My Top 94 Songs Of 2021
Previously: 2020, 2019, 2018, 2017, 2016, 2015, 2014, 2013, 2012, 2011
2021, will you think about me?
Vampire Weekend sang this line in 2019, and it might as well’ve been 57 years ago. What a god damn time. List is up only a touch from last year’s 88 count, so that’s nice.
As always, criteria and info:
This is a list of what I personally like, not ones I’m saying are the “best” from the year; more subjective than objective
No artist is featured more than once
If it comes down to choosing between two songs, I try to give more weight to a single or featured track
Each song on the list is linked in the title if you wanna check them out for yourself; there is also a Spotify playlist at the bottom that includes the majority of the songs
Our intro video will be a Vin Diesel song I am cursing the fast and/or furious heavens for coming out in 2020 and not 2021.
If happy Vin isn’t your jam, here a link to a more somber Vin. Now everyone gets to be happy. Let’s go.
94) Descendents - “Baby Doncha Know”
This song probably doesn’t need to exist. But, if something doesn’t need to exist and is still less than a minute long, that’s quite alright.
93) Kings Of Leon - “The Bandit”
It’s fine; they know what they’re doing, and the instrumentals are tight. Chorus seems ripe to explode, but the lyrics are kinda boring.
92) Silk Sonic - “Leave The Door Open”
This song did big numbers, but I was never that excited to listen to it whenever it came up on a playlist. It’s smooth though; old school feel, through and through. Dudes are so smiley and nod-y in this video -- it’s somewhat unsettling.
91) GaTa - “Check Up”
Mostly a reason to mention Dave as my favorite show on television. GaTa -- who plays a character on the show named, well, GaTa -- is one of the big reasons why; a complex dude you break your back rooting for. He raps this on top of his car for some kids, and he might as well be in a sold out arena. You’re just as happy as he and the kids are in that moment.
Bonus points for him making fun of a Deadhead to start the actual music video.
90) BLÜ EYES - “supposed to”
I want this in my grocery stores, and I want this in in my grocery stores now.
89) The Hold Steady - “Family Farm”
'Cause they're never gonna love you that one specific way that you want 'em all to love you
This is the third straight THS record where the year ended, and I thought “Really should’ve listened to this more”, and, honestly, this one more even more than the previous two. They continue to be our teachers.
88) Get Well Cards - “Lights Out”
Get Well Cards put up their entire discography on streaming services in 2021, and with that collection came this new song. Big chorus like we’ve come to expect, and super fun guitar leads throughout (particularly in the pre-chorus).
87) The Kid LAROI f/ Justin Bieber - “Stay”
A lot going on here, so let’s do bullet points:
- No idea who The Kid LAROI is
- This song starts with a god damn Beats ad; it’s literally the first shot of the video
- 427 million views on YouTube!
- Want to dislike this, but up-tempo pop that doesn’t even crack the 3:00 mark is a rare thing, so sign me up
- Would love to hear this track with The Weeknd’s vocals
86) Nick Jonas - “2Drunk”
Nick Jonas gettin’ his R&B on. Similar lyrical content to Mike Posner’s, “Bow Chicka Wow Wow”; a little more in control, though.
85) Clairo - “Amoeba”
A solid song with a cool chorus that really adds focus.
84) Cristobal Tapia De Veer - “Aloha!” (White Lotus Theme)
The White Lotus was a gorgeous, somewhat disappointing, and very stressful TV show -- but this theme knocks it out of the park; catchy, weaving, haunting, and unlike anything you’ve ever heard before. By far the most sonically diverse song you will hear on this list.
(Sidebar: went to a buddy’s house at 10 p.m.-ish on a Friday night this past fall, and when I tapped on the door, he didn’t answer. I txt’d as I started to drive away, assuming he was asleep. He responded quickly, imploring me to come back. When I got there, he was insistent he hadn’t dozed off on the couch -- he was watching The White Lotus. He even went outside to simulate my knock while I took his place on the couch and he blasted the theme; he was right, it overpowered everything else.)
83) Ida Maria - “Dirty Money”
Haven’t really kept up with Ida Maria for a decade or so, but she sounds as great as ever.
82) Jensen McRae - “Immune”
This one started out as a :52 second song on Twitter.
It ended as a real song on Spotify, with the original video sitting at 2.4 million views. Not huge on the chorus, but the verses are some wonderful pandemic storytelling through that indie emo lens:
I think the nurse that gave our shots is judging us Can she tell that we just fucked the friendship up? As we leave, I turn to you, ask how it feels to be immune And you know what I mean a bit too much
Haha, so good.
81) Lana Del Rey - “Let Me Love You Like A Woman”
Lana Del Rey’s second to last record, Norman Fucking Rockwell!, was such a classic, it was almost like anything she did after would feel like a letdown by comparison. Her latest album -- Chemtrails Over The Country Club -- never really grabbed me, but this single helped prop it up some; will never not enjoy hearing her sing. This one floats on air.
80) Local H - “Hackensack”
Chicago’s hardest rocking duo pulls back to cover this Fountains Of Wayne deep cut. As someone who also worked in a record store and pined for someone to come back home, it’s a song that always made me gaze and dream; letting you pine for your life’s best case scenario while you’re actually doing something definitively less remarkable. Singer Scott Lucas clearly also felt a connection:
I was always about a degree or two of separation from Adam Schlesinger, so when he died of complications from coronavirus last year, it hit me kind of hard. We were nearly the same age and his passing made me realize that perhaps I wasn’t as safe from the virus as I’d believed. I suddenly felt a little older — and a lot more vulnerable.
But more than that, Adam’s passing was so sad because he seemed like such a nice guy —I have plenty of friends who actually did meet him, and can attest to that — and nobody likes to see a nice guy go. Despite what I wrote earlier about being old, 52 was way too young, so the sadness was compounded by a feeling of senselessness. It didn’t have to happen.
Fountains Of Wayne’s “Hackensack” has always been famous for being the song with the lyric about Christopher Walken in it, but in the wake of Adam’s death it was the lyrics to the chorus that took on a new heartbreaking depth:
But I will wait for you As long as I need to And if you ever get back to Hackensack I’ll be here for you
It no longer felt like a song about a guy who carries a torch for an old high school crush. Suddenly, it was a hymn to the people we’d lost. An almost Poe-like cry to the great beyond (or from the beyond!), a longing for some mutual communion between the living and the dead. Wait for me and I will wait for you. Kinda creepy, sure — but also kinda beautiful. Like all great songwriters, Schlesinger had written his own tribute and epitaph with “Hackensack.” Something that could live on.
And most importantly — something that could soften the memory of how much it fucking sucks to lose someone like Adam.
79) Lorde - “Stoned At The Nail Salon”
This song’s chorus always kept me away from it, but any time I did take the extra step to put it on, the vulnerable verse/first half of the chorus always validated the selection. The album it’s on though? Mehhh.
(This isn’t to say I don’t want to try being stoned at a nail salon.)
78) WORM - “Like That”
Tom Riordan’s latest project is a little more experimental and dance-y than The Brother Whys. The only question is how he got Worm as a childhood nickname.
77) Nicki Minaj f/ Drake & Lil Wayne - “Seeing Green”
Pure nostalgia pick; feels good to have these three back together, even if Nicki fired off one of the dumbest tweets of the year, and I haven’t at *all* reconciled Lil Wayne’s 2016 heel turn.
MVP: Drake. Such a fun, confident verse. He’s in mid-career JAY-Z mode at this point. And you’re either gonna love or hate his “Tryna run a country like Putin one day, but who's rushin'?” attempt.
But yeah, think I might be done with her after this.
76) Drug Church - “Detective Lieutenant”
Their guitar leads continue to sound thee coolest.
75) Spanish Love Songs - “Phantom Limb”
This new SLS didn’t show a ton of growth, but when your brand is “yo, the world SUCKS”, do you really need to grow*? Still, some did derealization better, and that’s a teaser, yo.
(* - reminds me of the class Office Space line where non-famous Michael Bolton refuses to change his name because famous Michael Bolton is “the one who sucks”)
74) Nipsey Hussle f/ JAY-Z - “What It Feels Like”
I arrived on the day Fred Hampton got mur—, hol' up Assassinated, just to clarify further
Hov caught some shit from Fred Hampton Jr. in 2011 when he rapped “I arrived on the day Fred Hampton died” on a Watch The Throne track.
Hampton Jr. took umbrage with Jay-Z's Throne line and railed against the Brooklyn native. "Fred Hampton didn't die," Hampton Jr. offered. "He was assassinated. Saying Fred Hampton died is like the school teacher telling students that Christopher Columbus discovered America."
Fences are now mended, as this appeared on the Judas and the Black Messiah soundtrack.
73) Sydney Sprague - “steve”
This song rips and rules; reeeeeeeally wish I listened to the album more. Whole thing has such a big sound, especially for the genre. Chorus makes me bob my head and drop my neck.
72) Bon Iver - “Second Nature”
This one scores the closing credits of Don’t Look Up, one of my favorite movies of the last 15 years. It’s standard Bon Iver quality, and my association with the positive memory of hearing it for the first time while watching that movie will always give it a built in advantage.
71) The Killers - “Terrible Thing”
The cars I was dealt will get you thrown out of the game
This song makes me afraid of it finding the wrong person; Killers still in Bruce Springsteen mode. Somber, alone-in-your-bedroom music.
70) Justin Bieber - “Ghost”
What up, Biebs? And Diane Keaton?! Just an undeniable vocal performance in that chorus. This song seems like it should be so easy to make fun of, but both it and the video stick the landing.
69) Mike Shinoda f/ iann diorr & UPSAHL - “Happy Endings”
This whole last year was a shitshow
Which year, Mike? I like this song’s idea of post-happy happiness.
68) Bloc Party - “Traps”
This song gets after it like Bloc Party always can. The chorus leaves you wanting a liiiitle more, but a few times through, you can definitely talk yourself into it.
67) The War On Drugs f/ Lucius - “I Don’t Live Here Anymore”
Sometimes, you just gotta give the kid the candy. Always thought this band’s singer sounded like Bob Dylan, so them referencing attending of his shows in one of their songs was always gonna make this latch onto my brain more than any of the others on their new record.
(Also: the Song Exploder pod on this song really made me appreciate it more.)
66) Barely March - “2002 (2009)”
This reminds me of all the fun parts of listening to Jeff Rosenstock; chorus makes you tap your feet and swing your head back and forth; love the year switch up, too.
65) Frank Turner - “Haven’t Been Doing So Well”
The world continues to erode Frank’s mental health, and can you really blame him? Still, he finds a way to make sadness simultaneously anthemic and cathartic.
64) The Muslims - “Fuck These Fuckin Fascists”
Why talk about the song -- which, you know, kind of explains itself -- when we could dive into the band’s bio?
The Muslims are the only true punks to have ever existed. Drawing from the influence of the most legendary artists and revolutionaries of our time, they have successfully synthesized the “fuck you” energy of the oppressed into an ass-kicking, head-smashing, fascist-punching sonic experience. This all-queer, Black & Brown punk band emerged onto the U.S. music scene shortly after the inauguration of 45 in 2017, and have been chugging white tears and destroying lives ever since.
It... lives up to that.
63) Brett Conlin & The Midnight Miles - “Thanks For The Gas Money”
Well, I hope you enjoyed the show Or at least a little background music while you stare at your fucking phones
Gonna grab the low hanging fruit and say this song has some -- /gulp -- mileage on it; such an earnest chorus. As a disciple of punk rock and 20+ year vet in the music game, it was bound to resonate.
62) New Lenox - “Kindling”
The dudes in New Lenox kicked it up a notch on their 17th annual Xmas EP. This one is part one of a three song set that’s basically one long song; word to NOFX’s “The Decline” for minor inspiration.
61) LiL Lotus - “Rooftop”
Fun and easy.
60) Origami Angel - “Footloose Cannonball Brothers”
Seemed like everybody in the punk scene couldn’t get enough of their record this year. The song titles were certainly worth some praise (or at least a chuckle):
- “Noah Fence” - “Bed Bath & Batman Beyond”
And, my favorite:
- “Neutrogena Spektor”
This one kinda reminds me of slightly happier Bayside.
59) Limp Bizkit - “Goodbye”
Limp Bizkit is either intentionally goofy or very serious with pretty poor execution. This one finds the rare balance of serious with not-too-shabby execution. Probably ranked a little too high, but I’m just impressed they pulled that off.
Here is where I note I saw LB in 2021. Recap here.
58) Ed Sheeran - “Bad Habits”
I mean this as a compliment, but if you told me Sheeran wrote this in less than five minutes, I’d believe you. A pulsating chorus, as he roves around the city like Matt Skiba, looking 0% threatening.
57) Angel Du$t - “Never Ending Game”
Spent a minor chunk of time trying to figure out who this singer sounds like, and the comp never came to me. This song feels light and cleansing; all the more surprising coming from a band that, I’m told, started out as hardcore.
Update: is the Blur singer the comp?!
56) Kacey Musgraves - “justified”
Healing doesn’t happen in a straight line
She’s good at what she does. This song’s light chorus makes you forget the urgency of the other parts. Hopefully the process of making this divorce record helped ease the pain of actually going through it.
55) New Found Glory - “Backseat”
NFG: still lovesick and coming on strong, like puppy dogs who don’t realize they peed on the floor because they were just so excited to see you.
54) NOFX - “Fuck Euphemism”
Gender pronoun barfight!
This song is interesting and exhausting. Probably most notable for teaching me the pronoun “per”:
Per is short for person. Fat Mike in the Spin Magazine interview 2/2/21, “It’s a term that Doris Lessing came up within a book called The Good Terrorist, which I read in college in the ‘80s. Doris Lessing is a feminist writer, and she had it where, in the future, society called everyone ‘per’ for person. It just makes sense to me.”
53) Emoney - “Tulum”
A goofy critique of Instagram travel culture; it kinda seems like he’s being a dick, but he also sorta has a point.
52) jxdn - “Better Off Dead”
The best part about jxdn (pronounced: Jaden), is multiple people in my life pronounce it J-X-D-N.
51) Spray Allen - “Stay Clean”
I love basketball too much to just be getting this band name right now.
50) Cloud Nothings - “Only Light”
Cloud Nothings are the Wendy Peffercorn of indie/punk -- they know exactly what they’re doing. Love how the music drops out before crashing way the fuck back in at the start of the verses; vet shit.
49) The Spill Canvas - “Gallon”
Kind of reminds me of last year’s Spill Canvas song, “Mercy”. Slow tempo, and jarringly comfortable with its very brutal lyrics.
I need to keep repeating this So the gallon stays within my wrist This awful feeling never ever goes away As long as I'm breathing, evil has a place to stay Cyclical queasy, nothing is easy I hear myself convince myself to try Yet still, I kinda wanna die
So yeah, that’s the gallon.
48) Lil Nas X - “MONTERO (Call Me By Your Name)”
For sure the most fun song on the list so far. Once Lil Nas gave the devil a lap dance in the music video, there was no turning back.
47) Laura Jane Grace - “SuperNatural Possession”
This song feels like it always existed; like walking in well-worn shoes for the first time.
46) Dave Hause - “Snowglobe”
A punishing, beautiful chorus built on the back of much softer verses. Not 100% sure it’s about COVID, as he does a good job with not making the lyrics too specific, but the giveaway might be the final line: “Yeah, it was a terrible year”.
45) snow ellet - “brick”
Bandcamp bio describes the music as “pop punk for the indie kids, indie rock for the pop punk kids”, and that’s nail meeting head right there.
44) Conway The Machine f/ 2 Chainz - “200 Pies”
The beat drifts through the room like smoke; lyrics and flow are the star of the show.
43) Hospital Bracelet - “South Loop Summer”
This local band got cancelled (or broke up) before I could even think about getting to see them live. For real, song dropped in January 2021, so we never even got to have that fist South Loop summer, proper.
For a more frantic, acoustic version of Hospital Bracelet, peep 2019′s “Bad Prescription”.
42) Billie Eilish - “NDA”
Lorde and Billie Eilish are kinda grouped together in my mind for really disappointing 2021 albums; the latter got a little further with her single, though.
41) Nick Lutsko - “Pay Me $100K to Play at Biden's Inauguration”
This one is pretty straightforward -- the man wants to be properly compensated to play the presidential inauguration. Lutsko is such a genius, he had me with “It’s been a long week / I feel like I could use a vacation”; needed absolutely nothing else. This song makes me want to run on a treadmill.
40) Jail Socks - “Sick Weather”
This chorus is like wuss rock on steroids; verses pack more bite.
39) Eminem f/ Jack Harlow & Cordae - “Killer (Remix)”
A rarely skipped remix; assured flows with no drop off as the mic gets passed.
38) Kitner - “Suddenly”
My buddy Mike introduced this band as Connor Oberst meets The Gin Blossoms, and holy ‘90s and ‘00s, was he mega correct. How this video has sub-1,000 views is beyond me.
37) Julien Baker - “Ringside”
This song feels watching a four minute long, tangled fuse on a lit stick of dynamite; even the way it lets up at the end has you bracing for the final explosion.
36) Nervus f/ Erik Garlington (Proper.) - “Between The Lines”
This reminds me of a more smoothed out Cloud Nothings, with a touch less energy (so still a good amount of energy); enjoyable guitar solo. Also, the spoken bridge surprises me damn near every time.
Also: another sub-1,000 YouTube, boooo.
35) Jimmy Fallon f/ Ariana Grande & Megan Thee Stallion - "It Was A... (Masked Christmas)”
For a jam that feels more like a comedy PSA than actual music, it really does have some unexpected heart.
34) Wavves - “Marine Life”
It’s January, and this takes me to summer; that is important.
33) Benny The Butcher & Harry Fraud f/ Rick Hyde - “Survivor’s Remorse”
This beat seems half generic... but there might be some depth here. Could listen to more than a few drop freestyles over this one. The actual verses do not let up.
32) Charli XCX - “Good Ones”
Charli continues to crank out certified pop bangers you could set your watch to. Is she our new Kesha?
31) Gregor Barnett - “Don’t Go Throwing Roses In My Grave”
The Menzingers’ Greg Barnett, my favorite songwriter to ever grace this planet, debuted his solo project’s lead single in 2021 (album out February 2022). I found it a little underwhelming at first, but he was probably a victim of all unassailable past greatness. It’s easy to eye roll the punk-gone-acoustic cliche -- he even has one of those Bob Dylan harmonica head things in the video -- but it’s Greg; I should’ve known to look deeper. There, you’ll find sharp attention to detail and peerless lyrics.
It was for sure a grower, and I can’t wait to hear more. The second single dropped this week, and it might be even better.
30) Hovvdy - “Blindsided”
Never really met my friends, knew each other from a distance
This song pulls a lot outta me; sometimes, you hear something and take solace you’re not in a more vulnerable spot. The walking piano, too; <3 <3 <3. And that doesn’t even address the air drumming/“Everlong” reference. When it hits, it hits. Is this song too good? Is that a thing?
29) MUNA f/ Phoebe Bridgers - “Silk Chiffon”
/googles chiffon definition
a light, sheer fabric typically made of silk or nylon.
So, silk... silk? I don’t know, the point is this song fucking rules. What a god damn chorus.
Originally had it at No. 36 before a little movin’ and shakin’. Also: gonna toss out this “There isn’t a single bad song that references CVS” take. Prove me wrong. Lastly, right after I got into this song, I saw my friend Shannon listening to a Spotify playlist called “silk chiffon type shit”, haha.
28) HAIM f/ Taylor Swift - “Gasoline”
You took me back, but you shouldn’t have
This song reminds me of that part of a summer day where you’ve been in the pool for a few hours, but now you’re having some food and drinks in the shade, debating if you should go back in. The sun is starting to set but will still be up for an hour or two more; the evening is loaded with possibility. Ease is in the air regardless, and this is the music soundtracking the moment.
27) Drake f/ 21 Savage & Project Pat - “Knife Talk”
Let’s get this out of the way: both Drake and 21 Savage being in a song with the hook “Gang shit, that’s all I’m on” is objectively hilarious. But if you’re into relative suspension of disbelief -- and I am! -- the song does not miss the mark. Fun video, stellar beat, and you’ll be embracing your knife-wielding dark side by the end. The structure is a little unconventional, and the song is patient with how it deploys that phenomenal chorus.
26) Taylor Swift - “All Too Well (10 Minute Version) (Taylor’s Version) (From The Vault)”
lol, what a title
Look -- original was great, so why not double it up? I very much regret missing social media’s reaction to all the Jake Gyllenhaal speculation when this dropped. This song does a great job being big while never losing sight of the small details:
'Cause there we are again in the middle of the night We're dancin' 'round the kitchen in the refrigerator light
Who among us is not melting?
25) Lucy Dacus - “Thumbs”
Always thought Lucy’s voice was kinda boring, and I never appreciated her as a songwriter nearly as much as boygenius bandmates Julien Baker and Phoebe Bridgers. This isn’t to say I ever felt right about any of that. A lot of people in my life like her as much -- if not more -- than the other two. Well, this was the first song where I really started to see what maybe I should’ve been noticing sooner.
(Also: was basically the living version of Chris Pratt reaction GIF when I connected the dots on the song title)
(Also also: if you want a little more upbeat Lucy, I’d heaaaavily rec her “Dancing In The Dark” cover)
24) Tigers Jaw - “Body Language”
How I used to memorize your movements, now I can't pick you out of a crowd
Their live-streamed record release show was a big musical highlight of 2021.
23) Adele - “Can I Get It”
Adele MF Adkins. Don’t think I skipped this song a single time in 2021. “Easy On Me” was fine, but it always felt like such an undertaking. This was way more fun.
Group manifestation goals for 2022.
22) Wild Pink - “The Shining But Tropical”
Took me a sec with this title. Had no idea Annie Murphy was in the music video until right now. This song feels like an overdue, hard-earned epiphany. But did it come too late?
21) Nas f/ Charlie Wilson - “Car #85″
They called me “Babyface” in ‘88
Flawless nostalgia rap from a master storyteller. My favorite rap song of 2021.
20) Iron Chic - “Catgut”
Iron Chic is an everything band. I think everything. I feel everything. I want to do everything. It’s carpe diem rock. Every song hits gulp-inducing heights, because they are never not swelling. It’s like watching a tidal wave the size of a skyscraper overtake you; but you’re not cowering -- you’re sprinting right at it. This chorus:
I take aim, but I miss my mark And there's no pain when it all goes dark But then I see you there, and that, that just melts my heart Don't let me fall apart
Can’t imagine them not played at my funeral. Almost every song they release could be their only song. Tearing up some just thinking about it.
19) Bleachers - “How Dare You Want More”
Hey, lonely wants to stay forever But tonight, we're gonna do a little better
Frantic, yet never not in full control. No song on the list makes me happier.
18) Best Loop - “Casino West”
Dropped “Between Two Different Places”, my first ever electric/solo EP, in 2021. Talked about the content of the lead track when we released the lyric video:
On Wikipedia profiles, I’m always fascinated by where someone was born vs. where they died. So often, especially with our celebrities, it all ends in California. The Santa Monica pier is one of my favorite places, and — though probably a bit Western-centric — I’ve always viewed the Pacific Ocean as the end of the world (in the best possible way). Norman Gene Macdonald was born October 17, 1959 Quebec City, Quebec, Canada. He passed on September 14, 2021 in Los Angeles, California. Norm is front of mind right now, so I had to look it up just to see; rarely fails. You can come from far or small or cold, but the Golden State is always willing. I wrote this song, which is kind of about that dynamic, but also kind of about second acts, old dreams, a couple fighting for it, Once Upon a Time... In Hollywood, and, yes, going to a casino for my college fantasy football league. Sincere Engineer has an old song that ends with “The West Coast works just like Xanax”, and though I barely know how to take pills, that line is so killer/inspired the ending.
I sing the verses. Dave Hernandez sings the chorus, and it absolutely soars. Dave Rokos does all the non-drum instruments, and everything is exactly where it should be. This song is half mission statement/half goodbye forever.
17) The Dirty Nil - “Possession”
Took few greater joys in 2021 than always singing along with the WHAT THE FUCK DO YOU KNOWWWWWW chorus of this one. I apologize to my wife and my wife only.
16) TURNSTILE - “MYSTERY”
Turnstile is a fascinating band. They are fresh, innovative, have a ton of buzz, critical acclaim, killer live shows, and I spend a lot of time thinking about them... and I still don’t know if I even like more than two of their songs. I definitely like that other people like them; everyone in my life who reps this band is cool.
I’ve watched their 10+ minute music video, full live shows, and even this 20+ minute analysis by some dude who has big Twitch streamer energy. They even just did Tiny Desk!
So if indie-ish experimental hardcore isn’t your bag, I might give that performance a shot. There, you’ll find a piano-based version of “MYSTERY”. They might be Top 5 on my bands to see live list, and, again, not even sure if I like them. When you’re hot, you’re hot.
(Will always wish they went all out on that third chorus, though.)
15) KennyHoopla f/ Travis Barker - “hollywood sucks//”
Positive this song is ranked too high, but also positive you won’t find a lyric more earnest than “And I think your forehead is beautiful”; especially in the Sunshine State. This basically is a Blink-182 song; hey, he got 1/3rd of the band in there already.
14) WILLOW f/ Travis Barker - “t r a n s p a r e n t s o u l”
I’d feel insecure about putting back-to-back Travis features on the list if our man didn’t collaborate with literally everyone. Favorite part is when Willow first breaks in and that tone she uses in her vocal melody: “I don't fucking know if it's a lie or it's a fact”.
So positively over it; Hayley Williams would be proud. This song never stops moving.
(Docked 7,000 points for the annoying title stylization)
13) girl in red - “Serotonin”
Prolly the most creative song on the list. Kinda sounds like 1,000 Gecs meets Lorde. My guess is you’ll love or hate; she pulls you both in and out of it, like you’re getting your face dragged across the dirt before being weightless in the air.
12) Hot Mulligan - “Featuring Mark Hoppus”
(No, the song does not feature Mark Hoppus.)
Hot Mulligan first hit my radar this year with their most streamed song, 2020′s “*Equip Sunglasses*”, though that one might be better overall, this one is for sure more me. From tempo, to the Blink reference in the title, to constellation of undying high school nostalgia.
Still trying to decode the phrasing of the chorus, though (”I've got a ring, I think that she'd love you too”). Ring as in ring? Who is it for? Why does it sound so cool and dire despite me not understanding it at all? It’s a mystery of the ages.
11) Sincere Engineer - “Hurricane Of Misery”
Sincere Engineer’s sophomore album had, like, five singles, so if your question was “Are there any bangers left?!” that was for sure fair. Enter: the non-single banger. It’s everything I love about this band: insecurity, self-questioning, pulverizing drums, and lyrics so simple, yet so astutely obvious: “I’m trying to tell you that I love you a lot”.
10) Signals Midwest - “I Used To Draw”
The All-Stars of Introspection delivered the goods with both this and the equally awesome “Tommy Took A Picture” in 2021. This is like a poem, hand-delivered just for you, culminating with a perfect fucking chorus (“I want to live like that / I want a love that looks back”). Me too, dog; almost got me tearing up again.
(Sidebar: of course they’re good about wearing masks.)
9) Machine Gun Kelly f/ Kellin Quinn - “love race”
MGK took the top spot here last year, and this one finishing Top 10 clearly proves the momentum is still there. Random cameo? Check. Travis on drums? Check. Fun summer camp video that 0% matches the song? Check. Pink guitar? You know it. Whatever, this chorus erases any ancillary flaws.
8) Kidd G - “1000 Miles From Georgia”
Kidd G popped up on my Twitter timeline very early in the year, when someone quote tweeted this NYT piece saying something about how they hated his aesthetic but were also positive he’d be famous. It wasn’t this one, but it was close:
And yes, the face, race, and hair gave me major concerns, but I mean, I had to check it out. It began with “Down The Road”, an overly auto-tuned mess of a rap country song I despised at first -- it literally has the line “Waitin’ on that deer season” -- calmed down about, and eventually grew to like. Ironically. Ironically, right? Oh... oh no. Do I actually like it for real now?!
Friends, I did. From there, I started following him on IG and got put on to several more of his singles throughout the year. Similar to Jersey Shore and the Fast and Furious movies, what started as a semi-joke turned into a real passion (see: the Vin song leading this entire list).
I would guess most people in my peer group would not enjoy his music, but if there ever was a song to hook you, it’s “1000 Miles From Georgia”, a road song about missing someone; the universal songwriting topic.
In conclusion, let the record show I no longer follow him on Instagram.
7) Phoebe Bridgers - “That Funny Feeling”
Bo Burnham’s Netflix special Inside was a rough watch, at times, especially for something in the comedy genre. After all, when you’re that inside watching someone that inside, it’s quite sobering to feel the walls close in. It was there he debuted his song, “That Funny Feeling”.
Last year, I said Run The Jewels made the music that being alive in 2020 was most like. This year, I’d give Phoebe’s cover that distinction. It’s the perfect combination of her haunting vocals with his "stop, this is too accurate!” lyrics. You can throw darts at the sheet, and any line you pick out at random is either era-defining or heart-wrenching:
- “The backlash to the backlash to the thing that's just begun”
- “Twenty-thousand years of this, seven more to go”
- “A gift shop at the gun range, a mass shooting at the mall”
- “A book on getting better hand-delivered by a drone “
And, of course the finisher:
Total disassociation, fully out your mind Googling "derealization", hating what you find That unapparent summer air in early fall The quiet comprehending of the ending of it all
I keep telling myself I’m going to go back to Burnham’s version, but it still hasn’t happened; not once.
This is a paralyzingly sad piece of art, and I’m glad he gave it to the world and she helped amplify.
6) Heart Attack Man - “Pitch Black”
The band name put me off for a while, and the EP this is on was... we’ll be nice and say uneven. But “Pitch Black” is a ripper’s ripper. It starts kinda folk indie before ratcheting up to its proper punk rock place. Feels like music an algorithm created for me.
5) illuminati hotties - “Pool Hopping”
A perfect song, great band name, and my favorite season. Love the drum clicky things in the intro, the saccharine sweet vox, and the way-too-clever lyrics that never let up.
And hell yeah, that got an RT from the band.
Goal is to 100% use “pool hopping/window shopping” as an IG caption by the end of ‘22.
4) Olivia Rodrigo - “good 4 u”
What it do, Liv? This tune is the third single off Sour (co-winner for my favorite album of 2021). I’ll let The Ringer get us started:
She may well be the next Taylor Swift. She may well be a generational talent. But which generation are we talking about here? It’s surprisingly easy to discuss Sour at length without stumbling upon any hints of departure from millennial culture. On some level, the album marks the broader advancement of Generation Z into adulthood. The critics engaged with the idea of zoomer succession in pop culture clearly expect to see some great clash. Writing for The Washington Post, Molly Roberts, a millennial, describes Rodrigo as “a new avatar” in “the war among generations” despite her own pertinent observation about Sour: “We recognize ourselves in the music.” This isn’t a coincidence or a testament to universal appeal. Olivia Rodrigo is a Swiftie with Riot! characteristics. She doesn’t sound particularly interested in creative emancipation from her forebears. She doesn’t seek out or represent any sort of generational break in popular music. In fact, she sounds rather determined to sound how pop radio has played since I—a critic twice her age—was in high school.
Love this song’s bratty, scorned breakup energy. The smiling through her teeth actress/singer execution in the back half of of the second verse (1:26) was my silver medalist for the top musical moment of 2021.
The Paramore mashup, the Tiny Desk*, and, of course, somehow outdoing her first single, “driver’s license” -- only the most streamed song of 2021. Cannot wait to see where her music goes from here. Taylor, Lorde, and the previous decades’ genres are all over her debut, but hopefully, as her career goes, she can start to carve out a sound all her own, too.
(* - calling this the best ever vocal performance on TD and would love to hear any counters)
Lastly, count me among the many who believe the album following Sour will be, of course, called Sweet.
3) Foxing - “If I Believed In Love”
If I believed in love, I’d keep it to myself
Talk about starting with a comprehensive thesis.
I’ve always loved Foxing. “Night Channels” was beating through my head the day after I got engaged in 2017. That beautiful hook and mantra: “Future love, don’t fall apart”.
I saw them front row in a high school cafeteria in May 2018; their second to last record (Nearer My God) three months from its release. It put them on the course to here -- 2021′s Draw Down The Moon. Along with the aforementioned Sour, my favorite album of 2021. They’re different, yes, but the commonality is in front-to-back quality.
“If I Believed In Love” was one of the singles, the first warning something special was about to happen. It was extremely difficult to pick for this list, because I wish there was a way to submit the entire album as a whole; it’s that damn good. The song builds to -- and peaks -- with its forever chorus:
Every time I run wild from the hint at heaven Oh, now what do you believe in? Every day I spend pent up in a blind, I wonder Oh, now what do you believe in?
In 2013, I had a long period of not believing in love -- for myself, at least; so grateful to have learned to again. I wonder about those who don’t or never did. I like to think this song can be for anyone.
2) Petey - “DON’T TELL THE BOYS”
Forget rooms, I could diagram the exact spot I was standing on when my buddy CJ txt’d me a link to this song. I remember looking at the art:
“Is this a joke song or serious?” “Just listen.”
On first bump, I still wasn’t sure. It was like indie meets EDM meets eternal earnest season. There was only one part to focus on that first time through, and it was of course emblematic of the entire thing:
Don't tell the boys that we done spent the week inside And watched 3 seasons of The O.C. 'till Marrisa fucking dies You know at times I'm more like Ryan You're a little more like Seth You're so quick witted when we talk about what happens after death
But is that not 2021? Detached irony. Attached irony. Tattoo-level sincerity. Why can’t we talk about The O.C. in the same breath as fucking death? This is the world-ending dichotomy Bo Burnham described for us.
In a year where concerts were reduced, I’m proud to say I saw Petey play twice. The first, in Davenport, Iowa, on a Sunday night. It looked like it was one of the first shows he ever played; you could tell he was special, even then. His voice filled up the cavernous room all on its own. The next, in Chicago, a few months later -- the day Michigan beat Ohio State for the first time in a decade. The lineup was somewhat changed, more electronic elements were incorporated, and the room was a lot fuller -- but he was just as grateful. The morning of, I organically woke up with his album’s title song (“Lean Into Life”) stuck in my head; being there in the pit later that night, mask on, right as Omicron was about to ramp up the pandemic yet again, was the last moment of peak perfect happiness I’ve felt between right now and November 2021; it felt like fulfilling a prophecy. Michigan had won, champagne was popped, cigars were smoked, drinks were drank, friends were hugged; we had, truly, leaned all the way in.
1) Mom Jeans. - “What’s Up?”
This song is an all-timer. It seems like turn-your-brain-off pop punk, but it’s pretty nuanced. From the sneaky virtuosity of the drums to the chord shifts, they might make it look like they aren’t trying so hard, but there is more to it than meets the eye. Just like the video itself; yeah, it’s colorful and pretty, but the lyrical content is a miserable storm.
Sometimes, it feels like punk, emo, and indie artists are in a race to out-self loathe each other. Nobody wins, and that’s the beauty of it (because you get to keep trying).
But if there ever was a winner, it truly might come from the post-first chorus stretch of this song, a couplet I could live my entire life and not come up with...
I’m such a fucking piece of shit, and you hate me for it
...even though it was always there for the taking. My favorite musical moment of 2021.
I got really into this song on a cloudy Friday, a few days after my aunt passed away and just before the pandemic started to scale up yet again-again-again. I was waiting for out-of-state family to come into town and needed something to take off the edge. This did that job, and I even covered it. A few months later, a tweet described exactly how I felt that day:
It’s there now.
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Thanks for reading. Spotify playlist below: