Top Albums of 2021
So much good music came out this year, but after a lot of listening, these 10 albums stood out as the all-around best in my mind.
1. Sean Hayes — Be Like Water
There’s just not a bad track on this album. From the beginning of Shine through the end of Tomorrow Tonight, Sean Hayes is absolutely in control, directing the band through a liquid blend of folk, rock, funk, and soul. Every track is beautifully harmonized and tightly constructed. This is Sean Hayes’ first album in 5 years, and the intricate arrangements, luscious guitar/bass tones, and polished production suggest that he wasted no time. To me, the standout track is Invisible Weight, which gives me chills each time I hear the line “it feels good, it feels good to be rid of this, rid of this weight” undergirded by a swell of cymbals and lightly distorted guitar. The album feels out of time, unmoored from current events or sonic trends. The closest to social commentary Hayes gets is the refrain of “money, money, money, what’s a poor boy to do?” on Gold Tooth. All the instrumentals on the album sound like the work of a band that’s played together for so long they can communicate nearly telepathically. I can’t wait to see these songs performed live!
Highlights: Invisible Weight, Water, Gold Tooth, Shine
2. Genesis Owusu — Smiling With No Teeth
It’s become a cliche to say an album defies genre, but it’s never been more true than with Smiling With No Teeth. Genesis Owusu’s debut record shifts fluently between hip hop, R&B, new wave, and post punk, to name just a few. You can hear traces of Prince, Elvis Costello, a little Death Grips, and yes, there is a song that sounds a lot like the Full House theme (No Looking Back). But all the comparisons sell the record short: this is its own thing. One of the standout tracks is Waitin On Ya, which sounds like a sexy R&B slow jam until you hear lyrics like “wrap you in my blanket so I never see the sun with you” and “you can’t escape me with all your strength.” Hard to say for sure whether he’s playing a serial killer, his own internal demons, or the Grim Reaper, but his winking delivery of “save money on sunglasses by staying forever in the shade” makes the track worth a listen all on its own. I’ll resist the temptation to reprint half the lyrics on the album here, but one particular verse on the title track Smiling With No Teeth reads as a manifesto for the album: “Keep the grammy for you, we need an Oscar / The greatest actors the world has ever seen / Slathering honey on our demons for the palate of the apathetic / Isn’t that pathetic?” The honey of the inventive instrumentals makes demonic or downcast lyrics go down smooth. This is a relentlessly creative album that confidently tackles tough subjects while not shying away from admitting personal struggles.
Highlights: Waitin On Ya, Centrefold, Gold Chains, Don’t Need You, Easy
3. Spelling — The Turning Wheel
Let’s start here: Little Deer is probably the best piece of music I’ve heard all year. The strings, the horns, the vocal performance, everything about it is both absurdly ambitious and perfectly executed. The same is true of most of The Turning Wheel, an effort that involved 30+ musicians in addition to Chrystia Cabral, the mastermind better known as Spellling. The Turning Wheel is her third album, and represents a quantum leap forward, transforming the dark synth pop of the first two albums into stunning orchestral technicolor that matches her extremely expressive voice. The tracks are mostly on the long end and the album might not be suited for casual listening, but this is an album that reveals more and more gems with each listen.
Highlights: Little Deer, Boys at School, The Future, Awaken, Revolution
4. Little Simz — Sometimes I Might Be Introvert
The dramatic horns and strings of album opener “Introvert” immediately reminded me of the bombastic production of My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, and this is definitely a hip hop album of that scale. I saw a review somewhere saying this album is Simz “entering her imperial phase” and that phrase has popped into my head every time I listen. This album flaunts the expense and pomp of the symphonic production to raise the stakes of Simz’ already dramatic storytelling. She handles ballads and bangers with equal ease. The album is full of perfect moments — for instance, Speed is all strutting braggadocio until it’s descending siren-like riff is taken up by a string section that transitions perfectly into the orchestral, choir, and tympani fanfare that opens Standing Ovation. Point and Kill is another favorite, with a killer feature by Obongjayar. Protect My Energy is like a mantra/affirmation set over funky, throwback production and is one of the most fun moments on the album. In fact, nearly every full song on the album is excellent, but I could have done without some of the many interludes — The Rapper That Came To Tea is a skip for me, though your mileage may vary. I’m sure a lot of ink has been spilled over this album already, so I’ll leave it there, but don’t sleep on this one!
Highlights: Standing Ovation, Protect My Energy, Introvert, Point and Kill, I See You
5. Sufjan Stevens + Angelo de Augustine — A Beginner’s Mind
You could be forgiven for thinking this was a Sufjan solo album. I usually can’t tell Sufjan’s voice from Angelo de Augustine’s, and once I listened to a bit of Angelo de Augustine’s solo material, I immediately saw why. It sounds just like the folky side of Sufjan’s music, down to de Augustine’s breathy delivery. So in that light, it’s no surprise that A Beginner’s Mind is a return to form — specifically the hushed acoustic form of Carrie and Lowell or Casimir Pulaski Day. The difference is that this time the subjects are less personal and more fantastic. Instead of singing about Sufjan’s mother and her mental health struggles, the subjects of the songs are (at least at face value) Lady Macbeth, the gods of Olympus, and the residents of Oz. The production is lush and at times almost cluttered, with layers of vocal harmonies fighting for purchase with acoustic guitars, glockenspiels, and muted pianos. The result is that even the sad songs can sound exultant by virtue of the arrangement. Back to Oz is a perfect example, with a chorus that is driven forward by a glockenspiel riff that nearly mirrors the guitar riff on the verses of Smells Like Teen Spirit. I found the ideal times to listen to this are on a weekend morning around the house or on a quiet late night.
Highlights: Back to Oz, Reach Out, Olympus
6. Lucy Dacus — Home Video
Home Video goes in an even more personal and emotional direction than Lucy Dacus’ previous records, while also expanding her palette of sounds to incorporate more electronic elements into her guitar-driven folk rock. She’s said in interviews that she cares more about the lyrics than the instrumentals, and this record is definitely more lyrically driven than Historian. I’m typically the opposite way — the sound of the music matters to me more than the lyrics, or at least it’s the sound that I connect with first. But even coming from the opposite mindset as Lucy, this a great record. She explores a wider range of textures than previous records: atmospheric synths add an 80’s flair to lead single Hot and Heavy, and First Time could almost be a shoegaze song if the vocals weren’t so clear. She even uses autotune on Partner In Crime, although to my mind the song could have done just as well without it. But it’s really the lyrics that are the focus, and Lucy Dacus is still one of the best storytellers around, with little details like “let the record show I walked in on my own” made pregnant with meaning through the alchemical combination of singing cadence and lyrical context. Please Stay is the prime example — it’s one of the most lyrically devastating songs I’ve ever heard. I won’t even say more than that, I just recommend listening to it and crying. To me, Home Video doesn’t quite hit the incredibly high bar set by Historian, but it’s still one of the best albums of the year.
Highlights: Hot and Heavy, Please Stay, First Time
7. Lana Del Rey — Chemtrails Over the Country Club
It took me a couple listens to hear the beauty in this album. The first time I listened to it back in March I don’t remember being too impressed, and a second listen on the highway didn’t reveal much more. But coming back to it this December on a misty drive to Pacifica revealed a lot that I had been missing. This is a slow, gentle album that revels in the beauty of simpler instrumentals and allows Del Rey’s expressive voice to tell the whole story. The album begins anchored by characteristic piano and strings, then Wild at Heart starts a streak of guitar-driven tunes that lasts through Breaking Up Slowly, returning to piano for the final two songs. The standout track for me is the first one, White Dress, where Lana affects an extremely breathy high voice to evoke herself at 19, at the Men In Music Business Conference in Orlando, which she only mentions because “it was such a scene.” There are some weak moments — the line “let me love you like a woman, let me hold you like a baby” sounds like what you’d get if you trained an AI to write a Lana Del Rey lyric. But in a way, it fits on this album, which is unabashedly Lana in every aspect. She’s clearly found a sound that she wants to sink into and explore (”I’m not gonna change, I’ll stay the same”), and it’s one that works perfectly for her. Slow tempos, atmospheric arrangements, dramatic lyrics, and just an occasional touch of the instinct for controversy that permeated earlier albums. Definitely recommended for a foggy drive.
Highlights: White Dress, Dark But Just A Game, Tulsa Jesus Freak, Wild at Heart
8. Hiatus Kaiyote — Mood Valiant
It’s been 6 years since Hiatus Kaiyote’s last album of virtuosic neo-soul, but with Mood Valiant they pick up right where Choose Your Weapon left off. The hazy and complex song structures can be hard to penetrate, but every time you break through it’s rewarding. Sip Into Something Soft might be the perfect embodiment of the beauty that the haziness of the album can have. By contrast, All The Words We Don’t Say is one of the most immediate tracks, opening with nervous ticking energy and releasing with a different hard-hitting explosion on each refrain. Occasionally the lyrics on this album can get a bit too repetitive (And We Go Gentle) but even then, the melodies are ever changing. Probably my favorite track is Red Room, which exudes a blend of sultry calm and angst that I’m not sure I’ve ever heard mixed before. Stone and Lavender is a beautiful piano ballad, and might be one of the most accessible tracks, though it’s hidden away second to last in the track list. This is an album to put on in the background or listen to intently, but nothing in between. The textures are pleasant, but following the thread of the music takes concentration. I think there’s still a lot left for me to discover in this album — join me in digging!
Highlights: Red Room, All the Words We Don’t Say, Stone and Lavender, Chivalry Isn’t Dead
9. Sweet Trip — A Tiny House, In Secret Speeches, Polar Equals
I had the pleasure of playing a show this November with a Sweet Trip-related band, Starry Eyed Cadet, and that definitely played a role in how much I listened to this album this year. If you’ve been listening to the San Francisco Bay Area Sounds Playlist* I curate, you’ve definitely heard a couple Sweet Trip songs already. Sweet Trip is a glitch-pop/indie-rock/shoegaze duo based in Oakland that had’t released an album since 2009. However, their 2000s albums have been surging in popularity due to word of mouth on the internet, a fact that they seemingly reference on the chorus of In Sound We Found Each Other (“we’re cool just because of you”). Opener “Tiny Houses” sees Roby Burgos and Valerie Cooper’s voices emerge from a glitched-out cacophony of synths, before bringing in driving guitars that eventually dissolve into ambient washes of sound. It’s a great introduction to the range of sounds and genres that make up the album. Sometimes it can be hard to penetrate the layers of effects and noise to really connect with the song — that’s been my experience with Eave Foolery Mill Five, Randfilt, and Polar Equals. But the songs that did connect with me are easily good enough to put this in the top ten for me. Snow Purple Treasures is a beautiful ballad that expands into a blissed out instrumental jam. Surviving a Smile and Chapters are both incredible songs in every aspect, and worth a listen or twenty even if the full 69 minute (nice) runtime of the album is too much for you. Here’s hoping the next album is out before 2033!
Highlights: Surviving a Smile, Chapters, Tiny Houses, Snow Purple Treasures, In Sound We Found Each Other
*https://open.spotify.com/playlist/0XZWROCf9Ay8IHVSzLxgFu?si=2dfe6522e4884cd2
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Mild High Club — Going Going Gone
On Going Going Gone, Mild High Club sound like an electronic Steely Dan more than ever. If you got Donald Fagen stoned and spun him around a dozen times before plopping him in front of the keyboard to croak out his bewilderment at the modern world, it might sound a little like this. “Trash Heap” should, by rights, be this generation’s “Deacon Blues.” Lines like “passed out at the slot machine, all my quarters in the bin” and “used my code name at the nacho bar, extra queso for the king” have the same spirit of triumphant loserdom as “they got a name for the winners in the world, and I want a name when I lose. ” If the album has a concept, it’s Alexander Brettin repeatedly chasing the pleasant delirium of drunken revelry only to find himself collapsed in the parking lot outside.
Highlights: Trash Heap, Taste Tomorrow, Me Myself and Dollar Hell
Indigo de Souza — Any Shape You Take
This record only clicked for me right as I was finishing up writing the top 10. Maybe I would have put it higher if I’d discovered it earlier in the year, but I feel like I’m still just warming up to it. Hold U is a perfect pop song, and 17 isn’t far behind. Initially I wasn’t a fan of the nasal tone in de Souza’s belting voice on the more rock-oriented tracks, but it’s really growing on me. Having only heard Hold U before, I was surprised that the album was released by Saddle Creek, home of emo bands like Cursive. But the screaming breakdown on Real Pain puts any speculation about the “emo-ness” of the album to bed. It just so happens that the slick catchy pop songs that grabbed me first coexist with raw emotional rock like Die/Cry and Way Out.
Highlights: Hold U, 17, Darker Than Death
Psynwav — Slamilton
This is a mashup of Hamilton and Space Jam, and I just had to let the world know it exists. From the creator of In My G4 Over Da Sea, the mashup album of
https://psynwav.bandcamp.com/album/slamilton
1. Sean Hayes — Be Like Water
2. Genesis Owusu — Smiling With No Teeth
3. Spellling — The Turning Wheel
4. Little Simz — Sometimes I Might Be Introvert
5. Sufjan Stevens + Angelo de Augustine — A Beginner’s Mind
6. Lucy Dacus — Home Video
7. Lana Del Rey — Chemtrails Over The Country Club
8. Hiatus Kaiyote — Mood Valiant
9. Sweet Trip — A Tiny House, In Secret Speeches, Polar Equals
10. Squirrel Flower — Planet (i)
Honorable Mentions
Indigo de Souza — Any Shape You Take
Olivia Rodrigo — SOUR
Mild High Club — Going Going Gone
Psynwav — Slamilton
Finally, I’m contractually obligated to mention that I released an album this year called Petting Zoo, and obviously I can’t be objective about it, but I think it’s really good! You can hear it at https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/mitchrocket/petting-zoo or http://mitchrocket.bandcamp.com