It’s always a good year for music, but Covid didn’t slow down the production of top quality tunes. Here’s our top tracks of 2021. 

 

Honourable Mention: Moby is 11 and 12

This year, Moby released ‘Reprise’, comprised of new versions of his now classic songs, with high calibre guest vocalists and new arrangements. If our team had been able to decide on just one of the songs from this album, it would have charted highly… However, our notes, and our handy ‘yes we’re spying on you but isn’t this fun’ end of year recaps revealed we’d absolutely loved two different songs: new takes on Why Does My Heart Feel So Bad and Extreme Ways. And you know what happens when two good things split a vote? They both lose, which is why we couldn’t decide and are adding them here as ’11 and 12’, but let’s face it, our top 12 songs isn’t as snappy.

 

 

 

10: El Camino by Evan Bartels

Evan Bartels could read the Gruffalo and make it sound like he was stuck in a small US town, drinking too much bourbon and dreaming of biking out. El Camino was off a brilliant album called ‘Lonesome’, and you know what, it was best listened to with too much bourbon and a google of bikes. The whole album is worth a spin.

 

 

 

9: Get Better by Alt-J

In an era when most people have been touched by a certain illness, Alt J released a song about longing for your loved one to get better and did so in a genuinely touching, stripped down and for them straightforward way. This isn’t a wanky get well soon, this was a heartstring being tapped.

 

 

8: Keep Moving by Jungle

If Lorde was opening up the summertime sadness, Jungle’s Keep Moving opened up a door to pure fun and serotonin injections. It’s was cool and carefree, with not one iota of regret or worry, and it’ll be on adverts for the next ten years, so best burn yourself out on it now.

 

 

 

7: Nice While It Lasted by Famous

There’s just something about the way Famous whisper ‘please try not to die’ into your ear over discordant sounds and propulsive beats that grabbed us. Nice While It Lasted managed to be thrilling enough to not simply be a creepy midnight hallucination, a cut of dark pop that walked side by side with ‘Stars’ and Modern Times on an EP that could well end up being quoted on some psych reports somewhere: The Valley.

 

 

 

6: The Gospel of Judas by Lord of the Lost

Throughout lockdown LOTL impressed us with their humour, humanity and response to the world as well as a quality back catalogue for us to listen to, and there were multiple tracks we could have picked off their Judas album. They embraced a critic who thought ‘Symbol of a Dying Scene’ was an insult, and ensured a god few years were added.

 

 

 

5: Chaise Lounge by Wet Leg

The song that propelled Wet Leg into all the rising star lists was a mix of cheeky charm, effortless cool and the sort of fun that would find you waking in the middle of a circus three days later and regretting none of it.

 

 

 

4: Good 4 u by Olivia Rodrigo

Olivia had a few problems when it came to citing inspiration, but Good 4 u was the absolute pop high point of the year, a break up song that perfectly mixed devastated broken hearts with sheer raging anger, as well as something you could sing over and over.

 

 

 

3: The Last Man on Earth by Wolf Alice

The Last Man on Earth was a puzzle box of a song, glorious on first listen and something you could dig into, exploring over repeat listens, and visiting many different emotions… It was a Oscar winning movie of a film, from the art days when things were layered and rewarding. 

 

 

 

2: How Not To Drown by CHVRCHES and Robert Smith

CHVRCHES put together a brilliant song with some absolutely superb imagery and weren’t too proud not to bring in Robert Smith to smash a dual vocal which gave the texture we often find the band lacking. The result was surely an evergreen song for meeting 3am thoughts head on.

 

 

 

1: Mood Ring by Lorde

In one song Lorde captured the sense of blunted emptiness many are feeling after months of Covid stress while satirising the entire New Age movement of the last seventy years, all while making the listener feel warm and understood. It didn’t fit in with the rest of 2021’s pop music, but why should it. We also need to add, Solar Power got a huge vote of support among the Supajam team.