AllMusic's Best of 2021
Dec. 6, 2021
The end of 2021 is in sight, so it's time to devote ourselves to the daunting task of attempting to summarize the musical output of an entire year. Over the next four weeks we're going to present the best releases of a few dozen genres and formats, whether it's metal or jazz, hip-hop or Americana.
• We kick off with our editors' overall best-of list — 100 albums that our writers felt were the most significant releases of this year, and we'll narrow our focus to individual genres in the weeks to follow.
• Whether it was the heady ambitions of The Bug, Vladislav Delay and Jana Rush, or more traditional electronic recordings from Flying Lotus, Vangelis, and Mouse on Mars, there was no shortage of new sounds in electronic music to discover in 2021.
• Folk and Americana artists had a particularly insightful and productive year, as is evidenced in the recordings by Valerie June, Yola, Sturgill Simpson, and Alison Krauss & Robert Plant.
• Our editors celebrated sounds from Latin America and around the world in 2021, including jazz-funk fusion from Brazil's Alex Malheiros, African desert blues from Mdou Moctar, a Spanish-language EP from Selena Gomez, and a collection of unreleased dub from the late Lee "Scratch" Perry.
• There was no shortage of angst and cathartic rage this year and the acts on our favorite metal albums list exorcised their demons in a multitude of ways, from more time-honored sounds of Helloween, Maiden and Cradle of Filth, to a nü breed of performances from Evanescence, Every Time I Die, and Mastodon.
• In addition to our Year in Review hub, it's time to let us know what music clicked the most with you in 2021 via our annual readers' poll. We created a 50-album ballot and you get up to five votes for the albums that resonated with you this year. We'll tally your votes near the end of the month and put together a list of the year's best albums, according to you, the AllMusic readers.
• Poptimism was in full effect in the music world in 2021 from the youthful exuberance of Olivia Rodrigo and PinkPantheress to the more established pop voices of Adele and Duran Duran. Explore our favorite pop albums.
• In addition to our genre-specific lists, our editors also share their personal favorites of 2021, featuring some of the year's biggest releases and a wealth of lesser-heard gems.
• The world of classical instrumental music received many welcome new additions this year, including a collection of Parisian compositions performed by Hilary Hahn, Spanish, Italian, and Argentine guitar works from Krzysztof Meisinger, and a thrilling Beethoven's Ninth from Manfred Honeck conducting the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra.
• Albums from Willie Nelson, Alan Jackson, Connie Smith, and The Flatlanders represented the more traditional side of country in 2021, while relatively newer artists like Billy Strings, Ashley Monroe, and Carly Pearce kept the spirit alive.
• Rock albums came in many forms in 2021 from the raw energy of Amyl and the Sniffers, to the hooky throwback sound of Weezer, to regionally-inspired covers albums from Jason Isbell (playing songs by Georgia artists) and Los Lobos (paying tribute to bands from L.A.).
• R&B felt like it split in two parallel directions in 2021 with some artists like Leon Bridges, Silk Sonic, and Celeste paying tribute to classic soul sounds, while acts such as Hiatus Kaiyote, Rochelle Jordan, and The Steoples explored new territory incorporating electronic, avant, and otherworldly sounds.
• The lists of albums in the styles of Indie Pop/Indie Rock and Alternative are always very crowded for us so our writers have divided the pool into "Alternative" (meaning more established acts that are largely well-known in the space) and "Indie" (lesser-known artists). The Indie list will run tomorrow.
• The year in blues saw some welcome returns from veterans like Elizabeth King, Robert Finley (pictured), and Steve Cropper as well as relatively new blood from Selwyn Birchwood, The Black Keys, and Southern Avenue.
• We kick off with our editors' overall best-of list — 100 albums that our writers felt were the most significant releases of this year, and we'll narrow our focus to individual genres in the weeks to follow.
• Whether it was the heady ambitions of The Bug, Vladislav Delay and Jana Rush, or more traditional electronic recordings from Flying Lotus, Vangelis, and Mouse on Mars, there was no shortage of new sounds in electronic music to discover in 2021.
• Folk and Americana artists had a particularly insightful and productive year, as is evidenced in the recordings by Valerie June, Yola, Sturgill Simpson, and Alison Krauss & Robert Plant.
• Our editors celebrated sounds from Latin America and around the world in 2021, including jazz-funk fusion from Brazil's Alex Malheiros, African desert blues from Mdou Moctar, a Spanish-language EP from Selena Gomez, and a collection of unreleased dub from the late Lee "Scratch" Perry.
• There was no shortage of angst and cathartic rage this year and the acts on our favorite metal albums list exorcised their demons in a multitude of ways, from more time-honored sounds of Helloween, Maiden and Cradle of Filth, to a nü breed of performances from Evanescence, Every Time I Die, and Mastodon.
• In addition to our Year in Review hub, it's time to let us know what music clicked the most with you in 2021 via our annual readers' poll. We created a 50-album ballot and you get up to five votes for the albums that resonated with you this year. We'll tally your votes near the end of the month and put together a list of the year's best albums, according to you, the AllMusic readers.
• Poptimism was in full effect in the music world in 2021 from the youthful exuberance of Olivia Rodrigo and PinkPantheress to the more established pop voices of Adele and Duran Duran. Explore our favorite pop albums.
• In addition to our genre-specific lists, our editors also share their personal favorites of 2021, featuring some of the year's biggest releases and a wealth of lesser-heard gems.
• The world of classical instrumental music received many welcome new additions this year, including a collection of Parisian compositions performed by Hilary Hahn, Spanish, Italian, and Argentine guitar works from Krzysztof Meisinger, and a thrilling Beethoven's Ninth from Manfred Honeck conducting the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra.
• Albums from Willie Nelson, Alan Jackson, Connie Smith, and The Flatlanders represented the more traditional side of country in 2021, while relatively newer artists like Billy Strings, Ashley Monroe, and Carly Pearce kept the spirit alive.
• Rock albums came in many forms in 2021 from the raw energy of Amyl and the Sniffers, to the hooky throwback sound of Weezer, to regionally-inspired covers albums from Jason Isbell (playing songs by Georgia artists) and Los Lobos (paying tribute to bands from L.A.).
• R&B felt like it split in two parallel directions in 2021 with some artists like Leon Bridges, Silk Sonic, and Celeste paying tribute to classic soul sounds, while acts such as Hiatus Kaiyote, Rochelle Jordan, and The Steoples explored new territory incorporating electronic, avant, and otherworldly sounds.
• The lists of albums in the styles of Indie Pop/Indie Rock and Alternative are always very crowded for us so our writers have divided the pool into "Alternative" (meaning more established acts that are largely well-known in the space) and "Indie" (lesser-known artists). The Indie list will run tomorrow.
• The year in blues saw some welcome returns from veterans like Elizabeth King, Robert Finley (pictured), and Steve Cropper as well as relatively new blood from Selwyn Birchwood, The Black Keys, and Southern Avenue.