Rolling Favorite Tracks + Albums 2021

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I'm using my same spotify playlist as last year, it's easier to just erase and send the ones from 2020 to an archive instead of doing a new one every year. In case you were following me you'd probably noticed it already:

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/4vbt9Rq7Ii3CTwo0yP4Zcb

These are some early highlights of the year for me:

Hi Mount - U N Me: Early summer anthem with Erika de Casier on vocals. Reminds me of early to mid 90’s music in a good way. Not on Spotify yet and I don’t think it ever will since the Regelbau label do mostly vinyl only releases.

Nana Yamamoto - Do You Wanna : bedroom synthpop from Tokyo. Cool melancholia.

Apifera - Four Green Yellows: Slightly psychedelic nu-jazz on Stones Throw. This is the highlight of the album for me, but the whole thing is good.

Cassandra Jenkins - Hard Drive : I feel pretentious for liking this one as much as I do, but Destroyer’s Kaputt is one of my favorite albums from the past decade and this shares the same sophisti-pop sonic palette.

Pino Palladino + Blake Mills - Just Wrong : I can tell this is going to be one of my favorite sounding albums of the year just by this song alone. Top notch musicians in this track besides Pino and Blake too; there’s Chris Dave on drums, Rob Moose providing some beautiful string work, Sam Gendel doing his atmospheric saxophone thing and Larry Goldings on mellotron sax. This sounds idyllic.

Buzzy Lee - High On You : Late night, hypnotic indie pop produced by Nicolas Jaar.

The Far East - NYC Dream : 70’s sounding disco-reggae from Brooklyn.

Madlib - latino negro : there’s many highlights on the album, but this one is my favorite. Jazzy drums and spanish guitars go so well together. Not sure if this is even sampled.

Sam Gendel - Eternal Loop : More Sam Gendel! This comes from an upcoming 50 track album (!) which I assume will be a compilation of sketches he has done in the past year. This preview is a loop of dreamy bossa nova with Gendel’s improvising on top.

Thee Sacred Souls - Will I see you again? : vintage-sounding west coast soul with the Daptone seal of approval.

Rheinzand - Strange World (Richard Sen remix) : Goes on for a bit too long and the spoken bit parts sound corny in a bad way, but those crystal sounding synths + strings + balearic groove would sound great mixed into a set.
Not on spotify yet.

Brijean - Ocean : Sounds like tropical Stereolab (or, you know Antena). Bittersweet nostalgic vibe.

Emanative - Tea Leaf Dancers : A jazzy/space samba update on one of my favorite Flying Lotus songs.

Alfa Mist - Run Outs : Nu-jazz from UK with great work on the keys.

Thee Sacred Souls - Will I see you again? : vintage-sounding west coast soul with the Daptone seal of approval.

Oops double posted the 'thee sacred souls' track.

Sam Gendel cranking it out, he also did a 20:21 version of Vampire Weekend's 2021
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TdnI_0hW-qU

Ah yeah that's a good one too. More nods to Hosono than to VW.

Am really looking fwd to the Palladino & Mills album--that advance single is amazing IMO.
Also, thanks for sharing that Gendel version of 20:21--I like him so much I paid through the nose for a longsleeve T-shirt of the Gendel/Wilkes Saxofone & BG artwork back in '18.

My rolling '21 faves so far:
BUCK MEEK - Two Saviors
BITCHIN BAJAS - Live Ateliers Claus
STARGAZER - Psychic Secretions
PJ HARVEY - Is This Desire? (Demos)
JUSELL/PRYMEK/SAGE/SHIROISHI - Setsubun (節分)

I got bombarded with ads for the new Shame album, 'Drunk Tank Pink,' so I listened to it and it's actually fucking great. Thanks, target marketing!

The couple of songs from Altin Gün also sound cool, Turkish disco funk pastiche.

"switch" by quinton barnes is the first 2021 song to inspire me to race to this thread

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SlWlkrFhi3g

A few early faves (all albums, performers in parentheses as required):

Behzod Abduraimov – Debussy, Chopin, Mussorgsky [two warhorses and a half, Children's Corner, 24 Preludes and Pictures at an Exhibition, incredibly well played by this young Uzbek pianist]
Daius – Ascuns [very solid Romanian black metal with a prominent nai (pan flute) part and the ideal vocals for this style]
Ferriterium – Calvaire [characteristically passionate French black metal with the songwriting to back it up]
Gaunt Emperor – Femur [drone metal journey into your *bones*, for solo electric guitar]
Jim O’Rourke – Steamroom 53 [stupendous electroacoustic ambient with an emphasis on the organ; made an O'Rourke convert out of me]
Johann Sebastian Bach – Well-Tempered Clavier (Piotr Anderszewski) [just a single disc: excerpts from Book II, played piecemeal and out of order yet oh so well]
Ludwig van Beethoven – Missa solemnis (René Jacobs, et al.) [a notoriously impossible work, yet Jacobs, a countertenor-turned-conductor, pulls it off because he gets that it's all about the balance of voices]
Marc Monnet – En pièces (François-Frédéric Guy) [supposedly a jokey composer yet most of these piano etudes are light-absorbing, with a predilection for the lowest registers]
Mason Lindahl – Kissing Rosy in the Rain [post-Fahey solo guitar with dashes of flamenco that reminds me of the Tristram theme in Diablo 1 (this is a very good thing)]
Olga Neuwirth – Solo (Klangforum Wien) [all solo works, duh, including one for flute and typewriter; best album I've ever heard by this Austrian composer who once turned Lost Highway into an opera]
The Ruins of Beverast – The Thule Grimoires [this is basically auteur metal at its best, like every single one of his albums so far]
Sur Austru – Obârșie [more Romanian metal, this time on the even folksier side, aka the opposite of Not for Me]
Thibaut Roussel, et al. – Le Coucher du roi. Musiques pour la chambre de Louis XIV [Renaissance ambient music for the Sun King to go to bed to; a bit weird, because some of it is more upbeat than you'd expect]
Tribulation – Where the Gloom Becomes Sound [I had no prior interest in this band but the songwriting is simply undeniable and I happen to be in the mood for the gothier shit lately]

Glad to see you are digging that Tribulation pom, I absolutely love it. I was lukewarm on the last one, but this new one is hitting in all the right spots. It’s wonderful goth metal. My Ruins of Beverast should be here later this week, glad to hear I have that to look forward to as well.

Nice. If you liked Exuvia, this one should hit the spot as well.

Better late than never, here’s my Spotify playlist for 2021 (or first half of the year anyway). As ever, it starts as a dump of songs from Release Radar & New Music Friday that looks interesting and which then gets whittled down a bit, plus highlights from LPs/EPs I’ve listened to.

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/4D6GvBGVwiNgczEidvlShC?si=wcFin3eGTTSAuGixjPFvtg

(Increasingly though, the new music I tend to look for / listen to never appears on Spotify - much of it is Bandcamp only these days. Which is fine. Happy to support the artists that way)

Came across this three days ago while spotify rabbit holing and I've already listened to it a dozen times maybe? It's not quite shambhala—more singer/songwritery or Feist/Susanne Sundfor-y than that—but I know that sector has more than a couple fans around here. Lyrics in Spanish, tho!

Tulsa - Ese Éxtasis

https://i.imgur.com/VovsuYU.jpg

unlike 2020, where i was locked into place, i'm feeling notably less incentive to carefully catalogue everything i love in fine detail. I do think there's some value to keeping track of discoveries and interests to place them in time and to properly appreciate though and, as the pile is starting to tip over on itself, i should likely set aside a few hours and catalogue what i've found in 2021 q1 to q3 before it gets away from me.

I posted my metal and classical faves to the apposite rolling threads. Here's the rest:

Alio Die & Remco Helbers – The Garland of Dissolution
Arooj Aftab – Vulture Prince
Darkside – Spiral
Eimear Reidy & Natalia Beylis – Whose Woods These Are
Feu ! Chatterton – Palais d’argile
Jim O’Rourke – Steamroom 53
Lingua Ignota – Sinner Get Ready
Low – Hey What
Mason Lindahl – Kissing Rosy in the Rain
Merope – Salos
Rapt – Drouth
Richard Skelton – Four Workings
Ryley Walker & Kikagaku Moyo – Deep Fried Grandeur
Skee Mask – Pool
Steve Roach – As It Is
Thumbscrew – Never Is Enough
Vijay Iyer – Uneasy

Okay, I'm surely missing some things here but here's 2021 Q1 to Q3 for the most part:

Top Albums -
Alice Coltrane - Kirtan: Turiya Sings
Amythyst Kiah - Wary + Strange
Arlo Parks - Collapsed in Sunbeams
Arooj Aftab - Vulture Prince
Ashley Monroe - Rosegold
Bicep - Isles
Blanck Mass - In Ferneaux
Brandee Younger - Somewhere Different
Canzoniere Grecanico Salentino - Meridiana
Coco O - It’s a Process
Dawn Richard - Second Line
Floating Points and Pharaoh Sanders - Promises
Folamour - The Journey
Folkatron Sessions with Sam Lee - Flower of Magherally
Forest Drive West - Dualism
Hailu Mergia and The Walias - Tezeta
Jazmine Sullivan - Heaux Tales
Jessie Ware - What’s Your Pleasure Platinum Edition
Johnnie Frierson - Have You Been Good to Yourself (2016)
Joy Orbison - Still Slipping v1
Julian Lage - Squint
Leon Chang - Leon Mode
Lonnie Holley and Matthew E White - Broken Mirror: A Selfie Reflection
Lucky Daye - Table for Two
Matthew J Rolin - s/t
Miranda Lambert, Jack Ingram and Jon Randall - The Marfa Tapes
Radio Garden - http://radio.garden/
Reggie Watts, Marc Rebillet and Flying Lotus - Live - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0J8G9qNT7gQ
Rhiannon Giddens and Francesco Turrisi - They’re Calling Me Home
Rochelle Jordan - Play with the Changes
Serpentwithfeet - Deacon
Sons of Kemet - Black to the Future
Theo Parrish - Smile
Tinashe - 333
The Westerlies and Theo Bleckmann - This Land

Albums of Note -
Alchemist - This Thing of Ours
Alessandro Cortini - Scuro Chiaro (this shit did damage to me though, need to leave it alone)
Anatolian Weapons - Mantilli
Archie Shepp and Dollar Brand - Duet (1978)
Armand Hammer and The Alchemist - Haram
Ballake Sissoko - Djourou
Ben Sollee - Land OST
Billy Paul - The Best of Billy Paul
BJ The Chicago Kid - 1123 (2019)
Black Brunswicker - Temple of Spring
Bored Lord - Archival Transmission, Changeling
Buke and Gase with So Percussion - A Record Of
A Certain Ratio - ACR: EPA
CFCF - memory land
CHAI - Maybe Chocolate Chips
Chaos in the CBD - Te Puke Thunder
Chants - Poly Pointillism
Charles Lloyd and the Marvels - Tone Poem
Chloe x Halle - Ungodly Hour (Chrome Edition)
Chris Thile - Laysongs
Daniel Bachman - Axacan
Danish String Quartet - Prism III
Dezron Douglas and Brandee Younger - Force Majeure (2020)
DJ Swisha - Clout Psychosis
DMX - Exodus
Dollar Brand and Archie Sheep - Duet (1978)
Dua Lipa - Future Nostalgia (Moonlight Edition)
Duke Deuce - Duke Nukem
Duke Hugh - Common Ground
Elma Sambeat - Muerto de Amor
Emanuel Ax and Yo Yo Ma - Hope Amid Tears: Beethoven Cello Sonatas
Francisco Del Pino and Cecilia Pastorino - Decir
Function - Awakening From the Illusory Self
Gabriel Garzon-Montano - Aguita EP II
Gengis Tron - Dream Weapon
Homeboy Sandman - Anjelitu
IKOQWE and Batida - The Beginning The Medium The End and The Infinite
Intyce - Psy Language
Jamie Branch - Fly or Die Live
Jorja Smith - Be Right Back
Juana Molina - Segundo
Kareem Ali - Breakaway, Quantum Blackness
Kathryn Stott and Yo-Yo Ma - Songs of Comfort and Hope
Kirk Barley - Miniatures, Lake of Gold/Primer
Koma Saxo - Live
Mello Music Group - Bushido
Miguel - Art Dealer Chic 4
Moritz Von Oswald Trio - Dissent
Move D and Benjamin Brunn - Let’s Call It a Day
Nas - King’s Disease II
Nicola Cruz - Hybridism Remixes, Subtropique
Nicolas Godin - Concrete and Glass
Nik Bartsch - Entendre
Object Blue - Grotto
O’Jays - The Best of the O’Jays
Olga Neuwirth - Solo
Paula Cole - American Quilt
R+R Now - Live
Rob Noyes - Arc Minutes
Robert Grasper - Run the World OST
Rodrigo y Gabriela - The Jazz EP
Rosie Turton - Expansions and Transformations
Sam Lee - Singing with Nightingales
Seinabo Sey - Sweet Life
SG Lewis - Times
Shelley fka DRAM - s/t
So Percussion and Caroline Shaw - Let the Soil Play Its Simple Part
Son Rompe Pera - Batuco
Sound Synthesis - Hidden Realms
Special Request - DJ Kicks
Sunareht - Amorama
Super Mario World Restored - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SyN7qOFyG9Q
Throttle Elevator Music - Final Floor
Tree FM - https://www.tree.fm/
Trio Mediaeval - Solacium
Toumani Diabate and London Symphony Orchestra - Korolen
Tristan Arp - Oddkin, Alternate Looking Glass
Trojan Presents: Lovers Rock (2011)
Vic Spencer - Psychological Cheat Sheet 2
Web Web and Max Herre - Satori Ways
The Westerlies and Conrad Tao - Bricolage
William Tyler - Understand
Zeshan B - Melismatic (2020)

Top Singles -
Amythyst Kiah - Tender Organs
Angel Haze - Weight
Ashley Monroe - Groove, Easy Going (with Trent Dabbs)
Bee Gees - More Than a Woman (SG Lewis Paradise Edit)
Bicep - Apricots
Brent Fiyaz and Tyler the Creator - Gravity
Burna Boy - Kilometre
Busy Signal - Bring Rum
Cake Pop - Black Rum
Cardi B - Up
Caroline Shaw and So Percussion - Lay All Your Love on Me
Chants - Displacements
Charlotte Adigery - Bear With Me and I’ll Stand Bare Before You
Chayo Nash and T-Pain - Like Dis
CHVRCHES - He Said She Said
City Girls - Twerkulator
CIZA with DJ Maphorisa and Madumane - Bank Notification
Ckay and Bianca Costa - Skoin Skoin
Coco O - Bad at All
Dawn Richard - Mornin/Streetlights
Demi Lovato and Ariana Grande - Met Him Last Night
Devin the Dude - Nothin Really Just Chilin
Dezron Douglas and Brandee Younger - Sing (2020)
Duke Deuce - Intro: Coming Out Hard
Duke Hugh and Renato Paris - Common Ground
Farmer Nappy - Backyard Jam
Fat Joe with Remy Ma and Cool and Dre - Back Outside
Fetty Wap - Heartbroken Zoomix
Function - An Optical Illusion of Consciousness
Gabe ’Nandez - Ox
Genesis Owusu - The Other Black Dog
Ghetts and Stormzy - Skengman
Hayley Williams - My Limb
Isabella Manfredi - Jealousy
Isaiah Rashad and Duke Deuce - Lay Wit Ya
Jamila Woods - Fast Car
Jazmine Sullivan - Tragic, Price Tags
Jessi Ware - Please, Hot n Heavy
Julian Lage - Quiet Like a Fuse, Saint Rose
Kareem Ali - Don’t Take that Goddamn Shot
Kathryn Hahn - Agatha All Along (Leland Philpot Trap Remix)
Kenza and Ami Faku - Sihlobo Sami
Killah Calico with Bryant Taylorr - Said What I Said
Marisa Anderson and William Tyler - Hurrican Light
Megan Thee Stallion - Thot Shit
Nas - Rare, Life Is Like a Dice Game (with Cordae and Freddie Gibbs)
Olatunji - Drunk History
Perfectly Cut Screams - Yes Natalie Yes You’re a Qween on infinite replay -

pic.twitter.com/EJiYZhcLm2

— Perfectly Cut Screams (@AAAAAGGHHHH) December 11, 2020

Singles of Note - A to L
2th - Pardonner
A1xJ1 - Latest Trends
A Certain Raio - Wonderland
Aasiva and Riit - Piqatiikka
ABC - How To Be a Millionaire
Adia Victoria - Magnolia Blues
Adrian Freedman and Sam Lee - Nightingale Soul Call
Aesop Rock and Homeboy Sandman - Ask Anyone
Aisha Noel - One Dance (One Link Riddim)
Agnes - 24 Hours
Aksak Maboul - Tous Ko
ALLBLACK - 10 Toes, We Straight (mostly i prefer E-40 and Vince Staples on these tracks tbh)
Allie X - GLAM!
Alper Egri and Batu - Tutsak
Aly and AJ - Pretty Places
Amen Dunes and Sleaford Mods - Feel Nothing
Amorphous and Kehlani - Back Together
Amythyst Kiah - Hangover Blues, Black Myself
Angelique Kidjo with Mr Eazi and Salif Keit - Africa One of a Kind
Ant Clemons with 2 Chainz, Ty Dolla - Appreciation
Anthony Hamilton - Love Is the New Black, You Made a Fool of Me
Anunaku - Spirale
AP Dhillon, Gminxr, Gurinder Gill, Shinda Kahlon - Brown Munde
APB - What Kind of Girl
Ariana Grande - Main Thing
Arlo Parks - Hurt, Hope, Black Dog, Eugene
Attaca Quartet - Electric Pow Wow Drum, Real Life, Remind U
Audiojack and Kevin Knapp - Under Your Skin (Club Cut)
A-Wax - Helpless, Blicky, WDP, Omaha
Axel Rulay - Si Es Trucho Es Trucho
Azmari - Cosmic Masadani
BAEKHYUN - Bambi
BANKS - The Devil
Banknulli and Not3s - Foreign
BbyMutha - glowinthedark, 1st Date, You With Dat
Beatking with 2 Chainz and Juicy J - SDAB
Beedie, Billy Hoyle, Vic Spenser - Letters from the Bottle
Beenie Man - No Lovin, On My Way, Pum Pum Story, Gangsta’s Paradise (with Vybz)
Bela Fleck - Charm School
Benedek - Street Level
Benjamin Brunn - Raymond, 77 (this should likely have circulated on ILX already because of the title, no?)
Beverly Glenn Copeland - Ever New (Kelsey Lu Remix), Sunset Village (Blood Orange Remix) - Looking forward to seeing what the full remix album has on it
Bicep - Atlas, Saku
Big Boi, Killer Mike and Sleepy Brown - Lower Case No Cap
Big Swift with Devin the Dude - Let’s Git High
Bilal Salaam and Quelle Chris - Bachdi’s Endurance
Billie Eilish - Your Power, Everybody Dies, Happier Than Ever, NDA
Billy Davis with Ruel and Genesis Owusu - Dream No More
BJ the Chicago Kid - Bring It On Home To Me, The Chi, Letter 2 U, Type of Day
Blinky Bill - Terene
Benny the Butcher and Freddie Gibbs - Gold Rolex
Blackpink - How You Like That, Love to Hate Me/You Never Know
Bobby Sessions with Benny the Butcher and Freddie Gibbs - Gold Rolex
Brandee Younger - Reclamation
Brandy - Starting Now
Bravebeats - iBlesser
Brent Faiyaz - Show U Off
Brittany Howard - Presence (Little Dragon Remix), Stay High Again
BROCKHAMPTON - Buzzcut, Count on Me
BTS - Butter
Buck Owens and the Buckaroos - I Wouldn’t Live in New York City If They Gave Me the Whole Dang Town
Burm, Chuck Indigo and Ron Obasi - LORDY LORDY
Busta Rhymes and Mariah Carey - Where I Belong
Busy Signal - Bad Gyal, Bad Man Flex, Bang Bung (with Bounty Killer), Blessings, Cruising, Jamaica Jamaica, Mariwana, Burdens Heavy, Gwan Whine, Irresistible, Party Girl, Yo Dawg (with Jo Mersa Marley)
B Young - Ride for Me (Kranium Remix)
C Tangana with Gipsy Kings - Ingobernable
Cadence Weapon - Water, Senna, Coup de grace
Carly Pearce - Dear Miss Loretta, I Hope You’re Happy Now (Live)
Carsie Blanton - Party at the End of the World
Cassius Select - Born to Defense
CB - No Lies Freestyle
Cee-Lo Green and Rare Essence - Baby Don’t You Go Go
Cerfeuil - Durance
CFCF - Ultraviolet Room, Night/Day/Work/Home, Slippery Plastic Euphoric
Chaos in the CBD - Brainstorm
Charlie Hustle, DBoy Lac, E-40 and Papa Rue - Big Money Ting
Chess Moves - Thought Tank 160Vu
Chiiild - Awake, Gone
Childish Major with Schoolboy Q - Disrespectful
Chip - 10 Commandments
Chris Stussy and SAM - Ethernity, Sirine
Chris Thile - Laysong, Dionysus
Christian Kuria - 23rd Street
Churches - Good Girls, Good Girls (KC Lights Remix), How Not to Drown
Cindy Sanyu and Mungo’s Hi Fi - Pull Up On Mi Bumpa
CIX - Cinema
CJ - Whoopty
Clairo - Blouse
Cody Currie and KETTAMA - Harajuku Hammer
Cody Johnson - Dear Rodeo (with Reba), Sad Songs and Waltzes (with Willie)
Coi Leray with Lil Dark - No More Parties
Colin Stetson - Beyond the Brake, Captured
Colors in Waves - Ultraviolet (Roman Flugel Remix)
Common and Black Thought and Seun Kuti - When We Move
ComptonAsstg - Colder and Colder
Cory Smythe - Kinetic Whirlwind Sculpture No. 1
Cromby and Tee Amara - Que Sientes (Nicola Cruz Remix)
Culture Club - The Medal Song
Damian Lazarus and Diplo and Jungle - Don’t Be Afraid (Nicola Cruz Remix)
Daniel Bachman - Coronach
Daoko - Fighting Pose
Dave - Mercury, Clash
Dawn Richard - Bussifame, Jacuzzi, Boomerang
De La Soul - Baby Got Work (DJ Jazzy Jeff and Kaidi Tatham Remix)
Death Grips and Les Claypool - More Than the Fairy
Declaime et al - Eyes Wide Shut
Deem Spencer - Wife Wife, New Light
Demi Lovato - Dancing with the Devil, Sunset, The Way You Don’t Look at Me
Deniro Farrar - Okay, No Gel
Deuce Ellis and Homeboy Sandman - Outlaw Magicians
Dexter and Quelle Chris - Tagestrip nach Waterworld
Digga D - Bluuwuu, Bringin It Back
Disclosure - In My Arms
DJ JM - XD
DJ Maphorisa and Tyler ICU - Banyana
DJ Q - It’s U (Octo Octa Remix), All That I Could (Lavonz Remix), Thief in the Night, I Can’t Stay
DJ Raff - El Trip
DJ Tarico with Burna Boy, Preck, Nelson Tivane - Yaba Buluku
DMX - Hood Blues, Take Control, Money Money Money
Doks and Innoss’B - Ensorcele
Dolly Parton - In the Sweet By and By, Hand Me Downs (with Janelle Arthur)
DOMI and JD Beck - Madvillainy Tribute - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oYKwotHRdHo
Donato Dozzy - Le Confort Electronique
Dr Duda with Mr JazziQ - Amanda
Dr Peppa, Blxckie, Chang Cello, Aux Cable, Lord Script - Mntase
Drax Project with Phony Ppl - Catching Feelings
Dua Lipa - Fever, We’re Good, If It Ain’t Me, Can They Hear Us, Cold Heart (PNAU Remix)
Duncan Mighty and Burna Boy - Nibolowa
Dundundun - Anansi
dvsn and Ty Dolla - Memories
Dwn2Earth with Ty Dolla - Don’t Play With Me
Ebhoni - Hit This
EfizyNow with Mr Jazzi Q - Roots
EJ Taylor and Payroll Giovanni - I Don’t Trust a Living Soul
El Alfa - Arrebatao
ELHAE with Masego - My City
ELIO with Charlie XCX - Charger
ella jane - bored&blind
Elle King and Miranda Lambert - Drunk and I Don’t Wanna Go Home
Elma Sambeat - Algunas Veces el Viento, Donde los Sueños Gimen
Elquan with DJ Fresh - Na Na
ElyOtto - SugarCrash!
Epik High with CL and ZICO - Rosario
ER Jurken - Colonels of the Morning
Es.tereo - Perception
Eyedress - Chad an Gordy
Fantasydub with Baba Sales - L’Heritage Universel
Femme It Forward with Rapsody - Iconic
Fin del Mundo - El Incendio
FKA Twigs and Headie One - Don’t Judge Me
Flo Milli - Beef FloMix, Weak, May I , Roaring 20s (late pass throughout)
Floorplan - On the Case, Right There, Get Me Higher Remix (Georgia)
Folamour - Lost in Space, We Gotta Wake This World Up From Its Sleep, Resonate, The Journey, Just Want Happiness
For Those I Love - Birthday/The Pain
Francois and the Atlas Mountains - Cocou (Yelle Remix)
Freddie Gibbs - Big Boss Rabbit, Terrorist, Winter in America, We Want Justice Dammit, On One (with Joyce Price)
Free Nationals with Chronixx - Eternal Light
Fumez the Engineer - AM/Skegdo/Lil Rass, Kwengface/Fumez, Pete/Bas/Fumez
Gabriel Garzon-Montano - Flor, Fields
Gallant - Dynamite, Scars
Genesis Owusu - Bye Bye
Gengis Don with Georgia Anne Muldrow - Manic
Georgia Anne Muldrow - Mufaro’s Garden, Stay with Me Please Stay My Love, Unforgettable, Slow Drag
Ghetts - IC3, Crud, Little Bo Peep
Giveon - Heartbreak Anniversary
Glasses Malone with Snoop Dogg, Ice T, Ty Dolla - 6 in the Morning GMX
Goat Girl - Sad Cowboy
Gojira - Born for One Thing
Golden Rules - Never Die (Prefuse 73 Remix)
Gorillaz with Tony Allen and Skepta - How Far?
Gorilla Zoe and Jacques - Top of the Week
Govana - Best Friend, Big Dreams, Chap Chop, Karen, Pop, Still
Grace Weber and Chance the Rapper - Thru the Fire
Gretchen Parlato - Magnus (need to listen to the full album yet)
Griff - Black Hole
Grrrl Gang - Honey Baby
Gyakie - Forever
Hailu Mergia - Gumegum, Mestirawai Debdabe, Nefas New Zemedie
Hartnoll and Young - I’m Meditating (lol)
Hayley Kiyoko - Found My Friends
Hayley Williams - Wait On (still need to finish album)
H Crown and Maxo Kream - On Crip
Helado Negro and Xenia Rubinos - I Fell In Love
Hey Exit - Call at Duskd
Homeboy Sandman - Go Hard
Human Movement and D Tiffany - Waiting
Hume Da Muzika with Kabza de Small - Impilo Ka Sipho Banda
Hypnotic Brass Ensemble with Moses Sumney - Soon It Will Be Fire
HyunA - Good Girl
ICEKIID - ErrudumEllaHvad
IDK and Young Thug - PradadaBang
Illuvia - D’Arc
Innoss’B and Rebo - NO NO
Isaiah Rashad - Headshots, From the Garden
IU - Celebrity, Lilac
Iwaata - Tr888
Ixtahuele with Kadhja Bonet - Manna
Jacques - Bed Friend (with Queen Naija), Freaky As Me (with Latto)
Jae5 with Skepta and Remarriages - Dimension
James Bangura - Cleanse, Denita Junction
James Brandon Lewis - Fallen Flowers
James Elizabeth with Jeremih - No Neighbors
James Hetfield and the News - Hip to Be the Sandman - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3MRx4LpYbQ4
Jarrett Michael, Bryant Taylor, Ye Ali - Thine Eyes
Jason Isbell - Sad But True
Jay Duncan and Ben Vince - In Limbo (Ricardo Villalobos Remix)
Jaykeae with Jorja Smith - 1000 Nights
Jazmine Sullivan - Lost One, Bodies
Jensen McRae - Immune, Starting to Get To You, Dead Girl Walking
Jesse Futerman and Beverly Glenn Copeland - Luckey
Jessi - What Type of X
Jessi Ware - Eyes Closed, Overtime
Jimbo Mathus and Andrew Bird - Encircle My Love
Jimir Reece Davis - Rihanna vs Luther Vandross - Never Kissed It Too Much - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TlCoRsGVmT4
Joey - Door
Jon Sable - Ascension Island
Jorja Smith - Addicted, All of This, Bussdown
Jose Gonzalez - El Invento, Head On, Swing, Visions
Jovi Dipree - Tri-Circle
Juan Pablo Vega and Vanessa Zamora - Dejarnos Ir
Juicy J - She Got Pop It, Memphis to LA, I Can’t Stop
Julian Lage - Etude, Boo’s Blues
Jupiter and Okwess - Telejayi, Marco, Cuba, Nikon
JUS - Brown Noise, Twilight, God Goku Jay Z
Justin Bieber - Hold On
Kabza de Small - Stimela, Mali Mali, Neriya, Love Like a Weapon
Kaito Shoma and DJ Paul - Scary Garry
Kaleida - Think (Actress Remix)
Kali Uchis - telepatia
Kamasi Washington - Sun Kissed Child
Kareem Ali - Back to Me, The Final Stretch, Finish Line, Como Me Siento For Ti, Black Space Jazz, They Can’t Stop Us
Kassa Overall - I’m a King
Kat Edmonson - If You’re Scared
Kat B - Under My Skin
Kelsey Lu with Kelly Moran, Moses Boyd and Yvest Tumor - Let All the Poisons That Lurk in the Mud Seep Out (Actress Remix)
Kem with Wiz Khalifa - Lie To Me (Remix)
Kerwen Du Bois and Teddyson John - See Dem
Khyenci - Only Fans (DJ Q Remix)
Kiana Lede with Kehlani - Ur Best Friend
King Deetory with Kabza de Small - Marcolo
Kirk Barley - Primer, Hawk, Courtyard
Mississippi - Big Dipper
K Michelle - Silhouettes
Kwesi Arthur and Joeboy - Banjo
Kylie Minogue - Marry the Night
Lauren Ritter - Vespers (Octo Octa Remix)
Lecrae with Jidenna and Limoblaze - Everyday
Leon Vynehall - Dumbo, Snakeskin/Has Been
Los Amazones d’Afrique - Dogon (Jo Bissa Remix), Love (Yohanne Simon Remix)
Lil Baby and Kirk Franklin - We Win
Lil Gnar with Ski Mask and Chief Keef - New Bugatti
Lil Was X - Sun Goes Down
Little Simz - Introvert, Woman
Lizzo and Cardi B - Rumors
Lone - Coming Into Being and Passing Away, Hidden By Horizons, Mouth of God
LOONA - Paint the Town
L’Orange with Quelle Chris - Point to Point
Loris - Muro
Lou Will with Lil Wayne and 2 Chainz - Big Tuh
Lucky Daye - How Much Can A Heart Take, Access Denied, Falling in Love
Lucy Dacus - Hot and Heavy
Lucy Railton - First Revenge, Lazuli

Singles of Note - M to Z

M, Fatoumata Diawara, Toumani Diabate - Manitoumani (Laplage Remix)
Maeta with BEAM - Toxic
Magugu with Heavy Baile and Leo Justi - Game Face On
Mahalia with Rico Nasty - Jealous
Makhadzi with Mlindo the Vocalist - Mjolo
Makoto - Spread Love, Contact
Mampi Swift - Twisted, Touch of J, Feels Good
Maneskin - Zitti e Buoni
Marc Rebillet - Vaccinated Attitude
Marcy Chin with Skillibeng - Wul Night
Mariah Carey - Somewhat Loved
Marina and Tove Lo - Venus FlyTrap
Marisa Anderson and William Tyler - At the End of the World, Lost Futures (boy this is gonna be a good album)
Mark Hawkins and Jamie Lidell - Let It Slide
Marteria - Paradise Delay (DJ Koze Mix)
Masego - Yebo/Sema
MaTen10 with Busiswa and Master Clap - Underpende
Matt Bianco - Half a Minute
Matt Martians - Sing 2 U God, An Eater
Matumbi - Originary Man, Bluebeat and Ska, After Tonight
Maxo Kream - Local Joker
MCND - Crush
Mdou Moctar - Tala Tannam, Afrique Victime
Meet Me at The Altar - Hit Like a Girl
Mello Music Group - Iron Steel Samurai (with Quelle Chris), No Trouble (with Oddisee)
Mereba - Rider
Meridian Dan and SHY FX - Doughnuts
Mery Spolsky - Sorry from the Mountain
Metronomy - The Bay (Mr. Mitch Remix)
Mfr Souls and Bassie - Bathandwa
Mickey Simm and Vic Spencer - Noir
Migos - Straightenin, Picasso, Modern Day, Type Shit
Miloe with Vagabon and Jamila Woods - Winona
MIRAE - Killa
Miranda Lambert - Settling Down, They’ve Closed Down the Honky Tonk
Miranda Lambert, Jack Ingram and Jon Randall - Am I Right or Amarillo, In His Arms, Two Step Down to Texas, Tin Man, Tequila Does, Geraldine, Homegrown Tomatoes, Waxahachie
MIST and Burna Boy - Rollin
MM - Floorfiller, Shape in the Glass
Molly Herron and Science Ficta - Canon No 3
MOMOLAND - Wrap Me in Plastic
Montoya and Pedrina - Solo Quiero (DJ Raff Remix)
Moonshine with Sango and Georgia Anne Muldrow - Onward
Morray - Kingdom, Reflections, Trenches (Polo G Remix)
Moses Boyd with Katy B - 2 Far Gone
Move D - I Gave My Love, Magnetically Levitated Train
Mr JazziQ and F3 Dipapa - Sgubu Se N’ice
Mthunzi - Elenthulo
Mungo’s Hi Fi - Time Traveller, Back in the Days
Muni Long - Black Like This
Mykki Blanco and Blood Orange - It’s Not My Choice
Naira Marley and Busiswa - Coming
NATE, Melinda the Vocalist - Singashone
Nay Nay with Lady Leshurr - All Cried Out
Nenjah Nycist and Black Milk - Throw Hands
Nicki Nicole, Lunay - No Toque Mi Naik
Nicola Cruz - What Now
Nicolas Godin - Another Side (with We are King), We Forgot Love and Love Theme (with Kadhja Bonet)
Nik Bartsch - Modul 58_12
Nilufer Yanaya - Day 7.5093 (keiyaA Remix), Same Damn Luck (Little Dragon Remix)
Niniola - Promise
Normani with Cardi B - Wild Side
No Rome with Charli XCX and 1975 - Spinning
Nottz, Rapsody, Rah Digga, Ke Turner - Black Woman
Obeka - Durban Dance, Night of Kizomba
ODB - Drug Free (2001)
Odopt - A14
Okyeame Kwame and Kuami Eugene - Yeeko
Olatunji - Don’t Stop Carnival
Olivia Rodrigo - Deja Vu, Good 4 U
Olumireggae and Coffee - My Heart (remix)
Oneohtrix Point Never with Rosalia - Nothing’s Special
Opio - U-N-Eye
Orquesta Akokan - Mi Conga es de Akokan
Parcels - Comingback
Patrick Cowley and Sylvester - Menergy (Purple Disco Machine Remix)
Pentagon - Do or Not
Pete and Bas - Golf, The Old Estate
Peter Cottontale and Jamila Woods - Breathe My Name
Phil Collins - The True Story of In the Air Tonight - https://player.vimeo.com/video/412937729
Phoebe Bridgers - Kyoto (Glitch Gum Remix), Kyoto (Live with Jackson Browne), Nothing Else Matters, Summers End (Live with Maria Taylor)
Popcaan - Jungle Justice, Pool Party
Pop Smoke - Demeanor, Beat the Speaker
Precious and Kranium - The
Prince - Born 2 Die, Same Page Different Book
Prof and Devin the Dude - Chitty Bang
Psyance - Gates of Heaven
Purple Kiss - Pnzona
Qyor with Kranium and Dexta Daps - Be High
Rai Saia Rodada - Tapao Na Raba
Rakim - Black Messiah
Ralph Peterson and Jazzmeia Horn - Tears I Cannot Hide
Raphael Saadiq - My Path
Ratedoursavior with Isaiah Rashad - Marinade
Rauw Alejandro - Todo de Ti
Raveena - Tweety
RAVI with Chillin Homie and Kid Milli - BUM
Rayana Jay with Braxton Cook - Last Call
Real Lies - Late Arcades (Patrice White Isle Remix)
Rebolledo - Star Stuff (Roman Flugel Mix)
Redman - 80 BARZ
Rema - Bounce
Retch with Maxo Kream - Shiesty
Rhye - Safeword, Black Rain (Jayda G Remix)
Riff Cohen - Tempo
Rob Noyes - Vout, Invisible Ridicule
Robert Hood - Chroma Light, Funky Souls (club 246 mix), Sleep is the Cousin of Death
Rochelle Jordan - Got Em, Next 2 You, All Along
Rock Abruham with Quelle Chris - Heel (Remix)
Rod Wave - Boom, Soulfly, Tombstone
Roe Deers - Radical Tom
Roisin Murphy - Assimilation, Less Is More, Name Changer, Incapable (Reflex Revision), Shellfish Mademoiselle (Paul Woolford Remix)
Roman Flügel - DISCO, Eating Darkness, Wow, Jocks an Freaks, Look to the Sky
Roomful of Teeth - Fall Into Me (Alev Lentz arrangement)
ROSE - On the Ground
Roza Terenzi and D Tiffany - Inhale Exhale
Ruf Dug - Addicted (Shanti Celeste Remix)
Safe Diallo with Beenie Man - Nene Futa
Sam Lee - Nightingale Soul Call
Santigold and U-Roy - Man Next Door
Sarah Davachi - Border of Mind, Rushes Reced
Sea Shanty - Wellerman - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V2DFnBuYG2o - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p39QUm85n90
Sean McConnell and The Wood Brothers - The 13th Apostle
Selena Gomez - Baila Conmigo, Vicio
Serge Beynaud - La Daba
Serpentwithfeet - Same Size Shoe, Amir, Wood Boy, Fellowship, Canopy
SG Lewis - One More, Chemicals, Impact, Time
Shaik Omar with Nobuhle - Boom Boom Boom
Shaolin Luciano with Vic Spencer - Victator
Shaybo and Jorja Smith - My Sister
Shelley - All Pride Aside, The Lay Down, Something About Us, Remedies
Shift K3y with Tinashe - Love Line
Shinee - Don’t Call Me
Shy FX - Rastafari, I Got You, Michael Knight
SiBusiso Makhoba and Vico da Sporo - Ngibambe
Simi with Deja - Duduka
SiR - Teach Me
Sizwe Alakine and DJ Maphorisa - Khanda Shisa
Skepta with Pop Smoke, Juicy J and ASAP Rocky - Lane Switcha
Skillibeng - 14, Cough, Guide Me, Money Tree, One Way, Rapid It Up, Yo
Ski Mask the Slump God - Dr. Suess, Admit It, The Matrix
Skyzoo and BJ the Chicago Kid - Bodega Flowers
Snypa and Young Thug - Who Is You
So Percussion and Caroline Shaw - Lay All Your Love On Me
Sofi Tukker and Amadou & Mariam - Mon Cheri
Sohrab - Focal Point - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pM5n_23ChW8
Son Tung MTP - Muon Roi Ma Sao Con, Remember Me (Onionn Remix)
Soso Maness with PLK - Petrouchka
Souloho with Mr JazziQ - Labelungu
Special Request - Vellichor
Sports - Call Me Anytime
Stefflon Don with Ms Banks - Dip
Stefflon Don with Rema and Tiwa Savage - Can’t Let You Go (Remix)
Stokley - Cascade, Woman
Stone Jack Jones with Adia Victoria - I’m Made, Heaven Knows
Strapontin - What’s Worse
Studio Apartment - Beautiful Sunrise (Quentin Harris Mix)
Sturgill Simpson - Juanita (with Willie Nelson), Paradise
St Vincent - Pay Your Way in Pain
Sufjan Stevens - Celebration III and IV, Lamentation I, Incantation VIII, Meditation V, Reach Out, Revelation IX
Sun El Musician - Portia’s Chant, Uhuru (Remix)
Super M - We Do
Suran - Sunny
Syd - Fast Car
Taemin - Advice
Tamburi Neri and Hiroko - AMa
Tashan and Rich Homie Quan - Cheapskate
Taylor Eigsti with Becca Stevens and Gretchen Parlato - Play with Me
Teedra Moses - Make Me
Tekisha Abel - Lolo Bal
They Might Be Giants - I Broke My Own Rule, I Can’t Remember the Dream
Throttle Elevator Music - Return to Form
TI - What It’s Come To
Tiger Stripes - Khula
Tinashe - Bouncin, Unconditional, I Can See the Future
Tink with Jeremih - Rebel
Tion Wayne with Russ Millions - Body (Remix)
Tkay Maidza - Cashmere, Kim, Onto Me, Breathe, Syrup, Where Is My Mind
Tkinzy with Mlindo the Vocalist - Uthando
T-Man with Busiswa - Uyithathaphi (Reloaded)
Toddla T - Shaker
Toki Fuko - Recognize Your Limitations, Convey Sense of Being
Tokyo Jetz, TI - Know the Rules
Tony Allen - Cosmosis, Stumbling Down, Count Kinte, One Inna Million
T-Pain and Kehlani - I Like Dat
T-Pain and Trap Bekaham - Get Off Yo Ass
Trio Mediaeval - Sci Vias Domini, Pris Vare Gud
Trance Wax - Rayna (Shanti Celeste Remix)
TRI.BE - Rub a Dum
Tristan Arp - Oddkin, Unfurling
Tremendous - Worst Child
Tune Yards - Cannonball, Hold Yourself
Ty Dolla Sign with Bryson Tiller and Jhene AIko - By Yourself Remix
Tyler the Creator with Lil Uzi Vert and Pharell - Juggernaut
U Know - Eeny Meeny
Uniiqu3, Killa Kherk Cobain - Stand Back Reloaded
Ventino - Esta Vez
Vico da Sporo - Ethekwini, Lwemali, Masango, Kuthi Angisangane, WHen I Meet Unobuhle
Vic Spencer - Temple, Gold Chains on White Tees, Sneaker Bandit, Psychotic Panhandlers, Bipolarism, Rough Environments, Situation OG
Vince Staples - Law of Averages, Are You With That, Take Me Home
Wafia with Masego and Ta-Ku - Wide Open
Wale with Maxo Kream and Yella Beezy - Down South
Ward Thomas and Cam - Don’t Be a Stranger
Weekly - We Play
Wesley Joseph and Jorja Smith - Patience
The Westerlies and Theo Bleckmann - Another Holiday, Look for the Union Label, Two Good Men, The Fiddle and the Drum
Wiardon - Starter Kit
William Tyler - The Going Through, The Witness Tree
Willie Nelson - You Make Me Feel So Young
WJSN the Black - Easy
Woods - Feel Like
Xenia Rubinos - Cogelo Suave, Sacude, Working All the Time
Week - Lumbago
Yelawolf - Matador, Trans Am, Daytona
Yelle - Noir
YG and Mozzy - Bompton to Oak Park, Dangerous, Drop a Location, Bite Down, Perfect Timing
Young MA - Successful
Young Roc and Shelley - Do You Got Moxie
Young Stoner Life - Pots n Pans
Your Old Droog - So High, Slam Dunk Contest, The Dunking Dutchman, Dropout Boogie, Quiet Time
Zepherin Saint - Resurrect My Feelings
Zhang Tong - Two Enter the Palace - https://www.facebook.com/groups/chineseoperaforum/permalink/3744405388946155/
Zild - Bungantulog
Zillakami and Lil Uzi Vert - Badass
Zillas on Acid - He Wasn’t Afraid
Zinoleesky and Mayorkun and Busiswa - Kilofese Remix)
Zombie Juice with Devin the Dude - Alto
Zuchu - Sukari

Mostly in here: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1R2fZYbLPWVh83TzhWBWZH

My tracks playlist is here (I keep it tight).

Mine for second half of 2021. I let it splurge. Same caveats as for part 1 upthread
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/6RoiNhPQLKLjrXTYcvGTJU?si=B-T-QjpsTW27cnPutookhQ&dl_branch=1

I'm going to wait til December or so to begin assembling my year end list, but I have to mention Art School Girlfriend somewhere— the full length, "Is It Light Where You Are" is really good, been listening a bunch the past three days. Here's a single:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fZtp7Rh6JG4

I originally clicked on the review because I was like "god i hate this name, what is this" and of course, i loved it lol.

https://thequietus.com/articles/30508-art-school-girlfriend-is-it-light-where-you-are-review

Getting back into monthly roundups; here's August 19 to September 19.
*tracks and *albums are best of year contenders

Top Albums
* Gigi Masin - Calypso
* Jose Gonzalez - Local Valley
* Marisa Anderson and William Tyler - Lost Futures
* Moritz Von Oswald Trio - Dissent
* The Westerlies - Songbook v1Angel Olsen - Aisles
Ashley Monroe and Tyler Cain - The Covers
Karim Ali - Breakaway

Top Tracks
* Angel Olsen - Safety Dance
* Billie Eilish - Not My Responsibility
* Burna Boy and Don Jazzy - Question
* Cassidy and Beenie Man - In My Bag
* Emiz with Busy Signal - Jaye Pro
* Esperanza Spalding - Formwela 10
* Govana - Chap Chop
* Ikue Asazaki and Akira Takahashi - OBOKURI
* John Bennet with Attacca Quartet - Weep O Minds Eyes
* Junior Taurus and Sino Solo - Top 7
* Lalah Hathaway and Robert Grasper - Show Me Your Soul
* MO3 and Morray - In My Blood
* Move D - Deep
* Nobuhle and Sun El Musician - Sawubona
* Ruth Royall with Makoto - New Love
* SZA - Joni
* The Westerlies - Way Back Then
ABRA with Playboi Carti - Unlock It
Alex Ranerro - Tundra
ALLBLACK with Vince Staples - We Straight
Amanda - Kapsalon
Ashley Monroe and Tyler Cain - More Than Words
Asleep at the Wheel with George Strait and Willie Nelson - Take Me Back to Tulsa
Astro - Into the Past
Attaca Quartet - Pilgrim Side Eye
A-Wax - Rollys On
BLACKPINK - How You Like That (Japanese)
Blimp and Kareem Ali - Back to Me
Brother Sister Moon and Kareem Ali - Numb
Chiiild with Jensen McRae - Gone
Chronixx - Freedom Fighter
CHVRCHES - California
Connie Smith - To Pieces
Darlin Vlys - Doble Impacto
David Duchovny - Layin on the Tracks
Debbie Gibson - The Body Remembers
Deetron with Jamie Lidell - Cry with the Stars
Desert Sound Colony - Space Bass Express
DJ Raff - Es Importante
dvsn with Ty Dolla - Memories
Felipe Gordon - Wes, Colombian Excursions of House Music
fleet.dreams - Selph Luv
Future Utopia and Arlo Parks - Stranger in the Night (India Jordan Mix)
Freddie Gibbs and Golden Rules - Never Die (Prefuse 73 Mix)
Govana - 1Matik
Innoss’B with Rebo - NO NO
Isaiah Rashad - Don’t Shoot
Jacquees with Future - Not Just Anybody
Jerome Sydenham with Fatima Njai - Trans Afro Express (Ricardo Villalobos Mix)
Kareem Ali - Enduro, I Feel It All
KDA and Lady Blackbird - Collage
Kodak Black - Senseless
Kranium with Young T and Bugsey - Life of the Party
Lauren Ritter - Quartz (Lawrence Remix)
Lecrae - Holupwait
LeVelle and Anthony Hamilton - Fell in Love
Linda Moeketsi with Brian Temba and Sino Msolo - The Way
Machinedrum - Stone Age (with Deniro Farrar), Only One (with Angelica Bess)
Makaya McCraven - Frank’s Tune
Mary Lattimore - We Wave from Our Boats
M dot Taylor and Payroll Giovanni - Ain’t Going Broke No Mo
Melbourne Symphony Orchestra - Bluey Theme Song
Miloe, Jamila Woods, Vagabon - Winona (gotta drop this Miloe guy tho)
Molly Herron and Science Ficta - Trill
Move D - I Gave My Love, Babyphonk
Mungo’s HiFi - Time Traveler
Nilufer Yanya - Crash (Kwes Remix), Same Damn Luck (Little Dragon Remix)
Nora Brown - The Very Day I’m Gone
Pierre Moritz - A Une Main
Pop Smoke - Beat the Speaker, Double It
Red Velvet - Knock on Wood
Ryuichi Sakamoto - Fire
Sean Paul and Ty Dolla - Only Fanz
SeeMeNot - Borderline (Roman Flugel Remix)
Sekret Shadow - I Love You Mommy
Selena Gomez with Camilo - 999
Session Victim - Guidance
Sevyn Streeter with BIA - Nasty Girl
Shaybo with Jorja Smith - My Sister
Sofia Kourtesis - By Your Side
Soso Maness and PLK - Petrouchka
Stokley with Snoop Dogg - Vibrant
Sturgill Simpson - One in the Saddle One in the Ground, Juanita
SZA - I Hate You, Nightbird
Terence Blanchard - Absence
Tink - On My Own
Tristan Arp - Probability Horizon, Air Portrait
Umu Obiligbo - Zambololo
Vica da sporo - Masango, Jacuzzi
Wanda Jackson - Big Baby
Web Web with Yusef Late - Akinuba/The Heart
Wiley - I Ain’t Gonna Fold
Young Thug - Tick Tock

I need to listen to more music, I have heard virtually 0 of those tracks.

lol, i also feel like i'm not listening to much lately. It's a continuum. Try these three maybe?

I am 99% sure you would like the new burna.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0rOer3k2DWg

the westerlies (who are a killer brass quartet) album is all covers and the best of the batch is a John Prine track
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hPL2UM-iBDQ

This Junior Taurus track with Sino Msolo is easy to get stuck on repeat
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9nPelF2CidY

as a matter o fact, here's my narrowed available-on-spotify 2021 fave tracks for folks what like more curation:
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1APRdW5fuwSGezL4U5ul0z

Killer recommendations.

You are correct. That Burna Boy had immediate appeal for me lol. I should spend more time exploring his catalogue, I’ve enjoyed everything I’ve heard from him so far.

Westerlies is a charmer, already queued the whole album to listen to it tomorrow morning.

You were right with the Junior Taurus too! Replayed it as soon as it was over. It’s one of those songs that begs for the loop to go on and on.

Thanks for the curated favorites too already following will listen thru the week.

thumbsup.emoji

here's my favs playlist https://open.spotify.com/playlist/6yQYHwwbTjHZcxqUJjePAz?si=46b91d0181f14af1

I am trying to get caught up. These are the albums that I have liked the most so far. Any recommendations based on this list would be very much appreciated.

Arooj Aftab - Vulture Prince
Bobby Dove - Hopeless Romantic
Cassandra Jenkins - An Overview of Phenomenal Nature
Floating Points, Pharaoh Sanders, and the LSO - Promises
Flock of Dimes - Head of Roses
Japanese Breakfast - Jubilee
Miranda Lambert, Jack Ingram, and Jon Randall - The Marfa Tapes
Nala Sinephro - Space 1.8
The Weather Station - Ignorance
Yasmin Williams - Urban Driftwood

I'm on board with about half of your picks and would recommend you try:

Canzoniere Grecanico Salentino - Meridiana
Lonnie Holley and Matthew E White - Broken Mirror: A Selfie Reflection
Marisa Anderson and William Tyler - Lost Futures
Moritz Von Oswald Trio - Dissent
Sons of Kemet - Black to the Future

you might like

yu su - yellow river blue
maria arnal i marcel bages - clamor
leon vynehall - rare, forver
rachel chinouriri - four˚ in winter
spellling - the turning wheel
conclave - s/t

Thanks both. Loved the opening tracks of Lost Futures and about half of Black to the Future. Haven't heard any of the others! Appreciate it.

I haven't been able to get into Yu Su, despite liking many things that "recommend it" to me.

Liking lots of things on your list, Indexed.

You could try

Mason Lindahl - Kissing Rosy in the Rain
Shabason, Krgovich & Harris - Florence
Andrew Tuttle & Padang Food Tigers - A Cassowary Apart

Really enjoyed going through your lists forks, VC, and Chinaski. Thank you again for the recommendations.

Loved:
- Maria Arnal i Marcel Bages - CLAMOR - riyl: Rosalia, Homogenic
- Moritz Von Oswald Trio - Dissent - interest was piqued when I saw Laurel Halo was involved; percussion on this is entrancing
- Spellling - The Turning Wheel - cinematic chamber pop that reminded me of Kate Bush; wish her vocals were a bit stronger but the music was right up my alley
- Yu Su - Yellow River Blue - loved how varied the sounds were on this; the downtempo tracks with bolder subs stand out even more because of the ambient-adjacent tracks

OK:
Andrew Tuttle & Padang Food Tigers - A Cassowary Apart - nice but felt overly familiar
Conclave - Conclave - pleasant
Leon Vynehall - rare, forever - some interesting tracks but didn't grab me like Yu Su
Mason Lindahl - Kissing Rosy in the Rain - good background music to work to

Meh:
Canzoniere Grecanico Salentino - Meridiana - dramatic and over-the-top that works well on the opener, but wore quickly
Lonnie Holley & Matthew E White - couldn't stand the vocals
Rachel Chinourir - Four degrees in winter - too subtle, perhaps
Shabason, Krgovich & Harris - Florence - didn't care much for the blend of synth-heavy ambient and jazz elements

glad you loved a few of those, indexed.

this year has felt a little bit less strong overall for music than last year, to me, but there certainly have been gems.

Canzonieri is definitely improved by seeing them live... can't help you with Lonnie though! he's his own thing.

I could see that. Somewhat reminded me of Funeral-era Arcade Fire if that makes any sense?

If that's your point of reference, who am I to judge! Perhaps worth noting that they are a traditional-style Puglian band who have been around about as long as the members of Arcade Fire have been alive.
https://www.canzonieregrecanicosalentino.net/

yeah saw that, though they were new to me - didn't mean to imply that they were influenced by AF, just that I imagined the bombast of the live shows to be similar

That's probably accurate. The two shows I've seen expand out into the crowd and became real parties.

recommend rachika nayar's "our hands against the dusk"

That Nayar record has been in constant rotation since May, hard agree

wish there was a vinyl release. still sad I missed out on the vinyl releases of the arooj aftab and nala sinephro records

rachika nayar's freak zone playlist was good too https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000zm5z

also recommend tarta relena's "pack no probis" (though the remixes are not particularly special)

Pitchfork is asking for readers' album and track Top 10s by November 12 (I think). Here is what I threw together for the tracks:

The War on Drugs - I Don't Live Here Anymore
Olivia Rodrigo - deja vu
Cassandra Jenkins - Hard Drive
Megan Thee Stallion - Thot Shit
Big Thief - Little Things
Baby Queen - Raw Thoughts
Pale Waves - Easy
beabadoobee - Last Day on Earth
Yola -Diamond Studded Shoes
Sun-El Musician ft. Simmy - Higher

Fuck mmm idk if I can pick a top 10 atm… these would probably be high up there, but can’t promise that’s what my eoy list will look like… plenty of albums to catch up with:

Caroline Loveglow - Patience Etc
Cassandra Jenkins - Hard Drive
Dora Jar - Quiver
Doss - Strawberry
Erika de Casier - Friendly
Magdalena Bay - ??? Not sure which one to pick
Men I Trust - Serenade of Water
Mr Twin Sister - Expressions
MUNYA - cocoa beach
serpentwithfeet - fellowship

That Sun-el track and also Zakes Bantwini “osama” have been on heavy rotation lately.

Oh that Baby Queen is also great yeah

I need to give more thought to my actual top 20 lol

"you lose!" is my magdalena bay pick

Things I heard from September 19 to November 6. Evan from ILX hipped me to a bunch of great (not this year) Eno-esque albums which are mixed in with my faves of note and might end up being among my fave things I heard this year.

Top Albums
Fatima Yamaha - Build Back Bangers
Magdalena Bay - Mercurial World
Maxo Kream - Weight of the World
Solemn Brigham - South Sinner Street
Toki Fuko - Human Design

Albums of Note
Anthony Pasquarosa - Abbandonato da Dio Nazione (2017)
Carlos Maria Trindade and Nuno Canavarro - Mr. Wollogallu (1996)
Chuck Johnson - Balsams (2017)
Fred Thomas - JS Back: Three or One
Gaussian Curve - The Distance (2017)
Haron - Wandelaar (2018)
John Carpenter - Halloween Kills OST
Kareem Ali - All These Moments
Laurence - Birds on the Playground
Magdalena Bay - A Little Rhythm and a Wicked Feeling (2020)
Puuluup - Viimane Suusata
Rob Stenson - Gold Mountain EP
v/a - Driftless Dreamers in Cuca Country v 1
Vikingur Ólafsson - Philip Glass: Piano Works (2017)

Top Tracks
Kareem Ali - Black Futures
Katy B and Jaz Karis - Open Wound
Kehlani - Altar
Magdalena Bay - Chaeri
Maxo Kream - Greener Knots, Streets Alone
Philip Glass et al - Etude No. 6
Sun-El Musician and Simmy - Higher
Theo Parrish and Ava - Don’t Play

Tracks of Note
Adele - Easy on Me
Alex Lilly - Paranoid Times
anahi’s and Chronixx - cry in your sleep
Azana - Salanami
Batu - Melts into Air
Beverly Glenn Copeland - Old New Melody (Ana Roxanne Remix)
Black Milk - Change of Address Form
Burna Boy and Polo G - Want It All
Busy Signal - High Up, Wah Gwaan Mad Head
Carly Pearce and Ashley McBride - Never Wanted to Be That Girl
Chaos in the CBD - Echolocation
Christine and the Queens - Comme l’oiseau
CPT Records and DJ Maphorisa - Come to Us
Cyfred and Sino Msolo - Get Down
Daoko with TAAR - groggy ghost
Deniro Farrar - Lambo
DJ Maphorisa, Mellow and Sleazy et al - Bopha
dvsn and Ty Dolla - Memories, Somebody That You Don’t Know
Elujay and serpentwithfeet - Luvaroq
Elza Soares et al - Demarcaçāo Jazz
Euphonik with Sino Solo - Intando Yakho
Eyedress - Body Dysmorphia
Ezale - Raised Like This
Genkie and Lone HB - Crudo
GONE.Fludd - Traxxxmania
Guns N Roses - Hard Skool
Hayes Carll and Brandy Clark - In the Meantime
Hd4president with 2Chainz - Touch Down 2 Cause All (Remix)
iann dior with Lil Uzi Vert - V12
Isaiah Rashad - HB2U
Jake Shimabukuro and Willie Nelson - Stardust
Jason Isbell and 400 Unit - Driver 8, Midnight Train to Georgia
Jessica Ackerley and Daniel Carter - Welcome, Our Friends
Jon Bellion and Burna Boy - I Feel It
Jonas Brothers - Who’s In Your Head
Jus and Georgia Anne Muldrow - Else
Kabza de Small and DJ Maphorisa - Abalele
Kalie Shorr - Amy
Leaving Laurel - Winter in the Woods (Daniel Avery Remix)
Lecrae and Andy Mineo - Been About It
Les Amazones d’Afrique - Heavy (Yohanne Simon Remix), Sisters (KIRI Remix)
Lil Was X - That’s What I Want
Lionel Loueke - Footprints, Skylark
Little Sims and Obongjayar - Point and Kill
Lone - Realise
LOONA - Not Friends, Hula Hoop
Magdalena Bay - Secrets (Your Fire), Hysterical Us, Domino
Makaya McCraven - Autumn in New York
Makoto and Danny Wheeler - Osiris
Maxo Kream - 11:59, Local Joker, Mama’s Purse
Miranda Lambert - If I Was a Cowboy
Moses Sumney - Can’t Believe It
Mr JazziQ and Khanyisa - Ungangi Bambi
Ombre2Choc Africa and Innos B - WIFI
Oneohtrix Point Never - Tales from the Trash Stratum
Orquesta Okokán - El Inflador
Popcorn - Live Some Life
Puuluup - Paala Järve Vaala Baar, Viimane Suusataaja, Liigutage Vastu, Üksindus
RAY BLK and Stefflon Don - Over You
Real Lies - Since I
Remy Ma - Godmother
Rodrigo y Gabriela - The Struggle Within
Rogue D - Electric Safari (Roman Flugel Remix)
Sad and Smino - Right Track
Sam Fender - Spit of You
Sarah Davachi - Gradual of Image, Doubled Flutes
Serge Beynaud - TDN Spote Winners
Sevyn Streeter and Jeremih - Wet Dreamz
SG Lewis - Heartbreak on the Dancefloor (Gerry Read Remix)
Shackleton - Something Tells Me/Pour Out Like Water, Shimmer Then Fade, The Light That Was Hidden
Skip Marley with Popcorn - Vibe
Solemn Brigham - Vantablack, Dirty Whip, Bigger World
Spiff Latino and Payroll Giovanni - Keep Callin
Stromae - Sante
Toki Fuko - What Will Enlightenment Give Me, Focused and Absorbing
Tony Allen and Hugh Masekela - Slow Bones (Cool Cats Remix), We’ve Landed (Cool Cats Remix)
Tristan Arp - From the Seams
Tu and Gunplay - Uptown Ape Gorilla
Wafia and Masego - Wide Open (Ta-Ku and Cabu Remix)
Xenia Rubinos - Don’t Put Me in Red
Yo-Yo Ma and Lila Downs - La Sandunga
Zachary Williams with Ashley Monroe - Her Picture

Four songs i think you (yes, you!) should hear, though you may want to skip around on these respective video to the songs proper:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lsbJvA_ag3c

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ben9qDbrLYU

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VCHZyFXuw_k

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z1lvxx9lzAg

tho tbh this may be my fave rendition of etude no 6, shit is supercharged
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=80-lRYAtaU0

I went on a kick where i listened to about fifteen renditions of this nonstop for two weeks. it's a hell of a song.

Ok I’m obsessed with “raw thoughts” that’s a top 10 for me.

a month of surgery means nothing much to report:

Top Albums
serpentwithfeet - DEACON’S Grove
Attacca Quartet - Of All Joys

Albums of Note
Angel Bat Dawid - The Oracle (2019)
Makaya McCraven - Deciphering the Message
Snotty Nose Rez Kids - TRAPLINE (2019)
Katy B - Peace and Offerings
Irreversible Entanglements - Open the Gates

Top Tracks
serpentwithfeet - Down Nuh River
Angel Bat Dawid - Black Family (Live) (2000)

Tracks of Note
Snotty Nose Rez Kids - Creator Made an Animal
Sparkbird - Minor Holiday
Maxwell - OFF
Orbital - Belfast (ANNA Ambient Remix)

Albums of the year, for me:

Luke Stewart- Works for Upright Bass and Amplifier Volumes 1 & 2
Irreversible Entanglements- Open the Gates
Peter Gregson- Patina
Kessler- Ambivalent EP
James Brandon Lewis Quartet- Code of Being
Skylark- Crossing Over
Patrick Shiroishi- Hidemi
Richard Skelton- Sutr
Matthew Liam Nicholson- Nine Movements
Fuubutsushi- Good Sky Day
Fuubutsushi- Natsukashii
Fuubutsushi- Yamawarau
Fuubutsushi- Setsubun
Jaimie Branch- Fly or Die LIVE
Jessica Ackerley and Daniel Carter- Friendship
Rắn Cạp Đuôi Collective- Ngủ Ngày Ngay Ngày Tận Thế
Matt Evans- Touchless
Slikback- MELT
LNS & DJ Sotofett- Sputters
Msylma & Ismael- The Tenets of Forgetting
Crazy Doberman- Everyone is rolling down a hill...
Art School Girlfriend- Is It Light Where You Are
Eimar Reidy & Natalia Beylis- Whose Woods are These
Facta- Blush
Scotch Rolex- Tewari
Low- HEY WHAT
James Brandon Lewis- Jesup Wagon
Iglew- Light Armour EP
IOSONOUNCANE- IRA
Skee Mask- Pool
Chris Schlarb & Chad Taylor- Time No Changes
Illuvia- Iridescence of Clouds
Iu Takahashi- Late in Life
Luke Stewart/Patrick Shiroishi- split cass
Moon Reflecting- Non-GMO Rain Dance
Rachika Nayar- Our Hands Against the Dark
xLWBxDRx- prairie spells, a ribbon wove
Colin Webster- vs Amp
Anne Bourne- wave
Enzo Carniel & Filippo Vignato- Aria
Natural Information Society & Evan Parker- descension (Out of Our Constrictions)
Bored Lord- Lavirga EP
PUNKT.VRT.PLASTIK- Somit
Ahmed- Nights on Saturn (Communication)
ZULI- All Caps EP
Hafez Modirzadeh- Facets
Quin Kirchner- Live at Pro Musica