Another week in the books and I’m heading into the weekend continuing my early 2000’s pop-punk theme. In many ways this album was the first time post “blink-182 fan site” AbsolutePunk started to see real traffic. The interview baby-Jason did with the band where they opened up about Drive-Thru Records put us on the map (and in the crosshairs). It was albums like this, and bands like @midtownnj, that made me want to start the website in the first place; I wanted to tell the world about these amazing new bands they just hadn’t heard yet. And that idea, and this band, set the stage for so much to come.

(P.S. I’ll toss a link to the archive of that infamous interview in my story.)

“Find comfort in yourself…”

#midtown #vinyl

A few weeks ago I went on a massive @relientk binge. This album in particular reminds me of senior year of college living in an apartment and playing massive amounts of FIFA on the PlayStation with this blasting over the speakers. Many, many memories were made that year, and this pop perfection soundtracked quite a few. Best part is: it holds up! It could be released tomorrow and I’d still be into it.

(The band’s heading out on tour soon so make sure to check their page for dates.)

“And this week the trend…”

#relientk #vinyl

I am on one of those early thousands pop-punk kicks again. You know how I get. Tonight I was going through a bunch of the @drivethrurecs era albums and reading the liner notes, and seeing @minusthesnake’s name in this one still made me a little bit jealous, even to this day! What a gem of an album though, bringing me straight back to sunny college discman days.

“Tell me what you thought about when you were gone…”

#vinyl #thestartingline

I still remember the advance of this album being sent to my mom’s house and giving her specific instructions to call me the moment it showed up. I got the call, drove over, and my first listen was on the drive home, taking the long way, the backroads, and turning it up way too loud. Their manager had told me “not to expect ‘Interventions’ part 2” but I was head over heels for it immediately. So unique and yet ridiculously catchy.

Tick tock, you’re not a clock …

#vinyl #theformat

The reorganization is getting close to done, and I finally have more room for my c̶o̶m̶p̶u̶l̶s̶i̶o̶n̶ collection. This is a nice little section here — from Gaslight to Jimmy Eat World to The Matches. Not a bad run at all. #vinyl

Tonight’s walk back through time is with Something Corporate’s ‘North’ – I loved the part of @amnthewilderness’s memoir going behind the scenes of this record because I have incredibly detailed memories of the build up and release of it. These days I think I’d make the argument it’s almost underrated. This one came out toward the end of college for me and the last few songs on the record felt like they were ushering me out into the real world. #vinyl #somethingcorporate

Moving backward now and we’re into the Jack’s Mannequin era. ‘Everything in Transit’ remains one of my favorite albums … ever … but the other two hold up remarkably well. I have many memories of riding the Max to the airport when @drhannahtate and I first started dating to go see her in Arizona with ‘People and Things’ in my headphones. #vinyl #andrewmcmahon #jacksmannequin

Continuing my @amnthewilderness dive and waking backwards (the Zombie album is already in my feed somewhere), here’s tonight’s little gem. #vinyl #andrewmcmahon

I ran out of room to store records so I’ve been having to move some stuff around and reorganize. Figured while I did that I might as well post some favorites. And, since I recently finished @amnthewilderness’s book, I’ve been on a huge catalog kick of his history lately. Starting with the most recent release … this one has continued to grow on me. At first I felt the vocal effect didn’t quite work in places, but the underlying songs are so damn good it’s won me over. #vinyl #andrewmcmahon #andrewmcmahoninthewilderness

2021 has come to an end, so, like always, I recapped my favorite music, movies, tv shows, and more over on the old blog. Link in stories or you’ll find it pretty easily at chorus.fm

Jason Tate’s Top Albums of 2021

Best of 2021

I once again find myself writing a best of the year list. Just like I have done so many times before. But this year is interesting because 2021 signaled a music renaissance of sorts in my life. I’ve always listened to a lot of music, but about mid-way through the year, I found a fire lit inside of me that re-sparked the passion. I started seeking out new music like I hadn’t in years; I started returning to old favorites and keeping them on repeat; I revisited albums and bands that never clicked for me to see if I had missed something. And now I am faced with the impossible task of trying to put all of that in a tidy little list. I’ve done my best and, like usual, included my entertainment rankings as well.

You can subscribe to my newsletter if you’re interested in a weekly rundown of the music and other entertainment I consume, and the staff compiled best of 2021 list can be found here.

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Adam Grundy’s Top Albums of 2021

Best of 2021

This year was overwhelming in a lot of ways, right? Overwhelming with the possibility of another full year of dealing with a never-ending pandemic, and the overwhelming amount of content (in all mediums) that came out this year that helped us get through another crazy year. The music was fantastic, the TV shows that were being released were equally thrilling on various streaming platforms (as the networks quickly caught on to everyone “cutting the cord” of cable), the movies coming out were being simultaneously released at home as they were hitting theaters while they re-captured our imaginations, as well as several great books were released rekindling my love for the glory days of our scene. This year really had a lot of everything to it, and since this year was so unique, I expanded my year-end blog this year to cover a lot of those mediums that I don’t usually have enough time to talk about (besides a quick plug in the Chorus.FM forums). 

On top of my favorite 30 albums from this year, I’ve also dedicated key sections of this blog to an “honorable mention” category, my Top 10 EPs, my Top 10 Interviews I conducted, as well as my Top 5 Books, TV Shows, and Movies I really enjoyed during this year. Thanks again for all of the kind words you have shared about my writing, and I hope I have helped you discover new bands, and/or revisit records from a past life, as it makes contributing to this site such a labor of love. I wish everyone a very Happy New Year as we look ahead to more great content ahead.

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Drew Beringer’s Top Albums of 2021

Best of 2021

unfortunately 2021 felt a lot like 2020, huh? we’re fighting another wave of covid as I type this, our government is still putzing around, 40% of the country refuses to listen to science, etc. so that’s a major bummer but thankfully I’m vaxxed and boosted and if you are too, thank you. for me personally, the past 12 months were a whirlwind. my wife and I bought our first house this fall and a month ago we welcomed our first child into the hell world, a beautiful baby boy. so I can’t be anything but thankful for that. hopefully 2022 brings better things for all of us. anyways, below are the albums and EPs I liked the most – thanks for reading as always.

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Craig Manning’s Top Albums of 2021

A year ago, I wrote about how 2020 forced me to lean on music in a way that I hadn’t since my tumultuous coming-of-age years. All the fear and heartbreak and uncertainty of last year caused me to turn to songs and albums for solace and comfort like I was a teenager again, looking for answers in his headphones. In the midst of so many dark days, music felt like one of the few things that kept me sane and kept me hopeful.

2021 was different. Where almost every day of 2020 – at least, every day after about March 13 – felt like it brought some scrap of very bad news – this year was more about the ups and downs. The music I listened to and fell in love with reflects that roller coaster. In the albums and songs discussed below, there are dizzying, euphoric highs and deep, dejected lows. Some days, I could listen to a song in the car with the windows down and feel like life was normal again. Some days, life was normal again. From crossing the finish line at the end of my first half marathon to watching one of my best friends from college tie the knot, 2021 reminded me again and again how sweet the world can taste on the good days. But there were the heartbreaking days, too: being there for my wife and her family as we said goodbye to both of her grandparents, less than six months apart; watching COVID come back with a vengeance; seeing my small town land in the national news for one of the most appalling reasons imaginable.

And so, again, music proved to be something I needed desperately in 2021. After experiencing a waning level of engagement and excitement over new albums in 2018 and 2019, I now feel as ecstatic about music discovery as I ever have. I spent this year pushing beyond my comfort zone, both in terms of the new albums I was finding my way toward and the many older records I listened to for the first time in the past 365 days. The result is probably the most surprised I’ve ever been at the year-end list I made. That’s not to say there aren’t old favorites of mine represented here – including at the very top of the list. But there are also artists who I learned about for the first time, or veteran bands who I’d largely written off. There are pop superstars and under-the-radar up-and-comers. Maybe most notably, there’s a contingent of young women who are reigniting rock music within the pop mainstream in a way that I find extremely exciting.

You never know which music years or end-of-the-year lists or individual albums are going to end up “standing the test of time.” Who knows if these records will still mean much to me in a year, or five years, or come 2029 when it’s time to compile another end-of-the-decade list. All I can do for now is look back at the last 12 months and survey the music that defined the moments that filled them. To the best of my ability, these are the albums that tell my 2021 story.

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Trevor Graham’s Top Albums of 2021

Best of 2021

2021 was a year, and like most years, some music came out. Most of it was good! Just not Clairo. I did a little top 50 countdown on Instagram, so this year I’m just gonna pull those blurbs for my personal Chorus blog. Most of it was written off the cuff, so there’s a loose feel — don’t expect Hemingway, y’know? Had to keep things short. Catch me around the forums to tell me how bad my taste is, I will laugh for a few minutes before blocking you. Just kidding. Maybe. I dunno, fuck around and find out I guess.

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