Unfortunately, as the world continued to slowly recover from the COVID-19 pandemic in 2021, the impact could be felt on the music industry. In fact, this year seemed to suffer more than 2020, which saw the release of several excellent albums that were completed before recording studios had to shut down. But even though exciting albums were somewhat rare in 2021, every record on the list below forged a meaningful connection with me and helped me to endure a year that was extremely challenging on both a personal and societal level.
I hope this list helps you reconnect with a great album that you forgot about over the course of the year – or even better, maybe it will lead you to an entirely new discovery.
10. Kai Whiston – Drayan!
Kai Whiston’s last album, No World As Good As Mine, made my top 5 in 2019. Drayan! isn’t the official follow-up to that album, but rather a short mixtape made to tide us over while we wait for his next full-length. In that capacity, it more than achieves its goals, as Whiston continues to demonstrate that he’s one of the most skilled and exciting producers out there right now.
The mixtape showcases nearly everything I’ve come to enjoy about Whiston’s style – the skull-crushing beats, the sweeping orchestral arrangements, and the deceptively melodic vocals, often pitch-shifted beyond recognition. All of these elements can be found in abundance on Drayan!, a triumphant work that accomplishes more in 28 minutes than most artists could hope to achieve in their whole career.
9. Mndsgn – Rare Pleasure
His first official album since 2015’s Body Wash, Mndsgn’s Rare Pleasure is a soulful and immersive listen that’s sure to elevate your mood. Featuring more live instrumentation, vocals, and complex arrangements than any of the artist’s previous projects, this album feels like a big step forward for the singer/songwriter/producer.
Rare Pleasure is a short record, but its relaxed pace and smooth flow make the length feel adequate. While the songs are primarily R&B-influenced, sparks of hip-hop and jazz are readily apparent as well. Though a few tracks stand out, especially the gorgeous “Medium Rare”, it’s an album that really needs to be experienced as a whole to feel its true impact.
8. Madlib – Sound Ancestors
New solo releases from Madlib are few and far between, so they’re always worth checking out. Sound Ancestors, a collection of Madlib beats that were edited and arranged by electronic musician Four Tet, happens to be the best release from the legendary producer in a long time.
Whipping through obscure samples and buttery beats fast enough to make your head spin, Sound Ancestors is a blast of pure nostalgia that feels like home for long-time fans of Madlib’s work.
7. Hiatus Kaiyote – Mood Valiant
It’s been a long six years since Hiatus Kaiyote broke out with their sophomore record, Choose Your Weapon, an album that was overlong but stuffed with moments of brilliance. Wisely, the group restrains themselves to a much more manageable length here and the result is easily their most consistent work to date.
Nai Palm’s vocals remain breathtaking and immensely powerful, while the unpredictable arrangements and lush production behind her keep your ears engaged at all times. This record will have you leaping to your feet for some tracks, like the rhythmic chaos of “All The Words We Don’t Say”, and spacing out for others, like the blissful and serene “Red Room”. After taking a bold leap forward with this album, I can’t wait to see what Hiatus Kaiyote does next.
6. Tim Hecker – The North Water
Tim Hecker is as reliable and consistent as any musician that I’m familiar with – if you enjoy one of his albums, it’s hard to imagine that you won’t enjoy them all. His latest, an original score for a BBC miniseries called The North Water, is an immersive and meditative experience that feels as icy and mysterious as the arctic itself.
Walls of synths and strings are punctuated by outbursts of thunderous percussion, creating a hypnotic drone that holds you in its spell from beginning to end. I haven’t watched the show that this music was composed for, but the album stands easily on its own as yet another triumph from one of my favorite artists.
5. Flying Lotus – Yasuke
Another score for a television series, Yasuke is a collection of haunting and mesmerizing compositions from Flying Lotus that represent some of the artist’s most memorable work to date. Though I wasn’t particularly a fan of the anime series that the music was created for, the soundtrack is unforgettable and works beautifully as a standalone album.
Pairing retro synths with Japanese instrumentation and blending them into FlyLo’s signature bass-heavy grooves sounds like an odd combination on paper, but the end result is masterful. Regardless of whether you’ve watched the series or not, Yasuke the album creates a vivid movie in your mind that you’ll want to keep revisiting.
4. IGLOOGHOST – Lei Line Eon
One of the most exciting and talented electronic musicians on the rise, IGLOOGHOST melted minds with his debut album in 2017. While this sophomore effort lacks the unbridled energy that made Neo Wax Bloom such a blast, it shows the artist maturing as a composer and evolving his sound in unexpected directions.
If nothing else, Lei Line Eon is an immersive sensory experience, with highly detailed soundscapes that bring the fantastical world of the album to life in your imagination. At its best, the combination of IGLOOGHOST’s sonic wizardry, ethereal vocals from frequent collaborator BABii, and gorgeous violin passages make the record soar. Though it does meander a bit at times, the peaks far outweigh the lulls.
3. Shpongle – Carnival of Peculiarities
This release is technically an EP and less than half the length of a typical Shpongle record. It may seem unfair to rank a project so short above full-length albums, but Carnival of Peculiarities is truly that good. In fact, it’s the most exciting music that Shpongle has released in over a decade.
Although there are only three tracks, all of them are masterful and the project flows seamlessly from start to finish. Simon Posford’s production is so clear and expertly mixed that I can hear new details every time I listen, and Raja Ram seems to play his flute with newfound energy. With the duo reportedly working on the seventh Shpongle album, I can’t wait to hear what they have in store for us.
2. TOBACCO – Fucked Up Friends 3
After releasing my favorite albums of the year in 2018 and 2020, as well as a collaboration record that made my top 10 in 2019, TOBACCO could be forgiven for taking some time off. Instead, he’s back with yet another instant classic in 2021 and came very close to taking my top spot for the third time in four years.
FUF3 is a return to the vintage TOBACCO sound, a beat-heavy and mostly instrumental style that he’s moved away from the last several years. But don’t make the mistake of undervaluing this record as a nostalgia trip, because it features some of the artist’s hardest-hitting tracks yet, while also serving as a perfect example of what makes his style so unique and unforgettable.
And as if the music weren’t enough, TOBACCO also released a DVD with visuals for the whole project, transforming the album into a mesmerizing audiovisual experience that’s alternately hilarious and disturbing.
1. Arca – Kick ii, iii, iiii, iiiii
Arca took a huge step forward with last year’s Kick I, my favorite full-length release from the artist to date. As an encore, she’s back with four sequels to complete the Kick series, 47 songs and over two and a half hours of music all released simultaneously.
If that sounds overwhelming, it is – unquestionably, it takes time and effort to sift through this much music at once, especially when most of it is challenging. But if you rise to meet Arca’s demands, you’re in store for a thrilling and endlessly rewarding journey that yields continual surprises along the way. Rest assured, filler is few and far between on these records, with nearly every track leaving a distinct impression.
It would take far too long to review each album in detail, so I’ll only give some brief thoughts on the individual chapters. Kick iii is my favorite, the most consistent and cohesive of the series with a hard-hitting style that never lets up. Kick iiiii is a close runner-up that takes the opposite approach, consisting mostly of gorgeous piano compositions. Kick ii feels the least cohesive as a listening experience, but contains some of my favorite tracks. Finally, Kick iiii is my least-favorite of the series, but it’s still a unique and engaging listen with moments of transcendence.
Though I’m not sure I would consider any of these records individually to be the album of the year, the combination of all four is impossible to argue with, especially when you consider the staggering diversity of the material. With this incredibly ambitious album cycle, Arca has rocketed to the top spot on my 2021 list and elevated herself up the ladder of my favorite artists in general.