Best Albums

November 2021

- Avian
  Zvrra - Bizarroland
  
  Techno and dark ambient blend on an incredible, often unsettling release that favours texture over rhythm.
  
  Listen:
  Bandcamp / Apple Music / Spotify / Soundcloud
- NAFF
  Priori - Your Own Power
  
  The Montreal artist dives deep into the downtempo side of '90s trance and makes pure ear candy out of it.
  
  Listen:
  Bandcamp / Apple Music / Spotify / Soundcloud
- MMM
  MMM - On The Edge
  
  Berlin club vets Fiedel and Errorsmith strip their music back to the fundamental parts, showcasing their creative club sound at its most elemental.
  
  Listen:
  Bandcamp / Apple Music / Spotify / Soundcloud
- T4T LUV NRG
  Eris Drew - Quivering In Time
  
  Breakbeats, clipped vocals, harpsichord—on her debut album, Eris Drew takes all the elements of the records she loves most and makes a joyous nine-track celebration out of them.
  
  Listen:
  Bandcamp / Apple Music / Spotify / Soundcloud
- Psionic
  Oshana - Disciples Of Dystopia
  
  Oshana infuses her swung, groovy house with irresistible bits of Italo disco and hip-hop.
  
  Listen:
  Bandcamp / Apple Music / Spotify / Soundcloud
- Houndstooth
  Lotic - Water
  
  Lotic finds her voice on this stunning, vulnerable and emotional tour de force that ranges from ornate balladry to club-informed pop.
  
  Listen:
  Bandcamp / Apple Music / Spotify / Soundcloud
- Sound Signature
  LeRon Carson - Under The Conditions
  
  Pure, vital house music recorded in the late '80s by the late producer who was a favorite of Theo Parrish.
  
  Listen:
  Apple Music / Spotify / Soundcloud
- Dust Science Recordings
  The Black Dog - Music For Photographers
  
  Sheffield's brutalist landscape becomes the inspiration for stately, sometimes eerie ambient and downtempo.
  
  Listen:
  Bandcamp / Apple Music / Spotify / Soundcloud
- Planet Mu
  Relaxer - Concealer
  
  The artist formerly known as Ital takes inspiration from sculpture and microhouse on an LP full of intricate, hypnotic and often surprising beats.
  
  Listen:
  Bandcamp / Apple Music / Spotify / Souncloud
- Kaptcha
  Various - Xenolith v1.0
  
  Lisbon queer collective kaptcha show off the sounds of the future—abrasive, jagged, confrontational, beautiful—on this remarkable compilation that raises money for trans and nonbinary immigrants in the Portuguese capital.
  
  Listen:
  Bandcamp / Soundcloud

Best Singles

November 2021

- Self-released
  Eddington Again - Core 22
  
  Uplifting, leftfield soul with a vibrant message and lovely production details, like the rousing synths and chirping birds that make up the backdrop behind Eddington Again's voice.
  
  Listen:
  Bandcamp / Apple Music / Spotify / Soundcloud
- Timedance
  Batu - I Own Your Energy
  
  Batu does it again with four more tracks that cut, shimmy, swagger and bang in twisted, unexpected ways.
  
  Listen:
  Bandcamp / Apple Music / Spotify / Soundcloud
- XL Recordings
  Overmono - Diamond Cut
  
  A 2-step beat, a heavy bassline and an Erika de Casier sample? You had us at the first bar.
  
  Listen:
  Bandcamp / Apple Music / Spotify / Soundcloud
- Hyperdub
  Fiyahdred - Anyway
  
  One of the most exciting records on Hyperdub in recent memory fuses gqom, Afro house and UK funky with Fiyahdred's irrepressible personality and catchy vocals.
  
  Listen:
  Bandcamp / Apple Music / Soundcloud
- XL Recordings
  Blawan - Woke Up Right Handed
  
  Blawan looks back to his earliest records with this EP of mind-blowing, contorting rhythms and alien sounds.
  
  Listen:
  Bandcamp / Apple Music / Spotify / Soundcloud
- House Anxiety
  Harvey Sutherland - Jouissance
  
  Lacan is the unlikely inspiration for one of the year's defining disco house bangers.
  
  Listen:
  Bandcamp / Apple Music / Spotify / Soundcloud
- Principe
  DJ Lycox - LYCOXERA
  
  Príncipe's breakout star gets loose and limber on this EP that mixes romantic kizomba with the anything-goes sounds of the Lisbon label's earliest records.
  
  Listen:
  Bandcamp / Apple Music / Spotify / Soundcloud
- Sinderlyn
  Tama Gucci - Almost Blue
  
  Tama Gucci tells detailed and often funny stories about the ups and downs of a relationship over sprightly, jungle-inspired rhythms.
  
  Listen:
  Bandcamp / Apple Music / Spotify / Soundcloud
- Peach Discs
  Peach - Galaxy Girl
  
  Peach's long-awaited debut solo EP threads some minimal influences into her groovy, party-rocking sound.
  
  Listen:
  Bandcamp / Apple Music / Spotify / Soundcloud
- Squirrels On Film
  LDY OSC - Electric-Earthy-Esoteric
  
  The Mexican artist makes riveting, acid-influenced post-punk incantations.
  
  Listen:
  Bandcamp / Soundcloud

Best Mixes

November 2021

- Objekt
  All Night @ Nowadays
  
  Objekt going for nine hours at New York's Nowadays. Need we say more?
- Shannen SP
  Unsound Podcast 75
  
  The NTS and Hyperdub affiliate shows off the smooth and seductive sounds of amapiano on this great live recording from Unsound.
- Pretty Sneaky
  Hard Wax In-store
  
  Pretty Sneaky, the mysterious but hotly-tipped leftfield producer, plays all over the map, from Alice Coltrane to Lutto Lento.
- Nikki Nair
  Recognise
  
  This 70-minute mix of Nikki Nair's own productions, for DJ Mag's Recognise series, is a rollercoaster ride through breakbeat, electro, footwork and more.
- Silvia Kastel
  PURE Guest.010
  
  Initially known for avant-garde explorations, Silvia Kastel has channeled her left-of-center tastes into compelling club sets.
- Josey Rebelle
  TTT Mixtape
  
  Originally released in April, Josey Rebelle's mix for The Trilogy Tapes is now available in all its glory to stream and download via SoundCloud, and it features plenty of weirdo techno, blissful soul and many, many "wow" moments.
- Midland
  HNYPOT 400
  
  The 400th and final Honey Soundsystem Potcast is one for the ages: a three-hour romp from Midland.
- Vivian Koch
  Ilian Tape Podcast Series 072
  
  German producer Vivian Koch—who released an album on AD 93 this year—puts together a gorgeous, textural and often blissful ambient set for Ilian Tape's esteemed mix series.
- LIN000
  LIN000 Mix
  
  This mix from LIN000—now revealed to be the work of North Quarter artists FD and Satl—goes from brooding dubstep to tearout drum & bass vibes with poise and grace. It might just be one of the best drum & bass mixes of the year.
- Dee Diggs
  Honcho Campout Series
  
  Honcho Campout has been sharing recordings from this year's festival, and Dee Diggs' mix is an easy highlight, focused on what she calls "gay anthems" with plenty of soaring vocal tracks.

Best Albums

November 2021

Best Singles

November 2021

Self-released

Best Mixes

November 2021

Pretty Sneaky

LIN000