler's stellar production, unique style and smooth flows are back, and this time with a few more of what I believe the kids call 'bangers' than 2019's IGOR.

I can't say I listen to a lot of Grime, but Slowthai is the exception. His aggressive rap style goes great with an album that is slit right down the middle between ego and boast on one side, and introspection and reflection on the other.

I guess I'd call this album dad rock, but made by New York hipsters. This album has some weird acid rock-y fills and transitions that I'm not the biggest fan of, but the meat of the album is fantastic.

This album is a blast. It's definitely not the most approachable at times, but the highs are very high and the lead single, Pool Hopping, has been on repeat since it was released. Punk is a pretty strange genre to define, since the definition has changed so much, but this album sure feels like punk. There's definitely some indie rock-y vibes sprinkled in, but the eccentricity and pure energy involved sure feels like punk to me.

I really slept on their previous album, Until My Lungs Are Clear. It showed up on my top 10 list, but since then it's been on heavy rotation and probably should have been higher on my original list. This album is no different, I love their combination of pop punk, indie rock and everything in between.

Men I Trust have quickly become one of my all-time favourite bands. Their recent Tiny Desk Concert, and this fantastic album, has helped me cope with having not one but two shows cancelled on us due to COVID. Their blend of smooth, jazzy intrumentals with dreamy sad girl vocals is amazing.

Another Tiny Desk alumnus, I can't resist the pure energy and passion IDLES put into their music. I listened to a lot more guitar-y, punk-y, rock-ish stuff in 2021 than before and IDLES has definitely contributed to that. Just pure energy, with growling witty vocals.

I'm not ashamed to admit that sometimes, when I really need to get work done, I would just turn on Juicy and listen to it back, to back, to back, to back, to back, to back.... ad infinitum.
This was my introduction to Doja Cat and I haven't really cooled on her since. Some very solid features from Young Thug, Ariana Grande and best of all, SZA, make for a fantastic pop album.

I'd expect that a lot of people's introduction to Anderson .Paak was his absolutely incredible Tiny Desk Concert, as was mine. Since then I've been a big fan, and hearing about his collaboration with Bruno Mars had me all sorts of interested. I'm not as much of a fan of Bruno Mars, but there's no denying the man can sing.
The two of them together is everything I had hoped for and more, blending funk with Anderson's exceptional drumming and Bruno's vocal talent for an album I'm sure I'll have on repeat for a long, long time.

These English kids have big Drama Kid energy. Their music combines elements of math rock, post-punk, rock and jazz with lead vocals that are truely unique to me. I love the energy and range this album brings, it reminds me of great albums like Dark Side of the Moon where the songs flow together so well that once you start the album it's almost hard not to finish it.