end of 2021, beginning of 2022
What a trip to see the calendar flip to 2022. Enough one-day-after-another, obviously, adds up to the passage of years, so, in a sense, I am unsurprised to see the calendar flip ahead another year, but 2022 is a bit of a trip to see. Not to date myself too terribly—though I suppose even just saying that, I’m pretty much dating myself terribly—but I remember 1999 was giving way to 2000. What a time that was. Mayhem and madness and dreams of destruction and despair; it doesn’t seem like too much has changed in the ensuing 20ish years, though it isn’t something over which I’m particularly keen to ponder or pontificate.
What I am eager to ponder and pontificate about, however, is my nerdy documentation of new records I listened to over the last year. Starting a few years ago—maybe three or four, I’m not sure—I started keeping track of new records in a simple document and format: approximate chronological order of listening with artist name and italicized album title noted. If I really like the album, it all gets bolded. There was a point where I was trying to keep listening notes, but I cut that idea mainly due to time crunches; I found I really had trouble juggling note-taking and things like, you know, doing my job, so I just keep it sweet and simple.
This past year, 2021, I made it through approximately 560 albums; the real number is probably higher, but there were a few periods where my logging wasn’t super on-point. Out of the 560, there were about 80 that really, really jumped out at me. Of course, I kept a separate list for that. I try to listen to pretty much whatever I can, and every week I plumb the depths of Album of the Year for lists of releases. This is all pretty much an exercise in hyperfocus, but it’s always been something I really looked forward to and really enjoyed doing; even more so in times of plague. Don’t worry—I’ll share my favourite album list, of that you can rest assured. What I started doing last year—maybe the year prior, too; I can’t remember—is making a playlist of favourite songs over the course of the year. What I really enjoyed about that little exercise is seeing where crossover between the two lists exists; sometimes there’s a bunch, and sometimes there’s none. What fun, right?
Anyway, because I love you so dearly and I can feel your impatience, here’s my list of favourite records and, below that, a link to my favourite 2021 songs playlist:
Battle Hag —Celestial Tyrant
Divide & Dissolve - Gas Lit
Ani DiFranco - Revolutionary Love
Clap Your Hands Say Yeah - New Fragility
Wild Pink - A Billion Little Secrets
Steve Moore - Analog Sensitivity
Suffering Hour - The Cyclic Reckoning
Gravesend - Methods of Human Disposal
Julien Baker - Little Oblivions
Glitterer - Life is not a Lesson
Neil Cowly - Hall of Mirror
Wolvennest - Temple
Wolf King - The Path of Wrath
Lana Del Rey - Chemtrails over the Country Club
DVNE - Etemen Aenka
Rhye - Home
Bewitched - Cursed be thy Kingdom
Altarage - Succumb
Cassandra Jenkins - An Overview of Phenomenal Nature
Cruelty - There Is No God Where I Am
Carsie Blanton - Love & Rage
Ashley Monroe - Rosegold
Clark - Playground in a Lake
J Cole - The Offseason
Zombi - Liquid Crystal
Old Sorcery - The Hand of Merlin
Morcheeba - Blackest Blue
Pardoner - Came Down Different
Old Sea Brigade - Motivational Speaker
Allison Russell - Outside Child
HAERTS - Dream Nation
Lord Huron - Long Lost
Sinead Harnett - Ready Is Always Too Late
Penelope Trappes - Penelope Three
DMX - Exodus
Wyldest - Monthly Friend
Inhuman Condition - Rat God
Cavetown - Man’s Best Friend
Kaylee Elizabeth - Playing with Fire
Delving - Hirschbrunnen
Olivia Ellen Lloyd - Loose Cannon
Tigers Jaw - I Won’t Care How You See Me
Superbloom - Pollen
Desperate Journalist - Maximum Sorrow!
Sebastian Prime - Save Me Not
Laura Mvula - Pink Noise
Femme it Forward - Big Femme Energy Volume 1
Beth Lee - Waiting on You Tonight
Charli Adams - Bullseye
Leela James - See Me
Ransom - Heavy is the Head
Beachy Head - s/t
MAN ON MAN - s/t
Vulture - Dealin’ Death
Lingua Ignota - SINNER GET READY
Annie Hart - Everything Pale Blue
Ben Platt - Reverie
Summer Dean - Bad Romantic
Turnstile - Glow On
Bad Waitress - Delusions of Grandeur
Slothrust - Parallel Timeline
Mono - Pilgrimage of the Soul
Judas Knife - Death is the Thing with Feathers
Brandie Carlisle - In These Silent Days
Bebe Buckskin - Captain Medecine
Blackwater Holylight - Silence/Motion
Black Marble - Fast Idol
Green Lung - Black Harvest
Lucifer - Lucifer IV
Emily Scott Robinson - American Siren
Emma Ruth Rundle - Engine of Hell
Black Swan Lane - Hide in View
Margo Cilker - Pohorylle
SeeYouSpaceCowboy - The Romance of Affliction
Constant Smiles - Paragon
IDLES - Crawler
Dave Gahan - Imposter
Claire Cronin - Bloodless
Stormkeep - Tales of Othertime
St. Vincent - The Nowhere Inn
Imminence - Heaven in Hiding
SION - s/t
