The Top 50 singles of 2021 – 40-31
The next instalment of our rundup of 2021’s finest singles
40
Azzurro 80 ‘Agip’ (Four Flies)
“Arriving like the theme from an ’80s cop show, the subtly melancholic melody is instantly memorable – which is a good thing, since the track fades into the sunset before reaching the three-minute mark. The soundtrack theme continues into the powerfully affecting ‘Astrotensione’ with dramatic melodies interplaying over an eerie, nocturnal landscape. Finally, glassy synth harmonics elegantly lap at celestial shores on the equally anthemic ‘Telefono Giallo’, completing a coherent collection of concept rich tracks that sound as though they were plucked from the esoteric reels of cult classic Italo celluloid.”
39
“Effects-laden guitars and kaleidoscopic electronics that lock you into a chugging yet cosmic groove and take you on a real trip to the stars. On the flip is an epic 10 minute-plus version from 40 Thieves that really ups the starry eyed vibes and expansive chords.”
38
Somachrome — Electro Romantica (Periodica)
“Napoli’s West Hill production crew offer the latest in their impeccable Periodica Records catalogue with a typically dazzling collaboration between long-time chums, Raffaele ‘Whodamanny’ Arcella and Luca ‘Bop’ Affatato. Admirers of the label will already know roughly what to expect based on its polychromatic archives – which is uniformly comprised of extraordinarily well-conceived musical ideas.”
37
Coco Bryce – Sound Dimensions (PPSPCT)
“It’s the breaks that really set Bryce apart – light and nimble snatches of percussion backed up by the heavy artillery where it counts, but not as relentlessly bludgeoning as the usual amen experience. On ‘Sound Dimensions’ that comes through in abundance – it’s a stripped back track that uses atmospheric threads as a foil to the drumfunk, and yet there’s enough nuance in the beats to carry you throughout. It helps that the eerie pads have a nail-biting similarity to the genuinely scary drone tones from The Ring.”
36
IWDG – In A Lonely Place (Rotter’s Golf Club)
“Ian Weatherall, brother of the late Andrew, David Holmes and others feature on ‘In A Lonely Place’, a tribute to Andrew Weatherall. David Holmes, Keith Tenniswood (one half pf Two Lone Swordsmen) and Hardway Bros also contribute remixes to the single.
A statement from the duo said: “Their mutual admiration for Factory Records made it an obvious place to seek inspiration for a tribute record. The influence of Factory on Andrew and Ian’s lives is difficult to overstate. They spent a fair chunk of the 80s travelling all over the country to catch the label’s artists perform. New Order were pretty much top of the list and the Factory ethos of creativity over commercialism was to become Andrew’s main drive throughout his career. Ian and Duncan have reworked New Order’s ‘In a Lonely Place’ as a homage to Factory and the inspiration they were to a whole generation.”
35
Burial / Blackdown – Shock Power Of Love EP [Keysound Recordings]
“It’s no surprise that this EP feels so darkly resonant to our nationally tuned-in hive consciousness. As pundits will insist, we are in a societal stupor. We are in desperate need need of the ‘Shock Power Of Love’. The EP’s name comes from the sample on the Burial track ‘Dark Gethsemane’, a swirling, soft speed garage track tinged with the mood of gospel. “We must shock this nation, with the power of love!”, it preaches, over and over again. It has the energy, the sheer potency to nationally defibrillate. Clear!”
33
SClaude Young ‘The Knife’ (NDATL Muzik)
“From organ-strewn deep house shufflers to driving, acidic techno escapism, his staggering output brims with highlights, and skirting back through the archives is a pure delight. There are the stirring rhythms of ‘Dear 1’ and ‘Dear 2’ from 2003’s ‘Pattern Buffer EP’, the heads-down vocal chops of 1993 classic ‘You Give Me’, and the hyper-atmospheric soundscapes of 2005’s ‘Electronic Dissident’ to name just a few from an extended list of jewels. Kai Alce certainly knows plenty when it comes to label curation, so it’s fitting that his NDTAL should offer a home for Young’s production return.”
32
Cosmic Neighborhood – All For Al (Kit)l
“The illustrator-then-cassette-based-release is a well-worn path to stardom, but perhaps no-one does it as much justice as York-based artist Adam Higton. Higton’s art takes in comic strips, collage and sound, manifesting in the form of forest beings and asymmetric smiles. This art forms the ‘Cosmic Neighborhood’; a bustling cosmogramma home to tickly sprites, snakelike shouts, and wacky sine bursts.”
31
DJ Stingray 313 – Molecular Level Solutions (Micron Audio)
“The Detroit icon has enough credentials to do what he likes with the genre – he was the Drexciyan-appointed DJ after all – and in his fiercely experimental, uncompromising sound you can hear the fluency of someone looking past simple genre tropes into the very ideas and instinct that drove the pioneers in the first place… Layers of microbes slithering between the mechanical percussion and a restless funk buffeting the less rhythmically rigorous elements along. Even in these icy, forbidding zones, Ingram brings a dancefloor sensibility that is crucial to the idea of electro.”