Favorite Albums of 2020
I didn’t listen to much new music in 2020. Instead, I found myself turning to old familiar tunes in search of comfort. But that just made the time I spent with new releases more memorable. Here are the 10 that rose to the top.
10
Suite For Max Brown by Jeff Parker
I listened to loads of focus music this year while I worked. This album’s raw refrains, gossamer guitar runs, and ice-melting bass lines make it a perfect companion to the other jazz and ambient staples in my rotation.
9
Gold Record by Bill Callahan
There’s a playfulness in Bill Callahan’s Smog-era music that faded in his more intricate later work. On Gold Rush, he fuses past and present. Streamlined instruments meet lyrics that are lusher, and sillier, than ever. Only an artist with the confidence of experience dares to strip the music down to its bones, just to fill the beautifully rendered, sparsely arranged songs with jokes. Maybe we can have it all sometimes.
8
EP! by JPEGMAFIA
Including an EP on a best albums list might be cheating, but these tracks were present in too many moments to ignore. Anytime Peggy released a new single, I’d stop what I was doing and listen. I still remember waking up to “Living Single” the day after I quit my job—the oversized, arena-worthy synths and playful lyrics washed away the momentary self-doubt that inevitably accompanies any major life change. I’ll be coming back to them for years.
7
how i’m feeling now by Charli XCX
Just a few weeks into 2020, I regretted not including Charli XCX’s previous record on my 2019 list of favorite albums. So when “how i’m feeling now” came around, I was ready to give Charli my full attention. But I wasn’t ready for how long I’ll have to wait to hear “forever” or “7 years” on a playlist at a party.
6
EP by No Pressure
Alongside open windows and afternoon walks with my partner, the highlight of early quarantine was connecting with friends in various group chats. From iMessage to Slack to Discord, my sanity was buoyed by caring friends who showed up for each other week after week. No Pressure was a recurring topic in those threads. I’m reminded of these crucial conversations anytime one of these furious songs blares through my headphones or out of the speakers in my brother’s car.
5
Purple Moonlight Pages by R.A.P. Ferreira
On these creative tracks that defy categorization, Ferreira paints an ambitious vision of the future rooted in deceptively simple ingredients—love and community. If you’d played this for me in high school, I might have never listened to anything else.
4
Color Theory by Soccer Mommy
On Color Theory, Sophie Allison sifts through past wounds while catching a glimpse of her future for the first time. She beckons us forward, but also offers safe ground for those who need to linger between past and future just a little longer. In a year of pandemic-fueled uncertainty, it felt extraordinarily special to find so much of myself in these songs.
3
Songs by Adrianne Lenker
This collection of songs is as daring as it is familiar.
2
Heaven to a Tortured Mind by Yves Tumor
Blending pop, old school glam, and a healthy dose of noise, Heaven to a Tortured Mind is a rare example of an artist simultaneously inventing and mastering a musical niche. I dream of wielding this kind of creative control. Tumor exhibits understanding and openness while navigating themes like violence, abandonment, and identity.
1
Fetch the Bolt Cutters by Fiona Apple
Like many folks, I spent 2020 reflecting. So did Fiona Apple. Her music has always been diaristic, but on Fetch the Bolt Cutters, she’s less a chronicler than an alchemist, transmuting anger, regret, kindness, and hate into something beautiful. After a career spent questioning, her hard-won answers hit like revelations you can trust. And they couldn’t have arrived at a better time.