Time for some softer music. Is it still good if it’s not constant chaos? Yeah, yeah things are pretty damn good, actually!
Number Five: Zouz – Vertiges VIDEO Let me be chauvinistic a little, and start with a homegrown band. Zouz border on post-punk, noise rock, and math rock, but there’s a middle line in that whole mess that intersects with indie rock sensibilities. Vertiges is a fun, varied, and addictive album that you’re sure to put on repeat multiple times!
Number Four: Ventifacts – Ventifacts VIDEO Microtonal indie rock still counts, right? Damn right it does! Ventifacts is the project of Ben Spees and Damon Waitkus, two legends of the contemporary prog rock scene, and on this album, they use various instruments in microtonal tunings in creative ways to subvert expectations we have developed over our lives listening to normitonal music. The result is, as you might imagine, quite enthralling! One of the best albums of the year!
Number Three: Requin – Shark Shark is the first and last album of Australian band Requin, and that’s really a shame! These songs walk the line between math rock and emo, and they’re all brilliant! The soft and gentle vocals, the lush harmonies, everything just clicks. One of the best albums of the year!
Number Two: The Body & Big, Brave – Leaving None but Small Birds VIDEO This is very good. This is incredibly good (and yet better still is to come)! The Body—noise/sludge—collaborating with Big, Brave—post-rock/doom—gives us this folksy indie rock album? Hell yeah! Leaving None but Small Birds is a melancholic, slow, touching, down-to-earth album that’s hypnotic, moving, and dangerously addictive!
Number One: Adjy – The Idyll Opus VIDEO Alright, hear me out. The Idyll Opus is an indie folk-rock concept album at times reminiscent of the Dear Hunter and that ends with a seventeen-minute epic, and it’s incredible. There’s just something with this album that reaches straight to my heart: the melodies, the lyrics, the driving folk-rock music, everything just blends together so well it’s uncanny. The indie rock category was insanely competitive this year, I’ve had so many doubts and tough choices to make, but this album was always at the top. It’s just that good!
Notable Releases Hover over foreign scripts for pronunciation and romanization.
Friday, 22 January Palberta – Palberta 5000 37:27 experimental rock New York, New York Wharf Cat
Tracklist (click to display) 1. No Way [02:07]
2. Big Bad Want [03:44]
3. Never to Go [01:19]
4. The Cow [01:41]
5. Fragile Place [04:37]
6. In Again [01:36]
7. Hey ! [01:32]
8. Red Antz [01:56]
9. Summer Sun [01:29]
10. Eggs n’ Bac’ [01:36]
11. Corner Store [02:31]
12. I’m Z’done [00:18]
13. Something in the Way [02:08]
14. The Way That You Do [02:27]
15. All Over My Face [04:57]
16. Before I Got Here [03:29]
Wednesday, 17 February Indigo La End – 夜行秘密 56:21 J-rock Japan WM Japan
Tracklist (click to display)
1. yakou [0:03:51]
2. Yokaze to Hayabusa [0:03:59]
3. hananiblue [0:04:32]
4. Tulip [0:04:35]
5. hidarikoi [0:03:28]
6. tamayura [0:04:03]
7. Furarete Mitandayo [0:04:32]
8. Yoasari [0:03:16]
9. fushiginamanma [0:04:21]
10. okute [0:05:08]
11. sazanamisama [0:03:19]
12. katamatteyorokonde [0:03:09]
13. yakouchuu [0:04:31]
14. yorunokoiha [0:03:51]
Tuesday, 20 April Ursine – Cartoons 41:02 indie rock Chicago, Illinois Independent
Tracklist (click to display) 1. Grizzlar [00:47]
2. Currents [04:57]
3. Moot Point [04:36]
4. Grimace [02:03]
5. Fingerwave [03:18]
6. Beelzebezos [03:38]
7. Sleepwalker [04:50]
8. Bearflaw [02:26]
9. Tiger Energy [02:54]
10. Cabin Fever [05:24]
11. Zoltar Speaks! [02:56]
12. Velour [03:13]
Tuesday, 18 May Requin – Shark 34:31 art pop, indie rock Brisbane, Australia 4000
Tracklist (click to display)
1. Rules That Won’t Be Broken [0:04:45]
2. Fall Right Into [0:03:53]
3. I Don’t Want To Do This [0:03:22]
4. Man At A Train Station [0:02:57]
5. Let Me Sleep [0:04:50]
6. Time To Go [0:04:43]
7. Sober [0:03:39]
8. Silent Now [0:06:44]
Friday, 21 Trade Wind – The Day We Got What We Deserved 27:28 alternative rock International Other People
Tracklist (click to display) 1. Burning The Iron Age [03:26]
2. DIE! DIE! DIE! [03:10]
3. Nine Tails [03:12]
4. Bishop [02:40]
5. Blue Notes [02:01]
6. Fade On You [02:15]
7. Don’t Rush [02:09]
8. Untitled III [02:16]
9. Weather Eyes [02:52]
10. Walk Me In // Plant Me In Your Garden [03:27]
Friday, 28 May Brendan Byrnes – 2227 49:57 experimental rock Los Angeles, California Independent
Tracklist (click to display) 1. Murmurations [05:07]
2. Roamers [04:30]
3. Chromawaves [04:19]
4. Pangaean Islands [04:31]
5. Sensi Cathedrals [04:03]
6. Glass Islands [04:12]
7. Golden State Stare [04:54]
8. VC.. [04:00]
9. Crystal Cove, Pt. 1 [05:52]
10. Carpenteria, Pt. 2 [08:29]
Friday, 4 June Japanese Breakfast – Jubilee 36:34 alternative rock Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Dead Oceans
Tracklist (click to display) 1. Paprika [03:40]
2. Be Sweet [03:15]
3. Kokomo, IN [03:38]
4. Slide Tackle [03:39]
5. Posing In Bondage [04:04]
6. Sit [03:07]
7. Savage Good Boy [02:26]
8. In Hell [02:38]
9. Tactics [03:53]
10. Posing For Cars [06:38]
Wednesday, 30 June Adjy – The Idyll Opus 97:44 progressive rock Chattanooga, Tennessee Triple Crown
Tracklist (click to display) 1. In Media Res (Between Longing and Mystery) [06:27]
2. A Boy Called June, Pt. 1 [04:56]
3. A Boy Called June, Pt. 2 [04:50]
4. Where June Meets July: I. Overture [05:01]
5. Where June Meets July: II. On A Road Trip That Summer’s Day [04:28]
6. Where June Meets July: III. at a Dance Where the Stars Cross [05:40]
7. Where June Meets July: IV. O Tonight [05:09]
8. Where June Meets July: V. Maps (To The Tune Of “The Great Midwestern Summer Jig”) [05:01]
9. Where June Meets July: VI. The Cicada’s Sing, Pt. I [05:45]
10. Where June Meets July: VII. The Cicada’s Song Pt. II [06:23]
11. Where June Meets July: VIII. Secretus Liber (Beneath the Fireworks That Fell in Mystique Participation) [09:18]
12. Where June Meets July: IX. In Space Between Pages… [05:06]
13. The Farmland and the Forest’s Edge [05:16]
14. Lake Adeyoha [07:08]
15. Eve Beneath the Maple Tree [17:16]
Horsey – Debonair 34:12 noise rock London, UK Untitled
Tracklist (click to display) 1. Sippy Cup [01:50]
2. Arms and Legs [02:24]
3. Underground [02:15]
4. Everyone’s Tongue [03:45]
5. Wharf (i) [01:05]
6. Wharf (ii) [04:25]
7. Lagoon [03:32]
8. 1070 [03:50]
9. Clown [03:27]
10. Leaving Song [03:21]
11. Seahorse (feat. King Krule) [04:18]
Friday, 13 August The Killers – Pressure Machine 51:10 alternative rock Las Vegas, Nevada Island
Tracklist (click to display)
1. West Hills [0:05:42]
2. Quiet Town [0:04:45]
3. Terrible Thing [0:03:52]
4. Cody [0:03:50]
5. Sleepwalker [0:04:27]
6. Runaway Horses [0:03:54]
7. In The Car Outside [0:05:28]
8. In Another Life [0:03:45]
9. Desperate Things [0:05:16]
10. Pressure Machine [0:05:09]
11. The Getting By [0:05:09]
Friday, 20 August Sheen Marina – Sheen Marina 35:50 experimental surf rock Brooklyn, New York Independent
Tracklist (click to display) 1. Structures [04:10]
2. Dollars [02:28]
3. We Were Saying [03:10]
4. Modicum [03:30]
5. Stars as Lines [03:05]
6. RFMT [03:33]
7. Swamp King [02:24]
8. Cub Scouts [03:20]
9. Somewhereland [04:14]
10. After Half [02:26]
11. Mid Noughts [03:29]
Friday, 10 September Molly Drag – Resemble Another 48:05 slowcore Montréal, Québec Independent
Tracklist (click to display) 1. Missing Time [04:11]
2. Flying Object [03:22]
3. Understanding [03:50]
4. Steps [03:36]
5. Salamander [02:59]
6. Communion [03:59]
7. Father [03:51]
8. Redeemer [04:08]
9. Found Footage [03:59]
10. Leaving Song [06:02]
11. Passenger [04:09]
12. Vultures [03:59]
Wednesday, 22 Ventifacts – Ventifacts 51:25 experimental rock Brattleboro, Vermont Independent
Read our review.
Tracklist (click to display) 1. Azimuth of Sunrise [04:02]
2. Pacific [04:47]
3. Bonneville [06:01]
4. Rest [04:49]
5. Virga [02:13]
6. The Ballad of Hearst & Herriman [05:12]
7. Hidden Well [06:14]
8. Engine [01:28]
9. Groaning Under the Evidence [04:49]
10. It’s Such A Long Time Ago Now [04:18]
11. Dog Day Music [07:32]
Friday, 24 September Sufjan Stevens & Angelo De Augustine – A Beginner’s Mind 45:27 folk New York, New York Asthmatic Kitty
Tracklist (click to display) 1. Reach Out [03:43]
2. Lady Macbeth In Chains [03:42]
3. Back To Oz [04:12]
4. The Pillar Of Souls [03:10]
5. You Give Death A Bad Name [04:07]
6. Beginner’s Mind [02:15]
7. Olympus [03:07]
8. Murder And Crime [03:30]
9. (This Is) The Thing [02:48]
10. It’s Your Own Body And Mind [02:27]
11. Lost In The World [03:10]
12. Fictional California [02:50]
13. Cimmerian Shade [04:19]
14. Lacrimae [02:07]
Friday, 1 October Bon Enfant – Diorama 42:01 psychedelic rock Montréal, Québec Duprince
Tracklist (click to display) 1. Astronaute amateur [03:38]
2. Cinema [03:33]
3. Ciel bleu [04:13]
4. Porcelaine [03:22]
5. Pâte à biscuit [03:46]
6. Triangle [02:56]
7. L’amour à sens unique [05:33]
8. Chagrin d’amour [03:32]
9. Diorama [04:48]
10. Grandiose [03:20]
11. Vent doux [03:20]
The Body & Big, Brave – Leaving None but Small Birds 38:25 indie rock Portland, Oregon Thrill Jockey
Tracklist (click to display) 1. Blackest Crow [07:47]
2. Oh Sinner [04:34]
3. Hard Times [07:16]
4. Once I Had a Sweetheart [05:28]
5. Black is the Colour [04:31]
6. Polly Gosford [03:58]
7. Babes in the Woods [04:51]
Tuesday, 12 Gypsum – Gypsum 43:10 indie rock, math rock Los Angeles, California Sonic Ritual
Tracklist (click to display) 1. Follow Me [04:26]
2. Lungs [03:43]
3. Gull Lake [04:46]
4. Give It [02:40]
5. Snow White [05:57]
6. Grafting [03:35]
7. Kaleidoscope [03:26]
8. Satisfied [05:06]
9. Margaret [03:21]
10. Disappear [06:10]
Friday, 15 October Zouz – Vertiges 37:19 indie rock Montréal, Québec Lazy at Work
Tracklist (click to display) 1. Vertiges [06:24]
2. Auréole [03:06]
3. Monotone [03:41]
4. J’ai demandé à personne [03:48]
5. Toi qui sais [03:23]
6. Seuls [04:15]
7. Perdre du terrain [03:55]
8. Nager (ft. N NAO) [03:13]
9. Course à rebours [02:41]
10. La mort des mots [02:53]
Friday, 3 December Corey Mastrangelo – Long Distance Station to Station 53:39 indie rock New Jersey Independent
Tracklist (click to display) 1. 50 [04:27]
2. Chord [04:31]
3. Blue [05:33]
4. Sink [04:08]
5. GB [06:39]
6. Left Before [05:14]
7. Close [04:36]
8. Music for Air [03:55]
9. 808 [04:49]
10. NC [04:49]
11. Standby [04:58]
Friday, 10 ᐲᑐᕆᔅ ᑎᐊ – Shifting 32:51 indie folk Quaqtaq, Québec Independent
Tracklist (click to display) 1. FREE [02:47]
2. UQAUTINNGA [02:59]
3. AANNGIQ [02:05]
4. ILINNUT – a prayer [04:12]
5. THE STORM [02:50]
6. SUNAUVVA [03:18]
7. CANNIBAL [02:47]
8. HISTORY [03:31]
9. MOTHER (version francaise) [04:09]
10. CHRISTMAS [04:13]
Bill Callahan & Bonnie “Prince” Billy – Blind Date Party 90:01 indie rock Chicago, Illinois Drag City
Tracklist (click to display) 1. Blackness Of the Night (feat. AZITA) [03:45]
2. OD’d in Denver (feat. Matt Sweeney) [03:30]
3. I’ve Made Up My Mind (feat. Alasdair Roberts) [04:27]
4. Red-Tailed Hawk (feat. Matt Kinsey) [02:40]
5. Wish You Were Gay (feat. Sean O’Hagan) [03:54]
6. Our Anniversary (feat. Dead Rider) [05:19]
7. Rooftop Garden (feat. George Xylouris) [06:20]
8. Deacon Blues (feat. Bill MacKay) [07:17]
9. I Love You (feat. David Pajo) [06:41]
10. Sea Song (feat. Mick Turner) [07:21]
11. I’ve Been The One (feat. Meg Baird) [03:55]
12. Miracles (feat. Ty Segall) [04:17]
13. I Want To Go To The Beach (feat. Cooper Crain) [05:34]
14. Night Rider’s Lament (feat. Cory Hanson) [04:59]
15. Arise, Therefore (feat. Six Organs of Admittance) [03:24]
16. Night of Santiago (feat. David Grubbs) [04:16]
17. The Wild Kindness (feat. Cassie Berman) [03:32]
18. Lost in Love (feat. Emmett Kelly) [04:05]
19. She is My Everything (feat. Sir Richard Bishop) [04:46]
Friday, 17 December Big Fat Meanies – Bad Hand 26:33 progressive ska Lancaster, Pennsylvania Independent
Tracklist (click to display) 1. Nuclear Tuxedo [04:31]
2. Yellowmoose [03:39]
3. Tranquil Tension [04:21]
4. Eden [04:52]
5. Gatekeeper [03:35]
6. Bad Hand [05:35]
Best of 2021 01/01 – Best of Afrobeat 01/02 – Best of Atmospheric Black Metal 01/03 – Best of Avant-Garde Black Metal 01/04 – Best of Brutal Death Metal 01/05 – Best of Classical 01/06 – Best of Death Metal 01/07 – Best of Deathcore 01/08 – Best of Doom Metal 01/09 – Best of Folk 01/10 – Best of Grindcore 01/11 – Best of Hardcore 01/12 – Best Improvisation 01/13 – Best of Indie Rock