OK - 2020 has been a dismal year. Enough said about that. Thankfully, people still need music and people still make music.And while, surprisingly, people have listened less to music during the pandemic, great albums were indeed made. This list of albums is not ranked in any particular way other than it contains albums that a) were released in 2020, b) I listened to, and c) I particularly liked.
Notable mentions (also on the Spotify playlist - at the end of this post): Silja Sol, Jeff Tweedy, Nothing, Blitzen Trapper, The Flaming Lips, The Jayhawks, Destroyer.
Now for the albums.
Taylor Swift - folklore / evermore
Who would have thought that an artist previously known for slick Nashville country would end up on my best of list. The signs have been there, I guess. Swift was cooler than the rest of the polished country bunch, and she took control over her own narrative and business, experimenting with different styles of music. When Ryan Adams covered the whole 1989 album in an alt country style the strength of the songs were apparent and I was a fan of the artist, not necessarily the modern pop of e.g., 2019's Lover. Then, out of the blue and in the middle of a pandemic, Swift surprisingly dropped folklore - a quiet, introspective, elegant collection of moving songs. Swift used the pandemic to reach out to Aaron Dessner among others to collaborate on songs. And, they hit jackpot - beautiful and tasteful production that fit the songs perfectly - songs that combine pop-sensibility, country phrasing and alternative folk. I was impressed. And, just as surprisingly, Swift dropped another full length album evermore in december. She just couldn't stop writing. I certainly hope she's unable to stop now, too.
Kråkesølv - Force majeure
Kråkesølv is a band from Bodø, Norway who have released several great albums since their debut in 2009. Writing in their native Norwegian tongue, I particularly listed a lot to 2010's brilliant Bomtur to Jorda. Their style is sophisticated pop/rock, both rhythmically and harmonically. On their new and suitably named album Force majeure they continue to be explorative and philosophical - touching on the big themes of life - birth and death, love and hate, anxiety and confidence, and of course space travel. The title track Force majeure coins their sentiment - "Det er bare tyngdekrafta som kan trekk meg ned" ("only gravity can hold me down").
Futurebirds - Teamwork
One thing that should be clear these days is that through teamwork great things can happen - or great disasters be prevented. So The Futurebirds new album is appropriately named for our time. The opening track, Teamwork Runs the Game, is a strange synth piece with a surf guitar and ample amounts of crystal delay, clocking in at just over 30 seconds, kicking off the irresistibly catchy Crazy Boys. The lyrics are difficult to comprehend and somewhat cryptic from the Jeff Tweedy-like mumble-whine of frontman Thomas Johnson, but who cares with guitar hooks like we get on Picking up Strangers. Spring-reverb drenched surf guitar! Horns! Immaculate songwriting. What's not to like?
Pallbearer - Forgotten Days
While most of the music I listen to fall firmly into a few categories (indie pop/rock, alt-country) I occasionally listen to metal. My favorite band lately has been Pallbearer, and their new album Forgotten Days is doom metal done right - slow and sludgy, turning almost prog rock in sections, before returning to the slow and fat chugga-chugga. Brett Campbell invokes Bruce Dickinson at times to reach the highs. The production is fat and silky smooth, no barbed wire here. Just majestic.
Little Hands of Asphalt - Half Empty
I have to agree with Sjur Lyseid, the brainchild behind Little Hands of Asphalt. 2020 has indeed been half empty, and it's difficult to frame it as half full. Eight years after the last album- Floors - Sjur and team returns with ten new tunes, painting in melancholy pictures occasionally set in his native Norway - geography and jobs in public sector. Supporting Lyseids guitar is the typical lush orchestration we know and love from earlier albums, like Lambchop sounded around the turn of the millenium.
Pinegrove - Marigold
The story of Pinegrove is strange. Their second album - Cardinal - was on my best of list for 2016. This band seemed to incorporate everything that was great about the 90's indie rock period and make it relevant to the 21'st century. I had tickets for their highly anticipated show in Oslo. They had their third album recorded and was planning it's release. Then Me Too hit, and frontman Evan Stephens Hall was accused of a vague misconduct. It is still not clear what the case was about, but it effectively shut down the band for a year while they were building momentum. Thankfully they got started again and in 2020 released Marigold. While these songs are not the perfect 10's of Cardinal or even Skylight they are still great, and while the lyrics are perhaps more suited to convey the angst of young adulthood than discussing themes relevant to middle-aged men pushing 50 - I still feel in my 20's when listening to Marigold. Perhaps nostalgia has finally gotten to me, but I think not. I think these songs stand on their own without the warm fuzzy glow of nostalgia to support them.
Deacon Blue - City of Love
Deacon Blue was one of those bands in the late 80's that wrote sophisticated, lush pop that could be described as "adult contemporary". And, just when the alternative scene was gearing up for the 90's it was not a very cool band to love. Only problem was, their songs were irresistible. So this band was not something you'd announce loudly to the cool kids, but rather listen to in private. And their first two albums - Raintown from 1987 and When the World Knows Your Name from 1989 - are absolute masterpieces. And in 2020 they released City of Love. Recognizable Deacon Blue, like 30 years have never gone by.
Deerhoof- Future Teenage Cave Artists
Deerhoof - the experimental indie rock band that have been churning out consistently interesting and weird albums from the late 90's - finally have come around to making a concept album about teenagers doing teenage things in a future apocalyptic world. Set in the trademark whirlwind of polyrhythms, repetitive lyrical chants and guitar pyrotechnics. This stuff is so different, so well made, so intriguing, and so challenging that it's, well, difficult to not be fascinated by it. If you put this stuff on repeat you certainly risk a sensory meltdown in your brain.
Jason Isbell & the 400 Unit - Reunions
For Reunions Isbell has teamed up with the 400 Unit, mostly consisting of musicians from the Muscle Shoals, AL area (if you are unaware of it, the area is home to legendary session musicians and studio serving the Motown sound among other things of the late 60's and early 70's). Isbell is balancing a difficult line these days, starting to become big and producing music that is starting to sound like acts that play arenas. His songwriting, however, is still strong and on this album the songs are as understated and introspective as ever. Which is impressive as Isbell is a very competent (lead) guitarist and a gear geek. Isbell is on his way back to Oslo this fall to play a concert - unfortunately he's now too big for the small- and medium sized venues. Too bad.
Anna Järvinen - Vestiga Terrent
One of the underappreciated Swedish artists I know of is Anna Järvinen. Her 2007 debut Jag fick feeling is a masterpiece of chamber/psych pop - combining great songs with the fluid orchestration of Dungen at their peak. These guys can put on a unique atmosphere and feeling through their vintage sound and jazz phrasing. Dungen is supporting Järvinen on Vestiga Terrent, too, and while perhaps not as magical as their first albums together, it's still pretty magical. Close your eyes, put on Melodifestival, and be transported to another time, another place where everything is possible. Pure genius.
Phoebe Bridgers - Punisher
Phoebe Bridgers is one of those gifted young women songwriters who still explore the traditional guitar-based form, and I'm grateful for that. Her collaboration with Conor Oberst last year - Better Oblivion Community Center - was a runner-up for my top list, and her 2018 collaboration EP with Julien Baker and Lucy Dacus - boygenius - did make my top of 2018 list. This year's full-length is packed with atmospheric and densely produced songs that remind me of the melancholy of Azure Ray (who, coincidently, was signed to Conor Oberst' label). On Punisher Bridgers explores topics using pictures from science (fiction) (tractor beams, satellites, the Moon), popular history (DVDs, Lennon, Graceland). I'm looking forward to where she ventures next.
