Alt.Latino looks back at the best albums of 2021
Spanish vocalist C. Tangana was a top pick for Alt.latino's Best Of 2021 panel. Arturo Holmes/Getty Images hide caption
Spanish vocalist C. Tangana was a top pick for Alt.latino's Best Of 2021 panel.
Arturo Holmes/Getty ImagesEach year the Alt.Latino crew parses through hundreds of new Latin music releases in the hopes of finding the best of the genre, and each year this task gets even more challenging. The breadth of sonic experiences Latin artists have brought us this year are more diverse than ever.
The chasm between projects by artists like C. Tangana and his internationally inspired pop-urbano homage to Madrid El Madrileño, and The Marías' genre-bending soundscape inspired by Pedro Almodóvar's film Hable Con Ella entitled CINEMA, is expansive. But the diversity also serves as an exciting starting point for conversations about the extensive range of talent that sits under the Latin music category.
Here at Alt.Latino we know that we can't get to all of the incredible projects that floored us in 2021, but we brought together a panel of incredible Latin music critics to discuss a few of our favorites. Special thanks to Isabella Gomez Sarmiento, Stefanie Fernández, Catalina Maria Johnson, Marisa Arbona-Ruiz and Anamaria Sayre for joining this discussion.
Our 2021 list, in alphabetical order:
Alborotá, Alea
Baiuca, Embruxo
CINEMA, The Marías
Como La Piel, Rita Payés, Elisabeth Roma
El Alimento, Cimafunk
El Madrileño, C. Tangana
Far In, Helado Negro
Lyke Mike, Myke Towers
Maré, Rodrigo Amarante
Mendó, Alex Cuba
Spanish Model, Elvis Costello and The Attractions, Various Artists
Tempo, Dom La Nena
The Return of..., Pachyman
Una Rosa, Xenia Rubinos
Vice Versa, Rauw Alejandro
42, Sech