The 2020 end of year music lists thread

some pleasant surprises on the p4k list, like duval timothy, kate nv, choosing act ii as their jay electronica pick instead of that ponderous jay-z collab

One thing I'm really happy about this year is that these music sites have finally figured out how to publish their lists on a single page.

the Pitchfork is actually far better than I was expecting. Great to see the Yves Tumor and Moses Sumney both getting good placements in various places. Also pleasantly surprised to see the Bartees Strange in a few of them - it's really a fantastic debut.

Agreed - personally think the P4k list is far more interesting than it has been in years past, especially the first half. Notably elevated Jessie Ware, Haim, and Roisin Murphy in the rankings compared to a lot of other outlets. Some of their favs (OPN, Sufjan, Caribou) are also absent. I, too, think the Moses Sumney album is quite good, and had been surprised it was not landing in more top 10s. Still don't get the complete absence of Sault, and the top of their tracks and albums list have a lot of overlap.

chipping in to add my 'j0rdan otm' to all the others

Hadn't listened to the Mary Lattimore album at the top of their list. Lovely.

p4k list is surely a narrower concentration of their brand than ever

Last time I listened to Waxahatchee was probably her second album, years ago. I don't recall her having any country leanings back then. Anyway I've been listening to the new one for a week now and it is definitely growing on me. I don't begrudge anyone rating it highly.

p4k list is surely a narrower concentration of their brand than ever

Not saying this isn't true, but how so, exactly?

I haven't played Saint Cloud much since the weather cooled, but it had a rock-solid spot in my rotation back when the lockdown madness was first setting in, when I began taking long drives to nowhere in particular and going through automatic carwashes several times a month (the most exciting instant-gratification purchase you can make without human interaction!)

"Fire" would probably be in my top 10 songs of the year, and it loses none of its appeal when you slide it into a tracklist surrounded by her other excellent songs, so I'm fine with the #2 placement.

Not saying this isn't true, but how so, exactly?

― pomenitul, Tuesday, 8 December 2020 17:41 (twenty-six minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

scrolled through it and my eyebrows flickered precisely once, for Ka

that doesn't really answer the question

them going to bat for that massive-step-down mediocre and cloying us girls album while forgetting that, say, katie gately did an album this year is extremely on brand

i do my 'pitchfork isn't avant-garde enough' spiel every year though and it is important to note that it is first and foremost a pop lifestyle magazine nowadays so zero expectations rly

Anyway, Textura's EOY picks are always welcome but that classical list couldn't be any further from my own tastes.

I don't generally find their classical taste that reliable, although tbh I don't know the albums they picked for this year.

but why are you surprised they picked the ka album? they've been covering him very positively for over a decade.

xp

I genuinely hadn't noticed! Good that they did obv, it's a really good album

I haven't played Saint Cloud much since the weather cooled, but it had a rock-solid spot in my rotation back when the lockdown madness was first setting in, when I began taking long drives to nowhere

Same. I found her other albums worthy but wispy. This one has a thickness and precision I appreciated.

I think the Waxahatchee is great, though I've been pretty invested since American Weekend

One I'm mildly surprised I haven't noticed having any presence (although I haven't been ctrl+f-ing all lists or anything): Selena Gomez's Rare. Curse of early-January release?

Listening to some of the high albums I've not heard on The Wire list. The Duma record is wild and will definitely revisit. Amongst the razor wire vocal there's a strange, calming and pretty ambience.

But I LOVE the Still House Plants record. How did I not know this before? It's absolutely fantastic and I can't really place why I love it so much on first listen. Just bought the vinyl.

Went to look at The Quietus metal list and the website is down. :(

vice list always includes some great overlooked albums along with many head-scratchers

https://www.vice.com/en/article/k7a7xa/the-100-best-albums-of-2020-noisey

yeah that's a real good list

Feels very similar in spirit to p4k's, which is to be expected, I suppose.

Made in Lagos at 74 and Twice as Tall at 21 (the reverse would have been more accurate), slim Afropop pickings on an otherwise interesting list.

agree with that, hopefully they'll include some more african inclusions in their tracks list.

That list reminded me I need to check out that Jeremy Cunningham record.

featuring some honest-to-god imagocore in Machine Girl!

they also included many of the rap albums i liked a lot this year (was kind of a weak year for rap albums overall tbh, much stronger for singles)

ctrl + f 'armand hammer'

no results

shame on u, vice

xp
Hey NYCNative: if the Quietus metal list is still currently down, this Cryptic Shift album was my big new-to-me discovery from it, FWIW
(a slightly more tech take on the sci-fi, slightly prog death angle that Death Incantation and Tomb Mold are perhaps best known for running with over the past 3-4 yrs,
but this release impresses me a fair bit more than either of those bands have, TBH):

https://cryptic-shift.bandcamp.com/album/visitations-from-enceladus

(^ Blood Incantation, whoops)

I, too, was impressed by Visitations from Enceladus but its formlessness is a bug rather than a feature imo. I look forward to their next couple of releases.

Fair enough!
This Vassafor album's the other metal record that I only just got into in the past few days via it getting enough year-end notice to likewise grab my attention--
lots of riffs strung into/after riffs on this one tool, but I really like how these New Zealanders stick an early, thrashy, out-and-out Satanic sensibility with that Antipodean post-Portal caverncore approach with nice murk/clarity balance in the production:

https://ironboneheadproductions.bandcamp.com/album/vassafor-to-the-death

...And, uh, am much more into Swearin' than Waxahatchee, haha

One of my favorite albums of the year is Blake Mills' "Mutable Set"--admittedly a very quiet record that might pride itself on fading away, so perhaps not surprising that I haven't seen it on any EOY lists. I guess since P'fork gave it a BNM I thought it had a chance of showing up on their list, but nope.

"vanishing twin" did ok on the p4k songs list so i'm a little surprised it didn't make the albums list, great album

vice list is interesting as usual, there's lots to dig through there.

been enjoying The Cycle by Mourning (A) BLKstar from the Wire list

the Beatrice Dillon album is really nice listening to on headphones

End-of-year music mix, for a change of pace:

'Hindsight Twenty Twenty': The most essential music of the year of 2020, reflecting our anger, hope, love, fears, beauty and the fight.https://t.co/C3z6ZFfsxP

w/ @SaultGlobal @NAEEMmusic @terencenance @_zeroh @Aho_Ssan @JUNGLEPUSSY @ghostpoet @YvesTumor @RoyKinsey @beautypill pic.twitter.com/hVEjoCB4Yx

— Musicophilia (@musicophiliamix) December 9, 2020

https://musicophilia.files.wordpress.com/2020/12/musicophilia_00_various_-_hindsight-twenty-twenty_2020_cover-a-front.jpg?w=3600

Part I

01 [0:00:00] Sault – “Fearless” (‘Untitled (Rise)’)
02 [0:03:40] Naeem – “Tiger Song” (‘Startisha’)
03 [0:08:10] Terence Etc. – “Like That Tho?” (‘Things I Never Had’)
04 [0:13:00] Zeroh – “The Lord & Nature” (‘BLQLYTE’)
05 [0:17:10] Aho Ssan – “Intro” (‘Simulacrum’)
06 [0:20:40] Junglepussy – “Spiders” (‘Jp4’)
07 [0:23:05] Ghostpoet – “Nowhere to Hide Now” (‘I Grow Tired But Dare Not Fall Asleep’)
08 [0:27:35] Yves Tumor – “Dream Palette” (‘Heaven To a Tortured Mind’)
09 [0:30:30] Roy Kinsey – “Everything is Everything” (‘KINSEY: A Memoir’)
10 [0:33:35] Beauty Pill – “The Damndest Thing” (‘Please Advise’)

Part II

11 [0:38:35] Bartees Strange – “Far” (‘Live Forever’)
12 [0:42:25] Nazar – “Retaliation” (‘Guerrilla’)
13 [0:45:30] Moor Mother & Olof Melander – “Hemlock” (‘Anthologia 01’)
14 [0:48:15] Moses Boyd – “Only You” (‘Dark Matter’)
15 [0:52:20] Wayne Phoenix – “Reserve” (‘Soaring Wayne Phoenix Story The Earth’)
16 [0:53:45] Nnamdi – “Heartless” (‘Black Plight’)
17 [0:56:50] Algiers – “Losing Is Ours” (‘There Is No Year’)
18 [1:00:25] Zsela – “For Now” (‘Ache of Victory’)
19 [1:04:40] Anjimile – “1978” (‘Giver Taker’)
20 [1:09:10] Tek.Lun – “No Peace!” (‘The Opression Olympics’)
21 [1:12:55] Kassa Overall – “Show Me a Prison” (‘I Think I’m Good’)
22 [1:16:20] Jeff Parker – “Go Away” (‘Suite for Max Brown’)
23 [1:21:15] KMRU – “Why Are You Here?” (‘Peel’)

Part III

24 [1:22:00] Infinity Knives & Brian Ennals – “The Black Power Paradox” (‘Rhino XXL’)
25 [1:26:00] Oui Ennui – “A Man Who Began To Suspect He Was Made of Glass” (‘Wytai’)
26 [1:28:10] Dua Saleh – “Windhymn” (‘Rosetta’)
27 [1:31:15] Fusilier – “Upstream” (‘Upstream’)
28 [1:37:20] Loris – “Driver Nephi” (‘Loris’)
29 [1:42:55] Nailah Hunter – “White Flower, Dark Hill” (‘Spells’)
30 [1:45:20] Moses Sumney – “Polly” (‘Grae’)
31 [1:48:55] Zeal & Ardor – “Vigil” (‘Wake of a Nation’)
32 [1:52:05] Space Afrika – “Oh Baby” (‘Hybtwibt?’)
33 [1:54:05] Lamin Fofana – “I Ran From It and Was Still In It” (‘Darkwater’)

[Total Time: 1:59:55]

turning 40 tomorrow so here's my top 40 (listened to) albums from the last 365 days regardless of release year, which is pretty much why I read ILM, to get this from everyone else, so thank you and you're welcome

1 The Sir Douglas Quintet - The Complete Mercury Masters
2 Al Green - Gets Next to You
3 X - Wild Gift
4 Various Artists - Bachata Roja: Acoustic Bachata from the Cabaret Era
5 Mission of Burma - Signals, Calls, and Marches
6 Them - Them Again (feat. Van Morrison)
7 The Funkees - Dancing Time, The Best of Eastern Nigeria's Afro Rock Exponents 1973-77
8 Glen Campbell - The Capitol Years 1965-1977
9 Mulatu Astatke - Ethiopiques, Vol. 4: Ethio Jazz 1969-1974
10 The Dead Milkmen - Big Lizard in my Back Yard
11 James Brown - Love Power Peace (Live at the Olympia in Paris, 1971)
12 Merle Haggard - A Portrait Of
13 The Replacements - Tim
14 The Meat Puppets - II
15 James Brown - Live At Home With His Bad Self
16 Stan Getz - Verve Jazz Masters 53
17 Mac Dre - What's Really Going On?
18 Stephen Malkmus - Traditional Techniques
19 The Howling Hex - All Night Fox
20 Los Tucanes De Tijuana - Para Tucanillos y Tucanillas
21 Susso - Kiera
22 The Left Banke - Walk Away Renée/Pretty Ballerina
23 Jimmy Smith - Softly As A Summer Breeze
24 Buzzcocks - Singles Going Steady
25 The Replacements - For Sale: Live at Maxwell's 1986
26 Sharhabil Ahmed - The King of Sudanese Jazz (Habibi Funk 013)
27 Women - Public Strain
28 Al Green - Let's Stay Together
29 Novos Baianos - Acabou Chorare
30 Teenage Fanclub - A Catholic Education
31 The Replacements - Let It be
32 Walter Wanderley - Rain Forest
33 Ghostface Killah - Fishscale
34 Trumans Water - Spasm Smash XXXOXOX Ox & Ass
35 U-Roy - Versions Galore
36 Various Artists - Habibi Funk: An Electic Selection of Music From the Arab World
37 Dick Stusso - In Heaven
38 Dungen - Haxan
39 Chief Commander Ebenezer Obey - Ebenezer Obey in London
40 Creedence Clearwater Revival - Cosmo's Factory (40th Anniversary Edition)

Very cool list--happy birthday

Love the Waxahatchee record, don't care for her earlier efforts though! This one has been on heavy rotation all year. Her take on Country Roads (Take Me Home) with Whitney is very addictive as well.

hb burrito!

The bar is pretty low but Vice is the best list so far. Wouldn't surprise me if it stayed that way.

I don't care for "WAP" but they're the only one so far with RMR in the top 10 which tbh should be in every tracks list this year.
https://www.vice.com/en/article/xgzgp7/the-100-best-songs-of-2020-noisey

noisey list made me realize "if you're too shy" is pretty underrepresented on these lists

i guess "critically-acclaimed band the 1975" was doomed to be a short-lived phenomenon :)

No Clean Singing's 'great' metal albums of 2020:

https://www.nocleansinging.com/2020/12/09/2020-a-year-in-reviews-the-great/

omg what a nice surprise at the end