Best of 2020--so far

Know of a great band you think we'd like to hear about? Got some music news? Or just want to talk about music in general? Post it here.

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Jonicont
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Best of 2020--so far

Post by Jonicont »

DBT--The Unraveling
Country Westerns--S/T
Fiona Apple--Fetch the Bolt Cutters
Always go to the show

chuckrh
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Re: Best of 2020--so far

Post by chuckrh »

Jonicont wrote:
Fri Jul 17, 2020 4:51 pm
DBT--The Unraveling
Country Westerns--S/T
Fiona Apple--Fetch the Bolt Cutters
all of the above +:
Bob Dylan - Rough & Rowdy Ways
Neil Young - Homegrown
The Beths - Jump Rope Gazers

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Re: Best of 2020--so far

Post by walthers »

My Morning Jacket - The Waterfall II

Zip City
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Re: Best of 2020--so far

Post by Zip City »

DBT
Isbell
Fiona
MMJ

plus

RTJ4
Bonny Light Horsemen
Porridge Radio
And I knew when I woke up Rock N Roll would be here forever

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Re: Best of 2020--so far

Post by Clams »

Rose City Band
Country Westerns
Margo Price
DBT
Haim
And the winner thus far... Dexateens live at the 40 Watt. So good!

Really looking forward to Jerry Joseph and also Kathleen Edwards
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Re: Best of 2020--so far

Post by Iowan »

Country Westerns "Country Westerns"
Lilly Hiatt "Walking Proof"
DBT "The Unraveling"
American Aquarium "Lamentations"
Kyle Nix "Lightning On the Mountain (and Other Short Stories)"
Mike & The Moonpies "Touch of You: The Lost Songs of Gary Stewart
Ray Wylie Hubbard "Co-starring"
Jaime Wyatt "Neon Cross"
Corb Lund "Agricultural Tragic"
John Baumann "Country Shade"
Margo Price "That's How Rumors Get Started"

Great music year so far.

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Re: Best of 2020--so far

Post by WarHenRecords »

New releases:

Jeff Parker & The New Breed - Suite for Max Brown
Jeremy Cunningham - The Weather Up There
Bonny Light Horseman
Gil Scott-Heron/Makaya McCraven - We’re New Again: A Reimagining by Makaya McCraven
Zachary Cale - False Spring (lots of folks here would enjoy this, FYI)
Rob Dobson - New Dystopia
Mapache - From Liberty Street
The Dead Tongues - Transmigration Blues
DBT - The Unraveling
Stephen Malkmus - Traditional Techniques

Reissues/Archival/Live stuff:

Neil Young - Homegrown (phenomenal)
Marc Ford - Fuzz Machine
Brother Theotis Taylor
Mulatu Astatke - Mulatu of Etheopia
Hiss Golden Messenger - Forward Children
Scott Hirsch & The Minglers - Live at The Colony
Several 75 Dollar Bill live releases
Several Phish live releases
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Re: Best of 2020--so far

Post by Mundane Mayhem »

WarHenRecords wrote:
Thu Jul 30, 2020 3:25 pm

Mulatu Astatke - Mulatu of Etheopia
Can you tell me more about this? I've flirted with buying the 2017 reissue for a long time but could only find it from Strut Records in the UK and never wanted to pay that much shipping for something I can listen to digitally. I Googled and came up empty on a 2020 reissue...who put this out?

Thanks!
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Re: Best of 2020--so far

Post by WarHenRecords »

Mundane Mayhem wrote:
Thu Jul 30, 2020 11:24 pm
WarHenRecords wrote:
Thu Jul 30, 2020 3:25 pm

Mulatu Astatke - Mulatu of Etheopia
Can you tell me more about this? I've flirted with buying the 2017 reissue for a long time but could only find it from Strut Records in the UK and never wanted to pay that much shipping for something I can listen to digitally. I Googled and came up empty on a 2020 reissue...who put this out?

Thanks!
Strut did a big 3LP reissue earlier this year.
Stereo LP, Mono LP and then an LP of roughs/demos/alt takes.


Got into his music after the 2017 RE was sold out, otherwise would've just bought that because honestly I don't really need all the extras, but whatever.
This record rules and Strut puts out a lot of great stuff, so I just sacked up and bought it on one of the past Bandcamp Fridays.
Likely going to jump on a couple more Strut releases next Friday for Bandcamp day again - Idris Ackamoor and The Pyramids' newest and will prob pre-order the upcoming Sun Ra Arkestra LP as well.

Also not sure why this one isn't on BC, but if you're unfamiliar with these two releases, definitely check them out. They were my intro to Mulatu and I think I love them the most out of everything of his I've heard. Just incredible music.
https://strut.k7store.com/release/10415 ... volume-1-2
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WarHenRecords
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Re: Best of 2020--so far

Post by WarHenRecords »

Also I forgot to add Greyboy Allstars - Como De Allstars to my list.
Really enjoying that one too.
This is my label > http://warhenrecords.bandcamp.com/
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Re: Best of 2020--so far

Post by Mundane Mayhem »

WarHenRecords wrote:
Fri Jul 31, 2020 9:19 am
Mundane Mayhem wrote:
Thu Jul 30, 2020 11:24 pm
WarHenRecords wrote:
Thu Jul 30, 2020 3:25 pm

Mulatu Astatke - Mulatu of Etheopia
Can you tell me more about this? I've flirted with buying the 2017 reissue for a long time but could only find it from Strut Records in the UK and never wanted to pay that much shipping for something I can listen to digitally. I Googled and came up empty on a 2020 reissue...who put this out?

Thanks!
Strut did a big 3LP reissue earlier this year.
Stereo LP, Mono LP and then an LP of roughs/demos/alt takes.


Got into his music after the 2017 RE was sold out, otherwise would've just bought that because honestly I don't really need all the extras, but whatever.
This record rules and Strut puts out a lot of great stuff, so I just sacked up and bought it on one of the past Bandcamp Fridays.
Likely going to jump on a couple more Strut releases next Friday for Bandcamp day again - Idris Ackamoor and The Pyramids' newest and will prob pre-order the upcoming Sun Ra Arkestra LP as well.

Also not sure why this one isn't on BC, but if you're unfamiliar with these two releases, definitely check them out. They were my intro to Mulatu and I think I love them the most out of everything of his I've heard. Just incredible music.
https://strut.k7store.com/release/10415 ... volume-1-2
Thanks for this info. I'll likely pick this up if/when I see it around.

The albums I'd add to the best of the year conversation are Waxahatchee's Saint Cloud and Perfume Genius's Set My Heart on Fire Immediately. "On The Floor" may end up on my shortlist for song of the year.
All it takes is one wicked heart, a pile of money, and a chain of folks just doing their jobs

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Re: Best of 2020--so far

Post by cortez the killer »

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Re: Best of 2020--so far

Post by Clams »

Gonna come down to Kurt Vile, The Boss and Jerry Joseph for me
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Re: Best of 2020--so far

Post by Flea »

Clams wrote:
Tue Dec 08, 2020 5:31 pm
Gonna come down to Kurt Vile, The Boss and Jerry Joseph for me
Sad to say, but I think the only reason The Boss' new work receives suchs kudos is that his output has been pretty crappy beginning with Working On A Dream.
Now it's dark.

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Re: Best of 2020--so far

Post by scotto »

Still sorting through the pile to cull the best, but, surprisingly, a lot of good music for such a shitty year.
Aside from the usual suspects, some favorites so far:
Fontaines D.C., A Hero's Death
The Beths, Jump Rope Gazers
Courtney Barnett, MTV Unplugged

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Re: Best of 2020--so far

Post by Zip City »

Unsurprisingly, my list will look very different than everyone else
And I knew when I woke up Rock N Roll would be here forever

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Re: Best of 2020--so far

Post by Iowan »

1) Sturgill Simpson "Cutting Grass Vol. 1"


2) Lilly Hiatt "Walking Proof"


3) American Aquarium "Lamentations"


4) Drive-By Truckers "The Unraveling"


5) Jaime Wyatt "Neon Cross"


6) Kyle Nix "Lightning On the Mountain"


7) Lydia Loveless "Daughter"


8) Country Westerns "S/T"


9) Arlo McKinley "Die Midwestern"


10) Brennen Leigh "Prairie Love Letter"


HM:
William Elliot Whitmore "I'm With You"
Gregg Hall & The Wrecking Ball "True Story"
Waxahatchee "Saint Cloud"
Jesse Daniel "Rollin' On"
Old 97's "Twelfth"
Margo Price "That's How Rumors Get Started"
Dawes "Good Luck With Whatever"
Corb Lund "Agricultural Tragic"
Mike & The Moonpies "Touch of You: The Lost Songs of Gary Stewart"
John Baumann "Country Shade"
Waylon Payne "Blue Eyes, The Harlot, The Queer, The Pusher, and Me"
Futurebirds "Teamwork"

There was a lot of new music I really liked this year. Sucks I couldn't go see any of it live.
Last edited by Iowan on Wed Dec 09, 2020 1:44 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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Re: Best of 2020--so far

Post by Clams »

Flea wrote:
Tue Dec 08, 2020 8:29 pm
Clams wrote:
Tue Dec 08, 2020 5:31 pm
Gonna come down to Kurt Vile, The Boss and Jerry Joseph for me
Sad to say, but I think the only reason The Boss' new work receives suchs kudos is that his output has been pretty crappy beginning with Working On A Dream.
Agree that the last few have sucked but I think the new one is fantastic. The songs are strong, the themes come from the heart and resonate, and the band (finally stripped down to the core E Streeters) sounds amazing.
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Re: Best of 2020--so far

Post by bovine knievel »

These 2 have received the most listens for me...

Sturgill - Cuttin' Grass
Arlo McKinley - Die Midwestern
“Excited people get on daddy’s nerves.” - M. Cooley

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Re: Best of 2020--so far

Post by cortez the killer »

bovine knievel wrote:
Wed Dec 09, 2020 1:10 pm
These 2 have received the most listens for me...

Sturgill - Cuttin' Grass
Arlo McKinley - Die Midwestern
Bove - You should check this one out. Square in your wheelhouse.
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Nobody Lives Here Anymore Cut Worms
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Re: Best of 2020--so far

Post by bovine knievel »

cortez the killer wrote:
Wed Dec 09, 2020 1:22 pm
bovine knievel wrote:
Wed Dec 09, 2020 1:10 pm
These 2 have received the most listens for me...

Sturgill - Cuttin' Grass
Arlo McKinley - Die Midwestern
Bove - You should check this one out. Square in your wheelhouse.
Image
Nobody Lives Here Anymore Cut Worms
Throwing it in the queue now! Thanks for the recommendation 8-)
“Excited people get on daddy’s nerves.” - M. Cooley

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Re: Best of 2020--so far

Post by Flying Rabbit »

WarHenRecords wrote:
Thu Jul 30, 2020 3:25 pm
Jeff Parker & The New Breed - Suite for Max Brown
Great to see this getting attention on someone else's list.

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Re: Best of 2020--so far

Post by jr29 »

Lilly Hiatt- Walking Proof
Brent Cobb- Keep Em On They Toes
Arlo Mckinley- Die Midwestern

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Re: Best of 2020--so far

Post by Flying Rabbit »

My 2020 list:

1. Phish - Sigma Oasis
2. Moses Boyd - Dark Matter
3. Jason Isbell + 400 Unit - Reunions
4. Shabaka + The Ancestors - We Are Sent Here By History
5. Angel Bat Dawid + Tha Brotherhood - Live
6. Sufjan Stevens - The Ascension
7. Bob Dylan - Rough + Rowdy Ways
8. Nothing - The Great Dismal
9. Kahil El’Zabar - Spriti Groove/America The Beautiful
10. Drive-By Truckers - The Unraveling/The New OK
11. Pearl Jam - Gigaton
12. Thundercat - It Is What It Is
13. Jeff Tweedy - Love is the King
14. Peter CottonTale - CATCH
15. George Kuhar - Songs In The Key Of Q87.81 - Blessings
16. Damien Jurado - What’s New, Tomboy?
17. Ichiko Aoba - Windswept Adan
18. Damu The Fudgemunk / Archie Shepp / Raw Poetic - Ocean Bridges
19. Josh White - What’s Done Is Done
20. Tyler Childers - Long Violent History
21. Sam Gendel - Satin Doll
22. Kassa Overall - I Think I’m Good
23. Lee Ranaldo/Raül Refree - Names of North End Women
24. Yorkson/Thorne/Khan - Navarasa: Nine Emotions
25. Steve Earle + The Dukes - Ghosts of West Virginia
26. Underground Canopy - Bluestaeb + S. Fidelity Present Underground Canopy
27. Neptunian Maximalism - Éons
28. Guided By Voices - Surrender Your Poppy Field / Mirrored Aztec / Styles We Paid For
29. Moor Mother - Circuit City
30. Matthew Shipp - The Piano Equation
31. John Mark McMillan - Peopled With Dreams
32. Sarah Davachi - Cantus, Descant
33. William Prince - Gospel First Nation
34. The Howling Hex - Knuckleball Express
35. Cafe Racer - Shadow Talk
36. Primo! - Sogni
37. Matt Berry - Waving Goodbye
38. Moon Hooch - Life On Other Planets
39. Paul Flaherty - Borrowed From Children
40. Sam Doores - self-titled
41. Josef Van Wissem - Ex Mortis
42. Hayvanlar Alemi - Psychedelia in Times of Turbulence
43. Mountain Goats - Getting Into Knives
44. Sunwatchers - Oh Yeah?
45. Jim White/Marissa Anderson - The Quickening
46. Peter Brötzmann / Maâlem Moukhtar Gania / Hamid Drake - The Catch of a Ghost
47. Bruce Springsteen - Letter to You
48. Matt Berninger - Serpentine Prison
49. Dougie Poole - The Freelancer’s Blues
50. Thurston Moore - By the Fire
51. Kevin Max - Revisiting This Planet
52. SLIFT - UMMON
Last edited by Flying Rabbit on Wed Dec 16, 2020 1:39 am, edited 1 time in total.

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Re: Best of 2020--so far

Post by tinnitus photography »

Zip City wrote:
Tue Dec 08, 2020 9:06 pm
Unsurprisingly, my list will look very different than everyone else
jinx

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Re: Best of 2020--so far

Post by ilockyer »

My top 20 (if I counted properly) in alphabetical order.

Aoife Nessa Frances - Land Of No Junction
Bitch Falcon - Staring At Clocks
Bob Dylan - Rough & Rowdy Ways
Bruce Springsteen - Letter To You
DBT – The Unraveling
Fiona Apple - Fetch The Bolt Cutters
Fontaines DC – A Hero's Death
Futurebirds - Teamwork
Idles - Ultra Mono
Lilly Hiatt – Walking Proof
Margo Price - That's How Rumors Get Started
Matt Berninger – Serpentine Prison
Nadine Shah - Kitchen Sink
Phoebe Bridgers – Punisher
Run The Jewels - RTJ 4
Soccer Mommy – Color Theory
Taylor Swift - Folklore
The Dirty Knobs – Reckless Abandon
The Flaming Lips – American Head
Waxahatchee – Saint Cloud

Reissues of the year - Tom Petty's Wildflowers
Live album of the year - Nick Cave - An Idiots Prayer
Music video of the year - Ian Prowse - Home

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cortez the killer
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Re: Best of 2020--so far

Post by cortez the killer »

2020 Favorites

Albums (listed alphabetically):
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The Bats - Foothills
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Country Westerns – Country Westerns
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Cut Worms – Nobody Lives Here Anymore
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Dogwood Tales – Closest Thing to Heaven
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Drive-By Truckers – The New Ok
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Drive-By Truckers – The Unraveling
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Eyelids – The Accidental Falls
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Fuzz - III
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Guided By Voices – Mirrored Aztec
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Guided By Voices – Styles We Paid For
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Guided By Voices – Surrender Your Poppy Field
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Andy Hampel - Nightshift
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Thurston Moore – By the Fire
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Bob Mould – Blue Hearts
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Joe Pernice - Richard
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Protomartyr – Ultimate Success Today
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Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever – Sideways to New Italy
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Rose City Band - Summerlong
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Bruce Springsteen – Letter to You
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Jeff Tweedy – Love Is the King

Compilations/Reissues:
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Strum & Thrum: The American Jangle Underground 1983 – 1987
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Tom Petty – Wildflowers & All the Rest
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Neil Young Archives Vol. 2 (1972-76)

Discovery/Rediscovery:
Black Sabbath

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Re: Best of 2020--so far

Post by WarHenRecords »

cortez the killer wrote:
Thu Dec 17, 2020 2:42 pm
2020 Favorites

Image
Dogwood Tales – Closest Thing to Heaven
This guy gets it.
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Re: Best of 2020--so far

Post by Sterling Bigmouth »

1. Lilly Hiatt - Walking Proof
2. Drive-By Truckers - The Unraveling/The New OK
3. Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit - Reunions
4. American Aquarium - Lamentations
5. Charley Crockett - Welcome to Hard Times/Field Recordings, Vol. 1
6. Sturgill Simpson - Cuttin’ Grass - Vol. 1 (Butcher Shoppe Sessions)/Vol. 2 (Cowboy Arms Sessions)
7. Tyler Childers - Long Violent History
8. Jason Molina - Eight Gates
9. Margo Price - That’s How Rumors Get Started
10. Bob Dylan - Rough and Rowdy Ways

Honorable mentions to Neil Young, Lydia Loveless, Phoebe Bridgers, Jeff Rosenstock, Colter Wall, Molly Tuttle, Gillian Welch, Futurebirds, Mike and the Moonpies, and Waylon Payne.
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Re: Best of 2020--so far

Post by Clams »

Tier 1 inpo:
Springsteen - Letter to You
Jerry Joseph - Beautiful Madness
Kurt Vile - Speed, Sound, Lonely KV

Tier 2 inpo:
DBT - The Unraveling
DBT - The New OK
Sturgill Simpson - Cuttin Grass I and II
Taylor Swift - folklore
The Three Timers - Sounds of San Antone
Kathleen Edwards - Total Freedom
Country Westerns - s/t
Haim - The Steps
Ray Wylie Hubbard - Co-Starring

Tier 3 inpo:
Emma Swift - Blonde on the Tracks
Elizabeth Cook - Aftermath
Waylon Payne - Blue Eyes, The Harlot, The Queer, The Pusher & Me
Isbell - Reunions
Lily Hiatt - Living Proof
Waxahatchee - St Cloud
Swamp Dogg - Sorry You Couldn't Make It
The Paranoid Style - A Goddam Impossible Way of Living

Best Live Sets inpo:
TP - Wildflowers reissue
Dexateens Live at 40 Watt
DBT - Plan 9 show
DBT - All the homecoming releases
Hiss Golden Messenger - Forward, Children: Fundraiser for Durham Public Schools
Margo Price - At the Ryman
The Stones - Brussels Affair from the Goats Head Soup reissue
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