top 200 albums of 2021 presents:

In the past year, WRIR DJs played 52,000+ songs from 6,700+ albums, EPs, and singles released in 2021. These included 300+ recordings from local artists and bands. Below is a chart of the top 200 albums and EPs (local in bold).

1 Lucy Dacus Home Video Matador
2 Prabir Trio Haanji self-released
3 PJ Sykes Fuzz Cherub
4 Book of Wyrms Occult New Age Desert
5 Dry Cleaning New Long Leg 4AD
6 Goat Girl On All Fours Rough Trade
7 Mdou Moctar Afrique Victime Matador
8 The Notwist Vertigo Days Morr Music
9 Squid Bright Green Field Warp
10 Vaudou Game NOUSSIN Hot Casa
11 La Luz La Luz Hardly Art
12 La Femme Paradigmes Disque Pointu
13 black midi Cavalcade Rough Trade
14 Evidence Unlearning, Vol. 1 Rhymesayers
15 Angélica Garcia Echo Eléctrico – EP Spacebomb
16 Low Hey What Sub Pop
17 Snapped Ankles Forest of Your Problems The Leaf Label
18 Johnny Ciggs Paradise Gritty City
19 Mogwai As the Love Continues Rock Action
20 Hiatus Kaiyote Mood Valiant Brainfeeder
21 Anika Change Sacred Bones
22 Tyler, the Creator CALL ME IF YOU GET LOST Columbia
23 Julien Baker Little Oblivions Matador
24 McKinley Dixon For My Mama and Anyone Who Look Like Her Spacebomb
25 Japanese Breakfast Jubilee Dead Oceans
26 Bacao Rhythm & Steel Band Expansions Big Crown
27 Bachelor Doomin’ Sun Polyviny
28 Melissa Carper Daddy’s Country Gold Mae Music
29 Teenage Fanclub Endless Arcade Merge
30 Yola Stand For Myself Easy Eye Sound
31 Sierra Ferrell Long Time Coming Rounder
32 Pink Siifu & Fly Anakin $mokebreak Lex
33 Atmosphere WORD? Rhymesayers
34 Jon Batiste WE ARE Verve
35 Junnie Mac Peace, Mercy & Blessings Purple Republic/Monsta Inc
36 Sault Nine Forever Living Originals
37 Nas King’s Disease II Mass Appeal
38 Various Artists Cameroon Garage Funk Analog Africa
39 Beex The Early Years: 1979-1982 Beach Impediment
40 Madlib Sound Ancestors Fat Beats
41 Little Simz Sometimes I Might Be Introvert AGE 101
42 Vanishing Twin Ookii Gekkou Fire
43 Clinic Fantasy Island Domino
44 Béla Fleck My Bluegrass Heart Renew
45 Amythyst Kiah Wary + Strange Rounder
46 Sally Rose Tread Light self-released
47 Dinosaur Jr. Sweep It Into Space Jagjaguwar
48 Mannequin Pussy Perfect – EP Epitaph
49 Matthew E. White K Bay Domino
50 Various Artists Griselda & BSF: Conflicted (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) Griselda
51 The Mommyheads Age of Isolation Mommyheads Music
52 Gruff Rhys Seeking New Gods Rough Trade
53 Godspeed You! Black Emperor G_d’s Pee AT STATE’S END! Constellation
54 FACS Present Tense Trouble In Mind
55 IDLES CRAWLER Partisan
56 Sons Of Kemet Black To The Future Impulse!
57 St. Vincent Daddy’s Home Loma Vista
58 Mach-Hommy Pray For Haiti Griselda
59 Benét Game Over! – EP Bayonet
60 Various Artists The Village Out West: The Lost Tapes of Alan Oakes Smithsonian Folkways
61 Holiday Ghosts North Street Air FatCat
62 The Weather Station Ignorance Fat Possum
63 Flock of Dimes Head of Roses Sub Pop
64 Fake Fruit Fake Fruit Rocks In Your Head
65 DMX Exodus Def Jam
66 The Catenary Wires Birling Gap Shelflife
67 Altın Gün Yol ATO
68 JP Harris’ Dreadful Wind and Rain Don’t You Marry No Railroad Man Free Dirt
69 TV Priest Uppers Sub Pop
70 Fly Anakin Pixote Mutant Academy
71 Kiwi jr. Cooler Returns Sub Pop
72 Les Filles De Illighadad At Pioneer Works Sahel Sounds
73 Cassandra Jenkins An Overview on Phenomenal Nature Ba Da Bing!
74 Hovvdy True Love Grand Jury Music
75 Various Artists Edo Funk Explosion, Vol. 1 Analog Africa
76 Fruit Bats The Pet Parade Merge
77 Valerie June The Moon And Stars: Prescriptions For Dreamers Fantasy
78 DJ Harrison Tales from the Old Dominion Stones Throw
79 Matt Sweeney & Bonnie “Prince” Billy Superwolves Drag City
80 Floating Points & Pharoah Sanders Promises (feat. London Symphony Orchestra) Luaka Bop
81 Illa Styles IllaVeRs Monsta Inc
82 L’Rain Fatigue Mexican Summer
83 Butcher Brown ENCORE – EP Concord Jazz
84 Matthew E. White & Lonnie Holley Broken Mirror: A Selfie Reflection Spacebomb
85 Colleen The Tunnel and the Clearing Thrill Jockey
86 Peter Rosenberg Real Late Real Late
87 Cedric Burnside I Be Trying Single Lock
88 Gusher Bleed Out self-released
89 Giant Big Talk Vintage Youth
90 Nightshift Zöe Trouble In Mind
91 Mythic Sunship Wildfire Tee Pee
92 BlackLiq x Mopes Time Is the Price Strange Famous
93 TEKE::TEKE Shirushi Kill Rock Stars
94 Durand Jones & The Indications Private Space Dead Oceans
95 Reymour Leviosa Knekelhuis
96 Sufjan Stevens & Angelo De Augustine A Beginner’s Mind Asthmatic Kitty
97 João Selva Navegar Underdog
98 José Carlos Schwarz & Le Cobiana Djazz Lua Ki Di Nos Hot Mule
99 gnawing You Freak Me Out Refresh
100 Lord Huron Long Lost Whispering Pines / Republic
101 Armand Hammer & The Alchemist Haram Backwoodz Studioz
102 Ships in the Night Latent Powers Cleopatra
103 The Reds, Pinks & Purples Uncommon Weather Slumberland
104 Cimafunk El Alimento Terapia
105 Various Artists As Has It Never Met A Stranger
106 Umphrey’s McGee YOU WALKED UP SHAKING IN YOUR BOOTS BUT YOU STOOD TALL AND LEFT A RAGING BULL Nothing Too Fancy Music
107 Shannon & The Clams Year Of The Spider Easy Eye Sound
108 Theravada Xenophon 2000 ENT.
109 The Umbrellas The Umbrellas Slumberland
110 Kev Brown & J Scienide Stray From the Pack Fat Beats
111 Doja Cat Planet Her Kemosabe
112 Enforced Kill Grid Century Media
113 Death from Above 1979 Is 4 Lovers Everything Eleven Inc.
114 Helado Negro Far In 4AD
115 Boldy James & The Alchemist Bo Jackson ALC / Boldy James
116 Gustaf Audio Drag for Ego Slobs Royal Mountain
117 Anansy Cisse Anoura Riverboat
118 Adele 30 Columbia
119 Mikrowaves 20 Up 20 Down Break Em Off
120 Charles Owens Trio 10 Years La Reserve
121 John Hiatt & Jerry Douglas Leftover Feelings New West
122 Bill and the Belles Happy Again Ditty Boom
123 Brijean Feelings Ghostly International
124 Deerhoof Actually, You Can Joyful Noise
125 Emma-Jean Thackray Yellow Movementt
126 AmirSaysNothing Endless Brightside Bright Side Entertainment
127 Watchhouse Watchhouse Thirty Tigers
128 Carcass Torn Arteries Nuclear Blast
129 Douglas Blue Feather Time for Healing self-released
130 The Rabbit These Past Years The Rabbit
131 James Yorkston and The Second Hand Orchestra The Wide, Wide River Domino
132 James McMurtry The Horses and the Hounds New West
133 Lloyd Banks The Course of the Inevitable Money By Any Means / EMPIRE
134 Sleaford Mods Spare Ribs Rough Trade
135 Ayuune Sule Putoo Katare Yire self-released
136 Downhaul Proof Refresh
137 naomiisaac letters from richmond self released
138 Hard Copy Hidden Beat – EP Birds Again
139 Painted Shrines Heaven and Holy Woodsist
140 Field Music Flat White Moon Memphis Industries
141 Cheekface Emphatically No. New Professor
142 Adia Victoria A Southern Gothic Atlantic
143 Monster Magnet A Better Dystopia Napalm Handels GmbH
144 Fiend Thank God Its Fiend FDE
145 The Bevis Frond Little Eden Fire
146 Dedikated Boyz D-Boyz 4Eva self-released
147 Icerocks Crossing the Rubicon 2 Piece Ent.
148 Nura Auf der Suche Vertigo Berlin
149 Prince Welcome 2 America Legacy
150 Middle Kids Today We’re the Greatest Domino
151 Lingua Ignota Sinner Get Ready Sargent House
152 Loraine James Reflection Hyperdub
153 Lou Barlow Reason to Live Joyful Noise
154 Slothrust Parallel Timeline Dangerbird
155 Night Beats Outlaw R&B Fuzz Club
156 Black Country, New Road For the First Time Ninja Tune
157 Drake Certified Lover Boy OVO
158 Hotspit CC – EP avery magoruims wonder emporium
159 pardoner Came Down Different Bar/None
160 Moor Mother Black Encyclopedia of the Air Anti/Epitaph
161 Cool Ghouls At George’s Zoo Melodic / Empty Cellar
162 LUMP Animal Chrysalis
163 Kacey Musgraves star-crossed MCA Nashville
164 Mopes Mopes – EP Strange Famous
165 Vic Spencer Legend Laws of Power Old Fart Luggage
166 Cloud Nothings The Shadow I Remember Carpark
167 Five Mile Mountain Road Swingbilly Swagger Patuxent
168 Motorists Surrounded self-released
169 Massage Still Life Bobo Integral
170 Spread Joy Spread Joy Feel It
171 Solemn Brigham South Sinner Street Mello
172 Robert Finley Sharecropper’s Son Easy Eye Sound
173 Dummy Mandatory Enjoyment Trouble In Mind
174 Bow Ever Down Let It Burn Audio SIC
175 Racquel Jones IgnoRANT Magnetic Moon
176 The Go! Team Get Up Sequences Part One Memphis Industries
177 Melinki Where Do We Go from Here – EP Fokuz
178 NewDad Waves – EP Fair Youth
179 Wednesday Twin Plagues Orindal
180 Six Organs of Admittance The Veiled Sea Three Lobed
181 Okuté Okuté Chulo
182 Andy Stott Never the Right Time Modern Love
183 Illa Styles Mind Your Reality Monsta Inc
184 Aborted ManiaCult Century Media
185 Quivers Golden Doubt Ba Da Bing!
186 Aesop Rock & Blockhead Garbology Rhymesayers
187 Molly Burman Fool Me With Flattery – EP Prolifica / PIAS
188 Young Flexico Dawg Flextopia
189 Beachy Head Beachy Head Graveface
190 Dumpstaphunk Where Do We Go From Here The Funk Garage
191 The Flatlanders Treasure of Love (feat. Butch Hancock, Joe Ely & Jimmie Dale Gilmore) Rack ‘Em / Thirty Tigers
192 Kidi Band So Good Earth Libraries
193 Smoke Bellow Open For Business Trouble In Mind
194 This Is the Kit Off Off Oddities Rough Trade
195 Cha Wa My People Single Lock
196 Le Ren Leftovers Secretly Canadian
197 Young Crazy Interstate 110 CrazyCamp Worldwide
198 Brandi Carlile In These Silent Days Low Country Sound/Elektra
199 Corvair Corvair self-released
200 UV-TV Always Something PaperCup Music

Playlist:

Playlist temporarily unavailable.

    December 31st, 2021

Posted In: Charts

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