2021 was another year in the Covid-19 abyss, one that I had the displeasure of experiencing myself a few weeks ago, with minimal issues luckily. It is an ever-present threat to getting things back to as normal as humanly possible, lurking around every corner, making its presence known. Unlike the majority of 2020, 2021 saw the return of many live shows, including my foray back to them in the form of the Philadelphia portion of Decibel's Metal and Beer Fest back in September. My family and job helped form the foundation of the year as did my ongoing series of Heavy Metal Happy Hours that I run weekly on Zoom, if you were a part of even one of them, just know you have helped me, and I certainly hope it has helped you too. So anyway, a little less about me and more about the music that made 2021 pop, this is a veritable cornucopia of the year with everything from hardcore to goth, death and thrash metal as well. It accurately reflects my spastic sense of music and reality.
