20 Great Albums from 2020
20.) The Ar-Kaics - Ar-kives: Volume 1
Coming out Richmond, VA, this fantastic compilation of early singles and unreleased tracks released by the “Virginia Garage Punk Unknowns” The Ar-Kaics bolstered what was such a hallmark year for guitar rock. I don’t think you’ll find any better solos this year than those featured on “Don’t Need Your Love” or “Always the Same.” Simple, unrefined rock and roll baby!
19.) Future - High Off Life
Interesting to release an album two months into the Pandemic called High Off Life. I’m sure none of us felt the feeling was mutual as Future skipped across DJ Esco’s eclectic mix of 808s - rapping, crooning, and even hitting his newly perfected falsettos about Patek Philippes, hedonism, and the Harlem Shake. It has all the attributes of the standard Future album, but this is arguably DJ Esco’s strongest produced record to date and that only makes Future stronger.
18.) Caribou - Suddenly
One of the strongest characteristics a musician can have is a generalist mindset. Nothing is out of the question when gathering inspiration, and that’s what makes Dan Snaith aka Caribou so special. Suddenly hits nearly every corner of the musical spectrum. The glam rock solo on “You and I” or the impeccable sampling effort on the album’s lead single “Home” taken from the very obscure soul artist Gloria Barnes evokes daydreams from any music lover just how much they could discover if they could just spend ten minutes in the studio with one of the most talented musicians of our generation.
17.) Westside Gunn - Pray for Paris
One-third (and arguably the best) out of the Griselda trio, Westside Gunn dropped the strongest hip-hop project of the year with Pray for Paris. A collage of different producers featuring The Alchemist, DJ Muggs, and Darringer to name a few hit that east coast vibe perfectly while Westside’s near helium-induced high pitched bars and near incessant flow solidify him as one of New York’s best rappers.
16.) Perfume Genius - Set My Heart On Fire Immediately
Sweeping, beautiful, massive, personal are all adjectives that comes to mind when describing Perfume Genius’s latest project Set My Heart On Fire Immediately. If you look on wikipedia, they attribute roughly 16 genres to this album, and each element fits in its right place. The opening track, “Whole Life” is sprawling with strings and a clean but low doo-wop guitar riff while the following “Describe” is Perfume Genius’s take on shoegaze. From there it only twists and turns throughout a cacophony of different styles, while still remaining amazingly produced and polished - a singer-songwriters dream.
15.) Nuvolascura - As We Suffer From Memory & Imagination
Clocking in at only 21 minutes, the 4-piece screamo band from LA, Nuvolascura delivered easily the harshest project of the year. Sure, you need to be in the right state of mind to listen to this record, but frontwoman Erica (no last names are mentioned from the band) pours out as much emotion as those releasing projects twice this length. Apart from the visceral vocals shown here, her backing guitars can turn mathy, to melodic, to thrashed and blown out on a dime - like they have been doing this for years. The album’s midway point “Pixel Vision Anxiety” is a testament to their craft, an impressively tight knit first verse featuring manic, rolling drums and a dueling math guitar pattern that explodes into a chorus breakdown that epitomizes the brutality and catharsis of this genre.
14.) The Killers - Imploding The Mirage
A return to form that almost no one saw coming. Imploding The Mirage is without a doubt The Killers best album since their debut. With a little help from legend Lindsay Buckingham, legend-in-the-making Adam Granduciel (War on Drugs), and producer Johnathan Rado (Foxygen) The Killers have turned the switch from catchy to completely anthemic. Each song is giant and bombastic in its own right, from the Springteenian album opener “My Own Soul’s Warning” to the marching tune of My God featuring Weyes Blood. Certainly this was album that was made great solely by outside influences, but who cares when these songs sound this euphoric?
13.) Wizkid - Made in Lagos
During the summer, following the George Floyd protests in NYC and the COVID rates were hitting an all time low there was finally a feeling of respite and jubilation in the air. As I strolled through Fort Greene Park there would be weekly bloc parties held by the BLM movement where a DJ would play selections old and new from the black community - much of that being Wizkid. Granted, Made in Lagos came out in October when the salad days of 2020 had passed but this album reminded me of a time where things were looking or at least felt good at the time. Whether you are a fan of reggaeton or not, this genre and Wizkid especially has that undoubtable power of preserving the ephemeral good times in amber.
12.) Jon McKiel - Bobby Joe Hope
One of the many blessings that came from Bandcamp Fridays this year was the discovery of the smaller artists. Canadian artist Jon Mckiel and his fantastic album Bobby Joe Hope was a product of said circumstance. The backstory behind this project is quite unique as he purchased a reel-to-reel recorder from a stranger over the internet and used the already loaded tracks from the recorder as inspiration for the album (the album title is the name of the individual who he bought the recorder from.) This project is a masterclass in bridging the gap between experimental and indie-rock. These songs are chopped, looped, and baked to create something that sounds spaced out and familiar, but in a sort of eerie way like deja vu or more accurately - pieces of someone else’s work woven into your own.
11.) Nation of Language - Introduction, Presence
While many indie bands of today borrow slightly from the 80s age of synth, Brooklyn’s Nation of Language douses itself in the nostalgia completely, giving us their long-awaited debut album Introduction, Presence. Human League, Psychedelic Furs, and every end scene from a John Hughes movie comes to mind when going through this album, but it still feels 2020 as the themes of loneliness, love, and experiencing those emotions and everything in-between in present-day NYC are the main themes of the album. I can’t think of stronger and more exciting synth-pop debut album since CHVRCHES released The Bones of What You Believe. Here’s to the bright future of synth!
10.) Waxahatchee - Saint Cloud
As you evolve as a singer-songwriter, it’s so important to invest in your backing band as you grow. We saw Dylan do it with The Band, and more recently Angel Olsen move away from her sparse guitar-only setup to a full band on My Woman a few years back. On Saint Cloud we see Waxahatchee make this smart investment by bringing in members of Detroit lo-fi country outfit Bonny Doon to add a piece of relevant twang to her storytelling and fully embrace her southern roots like they were there all along. This album can be played on the roof of a Brooklyn apartment or in a field during an evening on a friend’s farm, both settings feeling amicable and warm to throw this album on without hesitation.
9.) Touché Amoré - Lament
As hardcore bands grow both in maturity and popularity you begin to worry that they may sound over-polished or inauthentic to their original vision as a band. This was not the case with Touché Amoré and their fifth studio album Lament. They still sound as vigorous as ever, using that maturity and experience they’ve gathered to create some of the most structured yet hard-hitting songs they’ve ever created. Frontman Jeremy Bolm usual topics of fear of death, guilt, and alienation reign on past projects, he sees the light from past trauma on Lament. On “I’ll Be Your Host”- the album’s climax encapsulates both his personal and the band’s growth with Bolm exuding his feelings towards how his grief from past songwriting helps others who listen to their all the while spastic guitars and gut-puching drums bolster the true emotion felt on this project’s centerpoint.
8.) Phoebe Bridgers - Punisher
If you are a frequent Twitter surveyor I don’t think there was a more talked about album this year (maybe apart from T-Swift’s first album of 2020) than Phoebe Bridgers’ Punisher. In a year where collective sadness and angst was hugged-out amongst the general public online, Punisher was the community’s town hall - a place where people could go to commiserate. It was a cathartic album for anyone captured by Phoebe Bridgers’ heart-wrenching anecdotes on love, death, and separation. Something of which, people needed more than ever this year. Sonically, nothing new or groundbreaking is shown on Punisher, and as previously mentioned her song topics are Sad Indie dogma. It could be this year however, and our respective moods that make this album resonate with us so strongly. Undeniably, Phoebe has a remarkable voice, and for a second-studio album it sounds like something a seasoned veteran would make. This album release could have been fate and good timing, or Phoebe just knew that we needed this…bad.
7.) Pure X - Pure X
Pure X’s self-titled album, the band from Austin, TX first in six years, was admittedly a last minute addition to this list, so that is saying something for it reaching 7th on the list. This album is contemplative, capacious, and tells a captivating story on finding peace and happiness in empty places. Old Modest Mouse, The Wrens, and even some of The Men come to mind when going through this album, all solid recollections to have when painting a picture of uncertainty already doused behind a fuzzed out wall of guitars. Despite these influences, Pure X create a sound all their own: distorted bliss. A sound as unique as ever.
6.) Pinegrove - Marigold
After a self-confession by Pinegrove’s frontman Evan Stephens Hall on terms of sexual coercion in 2017, the band took a year off, mainly for Evan to self-reflect and attend therapy as he mentioned in his statement. As Pinegrove’s third album Skylight was released in the interim period of 2018, their latest Marigold can be easily traced back to Evan’s period of solitude and self-reflection. These songs are more subdued, retreative, and melancholy: a true look inside of an individual who was a victim of the #MeToo Movement. Looking back at Evan’s statement his explanation of what went down is muddy and unclear, making it hard to empathize with what he was trying to get across. With Marigold, Evan doesn’t necessarily go into detail on his past relationships that created his faults, but we get a bare look at an honest individual who looks back with regret, but is working on getting better. A project we really haven’t seen of this sort since the #MeToo movement took off. As many publications have also mentioned, it hard for a band and their fans to navigate a course of forgiveness, but at least we get a beautiful look into the guilty individual’s process of reflection and improvement.
5.) Dehd - Flower of Devotion
Aspiring DIY indie acts can rest assured knowing that it really doesn’t take much these days to make a hallmark record. Chicago-trio Dehd proves this on their third LP Flower of Devotion. This album’s raw and minimal power is something to behold, thanks in part to shared vocalist and bassist’s Emily Kempf’s thunderous singing paired with other vocalist/guitarist’s Jason Balla whiney vocal delivery and riffs that give each song a catchy personality. Album opener “Desire” demonstrates that their raw and minimal formula can still deliver something that is so lush and emotional. Jason’s I-IV-V guitar formula, Emily’s belting confessional of “BABY I LOVE YA! ALWAYS THINKING OF YA”, that slow burns into both vocalists joining in unison screaming “DESIRE! LET ME OUT! LET ME OUT” is a goosebump-inducing, hallmark musical moment of 2020.
4.) The Strokes - The New Abnormal
As many fans decided to throw in the towel on getting another great Strokes record the 2013 disappointment Comedown Machine, signs of life and promise arose when they returned with a solid EP in 2016 titled Future Present Past. Then, like a phoenix rising out of the ashes Julian Casablanca announces at a reunion show last New Year’s Eve “We’ve been unfrozen, and we’re back.” At what was first met with skepticism, then became excitement as the first single, “At the Door” dropped. A departure from their trademark sound missing punchy riffs and a solid drum backing but still a high quality track. Once the entire album was released, Julian was spot on. They are back. While they may not be as young and energetic as they once were, their DNA is engrained in each song, blowing expectations completely out of the water. I hesitate calling it a victory lap, rather a return to form, like they go on and do this for years to come. A true blessing for music lovers across the world. Maybe just choose some cover art other than Basquiat next album please.
3.) Kiwi Jr. - Football Money
A new contender for Canadian indie darlings has entered the ring, this being Kiwi Jr. The 4 piece band from from Prince Edward Island (of all places) came out from nowhere late 2019 releasing singles “Leslie” and ‘Salary Man” that gained a ton of buzz and excitement in North America. That hyped carried into the first month of 2020, releasing their debut album Football Money. This album resonated with many including myself, as themes of entering the world of adulting and existentialism plagues the mind of vocalist Jeremy Gaudet’s mind albeit with humor and sarcasm. An insanely catchy cacophony of acoustic and electric guitars follows Jeremy’s demands on “Salary Man” as he implores for a life of unobtainable materialism humorously with questionable merit “I am a salary man, I want cigarettes from Japan that taste like oranges!” It’s hard these to smirk to a song these days while simultaneously tapping your feed and nodding your head to it. Like Pavement reincarnate, Kiwi Jr. evokes this effortlessly throughout the albums 10-tracks, so good that it leaves wanting more. Thankfully after being picked up by Sub Pop a few months ago , we’re getting another album in January. Gimme more more more!
2.) Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever - Sideways to New Italy
On Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever’s sophomore album Sideways to New Italy, the Golden Guitar Guys from Melbourne seem to live the mantra of “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it!” and stick to their guns, giving us vignettes of romance, upbringings, and the constants of change all the while layering each track with some of the best guitar work you will hear this year. The album’s opener “Second to the First” is reminiscent to the groups last album’s lead track “An Air Conditioned Man” - wasting no time going 0-60 with a pulsating acoustic rhythm guitar helmed by the band’s one of three guitarists AND vocalist Fran Keany keeping the pace while the other two guitarists get full permission to riff, hook, hammer-on, and any other guitar buzzwordy action you could conceive of. This continues throughout the album hitting pockets on mid-tempo songs such as the head-bobber of “Beautiful Steven” and the hazy acoustic track of “Sunglasses at the Wedding.” Some may bulk at the absence of experimentation on this record, perhaps saying that the band continues to play it safe with their typical formula, but when you are the flag bearers of Melbourne’s impressive and consistently strong music scene, you gotta hone your craft. On Sideways to New Italy, RBCF are showing promise not to be just Australia’s guitar darlings, but perhaps the world’s.
1.) 2nd Grade - Hit to Hit
You don’t have to agree with everything I say on this site, but if you can’t find one song from this fun as hell, action-packed 24-song album from 2nd Grade, I’m afraid you are wrong. Philadelphia supergroup 2nd Grade released easily the most serendipitous record of the year. Fronted by Peter Gill evokes the spirit of Alex Chilton and Big Star with heartwarming, catchy, and breezy tunes ranging from the jangly earworm “Velodrome” to the barren acoustic anecdote of “You’re So Cool.” With an average length of 2 minutes per song each one doesn’t overstay their welcome and can impressively balance itself on the quantity/quality meter. This album is sentimental and idealistic while keeping a youthful charm all the way through every track. A perfect album to lose yourself into reminiscing on the days where topics such as filling out your W-2s, riding your bike, or Dennis Hopper’s performance in Easy Rider. A perfect album for times like these and times to come. I worried throughout the year that the releases that I enjoyed in 2020 will always carry a negative connotation with me for the rest of my life due to the current state of the world. With Hit to Hit’s expansive song catalog, light-hearted topics, and just straight up infectious melodies. I am certain that this is an album I will enjoy and carry with me for years to come.