Honorable Mentions (in alphabetical order):
Archspire-Bleed the Future
Converge and Chelsea Wolfe-Bloodmoon: I
Obscura-A Valediction
Pupil Slicer-Mirrors
Silent Planet-Iridescent
10.Billie Eilish-Happier Than Ever:
Cementing Billie Eilish as a potential generational talent just may be the sensible thing to do after Happier than Ever. Given how smart and vulnerable the lyrics are along with the amount of new musical ground (abrasive electronic music on "Oxytocin", stripped down folk on "Male Fantasy", full blown punk on the title track) she successfully covers here without shedding the haunting downtempo pop sound that she's already mastered, it's crazy to think that this is just the 2nd LP from an artist that was 19 at the time of its release. The number of exciting possibilities that exist for her future are pretty much limitless at this point.
Standout Tracks: 1. Billie Bossa Nova 2. Oxytocin 3. Happier Than Ever
9.King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard-L.W.:
Unlike its middling 2020 predecessor K.G., the second half of King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard's microtonal saga caught me in its web right away and never let go. By combining masterfully concocted earworm hooks with rich, spacey instrumentation that's overflowing with trippy bass lines, explosive drum patterns and muddy riffs that pack a deceptively strong punch, King Gizz have made a bold psychedelic rock record that dares to be exceptionally weird and catchy at the same time.
Standout Tracks: 1. Ataraxia 2. Pluera 3. O.N.E.
8.Lana Del Rey-Chemtrails Over the Country Club:
Following up a landscape-shifting masterpiece like Norman Fucking Rockwell is a tough ask even for an artist with a track record that's as distinguished as Del Rey's and while it unsurprisingly lacks the "holy shit" factor of NFR, Chemtrails Over the Country Club does more than enough to qualify as a worthy successor. Del Rey does a great job of balancing returns to her well-established musical comfort zones (trip hop cut "Dark but Just a Game", 60's guitar ballad "Wild at Heart") with some cool experimentation (the jazzy title track, full blown folk closer "For Free", the autobiographical art rock ballad "White Dress") that sees her further heighten the scope of her beautiful, expressive delivery by expanding her range to include more high registers than she ever has in the past.
Standout Tracks: 1. Wild at Heart 2. Chemtrails Over the Country Club 3. Tulsa Jesus Freak
7.Rivers of Nihil- The Work:
For Rivers of Nihil, their 2018 album Where Owls Know my Name marked a proper transition from being a death metal band with prog undertones to a prog band with death metal undertones. Their new record The Work sees them expanding their foothold in the progressive music space by fearlessly and gleefully heading deep down into the genre's weirdo rabbit hole. The spoils of this descent are heard all over as the group melds minimalist keyboards and soothing clean vocals with explosions of slamming guitars, thunderous drumming and deafening screams to create an exhilarating journey that tows the line between serenity and madness.
Standout Tracks: 1. Dreaming Black Clockwork 2. Wait 3. Terrestria IV: Work
6.Tyler, the Creator-CALL ME IF YOU GET LOST:
2021 was a very forgettable year for hip hop on the whole as about 75% of the releases I heard were varying degrees of mediocre. The lone gem in this rough lot came from none other than Tyler, the Creator. By combining the aggression and silly humor of his early material with the refined, experimental artistry he's displayed on his recent efforts, Tyler, the Creator is able to meld the best parts of these very different eras into a delightful stew and that ability to strike such a winning balance makes CALL ME IF YOU GET LOST the most deeply rewarding project he's made to date.
Standout Tracks: 1. Lemonhead (feat. 42 Dugg) 2. Massa 3. Hot Wind Blows (feat. Lil Wayne)
5.Halsey-If I Can't Have Love, I Want Power:
Convincing Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross to produce a record seems like quite the undertaking. Between all of the movie/TV scores they compose, their work as Nine Inch Nails and the assorted solo endeavors they've taken on over the years, they keep themselves exceptionally busy and a quick Wikipedia search will produce a very short list of projects that they've worked on outside of their primary creative endeavors. But with a strong creative vision that impressed them and unexpected gap in their schedule available on account of COVID, Halsey was able to pull it off. The 27-year-old global phenom seems to recognize the rarity of the opportunity she's presented with and used it to create a record in If I Can't Have Love, I Want Power that is overflowing with urgency, dynamism and raw emotional expression. The trio seemingly brought together by fate have that rare brand of complete creative synergy where they're able to seamlessly play off each other's strengths and have the trust and admiration for each other's musical gifts to freely experiment with genres that they don't usually operate in. Halsey sings over harsh, dissonant industrial tracks ("The Lighthouse", "You Asked for It"), Reznor and Ross make forays into pop punk ("Easier than Lying", "Honey") and folk pop ("Darling") and often times, they just meet somewhere between their respective signature electropop and abrasive rock sounds ("Bells in Santa Fe", "Girl is a Gun", "Lilith") to create material that is very visceral yet catchy. Nearly all of the experiments that stemmed from these sessions are uniquely captivating pieces of genre-bending greatness and if their schedules will allow it, they should collaborate again in the future because they really brought the best out of each other creatively.
Standout Tracks: 1. Easier than Lying 2. Bells in Santa Fe 3. The Lighthouse
4.Brand of Sacrifice-Lifeblood:
How can deathcore evolve in the 2020's? Well, if Brand of Sacrifice ends up dictating the trends, the answer is become unpredictable maximalist anarchy. Through the use of unusual instrumentation like glitchy electronics, sitars and orchestras samples and a behemoth of a vocalist in Kyle Anderson that excels at pretty much any harsh vocal style that can possibly be conceived, Lifeblood becomes a carnival of chaos that throws more curveballs than Sandy Koufax as well as heightens the effectiveness of the genre's classic tools (breakdowns, blast beats, unrelenting heaviness) to a borderline absurd degree.
Standout Tracks: 1. Demon King 2. Animal 3. Lifeblood
3.Between the Buried and Me-Colors II:
Deciding to make a spiritual sequel to the album that launched them to global prominence is the best creative choice Between the Buried and Me has made in a decade. Not only does Colors II have the intricate songwriting, punishing breakdowns and stunning melodies that made the 2007 original such a groundbreaking release, it brings out a level of consistent cohesiveness, hunger and passion in them that they've have failed to sustain over the course of an entire record since The Parallax II. Whether this return to peak form has legs or was just a one off, I'm just glad that Colors II came along to prove that BTBAM could release a classic record this deep into their career.
Standout Tracks: 1. The Double Helix of Extinction 2. Never Seen/Future Shock 3. Human is Hell (Another One with Love)
2.Every Time I Die-Radical:
Vocalist Keith Buckley's newfound sobriety, a painful divorce and somehow even greater disenchantment with the world at large inspired a record that is as raw and heavy as anything as Every Time I Die ever made. Radical is a necessary vessel of catharsis for a man who is full of regret for the way that he hurt the people around him with his alcoholism and anger that the world surrounding him continues to be a place that breeds evil and injustice. Buckley's lyrics are as potent and biting as ever, and his brother Jordan and fellow guitarists Andy Williams inject his brutally honest words with the monstrous edge they need to really hit home. Given how masterfully they were able to execute material that was so deeply personal to Keith pushes Radical to the top of Every Time I Die's increasingly impressive discography.
Standout Tracks: 1. A Colossal Wreck 2. All This and War (feat. '68) 3. Thing with Feathers
1.Turnstile-Glow On:
As silly and hyperbolic as it is to say about an album that is barely over 4 months old at the time of this writing, Glow On feels like the kind of record that's going to cement legacies with its impact. It's one of those records that people are going to remember where they were when they heard it for the first time, get lyrics from their favorite track tattooed on them and use as the inspirational fuel to start their own bands. It's the work of a band that's found a way to boldly expand their sound by incorporating stuff like shoegaze, new wave and Latin rock into it without ever losing sight of the Baltimore hardcore ethos that bred them. It's a love letter to punk's past and the blueprint for its immediate future. It's the most energetic, creative, hooky, sick groove-filled and endlessly relistenable album I heard in 2021, and I can't thank Turnstile enough for bringing into the world when they did.
Standout Tracks: 1. Blackout 2. Don't Play 3. Mystery
No comments:
Post a Comment