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Year in Tiers 2021 - The Hollywood Handshakes

Our top tier this year is the best of the best, cream of the crop, most precious of accolades - The Hollywood Handshakes. Sure, you may win a technical challenge or even be this week's star baker, but that shit gets handed out every episode. Hollywood Handshakes - those are reserved for the highest of achievements. Even if they do sound vaguely pornographic for those uninitiated with the Great British Baking Show...


#10. The Cyclic Reckoning by Suffering Hour

If there was a grammy for sickest guitar tone of the year, these mother fuckers just won it. With a distortion that sounds like it was recorded on the Necronomican equivalent of a cassette tape "The Cyclic Reckoning" is a punishing, melodic black metal album full of staggering guitar work highlighted by some impressive percussion. Especially on "Transcending Antecedent Visions", the drums really elevate the proceedings past what you've come to expect from black metal. But the best track here is still "The Abrassive Black Dust Part II" which is just fucking phenomenal.


#9. Call Me If You Get Lost by Tyler, The Creator

Tyler's had a pretty weird ass career trajectory but "Call Me If You Get Lost" takes you on that sonic journey with him in the most comprehensive collection of his musical genius to date. You get glimpses of the horror core roots of "Goblin" mixed in with "Igor"-esque ballad pit stops, all culminating in what feels like a care free victory lap for a rapper who's put in the work on his "artistic expression" bit and now just wants to drop some crowd friendly bops to tour the world on. Similar to Kendrick's "DAMN", this is an industry titan just adding another gem to his infinity gauntlet.


#8. PROOF by Downhaul

Certainly one of the most unique albums of the year, Downhaul's "PROOF" sounds like the indie alt-country love child of Interpol and Murder By Death raised on a steady diet of R.E.M. The desolate quarry rock echoes out a deep, harrowing atmosphere into every track and brings a vivid personality throughout the entirety of the record. The 7 minute opening track "Bury" establishes the tone beautifully but it's the closer "About Leaving" that steals the show. However, a record with this complete a sound deserves to be heard front to back to be fully appreciated.


#7. POPMORTEM by Virginity

If there was a werewolf that transformed from Dikembe to Rozwell Kid, Virginity would be the halfway point. And while it would be easy to lump Virginity in with all of the other alt-rock revival acts we've heard recently, there are a ton of influences seeping out here that make them much more than just another Weezer descendent, power pop act. Yes, they do pack a plethora of face melting guitar riffs but they also display traces of Dillinger Four's subversive brand of pop choruses wrapped in vocals that could be mistaken for Brand New's bratty little brother. And while "Nosferattitude" and "You Can't Stop the Machine" are certainly the most accessible tracks on the record (and kick tons of ass in their own right) I think "What's the Point?" still might be the best track from this young group searching for meaning on their much more introspective and well developed sophomore effort.


#6. Navy's Reprise by Navy Blue

Packing an impeccable, classical sounding production under smooth, flawless bars - Navy Blue delivers the most unbelievably seamless and consistent hip hop album of the year with "Navy's Reprise". Listen to the standout track "Ritual", a song reminiscent of late '90s NYC style the likes of which would fit nicely among early Nas or Jay-Z records. Navy Blue is a throwback for sure, and yet his refined delivery and succinct song lengths feels like a fine tuning of a bygone era. Taking the aesthetics of his hip hop ancestors and applying modern sensibilities to make the recipe more appealing to present day audiences. It's a beautifully woven tapestry that never leans entirely on it's nostalgic appeal, but definitely doesn't shy away from it's influences either. It's a remarkable breakthrough album for an exciting young talent in hip hop.


#5. Texis by Sleigh Bells

To be honest, I kind of thought Sleigh Bells would have run it's course by now. The relentlessly energetic cheerleader chanted vocals over stadium guitar riffs has had diminishing returns with each outing up to this point but goddamn "Texis" absolutely blew all expectations out of the fucking water. This thing has riffs for fucking days and the hooks have never been this infectious. Sleigh Bells are hitting their stride with tracks like "Locust Laced" and "Tennessee Tips" pulsating through your speakers with an intoxicating energy you wont find anywhere else this year. But perhaps what makes this their most triumphant effort to date is the range they display, encapsulated perfectly on the album's closing track "True Seekers" - a phenomenal ballad that reveals a depth to this duo I wouldn't have previously known was there. Easily the biggest surprise of the year for me and the best electronic album of 2021.


#4. Bloodmoon: I by Converge and Chelsea Wolfe

After "Birth of Violence", I was really hoping that Chelsea Wolfe would revert to more metal backing in her music, as she did with her 2017 album "Hiss Spun" - but goddamn, I didn't think she'd go this fucking hard and partner with the best hardcore act of our generation. Her hauntingly ethereal bellows cast the arrangements of Converge in a stunning new light, bringing out a symphonic elegance to the chaos they so masterfully conduct. It's a whole new dimension for the journeymen pioneers of metalcore and finds them conjuring an intoxicating fusion of atmospheric sludge, power metal riffs and gothic western ambiance. It's stunning that Converge, a band 30 years deep into their careers, can still break new ground like this. And even though the band has a staggeringly consistent track record, I still think this might be their best release since their seminal masterpiece "Jane Doe". A true collaboration of the highest order that brings each out the best in each artist while evoking a new sound altogether. And I hate to be greedy but the existence of a Bloodmoon: I does suggest that there might also be a Bloodmoon: II, right?


#3. Smiling With No Teeth by Genesis Owusu

There were a ton of impressive debuts this year, but perhaps none more staggering than Australian powerhouse Genesis Owusu. While some may categorize it as abstract or experimental hip hop, there's far more musical ingenuity on display here. Take the neo-soul, funk-pop trademarks of Frank Ocean or Anderson Paak mixed with the technical, boundary pushing innovations of Death Grips or late 80's Prince. Yeah, it's that fucking wild. And the only reason it isn't my album of the year (even though "Waitin' On Ya" definitely is the song of the year) is because the album is so overwhelmingly consistent in the first 8 tracks and the final 6 feel like tacked on leftovers. But for a debut album, this is incredible. And a talent this explosive is bound to be unstoppable the more he refines and builds upon his craft. And this is an incredible foundation to be built on.


#2. SOUR by Olivia Rodrigo

The most dynamic new voice in pop music to emerge since Lizzo (or maybe even Lorde), Olivia Rodrigo's debut record reminds me a lot of "Because of I Love You" in that essentially every song is about the same thing and yet there's so much personality and perspective applied to each and every arrangement that it doesn't fucking matter. Her songwriting and vocal melodies are that fucking good. Her teenage vulnerabilities and insecurities are universally relatable and her uniquely thoughtful, gen-z outlook makes this feel like the next Taylor Swift (but with infinitely more humility and none of the bitchy Mean Girl mentality). From "Brutal" to "Deja Vu" to "Happier", it's honestly hard for me to even pick a favorite track here - they all slap. Believe the fucking hype. There's a reason everyone's coming for a piece of this girl's success, because she's about to take the fuck over (if she hasn't already).


#1. I Became Birds by Home Is Where

How does this record sound so fucking full and cover so much terrain in just 18 minutes?! It's staggering. This is a manifesto delivered in the length of an adult swim cartoon. Heralded as the ushers for "5th wave emo" - Home Is Where takes the power pop sensibilities of midwest emo and mixes in the expansive instrumentation made popular in mid-2000's indie rock scene (like subtle string sections, keyboard backing, harmonica, and the occasional trumpet flare for triumphant punctuation) but then it's delivered as if Jeff Mangum started a post hardcore band that could open for At The Drive In. Home is Where brings a welcomed dose of aggression that's been sorely missing in the punk scene for sometime. Sure, "Long Distance Conjoined Twins" might fit nicely on a No Sleep Records comp but between the stream of consciousness style lyricism and the unhinged screams delivered by singer Brandon MacDonald - there's an abrasive experimentation to Home Is Where that makes the "5th wave emo" label feel far too reductive. There's a manic and infectious energy pulsating through every track that makes this feel far more like an exploration in melding their own musical concoction rather than reviving worn terrain or kicking off the "5th wave" of anything. The recipe is absolutely perfected on "Assisted Harakiri" - one of the best songs of the year and the perfect encapsulation of the range of emotion this band can tap into on any given song. It's like they know exactly how to hit a raw nerve with each impression they make. And this debut album is one of the most remarkable first impressions punk rock has offered up in quite a while.


View the Rest of the 2021 Year in Tiers Here:



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