WMSE PICKS OF 2021
POSTED:: December 23, 2021
FILED UNDER:: Top Airplay
Maybe there are too many best-of lists by years’ end, but it must be said, that as far as Milwaukee music aficionados go, no group of people knows music, front-to-back, across all genres, than the DJs of WMSE. You see it on our weekly Top Airplay charts and hear it for yourself on your radios and through your headphones and car and computer speakers. WMSE DJs are volunteers because they love music, and it shows: each program is designed, per DJ, to introduce the listener to both old favorites and newly-becoming classics.
Already got a favorite WMSE DJ? Take a peek at what they liked this past year, then check out the rest. You might find your own tastes aligning with DJs whose shows you might not be familiar with. Here’s the best of the best and the favorite of the favorites, from us, to you. Thanks for another great year of Frontier Radio!
The Good John
alternating Fridays 9am – 12pm / The Chicken Shack + The Blues Drive
Buffalo Nichols, s/t
Robert Finley, Sharecropper’s Son
Mike and the Moonpies, One to Grow On
Cody Jinks, Mercy
GA-20, Try It You Might Like It: GA-20 Does Hound Dog Taylor
Gov’t Mule, Heavy Load Blues
Maggie Iken
alternating Thursdays, 6am – 9am / Poundcake Punk
Pinkshift, Saccharine
Amyl & the Sniffers, Comfort to Me
Lorna Shore, …And I Return To Nothingness
Taqbir, s/t
Sincere Engineer, Bless My Psyche
Jeff Redmon, WMSE Underwriting Director
Tom Wanderer, Private Revolution
Chris Tishler, Reach for the Sun
Run The Jewels, RTJ4 (Deluxe Edition)
Mdou Moctar, Afrique Victime
Black Pumas, Live from Capitol Studio A
Juliet
Mondays 9am – 12pm / World Music Mondays
Altın Gün, Yol
Antônio Neves, A Pegada Agora É Essa (The Sway Now)
Balkan Taksim, Disko Telegraf
Céu, APKÁ!
Meridian Brothers, Cumbia Siglo XX
Andy K.
alternating Thursdays, 9am – 12pm / The Five & Dime Show
Karkhana, Al Azraqayn, Kalrecords
Marisa Anderson & William Tyler, Lost Futures, Thrill Jockey
Chris Corsano & Bill Orcutt, Made Out of Sound, Palilalia Records
Jaimie Branch, Fly or Die Live, International Anthem
Whit Dickey, William Parker & Matthew Shipp, Village Mothership, TAO FORMS [reissue]
Marc Ribot, Plays Solo Guitar Works of Frantz Casseus, Knockwurst Records
Black Unity Trio, Al Fatihah, Gotta Groove Records/Salaam Records
Screamers, Demo Hollywood 1977, Superior Viaduct
The Necks, Mindset, ReR MEGACORP
Eric Dolphy, Out To Lunch, Blue Note
Paul Cebar
alternating Wednesdays 9am – 12pm / Way Back Home
Alison Russell, Outside Child
Jon Batiste, WE ARE
Swamp Dogg, Sorry You Couldn’t Make It
Charley Crockett, Music City U.S.A.
Orquesta Akokan, 16 Rayos
Daniel Lanois, Heavy Sun
Erik Void
Fridays 12am – 3am / Everything That Rises Must Converge
Fleeting Joys, All Lost Eyes and Glitter
King Woman, Celestial Blues
Pia Fraus, Now You Know It Still Feels the Same
Kraus, View No Country
Alcian Blue, Collection
Jonny Z
Fridays 9am – 12pm / The Chicken Shack
In no particular order:
V/A, The Secret Museum of Mankind: Guitars Vol. 1: Prologue to Modern Style
V/A, Daptone Super Soul Review: Live at the Apollo
Weezer, Van Weezer
Blackberry Smoke, You Hear Georgia
Monster Magnet, A Better Dystopia
Mike and the Moonpies, One to Grow On
Black Keys, Delta Kream
Tony Joe White, Smoke From the Chimney
Caryn
alternating Sundays 10:30pm – 12am / Female Focus
Larkin Poe & Nu Deco Ensemble, Paint The Roses
Brandi Carlile, In These Silent Days
Amythyst Kiah, Wary + Strange
Chris Pureka, The Longest Year
Just Roxie, We Missed You
Buzz
Mondays 6pm – 9pm / Buzz’s Garage
Amyl & the Sniffers, Comfort To Me, ATO
Control Freaks, Get Some Help, Dirty Water
Jackson Reid Briggs & the Heaters, Waiting In a Corner, Drunken Sailor
The Courettes, Back in Mono, Damaged Goods
Slant, 1집 (First Album), Iron Lung
Bonus Taters:
The Bomboras, Return of the Up Up Sound, MuSick Recordings
Naked Raygun, Over the Overlords, Wax Trax!
Haven
alternating Wednesdays 6am – 9am / Wave Tank
Fatima Al Qadiri, Medieval Femme
Thomas Fehlmann, Böser Herbst
Cindy, I’m Cindy
Danny L Harle, Harlecore
Joy Orbison, 81b
Andy Turner
Fridays 12pm – 3pm / Zero Hour
Reigning Sound , A Little More Time With, Merge
Pat Todd & the Rankoutsiders, …There’s Pretty Things In Palookaville…, Hound Gawd!
Wild Billy Childish & CTMF, Where The Wild Purple Iris Grows, Damaged Goods
Divine Horsemen, Hot Rise of an Ice Cream Phoenix, In The Red
Southern Culture on the Skids, At Home With, Kudzu
Scott Lucey
alternating Wednesdays 6am – 9am / Digital Dumplings In Analog Gravy
Tyler the Creator, Call Me If You Get Lost
Madlib, Sound Ancestors
Anchorsong, Mirage
Tommy Guerrero, Sunshine Radio
El Michels Affair, Yeti Season
Sam Gendel, Fresh Bread
Tom Wanderer
Thursdays 3pm – 6pm / The Tom Wanderer Radio Experience
M. Caye Castagnetto, Leap Second
Alice Coltrane, Kirtan: Turiya Sings
Neil Young and Crazy Horse, Way Down In The Rust Bucket
Shilpa Ray, Bootlickers of the Patriarchy [single]
Mountain Girls, All Bark, All Bite [EP]
Sid McCain, WMSE Promotions Director
Wednesdays 12:30pm – 3pm / Squid Inc.
IDLES, Crawler
Matthew E. White, Kbay
Illuminati Hotties, Let Me Do One More
Amyl & The Sniffers, Comfort to Me
Forty Feet Tall, A Good Distraction
Trapper Schoepp, May Day
Cullah, 1/2
Vincent Van Great & Amanda Huff, Troublemakers
Dark Psychic, Hallucination
Bicentennial Drug Lord, BDL
Mickey Comerford
Mondays 3am – 6am / Promethean Sound
a list of things that made me happy (in another off year):
Mort Garson, Mother Earth’s Plantasia
Roy Ayers, Everybody Loves the Sunshine
R.A.P. Ferreira, Bob’s Son
Nate Mercereau, Joy Techniques
Pan Amsterdam (just check him out)
song: “Yamamoto Kakapote” by Yamasuki Singers
Sonia
Fridays 3pm – 6pm / The Blues Drive
In alphabetical order, not in ranking:
V/A, Alligator Records: 50 Years of Genuine Houserockin’ Music, Alligator Records
Selwyn Birchwood, Living in a Burning House, Alligator Records
Buffalo Nichols, s/t, Fat Possum
Carolyn Wonderland, Tempting Fate, Alligator Records
The Ronnie Wood Band, Mr. Luck: A Tribute to Jimmy Reed, Live at The Royal Albert Hall, BMG
DJ Zorro
alternating Sundays 6pm – 9pm / Alternating Currents
Olivia Block, Innocent Passage in the Territorial Sea
Jessica Ackerley, Daniel Carter – Friendship: Lucid Shared Dreams and Time Travel
Patrick Shirioshi, Hidemi
William Parker, The Music Of William Parker: Migration Of Silence Into And Out Of The Tone World [Volumes 1–10]
Rob Frye, JayVe Montgomery, Simon Sieger, Olivia Scemama & Dan Bitney, Crying Out Loud, Bridge Sessions
Xiu Xiu, OH NO
Paul Host
alternating Saturdays 3pm – 6pm / Milwaukee Rock Posters & Why My Head Hurts
Sorry I couldn’t narrow it down to five local. A very bountiful year.
James White & The Blacks, Melt Yourself Down [reissue from Modern Harmonic in 2021 of Japanese import from 1986]
Spud Bucket, Latest Hits
Eric Blowtorch, Quality Items
Bruce Humphries, Skippin’ Chicken
Velocihamster, Miserlou
Tom Wandrerer, Private Revolution
Deadfinger, s/t
Couch Flambeau, Bunny Hideout [EP]
Monkey Bar, s/t [LP]
Xposed 4heads, Planet A’ Go Go
Indonesian Junk, Living In A Nightmare
Guerrilla Ghost, The Trumaine [EP]
Fallen Down Angels, Over By There
Primitive Broadcast System, Colors For Chameleons
Rob McCuen – Had to include Rob. During the two-hour memorial some previously unheard material was played and I just wanted to acknowledge what great music he made. R.I.P.
Erin Wolf, WMSE Music Director
Tuesdays 12:30pm – 3pm + 6pm – 7pm / The Rockleidoscope Show + Local/Live
In no order…
Non-local:
Nation of Language, A Way Forward
Madlib, Sound Ancestors
Cold Beat, War Garden
IDLES, CRAWLER
Mdou Moctar, Afrique Victime
Local:
Caley Conway, Bliss or Bust [EP]
Bicentennial Drug Lord, BDL
Amanda Huff & Vincent Van Great, Troublemakers
snag., Death Doula
Credentials, Why is my arm not a lilac tree?
Rob Szocik
alternating Sundays 6pm – 9pm / Alternating Currents
Five 2021 releases that caught my ears!
Ingebrigt Haken Flaten & Rolf-Erik Nystrom, El Sistema
Gran Cru, s/t
Magrava / L’Écluse, Kreis / CollectifContinu présente… Live au Diamant d’Or!
أحمد [Ahmed], Nights On Saturn (Communication)
Fred Lonberg-Holm, Abdul Moimême & Carlos Santos, Transition Zone
Archived Releases (both 1972 unreleased recordings):
Don Cherry, The Summer House Sessions
Don Cherry’s New Researches featuring Naná Vasconcelos, Organic Music Theatre Festival de jazz de Chateauvallon 1972
Grant
alternating Mondays, 6am – 9am / The Happy Monday Show
Lost Girls, Menneskekollektivet
Spirt of the Beehive, Entertainment, Death
Gouper, Shade
Low, HEY WHAT
Dry Cleaning, New Long Leg
Arlo Parks, Collapsed In Sunbeams
Tom Crawford, WMSE Station Manager
Mondays 3pm – 6pm / The Rock Ride + Thursdays 6pm -9pm / Radio Drill Time
Low, HEY WHAT, Sub Pop
L’Rain, Fatigue, Mexican Summer
Pharoah Sanders, Floating Points & The London Symphony Orchestra, Promises, Luaka Bop
Walt McClements, A Hole In The Fence, American Dreams)
Angel Bat Dawid, Hush Harbor Mixtape Vol. 1: Doxology, International Anthem
Jana Rush, Painful Entanglement, Planet Mu
Meemo Comma, Neon Genesis: Soul Into Matter2, Planet Mu
Lea Bertucci, A Visible Length Of Light, Cibachrome Editions
Clarissa Connelly, The Voyager, CCM
Big Brave, Vital, Southern Lord
Local:
Credentials, Why is my arm not a lilac tree?
Sleepersound, Idle Voices
Vincent Van Great & Amanda Huff, Troublemakers
Telethon, Swim Out Past The Breakers
Devils Teeth, La Leggenda di Chong Li
Guerilla Ghost, The Trumaine EP
Matt Schoeffler
3rd Wednesday of the month 6pm – 9pm / City Rock Showgram
Failure, Wild Type Droid
Every Time I Die, Radical
Teenage Wrist, Earth Is A Black Hole
Deafheaven, Infinite Granite
Quicksand, Distant Populations
Dr. Sushi
Tuesdays 9am – 12pm / Dr. Sushi’s Free Jazz BBQ
Floating Points, Pharoah Sanders and the London Symphony Orchestra, Promises
Sons of Kemet, Black To the Future
John Coltrane, A Love Supreme: Live in Seattle
Makaya McCraven, Decipering the Message
Kenny Garrett, Sounds From the Ancestors
Jon Blick
Thursdays, 12am – 3am / Overnight Sensations
Emily Wolfe, Outlier
Robert Plant & Alison Krauss, Raise The Roof
Indonesian Junk, Living In A Nightmare
Negative/Positive, Mint Bag (Bag Full of Mints)
Ruby Bones, Laser Tooth Tiger
Iceage, Seek Shelter
Lump, Animal
Jesse Malin, Sad & Beautiful World
The Beths, Auckland, New Zealand 2020
Courtney Barnett, Things Take Time, Take Time
Craig Mertes
Tuesdays 6am – 9am / The Shape Of Rock
Devils Teeth, La Legganda di Chong Li, Triple Eye Industries
Avenues, We’re All Doomed, Wiretap Records
Fox Face, End of Man, Dirtnap Records
Indonesian Junk, Living in a Nightmare, Rum Bar Records
Caley Conway, Bliss or Bust, self-released
KASE, Seasons, BSide Recordings
Mary Bartlein
Saturdays 6pm – 9pm / Instrumental Saturdays
I began last year’s favorite releases list with guitarist Jon Durant and well he’s at it again. Everything this guy does is gold and I am proud to be a blatant fan. Late December 2020 he released an EP Always Golden Sands with British keyboard artist Peter Chilvers, Just a teaser for the January 2021 release of Vista a dreamy ride through a perfectly balanced atmosphere of keys and guitar. Then in June, Jon teamed up with guitarist Stephan Thelen for the CD Crossings. And to top the year off, Jon and old pal Bassist Colin Edwin released another Burnt Belief CD called Mutual Isolation. There is not a wrong note anywhere with these Jon Durant collaborations. Keep your eye on him.
Next on my list is another previous favorite, guitarist Carl Weingarten. February saw the released of Carl’s (18th I believe) album Ember Days. This CD contains one of my favorite tracks this year, a sweet little tune called “Geola”. I love it.
Another artist with multiple releases in a year, is Tom Caufield. Tom released Arrive and Disappear in April and then in July he released Pastures of Wonder. Both solid acoustic guitar CDs. Lockdown seems to be really working for some artists.
On May 15th I did an interview with Timothy Wenzel for his ninth CD Dusk to Diamonds. This was the first time I interviewed Timothy. He has a wonderful back-catalog, with every CD deserving an interview, but I am very happy that this was the one we took the “Three Hour Tour” on. Each track had a wonderful story behind it in addition to all the spectacular guest musicians that appear on the CD. It is also artfully recorded and co-produced by the very talented Corin Nelson.
June brought another interview, this one with Lynn Tredeau for her solo piano CD A Quiet Path. Lynn’s piano pieces are delicate, inspiring and always uplifting.
Another CD worth mentioning here is a first-time collaboration between Will Ackerman, Jeff Oster and Tom Eaton. Friends for a very long time, these three have worked together one way or another on multiple projects and in various capacities but they have never put out a CD before as a trio. Brothers is the very aptly named debut CD for this dynamic group and I hope it is not the last.
2021 proved to be an excellent year for new releases and I know that I cannot do justice to all the CDs that are on my list of favorites. There are way too many, so here is just a brief, additional list:
Twilight Archive, Recent Detours, self-released
Eydís Evensen, Bylur, XXIM Records
Peter Gregson, Patina, Deutsche Grammophon (DG)
Hania Rani & Dobrawa Czocher, Inner Symphonies, Deutsche Grammophon (DG)
Jim Ottaway, Threshold of the Universe, self-released
Thierry David, Slow Motion, self-released
Jeff Greinke, Other Weather, Spotted Peccary Records
Trine Opsahl & Josefine Opsahl, The Infinite Between Us, Heart to Heart Records
Balmorhea, The Wind, Deutsche Grammophon (DG)
Nicholas Gunn, Sound Condition, Heartdance Records
Cal Roach
Tuesdays 6pm – 7pm / Local/Live + Midnight Radio sub
Ben LaMar Gay, Open Arms to Open Us
Circuit des Yeux, -io
Floating Points, Pharoah Sanders & The London Symphony Orchestra, Promises
Voices, Breaking the Trauma Bond
Kenny Segal, Indoors
Chris Twining
Fridays 9pm – 12am / Messe Radio Sub
L7, Scatter the Rats (2019)
Deadfinger, s/t (2021)
Eric Blowtorch and The Inflammables, Quality Items (2021)
Tim Noble
alternating Saturdays 3pm – 6pm / Milwaukee Rock Posters & Why My Head Hurts
The Weather Station, Ignorance
Nick Cave & Warren Ellis, Carnage
Low, Hey What
The War On Drugs, I Don’t Live Here Anymore
Black Country, New Road, For the First Time
John Komp
alternating Mondays 12am – 3am / The Truth About De-Evolution
Nick Cave/Warren Ellis, Carnage:
Pandemic medicine, sans Bad Seeds, highly effective. Nick and Warren are a force, a band unto themselves, and while the Bad Seeds proper may never exist again, I can make peace with that if there’s more where this came from. And I’m betting there is.
IDLES, CRAWLER:
It’s been a long time since I’ve obsessed over anything this close to “punk”, but IDLES is so much more, and the new direction on this LP underlines that point and puts it in bold too. Recommended for all who can fit both struggle and joy into their day. One of the best live bands out there right now.
Low, HEY WHAT:Damn, Alan and Mimi, are you peering into my soul? Feels like it sometimes. These two keep making the difficult beautiful and the beautiful difficult. Blown woofer distortion and digital stuttering sit with subtlety and harmony, to great result. Not ranking this list but I think this is my 2021 fave LP. Can’t wait to see them at Cactus next year!
Floating Points/Pharaoh Sanders/The London Symphony Orchestra, Promises:
This is just lovely and soothing, a soundtrack for both breadwinning work and spiritual work, but so worthy of a critical headphone session as well. My first exposure to Floating Points, I need to dig back into his body of work in the new year.
Sons Of Kemet, Black To The Future:
Shabaka Hutchings is the leader of at least 3 amazing bands, but this one has really captured me (thanks Shopkeeper Ken!). Another record of struggle and joy, Sons Of Kemet is a rhythm section of two drummers and a tuba, with Hutchings on sax and clarinet, and some standout guest turns as well (Angel Bat Dawid, Moor Mother), and this double LP is fire across all four sides.
Matt Sweeney/Bonnie “Prince” Billy, Superwolves:
Waited for this for years, was crushed when they canceled their tour in October (with Jonathan Richman opening!), but the LP will be in regular rotation at The Kompound well into the new year.
Bill Callahan/Bonnie “Prince Billy”, Blind Date Party:
Their string of 2021 Spotify drops, covering other artists with various guest collabs (Cassie Berman on Silver Jews’ “The Wild Kindness”, or George Xylouris on Lou Reed’s “Rooftop Garden”, for example), were pandemic manna for me. All those singles have been collected on this LP. Just play it, right now.
Langhorne Slim, Strawberry Mansion:
A sprawling 19 track document of recovery and redemption in the wake of struggle and creative stagnation, right up there with Cat Power’s “The Greatest”. Written and recorded in pandemic lockdown, I found it a salve for my own COVID isolation.
Can, Live in Stuttgart 1975:From the tape of a superfan; what kind of gear could they have smuggled in in 1975 that sounds this good? Now cleaned up, this vocal-free, post-Damo Suzuki set flies through 5 movements of kosmiche ecstasy, epitomized on the cathartic track Vier (no titles, just German numerals here). There is more where this came from; Live In Brighton was just released, and Damian tells me it’s just as good.
New Age Doom & Lee “Scratch” Perry, Lee “Scratch” Perry’s Guide to the Universe:
We lost my beloved Scratch this year; he was a visionary innovator who arguably invented reggae, dub, and sampling, but honestly by this year he had come through some troubled times and was mostly chanting crazy wisdom in front of the great Subatomic Sound System and doing loads of guest turns for various artists. But this surprise late-year drop, which includes players from Bowie’s Blackstar band, is less reggae than apocalyptic free jazz dub, anchored by deep Jah Wobble-ish bass and minimalist percussion, with layers of synths and horns weaving in and out of. Let the chalice blaze, set the subwoofers to stun, and just enjoy the ride.
Mr. Dr. Dave
alternating Sundays, 6am – 9am / Sunday Morning Jazz
Al DiMeola, Across The Universe
Charles Lloyd & the Marvels, Tone Poem
John Patitucci, Vinnie Colaiuta & Bill Cunliffe, Trio
John Pizzarelli, Better Days Ahead
Lyle Workman,Uncommon Measures
Justin
Thursdays 3am – 6am / Thirty-Three and a Thursday
Sons of Kemet, Black to the Future
Moin, Moot!
Tomaga, Intimate Immensity
Dry Cleaning, New Long Leg
Tyler, the Creator, Call Me if You Get Lost
Pete Rohde
Fridays 9pm – 12am / Messe Radio
In no particular order:
Blues:
Hannah PK, Blues All Over My Shoes
John Hurlburt & Jorma Kaukonen, the River Flows, Vol 2
Local:
Buffalo Nichols, s/t
Jazz:
Veronica Swift, This Bitter Earth
Country:
David James Allen, the Architect
Trevor Tchir, Sun & Moon
World:
Jupiter & Okwess, Na Kazonga
Angelique Kidjo, Mother Nature
Rock:
Sean Rowe, The Darkness Dressed in Colored Lights
Joseph Eid, Back to the Living
Avi Wisnia, Catching Leaves
Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats, The Future
Dar Williams, I’ll Meet You Here
Jesse Malin, Sad and Beautiful World
Amy Winehouse, At the BBC
Andrew Browning & the 9 Pound Hammers, Blood on the Door
Ricky Bird, Sobering Times
Terry Havel
Wednesdays 3pm – 6pm / The Blues Drive
Here are my five top blues albums for 2021 in alphabetical order:
Altered Five Blues Band, Holler if You Hear Me, Blind Pig
Selwyn Birchwood, Living in a Burning House, Alligator
Buffalo Nichols, s/t, Fat Possum
Tommy Castro, Presents a Bluesman Comes to Town, Alligator
Christone “Kingfish” Ingram, 662, Alligator
John Radtke (a.k.a Cream City Rocker)
sub / various shows
2021:
Dry Cleaning, New Long Leg, 4AD
Large Print, Summer/Fall 2020, self-released
Caley Conway, Bliss or Bust, self-released
Neil Young & Crazy Horse, Barn, Reprise
Faye Webster, I Know I’m Funny Haha, Secretly Canadian
Re-Issues:
Love Tractor, Themes From Venus, HHBTM
Culture, Children Of Zion: The High Note Singles, Doctor Bird
Lee Perry & Friends, Black Art From The Black Ark, Pressure Sounds
V/A, Treasure Isle Presents Soul Power ’68, Doctor Bird
V/A, Duke Reid International Disco Series, Doctor Bird
Shopkeeper Ken
alternating Thursdays, 9am – 12pm / The Five & Dime Show
another year, another list. here are my top 5 records for the year, in no particular order:
Myriam Gendron, Ma Delire: Songs of Love, Lost & Found, Feeding Tube Records
Jeff Parker, Forfolks, International Anthem Recording Company/Nonesuch
Jaimie Branch, Fly Or Die Live, International Anthem Recording Company
Ben Chasny, The Intimate Landscape, Drag City
Marisa Anderson & William Tyler, Lost Futures, Thrill Jockey
top five reissues from the year:
Alice Coltrane, Kirtan Turiya Sings, Impulse
Hailu Mergia & the Walias Band, Tezeta, Awesome Tapes From Africa
Juana Molina, Segundo, Crammed Discs
Dexter Gordon, One Flight Up, Blue Note, Tone Poet series
Marc Ribot, Plays Solo Guitar Works of Frantz Casseus, Knockwurst
Rose
Sundays, 10:30pm – 12am + alternating Mondays, 12am – 3am / Female Focus + Rock & Blues
Best Albums of 2021:
Yola, Stand For Myself
Tedeschi Trucks Band, Layla Revisited (Live at LOCKN’)
Jon Batiste, We Are
Anneke van Giersbergen, The Darkest Skies Are The Brightest
Joe West, Juke Box
Best local albums of 2021:
Altered Five Blues Band, Holler If You Hear Me
Buffalo Nichols, s/t
Negative/Positive, Mint Bag (Bag Full of Mints)
The Rogue Electrics, Strangers of the Moment
Emily Zimmer, Seasons of Trouble
DJ Ascot
alternating Fridays, 6am – 9am / Jing Jong Triple Play
LPs:
L’Rain, Fatigue
Suuns, The Witness
Tobe Nwigwe, Cincoriginals
Ben Lamar Gay, Open Arms to Open us
Black Dice, Mod Prog Sic
EPs:
Lollise, Looking at You
Feng Suave, So much for gardening
Sorry, twixtustwain
Deap Vally, Digital Dreams
Earth Girl Helen Brown, Earth
Rich Mars
Wednesdays 6pm – 9pm / City Rock Showgram
Top 5 new releases:
Dry Cleaning, New Long Leg
Sleater-Kinney, Path of Wellness
Another New Thing, XYZZY
Guided By Voices, It’s Not Them, It Couldn’t Be Them, IT IS THEM
Death From Above 1979, Is 4 Lovers
Honorable mentions:
La Luz, s/t
The Peacers, Blexxed Rec
MUSH, Lines Redacted
Grave Flowers Bongo Band, Strength of Spring
Tamar Aphek, All Bets Are Off
Grant S.
Fridays, 3am – 6am / Mish Mosh Radio
Top five local releases:
Browns Crew, ETA
Mark J Soriano, So Strange
Devils Teeth, La Leggenda di Chong Li
Gego y Noni, Tiempo
Buffalo Nichols, s/t
Top five national/international releases:
King Gizzard, Butterfly 3000
War On Drugs, I Don’t Live Here Anymore
Mdou Moctar, Afrique Victime
Billy Strings, Renewal
Parquet Courts, Symphony For Life
Top five shows of the year:
Billy Strings 11.3.21 Riverside Theater
Chicken Wire Empire and Browns Crew 10.2.21 Indeed Brewing Co Lowdown Festival
Dead and Co 9.18.21 Wrigley Field and 10.23.21 Ak-Chin Pavilion
Henhouse Prowlers w/ Sugar Bush 10.8.21 Back Room @ Colectivo
Perpetual Groove 6.25.21 Western NC Agricultural Center
Top Five veggies of 2021:
Brussels Sprouts
Broccoli
Cauliflower
Roasted carrots
Shallots