Top 30 Of 2020: A Non-exhaustive Summary Of Some Of The Highlights Of The Lowlight Year
Top 30 Of 2020: A Non-exhaustive Summary Of Some Of The Highlights Of The Lowlight Year
I don't think these are necessarily the best 30 albums of this year, but they're the ones that have I guess endured in my psyche and inspiried revisits more than most others. I was tempted to do a top 50, but after around #26 or so, I found myself confronted with about 50 albums that could've conceivably made it in, most of which I hadn't relistened to enough to rank above the others with confidence.
1.
Psychonaut
- Unfold The God Man
Progressive Post-Metal - Not technically a 2020 album, but the best one I heard that was released this year, original or re-release.
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4.
Regarde Les Hommes Tomber
- Ascension
Post-Black - The French juggernaut goes from strength to strength.
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5.
Pure Reason Revolution
- Eupnea
Progressive Rock - Hugely successful comeback and an effort to rival, if not necessarily surpass, The Dark Third.
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6.
Wills Dissolve
- Echoes
Progressive Death - Outstanding one-song album from this up-and-coming band.
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8.
Wayfarer
- A Romance With Violence
Atmos-Black - An excellent continuation of the sound on World's Blood.
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9.
Ulcerate
- Stare Into Death And Be Still
Progressive Death - Tones down the intensity a tad and delivers something extraordinary; probably the 'best' album I heard this year.
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10.
Sylosis
- Cycle Of Suffering
Thrash/Metalcore - A way off my favourite albums by them, but it's my most played album from this year so it has to make the top 10.
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12.
Katie Gately
- Loom
Neoclassical Darkwave - Dark, atmospheric, almost mechanical at times, a big shift from her previous album and one pulled off impressively well.
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13.
Oranssi Pazuzu
- Mestarin Kynsi
Psychedelic Black/Avant-Garde - Great use of keyboards on another twisted atmospheric effort.
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14.
Lunatic Soul
- Through Shaded Woods
Acoustic - A turn from electronics to folk that sees Mariusz Duda deliver his most enchanting music since Walking On A Flashlight Beat, whether with Lunatic Soul or Riverside.
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15.
Lotus Thief
- Oresteia
Post-Metal - Great vocals and lovely atmosphere to this unique-sounding band.
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16.
Intronaut
- Fluid Existential Inversions
Prog/Post-/Sludge - Not easy to replace a drummer as talented as Danny Walker, but Intronaut show that they can shine without him.
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17.
Pull Down The Sun
- Of Valleys And Mountains
Progressive Post-Metal - A bit heavy on the Gojira and The Ocean influences at times, but sounds fantastic front-to-back.
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18.
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19.
Dark Buddha Rising
- Mathreyata
Dark Ambient/Drone - Carries on nicely from where Inversum left off.
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20.
Globular & Geoglyph
- Messages From The Resonator
Psybient - My introduction to 'psybient' and a very convincing one at that, this is wonderfully dreamy and psychedelic.
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21.
Neptunian Maximalism
- Éons
Drone/Jazz/Avant-Garde - I did not expect a 2-hour avant-garde drone jazz album on this list, but Éons is unlike anything I've heard really.
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22.
Pain Of Salvation
- Panther
Progressive - Another stylistic shift, this time towards electronics, but Accelerator, Wait and Icon are exceptional songs.
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23.
Protest The Hero
- Palimpsest
Progressive - Not my favourite PTH album, but another thoroughly enjoyable addition to their discography, with From The Sky standing out.
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24.
The Ocean
- Phanerozoic II: Mesozoic / Cenozoic
Progressive Post-Metal - I definitely prefer its predecessor, but Triassic and Jurassic make for a killer opening duo of tracks.
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25.
Tombs
- Monarchy Of Shadows
Black - A shockingly engaging EP from a band I'm usually more reserved about, the riffs here rip hard.
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26.
Wake
- Confluence
Blackened Death - Hard to pick between this and Devouring Ruin, but the further stylistic exploration into post-rock and other areas slightly edges Confluence ahead.
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27.
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28.
I Break Horses
- Warnings
Synth-Pop - Compelling melancholic vibes and film-inspired nostalgia.
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29.
Dwaal
- Gospel Of The Vile
Sludge Doom - Adds some post-metal and slightly more exploration to the punishing sound of Eremit's Carrier Of Weight to create something arguably even better.
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Disclaimer: All top lists are unofficial and do not represent the point of view of the MS Staff.
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