Rock Coven's Sounds of 2021
This year definitely got the ball rolling, but 2021 is all set to smash it out the park and be another sizzling year for rock music. There are some huge releases on the horizon from artists like Royal Blood, Death From Above 1979 and You Me At Six - but we don't wanna patronise you. If you're here you already know all that, so we're going granular. We've consulted our crystal ball, and present to you the 15 artists we think are gonna blow the fuck up next year - thank us later.
1) cleopatrick - The visionaries behind New Rock Mafia will shortly be releasing new singles, and their debut album (currently being referred to as LP1). December brought us the first taste of the Canadian kings' new era via GOOD GRIEF, but do not think this is as good as it gets: "we wanted to put something out on this side of the year but didn't want to drop the big guns yet. GOOD GRIEF is a fun and simple tune we thought would be a nice way to introduce our friends to the new era." With their set at Reading and Leeds Festival cancelled this year, we're hopeful (and pretty bloody certain) 2021 will be the year cleopatrick meet the masses.
2) Black Honey - Written & Directed will be Black Honey's second album, due for release on the 29th of January. We attended the virtual album announcement party, where Izzy described it as a "rock n roll concept album for the female gaze" with a dark female protagonist and focus on empowerment. Three singles from it are already released - Beaches, Run For Cover and our favourite: I Like The Way You Die. The guys have said they're really proud of the album - Tommy referred to it as "the album we were born to make," - so naturally we are very excited to hear it in full. Pre-order the it here.
3) The Luka State - The Cheshire lads - who recently signed with Shelter Records/BMG - are set to release their debut album, Fall In Fall Out, on January 29th. Following singles Feel It and Bury Me which have seen a lot of recent success on Spotify, the LP is set to be a bonafide face-melter - with frontman Conrad's perfectly gritty and roaring vocals and some stadium hooks thrown in for good measure. The Luka State were our favourite discovery of 2020, so we can't wait to see what the coming year has in store for them. Pre-order the album here.
4) The Mysterines - The Liverpool based grunge-rockers announced their 2021 headline Life's a Bitch tour earlier in the year. Having already toured with the likes of Royal Blood and Miles Kane, we think they're well prepared. Singles Take Control and Love's Not Enough have both racked up over a million listens on Spotify, so their debut album (currently unannounced) is well poised to be an instant success. The gang have been in the studio a lot recently, so expect to hear new stuff very soon! Get your tour tickets here.
5) Himalayas - Cardiff babes Himalayas are currently in the studio working on new music for next year - after the success of their singles Thank God I'm Not You (with a whopping stream count of over 22 million) and Sigh On A Hurricane (over 1 million) we've gotta be due an album, surely? Don't miss out on your chance to see them before they hit the big time, get tickets for their May 2021 tour here.
6) Ayron Jones - Earlier this year Seattle's Ayron Jones signed to Big Machine and made his first commercial record - Take Me Away is the first track off the album, the release date for which is yet to be announced. Having already opened for BB King and Guns N' Roses, he's got fans in high places, so we're expecting big things from his debut LP.
7) Buzzard Buzzard Buzzard - The 70's inspired glam-rock quartet, hailing from Cardiff, released their most successful track to date this year. Double Denim Hop is an incredibly catchy bop that sounds like it was taken straight from a 1973 chart number one, and given a nice riffy makeover. Taking inspiration from the likes of T.Rex and Thin Lizzy, their lyrics explore weighty concepts of time, money, politics and vanity. Get tickets to their January London show here.
8) Made Violent - New York punk-rock trio Made Violent have kept us going throughout 2020 with a glorious array of singles from their upcoming debut album, Wannabe, which is due to be released on January 15th 2021. Check out the latest single from the album Goners on Spotify and Apple Music now, in anticipation of the full record.
9) Coach Party - The indie-rock outfit from the Isle of Wight have been on a roll in 2020, with their debut EP Party Food setting the tone, followed up by dazzling singles Can't Talk, Won't Talk and Really OK on My Own. Coach Party have continuously blown us away this year, and we can't wait to see what they come out with next in the New Year.
10) Courting - For fans of Sports Team and Ed The Dog, Courting's songs Popshop! and David Byrne's Badside offer a delicious slice of their upcoming debut EP Grand National, due out April 9th 2021. Expect witty, cynical lyricism and punk-influenced indie-rock tracks.
11) Pinkshift - Merging the sounds of 90's grunge and 00's pop punk, Baltimore-based Pinkshift's songs like I'm Gonna Tell My Therapist On You and On Thin Ice are impressively both nostalgic and refreshing, making the band one of our best new finds this year. Watch this space for kickass new tunes from Pinkshift in 2021!
12) Lauran Hibberd - Following up from 2020 singles Boy Bye and Old Nudes, indie-rock darling Lauran Hibberd has teased her upcoming EP, due to be released early 2021, and talked of writing a debut album when we had the pleasure of seeing her socially-distanced headline gig this month.
13) Ready the Prince - The talented Toronto duo recently released Regicide, the first of 3 singles that were recorded earlier this year. So guess what that means? More RTP in 2021! As one of the 3 founding bands of the New Rock Mafia (alongside cleopatrick and ZIG MENTALITY), they're part of a collective centred around the development, distribution, and defence of real guitar music. So expect big things, you won't be disappointed.
14) The Roly Mo - Glasgow punk-rock 4-piece The Roly Mo will grip you by the throat with their high-intensity riffs and catchy melodies. Their 2019 single I'll Be Happy When You Die became a huge hit this year, and 2020 also saw the release of their EP TRM - 6 mega tracks that give us a great idea of what a Roly Mo album could sound like. Inspired by the likes of The Strokes, Arctic Monkeys and The Vaccines, they're aiming high - but we think they can do it. They're planning to record another EP ASAP, so watch this space!
15) desert on the rocks - Sometimes, you happen upon an absolutely fucking brilliant band that no one has heard of. desert on the rocks are just that. A Buckingham based 3-piece, they recorded their self-titled debut EP in just one day - and these 4 tracks are unlike anything else you've heard. You'll be pissed off that you can't find anymore stuff from them yet, but just hit repeat and turn the volume up in the meantime. We'll keep you updated, promise. Follow desert on the rocks on Instagram.
That's a wrap! If you wanna get ahead of the game and listen to these bands before everyone else is, check out our 2021 playlist. 2020 is nearly over guys, we can make it!
Listen to the Sounds of 2021 playlist on Spotify
Article by Courtney Myers & Chloe Robbins
