So this is the “new normal?” Or is it a return to the “old normal?” Either way, regardless of how you spent this past year, regardless of your thoughts on the world, politics, and economics of the world, furrowing your eyebrows at this or that or embracing all the necessary and arguably unnecessary changes in the world, one needs a constant personal and universal soundtrack to keep going, to keep sane, to keep grounded and inspired. As the newest round of the holiday season gets ready to dawn upon us, music not only acts as the perfect and always obvious choices for even the most discriminating of tastes, but also something that brings much-needed relief and communion to end another challenging year and brace everyone for what lies ahead in 2022. So as always, here’s my picks for some of the sonic highlights released this year, spanning all genres and tastes.

Check out our 2021 Holiday Gift Guide for Music.

The 25th installment of the James Bond film franchise has been going by its unofficial title, Bond 25. But that ends today.

The folks behind the film, which once again stars Daniel Craig as the iconic British MI6 spy, have titled the film No Time To Die. More on the report, below.

Despite the set disasters and injuries, James Bond 25 is still in production for an April 2020 release. Though we still know very little about the film itself, it has recently been revealed that Christoph Waltz would return to reprise his character, Blofield. While that would be a cause for excitement for some, the character was introduced (or re-introduced) in one of the weakest installments of the entire franchise. But there is another rumor going around that suggests that the 007 codename could be passed on to someone else. According to this rumor, James Bond (Daniel Craig) will no longer hold on to that famous number and it will be passed on to none other than Captain Marvel co-star Lashana Lynch. More on the report here below.

Although Bond 25 had a very long and troubled development, it was still able to land Cary Joji Fukunaga as director after Danny Boyle stepped down due to creative differences.

With principal photography for Bond 25 set to begin in just a few short days, Fukunaga has announced the full cast that will appear in the latest chapter of the franchise that will see Daniel Craig return for his fifth and final time as James Bond. Additionally, a plot synopsis has also been shared.

It may have taken a while to get to this point, but we are going to get Bond 25. Daniel Craig returns to play the suave British spy one last time. However, he has yet to find out what his next mission will be.

Plot details have remained under wraps, but we now know who 007 might have to face this time around. According to new reports, recent Academy Award-winner Rami Malek could be playing the villain. More on the report below.