I'm still digging all of these releases (no order but Hayley and Phoebe are duking it out at the top). Would love r&b/hip-hop recs because I have just had a terrible time finding new releases in those genres this year that I've connected with, besides a bunch of singles and EPs. Poppy - I Disagree AJJ - Good Luck Everybody Mac Miller - Circles Bombay Bicycle Club - Everything Else Has Gone Wrong tricot - Pitch Black Sløtface - Sorry for the Late Reply Loathe - I Let it in and it Took Everything Oldsoul - You Were Overwhelmed Beach Bunny - Honeymoon Worst Party Every - here, online Tennis - Swimmer Four Year Strong - Brain Pain Soccer Mommy - color theory Ratboys - Printer's Devil Princess Nokia - Everything is Beautiful Dogleg - Melee Joywave - Possession Code Orange - Underneath Porridge Radio - Every Bad Waxahatchee - Saint Cloud Half Waif - The Caretaker Moaning - Uneasy Laugher Disq - Collector Zack Shaw - The Best Part of All of This is Existing While You Exist Tame Impala - The Slow Rush Enter Shikari - Nothing is True & Everything is Possible Stay Inside - Viewing Fiona Apple - Fetch the Bolt Cutters Apollo Bebop - Wanted! Hayley Williams - Petals for Armor I'm Glad it's You - Every Sun, Every Moon Jeff Rosenstock - No Dream The 1975 - Notes on a Conditional Form Dryjacket - Going Out of Business Rina Sawayama - SAWAYAMA Dance Gavin Dance - Afterburner Run the Jewels - RTJ4 Phoebe Bridgers - Punisher Align in Time - On a Spiral HAIM - Women in Music Pt. III Christian Lee Hutson - Beginners
Staff list is up: The Best Albums of 2020 (So Far) And my personal best of 2020 (so far) list has my favorites of the year as well: Jason Tate’s Top Albums of 2020 (So Far)
Top 15 in no particular order: Phoebe Bridgers - Punisher Jessie Ware - What's Your Pleasure? Dua Lipa - Future Nostalgia Fiona Apple - Fetch The Bolt Cutters Charli XCX - How I'm Feeling Now Dreamcatcher - Dystopia: The Tree Of Language Poppy - I Disagree Enter Shikari - Nothing Is Real And Everything Is Possible Protest The Hero - Palimpsest Ulcerate - Stare Into Death And Be Still Nova Twins - Who Are The Girls? Soccer Mommy - Color Theory Rina Sawayama - Sawayama Yaeji - WHAT WE DREW 우리가 그려왔던 Katatonia - City Burials I'm sure I've forgotten tons of stuff as Q1 2020 is turning out to be a big blur. Many January and February albums feel like 2019 albums in my mind.
Ok I agree with Fallon, Isbell and couple more but this list is missing many beyond great albums. Gleemer, Seer Believer both should be on here, the new Beach Slang shreds! I feel like people toe dip with a few indie releases and then go Pitchfork with the rest of the lists. This feels safe. I have a pile of 2020 releases at home that will be classics.
#45 #167 Of course it's missing many great albums, it's a compiled top 30 and there were over 175 unique albums just from our contributors. There's a lot of music!
Polaris - The Death of Me Make Them Suffer - How to Survive a Funeral Dryjacket - Going Out of Business Cassino - Yellowhammer Hot Mulligan - You'll Be Fine August Burns Red - Guardians Spanish Love Songs - Brave Faces Everyone All Time Low - Wake Up Sunshine Code Orange - Underneath No order really to the list, though I'd say Dryjacket and Polaris at 1 and 2 easily. Still need to give a thorough listen to Owen and the 1975, but from first listen those are top notch too.
Those are all the albums I've enjoyed this year so far. Top of 2020: 1. Silverstein - A Beautiful Place to Drown 2. All Time Low - Wake Up, Sunshine 3. Boston Manor- GLUE 4. Emery- White Line Fever 5. The Used - Heartwork 6. Anti-Flag - 20/20 Vision 7. Of Montreal - UR FUN 8. Circa Waves - Sad Happy 9. Enter Shikari - Nothing Is True And Everything Is Possible 10. Four Year Strong - Brain Pain 11. Dua Lipa- Future Nostalgia 12. Little Big Town - Nightfall 13. Nada Surf- Never Not Together 14. Beach Bunny - Honeymoon 15. Grey Daze- Amends 16. Pinegrove- Marigold 17. Soccer Mommy - color theory 18. Hayley Williams - Petals For Armor 19. Phoebe Bridgers- Punisher 20. Anna Burch- If You're Dreaming 21. Fiona Apple - Fetch The Bolt Cutters 22. Grouplove- Healer 23. Cassino- Yellowhammer 24. The 1975 - Notes on a Conditional Form 25. 5 Seconds of Summer - CALM 26. Dance Gavin Dance - Afterburner 27. O'Brother- You and I 28. The Weeknd - After Hours 29. Chase Tremaine - Unfall 30. Princess Nokia- Everything Sucks 31. Tennis - Swimmer 32. I'm Glad It's You - Every Sun, Every Moon 33. Kelsea Ballerini - kelsea 34. The Lone Bellow - Half Moon Light 35. Green Day - Father of All Motherfuckers 36. Charmer- Ivy 37. John Moreland - LP5 38. Hot Mulligan- You'll Be Fine 39. Spanish Love Songs - Brave Faces Everyone 40. Nathaniel Rateliff- And It's Still Alright 41. Katie Pruitt- Expectations 42. Holy Fuck - Deleter 43. Beach Slang - The Deadbeat Bang of Heartbreak City 44. The Big Moon - Walking Like We Do 45. Halsey- Manic 46. Loathe- I Let It In And It Took Everything EP's and other things: 1. Silverstein- Quaranstein EP 2. Emery- Palmetto 3. Out Of Service - Staying In (B Sides) 4. Dashboard Confessional- The Best Ones of the Best Ones
1. Phoebe Bridgers - Punisher 2. Jason Isbell & the 400 Unit - Reunions 3. Dogleg - Melee 4. Waxahatchee - Saint Cloud 5. O’Brother - You & I 6. Run the Jewels - RTJ4 7. Holy Fawn - The Black Moon 8. Grimes - Miss Anthropocene 9. Dua Lipa - Future Nostalgia 10. Freddie Gibbs & The Alchemist - Alfredo 11. I’m Glad It’s You - Every Sun, Every Moon 12. Take Impala - The Slow Rush 13. Caspian - On Circles 14. The 1975 - Notes on a Conditional Form really enjoying the Hum album but only 1.5 listens in
Just read through the best of article so far. It was pretty surprising to be in agreement with the top 2! I don't really think I keep up with the state of current music very well, but here's what I've got! Pretty disappointed with the new Tame, but it's still on my list. New Hum slaps so hard and the Strokes and Holy Fuck albums really caught my attention. Was obsessed with that Pinegrove album for awhile. There are some great songs on there. 1. Phoebe Bridgers - Punisher 2. Hayley Williams - Petals for Armor 3. Hum - Inlet View 4. Pinegrove - Marigold 5. Stay Inside - Viewing 6. Strokes - The New Abnormal 7. Gleemer - Down Through 8. Holy Fuck - Deleter 9. Abby Gundersen - Sleep Comes When I Wake 10. Tame Impala - The Slow Rush
I get that but it’s hard for me with some of the artists that don’t write their own songs to put in the top tier. I know this is everyone’s take, I just think The Strokes,
I don’t know what this is in reference to off the top of my head, but some of the greatest performances, and even songs of all time are “covers” or renditions or takes on a classic, or are written with other people. Music, lots of great great music, is collaborative. I used to have the same myopic view as a teenager, I was very wrong.
Yeah having co-writers definitely does not mean you don’t write your own music. If you help with a single line of lyrics, you can be credited as a co-writer. Collaboration makes music great, and it’s also definitely not exclusive to pop. Punisher has a ton of collaborators and most of the songs have co-writing credits, and I think that’s part of what makes it so effective.
god January feels so far away I forgot about Poppy's I Disagree - that was released the second week of the year that would be in my top 40 or 50
caspian - on circles pinegrove - marigold vasudeva - generator hot mulligan - you'll be fine blithe field - hymn for anyone miss new buddha - the situation is excellent trace mountains - lost in the country charmer - ivy viva belgrado - bellavista minor science - second language dBridge - inhibited gleemer - down through options - wind's gonna blow wiley - godfather pt. 3 crossed - barely buried love little kid - transfiguration highway holy fawn - the black moon portrayal of guilt/slow pistol fire split proc fiskal - lung edit pt. 1 + 2 rockwell - isolation ritual walton - debris interplanetary criminal - nobody skee mask - iss005 + 006
I haven't really stopped listening to Waxahatchee's St. Cloud long enough to check out any others except Punisher. Guess i'll have to check out some of these others.
In no order: Like Rats - Death Monolith WAKE - Devouring Rain END - Splinters From an Everchanging Face Left Cross - Prophecy of Conquest Antichrist Siege Machine - Filth of the World Mindforce - Swinging Swords and Chopping Lords Spanish Love Songs - Brave Faces Everyone Regional Justice Center - KKK Tattoo ESP Mayhem - Bloodsportswear Chepang - Chatta
I don’t think it’s dated, It just means more to me and I can relate more when the person is writing their own songs. I’m not saying that a lot of country music doesn’t have great performers or artists but I definitely put Bob Dylan and Michael Jackson in different categories. Michael was a performer and Dylan is a songwriter. Quincy Jones was the mastermind behind Thriller musically. It’s a different thought, but embarrassing