Best Albums of 2021

It's that time again. Here we go:

30. Squid 

Bright Green Field 

Key Tracks:  "G.S.K.", "Paddling", "2010"

29. Tirzah 

Colourgrade 

Key Tracks:  "Hive Mind", "Recipe", "Sink In"

28. Snail Mail 

Valentine 

Key Tracks:  "Light Blue", "Automate", "Mia"

27. LUMP 

Animal 

Key Tracks:  "Gamma Ray", "Animal", "Climb Every Wall"

26. Mogwai 

As the Love Continues 

Key Tracks:  "Here We, Here We Go Forever", "Ritchie Sacramento"

25. Dry Cleaning 

New Long Leg 

Key Tracks:  "Unsmart Lady", "Leafy", "Her Hippo"

24. Damon Albarn 

The Nearer the Fountain, the More Pure the Stream Flows 

Key Tracks:  "Darkness To Light", "The Tower of Montevideo", "Polaris"

23. Lightning Bug 

A Color of the Sky 

Key Tracks:  "The Return", "The Right Thing Is Hard To Do", "I Lie Awake"

22. Dave 

We're All Alone In This Together 

Key Tracks:  "We're All Alone", "Three Rivers", "Both Sides Of A Smile"

21. Wolf Alice 

Blue Weekend 

Key Tracks:  "Lipstick on the Glass", "Safe From Heartbreak", "How Can I Make It OK?"

20. Grouper 

Shade 

Key Tracks:  "Pale Interior", "The way her hair falls", "Kelso (Blue Sky)"

19. SPIRIT OF THE BEEHIVE 

ENTERTAINMENT, DEATH 

Key Tracks:  "THERE'S NOTHING YOU CAN'T DO", "THE SERVER IS IMMERSED", "WAKE UP (IN ROTATION)"

18. Cassandra Jenkins 

An Overview on Phenomenal Nature 

Key Tracks:  "Michelangelo", "New Bikini", "Hard Drive"

17. St. Vincent 

Daddy's Home 

Key Tracks:  "Somebody Like Me", "…At The Holiday Party", "Candy Darling"

16. Sufjan Stevens and Angelo De Augustine 

A Beginner's Mind 

Key Tracks:  "Lady Macbeth In Chains", "(This Is) The Thing", "Cimmerian Shade"

15. Billie Eilish 

Happier Than Ever 

Key Tracks:  "Getting Older", "Halley's Comet", "Male Fantasy"

14. Iceage 

Seek Shelter 

Key Tracks:  "Love Kills Slowly", "Drink Rain", "Gold City"

13. Nick Cave and Warren Ellis 

Carnage 

Key Tracks:  "Carnage", "Albuqueque", "Balcony Man"

12. Black Country, New Road 

For the First Time 

Key Tracks:  "Athens, France", "Track X", "Opus"

11. Tyler, The Creator 

CALL ME IF YOU GET LOST 

Key Tracks:  "WUSYANAME", "RUNITUP", "SWEET / I THOUGHT YOU WANTED TO DANCE"

10. Kanye West 

Donda 

This is probably the most divisive album on the list. True, it's very bloated and in desperate need of an editor, but the highlights are some of the best songs released this year.

Key Tracks:  "Moon", "Come To Life", "No Child Left Behind"

9. Little Simz 

Sometimes I Might Be An Introvert 

Key Tracks:  "Introvert", "Woman", "Two Worlds Apart"

8. Mdou Moctar 

Afrique Victime 

Key Tracks:  "Tala Tannam", "Asdikte Akal", "Afrique Victume"

7. Turnstile 

GLOW ON 

Key Tracks:  "UNDERWATER BOI", "ENDLESS", "DANCE-OFF"

6. Casper Clausen 

Better Way 

Key Tracks:  "Feel It Coming", "Falling Apart Like You", "Little Words"

5. The War on Drugs 

I Don't Live Here Anymore 

Key Tracks:  "Living Proof", "Harmonia's Dream", "I Don't Live Here Anymore"

4. Floating Points and Pharoah Sanders 

Promises 

Key Tracks:  "Movement 6", "Movement 7"

3. The Weather Station 

Ignorance 

Key Tracks:  "Loss", "Separated", "Trust"

2. Low 

Hey What 

Key Tracks:  "All Night", "Disappearing"

1. Japanese Breakfast 

Jubilee 

Key Tracks:  "Paprika", "Be Sweet", "Kokomo, IN"