Unarguably, 2020 was a dumpster fire. Arguably, it was a fantastic year for music. Maybe that has something to do with quarantine-induced, ‘what else is there to do other than make music right now’ studio recording sessions or maybe being locked in our houses has allowed us to appreciate things a virus can’t touch a little bit more. Either way, music has played a very big part in our lives this year. Below is our list of the top ten albums of 2020:
Home by Somni
Somni’s sophomore album Home reminds me of a Studio Ghibli movie. The electronic album is warm with the perfect dosage of strange, scattered with entrancing organic sounds and interrupting drum beats. What separates this album from your run-of-the-mill beats tape are the vocals layered over the songs. The crooning in the backdrop of the record sounds almost childlike.
Despite the overall brightness of the album, many of the tracks have a certain melancholy to them. As notes switch from major to minor and our singer asks the world “Well I could go home if I want to, and then what?”, it reminds me of how I felt the majority of quarantine as someone in their early 20s. Endless possibility is a beautiful curse inflicted on 20-something recent graduates. This album is dreams interjected with reality, idealism counterbalanced by pragmatism.
Punisher by Phoebe Bridgers
I vividly remember the first time I sat down and listened to Phoebe Bridgers' widely praised sophomore album Punisher, and it was quite the awakening experience. While lead singles ‘Kyoto' and 'Garden Song' delivered hard, there were questions around if the album would live up to the acclaim of her debut Stranger in the Alps. Boy, did it deliver. The full circle of this record takes listeners on an emotional rollercoaster ride through Bridgers' rise to fame, complications with family, and fidelity leading to eventual heartbreak.
When the album's title track 'Punisher' emerged four songs in, Bridgers' self-awareness and integrity shined as her somber whispers made listeners look inward. That's every artist's goal, and Phoebe is one of the best in the game at making you feel. Punisher continues to deliver track-after-track of honest, beautifully constructed lullabies and serenades. The album earned her four Grammy nominations, including Best New Artist, and she is a surefire Sufjan and Fiona Apple-esque legacy artist in the making.
Ungodly Hour by Chloe x Halle
Stating that Chloe x Halle are making waves in the music industry is comparable to calling a hurricane a long thunderstorm. A severe understatement. At 22 and 20 respectively, Ungodly Hour is the sophomore studio album for the Atlanta-natives. Aside from the two albums under their belt, Halle Bailey is set to star as Princess Ariel in Disney’s live-action recreation of The Little Mermaid. Did I also mention that the siblings are known as Beyoncé’s prodigies? The expectation ceiling has been built quite high for the young artists yet these girls have smashed through it with Ungodly Hour, propelling them towards superstardom at hyper speed. Next time you’re in a slump and need a sonic boost, play this record.
These girls have the talent and ability to succeed individually but when combined, their vocal chemistry creates something that’s entirely unreplicable. There’s something to be said about them being sisters. The sound, the range, and the harmonies that are achieved when they come together — that’s blood. Composed of danceable RnB anthems, honey-coated vocals, and sharp songwriting, this album is full of life and a showcase of the sisters talent. I am eagerly awaiting their next release.
Women in Music Part. III by HAIM
I’ve been a fan of HAIM since their 2013 debut album Days Are Gone, seeing them live on numerous occasions. Though I’ve always respected the California-raised Haim sister's project, they admittedly lost me a bit on their sophomore album. I hadn't paid attention to anything new from the girls in years, that is until they delivered their third record, Women in Music Part. III. It's a near-masterpiece. Right out of the gate, the album opener 'Los Angeles' sets a precedent for a more mature and refined California indie-rock album. Other highlights from the album are '3 AM,' a hard-hitting psychedelic-infused jam, and 'Don't Wanna,' a catchy tune that will engrain itself in your mind for months.
Future Past Life by STRFKR
Earlier this year, I wrote about how we could use nostalgia, specifically old songs that reminded us of better times, as a source of solace against the ailments of 2020. Despite STRFKR’s evolution over the years, including their 2019 electronica-heavy track ‘Fantasy’ and their 2020 album ‘Ambient 1’ composed of minimalist instrumentals (including ‘Rainzow’, one of my favorite songs of 2020), ‘Future Past Life’ sounds delightfully… old. Earlier works of theirs such as ‘Rawnald Gregory Erickson the Second’ and ‘Kahlil Gibran’ accompanied me through my angsty early 2010s. With the fusion of acoustic and electronic sounds combined with frontman Joshua Hodges distinct vocals, ‘Future Past Life’ carries the charm of STRFKR’s previous projects, reminding me of simpler times when the biggest tragedy in my life was my parents refusing to extend my curfew past 11:30 PM.
New Me, Same Us by Little Dragon
Little Dragon simply doesn’t miss. ‘New Me, New Us’, the Swedish band’s sixth studio album, is a combination of uptempo atmospheric funk and downtempo grooves. Perfect for occasions such as the winddown after a night of apartment drinking with your three roommates or contemplating in a dark room lit up via the candle your mom got you for Christmas. ‘Where You Belong’, a romantic alternative RnB ballad nestled in the middle of the album, earned a spot on OC’s top songs of 2020 list. Guiding us through the record are the iconic vocals of lead singer Yukimi Nagano. Each track guarantees that at least one body part will be moving along with the beat while listening.
After Hours by The Weeknd
I was a massive fan of The Weeknd in his mixtape days and even got the chance to see him at The Showbox Market (max capacity: 1,500) back in 2012. As his fame heightened to ‘superstar’ status, his music began to resonate with me less and less. After Hours, the Canadian singer’s fourth studio album, changed every opinion I previously had as I instantly fell in love with it. The record encapsulates each era of The Weeknd's career up until this point resulting in a dark and sexy album with no-skips and slow burns. I have to dial into the conversation and say that it is a total outrage that this album and its lead singles' Blinding Lights' and 'In Your Eyes' were all snubbed from the Grammys. Some highlights from After Hours were the drum-n-bass heavy ballad 'Hardest To Love' and his electrifying breakup track 'Save Your Tears'. It's hard to narrow down favorites because After Hours is the type of album where new favorites surface every other listen-through.
YHLQMDLG by Bad Bunny
The Latin music scene has significantly leveled up in mainstream popularity and streaming numbers to record-breaking success for the genre. Bad Bunny has been a leader and visionary for Reggaeton music for the past couple of years, and he's delivered not one but two revolutionary albums this year. The 26-year-old singer/rapper made a splash onto the scene back in 2018, yet it feels like he's a veteran who's been in the game for a decade. His surprise album YHLQMLG has grown on me more than any record this year.
It's unbelievable to imagine one man and his team of writers & producers putting together such a genre-bending and stylish project, where every unique track pieces the full puzzle together. Bad Bunny seamlessly interchanges low-pitched rhymes with exquisitely sung hooks backed by next-level dancehall kickdrums. The power of this music has echoed throughout the world and will continue to dominate. Some highlights are the high-energy, quick-changing flows on 'Saferea' and put-me-in-my-feels track 'Solia.'
Through Water by Låpsley
Lovers of idiosyncratic vocalists, this is the album for you. Låpsley’s sophomore album opens with the title track ‘Through Water’, an ethereal piece that fuses spoken word regarding climate change with shifting vocal pitches, giving off the illusion of two androgynous individuals echoing off one another. The rest of the album is a hybrid of moody pop, ambience, and electronic, culminating in a soundscape that is both empowering yet ominous. The UK artist is at her most vulnerable on the album’s closing track, ‘Speaking of the End’, where poetic vocals and unadorned piano chords blend to elicit the feeling of floating through a body of water.
Good News by Megan Thee Stallion
Megan Thee Stallion owned 2020. It's no surprise that she was my top streamed artist on Spotify this year (top .5% of fans right here) as she galloped over every other rapper and pop singer with her infectious, club-ready bangers. It all started when she released her nine-song EP Suga back in March, and then the world got very, very dark. The project exhibited Megan's incredibly paced rhymes and saw TikTok friendly tracks like 'Captain Hook' and 'Savage' emerge into the mainstream. The Houston-emcee continued her reign with her feature on Cardi B's eye-opening statement 'WAP,' one of the most talked-about tracks of the year.
With two Billboard number-one hits under her belt, a remix by none other than Queen Bey herself, and an SNL performance, to call this year a success is an understatement. Once she announced her debut album Good News, it was game over. The seventeen-song record features DaBaby, SZA, and fellow female showrunners City Girls. Each track is boosted with uppity left-of-center samples on tracks like 'Circles' and 'Work That,' and experimental Yeezus-type production on tracks like 'Body' and 'Cry Baby.' While some songs are better than others, each one is unique and inventive in its sense and has solidified Megan as an influential figure in rap music.
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