2021 End Of The Year Lists: Best Albums

Next up on Audioeclectica.com’s 2021 End Of The Year Lists, the Best Albums Of The Year. The stipulation is that said album/EP had to have been released this year.

Picks 1-10 ARE IN ORDER. 11-25 ARE IN NO PARTICULAR ORDER there’s too many good ones to put a number on them!!! Also, I’m only picking 25 since these were the ones that really stayed in rotation and captivated me the most.

01) Quicksand- Distant Populations
01) Every Time I Die- Radical
02) Genghis Tron- Dream Weapon
03) Failure- Wild Type Droid
04) Converge- Bloodmoon I
05) Emma Ruth Rundle- Engine Of Hell
06) Trivium- In The Court Of The Dragon
07) Thrice- Horizons/East
08) Rob Zombie- The Lunar Injection Kool Aid Eclipse Conspiracy
09) Chevelle- NIRATIAS
10) The Pretty Reckless- Death By Rock N Roll
11) Mastodon- Hushed and Grim
12) Bossk- Migration
13) Arc Angles- Apocalisp
14) Spiritbox- Eternal Blue
15) Jerry Cantrell- Brighten
16) Halsey- If I Can’t Have Love I Want Power
17) Killer Hill- Frozen Head
18) So Hideous- None But A Pure Heart Can Sing
19) Confines- Work Up The Blood
20) Filth Is Eternal- Love Is A Lie, Filth Is Eternal
21) Zao- The Crimson Corridor
22) Exodus- Persona Non Grata
23) Amenra- De Doorn
24) Kowloon Walled City- Piecework
25) Actors- Acts Of Worship

2021 End Of The Year List: Best Vocalist

Next up on Audioeclectica.com’s 2021 End Of The Year Lists, the Top 10 Vocalists. The stipulation is that, an album/EP had to have been released this year.

Vote for your favorite in the comments section. At the end of the month, I will release the results of the readers poll.

This list is also in NO PARTICULAR ORDER!!!

01) Walter Schreifels- Quicksand: Distant Population
02) Jacob Bannon, Cheslea Wolfe & Stephen Brodsky- Converge: Bloodmoon I
03) Ken Andrews- Failure: Wild Type Droid
04) Emma Ruth Rundle- Emma Ruth Rundle: Engine Of Hell
05) Courtney LaPlante- Spiritbox: Eternal Blue
06) Keith Buckley- Every Time I Die: Radical
07) Dustin Kensrue- Thrice: Horizons/East
08) Tony Wolski- Genghis Tron: Dream Weapon
09) Taylor Momsen- The Pretty Reckless: Death By Rock N’ Roll
10) Lisa Mungo- Filth Is Eternal

2021 End Of The Year Lists: Best Guitarist

Next up on Audioeclectica.com’s 2021 End Of The Year Lists, the Top 10 Guitarists. The stipulation is that, an album/EP had to have been released this year.

Vote for your favorite in the comments section. At the end of the month, I will release the results of the readers poll.

This list is also in NO PARTICULAR ORDER!!!

01) Walter Schreifels- Quicksand
02) Nick Bradford- Arc Angles
03) Pete Loeffler- Chevelle
04) John 5- Rob Zombie
05) Jerry Cantrell- Jerry Cantrell
06) Ben Phillips- The Pretty Reckless
07) Mike Stringer- Spiritbox
08) Brian McClelland- Filth Is Eternal
09) Hamilton Jordan- Genghis Tron
10) Dan Beeman- Killer Hill

2021 End Of The Year List: Best Drummer

Next up on Audioeclectica.com’s 2021 End Of The Year Lists, the Top 10 Drummers. The only stipulation is that, an album/EP had to have been released this year.

Vote for your favorite in the comments section. At the end of the month, I will release the results of the readers poll.

This list is also in NO PARTICULAR ORDER!!!

01) Ben Koller- Converge (Bloodmoon)
02) Brann Dailor- Mastodon
03) Kellii Scott- Failure
04) Clayton “Goose” Holyoak- Every Time I Die
05) Nick Yacyshyn- Genghis Tron
06) Alan Cage- Quicksand
07) Alex Bent- Trivium
08) Mario Duplantier- Gojira
09) Brian Hollenbeck- Arc Angles
10) Riley Breckenridge- Thrice

End Of The Year Lists: Best Bassist

Next up on Audioeclectica.com’s 2021 End Of The Year Lists, the Top 10 Bassists. The stipulation is that, an album/EP had to have been released this year.

Vote for your favorite in the comments section. At the end of the month, I will release the results of the readers poll.

This list is also in NO PARTICULAR ORDER!!!

01) Paolo Gregoletto- Trivium
02) Troy Sanders- Mastodon
03) Sergio Vega- Quicksand
04) Steve Micciche- Every Time I Die
05) Nate Newton- Converge (Bloodmoon)
06) Chris Matalone- Arc Angles
07) Jesse Keeler- Death From Above 1979
08) Mark Damon- The Pretty Reckless
09) Jean-Michel Labadie- Gojira
10) DJ Scully- So Hideous

End Of The Year Lists: Best Guitar Duo

Next up on Audioeclectica.com’s 2021 End Of The Year Lists, the Top 10 Guitar Duos/Trios. The stipulation is that, an album/EP had to have been released this year.

Vote for your favorite in the comments section. At the end of the month, I will release the results of the readers poll.

This list is also in NO PARTICULAR ORDER!!!

01) Matt Heafy and Corey Beaulieu- Trivium
02) Kurt Ballou and Stephen Brodsky- Converge/Bloodmoon
03) Brent Hinds and Bill Kelliher- Mastodon
04) Jordan Buckley and Andy Williams- Every Time I Die
05) Joe Duplantier and Christian Andreu- Gojira
06) Scott Mellinger and Russ Cogdell- Zao
07) Ethan Sgarbossa and Timmy Moreno- See You Space Cowboy
08) Jonas Stålhammar and Martin Larsson- At The Gates
09) Adrian Smith, Dave Murray and Janick Gears- Iron Maiden
10) Isaac Hale and Nicko Calderon- Knocked Loose

End Of The Year Lists: Best Album Cover

Well, the end of yet another strange year is fast approaching and that means all the year end best of lists are coming out. So, that means mine are too.

First up on Audioeclectica.com’s 2021 End Of The Year Lists, the Top 10 Album Covers. The stipulation is that, they had to have released an album/EP this year.

Vote for your favorite Band/Album Cover in the comments section. At the end of the month, I will release the results of the readers poll.

This list is also in NO PARTICULAR ORDER!!!

01) Failure- Wild Type Droid:

02) Converge- Bloodmoon I:

03) Quicksand- Distant Populations:

04) Every Time I Die- Radical:

05) Genghis Tron- Dream Weapon:

06) The Pretty Reckless- Death By Rock N Roll:

07) Chevelle- NIRATIAS:

08) Arc Angles- Apocalisp:

09) Yautja- The Lurch:

10) Mastodon- Hushed and Grim:

Band Of The Week: The Moon Rocks

I love it when I go to see a band I don’t know anything about and they blow me away. A couple weeks back a good friend of mine went out to go see a show and we wound up being completely taken by surprise by a band. That band was a three piece with more energy than everyone in the venue had combined. So, with that in mind let me introduce you to The Moon Rocks. Their punk rock style and energy mixed with 90’s rock and a tinge of pop have made The Moon Rocks one of Los Angeles’s best bands to see live. Pure, their debut record is a righteous slab of rock music that has been missing for sometime. Singer/guitarist Babsy leads the group with her unapologetic energy and outstanding skills on guitar and power vocals. The rhythm section of Cola on bass and Bobo on drums are beyond tight but have the right swagger to play loose to keep up with Babsy. They are tearing up venues all over Los Angeles so go make a point to see The Moon Rocks live, you won’t be disappointed.

The Moon Rocks- Pure:

Anticipated Albums: Placebo- Never Let Me Go

On March 25, 2022 Placebo will release their long awaited eighth studio album, Never Let Me Go. Already two songs have been released “Beautiful James” and “Surrounded By Spies.” The album was recorded between 2019 and 2021 and it is their first album to be recorded as a duo, following the departure of drummer Steve Forrest. 13 songs are slated for the album. The new songs have a bit of a Loud Like Love feel mixed with a bit of Without You I’m Nothing and a tinge of Sleeping With Ghosts. Pre-Orders for the album are available HERE.

Beautiful James:

Surrounded By Spies:

Collaborations: Noumenah with Allie Armstrong- Focus

A little while back I introduced you to Noumenah, the electronica project of Los Angeles-based composer/producer Andrew John Napier. Now, he’s releasing a new single “Focus” featuring singer-songwriter, Allie Armstrong, who lends her nuanced vocal style adds a whole new dimension to this song. This track definitely has a vibe to it and fits the strange world we live in.

Noumenah w/Allie Armstrong- Focus: