Mid-Year 2020 Lists (Best of 2020 Thus Far) • Page 7

Noted! I'll report back with what I think, thank you!

 

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

 

Here: Topsters 2: Make images and charts of your top favorite albums.

 

my 40 favs

 

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,

 

And many more should be ahead of some of the pop artists.

 

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.

 

this is such a dated way to think about quality music, it's frankly embarrassing

 

Cannot believe y’all chose bands who use auto tune !!

 

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.

 

I’m a huge Strokes fan (look at my username!) but even on that album, 2 songs sample other songs

 

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

 

Yea, different take, absolutely. But I don't really understand the, "embarrassing," comment.