For a while, I had a holiday tradition of taking "best albums of the year" posts on the web, and making Apple Music playlists out of them.
NPR has started doing this, which saves me some time, but I sort of miss the ritual.
Anyway, here are links to their streaming playlists. I always learn about some good new music listening through this list every year.
Some of my favorites I have already heard are, in no particular order...
- An Evening with Silk Sonic, Silk Sonic
- Mood Valiant, Hiatus Kaiyote
- Floating Points, Pharoah Sanders & The London Symphony Orchestra
NPR Music's 50 Best Albums of 2021, Ranked : NPR
If the year presently coming to a close was a dance, it'd be a hesitant shuffle, tentative steps toward — or heyyyy, maybe away from? — an uncertain future. So maybe that's why, when we sat down together to discuss which albums we loved the most over the course of 2021, NPR Music's staff and contributors found ourselves drawn to albums by artists making breakthroughs, moving forward with clarity, without balking at the obstacles falling in their way. Our list of the year's 50 best is topped by an album that was unmatched in concept, songwriting or performance, but it had so much good company. Everywhere on this list you'll find the thrill of artistic revelation, musicians finding themselves, willing something new into reality. There's plenty of fun, but little escapism. Many of these albums are stacked with great songs, but these aren't snacks. Even when slight they are composed, with a sense of purpose. This is nourishment. Look around. You'll find something fortifying to build you up for the road ahead. (As a bonus, you can find our list of the 100 Best Songs of 2021 here.)
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