ILM’s Top 77 Albums of 2021

ALC is even serving some primo skronk in the absence of TFS (or Springtime)

lol i don't think there's any chance at all parquet courts show up at this point

tbc I didn't vote for TFS and don't think they deserve it this time

Two tracks in I was on board with Sons Of Kemet. Six tracks later I am....not

although just as I wrote that, the end of 'let the circle be unbroken' was pretty cool

My first skip was Can, towards the end of the opening 20 minute jam. Not horrible by any means, but just not something I need.

I made it all the way through GY!BE, which must be a lifetime first, but my constant thought was "basically this = the Swans it's still OK to like". It didn't give me anything that Swans used to give me more of.

Extremely more into Rochelle Jordan's take on garagey R&B than EDC's rather, um, polite one

I'll add that if 0PN truly has ushered in the era of bright uncanny-valley harpsichord production, I want zero to do with it (see also Koreless)

Maybe the expensive sterility is the point but no

https://i.imgur.com/gCH80YF.jpg
15. Mdou Moctar - Afrique Victime
359 points / 14 votes
Video from the album: “Chismiten”
Rolling Global Outernational Non-West Non-English (Some Exceptions) 2021 Thread (Often African bands)

love that robert beatty album art

Don't mind if I Mdou

any other solos to rival the AV final onslaught?

gonna assume 'several' and stick this on presently

https://i.imgur.com/bubv1Pk.jpg
14. Nala Sinephro - Space 1.8
363 points / 12 votes / 1 #1 vote
Song from the album: “Space 1”
Nala Sinephro - beautiful new cosmic/spiritual jazz/fusion/electro/REALLY GOOD debut on Warp

i had no idea this was popular!

Promises is going to top this and it's gonna be ugly

i put this high. Love it

Promises will not beat Magdalena Bay or Low imo, if we're doing predictions

not gonna say the only one of those three i voted for

screen violence top five please

Not even heard of this one - thread title makes it sound promising so will put it on my 'to check out' list.

didn't realize it had its own thread (rather than just part of the Promises thread discussion). Not even sure where I heard of it now. A gorgeous little trip

said 'Judas' out loud when it became clear track 3 of the Moctar would be acoustic-led

this bangs tho

when moctar built his own guitar when he was a child, he should've made it an electric one. what was he thinking?

The Nala Sinephro mixing is particularly astounding. One of the best sounding records on the countdown imo.

https://i.imgur.com/m1wEkAM.jpg
13. Olivia Rodrigo - Sour
369 points / 10 votes / 2 #1 votes
Video from the album: “Brutal”
olivia rodrigo sets a record

all he had to do was find some magnets and wires xps

Liking this means you're down with the kids and True Pop or something

The Nala Sinephro mixing is particularly astounding. One of the best sounding records on the countdown imo.

― ✖✖✖ (Moka), Friday, February 11, 2022 10:27 AM (one minute ago)

otm

Tala Tannam is a very beautiful acoustic track; I retract the 'Judas' which was a joke anyway :p

This is the first of the several albums that had 3 songs place on the track list to show up

a fine debut but kind of obviously a padded out EP, it’s too high here but it was too high on every year-end list

i guess that’s my version of dissing the modern-day jagged little pill which would’ve been no. 13 on ilm’s ‘95 list i assume

https://i.imgur.com/oS2AJXT.jpg
12. Dawn Richard - Second Line
381 points / 15 votes
Video from the album: “Morning/Streetlights”
The purpose built next generation interstellar Dawn Richard thread

B-tier Dawn is still good, albeit this is very B-tier for her

her discog is so multifaceted at this point. love this record

ok so those are two out of the three albums i listened to and loved the most last year, pretty sure the other one isn't placing

I'm surprised that the Sinephro record is that high too, really good record though and it does sound incredible. For fans of it I'd also recommend that John Carroll Kirby record 'Septet' from last year, it's also incredibly produced.

somehow Moctar is my best discovery of both polls

I basically agree with both Brad and imago about this album, which I voted for but was a little less viscerally thrilled by compared to last few

sinephro has been on my list for months, i'll put it on this afternoon

I hate to say it, but seeing the Dawn cover zoomed in like that, it's kind of wack

how is it possible Dawn is getting more interesting with each album

Will imago dislike this one barely made it to the top 10?

https://i.imgur.com/DIGKjri.jpg
11. L'Rain - Fatigue
423 points / 13 votes / 1 #1 vote
Video from the album: “Find It”
Does anything sound like L'Rain?

I like Dawn Richard but calling the album 'Second Line' and including those little audio clips talking about New Orleans and second line culture, but the music having zero reference to it, it drives me a little crazy. I mean it's part of her culture and she's not beholden to it, but still.

yeah this is good - brilliant at points - and L'Rain deserves plenty of attention (and your attendance at any gig she performs near you, seriously), but this is a classic case of a merely-good record getting the props that its masterpiece predecessor failed to get at the time

lol @ 11 in both polls tho, c'mon

listened to Second Line way more than.... anything else that i didn't find room for on my ballot. Feels bad!

only really vibed with track 1 on the L'Rain but I'll go back