The reason there is more virus this year than last is that it has finally made it around the block and is not localized to one spot or another.
Add in the fact that many of the people not vaccinated in the west are those who are ignoring any common sense interventions that would slow its spread such as distancing, masking, avoiding groups, or socializing when symptomatic.
The vaccine slows the spread by allowing the body to kill the virus before it builds enough copies in a person to become highly spreadable.