It’s that time of year again where we look back on what stood out for us for the year. So, we kick things off with what didn’t fly for us in music for 2021.
For music this year, we’ve been continuing our focus largely on the early 90s to see what was out there at the time. There is some interesting stuff out there, but not every track at the time was created equal. Doesn’t mean we won’t give these tracks a try, but it also doesn’t mean we will like everything out there.
On the note of the early 90s, we would like to point out that we have officially closed the year 1991 now. For us, the year was about as hit and miss as 1990. While we did find the off track here and there interesting, we did find our share of duds for that year. We do note that a lot of what was going on in music was still in development. So, with experimentation brings successes and failures.
As we see in later years after 1991, interesting ideas and musical concepts did end up being developed. So, it’s not as though the year is a waste in any way shape or form.
At any rate, as we move ahead, we look back to see what just didn’t work that well for this year. Now, here is the top 10 worst tracks we’ve heard in 2021.
10. The The – Love is Stronger Than Death
(RIAA)
This years track that just made it under the wire is this one. A track with a delay effect applied to the vocals that makes it difficult to hear the lyrics. Repetition of the overall track ensures this one remains as bland as possible.
5.5/10
9. The God Machine – Home
(RIAA)
The scores are already sinking lower with this track. It’s another one with hard to understand lyrics. It also contains vocals that hit virtually the same note throughout the entire track, ensuring monotony from beginning to end.
5/10
8. That Dog – Old Timer
(RIAA)
What could be worse than lyrics that are hard to understand? How about a track where the vocalists actually sound bored of singing? This track also manages to be a mere two minutes long with the drum kit being the only redeeming factor throughout the entire track.
5/10
7. Paul McCartney – Hope and Deliverance
(RIAA)
This track features dated concepts with nothing new to bring to the table. It’s a bland track that should probably be skipped.
5/10
6. Dinosaur Jr. – Start Choppin’
(RIAA)
We are now entering the fail range as we make it to this particular track. This one features bad vocals mostly because of the bizarre notes they hit. To make matters worse, the guitar solo in the end just doesn’t sound all that great.
4.5/10
5. Raven – The Rocker
(Commercial)
We now enter the top 5 for this year with this flop. A track with lyrics that make it one giant cliche. To make matters worse, it features a drum kit that is all over the map. A just plain bad listening experience.
4.5/10
4. Richard Marx – Now and Forever
(RIAA)
The scores continue to sink with an all too familiar genre for these lists. In this track, the lyrics are, of course, a massive cliche. To make matters worse, there’s nothing really breaking apart the track. This ensures there’s no real flow in there. A pretty bad track here.
4/10
3. Jellyfish – He’s My Best Friend
(RIAA)
A track with limited use indeed. This track makes the top 3 this year for being worthless outside of a comedy setting. Artificial happiness ensures that, under normal circumstances, it would drive anyone crazy after a while.
4/10
2. Pavement – Cut Your Hair
(Commercial)
This years runner up belongs to this track. It has random yelling from the vocals and ridiculous non-lyrical vocal sections. This track contains very little in the way of redeeming qualities.
4/10
1. Beastie Boys – Cookie Puss
(RIAA)
This years worst track of the year pretty much makes every other track on this list sound like musical gold. It, by far, wins the worst track of the year and, ultimately, is one of the worst tracks I’ve ever heard. All it is is a drum kit and guitar on permanent loop. Added in are random voice samples and scratching. At the beginning and end are two parts to a bad prank phone call. This track is just plain bad.
1/10
Honourable Mentions
There’s no shortage of bad music out there. This year, once again, has a full roster. Here are this years honourable mentions:
John Mellencamp – What If I Came Knocking (RIAA) A track that’s almost all main chorus. What’s there is, while listenable, nothing huge.
5.5/10
Stone Temple Pilots – Plush (RIAA) Slurred lyrics and bland sound is what ended up defining this particular track. Nothing big about this track.
5.5/10
Mariah Carey – Dreamlover (RIAA) While the backup vocals may be decent, this track is plagued with mediocrity. Both main vocals and backing instrumentation just don’t cut it on this one.
5.5/10
Jawbox – Savory (RIAA) This contains mediocrity and lyrics getting lost in the mix from time to time.
5.5/10
Wet Wet Wet – Make it Tonight (RIAA) This track just barely escaped the main list. With quiet parts which makes the lyrics hard to understand and so few positives, it’s actually a bit impressive it didn’t make the list.
5.5/10
That’s it for today’s list. Join us tomorrow as we explore which games just didn’t impress us this year!
Drew Wilson on Twitter: @icecube85 and Facebook.
