2021 Albums of the Year (50-26)

The more I poured over this list, the more I had to continue adjusting. Most years, a definitive top tier of records emerges and while this year largely wasn’t too much different, this was a really tough 50 to rank. Every album that is on this list deserves it, and there are probably 15-20 other albums that I could hear out making their way onto this list. Let’s get right into it.

50. Arab Strap – As Days Get Dark

49. King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard

48. Lana Del Rey – Chemtrails Over the Country Club

47. Lil Nas X – MONTERO

46. Hiatus Kaiyote – Mood Valiant

45. Lord Huron – Long Lost

44. Gruff Rhys – Seeking New Gods

43. Amyl and The Sniffers – Comfort to Me

42. Emma-Jean Thackray – Yellow

41. Brandi Carlile – In These Silent Days

40. Iceage – Seek Shelter

While not as tight or quite as bombastic as their 2018 record, Beyondless, Iceage continues to breathe life into the post-punk genre.

39. Wolf Alice – Blue Weekend

38. Olivia Rodrigo – SOUR

Truly a hell of a debut, in terms of acclaim, popularity, and a feat in just how easy it is to enjoy this record. Rodrigo has a surprisingly mature voice in her songwriting and it’ll be in

37. Sons of Kemet – Black to the Future

Jazz is alive and well, and seemingly in good hands. The second of four jazz records (Emma-Jean Thackray’s Yellow being the first in addition to its many funk influences) in this top 50, Sons of Kemet’s excellent Black to the Future (which features genres well beyond jazz and integrates them seamlessly) has a strong argument to be even higher on the list.

36. Julien Baker – Little Oblivions

35. Lost Girls – Menneskekollektivet

34. A Winged Victory for the Sullen – Invisible Cities

An album that landed this high honestly because of how often I find myself returning to it wanting to hear more and uncover more of its intricacies.

33. Jazmine Sullivan – Heaux Tales

Heaux Tales came out in January (and that’s actually when I first listened as well). Here it is still at the end of the year. That’s a testament to not just how good both this record and Jazmine Sullivan herself are.

32. Valeria June – The Moon and Stars: Prescriptions for Dreamers

31. Grouper – Shade

A record that reverberates low and slow long after it finishes, Grouper’s Shade continues Liz Harris’ marvelous streak of making music that will burrow into your psyche and stay there in the most comforting way possible.

30. Yasmin Williams – Urban Driftwood

29. Silk Sonic – An Evening with Silk Sonic

An album that whenever it wraps up, you end up begging for more of it. At the same time though, it doesn’t overstay its welcome at all, and that is remarkably refreshing. Bruno Mars and Anderson .Paak is a combination that before it happened, I had no idea how much I needed it. Then I heard “777” and that’s all she wrote.

28. Low – HEY WHAT

I know what a chore it can be when someone mentions that a record needs or even should be listened to multiple times, but Low’s HEY WHAT is absolutely worth that time. To dig deeper into HEY WHAT is to uncover much more than you heard or even felt on that first listen.

27. Vijay Iyer, Tyshawn Sorey, & Linda May Han Oh – Uneasy

26. Self Esteem – Self Esteem

An honest, brazen, balls-to-the-wall record that is catchy as it strong. Given those qualities, the accessibility Self-Esteem exudes is almost surprising. But it makes the whole record that much more endearing at every turn.

In a year like 2021 especially, it’s been nice to find albums that express the range (or even lack thereof) that you are feeling. As you can see from the above list, not only is there a broad spectrum of emotion but sounds as well. I hope you find something that connects with you, or you even start seeing the names of some of your favorite records of the year. The top 25 is coming soon.