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Music I listened to *A LOT* in 2021

Here is a bunch of mostly old stuff I listened to this year.

1) Instrumental hip hop, mostly by Pete Rock, an absolute master of the form. I highly recommend his album Return of the SP-1200. Also check out Jimmy Eden Moon’s channel on YouTube, particularly this mix.

2) Sadevillan EPs 1 & 2. I just discovered these a few months ago and I cannot stop listening to them. The best hip-hop I’ve heard in YEARS. 

3) Ghostface Killah - The Lost Tapes - This short album from 2018 is all bangers. Snoop and Tricky make appearances. I never doubted you, Ghostface.

4) My Morning Jacket - “Wasted” The jam that starts at about the 2:20 mark is extremely my shit.

5) Spoon - “The Hardest Cut” -  We all need new Spoon in our life.

6) Arlo Parks - Collapsed in Sunbeams - Arlo Parks is the truth.

7) Pavement - 4-21-1997 @ Missoula Copper Commons - Another old thing I just discovered. Is this the best Pavement bootleg ever? “Passat Dream,” The Hexx,” and “Blue Hawaiian” are all incredible. And they play “Westie Cannot Drum” and “Gangsters and Pranksters.” 

6) Broken Social Scene - 1-18-2011 @ Terminal Five - Another amazing bootleg with all my fave BSS songs.

7) Gruff Rhys - Seeking New Gods - Gruff’s second best solo album, tons of hooks and full of his trademark wit.

8) Lee Perry - Dubz of the Root - I won’t lie and claim I’ve been into Lee Perry for years, I’ve dabbled here and there but I started listening to this a lot after his death and it really hit different.

9) Johnny Marr - Call the Comet - I didn’t like this album when it came out in 2018 but I gave it a few more listens earlier this year and it really clicked for me. I absolutely love listening to Johnny Marr play guitar. It’s so soothing (again, a big theme for me this year).

10) Martina Topley Bird - Forever I Wait - Been a fan forever, so happy to get great new music from her. It also caused me to dip back into Tricky’s catalog.

11) Super Furry Animals - “It’s Not The End of the World” -  The most underrated song on their re-released masterpiece album from 2001. I’m soooo happy to finally have this album on vinyl.

Best shows:

I got to go to shows this year!

1) MMJ @ MPP - Not the first show I saw post-pandemic, but the biggest. So good.

2) IDLES @ 9:30 Club - So much energy, so much fun.

3) The Flaming Lips @ The Anthem - Hearing songs from the Ego Trippin’ at the Gates of Hell EP was fun and it was worth hanging around to hear “Feeling Yourself Disintegrate.” I still have confetti in my camera bag.

4) St. Vincent @ All Things Go - She’s a bonafide amphitheater act now. Absolutely crushed it.

5) Arlo Parks @ Union Stage - See above.

6) Avett Brothers @ Camden Yards - Not my usual fare but they were great and I shot this show for the Orioles!

(I had tickets to go see The Hives in Atlanta but chickened out on going as I wasn’t sure the venue was doing an all vaxxed crowd. That would have been #1, obvs.)

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Tom Morello of Prophets of Rage at EagleBank Arena in Fairfax VA. Opening night of the tour. 

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Luna at the 9:30 Club in Washington, D.C.

They played “Bobby Peru” and “Tracy I Love You.” Best.

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Mew at the 9:30 Club in Washington, D.C.

Great show, but I miss Bo and his frantic guitar playing.

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Chance The Rapper at the 2015 Trillectro Festival.

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Vic Mensa at the 2015 Sweetlife Festival.

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Morrissey @ Echostage in Washington, D.C. More photos.

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That’s Tove Lo’s gun. 

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Gwen Stefani of No Doubt at the 2015 Global Citizen Earth Day Festival. Click the photo for more photos from the gig!

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Sleater-Kinney at the 9:30 Club in Washington, D.C. More.

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Erykah Badu at the Fillmore Silver Spring. More photos.

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Sharon Van Etten at the 9:30 Club in Washington, D.C. More.

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Tinashe at The Howard Theatre. More.

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My Jay Z photo is in the December 2014 issue of GQ!

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Johnny Fucking Marr. More photos here.

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Low at the 9:30 Club.

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Aw yeah! Big Freedia working it at the Howard Theatre in DC.