Category 2021

Welcome to the final batch of 2021 music reviews – I’ve reviewed 72 new releases this year, about as many as I can manage in this one-man operation. There are two guitar bands this week – the retro jangle-pop of…

We’ve had a few high-profile artists recently, but we’re back to the niches this week – the folk-prog of Richard Dawson & Circle, the eclectic indie-pop of Mr. Twin Sister, and the dreamy ambient pop of Art School Girlfriend. Enjoy!…

It’s three releases from female solo artists this week. Two are sophomore records – Baltimore indie-rocker Snail Mail and London alternative R&B artist Tirzah both follow up their debuts. Both are worthy, but one is particularly great. Meanwhile, veteran Tori…

The most high-profile group of artists for a while – most music fans should have heard of Del Rey and Stevens. Conversely, it’s also the weakest group of releases for a while – Stevens and Del Rey have both made…

It’s a strong week of records this week. Two records reflect changed style – Minnesota’s Low have added distorted guitars to their slow-paced folk, as they’ve done on their previous pair of records, while San Francisco’s Deafheaven have toned down…

Welcome to what’s probably the most obscure batch of reviews for this year – Missouri indie band Foxing, Miami synth-pop duo Magdalena Bay, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s Jupiter & Okwess. Since it’s almost December, brace yourself for…

This week we have roots-rock from The War on Drugs, art-rock from Spellling, and country/folk from Brandi Carlile. Two of the albums have tracks with backing vocals from Brooklyn indie-pop band Lucius. I find two of these albums easier to…

It’s not technically true, but it’s essentially sophomore albums today. Superstar Billie Eilish releases her second album, UK rapper Little Simz is back for her second record with Inflo, while Natalie Hemby follows her 2017 soundtrack Puxico with a studio…

One of my pet theories at Aphoristic Album Reviews is that artists peak with their fourth (and fifth) albums. Today, I review the recently-released fourth albums from Glasgow synth-pop band CHVRCHES (with a cameo from The Cure’s Robert Smith) and…

Not as strong as last week’s crop of records – the new black midi record is excellent but I’m less enthused about new music from Lindsey Buckingham and Torres. Lindsey Buckingham Lindsey Buckingham 2021, 7/10Lindsey Buckingham has endured a tough…

Three American artists this week, although Tyler, The Creator and Tinashe both have fathers with African heritage – Tyler’s father was born in Nigeria and Tinashe’s father is a first-generation Zimbabwean immigrant. Meanwhile, Kacey Musgraves veers further away from the…

I’ve been finding lots of albums in the good to very good range this year, but not many great ones. Here are three more strong, but not classic, albums. American indie rock artist Lucy Dacus, Canadian post-rockers Godspeed You! Black…

In an unplanned coincidence, today’s three recent releases are from English settlements ending with on. Post-punk band Squid from Brighton, London’s Cleo Sol, and Swindon’s Andy Partridge. Squid Bright Green Field 2021, 8.5/10There’s a whole crop of young, critically acclaimed…

There’s a strong batch of newish albums this week. The retro 1970s sleaze of St. Vincent’s Daddy’s Home, the diverse indie-pop of Japanese Breakfast’s Jubilee, and the Nigerian ambient field recordings of Emeka Ogboh. St. Vincent Daddy’s Home 2021, 8.5/10Annie…

1970s avant-garde German band Can pull a classic show out of their archives, while Mdou Moctar plays desert blues in Niger. Indie band Xiu Xiu are up to their twelfth record, but it’s the first time I’ve checked in with…

Welcome back to new music reviews, with three recent albums. Manchester Orchestra’s earnest stadium rock, tUnE-yArDs’ eclectic indie-soul, and Wolf Alice’s valiant attempts to reignite mainstream rock. Manchester Orchestra The Million Masks of God 2021, 8.5/10In spite of their name,…

Three new-ish records this week. The fifth album in little over two years from London’s enigmatic Sault, a debut from Australian R&B artist Genesis Owusu, while Miranda Lambert joins two other country artists for a literal campfire singalong, Sault Nine…

Coincidentally this week, I review two 7th studio albums by New Zealand bands starting with C. As well as Porter Robinson’s electro-pop album Nurture. Crowded House Dreamers Are Waiting 2021, 6.5/10It’s increasingly difficult to differentiate Crowded House from Neil Finn’s…

This week we look at three releases from contemporary female American artists – R&B artists Jazmine Sullivan and Dawn Richard, and actor Olivia Rodrigo, who’s rapidly become a pop superstar in 2021. Olivia Rodrigo Sour 2021, 7.5/10Olivia Rodrigo came to…

Welcome to what’s surely the longest headline in the history of Aphoristic Album Reviews. Coincidentally, all three albums in this week’s review pile are collaborations between multiple artists. It’s a diverse week – Australian elder statesmen Nick Cave and Warren…

There’s an Americana theme with these three new releases. Jenn Wasner covers a lot of musical ground with her excellent second record as Flock of Dimes. There’s an unlikely Canadian-New Zealand Americana record from Kacy & Clayton & Marlon Williams,…

Aphoristic Album Reviews takes a look at three new releases from women this week. Ingoma, from South African teenager Azana, is a record from July 2020, while Cassandra Jenkin’s An Overview on Phenomenal Nature and Lana Del Rey’s Chemtrails Over…

We stay in the USA for this week’s new albums. Literate bar-rockers The Hold Steady still have new ideas on their eighth studio album. Tennessee indie artist Julien Baker is back with a third album of introspection, while Paramore’s Hayley…