Our Favorite Music of 2021
100-album lists, our favorite songs, honorable mentions, and the results of our listener's poll!
Welcome to Endless Scroll, the brainchild of Eli Enis (he/him), Eric Bennett (they/them), Michael Brooks (he/him) and Miranda Reinert (she/her). Since Feb. 2019, we’ve been a weekly podcast about music, the internet, and where those two things intersect. On Substack, we’re also a weekly roundup of songs. Our format is simple: each of our four hosts picks a song they love and writes about it. There will be one free post every week, and more at the end of every month for paid subscribers. For the sake of your wallet, don’t start a paid subscription on Substack. Instead, sign up at the 2$ tier or higher on Patreon and we will gift you a subscription.
Another year, another unreadable pile of lists. If you listened to our ongoing episode series about our favorite songs and albums of 2021, then some of these sequential orderings of music that oozed into the ether within the confines of 2021 might look familiar to you. But since we’re dorks and we love listing and ranking stuff, we wanted to be as exhaustive as possible.
Michael joined Eli and Eric in the idiotic annual ritual they started in 2019 to make a ranked list of their 100 favorite albums of the year. Miranda said “fuck that,” but put together a list of her most-listened-to songs. Cayla, our producer, shared her favorite projects and songs of the year. The whole gang is here and you can tell we went all-out by how slow this page is loading.
But first, we have to present the results of our first annual Endless Scroll Listener’s Poll, in which over 200 loyal scrollers told us their favorite album of the year. We got a fuck-ton of submissions, so it was well-played all around, but an album needed at least three votes to qualify, and we’ve got the ones that made it ranked accordingly below.
On the real, thanks for reading and/or listening to us this year. Everything sucks but holy shit, there was so much great music. We already can’t wait ‘til our Q1 report in 2022. Big things comin’ from the Endless Scroll camp next year. Ya’ll don’t even know.
Listener’s Poll Results:
20. Rosie Tucker - Sucker Supreme
19. The War On Drugs - I Don’t Live Here Anymore
18. Smol Data - Inconvenience Store
17. Japanese Breakfast- Jubilee
16. Alien Boy - Don’t Know What I Am
15. Telethon - Swim Out Past the Breakers
14. Fiddlehead - Between the Richness
13. Cheekface - Emphatically No
12. Jodi - Blue Heron
11. Swim Camp - Fishing in a Small Boat
10. SPIRIT OF THE BEEHIVE - ENTERTAINMENT, DEATH
9. Katy Kirby - Cool Dry Place
8. Home Is Where - I Became Birds
7. Cassandra Jenkins - An Overview on Phenomenal Nature
6. Foxing - Draw Down the Moon
5. Indigo De Souza - Any Shape You Take
4. Origami Angel - Gami Gang
3. The World is a Beautiful Place and I Am No Longer Afraid to Die - Illusory Walls
2. Wild Pink - A Billion Little Lights
1. Turnstile - Glow On
Miranda Reinert
Folks. I love music, but I did not listen to 100 new albums this year. I love that my friends engage with that much new music, but I simply cannot. It makes my brain spin just to think about trying to engage with music that way. So instead of doing that or trying to just list off as many things as I can that I heard this year, I’m going to provide you all with a list of the songs I heard the most amount of times this year. I’ve listened to all of these at least 100 times in 2021. There are 18 of them.
Really spans all 6 kinds of music I listen to. The first Hop Along album. Some Casiotone. The Jeff Rosenstock extended universe. A Frankie Cosmos EP song. British DIY. Stuff I wrote about for the newsletters I do. Have fun!
Miranda’s Favorite Songs of 2021:
18. Finish Flag - “The Pisces”
17. Casiotone for the Painfully Alone - “New Years Kiss”
16. Casiotone for the Painfully Alone - “I Love Creedence”
15. Frankie Cosmos - “Tunnel”
14. Into It. Over It. - “Home is the Gift”
13. Hop Along - “Get Disowned”
12. Hop Along - “Young and Happy”
11. Casiotone for the Painfully Alone - “Harsh the Herald Angels Sing”
10. Bomb the Music Industry! - “25!”
9. Slaughter Beach, Dog - “My Girl”
8. Ted Leo & The Pharmacists - “Me and Mia”
7. Drug Church - “Unlicensed Guidance Counselor”
6. Hop Along - “No Good Al Joad”
5. Telethon - “Selfstarter A.E.”
4. Wilco - “Pot Kettle Black”
3. Hard Girls - “Deep Gulch”
2. Trust Fund - “Cut me out”
1. Jeff Rosenstock - “I’m Serious, I’m Sorry”
Here’s a playlist of them all for easy Miranda-core listening
Miranda’s Top 10 Albums of 2021:
10. Spiritual Cramp - Here Comes More Bad News EP
9. Laura Stevenson - Self Titled
8. Barely March - America, Online EP
7. Militarie Gun - All Roads Lead To The Gun II EP
6. Turnstile - TLC (Turnstile Love Connection) EP
5. Home Is Where - I Became Birds
4. Drug Church - Tawny EP
3. Japanese Breakfast - Jubilee
2. Slaughter Beach, Dog - At The Moonbase
1. Show Me How You Disappear - Ian Sweet
Eric Bennett
Eric’s 100 Favorite Albums of 2021:
100. PONY - TV Baby
99. Janna - back to the wilderness
98. Lande Hekt - Going to Hell
97. PinkPantheress - to hell with it
96. rose, water, fountain - rose, water, fountain
95. Smile Machine - Bye For Now
94. Smol Data - Inconvenience Store
93. Xenia Rubinos - Una Rosa
92. Jazmine Sullivan - Heaux Tales
91. Noods - Blush
90. Runnner - Always Repeating
89. Katie Dey - Urdata
88. The World Is a Beautiful Place and I'm No Longer Afraid to Die - Illusory Walls
87. Flock of Dimes - Head of Roses
86. DJ Seinfeld - Mirrors
85. Macie Stewart - Mouth Full of Glass
84. Slow Pulp - Deleted Scenes
83. Goat Girl - On All Fours
82. Kolezanka - Place Is
81. Mega Bog - Life, and Another
80. Lightning Bug - A Color of The Sky
79. Clairo - Sling
78. Hana Vu - Public Storage
77. Snow Ellet - Suburban Indie Rock Star
76. Adia Victoria - A Southern Gothic
75. Tasha - Tell Me What You Miss The Most
74. Nervous Dater - Call in the Mess
73. Claud - Super Monster
72. MJ Lenderman - Ghost of Your Guitar Solo
71. Alexalone - alexaloneworld
70. Claire Rousay, More Eaze - an afternoon whine
69. Spirit Was - Heaven's Just a Cloud
68. Teamonade - Borderline
67. Bnny - Everything
66. Water From Your Eyes - Structure
65. Lunar Vacation - Inside Every Fig is a Dead Wasp
64. Palberta - Palberta5000
63. The Mountain Goats - Dark in Here
62. Yves Tumor - The Asymptotical World EP
61. Snarls - What About Flowers?
60. Erika de Casier - Sensational
59. PACKS - Take the Cake
58. Halsey - If I Can't Have Love, I Want Power
57. Sloppy Jane - Madison
56. Home is Where - I Became Birds
55. Camp Trash - Downtiming
54. The Armed - ULTRAPOP
53. Midwife - Luminol
52. Kacey Musgraves - star-crossed
51. Cheekface . - Emphatically No
50. Skullcrusher - Storm in Summer
49. Jessica Mindrum - Restart, Begin
48. Angel Du$t - YAK: A Collection of Truck Songs
47. Alien Boy - Don’t Know What I Am
46. Snail Mail - Valentine
45. Charlotte Cornfield - Highs in the Minuses
44. Mini Trees - Always in Motion
43. Lily Konigsberg - Lily We Need to Talk Now
42. Ducks Ltd. - Modern Fictions
41. Drug Church - Tawny EP
40. Lala Lala - I Want the Door to Open
39. Claire Rousay - A Softer Focus
38. Hovvdy - True Love
37. Half Waif - Mythopoetics
36. Cloud Nothings - The Shadow I Remember
35. Another Michael -New Music and Big Pop
34. Ian Sweet - Show Me How You Disappear
33. The Spirit of the Beehive - ENTERTAINMENT, DEATH
32. Wednesday - Twin Plagues
31. L'Rain - Fatigue
30. Magdalena Bay - Mercurial World
29 Julien Baker - Little Oblivions
28. Sun June - Somewhere
27. Sydney Sprague - maybe i’ll see you at the end of the world
26. Grouper - Shade
25. Black Country, New Road - For the first time
24. Ovlov - Buds
23. Glitterer - Life is Not a Lesson
22. The War On Drugs - I Don't Live Here Anymore
21. Squirrel Flower - Planet (i)
20. Mia Joy - Spirit Tamer
19. Skirts - Great Big Wild Oak
18. Moontype - Bodies of Water
17. Floating Room - Shima
16. Pom Pom Squad - Death of a Cheerleader
15. Torres - Thirstier
14. Rosie Tucker - Sucker Supreme
13. Katy Kirby - Cool Dry Place
12. Mannequin Pussy - Perfect
11. Circuit Des Yeux - io
10. Turnstile - Glow On
9. Faye Webster - I Know I’m Funny haha
8. Hand Habits - Fun House
7. Lucy Dacus - Home Video
6. Ada Lea - one hand on the steering wheel the other sewing a garden
5. Japanese Breakfast - Jubilee
4. Indigo De Souza - Any Shape You Take
3. Wild Pink - A Billion Little Lights
2. Cassandra Jenkins - An Overview on Phenomenal Nature
1. Dry Cleaning - New Long Leg
Eli Enis
Like any great list maker, I’m already finding stuff that would easily be on here if I heard it earlier in the year. But here are 100 projects (albums, EP’s, tapes, etc.) that left a positive impression on me this year.
Eli’s 100 Favorite Projects of 2021
100. Landon Caldwell - Bicycle Day
99. Spiritual Cramp - Here Comes More Bad News
98. Trace Mountains - House of Confusion
97. Field of Flames - Remnants of a Collapsed Existence
96. Threshing Spirit - The Crucible
95. Regional Justice Center - Crime & Punishment
94. Slant - 1집
93. Vince Staples - Vince Staples
92. Amenra - De Doorn
91. Fire-Toolz - Eternal Home
90. Creeping Death - The Edge of Existence
89. Enforced - Kill Grid
88. Knocked Loose - A Tear in the Fabric of Life
87. Drug Church - Tawny
86. Glitterer - Life is Not a Lesson
85. Pinkpantheress - to hell with it
84. Karima Walker - Waking the Dreaming Body
83. Ovlov - Buds
82. Hovvdy - True Love
81. Lil Ugly Mane - Volcanic Bird Enemy
80. Yeat - Up 2 Me
79. Wednesday, MJ Lenderman - Guttering
78. The Body - I’ve Seen All I Need to See
77. Remember Sports - Like a Stone
76. 8485 - Plague Town
75. 200 Stab Wounds - Slave to the Scalpel
74. Ada Lea - one hand on the steering wheel the other sewing a garden
73. LURK - Around the Sun
72. Angel Du$t - Yak: A Collection of Truck Songs
71. Cloud Nothings - The Shadow I Remember
70. Porcupine - The Sibyl
69. Green-House - Music For Living Spaces
68. Fiddlehead - Between the Richness
67. Pooh Shiesty - Shiesty Season
66. Poorstacy - Party at the Cemetery
65. Origami Angel - Gami Gang
64. Lil Baby, Lil Durk - The Voice of the Heroes
63. Tonsstardhtband - Petunia
62. J. T. Boogaard & R. M. van der Meulen - Place
61. Wormwitch - Wolf Hex
60. Home is Where - I Became Birds
59. Boldy James - Bo Jackson
58. Parquet Courts - Sympathy for Life
57. Makthaverskan - For Alting
56. Dark Lo, Havoc - Extreme Measures
55. Black Dresses - Forever in Your Heart
54. Steel Bearing Hand - Slay in Hell
53. Sewerslvt - Schizophrenia Simulation
52. Hand Habits - Fun House
51. Dltzk - frailty
50. Lorde - Solar Power
49. Young Thug - Punk
48. Osquinn - drive-by lullabies
47. Militarie Gun - All Roads Lead to Gun
46. Dying Wish - Fragments of a Bitter Memory
45. QRTR - infina ad nausea
44. Nadia Struiwigh - Pax Aurora
43. Mannequin Pussy - Perfect
42. Black Country, New Road - For the First Time
41. Annihilus - Follow a Song From the Sky
40. SeeYouSpaceCowboy - The Romance of Affliction
39. TisaKorean - mr.siLLyfLow
38. Poppy - EAT
37. Rx Papi x Gud - Foreign Exchange
36. Anushka Chkheidze - Move 20-21
35. Midwife - Luminol
34. Sellasouls - am iii pretty?
33. Strange Ranger - No Light in Heaven
32. Wednesday - Twin Plagues
31. Madlib - Sound Ancestors
30. Candy Apple - Sweet Dreams of Violence
29. Dead Heat - World at War
28. Yautja - The Lurch
27. Another Michael - New Music and Big Pop
26. Every Time I Die - Radical
25. Ashnikko - Demidevil
24. Kenny Mason - Angelic Hoodrat: Supercut
23. Young Dolph & Key Glock - Dum and Dummer 2
22. The Weather Station - Ignorance
21. Alien Boy - Don’t Know What I Am
20. Ekulu - Unscrew My Head
19. Wild Pink - A Billion Little Lights*
18. Move BHC - Freedom Dreams
17. Dazy - MAXIMUMBLASTSUPERLOUD: THE FIRST 24 SONGS
16. 03 Greedo - 03 Inna Key
15. Halsey - If I Can’t Have Love, I Want Power
14. Japanese Breakfast - Sable
13. Magdalena Bay - Mercurial World
12. Indigo De Souza - Any Shape You Take
11. God’s Hate - God’s Hate
10. Camp Trash - Downtiming
9. Foxing - Draw Down the Moon
8. EST Gee - Bigger Than Life or Death
7. TWIABP - Illusory Walls
6. The Armed - Ultrapop
5. Spirit of the Beehive - Entertainment Death
4. Tyler, The Creator - Call Me If You Get Lost
3. Japanese Breakfast - Jubilee
2. Turnstile - Glow On
1. Playboi Carti - Whole Lotta Red
*stuff I wrote press bios for
Eli’s Favorite Songs of 2021:
And here are a bunch of songs I loved this year in no particular order.
Greet Death - “I Hate Everything”
Cake Pop - “Black Rum”
Magdalena Bay - “You Lose!”
Flock of Dimes - “Price of Blue”
Monaleo - “Beating Down Yo Block”
Claud - “Soft Spot”
Alien Boy - “Stuck”
SeeYouSpaceCowboy x If I Die First - "bloodstainedeyes"
Citizen - “I Want To Kill You”
Hollow Comet - “Cross the Water”
Dry Cleaning - “Scratchcard Landyard”
Snow Ellet - “To Some I’m Genius”
Weezer - “All My Favorite Songs”
David Shawty - “Falling Doesn’t Hurt”
Laura Les - “Haunted”
Ecco2k - “Big Air”
Heriot - “Dispirit”
Pom Pom Squad - “Crying”
Sasami - “Sorry Entertainer”
Westside Gunn - “Bash Money” Feat. Lil Wayne
Some other shit from this year that I like but either need to spend more time with or simply forgot to put in my top 100 (no shade):
Demiser - Through the Gates Eternal
Scowl - How Flowers Grow
They Are Gutting a Body of Water/Full Body - EPCOT
Frozen Soul - Crypt of Ice
Ingrown - Gun
Section H8 - Welcome to Nightmare City
Little Simz - Sometimes I Might Be Introvert
Cursetheknife - Thank You For Being Here
Gucci Mane - Ice Daddy
Michael Brooks
Michael’s 100 Favorite Projects of 2021:
100. St. Vincent - Daddy’s Home*
99. Oh, Yes - Crooked Wine Smile
98. Sour Widows - Crossing Over
97. The Killers - Pressure Machine
96. Circuit des Yeux - -io
95. 42 Dugg - Free Dem Boyz
94. Gaadge - Yeah?
93. Minor Moon - Tethers
92. Taking Meds - Terrible News from Wonderful Men
91. Hey, ily! - Internet Breath
90. Flight Mode - TX, ‘98
89. Moontype- Bodies of Water
88. Balloon Club - Water Songs
87. Nico Hedley - Painterly
86. Really From - Really From
85. Conway the Machine - La Maquina
84. Alcopops - DEVIL EP
83. Wiki - Half God
82. Bachelor - Doomin’ Sun
81. Hayden Pedigo - Letting Go
80. Strange Ranger - No Light in Heaven
79. Hovvdy - True Love
78. skirts - Great Big Wild Oak
77. Highnoon - Divers
76. Will Stratton - The Changing Wilderness
75. Angel Du$t - YAK: A Collection Of Truck Songs
74. EST Gee - Bigger Than Life Or Death
73. Wendy Eisenberg - Bent Ring
72. William Tyler/Luke Schneider - Understand
71. Home Is Where - I Became Birds
70. Parannoul - To See the Next Part of the Dream
69. Sun June - Somewhere
68. Boreen - Book of Hours
67. Tony Seltzer - Hey Tony
66. L’Rain - Fatigue
65. Dan Wriggins - Mr. Chill
64. Indigo De Souza - Any Shape You Take
63. Mister Goblin - Four People in an Elevator and One of Them Is The Devil
62. Pickle Darling - Cosmonaut
61. Young Nudy - Rich Shooter
60. Body Meat - Year Of The Orc
59. Dry Cleaning - New Long Leg
58. Rachika Nayar - fragments
57. Young Dolph/Key Glock - Dum and Dummer 2
56. Camp Trash - Downtiming
55. Mach-Hommy - Pray For Haiti
54. Cassandra Jenkins - An Overview On Phenomenal Nature
53. Nala Sinephro - Space 1.8
52. Jodi - Blue Heron
51. McKinley Dixon - For My Mama And Anyone Who Look Like Her
50. The Hold Steady - Open Door Policy
49. Adeline Hotel - Good Timing
48. Lil Yachty - Michigan Boy Boat
47. Clairo - Sling
46. yes/and - yes/and
45. Rx Papi/Gud - Foreign Exchange
44. Subsonic Eye - Nature of Things
43. Izzy Johnson - Earth Tones
42. Vince Staples - Vince Staples
41. ALLBLACK - TY4FWM
40. Fuubutsushi - Setsubun (節分)
39. Militarie Gun - All Roads Lead To The Gun II
38. TisaKorean - mr.siLLyfLow
37. snow ellet - suburban indie rock star
36. Olivia Rodrigo - SOUR
35. Ryley Walker - Course In Fable
34. BabyTron - Luka Troncic
33. The War On Drugs - I Don't Live Here Anymore
32. Maxo Kream - WEIGHT OF THE WORLD
31. Ki Oni - Stay Indoors and Swim
30. illuminati hotties - Let Me Do One More
29. Duke Deuce - Duke Nukem
28. Boldy James/The Alchemist - Bo Jackson
27. Fiddlehead - Between the Richness
26. Men I Trust - Untourable Album
25. Lightning Bug - A Color of the Sky
24. Andy Shauf - Wilds
23. God’s Hate - God’s Hate
22. Dazy - MAXIMUMBLASTSUPERLOUD: The First 24 Songs
21. Pi’erre Bourne - The Life of Pi’erre 5
20. Tonsstartsbandht - Petunia
19. The Armed - ULTRAPOP
18. Midwife - Luminol
17. Isaiah Rashad - The House Is Burning
16. Spirit of the Beehive - ENTERTAINMENT, DEATH
15. Faye Webster - I Know I’m Funny Haha
14. Playboi Carti - Whole Lotta Red
13. Another Michael - New Music and Big Pop
12. Alien Boy - Don’t Know What I Am
11. Madlib - Sound Ancestors
10. Floatie - Voyage Out
9. Magdalena Bay - Mercurial World
8. Wednesday - Twin Plagues
7. Foxing - Draw Down The Moon
6. Tyler the Creator - CALL ME IF YOU GET LOST
5. Katy Kirby - Cool Dry Place
4. Turnstile - GLOW ON
3. Yasmin Williams - Urban Driftwood
2. TWIABP - Illusory Walls
1. Wild Pink - A Billion Little Lights
*haven’t actually listened to it, just love the fact that it exists
Honorable Mentions (Talented Friends):
Mo Troper - Dilettante
Floating Room - Shima
Ben Seretan - Cicada Waves
Swim Camp - Fishing in a Small Boat
Bory - Sidelined
Cayla Enis
Our producer’s EOTY picks!
Cayla’s top albums, mixtapes and EP’s (in no particular order):
Underscores - fishmonger
Leon Vynhall - Rare Forever
CFCF - MemoryLand
Playboi Carti - Whole Lotta Red
The Avalanches - We Will Always Love You
Another Michael - New Music And Big Pop
dltzk - Frailty
Magdelena Bay - Mercurial World
Kurtains - insignias manor
Isaiah Rashad - The House is Burning
Madlib - Sound Ancestors
Space Laces - Vaultage 03
Skee Mask - ITLP09 - Pool
Instupendo - Love Power A-To-Z
Japanese Breakfast - Jubilee
AG Cook - Dream Logic
Cayla’s Top Songs of 2021:
Oli XL, Instupendo - “Ribbon Bone (Silk Chaser)”
dltzk - “homeswitcher”
Clouds - “Cernunnos”
Moontype - “When Will I learn”
Spirit of the Beehive - “The Server is Immersed”
Baby Eco - “Only in Dreams”
Tyler The Creator - “RUNITUP (feat. Teezo Touchdown)”
Guchon - “Hotcat”
Ross From Friends - “Burner”
Unit Kai, Acounta - “Departure”
Basside - “Fuck it Up (Prod. SOPHIE)”
Shygirl - “Tasty (Boys Noize Remix)”
Burial - “Chemz”
TNGHT - “TUMS”
Doss - “Puppy”
Bee Oil - “Folders”