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The Guardian’s 2021 list puts Tyler, the Creator’s Call Me If You Get Lost at No. 5, Olivia Rodrigo’s Sour at No. 8 and Lucy Dacus’s Home Video at No. 48. Those placements reflect one publication’s critics’ votes—not a universal verdict on the year’s music. The three records also make a useful snapshot of how differently 2021 albums could turn heartbreak, memory and musical history into songs.
What the ranking measures
Ben Beaumont-Thomas and Laura Snapes’s Guardian feature, first published November 30 and updated December 17, 2021, compiled votes from the publication’s music critics. Each critic submitted a Top 20, with points awarded according to placement. The resulting order is the Guardian’s editorial ranking; it is not an objective measure of album quality or a ranking shared by every outlet.
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That distinction matters when comparing year-end lists. Rolling Stone placed Rodrigo’s Sour at No. 1 and Tyler’s Call Me If You Get Lost at No. 4, while the Guardian placed them at No. 8 and No. 5. The difference shows how critics and publications can weigh the same year differently; it does not make either list definitive. Rolling Stone’s 50 Best Albums of 2021 offers one such comparison. Pitchfork’s year-end index likewise presents its 50 Best Albums feature as one entry in a broader collection of 2021 music coverage.
Three albums, three different approaches
No. 5: Call Me If You Get Lost — Tyler, the Creator
The Guardian hears Tyler drawing on the feel of Gangsta Grillz mixtapes, lovers rock and Houston R&B, then reshaping those references in his own style. The review highlights his rapping, the album’s connected sequencing and a softer romantic side. Slant describes a 16-track set with varied sounds, production and guest appearances, threaded together by DJ Drama’s interjections. Together, those elements make the album feel less like a collection of disconnected tracks than a deliberately sequenced journey.
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No. 8: Sour — Olivia Rodrigo
The Guardian presents Rodrigo’s debut as intimate, anxious pop about heartbreak and the intensity of teenage emotion. The record’s subjects are personal, but its arrival was also a major chart and streaming story. The Guardian reported in 2021 that “Drivers License” broke Spotify’s record for most single-day streams for a non-holiday song within four days of release, and that it spent nine consecutive weeks at No. 1 on UK charts. Those are historical figures as reported by the Guardian at the time, not a claim about current records.
No. 48: Home Video — Lucy Dacus
Dacus’s third album turns toward adolescence and the way memory can be shaped by place, belief and desire. The Guardian describes songs drawing on memories of church and Bible camp, alongside queer desire; these are themes in the album and the critic’s reading of it, not a claim that every song is documentary autobiography. Slant characterizes the 11-track record as a reflection on adolescence and young adulthood, with sharp, pop-leaning songwriting. Its storytelling approach contrasts with Rodrigo’s immediate heartbreak and Tyler’s mixtape-informed, genre-crossing rap.
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How the three records differ
| Album | Guardian rank | Critical emphasis | Form and focus |
|---|---|---|---|
| Call Me If You Get Lost — Tyler, the Creator | No. 5 | Mixtape traditions, varied musical references, rapping and romantic softness | Slant describes 16 varied tracks, with DJ Drama’s interjections helping connect the sequence. |
| Sour — Olivia Rodrigo | No. 8 | Heartbreak, teenage emotion and intimate pop songwriting | The Guardian’s account centers on a debut shaped around the emotional upheaval of heartbreak. |
| Home Video — Lucy Dacus | No. 48 | Adolescent memory, church and Bible camp, and queer desire | Slant describes an 11-track reflection on adolescence and young adulthood. |
The numbers in the Guardian column indicate positions in that publication’s vote-based list only. They should not be read as transferable scores or direct measures of one album’s worth against another.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Where the list sits among 2021 year-end coverage
Year-end album lists are editorial snapshots: they organize a year’s releases through a publication’s particular critics, voting rules and tastes. The Guardian’s ranking gives these three records a shared frame, while Rolling Stone’s different placements for Rodrigo and Tyler show how the frame changes elsewhere. Slant’s list adds its own critical descriptions of Call Me If You Get Lost and Home Video; Pitchfork’s year-end index places its album feature alongside other music coverage. Reading across lists can reveal disagreement and emphasis, but there is no need to merge them into a single supposed consensus.
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