Hear Exclaim!'s Favourite Canadian Music of 2021

BY Exclaim! StaffPublished Dec 31, 2021

Another year has officially come and gone. While 2020 set the bar pretty low, we can pretty much all agree that 2021 certainly gave it a run for its money.

But the past 12 months weren't without their bright spots, either; including the (however fleeting) return of live music and a steady stream of new material from Canadian artists bringing their A — er, Eh! — game. If nothing else, 2021 was a year where, amid the burnout and isolation, we felt music's power for connectivity more than ever.

Some favourites among the Exclaim! staff in 2021 included Backxwash, the Weather Station, Cadence Weapon, Kiwi Jr., Ada Lea, Ducks Ltd. (we essentially had to play Fuck, Marry, Kill to choose which track from Modern Fiction to include here), BADBADNOTGOOD, DijahSB, Vanille, Bad Waitress, PACKS, Hot Garbage, Dorothy Paas and Hubert Lenoir. Just to name a few of the many.

And how could we not mention the year bringing archival gold from the Tragically Hip, as well as the long-awaited comeback of our Motherfucking Princess Avril Lavigne? For more of the year in review, you can check out our 50 Best Albums, 30 Best Songs, 25 Best EPs and 25 Great Canadian Albums You Might Have Missed.

Prepare to bid adieu to 2021 in all of its terrible, beautiful glory with The Eh! List below, presented by Mary Brown's Chicken & Taters — all Canadian and proud of it!

 

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