Here we go. Edition 21, our final edition of our first year, Laughing Stock’s inaugural roundup of the past 12 months, following, as time dictates, roughly 6 months after our half year review. LS isn’t about ranking stuff, but we’ve decided that our first ever album of the year is Space Afrika’s astonishing Honest Labour, a 7am in the morning kinda record, a wet city streets kinda record, a real creeper of a record. It has seeped into our collective consciousness since its release in August, and will remain there for a very long time.
Now the awards are done, on to the meat. It’s been a wild year for all sorts of reasons; here are 17 things we loved about it, in no particular order.
We must go forward, not backward. Upward, not forward. And always twirling, twirling, twirling towards freedom by Rich Walker
Claire Rousay has been a big part of my life this year. Her gorgeous, soothing album A Softer Focus, released as the UK was just thinking about opening up again, felt like a balm. Then there was the sublime An Afternoon Whine, her intricate, intimate collab with More Eaze, released in Summer and soundtracking hazy days spent reading outside. Finally, there was her unconventional gig at The White Hotel, which I attended on the back of what can only be described as an incendiary Homobloc level of hangover, where she posed questions to an unsure audience over ambient soundscapes. ‘How many friends do you have?’ ‘Do you chat shit behind their back?’ I’m not sure if she was expecting responses, but this being Salford, she got them regardless (‘Eight friends’ came the initial response from a man with eight friends. I felt sad). She followed this with a lengthy recorded monologue about a man in his late 30s who felt everyone had drifted away from him. I had a hangover, red wine induced existential crisis on my cycle home. Claire Rousay then: soother and Satre, and a constant 2021 companion. (See also: Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith, Abul Mogard, Princess Diana of Wales, Sarah Davachi, Grace Ferguson, Elori Saxi)
‘I need to keep you in my life. To keep an image of you in my mind, of driving in twilight over Pennines’ - the most evocative lyric of the year from one of the best albums of the year. Take a bow, William Doyle.
In a year when every major league pop star decided that boring was the new good (Hi Drake! Hi Lorde! Hey there Bille!), it was left to Rebecca Lucy Taylor, better known to many as Self Esteem, to swoop in and provide us with the stunning pop moment we all so sorely needed. Before she released the magnificent ‘I Do This All The Time’, I was genuinely concerned for big pop’s welfare. And then here it was, a behemoth of a song, a millennial Everybody’s Free, an ode to self care and self worth. It hit like a tonne of bricks, and was backed up by one of the best albums of the year in Prioritise Pleasure, finally making people stand up and pay attention to one of the UK’s premier songwriters and performers. Self Esteem is the pop star we need right now.
Blackhaine is the future, we’re all just witnessing the start of greatness. EP of the year, incendiary live shows, choreographing Donda, a Crack front cover. If a lad from Chorley can choreograph a stadium sized Kanye West album launch gig, then you, my friend, can achieve whatever you put your mind to.
Mal Evans’ joyful face when contributing to Maxwell’s Silver Hammer (read about the aftermath of his life with the Beatles and his tragic death too :( )
No Bounds, a Sheffield festival based mainly at Hope Works, was my first postc-bomb proper event and it was mind blowingly thrilling. From the endearingly rough-at-edges organisation to the world class pummelling sound system, from the eclectic crowd and performers to the cans of Hooch served at the bar, it was the UK electronic event of the year. Space Afrika, aya, India Jordan, Joy-O, Ben UFO, Anz, Batu and Helena Hauff all smashed sets out of the perfectly scruffy ex-factory venue. When India Jordan dropped Mario Piu’s ‘Communication (Somebody Answer the Phone)’ after dancing to hours of vocaless techno, my smile could be seen from space.
A word from Tyler, rap album and style icon of the year (see also: Mach-Hommy, MIKE, Navy Blue, Armand Hammer)
Where as I will die on the ‘Manchester/Salford is currently the pinnacle of creativity in the UK’ hill (see Fergal Kinney’s excellent Face article, but also the Youth label, Anz, aya, Soup, NQ, Manchester Collective, and much more), I’ll also nod to the fact that South London also has bits going on too. This is mainly due to the continuing excellence of the Mica Levi/Tirzah/Coby Sey collective, a group putting out some of the most consistently brilliant music around. Who else had put out such a catalogue of excellent work over the last year? No one lads, no one. (See: Colourgrade, Music, Zola, Blue Alibi, Ruff Dog, Tighter)
aya’s success this year has been a joy to witness, and I’m dead pleased for her that her darkly experimental debut album has been so well received, both here and overseas. im hole sounds like nothing else released this year, and her live shows are a thing of legendary reputation. When someone like aya emerges, they put most other things in the shade; she’s the Manchester equivalent of early Arca, and the sky’s the fucked up, screwed up, genre smashing limit.
An odd sort of year again. Closed spaces opened while others remained closed and most of what came out has been made under different circumstances than usual. Everyone had something to say (I mean, we even started this) and released something. Google the artists in your head and see. A longing to be heard, maybe. Here’s eight highlights from the downstairs toilet of Laughing Stock:
Space Afrika - Honest Labour. A walk down canalside paths overlooked by prefabs, bikes in the water, and rain. The after-afters. Try-hard sentences aside, this is a wonderful treasure.
Madteo - Head Gone Wrong by Noise. Madteo has been doing it for years and the stuff released on Honest Jon’s this year seems to combine everything that has been good of late. Music which never fails to bring something that lingers on the brain for a long, long time. Great on every listen.
Caterina Barbieri - Fantas Variations. Rare occasion when some of the songs sound better than the original. Features all the big hitters. Editions Mego forever.
Leron Carson - Under the Conditions. A reissue on Sound Signature that sounds brand new. Absolute killer record. Worth the feel.
Emma DJ - Godrime. Recorded on iPhone, but still sounds incredible as you could imagine being on Lee Gamble’s label. And Planet Rap is probably my favourite song of the year too.
Everything Shelter Press released this year. All this stuff is worthy of your time but you probably already know that.
Tirzah - Colourgrade. Continually great, blessed with great collaborators all under Mica Levi.
Bendik Giske - Cracks. Second entry for Bendik (see number 3). This is a powerful record.
Of course, that is just a handful of albums. There are a ton of other records which could have been included. All of which can be found in our playlists below. Thanks for reading and supporting this year, much appreciated, see you next year, yeah? Yeah!
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You may have missed…
Edition 20: Rich Walker on the joy of ambient
Edition 19: Connah Roberts with a world exclusive interview with Magnum
Edition 18: Rich Walker on exceptional artwork (and fuck Damien Hirst)
Edition 17: Connah Roberts on how venues remain good
Edition 16: Rich Walker on The Club satisfing Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs
Edition 15 - Connah Roberts on fashion and music and butter
Edition 14 - Sam Hartford on anachronistic music in films
Edition 13 - Our Half Year Review 2021
Edition 12 - Will Palmer on lesser know football references in music
Edition 11 - Rich Walker on boring anniversary pieces
Edition 10 - Connah Roberts on culture wars, and Kes