Episode 112 - Top Ten Albums of 2021 (and 40 or so more!)

This episode starts with a brief tribute to a personal friend and is dedicated to Jon (aka Jonco). The episode was fully recorded prior to the tribute, so you don't have to be bummed out for long.

The other hour of it is a breakdown of 2021 in music (through my eyes) and I give you my top ten favorite albums of the year and about 40 runners up! It's a fun, high energy episode after the sad part. So dig it!

No time index this week since it's just one topic. But be sure to e-mail me at db@derekbrink.com with anything your heart desires!

And here's a bunch of photos. In order to prevent spoilers, here 15 albums, in alphabetical order. Listen to the show to find out their place on the list!

Here's the cover. Getting this picture wasn't easy.

It's no secret that I'm a big Tony Bennett fan. It's maybe a little lesser known that I also adore Lady Gaga. Their voices mix together beautifully and even though the songs are classics, they all feel fresh and vital. Great album. And probably Tony's last.

David Crosby proves he's still got it any time he's anywhere near a microphone. Which means on this one, he proves he's still got it ten times. It's a beautiful record. His voice has never sounded better and his songwriting has never been stronger. The songs will be stuck in your head on the first listen. I promise. (Not bindingly, of course.)

I'm a huge Descendents fan. This album is a little weird because it was mostly recorded in the 90s, but Milo did the vocals in 2020. So... That's odd. But it's still great, fun, kinda dorky punk rock. What's not to love?

Steve Earle's stunning tribute to his son Justin, who passed away at the age of 38. Most of the songs are songs Justin wrote. The last one is Steve recounting the last conversation he and Justin had. There are a lot of moments on the album that are fun, right up until Steve breaks your heart. I don't even know how he got through MAKING it. Least I could do is list it.

Cool merger of Jazz, Electronica, and the goddamn London Symphony Orchestra. It's ambient. It's beautiful. It's on the list!

Really good offering from The Hold Steady that I've come back to several times this year. Several of these tunes will be on my personal playlists for years and years to come. As the kids possibly still say, "This slaps."

Iron Maiden transcends metal to just being a powerful band that writes epic songs you WANT to get lost in..and they make it easy to do so. Double-disc affair that just keeps delivering the whole time.

I got into Japanese Breakfast by accident, but I KEPT listening on purpose. Beautiful music with a little bit of an edge. You'll want to hear this one on one of those sunny days where it's ALSO raining...y'know those?

Jazz is Dead is a cool series where two guys write great grooves then invite Jazz giants to play on them. Volume 6 features Gary Bartz and is my favorite of the (presently) 10 volumes they've put out.

Aimee Mann's "chamber pop" record based on the memoir "Girl, Interrupted" by Susanna Kaysen. It's a perfect marriage of subject matter and execution. Aimee was MEANT to make this record and Kaysen's book was MEANT to be filtered through Aimee's gifts. Aimee Mann keeps giving us depressed people reminders that we're not in this alone, and this album goes the extra mile to virtually reach out and ask, "Hey...you good? Can I help?" Yes, Aimee...you can...and you did.

Mastodon is back with a two disk, gloomy, doomy, heavy, epic. And I'm here for every minute of it.

Modest Mouse presents a psychedelic masterpiece that is just as dreamy as it is engaging. Though they greet you with "Fuck Your Acid Trip" it's clear that's just an invitation to join them on the trip THEY have laid out instead. So. Do that.

Buffalo Nichols is offering the most vital roots music you've heard in years. I can say a lot, but it boils down to this... If Robert Johnson were alive and someone asked him what musicians to look out for, he'd say, "Keep an eye on Buffalo Nichols. That kid's got it."

Prince is back! Kinda! As you know he died several years ago, but he stashed away an asston of unreleased music in a vault. And this is one of those albums. And it's a GREAT fucking Prince record. You don't need me to tell you it's great. You know it just by looking at the cover.

Americana darlings Son Volt prove why they're one of the best names to ever come out (and redefine) the genre. A record that feels as warm and familiar as it does new and fresh. It's fantastic. And I don't just say that because I'm from St. Louis.