So ends the second year of isolation! While it might not have been fun, the old cliche is still true: the time really did fly. Honestly I can’t even remember that much at all. I think especially with all of the monotony of constantly staying home the days just blur together.
I did not listen to a whole lot of music in 2021. Looking back at my chart data it’s actually my lowest number of songs played since I joined last.fm 15 years ago….and wow, looking at the phrase ’15 years’ is a shock in and of itself. Just under half my lifetime. Talk about time flying.
Anyway, as I always do this time of year, I’m going through the data and reflecting on my listening habits from the last year; here’s a look at my favourite music from 2021.
A L B U M S
All of my most listened-to new releases came from long-standing favourites of mine which meant that while they lacked that energising spark that comes with the discovery of a new artist, they all came with lengthy nostalgic associations and feelings which I think were a great comfort during another year of constant existential dread and perpetual uncertainty.
Markus Krunegård released not one but 2 albums last year. I listened to both a lot and as always with him, appreciated his mix of unapologetically upbeat pop (Tutti Frutti‘s ‘Sommartider hej!’) and darker, more melancholy and introspective numbers (Kemtvätten‘s fuzz-drenched closer ‘Jag gör mitt bästa jag lovar’). Though 2 separate albums I’m grouping them together as I feel they’re equally strong and I’ve come to kinda see them as one continued album.
Speaking of 15 years ago, teenage me was a huge fan of Mogwai. I’ve drifted a bit from them since then but really enjoyed their latest album As the love continues. I love that after all this time they still sound the same – but like, in a good way. For me their albums are less about standout moments and more about the constant wash of mood they create. That said, I played lead single ‘Ritchie Sacramento’ on repeat a lot.
The Notwist’s Vertigo Days featured a few beautiful standout moments (the haunting ‘Loose Ends’ was one of my favourite tracks released last year) but much like with Mogwai I enjoyed the album more for its overall mood.
Favourite albums:
- Markus Krunegård – Kemtvätten / TUTTI FRUTTI – från lokalen under sushin
- Mogwai – As The Love Continues
- The Notwist – Vertigo Days
Others I enjoyed, in no particular order:
- Arlo Parks – Collapsed in Sunbeams
- Lana Del Rey – Blue Banisters
- Viagra Boys – Welfare Jazz
- Mother Mother – Inside
- Thåström – Dom som skiner
Albums I missed/overlooked in the past and really enjoyed last year:
- Jonathan Bree – After the curtains close (2020)
- The Notwist – Superheroes, Ghost-Villains + Stuff (2016)
- Clipping. – There Existed An Addiction To Blood (2019)
- Go_A – #Ідиназвук (2016)
- Cigarettes After Sex – Cry (2019)
- Vector Lovers – Separation (2020)
T R A C K S
Favourite track:
Others I enjoyed, in no particular order:
- Art School Girlfriend – Is It Light Where You Are
- Mogwai – Ritchie Sacramento
- Lana Del Rey – Text Book / Chemtrails Over the Country Club
- The Notwist – Where You Find Me
- Arlo Parks – Eugene / Hurt
- Viagra Boys – Creatures
- Sinead O Brien – GIRLKIND
- Thåström – Stora långa gatan
Tracks I missed in previous years and really enjoyed last year:
- Kh Marie – ind i mørket
- Whitechapel – Hickory Creek
- Jonathan Bree – Until We’re Done / Waiting On The Moment
- Viagra Boys – Just Like You
- Doja Cat – Boss Bitch
- Brutus – Drive
- Georgia – About Work The Dancefloor – Edit
- clipping. – Nothing is Safe / Say the Name
- Juice WRLD – 734
- Solence – Indestructible
L I V E
Sadly I didn’t attend or shoot any live music last year. The last event I’ve shot to date remains Ramfest at the Hillcrest Quarry in March 2020, and I’m honoured to have been awarded Best Live Photo at the South African Metal Music Awards for this image of Facing the Gallows, taken at that fest:
Lockdown started shortly after Ramfest, and my workflow at the time was pretty brutal, so I hadn’t actually gone back and looked through the fest images properly after editing them. I did so recently though and it all felt quite surreal, like it was a lifetime ago but also like it was just last week. How I miss it all though.
M U S I C V I D E O WO R K
While I’ve been unable to shoot I’ve shifted my focus to video and animation, something I’ve been doing on and off for years.
In 2021 I’m grateful to have worked on several cool projects with some long-time collaborators.
Ill System : Back in March I worked with Ill System on their video for ‘Rock Bottom’. The band shot themselves remotely and I did the animation and editing.
Kilo Kami : I always enjoy working with Werner von Waltsleben, and love the mood on his latest project Kilo Kami. I particularly enjoyed exploring a different visual style on this visualiser for ‘Fade Away’:
McCully/Mackay : I created a music video/visualiser/lyric video for each of the 10 tracks on McCully/Mackay’s debut album The Unicorns Are Screaming. This is my dad’s personal project and it’s been a great creative challenge and outlet for me to see what was possible on zero budget and with tight deadlines. The one I’m most proud of is Hooked on the Blue Sea, which allowed me to return to my preferred visual style while exploring the limits of my technical (and hardware) abilities. It’s a fun and nostalgic ode to the sea and the impact it can have throughout your life.
The full album playlist is over here.
P O P F L U F F C O M F O R T
(Yes, I’m going to talk about Eurovision again)
Once again I unironically embraced Eurovision as a much-needed source of comforting fluff in the swirling abyss of darkness that was everything else.
It was interesting following the logistical process and challenges the organisers faced in putting together an event of such a scale in the face of COVID surges, crowd/contact limitations and ever-changing travel restrictions. The result was a bit surreal and not without hiccups (defending winner Duncan Laurence caught COVID and was sadly unable to perform at the final and Australia participated via satellite) but very impressive and Rotterdam put on a great show.
Many of the artists unable to compete in 2020’s cancelled contest were allowed to return (with new songs of course) which was both good and bad, as some had weaker songs than the previous year. I was happy that many of my personal favourites did return and with solid material:
Lithuania’s The Roop had something really unique in 2020 with ‘On fire‘, but new entry ‘Discotheque‘ was still loads of fun – they finished in 8th place. Watch here
Ukraine’s GO_A brought a more commercial and darker track than 2020’s ‘Solovey‘ with the ravetastic SHUM – they finished 5th. Watch here
Iceland’s Daði & Gagnamagnið returned with another funky, feel-good track, not quite as good as their viral ‘Think about things‘ but still a fan-favourite. Sadly they were not able to perform ‘10 Years‘ live in the finals as they were quarantining in their hotel room, but luckily their rehearsal was pretty flawless and took them up to a 4th place finish. Watch here
Switzerland’s Gjon’s Tears didn’t pack quite the same tear-jearking power of ‘Répondez-moi‘ but still delivered a really tasteful and captivating performance with ‘Tout l’univers‘, winning the top award from the jury and finishing 3rd overall. Watch here
New artists in 2021:
Finland brought the nu-metal with Blind Channel and their infectiously fun ‘Dark Side‘. With their black nails and adolescent calls for raising middle fingers they’d probably only really be described as ‘heavy’ by emo 13 year olds, but they definitely seemed to know that and their whole vibe was pretty playful and fun. They finished in 6th place. Watch here
Norway‘s entrant TIX stole my heart from the moment his performance began. ‘Fallen Angel‘ opens with a vision in white: a man dressed in sunglasses, bling and giant feathered angel wings atop a floor-length white fur coat. Then the camera zooms out to reveal that glittery silver chains tether him to four feathery ‘demons’ that are dancing around him. It’s so literal and kitsch and just classic Eurovision. And the song? The perfect distillation of 2000s boy band pop: instantly hummable melody, the lyrics as cheesy on paper as they are sincere in delivery, the key-change as awful as it is wonderful. In short, truly just joyous. I could not stop smiling.
I was so intrigued by the stage performance and persona that I did further digging into TIX, and am so glad I did because his is a backstory full of heartwarming inspiration. As a child, Andreas Haukeland’s Tourettes and OCD earned him the cruel nickname ‘tics’ which he later reclaimed and remodeled into TIX, his confident artist persona. Even without knowing this, the moment during his Eurovision performance when he nervously removes his glasses to reveal his blinking eyes feels incredibly vulnerable. Knowing the context and the courage it must have taken him to do that of course makes it even more powerful.
A version of his life story can be seen in the music video for Fallen Angel which I assume was for the benefit of introducing himself to the world outside of Norway. Back home he is highly successful and regularly tops the local charts, though this success seems hard-won after the local industry and critics aggressively dismissed him. It’s an interesting and overall inspiring story, Norway’s public broadcaster even made a documentary about it.
His was definitely the ‘journey’ I enjoyed following the most and although I wouldn’t have picked him to win the contest, I’m really glad he was part of it. He also just seems like an all-around nice guy and great role-model to kids, who seem to make up a large part of his audience. Watch his Eurovision performance here.
Italy were the bookies’ favourites and watching them it was clear why: Måneskin performed the hell out of ‘Zitti e buoni‘ and soared to the top, winning both the public vote and the contest overall.
Not only that but the band charted across Europe and even in the states following the contest, and continue to enjoy success. They’re all super young and charismatic and should have a strong future ahead of them. I look forward to seeing them back on the Eurovision stage in Turin come May.
– – –
And so ends/begins another year. Again, even going back through all this it feels blurry and I struggle to place events chronologically… And honestly, having essentially just relived the escapist joy of Eurovision it’s kind of all my tired brain wants right now. I just want to lie in bed and drown in comforting distractions.
…it’s been a rough day. A rough 2 years really. Hopefully tomorrow will be better. At least I know that whatever happens, there will be new music to look forward to this year. Happy new year, stay safe and hang in there.
