My Favorite Albums of 2020
I like music! Here’s what I liked the most this year!
I’m cheesing out again with another Honorable Mention / “Tied for 21st” list of stuff that just missed the cut. This year (in alphabetical order), it’s: AC/DC, Anaal Nathrakh, Carcass, The God Awful Truth, Kardashev, Nothing, Pathogen, Plini, Satyr, and Under the Pier.
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20) Floral — LP. Finger-tappy instrumental band in the vein of Chon, but much more complex. Guitar nerds need to get on this right away. FAVORITE SONG: “The Good Song”
19) Katatonia — City Burials. A bit of a let-down after the masterpiece that was ‘The Fall of Hearts’, but still with enough great songs to reward repeated listens. FAVORITE SONG: “Behind the Blood”
18) Fawn Limbs — Sleeper Vessels. Progressive mathgrind? I think that’s a thing, right? Whatever it is, this band continues to improve with each release. FAVORITE SONG: “The Vermin Massif”
17) Cytotoxin — Nuklearth. My favorite pure death metal album of the year. Extremely technical, and possesses a very satisfying production (slam snare goes PING PING PING). FAVORITE SONG: “Lupus Aurora”
16) Cloudkicker — Solitude. Quite possibly the most mature work from this solo artist, while being capable of pleasing fans of both his heavier and mellower releases. FAVORITE SONG: “94 Days”
15) Chamber — Cost of Sacrifice. Blistering hardcore chock full of panic chords. This pandemic needs to be over soon, cuz I can’t wait to see what this band does to get a room full of people moving. FAVORITE SONG: “Scars in Complex Patterns”
14) Run the Jewels — RTJ4. Hard-hitting hip hop, with the right mix of social consciousness and straight-up jams (sometimes in the same song). Just as pertinent as their previous albums, if slightly less consistent to my ears. FAVORITE SONG: “Ju$t”
13) Deftones — Ohms. Another solid release from this seminal alt-rock band, although with more focus on guitars than their last two. FAVORITE SONG: “Pompeji”
12) Caligula’s Horse — Rise Radiant. Australian prog-rock band’s follow-up to the masterpiece ‘In Contact’ isn’t quite as soaring, but is still beautiful and skillful. FAVORITE SONG: “Oceanrise”
11) Ulcerate — Stare Into Death and Be Still. Oppressively heavy, like a giant boulder sitting on your chest. Their best overall release. FAVORITE SONG: “Stare Into Death and Be Still”
10) Code Orange — Underneath. Reimagining hardcore music through electronic influences. Soon to spawn a whole new generation of imitators. FAVORITE SONG: “Swallowing the Rabbit Whole”
09) Arrested Development — Don’t Fight Your Demons. Like most casual hip-hop fans, I lost track of this group a long time ago. I’m glad I found them again. FAVORITE SONG: “Becoming”
08) Hum — Inlet. A shoegazey comeback album decades in the making. Impeccably produced, and doesn’t overstay its welcome. FAVORITE SONG: “Waves”
07) Methwitch — Indwell. A demonic grinding mix of industrial metal with surprising vocal hooks at times. FAVORITE SONG: “Spiral”
06) ZILF — The Album. A zany 8-stringed love child of Mr. Bungle and System of a Down. A grinning middle-finger of a metal album. FAVORITE SONG: “Trust Me, I’m A Doctor!”
05) Pallbearer — Forgotten Days. Depressing in all the right ways. Each album this doom band releases becomes my new favorite, and this was no exception. FAVORITE SONG: “Riverbed”
04) Absent Hearts — The Peak & The Valley. Atmospheric instrumental guitar rock that focuses more on feeling than technicality. A great listen from start to finish. Criminally overlooked. FAVORITE SONG: “The River”
03) Emma Ruth Rundle & Thou — May Our Chambers Be Full. A collaboration between a folk artist and a sludgy metal band from Louisiana was chocolate and peanut butter to my ears. The ethereal female vocals combine brilliantly with the end-of-the-earth guitars and raspy growls by Thou’s lead vocalist. I can’t get enough of it. FAVORITE SONG: “Killing Floor”
02) Loathe — I Let It In and It Took Everything. Equal parts dissonant and radio-friendly. Inspired by both punk and hardcore as well as the Deftones, it’s a little schizophrenic, but never boring. For as great as this album is, it feels like they’re just warming up. FAVORITE SONG: “Two-Way Mirror”
01) covet — technicolor. Light and airy. Complex yet inviting. I fell in love with it after one listen back in June, and it was a mainstay in my ears throughout the rest of this terrible year. It puts a smile on my face and feels warm like a favorite blanket. 2020 needed this album. FAVORITE SONGS: “parachute” / “atreyu”
