Best of 2021 – Last year we missed doing our annual “Best Of.” This year we present it after a year of quarantine albums galore. Tours didn’t start until May but new music was flowing from the start of 2021. 2022 is already aiming to be a busy year. Here are our choices for the Best of 2021.
We’ve evolved from Phoebe Bridgers, Megan Thee Stallion and others of last year to a new crop of artists.
Best Label – Fire Talk Records – Home to Bnny, Mamalarky, Packs and more this boutique label is setting up to be the next Saddle Creek Records.
Secretly Group @secretlygroup, Saddle Creek Records @saddlecreek, Fire Talk Records @firetalkrecs, Don Giovanni Records @DonGiovanniRecs
Nest New Artist – “New” is always relative. Georgia Maq has been part of Camp Cope, and Isabella Manfredi was part of The Preatures. Our winner is Ashe who album Ashlyn was hard to put down this year.
Georgia Maq @goldsoundz_, Allison Russell @allisonrussellmusic, S.G. Goodman @s.g.goodman, Ashe @ashemusic, Jillette Johnson @jillettejohnson, Hawxx @hawxxmusic, Noa Kirel @noakirel, Kill Birds @killbirdsmusic, Killboy @killboy , Sloppy Jane @sloppyjanebandd , Ydegirl @ydegirl, The Linda Lindas @the_linda_lindas, Allison Ponthier @allisonponthier, Isabella Manfredi @isabellamanfredi, Pom Pom Squad @pompomsquad
Best Local (Colorado) Artist – Local artists can often be touring or even national acts. This category was very competitive with the amount of quarantine albums that came out. Our winner is Companion who mesmerized us in the Spring. They will quickly become a national act.
Best Dance – Dance is also electronic and electro pop. Magdalena Bay & Sofi Tukker are the 800 lb gorillas in this category. Kito is our winner for surprising collaborations.
Magdalena Bay @magdalenabay, Sofi Tukker @sofitukker, Kito @kito
Best Pop – Pop like Indie is often open to interpretation. It is often what dominates at venues. Our winner is Charlotte Cardin whose Phoenix album was one of the best albums this year.
Hana Vu @hanavuuu, Lucy Dacus @lucydacus, Japanese Breakfast @jbrekkie, Baby Queen @queenofthebabies, Charlotte Cardin @charlottecardin, Jess Chalker @jess_chalker_, May-A @mayacumming, Ashe @ashemusic, Girl In Red @girlinred, Angèle @angele_vl, Sloppy Jane @sloppyjanebandd, Nadia Vaeh @nadiavaeh, Olivia Rox @oliviarox, Number One Popstar @numberonepopstar, Bahari @bahari, Noga Erez @nogaerez, Lola Lennox @lolalennex
Best Rock – Rock is often the guitar driven beat that keeps you going. Kill Birds, who have been touring with Foo Fighters are our winner.
Royal and the Serpent @royalandtheserpent, Amyl and the Sniffers @amylandthesniffers, Mattiel @mattielworldwide , Upsahl @upsahlmusicl, Self Esteem @selfesteemselfesteem, Kill Birds @killbirdsmusic, Nadia Sheikh @nadiasheikhmusic, Red Hook @weareredhook, Pom Pom Squad @pompomsquad
Best Indie – Indie always means both a sound but also a level of development. These are the artists at the small venues touring to survive. We have a diverse selection this year. Bnny is our winner.
Best Experimental – There is always a “flinch” moment when you saw experimental. It involves a great deal of risk as personified by our winner Fifi Rong who is working on her dual album set with one album all in English, and one all in Chinese. She is crowdfunding now.
Insect Ark @insectark, Fifi Rong @fifirong, Sasami @sasamiashworth, Irreversible Entanglements @irreversibleentanglements, Haru Nemuri @haru_nemuri
Best Hip Hop – This is the first year that FEMMUSIC has this category. There may be some arguments as to whether all these artists fit it. Coi Leray is the best newcomer in this area. Ray BLK is our winner.
Bia @bia, Tones and I @tonesandi, Doja Cat @dojacat, Sza @sza, Cardi B @iamcardib, Megan Thee Stallion @theestallion, Coi Leray @coileray, Ms Banks @msbanks, Ray BLK @rayblk, Remi Wolf @remiwolf, Tinashe @tinashenow
Best Jazz – We will admit to not hearing as much jazz this year. Laufey is the winner with original interpretations of classics.
Laufey @laufey, Nnenna Freelon @officialnnenna
Best Country – Brandi Carlile is a favorite in this category and will take home more GRAMMYs. Allison Russell wins for being new and original.
Brandi Carlile @brandicarlile, Allison Russell @allisonrussellmusic, Yola @iamyolaofficial, CMAT @cmatbaby, Jackson & Sellers @jacksonsellersmusic, Ingrid Andress @ingridandress
Best Heavy Metal – Infected Rain is a former winner in this category. Jinjer, Halestorm & The Pretty Reckless dominate. The Velveteers are this year’s winner.
Hawxx @hawxxmusic, Edge of Paradise @edgeofparadise, Jinjer @jinjer_official, The Velveteers @thevelveteers, Infected Rain @infectedrain_official, The Pretty Reckless @theprettyreckless, Halestorm @halestormrocks
Best R & B – This category includes powerhouses like Arlo Parks and Dawn Richard. Alewya is our winner for new and original music this year.
Muni Long @munilong, India Shawn @indiashawn, Dawn Richard @dawnrichard, Alewya @alewya11, Arlo Parks @arloparks, Tkay Maidza @tkaymaidza, Danielia Cotton @danieliacotton, Saleka @saleka
Best Surprise – A “surprise” for us is that unexpected performance when it was not expected. It includes some risky performances such as LVXURI and Big Klit. S.G. Goodman is our hands down winner. We caught her as an opener and she garnered as much reaction as the headliner. She is a blunt, and emotive songwriter.
S.G. Goodman @s.g.goodman, Kiesza @kiesza, LVXURI @mx_lvxuri, Big Klit @klitoriusmaximus
Best Comeback – This has been a surprisingly competitive category. Whether it’s the return of ABBA after a long time to Adele’s new album. The big surprise this month is Taylor Swift taking the world with the longest song. She is our winner.
Kylie Minogue @kylieminogue, Avril Lavigne @avrillavigne, Deborah Gibson @debbiegibson, Liz Phair @LizPhairOfficial, Taylor Swift @taylorswift , ABBA @ABBA, Adele @adele, Lorde @lorde
Everyone knows Phoebe Bridgers. She is the Grammy nominated artist whose albums Stranger In the Alps & Punisher have caught fire. She is also part of the supergroup boygenius. On top of that she has started her own label, Saddest Factory Records. FEMMUSIC wanted to spotlight some of her recent signings.
Haley Dahl – who records as Sloppy Jane – has released her new single, “Jesus and Your Living Room Floor” (via Saddest Factory Records). The hauntingly beautiful ballad follows the release of “Party Anthem,” both of which will be featured on Dahl’s forthcoming album, Madison, set for release on November 5th.
“Jesus and Your Living Room Floor” is the first instance of Dahl drawing on horses to evoke both childhood and also the early stages of love. A symbol of the album, Dahl can be seen holding a blue figurine into the light on the official album cover. On the inspiration behind the song, she stated:
“It’s about loneliness, mostly. It’s a fantasy about becoming greater in death– someone more interesting than I ever was, more loved than I ever was. It’s also about loving somebody so much that everything they touch becomes God; a photograph, a plastic horse, the floor of their living room. It’s all pretty toxic, honestly! But that’s the best part of writing songs, it’s like building an ugly feeling a pretty little house of its own so that it stops living in mine.”
“I have never seen an audience more captivated than at a Sloppy Jane show. Whether it was a house show in Reseda where the opener was a trash fire, or a 2000 seat theatre in New York. They have been my favorite band since I was 16. I am never surprised, and always impressed. I’m glad to live in a world where Haley Dahl wanting to go to a cave to make a record just makes sense. This is already a classic album.” – Phoebe Bridgers
@sloppyjanebandd
JJ Shurbet, who records as Scruffpuppie, has released their newest song “paint” on Saddest Factory Records. At just-turned 20, JJ has already released a string of performances and music videos for the last few years, garnering an army of ardent fans and millions of views. The latest track is an introspective piano ballad reflecting on her history of drug abuse. The visual for the song – directed by Mowgly Lee – follows a similar tone, spotlighting JJ for an emotional performance. Produced by frequent Phoebe Bridgers songwriting collaborator, Marshall Vore, the track is JJ’s second release on Saddest Factory Records, following last month’s “assignment song”.
Says JJ,“‘paint’ is an emotional ballad, talking a lot about the relationship I had with drugs, and how they controlled the other relationships I had in my life,” “In the song I say ‘how am I the bigger one, when I never took out my gun, and played along to all your games, but never really felt the same’ which draws a lot from how my relationship with drugs was so one sided, how I never meant to play along to the game they put in front of me, but how it was almost impossible not to.”
Much loved and critically acclaimed Los Angeles-based trio MUNA recently announced their signing to Phoebe Bridgers’ label Saddest Factory Records and today are releasing their first new music in over a year. The undeniable new track “Silk Chiffon” is one of the band’s poppier releases and is “a song for kids to have their first gay kiss to,” according to producer and guitarist Naomi McPherson.
It has a special guest feature by Phoebe who also appears in the destined to be iconic video. The video was directed by Ally Pankiw and inspired by the film But I’m A Cheerleader to honor the cult movie that was there for them as kids. Their hope is that queer kids will watch this video, then watch the movie and feel the same. “I think it’s really important for queer people to be our own archivists, and point to these other references that span generations,” Katie Gavin from the band tells us.
MUNA will soon be heading out on a North American tour supporting Phoebe Bridgers, kicking off September 8th. The band have also just announced they will be supporting Kacey Murgraves on her 2022 tour, all dates can be found below.
Tour Dates:
9/3/21 – Napa, CA @ BottleRock Festival
9/8/21 – Indianapolis, IN @ TCU Amphitheater*
9/10/21 – Evanston, IL @ SPACE (SOLD OUT)
9/11/21 – Minneapolis, MN @ Surly Field*
9/12/21 – Madison, WI @ Breese Field*
9/14/21 – Detroit, MI @ Aretha Franklin Amphitheatre*
Splendour in the Grass is thrilled to introduce Splendour XR, a bold and world first extended reality edition of your favorite Aussie festival. It’s online, priced to be affordable and It’s Unreal!
Splendour XR will hit your screen of choice from
Saturday 24 & Sunday 25 July.
Available on mobile, tablet, browser, desktop and VR.
Always the innovators, when COVID pulled the plug on live music around the world, team Splendour set to work and is now preparing to flick the switch on a world first online experience, unlike anything you’ve seen to date, that will take Splendour in the Grass to audiences around the globe.
Available on mobile, tablet, browser, desktop and VR, Splendour XR combines technology, art and over 50 of your favorite music artists, in a true virtual Splendour in the Grass festival experience rolled out over two days.
Indie rock royalty, critically acclaimed and genre defying singer-songwriters, viral pop sensations, hip-hop heroes and sought after collaborators, pioneering dance producers and artists who push way beyond boundaries into the unknown, will perform across Splendour XR’s stages alongside the hottest Australian acts of the moment.
DAY 1 – KHALID
CHVRCHES. DENZEL CURRY. DUKE DUMONT. TASH SULTANA. MASKED WOLF. RUSS MILLIONS. BAND OF HORSES. LITTLE SIMZ. VIOLENT SOHO. AURORA. PHOEBE BRIDGERS. VERA BLUE. PINK SWEAT$. CLIENT LIAISON. GRIFF. POND. TAYLA PARX. DUNE RATS. METHYL ETHEL. THE CHATS. TRIPLE ONE. CAT & CALMELL. KING STINGRAY. THE SOUTHERN RIVER BAND
DAY 2 – THE KILLERS
CHARLI XCX. VANCE JOY. GRIMES METAVERSE (SUPER BETA). THE AVALANCHES. OF MONSTERS AND MEN. KAYTRANADA. BLACK PUMAS. HOT DUB TIME MACHINE. MILLENNIUM PARADE. THE JUNGLE GIANTS. OCEAN ALLEY. JUNGLE. WHAT SO NOT. KING GIZZARD & THE LIZARD WIZARD. SINÉAD HARNETT. HOLLY HUMBERSTONE. SPACEY JANE. CROOKED COLOURS. AMYL AND THE SNIFFERS. WAFIA. AVIVA. THE SNUTS. BAND-MAID. ZIGGY RAMO. GRETTA RAY.
With single user tickets available from $19.99 for a single day/$34.99 for both days and with a $2.50 discount for Splendour in the Grass existing IRL ticket holders, punters can dive into Splendour XR from the comfort of their couch and watch with family and friends from across the globe or purchase an XR Party Pack and create their own Splendour XR house party.
Splendour XR will include an online medical centre to assist any patrons who are struggling with their mental health in this Covid world. And XR is committed to managing emissions and creating a clean and green platform with a minimal carbon footprint.
“Splendour has always offered patrons a deep programming experience with The Forum, Global Village, Little Splendour and more on offer alongside our favorite artists. We could not be more excited about Splendour XR and the opportunity to take the Splendour goodness online to our existing community and also to new audiences around the globe.” said Splendour in the Grass Co-producers Jessica Ducrou and Paul Piticco.
Charlie Hickey announces his debut EP with a track with his friend and collaborator Phoebe Bridgers.
“‘Ten Feet Tall’ is sort of a different animal than any other song I’ve written,” Charlie Hickey explains. “I was going to school at the time and was feeling quite alienated in this little world where everybody was instantly partying with their brand new best friends and fun came so naturally. I found solace in Marshall’s studio on the weekends. This was our first proper attempt at writing together and we were writing something really horrible. We were both kind of delirious and Marshall started singing the verse melody for the song as a joke, making fun of what we had been trying to write. But when I heard it, I said to him, “Wait, that’s the song that we’ve been trying to write.” After that, we wrote the rest that night and recorded it the next day. We re-recorded it a few times before going back to what we did that day. I’ve never written or recorded a song like that since, and we weren’t sure it was even gonna come out but when I hear it back, it really serves as a time capsule of a very confusing/depressing but also very fruitful and fun time in my life! “
Hickey’s EP was produced, mixed and engineered by Marshall Vore. It is called Count The Stairs and will be out February 26. The first track off the EP “No Good At Lying” was released last year.
Cyndi Lauper hosts this benefit for True Colors United which works prevent and end homelessness among lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and questioning (LGBTQ) youth. 100% of the net proceeds of Home for the Holidays goes to support the work of True Colors United to prevent and end this urgent issue.
This year’s lineup includes Billie Eilish, Bette Midler, Brandi Carlile, Brittany Howard, Cher, Dolly Parton, King Princess, Meg Myers, Phoebe Bridgers, Taylor Swift and more.
“It’s been a crazy year, but I am grateful for so many things – my immensely talented and generous friends who keep showing up for us year after year; the technology that is going to make it possible to bring our virtual concert to more people than ever; and all of our partners who help True Colors United do the work that we do. The Home for the Holidays concert is 10 years and over 100 artists in, and has raised over three million dollars, which is beyond what I could have imagined when we began. Most importantly though, we are truly helping LGBTQ young people experiencing homelessness. And to all of the fans who watch, donate, and celebrate with us, you are family. And I thank you.” – Cyndi Lauper
Julien Baker is releasing her 3rd studio album Little Oblivions in February. Today she has the first single “Faith Healer.”
She says, “Put most simply, I think that ‘Faith Healer’ is a song about vices, both the obvious and the more insidious ways that they show up in the human experience. I started writing this song 2 years ago and it began as a very literal examination of addiction. For awhile, I only had the first verse, which is just a really candid confrontation of the cognitive dissonance a person who struggles with substance abuse can feel– the overwhelming evidence that this substance is harming you, and the counterintuitive but very real craving for the relief it provides. When I revisited the song I started thinking about the parallels between the escapism of substance abuse and the other various means of escapism that had occupied a similar, if less easily identifiable, space in my psyche.
“There are so many channels and behaviors that we use to placate discomfort unhealthily which exist outside the formal definition of addiction. I (and so many other people) are willing to believe whomever– a political pundit, a preacher, a drug dealer, an energy healer– when they promise healing, and how that willingness, however genuine, might actually impede healing.”
For the last eight years, Panache has hosted Valentine’s Day concerts across the country to raise money and awareness for Planned Parenthood. Earlier this year, The Village of Love Benefit Series raised over $40,000 through performances in Los Angeles, New York, Chicago, San Francisco, and Miami. Now, Panache is thrilled to be joining forces with their friends at Like Management and Live.ly to organize Village of Love’s online debut.
This year’s event features Angel Olsen, Brittany Howard, Deep Sea Diver, Phoebe Bridgers, Kathleen Hanna, Margo Price, Soko, Weyes Blood and more. Tickets are only $15.
Since COVID-19 began our local independent music venues have been suffering. In reaction the National Independent Venue Association was born. NIVA has been lobbying congress to get relief money so we don’t lose our independent venues. It has created a coalition of over 3000 member venues across the US in the music, comedy and arts sector.
The festival will be hosted by Reggie Watts and feature performances from 35 artists recorded live from more than 25 independent concert venues across the United States. These artists join YouTube and NIVA to amplify the message of NIVA’s Save Our Stages advocacy efforts and raise funds for its nationwide, need-based grant program to provide relief to these important members of the independent music, comedy and arts community.
The artists in the festival include:
Bea Miller
Brittany Howard
Kelsea Ballerini
Little Big Town
The Lumineers
Demi Lovato
Miley Cyrus
Monica
Phoebe Bridgers
Reba McEntire
And many more. Fans can watch the festival on NIVA’s YouTube Channel and on the individual artist’s YouTube Channel. Fans can donate directly to the NIVA Emergency Relief Fund at https://www.nivassoc.org/erf
Phoebe Bridgers has announced her sophomore album Punisher will be out June 19. Today she releases the 2nd track off the album “Kyoto.” Bridgers describes the video
The initial plan for the “Kyoto” video was to shoot in Japan in March 2020. When the trip was canceled – for obvious reasons – the video was completed with green screen in Los Angeles. Says Bridgers of the track, “This song is about impostor syndrome. About being in Japan for the first time, somewhere I’ve always wanted to go, and playing my music to people who want to hear it, feeling like I’m living someone else’s life. I dissociate when bad things happen to me, but also when good things happen. It can feel like I’m performing what I think I’m supposed to be like. I wrote this one as a ballad first, but at that point I was so sick of recording slow songs, it turned into this.”
Bridgers released her debut album Stranger In the Alps in 2017 and is also known for her work with both boygenius and Better Oblivion Community Center. For info visit https://www.phoebefuckingbridgers.com/
Phoebe Bridgers at The Ogden Theatre
Denver, CO
November 19, 2018
Photos by Veronica Lee
https://www.ogdentheatre.com/
https://www.phoebefuckingbridgers.com/
Boygenius at The Ogden Theatre
Denver, CO
November 19, 2018
Photos by Veronica Lee
https://www.ogdentheatre.com/
https://www.facebook.com/boygeniustrio/
Spin Magazine