The school term has ended and I'm home for Christmas so it's that time of year again, where I take solace in the year's media to distract myself from the shit going on outside right now. 2021 has generally so far been a transitional year to some form of normality and a year of many changes for myself (even if it's not ended like that x) and thus I have somewhat been more in touch with media this year as we did enjoy a (kind of) restriction-free summer, I have a whole top 40 song list as well as some things to talk about for TV, Film and Albums, so pretty much like last year but more expanded.

 

I will start with film and TV first as per before moving onto albums and songs, hope you enjoy~

 

Film

 

01; Dune

02; Bo Burnham: Inside

03; The Night House

04; The Father

05; The Suicide Squad

06; Judas & The Black Messiah

07; The French Dispatch

08; Last Night in Soho

09; Promising Young Woman

10; Censor

11; Fear Street (1994, 1987, 1666)

12; A Quiet Place Part II

13; No Time to Die

14; Oxygen

 

So cinemas continue to be in a state of limbo sadly, but at least there was a few great new releases that finally made it to screens and there was always streaming services to fill in those gaps where they were closed. I've included some 2020 films in here that were released in the latter end of the year. This, I think, was all the films I saw last year, I did enjoy all of them to an extent. Oxygen had a great bottle concept of a woman trapped in a pod when the life support goes and is impressively filmed entirely in one location, but it probably should've been a TV episode. No Time to Die I kinda had to see just to see what all the hype was about, I'm not a big Bond fan at all though I did enjoy Casino Royale and Skyfall, this wasn't quite their level, but it was solid and entertaining and a great send-off to a fantastic Bond. A Quiet Place Part II did alright considering it wasn't a film that needed a sequel, but I do feel like this is now explored enough and I'm not overly keen on the fact there's a Part III coming.

 

Fear Street was a trilogy of films inspired by the Goosebumps-like books with three horror films each set in different time periods and inspired by horror films from that period, with a through line that keeps them connected, the modern horror felt a little too cliched and characters not developed enough, but the 80s slasher throwback was great and the period horror of 1666 was also rather fun (if hilarious how inaccurate their medieval accents were), overall, a good fun horror with a lot of scope for future plots. Censor is a more under-the-radar pick that deals with the video nasty era in the 1980s and the psychological effect it has on a grieving worker. It makes effective use of its setting and is similar to Saint Maude (discussed last year) in it's chilling portrayal of madness from one person's perspective. Promising Young Woman was a very unflinching yet humourous look at the effect of toxic masculinity and rape culture with a phenomenal performance from Carey Mulligan. Also from the Oscars shortlist is Judas and the Black Messiah, with a brutal, painful timely (despite its setting) depiction of police brutality and a fascinating story of the tale of deceit from the Black Panthers.

 

The French Dispatch and Last Night in Soho are two somewhat below standard films from directors for love, so my totally unbiased self loves them anyway. The former is possibly the most Wes Anderson-esque you can get but is typically pretty and symmetrical and tells a uniquely told, varied tale of journalism mishaps. Last Night in Soho had an incredible, enigmatic trailer and I'd be lying if I said it lived up to that as a film, but OK Edgar Wright is still better than most directors, it's beautifully shot and effectively recreates that 1960s feel, yet questions our insistence to romanticise the past effectively as well as providing a great mix of real-world and supernatural horror, honestly it was going wonderfully until it started to drag in the second half, but the highs were high enough.

 

The Suicide Squad is the most fun I've had watching a superhero movie in a long time, it's gleefully violent, with memorable, brilliant characters and a knowing wink along the way, I never bothered with the first due to the terrible reviews, but this was more worth it. The Father is possibly the most hard-hitting and difficult to watch film this year as my grandmother has dementia and I identified a lot of traits in Anthony Hopkins' performance, but I can't deny how well done it is. It effectively makes its origins as a play translate cinematically and does a brilliant job of putting you in the character's shoes to understand the effects of dementia, as well as absolutely wonderful performances from Hopkins and Olivia Colman.

 

The Night House is probably my favourite indie horror film and tells an effectively scary story about overcoming grief, using its isolated setting and powerful lead performance to its strength and proving an effectively creepy spin on the haunted house genre. Bo Burnham: Inside is a little difficult to categorise, it's probably not a 'movie' per se, but I can't really acknowledge it as anything else except maybe an album, it was one of the most striking things I've seen this year though, a raw, sometimes hilarious sometimes heartbreaking portrayal of the effect of the lockdown and making it as a millennial in today's world, it's a deeply personal movie with nonetheless a lot of real-world implications, but never feels like a lecture and more an honest and rounded portrayal. It's the sort of project that will be looked back on as one of the triumphs of the lockdown era, and I highly recommend it to anyone.

 

Which leaves a fairly predictable number 1 if you know me, I've been waiting for Denis Villeneuve's Dune for a while now after pushing back over a year after finishing the novel, and I can't say I was disappointed. Seeing this in the cinema reminded me of how wonderful an experience you can have with these, the vast desert planet was captured in every figment of its beauty and it's truly a thing of wonder, please do see this on the big screen if you can, it's so much more enhanced. The story was largely faithful and cinematic as it could be with such a difficult book to adapt, so I thought he did a great job. I recognised all the plot points and they were visualised really well, there were things I'd have liked to have seen more of (Thufir Hawat for one), but there's another film on the way (thank God) so I'm sure that will continue the mystique and hopefully give it a well-rounded conclusion. But as a fan of the books, I'm just so pleased that after so many years, there's finally a solid adaptation out there that wasn't hampered by development hell/studio interference, it's always wonderful to put things right.

 

TV shows coming up next, probs tomorrow as my hands are hurting now x

I'm yet to watch any films this year so don't think this bit is for me sadly! I do hope I'll get round to watching 'No Time To Die' at some point this month though.

I'll get to music very soon, hopefully tomorrow x

 

My arm's been a little sore from the booster, but I think we can continue now...

 

 

TV is obviously the perfect antidote to a lockdown so I have gotten into quite a few series this year, I will include ones I'm not yet finished and some rolling over from 2020, and it makes a round 15, I want to do separate entries for my top 5 as they were all great shows that deserve their own section. but let's do the rest of the top 15 now anyway, Italics means I haven't yet finished it:

 

6. Arcane: League of Legends

7. What We Do in The Shadows

8. Wandavision

9. Sex Education

10. You

11. The Mandalorian

12. Shadow & Bone

13. Line of Duty

14. Doctor Who: Flux

15. Love, Death & Robots

 

Love, Death & Robots second season was unfortunately a lot weaker than the first, there was still some very cool, quirky sci-fi stories with a variety of animation, but none of the hit or miss fun of the first season and they have considerably toned down the NSFW content which loosens its appeal in my view. Doctor Who: Flux, while probably the best Chibnall series yet, was ultimately a huge mess, there were some high points (the Sontarans and Weeping Angels were done very well and Village of the Angels may well be the best episode of the era), but a hell of a lot of slapdash writing where everything is thrown at the wall and barely anything sticks, as well as many trademark Chibnall features such as an overload of characters. It just left me thinking afterwards 'was there really a point to all that?' and I'm still coming up empty outside of little hints that aren't properly developed, all it's convinced me of is that he's just not a good fit for the show. Line Of Duty had six absolutely excellent seasons and I, like most of the UK, was so looking forward to seeing the conclusion...only for a complete anti-climax which did not fit in with anything the show had already established and brought the whole show down, I'm praying for another series so it can un-Game of Thrones itself. Shadow & Bone is a fairly fun fantasy with some good performances to overcome familiar YA tropes, I haven't quite finished it yet as it lost me a bit with it's structure, but I'm hoping to go back to it. The Mandalorian is a great and action-packed Star Wars show that I find it difficult to access as Disney+ only works on one device at home, but I'm liking the way it's going once it gets out of Monster of the week territory and the central bond between Mando and Baby Yoda is brilliant to see.

 

You has started off fantastically in it's third season by completely curtailing past expectations of the show that I was worried about in the first episode, I confess the mid-part of the show hasn't been as entertaining yet so that and the fact I haven't finished it yet has resulted in a lowly placing, but I'm always intrigued to see where it goes as there's just something very engaging watching two completely messed up sociopaths function together. No one feels safe. I do really respect Sex Education's constant development of its character in what seem like stereotypes to make it feel like a very real show, it's really made it constantly engaging to witness all the intertwined storylines and choices and it made Season 2 a great ride, I've only just started Season 3 and it seems to be going the same way from the little I've seen, we'll see how it goes. I'm not that into Marvel, but Wandavision was definitely something that really intrigued and it still was quite a fascinating thing to behold from the MCU - the ongoing mystery coupled with the keen attention to detail of comedies of the era was a really engaging watch, it was fun thinking of what could be going on. Suffice to say, all is not as it seems and it's best to watch this with little prior knowledge outside what is necessary about the main characters. I did find myself becoming, unfortunately, less engaged when the secrets started revealing themselves and it turned into something more standard for the MCU, but I'm still glad I watched it and I appreciate Marvel taking more risks with its format.

 

Which leaves us with two excellent shows which should/would be much higher when I finish them. What We Do in the Shadows, based on the genius mockumentary movie about vampires living in normal suburban life, surprisingly more than lives up to its inspiration's wackiness and dry humour, the cast is amazingly played in it's depiction of larger than life immortals that still manage to be somewhat relatable and the plight of long suffering familiar Guillermo adds a great new twist, there's another season ahead of me atm but I'm more than confident it can keep up this wonderful quality, and finally a show that I'm only 2/3s through and will almost certainly be in my top 5 if the quality keeps up at this standard, Arcane seems to have single-handedly saved the video game adaptation and prove it can honour the source material and be a great piece of media, for a show of its type, it's a lot more complex and violent than you can expect and deals with various mature themes like corruption, science and knowledge and political interference and class struggle. At the centre of it though are the two sisters, Vi and Powder/Jinx who start as orphan sisters before both being drawn into different paths. The voice acting from Hailee Steinfeld and Ella Purnell is wonderful and the development of both really makes you incredibly emotionally invested and there are some heartbreaking scenes with them both. It's to the show's credit that it can balance many different plotlines and fan service-y things and still be an incredible and accessible show for newcomers. The animation is reminiscent of Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse and the mix of CGI and Hand drawn is wonderfully done which makes it incredible to look at as well as observe. I can't really do it any more justice in words, just go watch it x

 

Top 5 coming up next!

I know little about Dune but I'm intrigued, it's on my list of things to watch at some point! (also Timothée is always a bonus x)

 

I've seen two of your TV list - obviously Doctor Who is one, I actually thoroughly enjoyed Flux despite some continued Chibnall-shaped problems. Take out a couple of plot elements and you'd have a far smoother storyline though and I think the game was generally upped on the whole, especially for the Sontaran and Angel eps, and for the core team of the Doctor, Yaz and Dan which works FAR better than the "fam" did. I watched the entirety of Line of Duty earlier this year, about halfway through the airing of series 6 so I was able to join live for the last few! What an incredible show... with THAT ending :( I'll discuss it in my own EOY shortly too but it missed the mark in so many ways, after what had been a REALLY strong series (and better than series 5 on the whole for me). I really hope that's not the end, we need a series 7 and a proper conclusion! :lol:

I've started Arcane (four episodes in) and I'm loving it so far! Jinx was basically the only League Of Legends character I was aware of due to her having a theme song that was pretty good pop-rock a few years back, and she always seemed cool so I liked that she is clearly at the center of this, also a much more palatable magic steampunk setting than I thought it'd be based on seeing screenshots of LoL gameplay. Definitely agree with the animation, it seems like such a step up for the western scene, some of the fight scenes so far have been really gripping.

 

Dune is on my watchlist sometime in the future, I've had everyone whose taste I normally trust tell me it's excellent sci-fi, I kinda wanted to read the books first though and that'll take me forever.

  JosephCarey said:

I know little about Dune but I'm intrigued, it's on my list of things to watch at some point! (also Timothée is always a bonus x)

 

I've seen two of your TV list - obviously Doctor Who is one, I actually thoroughly enjoyed Flux despite some continued Chibnall-shaped problems. Take out a couple of plot elements and you'd have a far smoother storyline though and I think the game was generally upped on the whole, especially for the Sontaran and Angel eps, and for the core team of the Doctor, Yaz and Dan which works FAR better than the "fam" did. I watched the entirety of Line of Duty earlier this year, about halfway through the airing of series 6 so I was able to join live for the last few! What an incredible show... with THAT ending :( I'll discuss it in my own EOY shortly too but it missed the mark in so many ways, after what had been a REALLY strong series (and better than series 5 on the whole for me). I really hope that's not the end, we need a series 7 and a proper conclusion! :lol:

 

I mean therein lies the problem - there's too many inconsequential plot elements! Tbh it wasn't going too badly until the last episode where everything was resolved in a way that was so slapdash and unsatisfying which leaves a bit of a sour taste. The past monsters were done well granted and the new TARDIS team was generally better and had some nice moments, but again, they felt like they were shafted thanks the million other things going on! I mean it's clear they were impacted by the pandemic and couldn't resolve every thread, but it is a shame as there was a lot of wasted potential.

 

I ofc. highly recommend Dune if you're interested, the cast is all wonderful.

 

  MajIzstica 💀 said:

I've started Arcane (four episodes in) and I'm loving it so far! Jinx was basically the only League Of Legends character I was aware of due to her having a theme song that was pretty good pop-rock a few years back, and she always seemed cool so I liked that she is clearly at the center of this, also a much more palatable magic steampunk setting than I thought it'd be based on seeing screenshots of LoL gameplay. Definitely agree with the animation, it seems like such a step up for the western scene, some of the fight scenes so far have been really gripping.

 

Dune is on my watchlist sometime in the future, I've had everyone whose taste I normally trust tell me it's excellent sci-fi, I kinda wanted to read the books first though and that'll take me forever.

 

Glad you're liking Arcane, it's certainly not lost it's quality as of yet, Jinx is really well portrayed and fun to witness, although it's heart-breaking seeing the contrast to the well-meaning child from the first arc and what gets her in that position.

 

I've read the first book last year, not that interested in the sequels as there's so many of them, it's a good read and I would actually say it enhances the film, as it's not the most simple story to follow, though the film does make it mainly accessible either way. It's worth reading anyway as the world-building is so expansive and while the characters are a little generic, they did inspire many sci-fi stories going forward (including Star Wars which you can tell instantly!)

 

5. Invincible

With the oversaturation of superhero-related media recently, there has thankfully been a good antidote to that in two of these shows in the top 5. Invincible is one of those, it's based on a 2000s comic, but it generally doesn't show as it feels very current and subversive of the genre. Part of its wonder comes from the wonderful garish animation which allows for an extremely creative looking show and also some excellent voice acting especially from the main three of Steven Yeun, Sandra Oh and JK Simmons (they even change his ethnicity to reflect the actors which is a nice touch), but also the story is heavy-going and unashamedly violent (especially the finale) and takes a familiar story of a young superhero realising his powers and responsibility with a super OP hero as a father and turns it on its head, let's just say the character does not get an easy ride. It lost me a little midway through when the story slows down after the initial big mystery, but more than redeems itself by the gut-punch of a finale. There are at least two more seasons, one being twenty episodes, which does make me worry it may burn out, but as it is, this was a beautiful, smart and subversive superhero entry that has partly restored my faith in the genre.

 

 

4. Squid Game

 

I mean everyone and their dog has watched this and I don't exactly have a lot of new takes on it, but I did indeed very much enjoy this out-of-nowhere Battle Royale-esque take and it's a success is a great thing for international TV and people wanting something a little more edgy and gripping than typical Hollywood sanitisation. It definitely wasn't without its faults, the American businessman presence were, as most of the world has said, utterly shit and the show did peak mid-season with the glorious marble episode, the twists and reveals after that didn't work as well, but it was mainly great stuff. The colour palette, soundtrack, and acting were really on point, and the development of each of the characters was a particular strength, it went way beyond the stereotypes associated and made each fully fleshed, it's why I didn't mind the slower moments at the start of the season as it made this deadly children's game actually seem more appealing. Its main message may not be groundbreaking, but it does continue to find real creativity from the South Korean class divide, following on from the similar tactics shown in Oscar-winning Parasite, both are harkening in a real golden age for South Korean film and television. There's a lot of scope still to explore for Season 2 and I highly look forward to it

 

 

 

3. Midnight Mass

 

Mike Flanagan's most recent chiller has many of his classic trademarks and commentary on human nature, but he really leans into the human drama so much more here. Midnight Mass is, as you can tell from the title, a religious-themed horror drama but it does the hard job of portraying the good or religion as well as the dark paths it can open if you overdo it, to oversimplify this somewhat. I'm a general big fan of Mike Flanagan and think he's one of the most unique voices in horror at the moment, that said, this definitely took some persistance, there is a lot of long monologues and a lot of characters, that it can definitely feel like a slog at times. I think even with seven episodes at around an hour each, it's too stretched out. If I were less patient, I may not have stuck with it, but then I'd have missed the beauty of episode 5 (his speciality in series clearly, E5 of Hill House was the harrowing Bent Necked Lady episode and in Bly Manor was Hannah's reveal), honestly I could try and explain the plot but it's hard to summarise the plot for this as there's a lot going on so you're better to just watch it if you're interested x But it opens the door for a heart-breaking, horrifying yet still profound and moving finale. It really does save the whole show and make everything make sense and keeps Flanagan as one of the masters of human horror.

 

 

2. The Boys

 

This is 2020 technically, but I finished it this year and it has technically continued in a series of mock 'Seven on 7' news broadcasts of what's going on in the fictional world and a clear pastiche of Fox News. One of the many elements of today's world that the show really portrays well. The Boys really stands out in its genre just because it actually feels like what would really happen if superheroes existed among us - they would be an elite, completely commercialised team with a seriously seedy backing behind the shiny exterior, and their minds only on their own personal gain, The Boys tackles this through a number of perspectives - the shiny new superhero in Starlight, the selfish megalomaniac in the near-invincible Homelander, the vengeful undersides that oppose the 'supes' in Billy - and each is very well developed and engaged over two seasons. It's definitely a show for the times we're living in now and some of its commentary, particularly on how people are radicalised by influential figures, is still insightful for a mainstream show. True, it's a little on the nose but it largely works. Both seasons have really developed well in delivering thrills and expanding scope and I hope to see a new season starting soon!

 

 

1. Sweet Tooth

 

This wasn't actually especially close, I did really like my top 5 shows, but there were noticeable flaws in four our of five of them, whereas this largely maintained the quality all the way through. Sweet Tooth is appropriate for our times not just because of its main story that was obviously rather well-timed of a virus breaking out that turns newborn babies into 'Hybrids' with animal features and becoming complete outcasts of society, but also reminding us of the affection and spirits that make us up as humans. Sweet Tooth is a really great feel-good story with likeable characters and an intriguing and compelling set of stories giving three different perspectives on the growing outbreak. It reminds us of the best and worst qualities of us as humans and just feels particularly prescient at the time it comes out. I really would recommend this as it manages to succeed in most areas and be a very entertaining and accessible show, it really helped to perk me up this year.

 

Tomorrow, I will do some albums!

 

 

 

 

Albums

 

So I listened to a lot more albums/EPs than last year and have grown a much bigger appreciation for them as a piece of work after my lockdown listening challenge in 2020, I still can't find time for a lot of them, guess it's a combination of not having a lot of time and just being distracted by other media, but I'm getting there. I have ranked the ten best.

 

6. Billie Eilish – Happier Than Ever

7. Floating Points, Pharoah Sanders and the London Symphony Orchestra – Promises

8. Sufjan Stevens & D’Angelo Wallace – A Beginner’s Mind

9. Fix8:Sed8 – The Inevitable Relapse

10. Taylor Swift - Evermore

 

Evermore was a carry-over from last year, it's another lovely set of songs from Taylor which while the songs are a little more country-pop flavoured than the indie-folk of its sister album, they have lost none of the maturity and brilliant songwriting that she has grown into, I've been very hit and miss with Taylor overall, but in recent years, I have grown a huge admiration for her as a popstar and this is especially apparent in the re-recording of Red, but I'll get to that later as a certain song there will feature in my songs list. Fix8:Sed8 was an underground, industrial-fused artist I discovered on my New Music playlists and has apparently been around for quite a few years, this led me to his other material and his recent release. If you remember my BJSC entry, Human Harvest (it bombed there so I don't blame you if not x), its harsh synths, murky production, Dalek-like, mechanical vocals, and crashing and erratic atmosphere persist throughout the album, chillingly titled The Inevitable Relapse. It's certainly an acquired taste, but if that is your taste, you'll love it.

 

Sufjan Stevens, hot off the heels of his album last year and recently a firm favourite of myself, has teamed up with his folk protege D'Angelo Wallace to deliver a quirky album where all of the songs were inspired by a diverse range of movies (list here) which he wrote directly in response to them, you don't have to have seen the movies to get the song, there's a song written in response to The Silence of the Lambs that contains no reference to fava beans and a nice chianti, but it's more a point of inspiration to write a story, a creative writing exercise if you do. The music itself is typically lovely from Sufjan, the two have such similar voices it's easy to see this as another solo project, and while there are no classics and the concept makes it sound cooler than it is, it's a very worthwhile listen of this endlessly creative mind. Floating Points et al. was one I saw at the top of many AOTY lists and couldn't help but be curious, this is less an album and more one extended piece that is at times extremely subtle and at times bursting with life, a combination of classical, electronic and jazz, it is a rather hypnotising and moving piece that keeps your attention. It may be something of an acquired taste and does require close attention otherwise you may miss the subtleties and mistake it for simple background music, but it's worth it.

 

And finally the sophomore effort from Billie Eilish, which was in many ways equal with her debut and in some ways, better as she is gradually maturing and truly reaching the full potential of her sound and so there is a lot less filler than last time. It is in many ways When We All Fall Asleep...'s opposite as the title is rather ironic and the moody, dark atmosphere persist throughout unlike the playful and edgy debut. Its slow-tempo numbers are generally to the record's detriment and her releasing all of them before the record did considerably dampen my excitement, but there's an awful lot of style changes here that it's worth giving a go. She has one in my songs list which I will discuss there, but particular recommendations would be Oxytocin, Goldwing, and the haunting spoken-language piece of Not My Responsibility.

 

 

1. NYX & Gazelle Twin – Deep England

2. Self Esteem – Prioritise Pleasure

3. La Femme – Paradigmes

4. CHVRCHES – Screen Violence

5. Wolf Alice – Blue Weekend

 

Starting off the top 5 is Wolf Alice, who have cemented themselves as indie darlings of the press (the British press at least, American based reviews seemed less keen from my own observation) this year with the highly anticipated Blue Weekend, I'd never listened to an album from them before, but I did really like a few songs from them (Don't Delete the Kisses mainly <3) and the stunning lead single, The Last Man on Earth (more on that in my singles countdown) and the fun rock of Smile convinced me to give it a go and it was worth it. It's a brilliantly cinematic album (with a few detours in sound to their more standard pop punk sound) with a huge soundscape that often harkens back to the 80s and power pop and it suits them very well. Delicious Things is a particular standout for me which I wish had been a pre-album single. On the other hand, a band I've loved for almost a decade now CHVRCHES returned with the horror movie-inspired Screen Violence and while I was underwhelmed with their last era outside a few releases, this was the bounce back they needed and probably their best album since their debut. They again have a fair few singles coming later, but both lead singles were striking and wonderful in their own ways and the album itself has a pleasing dark array of sounds that reflect their own experiences as musicians combined with an interesting take on the horror genre (Final Girl is a particularly meta take on the concept), through it all, it still has their phenomental electro-rock production which has never lost it's shine a decade on, a creative return to form for sure.

 

Paradigmes is an odd beast - I could rank it much higher or much lower depending on what song I come across, but it undeniably was one of the most memorable albums of the year. La Femme was only a band I know that popped up in BJSC a while back, and I heard of their new release via my new music playlist, but after hearing the first few singles from this album, it may as well been from a number of different artists, they all sounded so different, and hearing the album is similar to this. I kid you not, there are so many genre shifts on here from lounge R'n'B (Pasadena), Disco (Nouvelles Orleans), Big band (Paradigme), electro-house (Divine Creature), comedy/parody something (Foreigner), synthpop (La Sang do mon prochain) and even country (Lâcher de chevaux). It's such a spectacle behold and I've never known an artist try so many different things before, maybe this is what they do often, but they'll definitely be on my radar for future releases. Self Esteem has really broken through from obscurity this year and the high praise directed at the album meant I had to check it out, I'm glad I did as while there isn't anything quite as inspiring as BJSC smash I Do This All the Time, it's a very diverse and honestly written album that really strikes you with how well written the lyrics and how distinctive the production becomes, there's callbacks to both Kate Bush and Kanye West in the mix and the production remains intensified by the choir throughout. It definitely feels like her opening statement as an artist even if it's not her first album and she deserves all the praise directed at her.

 

But the number 1 album for me, well, EP, I suppose that would give it an advantage, it may be the timing it was released, in a time when the romantic view of English history and green and pleasant land of past times has been well and truly shattered be it by recent events or just a gradual reassessment of history, or it may just be that nothing sounds quite like it released the year and it's one of the most striking, daring and unsettling things I've heard this year. The combination of the choral voices of the NYX choir and the murky, distorted production of Gazelle Twin creates something truly that sounds both classic and original, and not of this world even. A lot of the tracks have slow, creeping build ups, starting off simple and dainty and taking on classic songs from English folk like Jerusalem and Fire Leap and over time, turning distorted, messy and unsettling so that it evolves into something you're not sure what you're listening to. Whether it be intepreting the new lyrics or the clear strength of the production, it really is one of the most innovative and timely releases that is definitely an acquired taste, but those that do acquire that, you will love it x

 

Nice to see Billie Eilish, Taylor Swift, CHVRCHES and Wolf Alice in your Year-End top 10 albums list!

Great list so far!

Thank you for commenting, hope you enjoy the singles too ^_^

 

-x-

 

OK, time to start the singles! I'm pleased to say I have made it to a whole top 40 this year :o I've been largely checking acclaimed music blogs as well, being the snob that I am, to see what the best new things to listen to are, and I hope to be more up to date with that in 2022. Not done a list of commiserations, but I'll give a shout out to Brutal by Olivia Rodrigo, that's way better than anything I expected to come from her.

 

Now for the main stuff~

 

 

 

36. Lil Nas X – Montero (Call Me By Your Name)

37. VNV Nation – When is the Future?

38. Little Simz feat. Cleo - Woman

39. Coldplay – Higher Power

40. Nathan Evans – Wellerman (Original)

 

A mix of big hits and smaller discoveries, some from this here forum. Ones you may know come from Lil Nas X with one of the biggest and controversial hits of the year. Lil Nas X has gamed the industry very well, not necessarily producing the greatest music but always doing something unique and giving people something to talk about, and you don't get much more controversial than an explicit, erotic R'n'B track with an equally erotic video involving him giving the Devil a lap dance after being sent to hell for his homosexuality. A wonderfully daring and brave take that pissed off all the right people and I'm here for it. The song itself is great too though, with a Latin guitar vibe and more soulful performance. Great callback to the film as well. Coldplay are always favourites, but I won't lie I've had mixed feelings towards this sellout era, I probably will still listen to the album as it just doesn't feel right to not listen to it, but no more My Universe's please x Anyway, Higher Power, despite taking a while to grow on me, did eventually click, it's polished production combined with the typically lovely vocals and anthemic vibe made it really click with me as the year went on. And finally, Wellerman, what a weird thing to blow up on TikTok, I guess lockdown made us all a bit longing for the sea? That's the only theory I have, but I'm here for it. I can't say I was that familiar with it however long it's been around, but it's great to see an acapella pirate anthem get so big. Shame it was instead a dull, uninspired dance remix that got to number 1 (also less than 2 minutes long, really? How can people have that little attention span?! :manson: #rant), but let me take this moment to credit the original and it's stripped back pirate goodness. Can we do the same with What Can We Do With a Drunken Sailor next year, please?

 

The lesser-known songs would be the more under-the-radar Little Simz, though her critical acclaim has certainly brought her a lot more attention this year. I heard Woman many times on early morning radio 1 and was always intrigued to find out more, the verses had an excellent flow and hushed production and then the chorus really brings it to life, the two different tones really suit the song well and make it real head-bopper. I still intend to listen to her album, it's gotta be good with all this acclaim right? And finally, one from BJSC, VNV Nation was one of my top pointers in the brilliant first contest of the year, a lot of the songs from there really soundtracked the gloomy month of January very well, and this Depeche Mode-Esque, darkwave-inspired, lyrically cryptic song was perfect to exercise to. When is the future indeed? :thinking:

 

Yasss VNV *.* thanks for the huge points. Also I never envisioned WITF doing well let alone nearly win at all. My expectations were probably low also due to sending them 4 years prior only to narrowly miss out on qualifying. What a song it is though. Very hybrid Michael Stipe sound alike voice on the vocal sections lol.

 

'Higher Power' is decent enough but it's not one I really go out of my way for to listen to when checking out recent Coldplay songs oops. 'My Universe' is the superior single for me.

 

'Montero' is OK but I'm not a massive fan.

Edited December 26, 20213 yr by Christmas Roba

"Montero", "Higher Power" and "Wellerman" are all 3 good songs!

"Higher Power" being my favourite, it could make my top 100 of the year!

When Is The Future was a decent BJSC entry from this year, the heavy syths work well! I've heard 'Point & Kill' from Little Simz this year but not heard 'Woman' yet, it's sounding quite nice hearing it now though! Those smooth vibes work very well.

MONTERO was such a moment in pop culture, seeing it debut at #1 was thrilling as it looked to be a close match at the time!

Thanks for all the comments guys <3 ^_^

 

-x-

 

 

31. Maneskin – ZITTI E BUONI

32. THE ANXIETY – Meet Me at Our Spot

33. Midnight Danger – To the Shadows and Back

34. Bo Burnham – Welcome to the Internet

35. Lost Girls & Jenny Hval – Carried By Invisible Bodies

 

Some lesser-known to mid-lesser known (if that's a thing) songs here. One name you may recognise are Eurovision winners Maneskin, I'm pleased to say this Eurovision contained a fair few songs that were real keepers which hasn't happened for me personally since Only Teardrops way back in 2013. The winning song was a great, edgy pop-infused punk, like Royal Blood mixed with classic 70s era punk in a still-accessible package with some beautiful guitar and vocal work. It was a worthy winner and I'm pleased yet surprised that it catapulted them to worldwide success. I wish I liked their English language stuff, but honestly, it's so much more basic and watered down than this that it's ultimately been a disappointment. Still, though they'll always have this x THE ANXIETY (great name) AKA Willow Smith and Tyler Cole had a late chart hit this year with this song, introduced to me purely through early morning Radio 1, but it really stood out to me and had a wonderful, anthemic chorus with comparatively restrained production to allow both their voices to shine through. Apparently, the live version is better but...I haven't heard that to compare soooo...CALL A VIBE, BABY ARE YOU COMING FOR A RIDE

 

Welcome to the Internet by Bo Burnham is probably the most striking and standout song from the Inside special, it's a brilliantly written, composed, and performed song that condenses one of the many themes of the Inside special. Starting as a comic, faux-sinister comedy song about modern trends on the internet and veering wildly between subjects such as tips for straining pasta and dead nine-year-olds and the brilliant line 'Apathy's a tragedy/Boredom is a crime', you may mistake it as a simple Weird-Al style parody, but as with many songs on the album, there's a more sinister, genuinely concerned feeling that emerges as the track gains steam and the music picks up as the character becomes much more intensive and scary and the images much darker before a refrain where the narrator genuinely seems to reflect on what the internet was before today and the main theme then gains more control. It's really quite something to listen to and can make you feel many things, the sign of a truly great record.

 

Another one of my BJSC picks, Midnight Danger is a classically retro synthwave act and this song, along with a suitably suspenseful movie video, captures that excellent horror theme that 80s synthwave portrays so well, there's no wonder so many acts of this ilk exist when it's so easy to make the styles match. It'll make you wish they were around in the 80s to actually soundtrack those horror films. Finally, a distinctive song from the Norwegian art-pop duo Lost Girls, which consists of Jenny Hval and Havard Volden, the former of which I have heard quite a few great songs from. The six-minute song consists of a dreamy building instrumental section before a spoken monologue comes in that closes the track out that bears an interesting light on the creative process in writing, which is one of the core themes of the album. It's always engaging and keeps you guessing at where it's going, recommended if you want a profound and intriguing soundscape that's sadly fallen under the radar this year.

 

Seeing "Meet Me At Our Spot" and "ZITTI E BUONI" on there makes me happy.

I agree that Maneskin's italian songs are more enjoyable than their english songs.

Meet Me at Our Spot is one of the best songs to reach the chart this year, I've always really liked male and female voices together so to have that to such a nice chilled-back indie track was lovely. Very happy to see it reach the Top 10 officially!

Loving your top albums - Billie, Taylor, CHVRCHES and Wolf Alice definitely soundtracked my 2021 too! Great to see Montero, ZITTI E BUONI and Meet Me At Our Spot in your top 40, ZITTI especially was a welcome chart smash :wub: