The 12th Annual Expert Witness Poll: Results

The whitest top ten in poll history!

43 ballots were received through the voting thread (which includes ballots from some of the finest minds in music criticism, plus one from Nick Farruggia), Facebook, and email.

ALBUMS

1. Beyoncé: Renaissance (324 points/21 points/highest points given 25)
2. Big Thief: Dragon New Warm Mountain I Believe in You (234/18/20)
3. Wet Leg: Wet Leg (184/19/15)
4. Miranda Lambert: Palomino (165/17/20)
5. Willie Nelson: A Beautiful Time (161/17/14)
6. Harry Styles: Harry’s House (128/10/25)
7. Emperor X: The Lakes of Zones B and C (127/12/16)
8. The Paranoid Style: For Executive Meeting (100/9/25)
9. Tom Zé: Língua Brasileira (100/10/15)
10. The Beths: Expert in a Dying Field (82/9/15)
11. Alvvays: Blue Rev (72/7/15)
12. Mary Halvorson: Amaryllis (68/5/30)
13. Billy Woods: Aethiopes (67/5/25)
14. Amanda Shires: Take It Like a Man (63/7/15)
15. Nilüfer Yanya: Painless (61/6/15)
16. Danger Mouse & Black Thought: Cheat Codes (61/7/16)
17. Ashley McBryde Presents: Lindeville (59/8/10)
18. Sudan Archives: Natural Brown Prom Queen (56/6/14)
19. The Mountain Goats: Bleed Out (55/6/10)
20=. Homeboy Sandman: I Can’t Sell These (54/5/20)
20=. Rosalía: Motomami (54/5/20)
22. SZA: SOS (53/5/15)
23. Todd Snider: Live: Return of the Storyteller (51/6/12)
24. Little Simz: No Thank You (44/5/10)
25. Buck 65: King of Drums (43/4/15)
26. The Regrettes: Further Joy (39/3/16)
27. Tommy Womack: I Thought I Was Fine (39/5/10)
28. Superchunk: Wild Loneliness (37/3/17)
29. Freakons (35/2/19)
30. c0ncernn: Dariacore 3… At Least I Think That’s What It’s Called? (34/2/20)
31. Iara Rennó: Oríkì (34/3/14)
32. Taylor Swift: Midnight (33/3/13, two voters specified the 3am edition)
33. Regina Spektor: Home, Before and After (31/3/11)
34. Carly Rae Jepsen: The Loneliest Time (29/3/15)
35. Elvis Costello & the Imposters: The Boy Named If (28/3/10)
36. Bob Vylan: Bob Vylan Presents the Price of Life (28/4/10)
37. Adeem the Artist: White Trash Revelry (26/2/16)
38=. Gogol Bordello: Solidaritine (25/3/10)
38=. Stro Elliot & James Brown: Black & Loud: James Brown Reimagined by Stro Elliot (25/3/10)
40. Pusha T: It’s Almost Dry (25/3/15)
41=. Lady Aicha & Pisco Crane’s Original Fulu Miziki Band: N’Djila Wa Mudujimu (23/2/15)
41=. Tyshawn Sorey Trio +1: The Off-Off Broadway Guide to Synergism (23/2/15)
43. Plains: I Walked with You a Ways (23/3/10)
44. Kendrick Lamar: Mr. Morale and the Big Steppers (22/2/17)
45. Charlotte Adigéry & Bolis Pupul: Topical Dancer (22/3/10)
46. Gonora Sounds: Hard Times Never Kill (21/2/11)
47=. Horsegirl: Versions of Modern Performance (21/3/10)
47=. Montparnasse Musique: Archeology (21/3/10)
49=. John Zorn: New Masada Quartet (20/2/10)
49=. Oriental Brothers International Band: Oku Ngwo Di Ochi (20/2/10)
49=. Phelimuncasi: Ama Gogela (20/2/10)
49=. Pillbox Patti: Florida (20/2/10)
53=. Bruno Berle: No Reino Dos Afetos (19/2/10)
53=. Oumou Sangaré: Timbuktu (19/2/10)
55=. Jockstrap: I Love You Jennifer B (18/2/10)
55=. Meridian Brothers & El Grupo Renacimiento (18/2/10)
55=. Santigold: Spirituals (18/2/10)
55=. Folk and Great Tunes from Siberia and Far East (18/2/10)
59. Yard Act: The Overload (16/2/9)
60=. Dan Ex Machina: All Is Ours, Nothing Is Theirs (15/2/10)
60=. JID: The Forever Story (15/2/10)
62. Saba: Few Good Things (14/2/7)
63. Lizzo: Special (10/2/5)

SINGLES

1. Beyoncé: “Break My Soul” (5 votes/1 star vote)
2. Superchunk: “Endless Summer” (4/2)
3. The Beths: “Expert in a Dying Field” (4/1)
4. Harry Styles: "As It Was" (4/1)
5. Lizzo: "About Damn Time" (4)
6. Plains: “Problem with It” (4)
7. Carly Rae Jepsen: “Western Wind” (4)
8. Maisie Peters: “Cate’s Brother” (3/1)
9. Phelimuncasi: “I Don’t Feel My Legs” (3/1)
10. Let’s Eat Grandma: “Happy New Year” (3)
11. Ashley McBryde, Caylee Hammack, Brandy Clark, & Pillbox Patti: “Bonfire at Tina’s” (3)
12=. Lil Yachty: “Poland” (2/1)
12=. S.G. Goodman: “Work Until I Die” (2/1)
12=. Spoon: “The Hardest Cut” (2/1)
15. Taylor Swift: “Anti-Hero” (2/1)
16=. Ava Max: “Maybe You’re the Problem” (2)
16=. Dry Cleaning: “Gary Ashby” (2)
16=. Duke Deuce, GloRilla: “Just Say That” (2)
16=. Ethel Cain: “American Teenager” (2)
16=. Steve Lacy: “Bad Habit” (2)
21. Willi Carlisle: “Tulsa’s Last Magician” (2)
22. Dan Ex Machina: “Drinking and Driving (Separately)” (2)
23. SZA: “Kill Bill” (2)
24. Danger Mouse & Black Thought: “The Darkest Part” (2)
25. Amanda Shires: “Hawk for the Dove” (2)
26. The Beths: “Silence Is Golden” (2)
27. Emperor X: “Freeway in Heaven” (2)
28. Harry Styles: “Music for a Sushi Restaurant” (2)
29. Wet Leg: “Chaise Longue”*
30. Big Thief: “Little Things”
31. Beyoncé: “Cuff It”

*placed second in 2021, if I carried over last year’s points it would have won easily

EPS/MINI-ALBUMS

There was extremely minor controversy as to whether the 29-minute winner was really a “mini-album.” Whatever, I just count the votes.

1. Pillbox Patti: Florida (12/5)
2. Jeffrey Lewis: When That Really Old Cat Dies (11/6)
3. Homeboy Sandman: There in Spirit (11/5)
4. Fulu Miziki: Ngbaka (9/2)
5. Poppy: Stagger (6/2)
6. The Front Bottoms: Theresa (5/3)
7. 100 Gecs: Snake Eyes (5/2)
8. Panic Shack: Baby Shack (4/2)
9. PinkPantheress: Take Me Home (3/2)
10. Mach-Hommy & Tha God Fahim: Dollar Menu 4 (2/2)

2011-13 results are on Joey Daniewicz’s site. 2017-21 results are here. The years in between are floating around the Internet somewhere.