Top Ten Albums of 2020

2020. What can I say about this year that hasn't already been said? This was a year of uncertainty, division, and conflict. Although it was a year that many people would rather forget, it is one that we must never. But throughout all of the anxiety of COVID-19, the contention of racial disparity, and the divisiveness caused by the election, music endured. In fact, the musicians who created art this year thrived. The lockdown caused by the Coronovirus served as an unlikely inspiration for many artists this year, and the music that followed was nothing short of extraordinary. Needless to say it was a strange year, but the following list represents the music and artists that got me through. Without this music I'm not sure I would have been able to keep my sanity. This is also a special list, because it is my first ever top ten that consists entirely of female musicians, a testament to the women who have paved the way throughout the years and created artistry that is above and beyond their male counterparts. Without further ado, here are my top ten albums of this crazy year.

10. Ungodly Hour - Chloe x Halle

Chloe x Halle released their sophomore album earlier this year in June, right in the middle of the pandemic. During this time many people were mourning the loss of their usual summer activities and the looming absence of Fourth of July festivities. Meanwhile Chloe x Halle were releasing their most ambitious and award-worthy project to date. The two sisters rose to fame a few years back after being heavily noticed by the Queen B herself, Beyoncé, but the world was not ready for these two incredible musicians to take 2020 by storm. This album so perfectly blends the vocal beauty and production of R&B music with the excitement and clarity that is typical of modern pop. Chloe (22) and Halle's (20) voices are superb instruments, and when the two whip out some of their famous harmonies, it is hard to keep your jaw off the floor. Tracks like "Do It" and "Don't Make It Harder On Me" give you the upbeat bangers to get you through 2020 but the real charm of this album is found in the biting R&B of tracks like "Busy Boy" and the lyrical beauty of "Wonder What She Thinks of Me".

Standout Tracks: "Do It", "Busy Boy", "Wonder What She Thinks of Me"

9. Women In Music Part III - HAIM

The Haim sisters have been a soft rock fan favorite since their debut release Days Are Gone in 2013, but never before have they released such an eclectic album of genres that shouldn't work, but so masterfully does. Women In Music Part III (a name the sisters came up with as a tongue in cheek jab at the men who refer to female artists as such) while not always striving for cohesion, blends musical styles and influences in a way that is very exciting to listen to. The album dabbles with late 90's/early 2,000's R&B ("3 AM"), somber electronics ("I Know Alone") and even Fleetwood Mac era folk rock ("Leaning On You"). But what this album does so well above all of that, is that it still very much feels like a classic HAIM album. The sisters have never sounded more in their element despite their musical exploration, and their ability to create new soundscapes that are so in the pocket of their traditional sound is beyond impressive. One would be hard pressed to not find something that piques their interest in this hodgepodge of styles. Expect a very easy listen from this record that still keeps you engaged and guessing what will come next.

Standout Tracks: "I Know Alone", "The Steps", "Man From The Magazine"

8. Rare - Selena Gomez

From Disney Channel sweetheart to perhaps the leading expert in subdued, laid back pop, Selena Gomez hit the ground running January 2020 with her best project yet. This is one of those rare albums (pun intended) that delivers such a standard electropop sound while still managing to deliver something new. It is so easy to write off this record as another boring Selena Gomez project upon first listen, but every listen that follows will grab you with something new. Whether it be the catchy melody of the title track, the electronic mm-mm-mm of smash single "Look At Her Now", the heartbreaking balladry of "Lose You To Love Me", or the SUPERB production on "Vulnerable", you will find something that catches your ear along the way. She knows her strengths and plays to them well, delivering a subdued yet pleasant vocal to highlight the genius of her collaborators' production, but bringing the vocal punch exactly when needed. Although she didn't know it at the time, the blend of electro and bedroom pop of Rare would soon become a perfect soundtrack for the pandemic lockdown. Let loose and dance hard, and for one second forget that the world is crumbling around you and just have some "Fun".

Standout tracks: "Rare", "Dance Again", "Vulnerable"

7. SAWAYAMA - Rina Sawayama

2020 was by far the weirdest year in recent memory, and luckily we have an album that matches that aesthetic. Rina Sawayama, a newcomer in the pop world released her debut album earlier this year named after herself. It cannot be understated how insane this album is. If Women In Music Part III is an eclectic album, SAWAYAMA is like an acid trip where you experience every single genre you've ever heard before at once. The underlying genre for categorizing purposes would probably be classified as pop, but what you hear track to track is so much deeper and confusing. The album opens with the anthemic "Dynasty" fit for a cathedral or a Broadway theater with its dramatics and soaring chorus. We then transition into "XS", a song that sounds like Britney Spears collaborated with Linkin Park and created one of the best pop songs of the year. After this comes "STFU", a hard metal song that has a hook as catchy as a Katy Perry tune. To say the least, the tracks on this album should make absolutely no sense, but wow are they magic. Not to mention Rina's voice is like a chameleon in this record, changing and transforming to fit each different style with ease and owning each genre like she invented it. This album is sure to confuse listeners to no end at first, but the more you listen the less you'll be able to stop.

Standout Tracks: "XS", "Love Me 4 Me", "Tokyo Love Hotel"

6. Chromatica - Lady Gaga

After what seems like a lifetime of Mother Monster dabbling with folk, country and singer-songwriter music (i.e. Joanne, A Star Is Born), we finally have her return to form: an electronic dance pop behemoth. Guaranteed this is the most fun anyone has had listening to Lady Gaga in a very long time. This pop masterpiece serves as Gaga's return to the dance floor with triumphant synths, booming bass and vocals like she hasn't delivered in years. Chromatica is a cinematic experience. From top to bottom this record feels like you're watching a blockbuster movie, segmented into three parts just like the standard structure of a film. Even the promotion for this album was dramatic, from her creation of an entire new planet where inclusion is key and dance is the norm, to her promo for "Rain On Me" where Gaga and featured artist Ariana Grande saw themselves as weather girls for the extra terrestrial inhabitants. But the music is what really fuels this new world. The cheeky "Alice" opens the album with a bang while Lady Gaga compares herself to the famous character "looking for Wonderland". The infamous transition from orchestral interlude "Chromatica II" to "911" feels like a jolt of lightning while the tracks "Sour Candy" and "Sine From Above" feature some more megastars to add to her list of collaborators (Blackpink and Elton John respectively). Don't be too distracted by the flashy lights of this over the top record though, there is still much to be discovered in her profound lyrics once you get underneath the synths and bass. Ultimately Lady Gaga's return is welcomed with open arms and hopefully she'll never let go.

Standout Tracks: "Rain On Me", "Free Woman", "Sine From Above" feat. Elton John

5. Gaslighter - The Chicks

Breakup albums are a dime a dozen, but this year The Chicks (formerly the Dixie Chicks) released one of the most powerful, heartbreaking albums in recent memory. This album reflects the pain and heartache that comes from divorce, something that many experience but few have the insight to put into words so poetically. The trio made up of Natalie Maines, Emily Strayer, and Martie Maguire always knew that they would come back to music, but they needed the inspiration to do it. After a 14 year hiatus, it turns out that inspiration came in the form of a devastating divorce between lead singer Maines and her ex-husband Adrian Pasdar. This album takes you on a journey through the devastating grief of separation ("Everybody Loves You", "Hope It's Something Good"), the anger that follows ("Gaslighter", "Tights On My Boat"), the lust for new love ("Texas Man"), the pain felt for the children caught in the middle ("Julianna Calm Down", "Young Man"), and lastly the healing that will hopefully one day come ("Set Me Free"). The songs on this album are perfectly crafted to tell these agonizing stories while set to music that will make you dance, sing along, and cry within minutes of each other. It was entirely produced by longtime Taylor Swift collaborator and Bleachers frontman Jack Antonoff, who took The Chicks signature country twang and added a modern flare. This album will break your heart, but the impact of its hopefulness for a better future will leave you listening for years to come.

Standout Tracks: "Julianna Calm Down", "Young Man", "Texas Man"

4. Future Nostalgia - Dua Lipa

Dua Lipa came in with a force in 2018 with the release of her smash hit "New Rules" and her win as the Grammy's Best New Artist, but this time around she has solidified herself as one of the main pop girls with her sophomore album Future Nostalgia. Whatever the opposite of a sophomore slump is, this is it. On her second LP, Dua Lipa proves that she has the vocal prowess and songwriting talent to land herself atop the billboard charts multiple weeks in a row. "Don't Start Now" was the smash single that landed her initial chart success back in late 2019, but the tracks to follow proved to be even more impressive. Songs like "Physical", "Levitating" and "Break My Heart" go above and beyond anything she has ever done and are absolutely triumphant pop tunes. All of these songs are dance floor hits that will surely be screamed in every gay club across the world as soon as it is safe to do so. Lipa clearly channels Studio 54 all throughout this album with a heavy disco influence with a modern updo. You can hear "You Should Be Dancing" and "Stayin' Alive", but you can also hear the present influence of what made Dua so popular in the first place. On a surface level, these songs are not deeply profound or meaningful, they are simply perfectly crafted pop songs that are sure to stand the test of time. And in the midst of a global pandemic don't we all want something to listen to that's just gonna make us dance?

Standout Tracks: "Physical", "Levitating", "Hallucinate"

3. Petals for Armor - Hayley Williams

The moment that so many fans and critics alike have been waiting for finally arrived this year when Paramore front woman Hayley Williams dropped her first ever solo project, Petals for Armor. Since the beginning of Paramore, there have been so many people that wished for Hayley to break free from her band and write a solo pop album. However, this is not that project. Not only is Williams still very much a part of Paramore, but this is also far from a pop record. Petals for Armor is the moody alternative culmination of many tumultuous years for the singer as she underwent a messy divorce and a slew of mental health troubles. Williams looks to this album as her way out, her therapy for years of pain and hardship, and the songs that resulted are nothing short of stunning. Much like Chromatica, this album is separated into three parts that were released over time as three separate EP's. Each section takes the listener through one of Williams' stages of grief, the first being rage, then resilience and introspection, then healing. "Simmer", the first single to be released from the record explores Hayley's deep-seated rage regarding her ex-husband (New Found Glory's Chad Gilbert), citing "If my child needed protection from a fucker like that man, I'd sooner gut him, cause nothing cuts like a mother". On second single and first song of part II "Dead Horse", we learn more about Gilbert's affair and how, shockingly, Williams was the other woman. It's not until we get to the third section of the album where we realize that Hayley has healed and is now very happily "Taken". Each section is also sonically unique and takes you through a musical journey as well as a lyrical one. Petals for Armor may not be the project that Paramore fans saw coming, but it is a timeless testimonial that will land with fans and non-fans alike.

Standout Tracks: "Simmer", "Roses/Lotus/Violet/Iris", "Watch Me While I Bloom"

Before we dive into the excellent final two albums of this list, let's look at some great albums that just missed the final ten. Here are my Honorable Mentions:

A Letter To My Younger Self - Quinn XCII

Brightest Blue - Ellie Goulding

Positions - Ariana Grande

Starting Over - Chris Stapleton

2. folklore - Taylor Swift

The world of pop culture stopped dead in its tracks on July 23rd when Taylor Swift took to social media to announce the arrival of her 8th studio album, folklore. This marked the first time in Swift's over a decade long career that the singer did not plan out a perfectly crafted album rollout. Normally Taylor Swift spends a few months dropping singles and Easter eggs to have her fans guessing about what is coming next until the album finally drops. This time around, she gave the world less than 24 hours to process the news of a whole full length album written, recorded and produced entirely in pandemic isolation. But this wasn't the only first for pop music's sweetheart. On folklore, Taylor Swift takes her songwriting to new heights, with indie and folk influences like she's never explored before. Along with an entirely new soundscape, this album sees Swift trying on the shoes of other characters and personalities that do not always reflect her personal life. Each song’s lyrics tell the stories of others from different perspectives. The most notable example of this appears in a trilogy of songs, "cardigan", "august", and "betty", where Taylor writes about the story of a high school love triangle from the perspectives of each person involved. However, in songs like "the last great american dynasty", “invisible string” and “epiphany“ Swift does something extraordinary; she further utilizes perspective shifts and parallels to communicate her narrative. She takes the stories of different figures and then brilliantly shifts the viewpoint part way through to emphasize the parallels in her own experiences. And those are just a few examples of how Taylor utilizes these enthralling literary devices throughout the record. Obviously the world was not prepared for a new album so soon after 2019's Lover, but it especially was not ready for Swift to release the most profound and exciting work of her career thus far.

Standout Tracks: "peace", "illicit affairs", "the last great american dynasty"

1. evermore - Taylor Swift

For the second year in a row Taylor Swift comes in to take the top spot as my number one album of the year. A mere few weeks ago Swift decided to surprise the world again with yet another full length album, evermore, designed to be a sister album to July release folklore. In many ways this album is very similar to folklore in that it was made heavily in isolation with the same collaborators in Aaron Dessner (The National) and long time partner Jack Antonoff. It is also a continuation of the same indie sonics and storytelling narratives found on its sister record. However, the musical styles and influences on this album are fairly distinct and show further experimentation than evermore's sister record. This album, although definitely a prolongation of the woodsy sound explored earlier this year, sounds much more like a Taylor Swift record. The sounds are very much rooted in what Swift does best; catchy hooks and scream-worthy bridges, and diverts to brighter production and melodic instrumentation. To put it simply, the sounds on this album are deeply hopeful. The lyricism is just as good as folklore's and shows even more emotional depth, bringing listeners along Taylor's most heart-wrenching stories. "Champagne problems" tells of an agonizing failed proposal, "tolerate it" discusses a relationship where one person is trying everything to keep the love alive, and "coney island" asks the heartbreaking question "Will you forgive my soul when you're too wise to trust me and too old to care?". This album also explores more outside narratives such as the true-crime inspired "no body, no crime", and money swindler anthem "cowboy like me". It is inevitable that this album will always be discussed in conjunction and comparison to folklore as it has been in this very paragraph, but evermore truly deserves its own discussion. This is Taylor Swifts's very best album. It took what folklore set out to do and perfected it, and in the process Swift created something incredibly diverse, emotional, enthralling and timeless. The pair of records, but especially this one, cement Taylor Swift as one of the most prolific songwriters in history, and evermore's impassioned and hopeful sound will be carried on for generations to come.

Standout Tracks: "marjorie", "gold rush", "tolerate it"