Well, here we are, at the end of yet another
year, and what a weird one it was. We had all the covid nonsense of 2020 – ennui, distance,
misinformation, arguments, cancellations - combined with continual botched
attempts to get back to normalcy and the result has been about a thousand
different shades of mayhem. Amidst it all there has been a wealth of great
music to come, which was to be expected because all the musicians were at home
last year with all the time on their hands for creation. The summer saw
concerts come back in full force and that was a blast, if perhaps a bit weird at times. Supply chain issues
slowed down vinyl production (well, that, and the new Adele album, which choked
up all the pressing plants) and preorder campaigns became stronger than ever. Vinyl
continued to reassert its dominance while streaming remained the top musical
consumption method. Streaming also continued its move into the concert market,
while countless bands and artists sold livestream tickets. Sometimes they were actual
concerts and sometimes they were intimate broadcasts from home. Sometimes they were free and sometimes admission was charged. Some of these were full on productions and some were just on-camera rants, raves, and jams. In any case,
we got closer to our favorite artists than ever. Through it all, we kept
digging, searching high and low for new sounds to obsess over. What follows are 50 albums that most got my attention this year. I’m not into ranking music (aside from the Album Of The Year, which you will find below) so
these albums are in alphabetical order, and it is quite a wild mix. Every album
on this list will improve your life.
Afterlight: Afterlight
After 20 albums in
23 years, the wonderful Thea Gilmore changes her name to Afterlight and
releases this beautiful new album. While Prince famously changed his name to
get out of a recording contract, Thea’s name change is the result of her recent
divorce from longtime musical cohort, Nigel Stonier. Thea's producer and
musical director for the entirety of her career, as well as her husband and co-parent, this name and persona change
was necessary for her to move forward. At the same time this album came out,
there was another album, under her own name titled The Emancipation Of Eva Gray and those two albums tell the same
story, but in completely different ways. These are songs of rebirth, of
resurrection, of cutting loose the chains of the past and emerging into a new
era, refreshed and rejuvenated, stronger and more confident. Musically, this is
a hushed affair but, when the details are noticed, there is a fair bit of
vitriol, especially in “Stain”, while the ambient textures of “Chekhov’s Gun”
are chilling. Who knows how long she will be recording under this name but,
while this is a long way from Burning
Dorothy, Strange Communion, and The
Counterweight, this is a magnificent piece of work. May she soon find the
peace she is seeking.
Amyl & The Sniffers: Comfort To Me
Australia in the 21st
century has become a hotbed for punk & psych bands that kick ass and this
(somewhat unfortunately named) band stands near the top of the heap. Their
second album is a 34 minute maelstrom that proves that punk is alive and well
and tearing shit up down under. Every
song is balls to the wall energy and vocalist Amy Taylor has the presence and
exuberance that would sit her right at home at CBGB in its heyday. I especially dig the Picasso-on-acid vibe of the front cover.
Chris Anderson: Boomslang Oblivion
Yeah, that’s right,
I am putting my own album on this list. Why? Because this album rules, that’s
why. My 83rd long player was born when writing began on my 47th
birthday. Two days later came the Capitol Riots and songs came flying out faster
than ever. By the end of the month, there were over 50 songs, and the entire lot was recorded in February. The
sequence of songs that make up Boomslang
Oblivion fell together pretty quickly and easily and I definitely consider
this to be my all-time best. “Last On The Block” kicks the album off strong,
and the detours taken during songs like “Cool Like That” and “Unspeak The Truth”
are super cool. The remainder of the 50+ songs have been parsed out on four other
albums which have yet to be released and, while those are pretty great in and
of themselves, Boomslang Oblivion is
where it’s at. If there was one album of mine that you should ever listen to,
it’s this one.
Biffy Clyro: The Myth Of The Happily Ever
After
Historically, this killer Scottish trio has a tendency to record and release absurd amounts of b-sides with every album. Sometimes those tracks turn out to be the best of the sessions, and there is usually an additional album’s worth of them, which will often be compiled later and released as such. However, that changed a bit with 2020’s A Celebration Of All Endings, as standalone singles are somewhat a thing of the past, so the Biff instead collected all those extra songs, polished them up a bit, and dropped this set, for the shortest gap between albums in the band’s entire 26-year career. Every song on this set is up to the Biffy standard and, while there is a certain area of their catalogue that is just too loud and screamy for me, there are several fantastic songs on this set and it is every bit as strong as its parent album, if not better. A most welcome addition. Mon the Biff!
The Black Keys: Delta Kream
After years of
experimentation and outside work the Black Keys have brought it home on their
10th full length release. Taking it back to basics, this album finds
the band tackling some of the dirtiest, most chuggin’ blues this side of the
Delta. All of the songs on this set are covers and they were all recorded in
one session, with no rehearsal. 5 of the 11 songs were written by the legendary
Junior Kimbrough while others came from the likes of RL Burnside, Fred
McDowell, and John Lee Hooker, among others. These aren’t your typical 12-bar
blues – these are raunchy, funky, one-chord stomps, the kind of music that
makes you want to drink liquor and kick over chairs until you pass out. This is
music that makes you want to drive fast and live even faster. This is music
that you feel in the deepest pit of your gut. While of course there is no way
that two white boys from Ohio are ever going to hold a candle to all those
grizzled old blues guys, who actually lived these songs, but the music is
played competently, and with a great deal of respect. It is my hope that fans
of this record will then explore the Fat Possum catalogue, and dig a bit
deeper. This record is one hell of a gateway.
Edie Brickell & New Bohemians: Hunter
And The Dog Star
One childhood memory that I will never forget is seeing Edie Brickell & New Bohemians on Saturday
Night Live, as they were promoting their debut album, in the fall of 1987. The very next day
I bought the album, Shooting Rubberbands
At The Stars, and totally fell in love with Edie. That record still stands
as one of the best I’ve ever heard and I always love coming back to it. In the
years since, the band has come and gone a few times, before returning in full
force with 2018’s Rocket. As with
that album, this new set features everything from punchy pop songs to swirly
disco funk and gentle folk numbers, every song the product of a seasoned band
that is embracing its renewal.
Brandi Carlile: In These Silent Days
Brandi Carlile is
one of those rare artists who has been an absolute treasure ever since her
debut album, some sixteen years ago, and one who gets even better with every
year. Her seventh studio album finds Brandi delivering ten timeless tracks,
each of which could have been just as successful in 1975 as 2021, especially
the epic, “Broken Horses”, which is as pure a classic rock anthem as one can
get. Elsewhere, she evokes Joni Mitchell on “You And Me On The Rock” and
“Right On Time” is the rare slow album opener that really works. One of the best live acts out there, Brandi
and her lifelong cohorts, the Hanseroth twins, deserve every accolade that could
ever be thrown their way. In These Silent
Days further drives that point home.
Melissa Carper: Daddy’s Country Gold
Anyone missing the
days when country music swung, and had real twang, and actual meaning, need
look no further than Melissa Carper. Evoking an old school vibe, her voice has
a similar twang and vibrato as Brenda Lee, with a bit of Wanda Jackson, but
with a jazzy side as well. It is clear that she has spent a lot of time
listening to Billie Holiday over the years, and it has paid off tremendously.
This is a record that easily could have come out in 1957. The fact that it
exists in 2021 is most refreshing. In a world of Carrie Underwoods, be a
Melissa Carper.
On their twentieth
studio album, Rockford’s Finest does exactly what they are meant to do and that
is deliver a collection of some of the best power pop imaginable. The lead-up
to this album was a rather long one. After being inducted into the Rock & Roll
Hall Of Fame in 2016, the band quickly followed that with three albums, in very quick
succession. 2018 brought forth a new single, “The Summer Looks Good On You”,
with the promise of yet another new album, but that was not to come for three
years, for a variety of reasons. Whether the wait was necessary or worth it, I
don’t know, but what we have here is a document of Cheap Trick being the best
version of themselves, in their sixth decade together, and totally coming up
roses. Robin Zander proves he is still the greatest rock vocalist around, and Rick
Nielsen’s guitar work is as solid as ever. As with every Cheap Trick album,
some songs are better than others, but none of them are bad and many of them
are earworms. Just to be able to say that we can listen to a new Cheap Trick
album – in 2021 – is a beautiful thing. To have that record be good, well that is just a bonus. May they forever be ready to rock.
Clever Girls: Constellations
The second
full-length release from this Burlington VT combo is a refreshing slice of
indie rock that straddles the classic and the modern in a timeless sort of way.
A very dynamically diverse album, songs like “Come Clean” and “Womxn” are
designed to get under your skin….and then completely melt it, while “Remember
Pluto” is a hit that should have been. The way this band can straddle cloudlike
sways with bone crushing noise is to be admired.
The Connells: Steadman’s Wake - ALBUM OF THE YEAR
If you grew up
anywhere in the mid-Atlantic region in the late 80s – early 90s, and you were
even the slightest bit “hip” then you knew The Connells. Songs like “Scotty’s
Lament” and “Stone Cold Yesterday”, along with albums like Boylan Heights and One Simple
Word, were the soundtrack of the less mainstream, and those are records
that continue to age well. While the band never actually broke up after 2001’s Old School Dropouts, the music took a
backseat to the members’ real “adult” lives and, for the last two decades, The
Connells would only really come out of hiding for the occasional reunion show,
almost always in the Raleigh area. That all changed this year when the world
was treated to the fantastic Steadman’s
Wake. Not only is this the first Connells album in twenty years, but it
stands as one of their all-time best. Kicking off with the fittingly-titled
“Really Great”, we are not just taken back to a time when The Connells reigned supreme,
but we are hearing a band delivering the goods as if they had never stopped
making records. The title track, with its references to unrest in
Charlottesville, and elsewhere, is one of the great singles of this year. This
album continues to twist and turn, delivering one instant classic after
another, and by the time we hit the album-closing “Helium” – easily one of the
greatest songs this band ever released – the only logical option is to flip the
record over and start again. One of the most unlikely, unexpected, and welcome
returns of any band that I can think of, in recent memory, my only hope is that
this jumpstarts the band’s career and ushers in a new prolific age for them.
This album may be a gift but it is far too good to not build upon. Hopefully it happens but, if not, this is one hell
of a coda.
Derby Motoreta’s Burrito Kachimba: Hiro Negro
To be honest, I
only bought this record because of the name. Someone in one of my vinyl groups
posted it and said it was their most anticipated album of the year, so I had to
see what it was all about. Intense psych from Spain, sung in Spanish by a
singer with a very commanding voice, there is a swirling vibe to this, and a
heavy middle eastern feel in places, spacy in others. Some songs almost
have a pop feel, but then they always tumble into the rabbit hole. There are
times when this band reminds me of King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard, and no
doubt they were an influence, but this takes it to a whole new level, while
never getting nearly as weird as the Gizz (then again, I can’t understand the
lyrics so who knows what they are on about). Every song on this set is fresh
and performed with total authority. This is one band that I would absolutely
love to see live.
Every so often you
come across this sort of artist who, with just one note, can instantly transport
you to a particular time and place. Dinosaur Jr is one of those bands. One
word, one riff, and it is 1994 again; I am in college, learning how to be a
proper slacker, and trying to figure out how my own music fits into the grand
scheme, of both the universe itself as well as the expanse of my own mind, while spending as much time as possible inflicting as much damage as I can on my lungs and brain, and having as much fun as I can in the process. Between super melodic songs, no nonsense lyrics, wicked guitar
shredding, and J. Mascis’ fragile wobble of a voice, this is a band whose sound
has not expanded much in recent years, but one whose sound instantly feels like
home. Sure, they have gotten better at their craft, and perhaps they have
already had their restless period, but things haven’t changed too much. Lou
Barlow is still an under-represented hero, but it is Mascis who
defines the band. This is a solid set of songs and I will forever be
flabbergasted that it really has been almost four decades since this band came
into being.
Dream Theater: A View From The Top Of The
World
The kings of
prog-metal are back with their 15th studio release, which finds them
once again at the top of their game. The opening track, “The Alien”, is easily
one of the most insane and badass things this band has ever recorded. This
album marks a return to longer-form compositions, after exploring shorter songs
on 2019’s Distance Over Time and
2016’s double concept album, The
Astonishing. The album concludes with the 20+ minute title suite
which is just about as classic a Dream Theater track as there ever could be. As
always, the band sounds amazing here. James LaBrie continues to be one of the
most expressive (and least melodramatic) metal vocalists out there, and the
number of notes that John Petrucci is capable of playing continues to rattle my
brain. To have a beloved band make an album this strong, so late in their
career, gives us all hope.
Duran Duran: Future Past
One of the most
significant bands of the 1980s celebrates 40 years with their first album in
six, and their best in ages. For so many years, Duran Duran tried to push
their sound forward until they kind of lost the point, and then they spent so
long trying too hard to be relevant in today’s pop world. With this new,
aptly-titled set, the band finds themselves looking backwards and making a
record that sounds like a Duran Duran
album, as we all came to know and love them. That is not to say that any part
of this album is a rehash, but it’s more like they finally decided to just be
themselves. The result is a satisfying set that will take any 80s child back
home.
Billie Eilish: Happier Than Ever
Normally I do not go
for quiet music, especially quiet electro. I tend to like a tune and a beat and
a groove and I usually prefer the ethereal stuff to stick in the background.
Billie Eilish, however, is an exception. The subtleness of her voice never
fails to incite goosebumps, and I am continually shocked that she can sing so
quietly and still manage to get her point across so clearly. I can’t say that I
can identify with her so much, at least at this point in my life (she does make
me not miss being in high school one bit) but, pretty much every song, I know
where she’s coming from. While I will say that I enjoyed her full-length debut
more than this sophomore release, this album is the kind of triumph that will
continue to reveal itself with repeated listening. This artist is something
very special and I really hope she continues on a fresh, original path.
Goose: Shenanigans Nite Club
Every few years the jamband scene gets infiltrated by a new generation of bands. Sometimes those bands are generic, fly-by-night outfits but every now and then one band comes along that changes the game. The most recent band to do so is Goose, who exploded onto the scene, fully formed, just about five or six years ago. Since then they have been taking the live music realm by storm with a mix of unique, diverse original songs and an improvisational rapport that puts them up there with the mightiest bands in the scene. Shenanigans Nite Club is the band’s second studio album and it totally smokes. Live favorites like “Madhuvan” and “The Labyrinth” stretch out the jam and sound almost as inspired as on stage, while shorter songs like “So Ready” and “(s△tellite)”prove that this band can get to the point just as well. It is common in the jamband community for fans to prefer live performances to studio albums, and I guess I get it, but that is often a very unfair assessment. There are plenty of inspired studio albums from all of the big jam players and this set, from this rapidly rising group, is pretty fucking inspired.
Greta Van Fleet: The Battle At Garden’s Gate
Greta Van Fleet has
gotten such an unfair shake during their short life as a band. For years,
people everywhere declared rock to be dead, and longed for the days of Zeppelin
and the Who and such. Then finally this
band comes around that brings all of that back to the forefront, emulating a
style of music that long predated their very lives, and they do a hell of a job
at it yet they have taken such a savage beating in the press and, even more so,
on social media. Sure, on the surface they sound like Zeppelin, but when you really
listen to them, they actually don’t. At least no more than early Rush, or any other
band that came in the mighty Zep’s wake. And, even so, how bad of a thing is
that? Wouldn’t you rather have a band that sounded like Zeppelin than a band
that sounded like Maroon 5? Come on, people. As far as I am concerned, this
band’s only flaw is the fact that they dress like total prats, and that, more
than anything, makes it very hard for people to take them seriously. Strip that
away and listen closely to their music and you will hear something both
familiar and fresh, which is as winning a combination as you can get. Their
second full length album finds this Michigan quartet continuing down their own
path on 12 songs that take the best that Classic Rock ever had to offer, and
elevate it to 21st century standards. Buy these guys some jeans and
t-shirts and may they have a long and fruitful career.
Guided By Voices: It’s Not Them. It Couldn’t
Be Them. It Is Them!
Bob Pollard
releases a lot of albums. That is no secret. Since the Guided By Voices name
was revived in 2017 there have been eleven studio albums to come out, two of
which are doubles. Add to that, four records by the pseudonymous Cash Rivers
& The Sinners, as well as two sets under the name of Cub Scout Bowling Pins
– all of which feature the same quintet – and you have an entire career right there,
never mind the (literally) 100 albums that came before. Such prolificacy all
but guarantees that not every record is perfect. But the thing is, none of the
albums are bad.....but some are better
than others. Take 2021, for example. Two GbV albums were released this year.
The first one is a concept album, built from once-abandoned songs and ideas,
called Earth Man Blues. That record
was pretty good, if a little forced. This, however, is the second album to come
this year and it is one of the best to come from this lineup, which is the most
enduring in the band’s history. Songs
like “Spanish Coin”, “Psycho House”, and “Chain Gang Island” are prime examples
of classic GbV, while others like “Razor Bug” make you wonder just what the
hell Bob was thinking on album-sequencing day. As always, the band sounds tight and the
production suits the music perfectly. Sure, this is just another day at the
office and it won’t be long before this album is relegated to the past, but it
is one hell of a statement from the most prolific artist out there.
Halsey: If I Can’t Have Love I Want Power
The thing that
always drew me to Halsey was how well she is able to acclimate to pretty much
any musical vibe, and sound fantastic doing so. Plus, the fact that she can write one hell of a pop song. When
I first heard that Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross were producing this new album,
I wasn’t sure what to think. From the opening notes, however, it is
totally clear and makes perfect sense. A concept album about pregnancy and
motherhood, this collection of songs will scrape at your soul and, at times,
blow you away like the dude in that old Maxell ad. The opening track, “The
Tradition” is one of the heaviest hitting songs (to not feature drums) that I
have ever heard, and “I’m Not A Woman, I’m A God” is just blistering. There are
a lot of quiet, meditative moments on this album, but there are plenty of
explosive ones as well, and that dichotomy is what makes this album so
compelling.
Any quartet from Dublin that is fronted by Bono’s son, Elijah Hewson, is automatically going to be compared to U2. There is no escaping that, and I am sure he’s already heard it enough. While this band obviously is not on the same plane as U2 it is clear that it is an undeniable part of their DNA, and that helps more than hinders, I think. Elijah sounds remarkably like his dad, especially in his most impassioned moments, but he also has enough of his own style to set this band apart (think Julian vs John). Musically, this is really solid and all of the songs are very well written and performed, and are memorable as well. While it sounds less like U2 itself and more like the various bands who claim U2 as an influence, this actually sounds like the album that U2 has been trying (and failing) to make for the last decade. Where this album succeeds and, say, Songs Of Experience fails is the actuality of youth. Inhaler are young and they are creating music from the perspective of youth. U2 has been a band for 45 years and their constant fear of inferiority forces them to continually overthink and overanalyze and try too hard to be relevant while, in the case of Inhaler, this is just what they happen to sound like. There seems to be far less pretense in this production than in the Ryan Tedder-produced work of his dad’s band. The writing is fantastic and, sure, this is nowhere near as audacious a debut as Boy was (no album is), this is a really solid beginning for a band that should hopefully be around for a while.
Iron Maiden: Senjutsu
41 years after their debut, the kings of British heavy metal prove that they still have it in them. Their second double album, Senjutsu, features a return of Steve Harris as the prominent songwriter, and a whole bunch of really long songs that, in one way or another, focus on doom. As they should. The band sounds great and even though a lot of die-hard fans are complaining about this album, to the casual fan this is a masterpiece. Fans of the proggier side of the band will delight in disc two, which features four tracks, three of which exceed the ten-minute mark. Bruce Dickinson continues to be a ferocious presence behind the mic, and the rest of the band plays with the energy of a much younger unit, albeit with genius precision. Who knows how much longer this band will keep at it but any year that features a new Iron Maiden album is a special year and every note of this band's music is precious.
Manchester’s most
enduring band shows up on their 16th studio release, firmly settling
in as elder statesmen of modern rock. Working with famed producer Jacknife Lee,
this album has a feel that doesn’t put it too far outside the mainstream, but
is full of dynamically diverse songs that pull you in deep. While this album
was started a few years ago, it is no surprise that covid-era imagery creeps
into these songs, as well as other headlines and attitudes of the day. Tim Booth
sounds fantastic, his voice as distinctive as ever. While the general sound of
the band has not strayed too far, they do not rely on the same old tricks here.
Just like he did with U2 and REM, Jacknife Lee managed to capture the essence
of what made the band tick in the first place, and elevated it to a whole new
plane.
On their fifth full
length release, this Welsh outfit may relax a bit on the extended psychedelic
guitar workouts and mindbending sheets of sound that defined their first
several releases, but their sound is as dense and driving as ever and
singer/guitarist Ritzy Bryan puts on a hell of a performance as always. There
are a good number of upbeat, melodic numbers, but every now and then they hit
us with a wild sonic tapestry that reminds us that the shoegazer movement is
alive and well.
King Gizzard And The Lizard Wizard: Butterfly
3000
I don’t know what
is more impressive, that the Gizz have managed to release 18 albums in 9 years,
or the fact that every one of those albums sounds completely different, with almost equal magnificence. For
their second release of the year (the first being the microtonal LW), we are
treated to the long-threatened synthpop album and, as they do in every other
aspect of their recording career, they completely nail it. In these ten songs we
hear the mighty Gizz emulate – and surpass – bands like Future Islands, Broken
Bells, Tennis, etc. The thing about this album, and all of their albums, is
that this isn’t just some sort of genre experiment. I mean, it is, it totally is, but it
sounds far too legit to be dismissed as such. This is a collection of songs
that evoke a certain mood, and some of these songs are outstanding, especially
“Interior People”, “Catching Smoke”, and “Yours”, though all of the songs are
super cool. I am really curious how these songs are going to sound on stage. On
record, they are simply divine.
Lunar Vacation: Inside Every Fig Is A Dead
Wasp
Atlanta’s Lunar Vacation delivers their full-length debut and really knocks it out of the park. Yes, the title of the album is both true and unsettling, but the music contained within is anything but. This is one of those bands who has a sound that is immediately familiar while, at the same time, sounding nothing like anything specific. Most of the songs are in the mid-tempo range and they do possess a certain sense of timelessness. I could hear this album coming out in 1998, 2006, 2012, or now, and I would be none the wiser. Sometimes that is a bad thing but not here. The songs are both simple and clever at the same time, and Grace Repasky has a voice that almost reminds me of Liz Stokes, from the Beths, which is one of my favorite bands in the world (I was not surprised to see that Lunar Vacation will soon be touring the US with the Beths). I will be keeping a close eye on this band.
Magic Beans: Slice Of Life
One of the better,
and more song-oriented, bands of the latest version of the Jam scene, The Magic
Beans have only been around for a few years but they have made quite a name for
themselves in the meantime. Slice Of Life is their fourth album and it finds
the band settling into a groove generally reserved for those who mean business.
Some songs have a sort of generic jamband feel but they are all played well and
have a good groove, and there are occasional flashes of brilliance that put
them over the top. “Grown Up” is a killer track, and “Won’t Get Out Alive” will
have all the hippies dancing.
These Welsh rockers
have been one of the most consistent bands of the last three decades, even
going so far as to get even stronger after the mysterious 1995 disappearance of
their original creative force, Richey Edwards. As the Manics settle into their
fourth decade as a band, they consolidate the past few years into this 11-song
set, their 14th full-length, and come out as one of the strongest
bands of their generation. Purposely avoiding covid-era themes, this album
instead looks inward, as the best ones do, and the resulting sound is giant….not
necessarily loud or heavy…..just giant.
Cameos from Mark Lanegan and Julia Cummings (from the amazing Sunflower Bean)
further enhance their respective songs. While they may go unnoticed in the US,
the Manics remain a pretty big deal overseas and the world is far better for
their continued existence.
Motorpsycho: Kingdom Of Oblivion
2021 marked 30
years since Norway’s Finest released their first album, Lobotomizer. In the years
since, they have released some two dozen albums, each one phenomenal, each one
revealing (at least) a slight shift in direction. To follow the trilogy of
albums that came before (The Tower, The Crucible, and The All Is One) is a
mighty task. For the most part, Kingdom
Of Oblivion does those albums proud, though it is not as consistently
perfect as those. I only say that because there is a point in the middle of
this album where it gets really quiet, and stays that way for far longer than
it should. However, that is only a minor gripe when considering the rest of the
material on this album. While it is not
that drastic a change, stylistically, it feels like there was a layer of sheen
that was removed for this album, and the heavy crunch is something you feel
even more than before. “The Waning” is as brutal an album opener as there is
and “The Transmutation Of Cosmoctopus Lurker” is just plain wicked.
Kacey Musgraves: Star Crossed
I have always liked Kacey Musgraves, as long as I have been aware of her. She has always had so much more to offer than your standard pop and/or country artist. Perhaps it’s because she writes her own songs, and those songs come from real life experiences, sung by a voice that just has just enough sweetness to appeal to the masses, but enough darkness to spark intrigue. That darkness is especially evident on this album, her fifth, which joins the elite class of “breakup albums”. Coming in the wake of a bitter divorce, all of the songs on this album deal with that, in one way or another. Most of the album stays on the mid-tempo side, and a lot of it has an ethereal vibe, while spanning pop, country, folk, rock, and even a dose of psychedelia. The production is dense and relies heavily on electro elements. While I would prefer a more organic approach, the result is a sonic adventure that is well worth taking. Songs like “Justified”, “What Doesn’t Kill Me”, and “Breadwinner” are gut-punches that also happen to be among her best songs ever. As with all great breakup albums, this one goes through the various stages, such as anger, sadness, emptiness, fear, and longing, but ultimately ends up at hope, and that is the most important stage. So long as she can play it right, Kacey is well on her way to becoming a treasure.
Needlepoint:
Walking Up That Valley
Canterbury is alive
and well in Oslo, specifically in the grooves of the fifth release from
Needlepoint. Comprised of musicians from the Norwegian jazz scene, this band
has a jazzy sound that reminds me of early Soft Machine, Kevin Ayers, Caravan,
stuff like that. As with much of the Canterbury scene, the songs are an
acquired taste, especially in the vocal department, but, once acquired, there
are layers upon layers of groove to dig into. This entire album is a perfect,
chilled-out session, but the album-closing title track, with its extended jam,
is the highlight, capping this album perfectly, and making you wonder – is this
2021 or 1971?
Our Man In The Bronze Age: Hexed Endeavors
Our Man In The
Bronze Age is not a particularly prolific band – their only other full length
release was nine years ago – but they sure do make it count. This latest
release finds the band delivering thirteen heavy slabs of stoner rock that
often hints at 1970, but is also firmly grounded in the present. This is the
kind of music that can not only peel paint off the walls but also power a jet.
At times they remind me of Motorpsycho, sometimes Kyuss, and they possess the
dynamic range of both while not necessarily sounding too much like either. This
is a band that should have more attention. Perhaps if they put out more than
one record per decade. Hopefully this album will gain the traction they need to
continue creating.
Ouzo Bazooka: Dalya
Israeli
psych-rockers Ouzo Bazooka return with their fourth album and it is one of the
most impressive entries on this list. As always, this band manages to blend
swirling psychedelia with compelling songwriting and hypnotic meditation, and
that mix has reached wild new levels on this album. Opening track, “Monsters”,
gets the affair going with a killer groove and a guitar motif that spins like a
whirling dervish, and the band winds through five more songs filled with clever
riffs, slippery grooves, and memorable vocal lines. The moment I heard this
album for the first time, I don’t think I was to the end of the first song
before I ordered this on vinyl, and then spent a great deal of time scouring
the internet for the rest of their catalogue (hint: it is fucking impossible to
track down their records; no one is stupid enough to sell their copies), and I
always have a hard time not flipping this record over and over. One of the most
refreshing releases I’ve heard all year.
Pom Pom Squad: Death of A Cheerleader
On their full-length
debut, Pom Pom Squad delivers what is essentially a concept album, inspired by
cheerleaders, and other ”popular kids” – the ones that leader Mia Berrin surely
did not associate (or fit in) with - but
giving the story a very dark twist. These are songs that come from a dark,
angry place and feature so many memorable (and totally fucked up) lines that I
could fill this entire blog with talk of them. This is one of those records
that immediately gets under your skin and will alternately fire you up and
reduce you to a crumpled mess. These words, while beautiful on the page, are
ones that no one should have to write, but everyone feels at some point in
their lives. A fantastic debut – here’s
to a career.
The Record Company: Play Loud
On their third
album, The Record Company gets down to business with a set of 12 songs that
instantly get you right in the gut. These dudes rock like the Stones, with a bit of
Stereophonics in the mix, and maybe a dose of the Shins, a twist of Oasis, a
bit of a Stooges swagger, and a big cache of killer songs. This is one of those
albums that plays like a greatest hits set. Every song is immediate,
infectious, and single-worthy, and each successive pass through the album is
even more satisfying than the last. I have yet to figure out if this band’s
name is pretentious or genius, but their music, and this album in particular,
definitely fits in with the latter.
Olivia Rodrigo: Sour
Now, generally, if the name “Disney Channel” appears on an artist’s resume I will usually move along while I unfairly judge the music without having heard it, because that’s what we do. Perhaps not the wisest choice, as that would have prevented me from listening to this wonderful debut by an artist worth keeping up with. Fortunately I went into the album cold, without knowing anything about the artist and what I found was a collection of songs written and sung from the point of view of a teenager who has already had enough of youth and all the bullshit that comes with it. There is a reason why this album is called Sour after all. The opening track, “Brutal”, features one of my all-time favorite lines – “I’m so sick of 17/where’s my fucking teenage dream”. While that track is set against a propulsive riff that reminds me of “Pump It Up” (Elvis Costello), elsewhere that sentiment manifests itself in a variety of styles and moods, from folky to jazzy to bedroom pop and the occasional paint-peeling thrash, and pretty much everything in between. What makes this, however, is the fact that she is a fantastic singer and is able to sound convincing no matter what style she is exploring. I look forward to seeing what the future holds for her.
Saga: Symmetry
In 2017, after 40
years as a band, Saga announced that they were embarking on a final tour. I had
the pleasure of seeing the first show of that tour, in Mannheim Germany, and
their opening act was…..themselves.
Performing under their original name of “Pockets”, the band
re-envisioned several songs, from all corners of their vast catalogue, and
performed them in a cleverly-arranged acoustic setting which also featured a
library-themed stage set. Following the tour, offers kept coming in and the
band could never say no, so they continue on. Their 23rd studio
album expands upon the theme of those opening sets, even incorporating the
visual theme into the album art. Rather than rehashing their greatest hits,
they play a lot of deeper cuts and, in a couple of cases, arrange a few
together in a themed medley that opens up the songs even more. Augmented by a
fiddle player and two cellists, the band also branches out in their own
instrumentation (Ian Crichton plays mandolin and banjo as well as guitar; Jim
Gilmour flourishes on clarinet and accordion) and the songs are arranged in a
way that serves the originals while sounding completely fresh. “The Perfect
Time To Feel Better” suite is particularly intriguing, while “Always There”
takes an already perfect song and makes it even better. The only big hit on
this set, “Wind Him Up”, is given a string-laden arrangement that features a
slippery groove and some pretty wild instrumental breaks. Whether it is better
than the original is neither here nor there. This is a great take, as are all
of the songs on this set. Of course, I am left wondering how other classic Saga
tracks would sound in this setting, but I very much appreciate the deeper dig
on the material. While the band currently has put disbandment on hold, surely
it will come before too long. Hopefully they have at least one more album in
them but if this were to be it, then this a very fitting way to go out.
Sleater-Kinney: Path of Wellness
Olympia’s greatest export return with their 10th studio album, the first since 1996 to not feature longtime drummer Janet Weiss. In spite of her absence, this album kicks ass. Song-wise, they remain at the top of their game. “High In The Grass” is about as classic a S-K track as there is while the mellow “Shadow Town” offers something a bit different, and “Bring Mercy” closes out the album on a high note.. Corin Tucker still has the best howl in all of rock while Carrie Brownstein remains the coolest rocker in the world. While this may be a long way from the days of Dig Me Out and The Hot Rock, the spirit of this band remains and the world is a much better place because of them.
Snail Mail: Valentine
Anyone lamenting
the days of true indie rock, when labels like Matador, Sub Pop, Teen Beat, and
Simple Machines dominated the underground need look no further than Lindsey
Jordan, otherwise known as Snail Mail. Her first album, Lush, made her an instant indie darling while Valentine has cemented her status as a true star and returned the
Matador label into the echelon of cool where it belongs. I will admit that what
grabbed me first was that it reminded me of the 90s, when I worked in a cool
record store and got hip to all the kinds of bands that never got played on the
radio, back when I discovered Pavement, Liz Phair, Chavez, Guided by Voices,
Helium, etc. What keeps me coming back is the level of emotion that she conveys
in every single song. These are songs that come from pain and her ability to
convey those emotions without getting too wrapped up in them is what makes this
album such a stroke of genius.
Space Bacon: Cone
Instrumental jamtronica band with a super cool name drops their first full-length studio album which is packed with cool grooves and stellar playing. At times they remind me of Disco Biscuits, but without those pesky vocals which always get in the way. It is really hard for an instrumental band to perfectly maintain a catalogue of unique songs with individual characteristics. So many of them, after a while, it all sounds the same and it makes you wonder how even the band can tell them apart (I’m looking at you, Ozrics), but the songs on this set are all distinct and more than just an excuse to jam. If you can write an instrumental that can tell a story then you are on the right path for sure. This is a good record for driving, zoning out, or for the background.
The fact that Styx
has a new album in 2021 is shocking on its own, though they just had an album
in 2017, so it’s not that unlikely. However, the fact that Styx’s 2021 album is
nothing short of phenomenal is one that will keep me scratching my head for
some time. Over the course of fifteen relatively short songs, the mighty Styx
flexes their prog muscles quite a bit, delivering a set that features songs
that are clever and catchy, sometimes evoking a Beatles vibe, with those
classic Styx harmonies elevating these tracks to a far higher plane. Every song
on this album is great and stands among the best of this band’s material.
Highlights include “Long Live The King”, “Reveries”, “A Monster”, and the
killer title track. It’s always great when the geezers make good, and these
geezers knocked it out of the park.
The Suburbs: Poet’s Party
One of the
originators of the MLPS Sound of the early 80s, The Suburbs never quite got the
attention that they deserved, but that hasn’t stopped them from putting out
some of the best records of their respective years. In fact, 2017’s Hey Muse! topped my list that year (few albums are
better than that one). While that album was a crowning achievement, this new release
is a triumph in its own right. Though the songs on Poet’s Party are not as immediately infectious as those on its
predecessor they are fantastic and feature a great deal of depth, which is
something that reveals itself with each spin. Chan Poling has a voice that
sounds like a sleepy David Bowie, which serves these songs perfectly. Many of
these songs sound like they could have been written in the 80s but the
production brings them to a modern standard and this whole record sounds
fantastic. The fact that, 43 years after their debut EP, there is a new Suburbs
album is a most wonderful thing. The fact that it is good makes it even better.
Teenage Fanclub: Endless Arcade
As they settle into
their fourth decade as a band, Scottish rockers Teenage Fanclub continue doing
what it is that they do best, and that is deliver solid, jangly power-pop. Endless Arcade is the band’s 12th
studio album and the first to not feature founding bassist/vocalist Gerald
Love, who left the band due to a reluctance to continue touring heavily. He was
replaced with Euros Childs, formerly from Gorky’s Zygotic Minci (remember them?) and the band keeps on down their
path with 12 welcome additions to the band’s vast repertoire, including the
extended opening jam, “Home”, and the smoky Byrds vibe of “Back In The Day”,
as well as the Laurel-Canyon-meets-The-Who vibe of “Warm Embrace”.
This Winter Machine: Kites
One of the cooler
band names, This Winter Machine is only five years old as a band but have already
undergone major changes and just dropped their third album which is quite the
doozy. While only singer Al Winter remains from previous lineups, this
configuration brings his vision even closer to his intention. While a lot of
prog these days can be interchangeable, This Winter Machine explores several
different styles and feels, which ultimately results in a sound all their own.
The two-part “The Storm” is among the album’s high points while the
album-closing title track is a passionate tour de force. This lineup sounds
fantastic. Hopefully they will be able to keep it together for many albums to
come.
Transatlantic: The Absolute Universe
A lot of the time,
when a supergroup is assembled, especially in the prog-rock universe, the
results generally fall far below the sum of the band’s parts, at least when it
comes to listener expectations (think Asia and, more recently, Flying Colours).
Transatlantic, on the other hand, combines the powers of the four members and
their pedigrees and elevates them to the top of their genre. Featuring
guitarist Roine Stolt (The Flower Kings), bassist Pete Trewavas (Marillion),
keyboardist Neal Morse (ex-Spock’s Beard), and drummer Mike Portnoy (ex-Dream
Theater), this has been one of the most enduring side projects, ever since its
formation in 1999. The Absolute Universe
is this outfit’s fifth album and is kind of a tricky one. Released in two
formats, this is a concept album about the current state of the world and is
offered in two distinct variations: 90min double CD called Forevermore and a 64min single disc, called The Breath Of Life, that not only is an abridged version of the
double set, but actually features a few songs that are not on the extended
version, and the versions of the songs that are on the single disc are
different recordings, sometimes vastly reworked. A most convoluted, yet clever,
way of presenting an album. No matter which version you prefer this album is a
winner. The best part of Transatlantic is that you can always hear elements of
the members’ main bands, but the result sounds nothing like any of them. Roine
Stolt is one of my favorite singers in all of prog and his voice sounds great
here on its own but when his voice blends with the others’, the result is a dense
and commanding blend that gives this music a unique spin. As with all of their
albums, there are times when the music gets almost too majestic, but it is
always very well intentioned, and the performances on this album are second to
none.
Two celebrated
guitarists (Dean DeLeo and Tom Bukovac) join forces on this mostly-instrumental
set that does just about everything, except actually showcase the guitarists.
This isn’t a head cutting session, and this isn’t a “for guitarists only” sort
of album, but rather a set of 10 pieces that stand on their own as fully
realized pieces of music, and are quite catchy and meticulously arranged. Two
of the songs feature vocals, the best of which is the album-opening “Saturn We
Miss You”, sung by none other than original Yes vocalist Jon Anderson. While
there is nothing “prog” about it, Anderson’s voice works perfectly in this
setting and I find myself yearning for a full-length with him out front.
Elsewhere, there are hints of country, folk, blues, psych, and pretty much
everything else. Some of this soars, some of it bubbles, and some of it will
knock you sideways. Perfect for pretty much any setting.
Bubbling somewhere
deep below the mainstream, hiding somewhere beyond the obscure, there is a crop
of bands whose sound is so rooted in the 1960s that you can’t imagine their
music coming out at any other time, let alone in the 21st century.
Of those bands, Triptides is one of the best and they have been cranking out
albums of sunny jangle-psych-pop for over a decade now. Their 7th
album continues down this path, where the West Coast meets Swinging London in a
flash of blue fits and orange sunshine. While they grow as writers and players
with each successive release, the basic formula remains unchanged, making
Triptides one of the most reliable bands out there.
Contrary to the
fury fired forth by certain pockets of fans, Steven Wilson has been creating
synth pop since before even conceiving of Porcupine Tree (no-man has been
making records since the mid-80s). But this is the first time he has put out
anything like that under his own name and, of course the trolls came swooping
in. But the thing is, it is good. Nothing this man lends his name to is ever
anything short of extraordinary, and The Future Bites, itself a biting
commentary on the bleak state of the world today, with all the bickering and
media sensationalism, as well as the dystopian nature of people who are
tethered so tightly to electronic sensory overload, is one of his most unique and fully realized pieces of work. Some of these themes can be
found in 2007’s Fear Of A Blank Planet,
but this album is a completely different beast.
Now, given the Duran Duran-esque nature of this material, I can
understand why many PT purists were put off by this, but that is what I love so
much about Steven Wilson. He is a musical chameleon and has a gripping command
on anything he ever attempts, and there is no point getting perturbed at his
musical directions because, before you know it, he will have changed direction
again. That is the sign of a true artist, and SW is nothing short of that.
Personally, I love this album, and I actually dig it when he gets more
pop-oriented (the Stupid Dream/Lightbulb Sun era of Porcupine Tree is still
among my favorites). Honestly, the only thing that this album truly is missing
is the phenomenal voice of Ninet Tayeb, who has appeared on Wilson’s last few
albums. Instead, you get Elton John (cameo on “Personal Shopper”) and that is a
hell of a trade off. Next year sees the return of Porcupine Tree, which will
likely stick a fork in his solo work for a while, and surely new layers will be
revealed then. In the meantime, we will continue to digest this abstract pop
masterpiece.
The World Is A Beautiful Place & I Am No
Longer Afraid To Die: Illusory Walls
Now, I generally
have a policy to instantly dismiss bands whose names are complete sentences, which
is arbitrary I know but whatever, it is totally pretentious. This band’s name is
actually two complete sentences, so
maybe it cancels itself out. Not sure, but this is one of the more interesting
bands out there. Cut from a similar cloth as The Dear Hunter, this band blends
emo styles with prog and post-rock to come up with a wild mix that has fueled
four full-length albums, seven EPs, and countless singles and other releases,
since forming in 2009. Illusory Walls is their fourth album and
finds the band exploring several different musical areas from the giant wall of
guitars on “Trouble” to “Queen Sophie For President”, which is one of the
better singles from this year. Exactly half of this 11-track album’s 70-minute
running time is claimed by the last two songs, “Infinite Josh” and “Fewer
Afraid”, both of which find the band melding all aspects of their sound into
two epic journeys that definitely stand at the apex of this band’s work.
“No Jon, no Rick,
no Yes”, “this is just a tribute band”, "Steve Howe has hijacked Yes", blah blah blah, whatever. I have never
bought into that mentality and that attitude continues to pay off as the 22nd
studio album to bear the Yes name is really one of the most accomplished albums
to come in recent memory. Produced by Steve Howe and almost entirely co-written
by current singer, Jon Davison, this is a perfect blend of the fresh and the
familiar. This is Yes, but it is not Yes as we have come to know them. Nor
should it be. The sound is there, the vibe is there, but the directions are
new. As with most Yes albums, the rewards lie in repeated spins, with each one
revealing new layers. While some of the
songs take a while to get used to, others hit like a ton of bricks from the
get-go. “A Living Island” is one of the most unique things to come from this
band while the opening “The Ice Bridge” is a Yes classic in the making, and
“Sister Sleeping Soul” should be a single. The smartest thing this band can do,
at this point, is to follow this album up as swiftly as possible. The more
prolific this lineup can be, the more legitimate they will appear. Until then, The Quest will do just fine.
We sadly said goodbye to a great many
important artists in 2021, and we bade farewell to a few long-standing bands as well. King
Crimson played their final notes this fall, and Genesis is currently on their
farewell tour. Dr. Dog announced their own farewell tour, and The Monkees
officially came to an end, after 55 years.
Sadly, the world lost a great number of musical luminaries this year. What
follows is just a very small sampling of the brilliant artists we lost in
2021….
Chick Corea, Charlie Watts, David Longdon, Mary Wilson, Don Everly, Tom T Hall, Freddie Redd, Bunny Wailer, Curtis Fuller, Dusty Hill, Chuck E Weiss, Nanci Griffith, Lonnie Smith, Pee Wee Ellis, George Wein, Robby Steinhardt, Biz Markie, Lee “Scratch” Perry, Paddy Moloney, Graeme Edge, and Michael Nesmith.
The loss of Nesmith, in my own world at least, is immense. Primarily known as a Monkee, Papa Nez was far more than that. He was one of the greatest songwriters this world has ever known, and was a hell of a singer. His music broke boundaries and he was one of the first to fuse country and rock. His headstrong attitude made him a force to be reckoned with, ever since the beginning, and it was he who turned The Monkees from a pretend TV band into the real thing. The songs he wrote and recorded under The Monkees’ name (most of which were not released until the late 80s) were flawless, every last one of them. He left the band in 1969 and embarked on a solo career that kicked off with three of the greatest country/rock albums ever made. Musically, Nez soon diverged and went down several paths, including psychedelia, rock opera, and slick pop. It was Nez who pioneered the use of video clips as promotional tools and was more or less responsible for the creation of MTV, and the generation it spawned. For me, however, it is the music that I most appreciate (well, that, and his birthday rant from Head). The number of his songs that I have covered could fill a double album (one day I will make good) and his are among my favorites of all time. “Carlisle Wheeling”, “Some Of Shelley’s Blues”, “Good Clean Fun”, “Papa Gene’s Blues”, “Sunny Girlfriend”, “Grand Ennui”, “Mama Nantucket”, “Joanne”, “Writing Wrongs”, “Circle Sky”, “The Crippled Lion”, "Michigan Blackhawk”, “St. Matthew”, “Propinquity”, “Tapioca Tundra”, “Magnolia Simms”, “Calico Girlfriend”……the list just goes on and on. These songs are part of the fabric of my own being and, for that alone, I owe a tremendous amount of gratitude. While I will forever curse myself for not seeing him when he played the Birchmere a couple years ago, I feel very lucky to have seen him perform twice with The Monkees (once when Peter was still alive, and once on the “Mike & Micky Show” tour) and it was an honor to be under the same roof as he, if just for a fleeting moment. Mike will forever be remembered as a Monkee and that is something that he eventually grew to appreciate. Sadly, that distinction was a stigma for so many years and he had to watch his musical innovations be eclipsed by others, or ignored because of the Monkees connection. He may have invented country rock but it was the Eagles who got all the credit, and the album sales (ironically, the Eagles first formed as Linda Ronstadt’s backing band; Ronstadt’s first hit, with the Stone Poneys, was the Nesmith-penned “Different Drum”). In more recent years, he settled into his role and was very active on social media. I will miss his eloquent interactions. Even at his most fired up he was always a voice of reason, and a moral center. Surely he was not perfect, and was probably very difficult to work with, but that just comes with the territory when dealing with ingenuity. The world lost something pretty major in the death of Nesmith. I just hope that one day the world realizes that. RIP Nez.
That wraps up our 2021 recap. Lots of great
music came this year, and surely lots more will come in 2022. We should be
seeing albums from Marillion, U2, The Flower Kings, The Beths, two or three
from Guided By Voices, Alex Lifeson’s new project, maybe even The Cure. So much
else is on the horizon, and surely there will be plenty of new artists entering
our orbits. It all remains to be seen. Until then…..
