Best music in 2020


The Third Mind

Dave Alvin all grown up and boy am I glad to witness it!
128x128slaw
Hey all, 

Just became active here and just discovered that we geek out on music not just gear.  A couple of 2020 submissions not yet listed:  

Waxahatchee - St. Cloud
Phish - Sigma Oasis

Both sound outstanding and really come to life on good gear.  
+1 slaw. Oh Harvey rules and stories is a great record. Apropos of nothing, I heard a Beatles b side today, I'll get you, and deem it their finest composition.
Yeah @slaw,@slaw, all the Acony pressings of Gillian Welch sound amazing. Just spun Soul Journey again, it real is something! Cheers,
Spencer
Morrissey - I Am Not a Dog on a Chain (2020).

Wow, what a pleasant surprise! Morrissey releases a pop album again.

After just  a couple of listens I'd say it's up there with Viva Hate, Your Arsenal, You are the Quarry etc.

Producer Joe Chiccarelli has somehow managed to do as good an impersonation job of Johnny Marr's arrangements as anyone has yet managed with Morrissey.

The sheer musical variety on this album is a most refreshing change. Take the lead single for example "Bobby, Don't You Think They Know?"

https://youtu.be/2cB93OUF_sA

Nick Cave "Idiot Prayer" Great sounding on vinyl too!
Matt Beringer (of The National) - Serpentine Prison
Fiona Apple - Fetch The Bolt Cutters!

Cheers,
Spencer
Some great suggestions here - Springsteen, Pretenders, and especially Nick Cave.

Also good to see the Strokes back and taking risks. 
@j_husker...Maggie's Song is the Old Yeller of dog songs...tough for me to make it through without tearing up.
As good as the Sturgil and Childers releases were, there were lots of good options, but for me Stapleton "Starting Over" just feels good.
Thanks @hudsonhawk...HUGE Radiohead fan and will definitely give both a listen. An older, but great Radiohead related project that I was just listening to over the weekend is Johnny Greenwood Is The Controller...compilation of JG's favorite reggae/dub hits from the first 40 years of Trojan Records.
Phoebe Bridgers - Punisher
Ultraista - Sister

Both outstanding recordings to boot. Ultraista is the side project of Nigel Goodrich (Radiohead’s producer).
Here are my top 2020 releases that I acquired last year.  The pandemic had me enjoying music on a daily basis.  I invested more in my system and collection than ever before.  

Charles Mingus
Mingus Ah Um - MoFi UD1S
Superb SQ 

Tom Petty
Wildflowers & All The Rest 3 LP
'All The Rest' are such a treat and could easily have been their own album.  I am delighted to have them now.  

Bruce Springsteen 
Letter To You
Bruuuccee....enuf said

Huey Lewis
Weather
Sad with Huey's Meniere's disease that his career is over.  They worked very hard and long to put out one final album.

Theory of a Deadman
Say Nothing
I have never been much of a fan and is my first record of theirs.  It pulls you in immediately and is always a fun listen.

Pretenders
Hate For Sale
Chrissie is still putting out great tunes

The Strokes
The New Abnormal
A random pick that is a great album
@beach2mtn,

Thanks for your suggestions.
Love to see you on the. "What's on your turntable tonight" thread.
Great thread...definitely going to be digging in to some of these suggestions.

@spiritofradio & and @slaw our tastes seem very aligned. Big Isbell fan, both Sturgill's Cutting Grass albums have gotten tons of play in our house, LP5 is just beautiful, etc.

A couple others in that Americana genre that haven't been mentioned...

  • Margo Price's That's How Rumors Get Started is great...little less of her previous honkey tonk vibe and more of a classic rock sound. 

  • Tyler Childers...discovered by fellow eastern KY artist Sturgill Simpson. 2020's Long Violent History gets less play than his earlier albums in our house (although the concept and pre launch video of TC speaking to his rural white listeners about BLM is super powerful), but Purgatory, Country Squire, etc. are amazing. My favorite of his is def 2018's Live on Red Barn Radio.

  • Ruston Kelly (Casey Chamber's ex husband) Shape & Destroy 2020 release is good, but 2018's Dying Star is really good.

  • 2018 release, but Brent Cobb's Providence Canyon album is fantastic (cousin of midas touch outlaw producer Dave Cobb...Stapleton, Isbell, Sturgill, Highwomen, Shires, etc.).
Thåström

Klockan två på natten, öppet....

Thastrom

Klockan tva pa natten, oppet
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The new War on Drugs live is really good. Nicely recorded capturing their "wall of sound" without compression. One of my favorites of the year.