As we head into mid-December and the eventual end of 2021, most publications have shared their best-of lists featuring all the songs and albums that were released this year. I’m working on mine, but will share them here in the next few weeks. That being said, this is the last Gold Soundz of 2021 that will feature new releases and I’m going out with a bang (joke’s on everyone who doesn’t wait until the actual end of the year to release their lists).
After waiting nearly two decades, we’re finally getting some kind of follow-up to The Wren’s Meadowlands, although this is not the release many fans had hoped for after all these years. Kevin Whalen drops his highly-anticipated solo album under the moniker Aeon Station and it features what would’ve been his contributions to the new Wrens album plus some others he wrote while waiting for his song-writing partner to finish his half.
Jeff Parker returns as well with the follow-up to last year’s excellent Suite for Max Brown. This one is a new solo guitar album called Forfolks and the singles make it seem like the soundtrack to a mid-afternoon day dream. Tierra Whack also announced a follow-up to last week’s Rap? EP with this week’s Pop? EP. This one hits a lot harder than last week’s release and the first two songs are proper bangers while the third features Tierra rapping over banjo in what might be her most unique track to date.
Neil Young and Crazy Horse are back together with their newest album, Barn. It’s the latest of many releases from Neil this year (2 live albums from his archives project and one from his newly announced bootleg series) and comes off the announcement of another recently discovered new album from 1987 he found in his vaults.
Bully dropped the one-off single “Just For Love” from the sessions the produced last year’s SUGAREGG and it’s another rocking tune. Tame Impala also shared a b-side from last year’s The Slow Rush with the announcement of a new North American tour. Broken Social Scene announced a rarities compilation pulling in tracks from throughout their career and shared “This House Is On Fire” which was an outtake from 2010’s Forgiveness Rock Record.
Khruangbin and Leon Bridges shared the details from their latest collaboration, another EP entitled Texas Moon which is out in 2022. They also dropped the first single, “B-Side.”
In local news, Yo La Tengo played their traditional Hanukkah shows which now take place at Bowery Ballroom. I went to two shows and both were great! LCD Soundsystem is also continuing their Brooklyn Steel residency and I’ve been attending some of those shows as well. After over a year of not being able to see shows, getting multiple opportunities to see two local legends has been an absolute dream.
Albums:
Aeon Station | Observations
Jeff Parker | Forfolks
Tierra Whack | Pop? EP
Jlin | Embryo EP
Neil Young and Crazy Horse | Barn
Big Boi / Sleepy Brown | Big Sleepover
Fleet Foxes | A Very Lonely Solstice [Live album]
The National | Cyrano [soundtrack]
Songs:
Beach House | “Over and Over”
Bully | “Just For Love”
Mitski | “Heat Lightning”
Tame Impala | “No Choice”
Broken Social Scene | “This House Is On Fire”
Khruangbin / Leon Bridges | “B-Side”
Earl Sweatshirt / Armand Hammer | “Tabula Rasa”
Bon Iver | “Second Nature”
Girlpool | “Faultline”
Tydonai Braxton | “Phonolydian”
If you’re a Spotify user, you can listen to the best songs from 2021 here!