Here's more music that I recommend you listen to. I really wore these out this year, being trapped inside, cowering from neighboring idiots potentially spreading a deadly disease.
To be clear: this is NOT a list of stuff released in 2020 (although some of it is). These are albums (and an EP) I found in 2020. Coincidentally, it can all be listened to on Spotify so I will be providing links so you can indulge in my musical insanity as well.
This is a playlist I made for this blog. It contains one song from each album. Don't look at it as a "best of" or anything like that. It's more just to get a taste of what's going on with each album and seeing if anything slaps you in the face like it did for me.
spotify:playlist:2JWBJbVZsOdXEHGUZHVgzN
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/2JWBJbVZsOdXEHGUZHVgzN?si=aB19z_RbSoGTcTaHGmgkqw
Ghost in the Machine by The Police [1981]
genre: new wave, reggae rock
I know, I picked the year where we are all screaming ACAB to start getting into this band. "The Police" is a pretty popular group with a lot of hits under their belt. Ghost in the Machine is probably my favorite album by them, tied with Synchronicity, which is the one that most people cite as the band's best album. They didn't pick a bad one though. Speaking of hits, although nobody talks about Ghost in the Machine, you have probably heard "Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic". You may have also heard "Spirits in the Material World", "Secret Journey", or "Invisible Sun", especially if you were listening to the radio in 1981. I was not, and most people within a 3-year range of my age only know "Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic". Anyway. This album feels a lot more "brooding" than their previous albums, for lack of a better term. "Message in a Bottle", "Next to You", "De Do Do Do, De Da Da Da", and "Don't Stand So Close to Me" are what people are most used to "The Police" sounding like. This is fair since I just listed off four of their most famous songs to date. This is when they were much more reggae rock than new wave. Ghost in the Machine sounds kind of like this transitional period and I really like the result. I personally think that Synchronicity works better as an experience. On the other hand, the "I'm really enjoying this" to "meh" ratio leans heavier toward "I'm really enjoying this" for most of the songs that are on Ghost in the Machine than that of Synchronicity. Neither album is perfect. No album is. I think "Hungry For You" is just okay. I feel like "Demolition Man" is too fucking long for what takes place on that recording. Adversely, there is a lot of cool shit on here that blows the early 80s out of the water, if only mainstream rock from the early 80s that is worth listening to sober. Also, much saxophone is present in the latter half of this album. I'm picky with what I put on shuffle but I am a simple man when it comes to saxophones in rock music.
Synchronicity was on this list too but I decided to keep it one album per artist/group. The 2018 list had a bajillion Dir En Grey recommendations and this one already recommends the entire discography of Bloc Party, featured below. So If you're going to dip your toe into "The Police", I say their last two albums are the best. I have listened to all 5 a few times each now and their last three albums are worth a spin. Despite the existence of "Message in a Bottle", the first two albums are pretty hit-and-miss.
such saxophone:
spotify:album:5jkwdY6jS1Hzi8epr6HW7h
https://open.spotify.com/album/5jkwdY6jS1Hzi8epr6HW7h?si=sXcmov9VTxmfoSW3DvR6cg
Mr. Bungle by Mr. Bungle [1991]
genre: experimental rock, avant-garde metal
Mr. Bungle is the old band that Mike Patton made. He's the nasal cartoon character that sang "Epic". Around that time, this thing came out that sounds nothing like that. I like really weird music. It doesn't have to be that "weird" because that definition is going to be skewed by everyone's personal experience and what they've heard. What's more important than weirdness to me is a tonal variety or complete disregard for genre. Mr. Bungle is one of the prime embodiments of both or at least one of the most popular examples. This was their first album. Since they have been coming out with new stuff this year (the last album came out in the late 90s), I guess now is a good time to check them out??? Personally, I don't think this is the best Mr. Bungle album. Disco Volante and California have more variety and I think they are more interesting to listen to from front-to-back. The debut album is a really good introduction to what Mr. Bungle embodies for those unfamiliar with them who are also in the mood to give them an hour-long chance. It's dirty, foul, explicit, and silly, all on purpose. There are some catchy moments to be sure. Not many pretty ones, which is why I really recommend Disco Volante and California over those if you're in the mood for some weirdo rock shit. But this is the one I hadn't tried until 2020 for whatever reason. This is more "clown rock" than the others. The opening track is called "Quote Unquote", which I added to this year's playlist. If you aren't sure what I mean by "clown rock", you will have a very good idea after listening to "Quote Unquote".
spotify:album:5TzQq2irJPHeHNnh11atPw
https://open.spotify.com/album/5TzQq2irJPHeHNnh11atPw?si=y4BlTXXCQpWp6yX2hHtbCQ
Awake by Dream Theater [1991]
genre: prog rock, prog metal
There are a lot of bands that have a lot of cheesy ass music. Since they have one or a handful of great or "fast" musicians in their band, they get a pass. If you say they are shit, people will make fun of you. And yet, I feel like nobody's talking about Dream Theater anymore despite being founded by Berklee graduates and playing plenty of cheesy dad-friendly bangers. James LaBrie's vocals almost always leave something to be desired and most of the lyrics are corny. This is not exclusive to Awake. However, if one of the main reasons you don't like Dream Theater is because of the vocals and/or lyrics, I recommend giving Awake a shot. This is one of the earlier albums before extreme food poisoning shredded James LaBrie's voice and was also the last album they created with their old keyboardist. A lot of the album has a more melancholy vibe that actually lyrically ties to their real-life relationship with the keyboardist. The last track "Space-Dye Vest" has this real Syd Barret vibe to it by Dream Theater standards and it was the last track that Sherinian had writing credits on. It is melancholy as fuck. There are silly moments for sure but this is probably the angriest and heaviest album from Dream Theater that doesn't try too hard to go there and fucking fail (like Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence, yeah I listen to this band too often). Normally, I don't recommend Dream Theater to too many people. However, people only really seem to talk about the first album if they talk about this band at all in casual conversation. Now that I have finally gotten around to Awake, I truly don't understand why this one is left out of said conversation.
spotify:album:4jP59Kwqvy3n09eUe1Cge7
https://open.spotify.com/album/4jP59Kwqvy3n09eUe1Cge7?si=CTYqc-RYSeSld0Xz5K9BOQ
Intimacy by Bloc Party [2008]
genre: indie rock
This year, I actually started listening to Bloc Party and fuck me, do I like Bloc Party. Intimacy is my favorite if I had to pick one but now that I've listened to all of their studio albums, I can attest that you can't really go wrong. Unless you only like indie rock that sounds like rock music or you hate "fake" music. If that's the case, skip Hymns. Otherwise, close your eyes and pick an album. But if you don't know where to start, I highly recommend Intimacy. This one has a lot of creative ideas in it that put it beyond most indie rock I've heard from around the same time period without going so far from the genre that it becomes something else entirely. Kele Okereke's voice is very dynamic. For a lot of people, I think his voice might take some getting used to because it is very unique and sounds pretty yelly or closed-throat...y? He is one of the few rock vocalists I have heard that makes up for some of that pitchiness with raw emotion. Really, all of Bloc Party's albums showcase this quality that I like about them though. It's worth noting that I usually don't like typical indie rock, so don't be thrown off by the genre. This is worth the risk. Probably. I hope you don't fucking hate it, anyway.
If you listen to all of their stuff and get kinda sad that the discography is over like I did, most of Kele Okereke's solo stuff is also on Spotify. To be honest, a lot of it sounds like Hymns. But more singer-songwritery. Again, don't let that genre label fool you.
have fun joining me in listening to too much Bloc Party:
spotify:album:0ZdR2zjN6X6Wvffw8l87yl
https://open.spotify.com/album/0ZdR2zjN6X6Wvffw8l87yl?si=6ni7o3nkT8-4Zs97BhP1zw
Wolf's Law by The Joy Formidable [2013]
genre: alt-rock
This is really cool indie rock from Wales. I heard of The Joy Formidable forever ago because they were touring with Foo Fighters. To be clear: I don't give a fuck about Foo Fighters but I was hoping for something within that kind of genre that might be more interesting than them. I finally found one. I then saw music videos by them on public access when I lived with my parents. I guess this was before Wolf's Law came out. This is their second album and good lord is it fucking fun. It's a cool album with that harder indie rock flare that never gets unnecessarily wracky. The psychedelic parts are less noisy than on the first album. That might sound bad but the first album had a few parts that were pretty much rock concert song outros without the dad-rock shreddies. I don't know what's up with Wolf's Law conceptually but it all feels like it really goes together well. It can also be conveniently shuffled in with other stuff, though I think the best way to experience this one is front-to-back. The lead singer has a good voice and is a good guitarist. What does that even mean? Go listen for yourself, I have other music to force onto you. I don't have all day to text out the audible qualities of The Joy Formidable.
spotify:album:3fn4TpavfAcdnAg4ZNpA3c
https://open.spotify.com/album/3fn4TpavfAcdnAg4ZNpA3c?si=nYFtjMWTQaehvIdD6ri_SQ
The Mountain by Haken [2013]
genre: prog metal
This is one of those progressive metal bands to come out of the past 15 years that certainly has extended range guitars and slaps different time signatures into pretty much every song. Unlike most of those bands, they aren't screamy. They also aren't super shreddy either. Most prog metal bands are either kind of cheesy in that regard or they are almost diving into psychedelic territory. Haken is delightfully in between, most of their stuff being decidedly melodic. Their biggest hit seems to be a song about uh... conversing with a giant cockroach, I think? That's on The Mountain. I haven't really researched this but there seems to be an overlying story told by the entire album. A lot of recycled motifs are used. Most of them are pretty tasteful. The chorus melody from "Somebody" is arguably used too often. Don't get me wrong, it's a good one but fuck me do they repeat it a lot during that song on its own and then reprise it later in the album. From front to back, the album is a great listen though. Is it their best? I dunno. It's just the one that got me into them and I still really like it. I also listened to two albums after this one; Affinity and their new album coincidentally titled Virus. Don't worry, they released Virus in July and it doesn't sound like they threw it together to be like "hey, COVID lul". That one's supposed to be in the same conceptual universe as Vector, which I haven't listened to yet so yeah; not an album inspired by the deaths of hundreds of thousands of people. Anyway, The Mountain. It feels like listening to the plot of a cool fantasy movie, even though I have no idea what the album's about. For those who aren't a fan of the super heavy shit, it really doesn't feel like a heavy metal album for the most part. It never gets crazy "noisy" and is only occasionally dissonant so if you're not super into metal, you might still like The Mountain.
spotify:album:3RBULTZJ97bvVzZLpxcB0j
https://open.spotify.com/album/3RBULTZJ97bvVzZLpxcB0j?si=PsDrOvs5QriF1dpk4aWBow
To Pimp a Butterfly by Kendrick Lamar [2015]
genre: jazz rap
Remember all that cop stuff and how "unnhghhh 2020 was such a bad year"? Yeah, it was but the world wasn't that much better before the 2016 election. Case in point, Kendrick Lamar's To Pimp a Butterfly is a poetic, conceptual parallel to the terrible shit you heard about in 2020 and it was released in 2015. Even then, the album clearly illustrates that police brutality and systemic racism have been happening for a long time, we just noticed more in 2015, then subsequently not again until 2020. But it's not just a sermon. To Pimp a Butterfly has a lot of really cool jazz influence while still maintaining an accessible hip-hop feel. This is already a pretty acclaimed album, I'm just really late on this one. As such, I won't say a whole lot about it other than "listen to it". It has been a long time since an album hypnotized me and just took my undivided attention, making me gasp, giggle, and squirm at my PC while listening to it. I've listened to a lot of stuff. This one really got me and I still like all the songs on it individually too. Big recommendation, here.
spotify:album:7ycBtnsMtyVbbwTfJwRjSP
https://open.spotify.com/album/7ycBtnsMtyVbbwTfJwRjSP?si=Vu61FBMIQ1SC-5OdrGWCoQ
誰のせい by sajou no hana [2019]
[Dare no Sei roughly translates to "Who's Fault"]
genre: j-pop I guess
Not much to say about Dare no Sei other than "it good". sajou no hana is the band that made the Mob Psycho themes, they just aren't credited as sajou no hana for whatever fucking reason. In any case, if you like Mob Psycho's intro and outro music and wonder why there isn't more of that shit, there is! They have 4 whole songs on Spotify right now! They're all great! But between this EP and the other one, this one has my favorite song on it. The first one. I don't know my Japanese as much as I would like to.
spotify:album:4D2yss0tMnzkWW2IIf7LpF
https://open.spotify.com/album/4D2yss0tMnzkWW2IIf7LpF?si=bPa5aC5HSzaYGgedsnU4WA
3.15.20 by Childish Gambino [2020]
genre: alternative hip-hop, alternative R&B
Childish Gambino has been a big deal for me since because the internet was fairly new. This, in hindsight, makes me feel fucking old. I didn't expect Childish Gambino to come back to that level in terms of albums that hit me that hard and make me think about how I make my own music. 3.15.20 did it. This album barely fits into a genre and that's why I like it. It takes more hip-hop inspiration than anything else I can point a finger at but there is so much more to it than that. Telling people that this is a hip-hop album feels lazy to me. However, I think one thing that a lot of people like about Childish Gambino is that there is a lot of instrumental variety and a lot of "real" instruments. This one has a lot more synths and heavy pitch correction techniques. I fucking love it but people who have a probably unhealthy obsession with Camp over the rest of this guy's discography will probably be a little miffed. Most of the instruments still sound very different from each other across the album's songs and there is a lot of cool guitar sounds throughout the whole album. The guitars just aren't as wracky and present as they were on culdesac, which in my opinion is an upgrade. Most of the lyrics tell a more broad story together about sheer existence rather than having a lot of songs about fucking girls, though there are still one or two of those too. He pulled this off without the album sounding comparatively disingenuine. The only "downside" that's probably universal to most people that will listen to this is the fact that all of the songs are timecodes for when they appear in the album's overall runtime with the exception of "Algorhythm" and "Time". The album is better-experienced front-to-back anyway, it's just going to be harder to show people songs from the album in an attempt to get them into it and slowly form a hivemind of armed soldiers that have similar music tastes to yours. Two of my favorite bands are The GazettE and The Mars Volta (a Japanese metal band and a prog-rock band primarily led by two delightful weirdos with heavy Hispanic influence). I'm used to loving a lot of songs with titles that look like gibberish to the average American so this doesn't bother me. It's just something interesting about the album that you'll have to get used to once you realize you love it too.
spotify:album:600ClrWRsAr7jZ0qjaBLHz
https://open.spotify.com/album/600ClrWRsAr7jZ0qjaBLHz?si=24noEqEWQwODA4xyZYU7TA
Palimpsest by Protest the Hero [2020]
genre: progressive metal
Protest the Hero is one of my favorite bands ever. I have been listening to their music at least a song a week since 2011. I pre-ordered Palimpsest before the virus hit. I also ordered a shirt to match, which is something I rarely do for music releases. All of Protest the Hero's albums usually have some kind of concept or at least an overlying theme to them. Palimpsest has a particularly interesting concept because they went from telling stories about aliens, killing gods, and apocalyptic tales to American history. They're Canadian. It's a very interesting and honestly heart-wrenching portrayal of various American staples from native genocide to women's suffrage. The album ends essentially in present day, making direct jabs to the Trump administration and the people who directly supported it. They even had the balls to use his dumbass campaign slogan as the last song's chorus, making it the only song by them I turn down or completely turn off if I think people near my car can hear it because I don't want to give them the wrong idea. Although there are silly moments and such on the album, Rody Walker, the vocalist, took the concept very seriously while reciting historical stories that weren't directly his own. Honestly, a lot of the songs' stories I don't immediately recognize which might just speak for the album's timely importance. I know, that's giving a lot of credit to a fucking metal album where you can't understand half of what the fucker is saying upon first listen anyway. I genuinely feel that Rody did that good of a job with this hot potato of an album concept though. Musically, Palimpsest is probably the most straightforward and accessible album in terms of overall composition to date. The main thing that separates Palimpsest from their previous works is the consistent use of symphonic instruments. Most symphonic metal sounds cheesy but this album still feels like a metal album, just with really good orchestration mixed in. It really doesn't feel gimmicky at all. It also isn't a huge step out from their previous shit where they have had synthetic orchestral instruments used anyway. One thing that did take me a while to get used to is Rody Walker's voice on this album. His voice took a turn for the worst after they released Pacific Myth a few years prior. Upon writing this new album, Rody had to get with a professional vocal coach to make sure he was healthily up to snuff for what the band was making. You would think that this is the album where they finally take a break from Rody hitting really high notes every fucking 20 seconds but no. The shit he does on this album is even higher. There's even a song where he might as well be rapping in that register. It does sound different and a bit goofy at times but the more I listened to it, the more it honestly became kind of endearing in a way. He mostly uses it to convey a thematic dynamic anyway. He can still hit those notes in falsetto and chooses not to when it fits the song to go full head voice. That said, this album isn't going to be for everyone. I've shown it to one or two people that don't really go for all that screamy mumbo-jumbo and they actually didn't hate this so maybe that means something? It's substantially more melodic than what the average modern prog-metal album sounds like and this one doesn't usually stray too far from 4/4 or 3/4 time signatures. Have fun listening to this with your aunt. Be prepared though; they might just become more fucking metal than you. You little fucking baby.
spotify:album:6eIp2v5MyeY38ul4k0nGnS
https://open.spotify.com/album/6eIp2v5MyeY38ul4k0nGnS?si=PNm8MSd4TPSEumCoi9J_wg
Honorable mentions:
Mares Profundos by Baden Powell [1966, 2008 re-release on Spotify]
Songs From the Big Chair by Tears For Fears [1985]
Fatherland by Kele Okereke [2017]
NINTH by The GazettE [2018]
Tales by Charles Cornell [2019]
