The 25 Best Albums of 2021
This pandemic still isn’t over, and neither are the delayed or renewed projects of so many from it. Some artists took to the Folklore-an route of producing natural-sounding tracks with introspective lyrics. Some artists shouted out their strength with confident celebrations. I appreciate the unique ways these albums capture the changes around them through their words and music. People change, our environment changes, our minds change. In these 25 albums, these artists show their mastery at helping us make sense of the stops and flows of our lives. These are my favorite albums of 2021.
25.
Waysides | Bedouine
Indie folk / Singer-songwriter
Bedouine has the voice you imagine singing to you while you sit by a fire on a cold night. It’s a blanket whose songs offer comfort, even when they touch on themes of loneliness and isolation. Bedouine says these songs as some that were written early in her career, but they demonstrate an impressive songwriting skill with the right amount of production to let the lyrics shine.
Favorite song: “It Wasn’t Me”
24.
Fun House | Hand Habits
Indie folk / Singer-songwriter
An indie-folk album that is fluid between sorrow and joy with the magic touch of Hand Habits. I first discovered Hand Habits through a 2020 collaboration with Jess Williamson called “Pictures of Flowers”. I was amazed by both artists and am happy to report that their individual efforts shine just as well.
Favorite song: “Graves”
23.
Sling | Clairo
Indie pop / Baroque pop
This album took a while to grow on me, but it bloomed beautifully when it did. Moving away from the soft, bubbly bedroom pop that everyone knows her for, Clairo crafted a singer-songwriter work that is comforting with every listen. Maybe everyone realized doing a Folklore would be a cool idea, but not everyone got it right (ahem, Ella). Clairo uses her gentle voice and soft production to deliver a strong collection of songs that feel like a blanket. Also, no more Jack Antonoff. Society has progressed beyond the need for Jack Antonoff.
Favorite song: “Amoeba”
22.
CALL ME IF YOU GET LOST | Tyler, The Creator
Hip Hop
Tyler won a Grammy for Rap Album of the Year in 2020 after the release of Igor, an album he explicitly called out the Recording Academy for since it was not a rap album. Fuck it, I guess. Tyler leaned into it and dropped a confident piece that follows up Igor with so many different melodies and rhythms in his rap and singing in the way only Tyler can do.
Favorite song: “SWEET”
21.
Valentine | Snail Mail
Indie rock
Another album that took a while to grow on me. Snail Mail got plenty of accolades as soon as this came out and I couldn’t find myself agreeing. But the guitars became grittier and her voice more piercing as I listened over and over.
Favorite songs: “Valentine”, “mia”
20.
An Evening with Silk Sonic | Silk Sonic
Contemporary R&B / Soul
Bruno Mars and Anderson .Paak are entertainingly corny and wildly successful because of it. Bruno’s voice makes anyone receiving Social Security checks feel young again. Anderson turns any record he touches into gold. In this highly anticipated album, the duo use their individual strengths to fill in the other’s weaknesses, if any. The hype for this piece grew as the pair pushed their release date after “Leave The Door Open” was dropped. Hop on this ride for yourself and see that it was all worth it.
Favorite song: “Dusk”
19.
Tonight Turns to Nothing | Olivia Kaplan
Indie rock
This is the only Olivia to make a Top 25 album this year. Thanks to a recommendation from Madeline Kenney, Olivia Kaplan’s music appeared on my playlists often. I was excited for this release and Kaplan does not disappoint. Her vocals are dreamy and float over some really great production. They make for some great music to sit down and write to. This is breaking the fourth wall.
Favorite song: “Wrong”
18.
Santa Cumbia | Santa Fe Klan
Cumbia / Regional
22-year-old Ángel Quezada has shot through as a hip hop artist from Guanajuato with incredible accordion skills. So much that the band of the late Celso Pina, arguably the most legendary cumbia artist, featured Santa Fe Klan in collaborative work. This album is a testament to how Quezada brings modern energy to a genre that has bewitched people to dance for decades. Quezada’s album isn’t shy to reveal the difficult upbringing that many experience in urban Mexico. With all the angst and struggle, the wailing accordion becomes a healing song that slows under the sun and speeds beneath the moon of his songs. While cumbia has never died, Quezada reawakens it masterfully.
Favorite songs: “Soledad”, “Luna y Mar”
17.
Gardenia | Monogem
Electro-pop / Latin alternative
Mongem is a Mexican-American artist we should be paying attention to. This album is jazzy and soulful. It has you nodding your head and moving your hips just enough. The lyrics behind these songs are also powerful. I don’t remember how I found her, but my Latin alternative playlists will never be complete without at least one song from this record.
Favorite song: “Paraíso”
16.
Home Video | Lucy Dacus
Indie rock
Not much more can be said about Lucy Dacus. She is a masterful songwriter and her music has been a staple in cathartic sad girl playlists for years. With a beautifully humming voice, Dacus recounts what it’s like to come back home after being away for so long. Seeing the places and things that reawaken memories is something we can all relate to. Dacus puts all the right words and chords together for us.
Favorite song: “Hot & Heavy”
15.
Untourable Album | Men I Trust
Dream pop
As the title suggests, this album wasn’t meant to go on tour. The Quebec-based group spent their COVID isolation crafting from their studio. Those familiar with Men I Trust find that their style only grows stronger in these tracks. Their dreamy pop sound is still strong enough to move your body even if you’re just sitting down or lying in bed. “Tree Among Shrubs” is a particularly good one for a late-night drive.
Favorite songs: “Tree Among Shrubs”, “Sugar”
14.
WINK | CHAI
Electro-pop / Indie pop
This Japanese quartet is known for energetic pop. I didn’t discover them until this album, but I enjoyed how I could sense this energy in a slowed down, mellowed out way. At a lot of moments, CHAI touch on R&B and jazzy vibes that kept a lot of their songs stuck in my head in spring. There is so much nuance in this album, yet it feels so easy to let it play out.
Favorite song: “Donuts Mind If I Do”
13.
Romantic Images | Molly Burch
Indie pop
Such soft songs with such groovy beats. The title tells no lies—the lyrics lean into the romantic dreams and pictures that the production holds in its arms. These songs are incredibly catchy. The first song I saved in 2021 was “Emotion” ft. Wild Nothing when it dropped on January 1. The album didn’t come out until July, but it feels like a perfect end of summer/start of autumn let yourself fall in love album. My mother loves it.
Favorite song: “Heart of Gold”
12.
Un Canto por México, Vol. II | Natalia Lafourcade
Folclore mexicano / Bolero
At this point, Natalia Lafourcade is the Mexican Minister of Culture. She is the most iconic Mexican songwriter of this generation and turns everything she touches into the gold sun of a Veracruz sunrise. In this follow-up to the project she started last year, Lafourcade rearranges standards and some of her own works with the folkloric instrumentation that preserves these as classics of our culture. Make yourself a café de olla, sit down with some tamales, and let yourself fall into the spell of these songs.
Favorite song: “Alma Mía / Tú Me Acostumbraste / Soledad y El Mar”
11.
Cool Dry Place | Katy Kirby
Indie rock / Singer-songwriter
Katy Kirby was the first act I saw perform live after the pandemic’s pause on live music. Kirby’s songs are like a grungy folk rock that turn soft with a quick turn of a knob. There’s a lot of range to this album, a lot of raw emotion, and a lot of great guitar arrangements too. “Juniper” is a lot of fun to listen to; it’s the track that will get stuck in your head. But for a real treat, listen to “Cool Dry Place” in a quiet space. Let that track build and crash the way Kirby created it.
Favorite songs: “Cool Dry Place”, “Juniper”
10.
Good Woman | The Staves
Indie folk / Indie pop
This is one of the first albums I heard this year, and it has such comforting tracks that still hold. Picture this: You’re driving on the interstate on your way back home from a great day trip. It’s a clear, cold late winter evening and the sun and sky are shining orange and pink hues above you. In the dying moments of the day, there is a rush of excitement and comfort from how special that experience feels. That’s what this album makes me feel.
Favorite songs: “Best Friend”, “Paralysed”
9.
Deja | Bomba Estéreo
Tropical / Electronic / Latin alternative
Fantastic summer album from an experienced group that knows how to make you feel the heat of their songs in every beat. These beats lean into tribal beats, tropical instrumentation, all on top of an electronic bed that energizes the album appropriately. Let the windows down on a sweltering day and blast this out your speakers.
Favorite song: “Agua”
8.
I Know I’m Funny haha | Faye Webster
Indie pop / Alt. folk
Pedal steel! A staple of Faye Webster’s entire discography is back in a subtle way as Webster goes into a softer pop sound for this album. One of our older pieces covers Webster’s previous album Atlanta Millionaire’s Club. This time, Webster sounds more comfortable with herself, even in the rugged honesty of longing things and people that aren’t there. While there is still a defeat in some of these sounds, Webster’s music reminds us that we’ll find peace at the end.
Favorite song: “Better Distractions”
7.
SEIS | Mon Laferte
Regional mexicano
What a wonderful exposé of Mon Laferte’s songwriting capabilities. Laferte is already well known for her Latin alternative and pop music with a strong voice that can rattle any audience. Her voice is made for mariachi and regional Mexican. She proves so in SEIS with the kind of music your grandparents would appreciate.
Favorite song: “Se Me Va A Quemar El Corazón”
6.
Far In | Helado Negro
Alt. R&B / Ambient pop
It’s a long album, but it’s so easy to let it run its course. There are so many distinct tracks that all fall into a dreamy vibe for the listener to lose themselves in. The production of record is spectacular. Personally, this album fills in the soundtrack of the overcast autumn and winter days here in the Midwest. Even when the skies remain grey, Helado Negro plugs in the energy that buzzes behind the cold air and bleak skies.
Favorite songs: “There Must Be a Song Like You”, “Gemini & Leo”
5.
Ignorance | The Weather Station
Indie pop / Art pop
Most days it feels like there’s no way this timeline we’re living in is real. There’s a mist around everything that makes it difficult to uncover what we should be thinking or feeling. Over the course of ten tracks, The Weather Station make this reflection with the brilliant songwriting of Tamara Lindeman. The beats and sounds shake away the fog. Lindeman’s voice is the light that pierces through. Among indie records, this one stood out among every year-end poll and ranking as well as the one at the top of this list.
Favorite song: “Parking Lot”
4.
CINEMA | The Marías
Indie pop / Synth pop / Alt. R&B
The debut album of The Marías is such a special work. What makes them so wonderful is how every detail beneath Maria’s voice is so finely tuned to make you feel like you’re listening to the band live in a high-end basement club with elegant décor. This album is top 5 for the transition between tracks 1 and 2. Not that the Gr*mmy’s mean anything, but this album is nominated for Best Engineered Album. So grab a good pair of headphones and listen for yourself in a dimly lit room. Give yourself room to dance and groove, too.
Favorite song: “Un Millón”
3.
El Madrileño | C. Tangana
Latin alternative / Nuevo flamenco
C. Tangana’s previous discography is heavy on Spanish rap. After working with Rosalía on El Mal Querer, C. Tangana takes the new flamenco movement and runs away with it. He collaborates with established artists across several Latin American genres—bolero, corrido, bossa nova, and flamenco—without losing any of his personal genius. His Tiny Desk concert shouldn’t be missed either. With producer Alizz, C. Tangana delivered a truly no-skips album that will become a standard for modern Hispanic music that holds true to its roots. The Spaniards are really up to something.
Favorite songs: “Ingobernable”, “Tú Me Dejaste de Querer”, “Comerte Entera”
2.
An Overview on Phenomenal Nature | Cassandra Jenkins
Indie folk
This is an absolute work of art. Jenkins might have my favorite singing voice I discovered this year. It’s hauntingly comforting and finds a way to connect to your mind and soul. The way she sings “go to the water, it cures everything” in “New Bikini” sticks with me when I’m missing home or feel isolated on a cold, overcast Ohio day. But the real treat is “Hard Drive”. Part spoken, part sung, it’s an immersive experience into Jenkins’ soul with a cathartic but quiet release. Find a quiet room, put on good headphones, lay down and let “Hard Drive” carry you away.
Favorite songs: “Hard Drive”, “New Bikini”
1.
Jubilee | Japanese Breakfast
Indie pop
2021 belongs to Michelle Zauner. Released a best-selling memoir that is among the top books of 2021? Check. Composed and recorded an entire score for a video game? Check. With her band’s best work, Zauner unleashes a confident parade of feelings that shake you to your core. If you were lucky to see her in concert, you know how triumphant Zauner was when she performed “Paprika”. In the same way, the rest of the album is a celebration of strength in all the emotions we experience. There are no skips in this album; it’s a pure, smooth ride through highs and lows of Zauner’s life that are just as fulfilling every single listen. It’s a celebration of life, of feeling, of growing. It’s the album of the year.
Favorite songs: “Paprika”, “Slide Tackle”, “Posing for Cars”