KXCI’s Top 100 Countdown of 2021 was broadcast on the last day of the year, Friday, December 31st.
We analyzed the playlists of every music program over the course of 2021 to determine the 100 most played new albums, as selected by KXCI DJ’s throughout the year. On December 31st we worked our way through these selections, from #100 down to #1. We also featured tributes to musicians we lost in 2020, DJ personal favorites and other notable musical moments.
We are happy to note that 13 Local Releases are in the Top 100. You can also check out individual playlists from December 31st here and listen to a playback of programming for up to 2 weeks from the same playlist link. Here is the Spotify playlist.
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I’m wishing you the best during this season and hope that KXCI will provide you memories of a year filled with music. Here’s to a happier, healthier, and better new year.
Duncan Hudson – KXCI Music Director
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| Rank | Artist | Release | Top Song | Released | |
| 1 | Various | Tribute to Al Foul | Baby Clothes and Dishes (Birds and Arrows) | 2021 | local |
| 2 | Japanese Breakfast | Jubilee | Be Sweet | 2021 | |
| 3 | Courtney Barnett | Things Take Time, Take Time | Rae Street | 2021 | |
| 4 | Yola | Stand For Myself | Stand For Myself | 2021 | |
| 5 | Leon Bridges | Gold-Diggers Sound | Steam | 2021 | |
| 6 | Arlo Parks | Collapsed In Sunbeams | Hurt | 2021 | |
| 7 | Jose Gonzalez | Local Valley | El Invento | 2021 | |
| 8 | Various | I’ll Be Your Mirror: A Tribute to the Velvet Underground & Nico | Run Run Run (Kurt Vile) | 2021 | |
| 9 | Bomba Estereo | Deja | Deja | 2021 | |
| 10 | XIXA | Genesis | Eclipse | 2021 | local |
| 11 | Valerie June | The Moon And Stars: Prescriptions For Dreamers | Call Me A Fool (feat. Carla Thomas) | 2021 | |
| 12 | Los Lobos | Native Sons | Love Special Delivery | 2021 | |
| 13 | Lucy Dacus | Home Video | Hot & Heavy | 2021 | |
| 14 | Amythyst Kiah | Wary + Strange | Black Myself | 2021 | |
| 15 | Lake Street Dive | Obviously | Hypotheticals | 2021 | |
| 16 | Los Esplifs | Estraik Back | Galaxia | 2021 | local |
| 17 | Various | Luz de Vida II: A Compilation to Benefit Homicide Survivors | Crystal Road (XIXA) | 2021 | local (mostly) |
| 18 | Jon Batiste | WE ARE | I NEED YOU | 2021 | |
| 19 | Dry Cleaning | New Long Leg | Scratchcard Lanyard | 2021 | |
| 20 | Durand Jones & The Indications | Private Space | Witchoo (feat. Aaron Frazer) | 2021 | |
| 21 | The War On Drugs | I Don’t Live Here Anymore | I Don’t Live Here Anymore | 2021 | |
| 22 | Helado Negro | Far In | Gemini and Leo | 2021 | |
| 23 | La Luz | La Luz | In the Country | 2021 | |
| 24 | The Avalanches | We Will Always Love You | Interstellar Love (feat. Leon Bridges) | 2020 | |
| 25 | Julien Baker | Little Oblivions | Hardline | 2021 | |
| 26 | The Black Keys | Delta Kream | Crawling Kingsnake | 2021 | |
| 27 | St. Vincent | Daddy’s Home | Pay Your Way In Pain | 2021 | |
| 28 | Curtis Harding | If Words Were Flowers | Hopeful (radio edit) | 2021 | |
| 29 | Robert Plant & Alison Krauss | Raise The Roof | Can’t Let Go | 2021 | |
| 30 | Mdou Moctar | Afrique Victime | Tala Tannam | 2021 | |
| 31 | The Felice Brothers | From Dreams to Dust | Jazz On the Autobahn | 2021 | |
| 32 | Lord Huron | Long Lost | Not Dead Yet | 2021 | |
| 33 | Yves Tumor | The Asymptotical World – EP | Jackie | 2021 | |
| 34 | Shannon & The Clams | Year Of The Spider | Year Of The Spider | 2021 | |
| 35 | Hiss Golden Messenger | Quietly Blowing It | Sanctuary | 2021 | |
| 36 | Modest Mouse | The Golden Casket | We Are Between | 2021 | |
| 37 | Fruit Bats | The Pet Parade | The Pet Parade | 2021 | |
| 38 | The Exbats | Now Where Were We | Coolsville USA | 2021 | local |
| 39 | TORRES | Thirstier | Hug From a Dinosaur | 2021 | |
| 40 | The Colorist Orchestra & Howe Gelb | Not On The Map | Counting On | 2021 | local |
| 41 | Bachelor | Doomin’ Sun | Back of My Hand | 2021 | |
| 42 | Freddy Parish | A Cold July – EP | Back Anywhere | 2021 | local |
| 43 | Parquet Courts | Sympathy for Life | Walking at a Downtown Pace | 2021 | |
| 44 | Little Simz | Sometimes I Might Be Introvert | Introvert | 2021 | |
| 45 | Tune-Yards | sketchy. | hypnotized | 2021 | |
| 46 | Molly Burch | Romantic Images | Emotion (feat. Wild Nothing) | 2021 | |
| 47 | Lorde | Solar Power | Solar Power | 2021 | |
| 48 | Chai | WINK | ACTION | 2021 | |
| 49 | Allison Russell | Outside Child | Nightflyer | 2021 | |
| 50 | Lukas Nelson & Promise of the Real | A Few Stars Apart | Perennial Bloom (Back To You) | 2021 | |
| 51 | Karima Walker | Waking the Dreaming Body | Waking the Dreaming Body | 2021 | local |
| 52 | Arooj Aftab | Vulture Prince | Last Night | 2021 | |
| 53 | Angelique Kidjo | Mother Nature | Dignity (feat. Yemi Alade) | 2021 | |
| 54 | Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats | The Future | Survivor | 2021 | |
| 55 | Heartless Bastards | A Beautiful Life | How Low | 2021 | |
| 56 | Israel Nash | Topaz | Down in the Country | 2021 | |
| 57 | Natalia LaFourcade | Un Canto por Mexico, Vol. II | Tu Si Sabes Quererme | 2021 | |
| 58 | Big Thief | Dragon New Warm Mountain I Believe In You (advance tracks) | Little Things | 2022 | |
| 59 | Robert Finley | Sharecropper’s Son | Country Boy | 2021 | |
| 60 | Sault | Nine | Trap Life | 2021 | |
| 61 | Ryanhood | Under the Leaves | Appy Returns | 2021 | local |
| 62 | Juana Molina | ANRMAL (Live in Mexico) | Eras – ANRMAL | 2020 | |
| 63 | Paul McCartney | McCartney III | Find My Way | 2020 | |
| 64 | Loretta Lynn | Still Woman Enough | One’s On The Way (feat. Margo Price) | 2021 | |
| 65 | Glacier.Wav | Glaciar.Wav | Glacier | 2021 | local |
| 66 | King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard | Butterfly 3000 | Yours | 2021 | |
| 67 | My Morning Jacket | My Morning Jacket | Regularly Scheduled Programming | 2021 | |
| 68 | The Weather Station | Ignorance | Tried to Tell You | 2021 | |
| 69 | The Mountain Goats | Dark in Here | Mobile | 2021 | |
| 70 | Various | The Metallica Blacklist | Nothing Else Matters (Phoebe Bridgers) | 2021 | |
| 71 | Sharkk Heartt | Wars Our Mothers Fought | Work Fires | 2021 | local |
| 72 | The Go! Team | Get Up Sequences Part One | World Remember Me Now | 2021 | |
| 73 | Flor de Nopal | EP 2 – EP | Dale Chance | 2021 | local |
| 74 | Jungle | Loving In Stereo | All Of The Time | 2021 | |
| 75 | Paul McCartney | McCartney III Imagined | Find My Way (feat. Beck) | 2021 | |
| 76 | Lana Del Rey | Chemtrails Over the Country Club | Not All Who Wander Are Lost | 2021 | |
| 77 | TV Priest | Uppers | Press Gang | 2021 | |
| 78 | Faye Webster | I Know I’m Funny haha | Cheers | 2021 | |
| 79 | Flock of Dimes | Head of Roses | Two | 2021 | |
| 80 | Langhorne Slim | Strawberry Mansion | Mighty Soul | 2020 | |
| 81 | Ani DiFranco | Revolutionary Love | Revolutionary Love | 2021 | |
| 82 | Various | The Daptone Super Soul Revue (Live at the Apollo) | Get Up and Get Out (Sharon Jones) | 2021 | |
| 83 | serpentwithfeet | DEACON | Fellowship | 2021 | |
| 84 | Wolf Alice | Blue Weekend | The Last Man On Earth | 2021 | |
| 85 | Brandi Carlile | In These Silent Days | Right on Time | 2021 | |
| 86 | Django Django | Glowing in the Dark | Glowing in the Dark | 2021 | |
| 87 | Billie Eilish | Happier Than Ever | Your Power | 2021 | |
| 88 | Dinosaur Jr. | Sweep It Into Space | I Ain’t | 2021 | |
| 89 | Leftover Salmon | Brand New Good Old Days | Brand New Good Old Days | 2021 | |
| 90 | Jackson Browne | Downhill From Everywhere | My Cleveland Heart | 2021 | |
| 91 | Vox Urbana | Relatos En Caravana | Karolina | 2021 | local |
| 92 | Polo & Pan | Cyclorama | Feel Good | 2021 | |
| 93 | La Santa Cecilia | Quiero Verte Feliz | Ella Me Enamoro | 2021 | |
| 94 | David Huckfelt | Room Enough, Time Enough | Bury Me Not | 2021 | |
| 95 | U-Roy | Solid Gold | Wake The Town | 2021 | |
| 96 | The Hold Steady | Open Door Policy | Heavy Covenant | 2021 | |
| 97 | Orquesta Akokon | 16 Rayos | Mi Conga Es De Akokon | 2021 | |
| 98 | Son Volt | Electro Melodie | Reverie | 2021 | |
| 99 | Allergies | Promised Land | Move On Baby | 2021 | |
| 100 | Tommy Guerrero | Sunshine Radio | Evolution Revolution | 2021 |
