Album of the Year - 2020

In lieu of @johnnyhotdog 's traditional thread. Tell us about your album/albums/EP etc. of 2020.

I was reflecting only yesterday how, in the age of Spotify (etc), I find it really difficult to remember when stuff came out. Much easier when you were buying physical records.

Anyway, my top release of 2020 has been Dopelord - Sign of the Devil

The Orb Abolition of the Royal Familia was the album that was on constant rotation throughout Lockdown 1, so I'd say that for me

2020 was a great year of music for me. Far better than 2019.
100% female vocalists in my top 10.

1. Bully - SUGAREGG
   
2. The Beths - Jump Rope Gazers
   
3. Soccer Mommy - Color Theory
   
4. Beach Bunny - Honeymoon
   
5. Fenne Lily - BREACH
   
6. Phoebe Bridgers - Punisher
   
7. Pillow Queens - In Waiting
   
8. Slow Pulp - Moveys
   
9. Frances Quinlan - Likewise
   
10. Momma - Two of Me
    

FLOHIO - No Panic No Pain

Only thing I can think of that I have listened to a lot that came out this year.
2020 being so dismal Ive been sticking to old favourites, very little risk.

Oh actually, last second edit...

Nadine Shah - Kitchen Sink
Ive not listened to a huge amount having only come across it in October, but its a class album.

My list is big this year, been a great year for albums:

1. Palm Reader - Sleepless
   
2. Deftones - Ohmms
   
3. Taylor Swift - folklore
   
4. Loathe - I Let It in and It Took Everything
   
5. Phoebe Bridgers - Punisher
   
6. Caribou - Suddenly
   
7. Code Orange - Underneath
   
8. Touche Amore - Lament
   
9. Vennart - In The Dead, Dead Wood
   
10. La Priest - Gene
    
11. Svalbard - When I Die, Will I Get Better?
    
12. Four Tet - Sixteen Oceans
    
13. Enter Shikari - Nothing Is True & Everything Is Possible
    
14. END - Splinters From an Ever-Changing Face
    
15. Perfume Genius - Set My Heart on Fire Immediately
    
16. Biffy Clyro - A Celebration of Endings
    
17. Everything Everything - Re-Animator
    
18. Open Mike Eagle - Anime, Trauma and Divorce
    
19. Baths - Pop Music / False B-Sides II
    
20. Katie Malco - Failures
    

My top album was Visions of Bodies Being Burned by clipping.

There’s been some others of note, such as Off-Key in Hamburg by Father John Misty, Metropolis by The Physics House Band and The Slow Rush by Tame Impala but that latest clipping album has eclipsed them all in terms of listening time.

Stephen Malkmus - 'Traditional Techniques' was a top one for me
Second The Orb - 'Abolition of the Royal Familia' too
Rone - 'Room with a View' was excellent

Only one answer for me - occupying 6 of the top 8 spots on my spotify most played chart without even counting the number of vinyl plays its seen: Bonny Light Horseman's eponymous debut. Wonderful ethereal folk music.

Id forgotten Deftones brought something out. Thats getting a listen right now.....
Also Enter Shikari, will have to check out, I had no idea they released anything.

the deftones album is excellent, i really really like it.

the ES is a bit marmite in my friend group, its arguably not an ‘amazing’ album, the lyrics are trash but its fun and puts me in a good mood? and thats what matters right.

For me Enter Shikari has always been a laugh rather than a must listen.

They were an amazing live act, in the olden days when you could go to gigs. Nowadays I feel like Roy in the IT crowd whenever I move forward in the crowd. I cant remember what year I first saw them (2005-2007) sometime, but it was incredible.

Longtime ES and Deftones fan here.

Agree the new ES isn’t a patch on Take to the Skies, IMHO they’ve dropped off a bit over the last 5 or 6 years. For me their last great track was Paddington Frisk. You’re bang on about the live shows - they played The Feast when the wife and I saw them on the Flash Flood of Colour tour and it was the best live track I’ve seen - so so good.

RE Deftones I’m struggling with the new record. If you listen to it off the back of White Pony or Self Titled the production just sounds a bit muddy. Great songs but the sound kind of ruins it a bit for me.

//Music snobbery over!

In no particular order:
https://www.lfgss.com/conversations/140804/?offset=2825#comment15705990

Listening to and loving this - thanks for the tip

This has been my most listened to album released this year

https://youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_mNY46T8duhoIugRNaxUf0t2k8P2LY9SgY

Caribou - Suddenly

I’ll have to try this again. Wasn’t very impressed on the first listen.

Fontaines DC - Hero’s Death for me. I’ve been hammering it since it was released and it’s still great.

They’ve got me back into guitar music after years of bleepy nonsense (which I still love).

Honourable mentions for Ace Moma - A New Dawn and Four Tet - Sixteen Oceans.

My first listen was definitely 'oh great.. yep.. sounds exactly like another caribou album' but its actually more interesting than it at first seems

Jeff Parker- Suite for Max Brown and Dezron Douglas/Brandee Younger- Force Majeure have both been standouts for me. On International Anthem again, the label can do no wrong.

Agree on the Jeff parker.

other highlights;

upsammy - zoom
Boby Dylan - rough and rowdy ways
call super - every mouth teeth missing
Beatrice Dillon - workaround
Irma Vep - embarrassed landscape
Luke stewart exposure quintet
Autechre - sign

Nice! If that's your bag and you ever veer slightly more trad (but still ethereal and dreamily beautiful) I can't recommend enough Hare's Lament by Ye Vagabonds. Their voices, harmonies and wonderfully understated playing is just magic. I think it was released last year but still playing it very regularly...

First time in years that my listening has been lots of old favourites, rather then digging for new cuts.
I have wallowed in Radiohead and Nick Drake all year.

That said, I did enjoy

• Four Tet - Sixteen Oceans
  
• Nils Frahm - Empty 2
  
• Actress - Karma & Desire
  
• Gil Scott-Heron – We're New Again - A Reimagining by Makaya McCraven
  
• Griselda - WWCD
  
• Kamaal Williams - WuHen
  
• Steve Reich - Music for 18 musicians
  
• Flohio - No Panic no pain
  
• Green-House – Six Songs for Invisible Gardens
  

Waxahatchee's Saint Cloud was my favourite album, and Can't Do Much my favourite cut off it. Can't Do Much is the 2020 equivalent of Big Thief's Cattails from 2019.

But my favourite musical moment was the 'feeling my way in the dark' bridge on The Chick's Texas Man and then outtro overlay. Crystalises everything the Chicks are good at (classic move by producer Jack Antonoff)

Complete write-off this year but here's what I managed to love

1. Ghosteen - Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds

2. Tides - Sundra Arc

3. Between 10th and 11th (1992) REMASTERED - The Charlatans

4. 2020 - Zombi

5. Deleter - Holy Fuck

Late entry for The Avalanches but not quite top 5 material

Didn't realise Deleter was this year. Was a good album.