I thought both their tour mates (Phoebe and beabadoobee) put out better records honestly which is kind of funny, but in a year where some artists put out their best work (Taylor, Fiona, Waxahatchee, etc.) I thought this was just okay. I’ll have to revisit it again though, it’s been a little while.
The album was polarizing. It's one that. I was extremely disappointed with for the longest time, but it grew me tremendously. There's still a few songs I'd cut, but it's a nice summary of the chaotic mess of 2020.
I thought it was a very good album. Overlong, but has some of their best stuff. Definitely grew on me. Am a bit shocked that it didn’t place With that being said, I didn’t rank it on my list either because I think Matty’s a bit of a dork and didn’t think they needed any publicity that could go to a lesser known artist. Part of the reason I didn’t rank Phoebe either, although I liked 1975 more
I still think Notes is probably my second favorite 1975 album after Brief Inquiry. But, it’s not something I found myself going back to that much this year. If I hadn’t stalled out on listening to new albums in the last quarter of the year, I think it would’ve been bumped out of my top 10, surprisingly enough. Really think the length was a big factor. There’s not really anything I don’t like on it, & the few times around its release that I listened to it all the way through I really liked how it all flowed. But, I ain’t gonna wanna listen to something that long that often, lol. And, that much material that’s roughly equal to each other in quality (to me) doesn’t help me go back to many individual tracks when I’m, like, driving around or whatever. Remember criticizing the length in the thread before the release & people not liking that, but it definitely made a difference for me.
It’s definitely an album you have to listen to all the way through, like the Sufjan record from this year, which also I was just so so on. There’s nothing wrong with long records, but it’s hard to gravitate towards records that require a sit down full play through.
Notes for me is an album that has great songs but is not a great album. So much of it I just have no interest in revisiting. And all their prior records made my lists!
It’s a achievement of an album. Though like others have said I also had them in my top 2, and 3 with their last two albums. Wanted to give props to other artists. Also didn’t go back to Notes as much compared to ABI.
Not sure I agree on either. I think the Sufjan record works a lot better in patches. The sound palette is too similar throughout the whole album but I can listen to individual songs. Not sure any of the stuff on the 1975 record works better "in context".
The 1975 placed pretty low on my list because it’s not an album I really ever returned to outside of stray singles. It’s weird bc I think they nailed basically all of the tracks individually, but as an album I just don’t see it. It’s lengthy, all over the place, and doesn’t flow well imo
I listened to Notes once, thought it was fine, and moved on. Idk. I've been a big fan of the 1975 in the past, but something about the timing of this one just didn't do it for me.
Listened to Notes a lot when it came out but was really just getting through the "other" tracks to hear the 7-8 songs I really loved. Haven't listened to it months. Sucks because Brief Inquiry is far and away my favorite of theirs and I had high hopes but oh well
Did a little writing here, but here's the list: Albums of 2020 20. The Krueggers - Hysterical Cold Side and Dark Memories - Eclipse Records 19. Slick Shoes - Rotations & Frequency - Tooth and Nail Records 18. Deadliner - Red - self-released 17. Barrels - self-titled EP - Arctic Rodeo Recordings 16. Ani Glass - Mirores - Recordiau Neb 15. Midwife - Forever - The Flenser 14. Sarah and the Safe Word - Good Gracious! Bad People. - Take This To Heart Records 13. Statiqbloom - Beneath The Whelm - Metropolis Records 12. Sprain - As Lost Through Collision - The Flenser 11. Yves Tumor - Heaven to a Tortured Mind - Warp 10. Tallah - Matriphagy - Earache Records 9. Assemblage 23 - Mourn - Metropolis Records 8. Es - Less Of Everything - Upset The Rhythm 7. Hum - Inlet - Earth Analog Records 6. Unknown Motives - Lag - self-released 5. Botanist - Photosynthesis - The Flenser 4. Riki - self-titled album - Dais Records 3. No Thank You - Embroidered Foliage - Lame-O Records 2. Code Orange - Underneath - Roadrunner Records 1. Enter Shikari - Nothing Is True & Everything Is Possible - Ambush Reality Songs of 2020 10. Pony - "WebMD" - Take This To Heart Records 9. No Thank You - "Enough" - Lame-O Records 8. Gutcheck - "iMatter" 7. Hopesfall - "Hall of the Sky" - Equal Vision Records 6. Assemblage 23 - “Epiphany” - Metropolis Records 5. Oceans Ate Alaska - "Metamorph" - Fearless Records 4. Ashbury Heights - "Spectres From The Black Moss" - Out of Line Music 3. Made Up Music - "Out For Delivery" 2. Jukio Kallo and Daniel Hagström - "Everybody Falls (Fall Guys Theme)" 1. Hundredth - "Bottle It Up"
This was honestly such a good year for music. I had lots of trouble making my list, but this is what I'm sticking with today. 1. Nothing - The Great Dismal 2. The Front Bottoms - In Sickness and In Flames 3. Touche Amore - Lament 4. All Time Low - Wake Up Sunshine 5. Gleemer - Down Through 6. Movements - No Good Left to Give 7. Spanish Love Songs - Brave Faces Everyone 8. Code Orange - Underneath 9. Taylor Swift - folklore 10. Soccer Mommy - Color Theory 11. Stand Atlantic - Pink Elephant 12. Seahaven - Halo of Hurt 13. ManDancing - The Good Sweat 14. Hum - Intlet 15. Phoebe Bridgers - Punisher 16. Deftones - Ohms 17. PVRIS - Use Me 18. Dogleg - Melee 19. Bartees Strange - Live Forever 20. Jeff Rosenstock - NO DREAM 21. In Glad It's You - Every Sun Every Moon 22. Hot Mulligan - You'll Be Fine 23. Black Foxxes - Black Foxxes 24. I'm Glad It's You - Every Sun Every Moon 25. Hundredth - Somewhere Nowhere
Me & You Together song was one of my most played songs of the year (partly due to its position on a playlist), but aside from that I couldn’t care less about that band. It’s always funny to me when something like that happens.
Took me a lot longer this year to get my list together, but here ya'll go. Decided to list alphabetically, number ranking was just too difficult for me this time around. Enjoy all these records a lot! Best Music of 2020: Adrianne Lenker - Songs Aesop Rock - Spirit World Field Guide Allie X - Cape God Backxwash - God Has Nothing to Do With It Bartees Strange - Live Forever Boneflower - Armour Bright Eyes - Down in the Weeds, Where the World Once Was The Casket Lottery - Short Songs for End Times Chester Watson - A Japanese Horror Film clipping. - Visions of Bodies Being Burned Code Orange - Underneath Dikembe - Muck Dogleg - Melee Dua Lipa - Future Nostalgia Envy - The Fallen Crimson Fleet Foxes - Shore The Front Bottoms - In Sickness & In Flames Gleemer - Down Through Gorillaz - Song Machine Vol 1 Hayley Williams - Petals for Armor Hot Mulligan - You'll Be Fine Hum - Inlet I'm Glad It's You - Every Sun, Every Moon Jeff Rosenstock - NO DREAM Loathe - I Let It in and It Took Everything Mac Miller - Circles ManDancing - The Good Sweat Mansions - Big Bad Moses Sumney - grae Movements - No Good Left To Give Nothing - The Great Dismal Oliver Tree - Ugly is Beautiful Open Mike Eagle - Anime Trauma and Divorce Owen - The Avalanche Perfume Genius - Set My Heart On Fire Immediately Phoebe Bridgers - Punisher PVRIS - Use Me R.A.P. Ferriera - Purple Moonlight Pages Ratboys - Printer's Devil Record Setter - I Owe You Nothing Run the Jewels - RTJ4 Sad13 - Haunted Painting Soccer Mommy - Color Theory Spanish Love Songs - Brave Faces Everyone Stay Inside - Viewing Sufjan Stevens - The Ascension Touche Amore - Lament Rina Sawayama - Sawayama The Used - Heartwork Yves Tumor - Heaven To a Tortured Mind EPs: Bring Me The Horizon - POST HUMAN: SURVIVAL HORROR Denzel Curry and Kenny Beats - Unlocked JPEGMAFIA - EP! Pup - This Place Sucks Ass Worst Party Ever - here, online Honorable Mentions: beabadoobee - Fake It Flowers Charmer - Ivy Dance Gavin Dance - Afterburner Enter Shikari - Nothing is True & Everything is Possible Higher Power - 27 Miles Underwater Kid Cudi - Man on the Moon III Matt Berninger - Serpentine Prison Retirement Party - Runaway Dog Sinai Vessel - Ground Aswim Viva Belgrado - Bellavista Also made a Spotify playlist with one of my favorite songs from each album, if anyone is interested: Best of 2020, a playlist by Sean Shelton on Spotify
Top 10 Albums 1. Caspian - On Circles 2. Spanish Love Songs - Brave Faces Everyone 3. Acceptance - Wild, Free 4. Abby Gundersen - Sleep Comes Then I Wake 5. Phoebe Bridgers - Punisher 6. Protest the Hero - Palimpsest 7. Coldbones - The Cataclysm 8. Dua Lipa - Future Nostalgia 9. Dogleg - Melee 10. Creeper - Sex, Death & The Infinite Void Best of 2020, a playlist by Richard Toner on Spotify I made this list a couple of weeks ago, but have naturally made a few more discoveries while checking out all the end of year lists. This week I've been spending a lot of time with Katie Malco and Redwood and those are both looking to push their way in. Katie Malco in particular is 2020's best kept secret. Honorable Mentions It still stings a bit that these didn't make my top 10 as I adore all of these albums: Bright Eyes - Down in the Weeds, Where the World Once Was The Killers - Imploding the Mirage Touché Amoré - Lament Gareth Coker - Ori and the Will of the Wisps OST pg.lost - Oscillate Late to the Party These are some older albums I discovered and learned to love last year: Louis Armstrong & Duke Ellington - The Great Reunion and Together Again (1961) Louis Armstrong & Ella Fitzgerald - Ella and Louis (1956) Andrew Prahlow - Outer Wilds OST (2019) Charli XCX - Charli (2019) Old Solar - SEE (2019) From Monument to Masses - On Little Known Frequencies (2009) The Song That Encapsulated 2020 for Me Paramore - Hard Times I started a playlist diary when we first began quarantine here in London, where I added one song a day until some semblance of normality returned. The playlist opened with this song and it never got old for me. Always got our bums shaking and singing along and lifted our spirits. Gently Down the Quarantstream, a playlist by Richard Toner on Spotify
Here's my top 30, more or less in a preferential order: There are so many missing releases because I haven't taken the time to revisit them that much yet. Hayley Williams, Chloe x Halle, Soccer Mommy, Allie X, Victoria Monét... Like each year around that time, I intend to catch up on these.
1. Spanish Love Songs - Brave Faces Everyone 2. Dance Gavin Dance - Afterburner 3. Katie Pruitt - Expectations 4. The Weeknd - After Hours 5. Beach Bunny - Honeymoon 6. Cloudkicker - Solitude 7. 070 Shake - Modus Vivendi 8. Heaven Shall Burn - Of Truth and Sacrifice 9. Run The Jewels - RTJ4 10. Phoebe Bridgers - Punisher
Latest I've ever finished one of these, but it's finally done: (t)1. Taylor Swift - folklore (t)1. Mary Chapin Carpenter - The Dirt and the Stars 3. Taylor Swift - Evermore 4. Mandy Moore - Silver Landings 5. Phoebe Bridgers - Punisher 6. Bruce Springstseen - Letter to You 7. The 1975 - Notes on a Conditional Form 8. Dawes - Good Luck with Whatever 9. Donovan Woods - Without People 10. Jason Isbell and The 400 Unit - Reunions 11. Jenny Dee - Dancing from a Distance 12. Carly Rae Jepsen - Dedication Side B 13. Chris Stapleton - Starting Over 14. Haim - Women in Music Part III 15. Dua Lipa - Future Nostalgia 16. Bob Dylan - Rough and Rowdy Ways 17. Gabrielle Aplin - Dear Happy 18. The Chicks - Gaslighter 19. Lydia Loveless - Daughter 20. Pinegrove - Marigold 21. NEEDTOBREATHE - Out of Body 22. Rina Sawayama - SAWAYAMA 23. The Mountain Goats - Getting Into Knives 24. Hayley Williams - Petals for Armor 25. Lianne La Havas - Lianne La Havas 26. Katie Pruitt - Expectations 27. Lindsey Ell - Heart Theory 28. Butch Walker - American Love Story 29. Ruston Kelly - Shape and Destroy 30. Richard Edwards and The Velvet Ocean - The Soft Ache and the Moon 31. Natalie Duncan - Free 32. Selena Gomez - Rare 33. Molly Tuttle - ...But I'd Rather Be with You 34. Victoria Monet - Jaguar 35. dvsn - A Muse in Her Feelings 36. Kylie Minogue - Disco 37. Paul McCartney - McCartney III 38. Trevor Hall - In and Through the Body 39. Vasudeva - Generator 40. Matt Berninger - Serpentine Prison Just Missed: Laura Marling - Song for Our Daughter Lori McKenna - The Balladeer Bruce Hornsby - Non-Secure Connection Ray Lamontagne - MONOVISION Dogleg - Melee Tyson Motsenbocker - Someday I'll Make It All Up to You SAULT - Untitled (Rise) Mansions - Big Bad Acceptance - Wild, Free Fiona Apple - Get the Bolt Cutters Honorable Mentions: AC/DC, BABERS, Beabadoobee, Black Thought, Chamberlain, Charli XCX, Chloe x Hallie, Elvis Costello, Miley Cyrus, Brian Fallon, Nubya Garcia, Freddie Gibbs + The Alchemist, Ariana Grande, Sarah Harmer, The Jayhawks, Norah Jones, Alicia Keys, The Killers, John Legend, Adrianne Lenker, Lil Uzi Vert, Maddie and Tae, Alanis Morissette, Siti Muharam, Oh Wonder, Waylon Payne, Plini, Margo Price, Red City Radio, Caitlyn Smith, Bartees Strange, Gillian Welch/Dave Rawlings Top 10 EPs (Unranked): Phoebe Bridgers - Copycat Killer EP Leon Bridges and Khruangbin - Texas Sun EP Christine and the Queens - La Vita Nuova EP The Dangerous Summer - All That Is Left of the Blue Sky EP Everette - Queen of the Dairy Queen Parking Lot - Side A EP Noah Gundersen - Acoustic Selections from Lover EP Jason Lancaster - Say I'm What You Want EP Mree - Bloom EP Oh Wonder - Home Tapes EP Violent Joy - Violent Joy EP @Craig Manning @ghostedaway you expressed interest in when it was done. @George curious what you think, too, of course.
Lots of overlap here with mine, especially our top 10s. How’d you pick between Taylor albums? I’ll have to go through and flag what I haven’t heard, but I know just from a cursory glance that I somehow forgot Lydia Loveless released something.
The difference in Taylor albums isn't huge but Evermore has the least exceptional track on either album "Dorothea", the weaker closer, the weaker opener, etc. Little things like that decide #1 vs #3. I'll be very curious what you have and haven't. I feel like Natalie Duncan might be one of them?
I think I like "dorothea" better than "mad woman," but that might just be because I can't get "mouthfuck" out of my head when I listen to that song. I also like "evermore" the song better as a closer than "hoax," but I know how much you love the latter. I have not heard Natalie Duncan. Highest ranked one I haven't heard is Jenny Dee.