Over the course of 2020, I listened to 252 new albums. That is both far from the most albums I've covered in a year and far from the least I've covered in a year. Either way, I feel I'd be doing everyone a disservice if I didn't give a bit more attention to those projects that kept my attention throughout 2020. Now, I won't be saying as much as I usually do about each individual album because there simply isn't much left to be said when I've covered so many hits from these albums on my Top 40 Songs of 2020 post from Christmas. When factoring that list into account, it makes this one a fair bit more predictable (sorry, that's just the way things fall sometimes). I'm sure there will be at least one or possible more albums that don't even make the cut to the list of 50 this year that will somehow make my decade-end countdown if I'm lucky enough to still be this interested in the music scene come 2029, when I'm a 34-year old man that'll look back on this very paragraph and say to himself "Oh, honey... no". In fact, I'm almost certain to cut back on my music consumption headed into 2021 just on the basis that this year was truly (PREPARE FOR A WORD I NEVER WANT TO USE OR HEAR OR SEE EVER AGAIN) unprecedented year in which quarantines and lockdowns and unfortunately for far too many, the actual COVID virus itself kept us all indoors, secluded, unable to do anything besides attach ourselves to our screens. I hope to God 2021 at least sees some positive changes if not a return to normalcy (was 2019's "normal" really supposed to be the ideal culmination of everyday society as a whole?). Granted, the new year should also be a time for me to re-evaluate my own time spent on side projects like these when my so-called "free time" already seems to have shriveled up into nothingness unless I turn into the sleep-deprived maniac I've been the past two Decembers as a result of perfecting things like my year-long projects while working a third shift job. So much of everyday life was interrupted in 2020, I guess what I'm saying is (in the most neutral way possible) don't expect anything come 2021.
Unexpect the expected.
Here are some honorable mentions that just missed my cut...
- Bob Dylan - Rough and Rowdy Ways
- Disclosure - Energy
- Deante' Hitchcock - Better
- Haim - Women In Music Pt. III
- Idles - Ultra Mono
- Lianne La Havas - Lianne La Havas
- Open Mike Eagle - Anime, Trauma and Divorce
- Sad13 - Haunted Painting
- The 1975 - Notes On A Conditional Form
Instead of 20, here are my Top 50 Albums of 2020...
#50. Nadine Shah - Kitchen Sink
Standout Track: "Trad"
Indie rocker gets pissier with age as she examines what life is for a woman in her mid-thirties.
#49. Jhene Aiko - Chilombo
Standout Track: "Speak"
Soft-spoken R&B songstress earns a bunch of Grammy nominations (including Album of the Year) on her most captivating release to date.
#48. Dominic Fike - What Could Possibly Go Wrong?
24-year old's debut comes after three years of budding internet hype and combines many popular genres that made it a surprise there weren't any breakthrough hits off this thing.
#47. Matt Watson - OUCH! (EP)
Standout Track: "Come Over"
YouTuber turns into Bedroom Pop artist with a 6-song, 17-minute EP that sounds like it was recorded over old school Nintendo menu music.
#46. Freddie Gibbs & The Alchemist - Alfredo
Standout Track: "Scottie Beam" (ft. Rick Ross)
Rap game veteran Gibbs is 4-for-4 on critically acclaimed collaborative albums as he rides The Alchemist's production to a Best Rap Album nominee at the Grammys.
#45. Illuminati Hotties - FREE I.H.: This Is Not The One You've Been Waiting For
Standout Track: "Will I Get Cancelled If I Write A Song Called 'If You Were A Man You'd Be So Cancelled"
The chaotic energy spread across these 12 songs in 23 minutes is some of the most infectious music I heard in 2020.
44. U.S. Girls - Heavy Light
Experimental pop artist Meghan Remy turns in her most well-produced effort on her seventh album.
Standout Track: "Jumping Coffin"
#43. Aesop Rock - Spirit World Field Guide
Alternative hip hop musician creates a soundtrack for a nightmarish camping trip on his eighth studio album.
Standout Track: "Mother Please Don't Be Sad"
#42. The Flaming Lips - American Head
Veterans of experimental rock-adjacent music, The Flaming Lips sound focused for the first time in over a decade on their sixteenth effort.
#41. Yaeji - What We Drew
Korean-American house producer's debut album lives up to the hype built up on her 2017 bop-heavy EP2.
Standout Track: "Jupiter 4"
#40. Marika Hackman - Covers
Hackman showcases some of her influences, old and new on this covers-only album featuring songs by Elliott Smith, Sharon Van Etten and even Beyonce'.
Standout Track: "The Story"
#39. Conan Gray - Kid Krow
Taking inspiration from Lorde and Taylor Swift, the pop singer-songwriter's debut LP showed more potential for future stardom.
Standout Track: "Black Light"
#38. Bumper - Pop Songs 2020 (EP)
Michelle Zauner of Japanese Breakfast and Ryan Galloway of Crying turn a chain of e-mails into chill pop perfection on this 4-track EP.
Standout Track: "Supernova"
#37. Caitlyn Smith - Supernova
After 2018's flashy Starfire garnered this Americana singer-songwriter critical acclaim, her follow-up is quietly the superior album.
#36. Grimes - Miss Anthropocene
Forget the personal life with Elon Musk, the baby name and the rambling off-the-wall interviews. Pop (?) music's biggest oddball continues making truly unique ethereal music on her first album since 2015's Art Angels.
Standout Track: "Sarah Come Home"
#35. Allie X - Cape God
The underground pop persona turns down the camp factor on an album with quality features by Mitski and Troye Sivan.
Now, enjoy this 60-song playlist consisting of three songs from each of my Top 20 Albums of 2020.
#34. Caroline Rose - Superstar
Standout Track: "Someone New"
Criminally underrated pop-rocker turns up the camp factor on a concept album about someone dropping everything they know to chase a dream. One can only imagine how directly Rose relates to the storyline.
#33. Empress Of - I'm Your Empress Of
Standout Track: "U Give It Up"
Released amid the original COVID lockdowns, it's hard to imagine how much of a hit this dance record's plays took minus the club playlist streams.
#32. Nicole Atkins - Italian Ice
Standout Track: "These Old Roses"
14 years after her debut EP, this retro crooner sounds as refreshing as ever on a slightly more adventurous project than 2017's Goodnight Rhonda Lee.
#31. Logic - No Pressure
Standout Track: "DadBod"
Running out of material didn't stop the 30-year old Twitch streamer from dropping the best "retirement" album of 2020. Unlike retirements of rappers' past, I think this is truly the final ALBUM we get from Logic.
#30. Future Islands - As Long As You Are
Standout Track: "City's Face"
The 180 turn from punk to synthpop has not grown tired with lyrics and production that immediately evoke nostalgia.
#29. Orville Peck - Show Pony (EP)
Standout Track: "Fancy" (Reba McEntire/Bobby Gentry cover)
2019's strongest country debut drops a very fun EP featuring lifelong idol Shania Twain ("Legends Never Die"), songs that slot in nicely to a setlist alongside his debut album like "No Glory In The West" and a longtime country standard made to rock harder than ever before ("Fancy").
#28. Jason Isbell and The 400 Unit - Reunions
Standout Track: "Be Afraid"
Along with help from producer Dave Cobb, Jason Isbell's music continues to sound like a warm hug from a blanket you threw on after forgetting it was under your seated body for a while. It's always around, sometimes I forget it's there and when it's finally time to put on some Jason Isbell, he always delivers a satisfyingly familiar product that doesn't grow old.
#27. Braids - Shadow Offering
Standout Track: "Snow Angel"
An acquired taste, the experimental rock from this Canadian band gets an assist from Death Cab For Cutie's Chris Walla on their simultaneously most ("Young Buck") and least ("Snow Angel") accessible record to date.
#26. Vanillaroma - I Love This Dream
Standout Track: "Check Your Optimism"
Co-signed by Brockhampton, this band's debut was three years in the making with their "Check Your Optimism" music video dropping to little fanfare back in 2018. They sound like Car Seat Headrest and Parquet Courts coming together on an album after smoking bowls on the LBC.
#25. Kid Cudi - Man On The Moon III: The Chosen
Standout Track: "Elsie's Baby Boy (flashback)"
Still only a few weeks old, my original thoughts on this album stand. It's a worthy participant in the Man on the Moon trio with modern twists to attract the younger crowds and continue to carry on Mr. Rager's legacy as a key influencer on 2010s hip hop and beyond.
#24. Taylor Swift - Folklore
Standout Track: "exile" (ft. Bon Iver)
Everyone knew there was a quality songwriter in Taylor Swift caught in an identity crisis throughout her twenties as she transitioned from country to bombastic pop music but, going entirely folk and heavily embracing the "songwriter" label is not something I saw her delivering on this well. There's a reason this is going to win Swift a whole bunch of Grammys. Shout out to The National (mainly Aaron Dressner on this one), Bon Iver and Jack Antonoff (of Bleachers/fun. fame) on completing my 180 on one of the more PRESENT artists of the past decade.
#23. Chloe x Halle - Ungodly Hour
Standout Track: "Don't Make It Harder On Me"
The young R&B duo upgrade their production and songwriting to rave reviews and chart-worthy recognition after years of being a supporting act for other artists, sporting events and red carpets at award shows. Somebody tell the VMAs they should have been a part of the main show.
#22. Gorillaz - Song Machine, Season One: Strange Timez
Standout Track: "With Love To An Ex" (ft. Moonchild Sanelly)
This is the best Gorillaz album. I never really cared for "Feel Good Inc." or "Clint Eastwood" but, when Damon Albarn chooses to give listeners whiplash by jumping from genre to genre, it is my favorite thing. Bonus points for putting Robert Smith of The Cure on the opening track and finding a way to stick 6lack on the same song as Elton fucking John.
#21. Khruangbin - Mordechai
Standout Track: "Connaissais de Face"
A whole ass vibe, the psychedelic funkers grab my attention over a full album for the first time with their catchiest instrumentals to date. No album made me miss Coachella more in 2020.
#20. Destroyer - Have We Met
Standout Tracks: "The Raven", "Crimson Tide" & "Cue Synthesizer"
One of the earliest albums I heard this year immediately intrigues or repulses the listener with it's very quiet instrumentals and top-notch production around Dan Bejar's voice. The lyrical content is out there on this one which adds another layer of enjoyment to a wonderfully odd little album in Destroyer's twelfth studio LP.
#19. Alicia Keys - ALICIA
Standout Tracks: "3 Hour Drive" (ft. Sampha), "Show Me Love" (ft. Miguel) & "You Save Me" (ft. Snoh Aalegra)
19 years into a legendary career, apparently I still have a soft spot for Alicia Keys' music. In all fairness, this is what an Alicia Keys album SHOULD sound like in 2020. She touches on culturally significant acts of the past few years, praises the "Underdog" prior to the determination in labelling everyday citizens as "essential employees" and explores different soundscapes with some top-notch names across the board (Tierra Whack, Khalid, Miguel, Sampha, etc.). A lot of this album might sound very generic radio-filler but it was definitely NOT played heavily on the radio (preventing overexposure and fatigue listening) despite being the best radio-filler music of the year.
#18. Declan McKenna - Zeros
Standout Tracks: "Be An Astronaut", "Beautiful Faces" & "The Key To Life On Earth"
McKenna channels his inner Bowie on a few songs here ("Rapture" is totally a song a prime Bowie would have done in 2020 in addition to the obvious influence on "Be An Astronaut") and proves that his 2017 debut What Do You Think About The Car? was no Jake Bugg-like fluke and that this 22-year old is here to stay. His showmanship makes up for his vocals live and his anthemic approach to music is something to be admired and hopefully imitated in the years to come.
#17. LANY - Mama's Boy
Standout Tracks: "bad news", "i still talk to jesus" & "heart won't let me"
Reminiscent of an album that a member of 98 Degrees or the Backstreet Boys SHOULD have made if their primes existed in the 2020 landscape and they knew how to stick to a theme of melancholic pop songs. Ok, that's a bit of a stretch but these guys rebounded big time after a promising debut (2017's LANY) was followed by an album that showed their limitations (2018's Malibu Nights). These guys are in the weird position of being too old to be a "boy band" and too young to be anything other than corny or a 1975 knockoff but, they really found their own lane on Mama's Boy, a sadboy album that never gets whiney like too many make the mistake of doing today.
#16. Jess Williamson - Sorceress
Standout Tracks: "Rosaries At The Border", "Gulf Of Mexico" & "How Ya Lonesome"
Jess Williamson sounds like Lana Del Rey if she moved more inland and started making her attempts at country western slow burns. The fourth album from the American singer-songwriter is very unassuming in it's delivery with only slight hints of saxophone spicing things up like the random expletive thrown into a scene of a film on HBO simply because it's on HBO.
#15. The Avalanches - We Will Always Love You
Standout Tracks: "Take Care In Your Dreaming" (ft. Denzel Curry, Tricky & Sampa The Great), "We Go On" (ft. Cola Boyy & Mick Jones) & "Interstellar Love" (ft. Leon Bridges)
The electronic music duo's third album in twenty years is their finest yet. We Will Always Love You seemed to come out at the perfect time, in the very beginning stages of winter, prior to the snowstorms and just before list season should kick off. It also was a rather enjoyable and at times, beautiful soundtrack to the closing credits on a year we're all sort of glad is now ending. The list of guest stars on this is insane as Karen O, Johnny Marr, MGMT, Jamie xx, Perry Farrell, Orono of Superorganism and many more are included in songs I didn't even mention above. The one thing keeping this album from being in my top ten is it's length (25 SONGS!) as there are a few instrumental tracks I would have kept off, personally.
#14. Rico Nasty - Nightmare Vacation
Standout Tracks: "STFU", "Smack A Bitch (Remix)" (ft. ppcocaine, Sukihana & Rubi Rose) & "iPhone"
One of the more chaotically energetic rappers in the game right now, Rico Nasty's debut LP is an absolute party (vacation?) while also featuring the in-your-face, aggressive vocal delivery of Lil Jon (nightmare?) over Kenny Beats AND 100Gecs produced bangers. She is absolutely paving the path for the next generation of females of color in the alternative field and deserves way more praise than she has gotten to this point.
#13. Charli XCX - How I'm Feeling Now
Standout Tracks: "anthems", "claws" & "forever"
Recorded entirely in quarantine over a six-week period Charli dives deeper into experimental hyperpop territories on her fourth studio album, continuing on the personal narratives of 2019's Charli. It's amazing what musicians are capable of creating without the additional pressure/expectations of a lengthy career in charting pop music (see: Lady Gaga, Adele, Rihanna, etc.). Even though her sound is quite possibly where music is headed over the next few years, I hope Charli XCX remains the internet's little secret.
#12. Andy Shauf - The Neon Skyline
Standout Tracks: "Fire Truck", "Thirteen Hours" & "Dust Kids"
2020's Paul Simon is Andy Shauf. Vampire Weekend had always shown the Simon influence in their writing and poppier tunes but Andy Shauf's sixth album The Neon Skyline seems like it was ripped straight from the legendary songwriter's discography. The 33-year old Canadian has made a concept album written about one night in a bar, reflecting on a past relationship. There's entire songs set in a flashback ("Thirteen Hours"), subtlety in lyricism that stabs through the heart and makes a few jokes here and there about himself and the fictional situation at hand. It's captivating and endearing as all hell for an album that doen't shift too far from the norm sonically.
#11. Beabadoobee - Fake It Flowers
Standout Tracks: "Sorry", "How Was Your Day?" & "Together"
This 20-year old newcomer's rookie debut sounds like the popular music coming out when she was born. The soundtrack to an unmade early 2000s (PRONOUNCED "AUGHTS", Let's be clear about this) movie soundtrack, Fake It Flowers is a combination Michelle Branch, Avril Lavigne, Japanese Breakfast compilation album all wrapped into one stellar debut. The next natural step for Beatrice Laus is upping her songwriting but, the potential is very much present accross every track here.
#10. Jessie Ware - What's Your Pleasure?
Standout Tracks: "Step Into My Life", "Spotlight" & "What's Your Pleasure?"
British soul singer Jessie Ware steps back into our lives with her fourth and finest album to date, helping bring the clubs to our homes on the year's stronger post-disco celebration. What's You Pleasure? is a relentlessly captivating listen as there is not an obvious low point over 12 tracks as the luxurious instrumentals bring the funk and fun every damn time on Anthony Fantano's #1 album of 2020.
#9. The Killers - Imploding The Mirage
Standout Tracks: "My God" (ft. Weyes Blood), "My Own Soul's Warning" & "When The Dreams Run Dry"
Well worth the wait, the veteran rockers made their finest project since 2006's Sam's Town at least. Brandon Flowers and company updated their sound with assistance from both Foxygen's Jonatahn Rado and Adam Granduciel from The War On Drugs to create a more arena-based almost indie rock sound than the pop-rock lane they had fallen into over the years. This thing cements The Killers as future Rock and Roll Hall of Famers of the future with co-signs by legacy acts like K.D. Lang and Lindsey Buckingham on their most Springsteen-like emotionally lyrical album since their debut (2004's Hot Fuss).
#8. Sufjan Stevens - The Ascension
Standout Tracks: "Ativan", "America" & "Die Happy"
Stevens returns to his Age of Adz soundscape on an electronically-fused eighth studio album. Even at a bloated, intimidating 80 minutes, The Ascension never wears out it's welcome as another strong addition to Stevens' discography that sees Sufjan sounding more anxious and saddened by the state of events around him in the country he'd always admired than ever before.
#7. The Weeknd - After Hours
Standout Tracks: "Scared To Live", "Blinding Lights" & "In Your Eyes"
Abel Tesfaye's ascent to superstardom is complete as his brand of pop music with an edge mashes together perfectly on his fourth studio album. Taking influence from past work with Oneohtrix Point Never, After Hours sees The Weeknd bringing his own musical influences and combining them with Max Martin's songwriting plus Metro Boomin's production for a star-studded album that only features the vocals of one star (The Weeknd). Obligatory Fuck The Grammys.
#6. Riz Ahmed - The Long Goodbye
Standout Tracks: "The Breakup (Shikwa)", "Karma" & Toba Tek Singh"
This 27-minute concept album is the latest example of a musician "breaking up" with their home country except this time, it's the United Kingdom. The Long Goodbye never wears out it's welcome as a short record featuring many famous friends (Mahershala Ali, Hasan Minhaj, Mindy Kaling & more) providing spoken word interludes and stellar south Asian-inspired production by Redinho.
#5. The Strokes - The New Abnormal
Standout Tracks: "Eternal Summer", "At The Door" & "Why Are Sundays So Depressing"
As proven on the second The Voidz album, we all knew Julian Casablancas still had the potential to make cool as hell, forward-thinking alternative music. What I failed to foresee (and I wasn't the only one!) was the rest of The Strokes' band members signing up to meld their sound together with Julian's new wave influences to create the best Strokes album since their early-2000s ascent. No, they don't "rock" as hard as they used to but, the rolling good times that a rock album is supposed to influence are slathered all over the NYC band's sixth studio album.
#4. Fiona Apple - Fetch The Bolt Cutters
Standout Tracks: "Heavy Balloon", "Ladies" & "Under The Table"
It may not be the perfect 10.0 that Pitchfork awarded it but it's goddamn close. As someone that never previously fully embraced a Fiona Apple record, this one just sounds so unique to anything else released in 2020 that it was impossible to ignore in it's innovation. She bangs on household objects, doesn't cut out background noises from pets, writes about a long-lost acquaintance ("Shameika"), a past rape ("For Her"), and uncomfortable dinner parties ("Under The Table"). Fetch The Bolt Cutters is a legacy maker of a fifth album that brought the one time Best New Artist back to the forefront of musical discussions for the first time since her 1997 debut.
#3. Dua Lipa - Future Nostalgia
Standout Tracks: "Levitating", "Break My Heart" & "Love Again"
THE most fun pop album of 2020 saw the UK singer thrive during lockdown (AKA: a time when hardly anybody thrived) thanks to an Adele-esque rise to prominence from her debut to sophomore records. Rarely does anything sound as good as a cohesive pop record and by throwing in some disco there was no denying this a the year of Dua Lipa. She's earned six Grammy nominations and with a Best New Artist victory in 2019, it's likely that moregolden grampahones are headed her way.
#2. Run The Jewels - RTJ4
Standout Tracks: "Walking In The Snow" (ft. Gangsta Boo), "Ju$t" (ft. Pharrell Williams & Zack De La Rocha) & "Pulling The Pin" (ft. Mavis Staples & Josh Homme)
One album that everyone can agree was released at the exact right moment amidst the George Floyd protests. It's incredible that Killer Mike and El-P are two 45-year old rappers that make socially conscious rap music with more unique-sounding production than pretty much anything else coming out right now. They've gotten better with each Run The Jewels album and they sound more focused than ever as they continue the fight to right society's wrongs... and for our rights to party too.
The #1 Album of 2020
Phoebe Bridgers - Punisher
Standout Tracks: "I Know The End", "Savior Complex" & "Moon Song"
Putting headphones on, listening to this album and staring at the cover or the stars above is truly an immersive experience. The production isn't tremendously revolutionary but, there is enough there to create a sonic venue that keeps the listener's attention directly connected to the lyrics, being swept away with each line of the 25-year old's songwriting ability. The album even gets by with a little help from her indie musician friends like Christian Lee Hutson, Conor Oberst and Jenny Lee Lindberg of Warpaint. Punisher concludes with one of the most triumphant sounding doomsday anthems ever in "I See The End", a song featuring Nick Zinner of Yeah Yeah Yeahs fame and some screaming over horns. Her boygenius counterparts (Julien Baker and Lucy Dacus) join every prior featured vocalist in a choir that repeats the phrase "The end is near" to cap off the album in a year where that truly felt like the case. Bridgers just has a way with capturing the listener's attention and tying in her own personal, unique experiences that still feel so universally relatable. I just hope she's doing well and that we all have the self-evaluation capabilities of a Phoebe Bridgers in 2021, where we're all able to find amusement in even the most mundane, depressing moments because god knows we all could have used more of that approach in 2020.
Now, enjoy this 60-song playlist consisting of three songs from each of my Top 20 Albums of 2020.
