As economic and political systems teetered on the edge of collapse under the weight of a pandemic, many of us found ourselves locked in our homes listening to more music than ever this year. If there is a silver lining to 2020, the diversity and depth of inspiring new music has made the difficult moments a lot less painful.
Plenty of bands showed they still had a lot of passion in the tank from Erasure and Pet Shop Boys to AC/DC and Bruce Springsteen. Country music that you won’t hear on the radio has never sounded better thanks to several of the artists listed below while the never-ending post-punk revival continues to provide incredible music for rainy days. Surprisingly, I found myself enamored with a lot more dance music than in previous years. Not surprisingly, most of the artists on this list are women. Their voices are the voices with the most to say and 2021 will be shaped in their image – at least here in the United States as we welcome in a new regime built on hope.
While there was a lot to love last year, this year seems to be a truly special year for music. Or maybe I just had more time to engage it? Regardless, here are twenty albums I’ll carry with me into the years that come and a playlist of fifty songs that are worth your time from 2020.
20. The Chicks – Gaslighter
A case study in how to handle changing times, the newly minted The Chicks returned with a modern sounding album that follows in the footsteps of the same artists they paved the way for (see: Taylor Swift). The excitement of hearing The Chicks fool around with effervescent pop styles (“Texas Man” is a countrified “Shake It Off”) doesn’t overshadow the writing. Natalie Maines is at her most personal and the band’s maturity becomes its greatest strength. Nice of The Chicks to drop in and sing a few songs now that the rest of the world has finally caught up to their progressive ways.
19. Phoebe Bridgers – Punisher
A slow grower for me (but nobody else since everyone has raved about it), a few friends kept on me about this record and I’m grateful they did. I’ll be listening to this a lot in the coming weeks now that it clicked for me. Better late than never.
18. Cowboy Junkies – Ghosts
An addendum to the band’s critically lauded All That Reckoning, Ghosts is part EP, part song suite. One side is a suite of music reflecting on the loss of the bandmate’s mother the previous year. The second side is a loose collection of everything the band does well and “Misery” would be a perfect theme song if the band had their own TV show.
17. Kylie Minogue – Disco
The year that all the clubs were shutdown turns out to be the year that disco sees its biggest resurgence. Kylie’s astonishingly well done tribute to an era of hedonistic nights was a welcome diversion in 2020. With a scant knowledge of Kylie’s music beyond the singles, I’ve been pleasantly surprised by her career the deeper I go. A pop icon for the ages.
16. HAIM – Women In Music Pt. III
Over three albums, HAIM’s consistency has lulled us into a daze. Three albums of accomplished songwriting full of well-crafted hooks seems to be just the start for HAIM and Women In Music PT. III grows better with each listen.
15. Private World – Aleph
Meticulously produced, Aleph is a pleasant surprise. Echoing 80s-era Roxy Music, Private World finely balance pop aspirations with their artistic desires. There are some very interesting corners to find in these songs if you choose to look.
14. Baxter Dury – The Night Chancers
A late-night narrator sharing vignettes about life’s fallen souls. His style perfected over recent albums, The Night Chancers holds your attention whether you want to admit it or not.
13. The Pretenders – Hate For Sale
Quite possibly, the most complete album The Pretenders have ever released. Hynde has never changed her persona but producer Stephen Street captures something that was missing on 2016’s quite good Alone. Perhaps its the vulnerability that comes with age but Hynde delivers one of the most poignant vocals of her career on “Crying In Public”. This is rock-n-roll done the old-fashioned way and it sounds as good as ever.
12. Working Men’s Club – Working Men’s Club
After a promising single in 2019, Syd Minsky-Sargeant watched two original members depart and three new musicians join the club. The shake-up results in one of the strongest debut albums of the year. It’s electronic chaos built for the dance floor where you try to get out of your own head even if for only a few hours.
11. Taylor Swift – folklore
Arriving unannounced, Swift softened the blow of 2020 with a gentle collection of songs that proves, again, that she is an artist first and a pop star second. Carefully crafted melodies and restrained production makes for an engaging listen. Highly recommended for rainy afternoons under a blanket watching the trees change color.
10. Dream Wife – So When You Gonna…
Fierce but vulnerable (at times), Dream Wife refuse to be defined. Their feminist anthems shift styles as easily as one picks up a different t-shirt from the pile on the bed. From the angular guitars of “Sports!” to the low-fi brilliance of “Old Flame”, everything Dream Wife does sounds carefree but calculated. Their is a mission to the delightful madness if you choose to listen.
9. Dua Lipa – Future Nostalgia
When it comes to pop music, few artists can truly break new ground in an industry where everything feels so orchestrated by “branding” and the need for a “deluxe edition”. That makes Future Nostalgia that much more significant. Lipa delivers eleven songs that are all single-worthy – in fact, I don’t even know which are singles at this point. The album only gets better with Club Future Nostalgia, a DJ mix of remixes that flows like an actual club set with artists like Neneh Cherry mixed into the playlist. In a year of incredible disco-pop, Lipa stands tallest.
8. Molchat Doma – Monument
Written entirely during quarantine, the Belarusian band strike the perfect balance between the foreboding post-punk of Joy Division and the gothic dance of Depeche Mode. The black celebration sounds surprisingly fresh despite the obvious influences and makes for the perfect pandemic soundtrack.
7. The Vacant Lots – Interzone
Condensing a lot of ideas into only eight tracks, The Vacant Lots leave no fat on Interzone. Their monochromatic style bursts with different shades of black and white. Drowning in a sea of reverb, the vocals still manage to whisper in your ear as electronics pulse and guitars claw at their skin. A lot of bands are able to capture the atmosphere of the Velvet Underground or Suicide but few have the songs in which to house it. The Vacant Lots are the rare exception.
6. Shopping – All Or Nothing
Dismantling capitalism has never sounded more fun. The disco-punk of Shopping brings in more synths on All Or Nothing but the band’s playful vocal interplay and the guitar of Rachel Aggs remain the core of their sound. It is prickly but full of joy – not an easy trick to pull off.
5. Ist Ist – Architecture
The emotions here are real, the songs are not some clever form of artifice written to appeal to the guardians of the post-punk gates. The guitar, bass, and drums marched into the darkness ready for battle a few years ago and returned razor sharp. Early recordings were left on the battlefield and Architecture is the sound of their victory. Full review here.
4. Waxahatchee – Saint Cloud
Released in 2013, Cerulean Salt doesn’t feel that old. Time slips by in sneaky ways but Waxahatchee’s music stands as a constant in life. Katie Crutchfield’s best album to date (and that is saying something), Saint Cloud is a songwriter finding clarity of purpose. Her eyes are wide open and the words are keeping us company as we trade past mistakes for new ones just over the horizon.
3. Jehnny Beth – To Love Is To Live
Swapping out the angular guitars of her band Savages for icy electronics, Beth’s album finds sensuality in the industrial din. Toxic masculinity becomes weaponized in her music as she seizes power at will while also acknowledging her own weaknesses. One of the most intense listens of 2020 and an album that will reward listeners for years to come.
2. Fiona Apple – Fetch the Bolt Cutters
With every new Fiona Apple record, you imagine it has to be the one that doesn’t live up to what came before it. And every damn time, Apple creates something even better and completely unlike the previous ones. Fetch the Bolt Cutters is the type of album that only comes along a few times in your lifetime. It’s too good to be on any list, really.
1. Margo Price – That’s How Rumors Get Started
What would happen if Stevie Nicks and Emmylou Harris tossed back a few shots of whiskey before jamming with The Wrecking Crew in a roadhouse lit by dusty Budweiser neons? I like to think it would sound a lot like That’s How Rumors Get Started. Much like producer Sturgill Simpson, Price has no time for Nashville expectations and these songs prove why. Price strikes out to find her own way on an album that celebrates that beautiful crossroads of American music where rock-n-roll and country sing the blues together. There is a lot to lament about 2020 but there is hope on the horizon and it sounds like That’s How Rumors Get Started to me.