Top 50 of 2020 - The #1's

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silversurfer19
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Top 50 of 2020 - The #1's

Post by silversurfer19 »

Well, let me say this has been a truly refreshing countdown. In a year which dredged up so much anguish, not to mention the anger, frustration and disgust of political and social injustices around the world, this is quite remarkable and it is nice to know that even during such dark times filled with turmoil, we can find some small moments of joy to savour.

I've been exposed to a lot of music I would normally not touch with a barge pole, and while some has been, lets just say, not for me, there has been a hell of a lot that I have really taken something from. With so much representation of particular artists that I enjoyed, I will be delving into the back catalogues of the likes of Run The Jewels, Yves Tumor and Billie Eilish, while taking the time to go back through a number of acts I have now discovered or had forgotten about.

But back to my favourite topic, however, me and my own number one favourite song of 2020.

My favourite song of this year belongs to the Brighton queer folk punk sextet, Slum Of Legs. The band may have been going since 2013, but other than a few singles (a number of which have been recently reworked), their debut LP was only just released last year. But it was well worth the wait. They have been labelled a Riot Grrrl act, with references a plenty to Bikini Kill, The Raincoats and The Ex, but with so many participants it is hardly surprising that the influences drawn take the band in many different directions, as if they have been stuffed into a blender with the controls jammed.

The opening track of their album, Benetint & Malevolence exhibits all their intricacies in one fascinating explosion of noise, building from the sparce beginnings of strings wrung out of the neck of a violin, before guitars and strained vocals are added to the mix. As the squealing violin lines, knotted rhythms, and slightly askew overlapping harmonies combine, it makes for an absorbing yet truly cathartic listen, simultaneously melodic and dissonant, anthemic and experimental. This is also true lyrically, as such a melancholic message becomes something quite empowering. Just take the forever intense line, 'When you're sad, you're invisible', lingering long after the song has concluded such is the immediacy and power. And yet, while their riffs turn into weapons, the song infuses all that they do with the ethereal qualities of traditional folk music.

Slum of Legs have proven to be a band that can, almost by design, exist both in the light and in the darkness, and with a song like Benetint And Malevolence, this makes for an absorbing listen that you return to over and over in search of how something so abrasive and chaotic can somehow come together in such harmonious fashion. I guess that's why we all love music so much, it's these intriguing quirks of noise that somehow come together in the most fascinating ways. Just like how this countdown has provided us with such relief in a year full to the brim of shit.

Anyway, I hope you have all managed to take at least one song to your heart from my countdown. And if not, there's always the next one...

1. Slum of Legs, 'Benetint & Malevolence'



Here are my Top 50 Songs of 2020:

50.Peel Dream Magazine - Pill
49.Primo - Machine!
48.En Attendant Ana - Flesh Or Blood
47.Deeper - The Knife
46.TV Priest - Runner Up
45.Adrienne Lenker - Anything
44.Jade Hairpins - (Don't Break My) Devotion
43.Waxahatchee - Lilacs
42.Black Country, New Road - Science Fiction
41.X - Alphabetland
40.Bright Eyes - Persona Non Grata
39.Cloud Nothings - Am I Something
38.OSees - Dreary Nonsense
37.Bully - Every Tradition
36.Boyracer - For The Rest Of Yr Life
35.TRAAMS - The Greyhound
34.Bambara - Serafina
33.Destroyer - Crimson Tide
32.Alien Nosejob - Weight Of The World
31.Bob Mould - American Crisis
30.Pozi - The Nightmare
29.Pottery - Texas Drums
28.Sufjan Stevens - The Ascension
27.Sweet Reaper - Car Crash
26.Stuck - Invisible Wall
25.Bad Moves - Night Terrors
24.Thurston Moore - Breath
23.Damaged Bug - Bug America
22.Shell Of A Shell - Away Team
21.Phoebe Bridgers - I Know The End
20.Green/Blue - With That Face
19.Flat Worms - The Aughts
18.Knot - Foam
17.Total Revenge - Surgery
16.Activity - Earth Angel
15.Bdrrm - Happy
14.Public Practice - My Head
13.Melkbelly - LCR
12.Shopping - Initiative
11.The Cool Greenhouse - Cardboard Man
10.Personality Cult - Pressure Point
9.Vintage Crop - The North
8.Metz - The Mirror
7.Protomartyr - Worm In Heaven
6.Brigid Dawson - Ballet Of Apes
5.Coriky - Clean Kill
4.Sweeping Promises - Cross Me Out
3.Crack Cloud - Post Truth
2.Porridge Radio - Sweet
1.Slum Of Legs - Benetint & Malevolence

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numbersix
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Re: Top 50 of 2020 - The #1's

Post by numbersix »

Well that's a fine start to the #1s.

Surf, as always it was a joy to listen to your picks, and often they were the only ones I actually enjoyed in some rounds.

The biggest surpise was all the acts I've never heard of. Some great ones in there. How did you discover them? Was it through Spotify algorithms or blogs or publications or what?

Only one direct crossover, Public Practice's My Head, but loads of crossover acts: Porridge Radio, Sufjan, Thurston, Adrienne Lenker,The Cool Greenhouse, Crack Cloud, etc, A few I really liked and need to go back over my responses to note which ones, but the Brigid Dawson one was a definite standout. Also just got the TV Priest and Sweeping Promises albums so looking forward to diving into them.

Never heard of Slum of Legs before. Listened to that track twice. I liked it. Definitely got a Raincoats vibe in how they brought in folk experimentation into punk. Maybe a dash of post-rock in there too? And the line about loneliness making you feel invisible was moving. I would say, though, that it does feeling like an opening song and perhaps works best in the context of the rest of the album, but the only way to know that is to check it out!

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Re: Top 50 of 2020 - The #1's

Post by Shrykespeare »

Surfer,

It's funny - I don't know if you and I have every had a crossover on any music countdown we've ever done, but I do tend to like a large percentage of you stuff (though I've actually LOVED very little of it). Because of you, I have discovered Nation of Language, and now, thanks to you, Bdrrm and Public Practice.

I love your descriptions, I think, more than anyone else's. Seriously, you should be a music critic. It's really fun to read your stuff, even when you're bashing my own songs. Ahem.

Anyway, you Slum of Legs song was decent. An interesting admixture of styles, to be sure. Not sure it's something I'd get into, but thanks for sharing. And for participating. You rock.
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Re: Top 50 of 2020 - The #1's

Post by JohnErle »

Surfer,

You sure do love your indie bands, don't you? You seem able to wax poetic for days about any UK indie band playing in a basement club in front of 12 people, and when you can consistently find indie bands even Six hasn't heard of, you know you've gone down the rabbit hole. Shryke thinks you should be a music critic, but I think you'd be even better served working in marketing or A&R for some underground indie label.

I admit, I didn't see what all the fuss was about for the vast majority of your first 40 picks, apart from Boyracer, but I saw a significant improvement in your top 10. Your picks from Vintage Crop, Brigid Dawson, Coriky and Crack Cloud were all worth hearing again, and so is your #1.

Using violin in indie rock is nothing new, of course, and its use here reminded me of something I can't quite put my finger on, because the memory is one of the first things to go, so my recall ain't what it used to be. At least, I think it used to be better. This probably isn't the answer, but I'll say it's reminiscent of Siouxsie & The Banshees until it comes to me. So yeah, it's a bit familiar, but in a good way. I might check out the full album, and I hope this band lasts long enough for more people to hear about them.

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Re: Top 50 of 2020 - The #1's

Post by silversurfer19 »

Well it is nice to hear that even if my musical picks were not to everyone's tastes, at least I distracted you from them with some lyrical mumbo jumbo!

I am glad to hear that at least some of my songs resonated, my tastes, as have been exposed here, are fairly limited in comparison to many of you, I guess I like what I like, for better or worse. I do seem to fall in love with bands from the wrong sides of the track, not many of my friends can stand my taste, so I kind of end up diving in with both feet and seeing what I can discover with little outside interference.

The little interference I do get ti discover the artists I like are largely due to my connections with a few small indie record labels, I also have a friend in a band who recommends quite a few really obscure stuff, while some I find from music publications. Very little of the music I hear is via Spotify algorithms, they don't usually provide stuff I'm interested in, but I will say I have also discovered quite a few artists via you guys, so that's a bonus too!

Anyway, I hope that some of you will take my selections you have enjoyed and delve further, just as I will with quite a few of your own picks. If not, it's been fun, and at the very least made these last couple of months in yet another lockdown a little more bearable. Looking forward to the next nine best songs of 2020!

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Re: Top 50 of 2020 - The #1's

Post by JohnErle »

#1

Hawkwind – Orgone Accumulator

Just kidding.

As much as I loved discovering Hawkwind in 2020, and even though Space Ritual is essential listening for anyone with even a passing interest in the history of rock music, my #1 song from 2020 is something Surfer and Tranny are bound to love, considering the complete lack of theatricality and total absence of quirkiness.

Sparks – Stravinsky's Only Hit

The wittiest, Sparkiest song on A Steady Drip, Drip, Drip is a sort of condensed companion piece to The Seduction Of Ingmar Bergman, which I also adore. This song tells a complete story with a beginning, middle, and end that packs more creative storytelling into four minutes than most Hollywood films can manage in two hours, and there are more musical ideas here than most bands can muster in a full album.

Sparks are the reason lyric videos were invented. Ron's brilliant words often fly by at a furious pace, and Russell's falsetto can make them even harder to understand at times, but modern Sparks is always mixed in a way that brings the lyrics to the forefront, as they should be. And when the music rises to level of the lyrics, something magical happens for those of us on The Mael Brothers' wavelength.

Considering rock and pop's never-ending obsession with youth, it's remarkable that Sparks still exist. They've flown under the radar almost since the invention of radar, but they've somehow managed to persevere, and they're arguably better than ever. They caused a splash in the UK glam scene of the mid 70s before becoming influential synth-pop pioneers, but ever since 'Lil Beethoven in 2002 they've existed in an alternate musical universe where the normal rules don't apply, and it's a universe I'm happy to visit as often as possible.



(I don't know why the embed feature won't work for me, so if any admins want to fix that, be my guest.)

1. Sparks - Stravinsky's Only Hit
2. Sparks - Pacific Standard Time
3. Sparks - Lawnmower
4. Sparks - iPhone
5. Sparks - The Existential Threat
6. Sparks - Nothing Travels Faster Than The Speed Of Light
7. Sparks – Left Out In The Cold
8. Sparks – One For The Ages
9. Sparks – Please Don't Fuck Up My World
10. Sparks – Sainthood Is Not In Your Future
11. Steve Earle - It's About Blood
12. Steve Earle - Devil Put The Coal In The Ground
13. Steve Earle - Black Lung
14. Steve Earle - The Mine
15. Steve Earle - Fastest Man Alive
16. Ray LaMontagne - Roll Me Mama, Roll Me
17. Ray LaMontagne - I Was Born To Love You
18. Ray LaMontagne - Summer Clouds
19. Ray LaMontagne - Strong Enough
20. Fleet Foxes - Jara
21. Fleet Foxes - Featherweight
22. Fleet Foxes - Can I Believe You
23. Fleet Foxes - Sunblind
24. AC/DC - Realize
25. AC/DC - Through The Mists Of Time
26. AC/DC - Shot In The Dark
27. My Morning Jacket - Magic Bullet
28. My Morning Jacket - Welcome Home
29. My Morning Jacket - Wasted
30. My Morning Jacket – Still Thinkin'
31. Jason Isbell - It Gets Easier
32. Jason Isbell - Only Children
33. Jason Isbell - St. Peter's Autograph
34. Jason Isbell - Be Afraid
35. Trail Of Dead - Who Haunts The Haunter
36. Trail Of Dead - Something Like This
37. Trail Of Dead - Gone
38. Trail Of Dead - Into The Godless Void
39. Trail Of Dead - Don't Look Down
40. Heartless Bastards - Revolution
41-50. Anything from Space Ritual. Hawkwind Rulz!
Last edited by JohnErle on March 11th, 2021, 1:13 pm, edited 2 times in total.

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Re: Top 50 of 2020 - The #1's

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Take the s off the http and you'll be in business.
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Re: Top 50 of 2020 - The #1's

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transformers2 wrote:
March 11th, 2021, 1:10 pm
Take the s off the http and you'll be in business.
Tried that. It still didn't work.

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Re: Top 50 of 2020 - The #1's

Post by numbersix »

Ah John,

Well, I'm pretty sure at least one of the guys got annoyed by one of your Sparks songs, but forget em. I loved them, even the ones that didn't quite interest me. But as a whole they are kinda brilliant. As you say, they're very clever not just in their lyrics but also in their approach to music, which is quite ambitious and technical without being alienating or pretentious (I'm looking at you, prog rock). Yes, they do lean towards theatricality but so do some great acts like Tom Waits and Super Furry Animals.

I'm glad they didn't become famous because it might have risked upsetting the little world they have created, which is rich and imaginative. funnily, across the tracks I thought about both Grimes and Billie Eilish, two pop artists who have broken out with songs that have rich interiors. And interestingly, both of them work with siblings as well. So maybe the key to Sparks is that childhood bond that has never been broken. I wish my asshole brothers had nurtured my imagination rather that slap me!

As for the #1 song, well it's not my favourite of the songs. I wasn't enjoying the first part at all as it was too OTT but then it changed and shifted and when it returned to that first bit it seemed to click together. Great stuff.

As for the rest of your list, it wasn't bad. I had no interest in Ray Lamontagne, Jason Isbell or AC/DC, but I liked the Trail of the Dead stuff, some of the Steve Earle and Fleet foxes and MMJ stuff. But it was definitely the Sparks that surprised the most. And now I can't wait for Annette to come out, hopefully in Cannes this July (if it happens)

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Re: Top 50 of 2020 - The #1's

Post by silversurfer19 »

John, I'm not going to lie, when it became quite apparent that Sparks were going to fill your top ten slots, I was a little apprehensive and almost wanted to hit skip a couple of times when your selection came up on the countdown. However, I persevered and to be honest, it was nowhere near as bad as I expected.

Indeed, I have been listening to the whole album today in preparation for your no.1. In doing so, I will say the album experience is much better than hearing the odd song here and there. I guess listening in that format allows you to prepare for the over the top theatrics, which are still very present on certain tracks, but are not quite so jarring in comparison to hearing a song in isolation.

I will say there are actually some really decent songs on the album, such as Lawnmower, Sainthood, One For The Ages and Left Out In The Cold, all unique in their own ways and finds the brothers willing to experiment with their styles. There are the songs which were a little too much for me, notably your number 1- Stravinsky, as well as Onomato Pia and Self Effacing, but when you consider I have listened to this album quite a few times now I see that as a success. Definitely the format I will tackle the band in the future.

As for the rest of your list, Steve Earle had his moments but nowhere did he match what you have previously presented of his, can't see the allure of Ray LaMontagne, Jason Isbell and Fleet Foxes were a little too pedestrian for the most part, while AC/DC were as abrasive as ever. MMJ AND Trail were certainly the highlights of your countdown for me, listened to both those records quite a bit both before and since the countdown had begun.

Thanks for your contribution, can't wait until next year when you list the entire back catalogue of Sparks in your top 50, using the documentary soundtrack as your excuse to do this to us again!

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Re: Top 50 of 2020 - The #1's

Post by transformers2 »

Before I get to my #1, I just want take a minute to thank everybody for participating and Shryke for putting this together. Moments like these countdowns and the Fantaverse Awards where we all get to shoot the shit, drop takes and generally engage as a community brings out the best in this place. Getting exposed to a ton of new music is always an adventure that evokes a wide variety of reactions and it's been a blast to read everybody's thoughts and hear some cool shit that wouldn't typically be on my radar. Can't wait till we get to do something like this again.

1.The Weeknd-After Hours

Feeling a piece of music or a movie is going to end up being your favorite of the entire year well before its over is the epitome of irrational, reactionary thinking. There's no way of knowing what the many months ahead hold and yet you're still like "Yep, there's no possible way this piece of art I was exposed to in mid-February can be topped". Well, this silly phenomenon happened to me last year with After Hours-the title track from The Weeknd's-which was released as a single on February 19th ahead of the album's March 20th release. By the time the beat switch occurred at the 2 minute mark, I was in a state of giddy euphoria where my brain went into overdrive churning out over-the-top praise for what Mr. Abel Tesefaye and his longtime friend/producer Carlo "Illangelo" Montagnese accomplished with this song.

To put it as concisely and unfanboy-ish as possible, what makes this song so special to me is the way that it perfectly melds the two eras of the Weeknd's music. It combines the scuzzy, atmospheric R&B with lo-fi garage beats that The Weeknd and Illangelo were making when they were just unknown kids in Toronto putting out their own mixtapes with the infectious pop gloss The Weeknd picked up once he got a record deal. Remarkably, my love of "After Hours" only intensified when I heard in the context of the album-which also unsurprisingly was my clear #1 of 2020. As the penultimate track on a record about waking up from the haze of a night out partying (that "night" was a metaphor for how The Weeknd spent his 20's living) and being horrified by all that went wrong during that time, it serves as a stunning emotional crescendo reflecting on the people he hurt and his longing to repair the damage he caused with his actions. It was really beautiful to see the raw griminess and deceptive vulnerability that initially attracted me to his music effectively come together with the slick, more readily accessible sound that's kept me a fan since he's become a mainstream superstar. It also of course felt nice to feel vindicated to have an insane, premature take that I'd spat out of my big fucking mouth actually pan out for once ;)

RECAP:
50.Don Toliver-Cardigan
49.Allegaeon-Roundabout (Yes cover)
48.Infieri-The Abhorrent Art
47.Bring Me the Horizon-Obey (feat. Yungblud)
46.Juice WRLD-Righteous
45.System of a Down-Genocidal Humanoidz
44.Travis Scott-The Plan
43.Doja Cat-Boss Bitch
42.Lil Baby-The Bigger Picture
41.Idles-Model Village
40.Venom Prison-Usurper of the Throne
39.The Weeknd-In Your Eyes
38.Four Year Strong-Get Out of My Head
37.Miley Cyrus-Prisoner (feat. Dua Lipa)
36.SZA-Hit Different (feat. Ty Dolla $ign)
35.Hayley Williams-Over Yet
34.Rina Sawayama-Who's Gonna Save U Now?
33.Kvelertak-Uglas Hegemoni
32.Victoria Monet-Moment
31.End-The Reach of Resurrection
30.Run the Jewels-The Ground Below
29.Kali Uchis-//Aguradente y limon %%
28.Ariana Grande-My Hair
27.21 Savage-Glock in My Lap
26.Carly Rae Jepsen-Summer Love
25.Mac Miller-I Can See
24.Black Crown Initiate-Invitation
23.Miley Cyrus-Midnight Sky
22.RMR-Dealer
21.The Black Dahlia Murder-The Leather Apron's Scorn
20.Yves Tumor-Kerosene! (feat. Sarah Gordon)
19.Dua Lipa-Levitating
18.SZA-Good Days
17.Tame Impala-Lost in Yesterday
16.Every Time I Die-A Colossal Wreck
15.Kali Uchis-angel
14.Deftones-Urantia
13.Taylor Swift-Seven
12.Run the Jewels-Walking in the Snow (feat. Gangsta Boo)
11.Rina Sawayama-Paradisin'
10.Machine Gun Kelly-Forget Me Too (feat. Halsey)
9.Deftones-Radiant City
8.Kvelertak-Discord
7.Run the Jewels-Out of Sight (feat. 2 Chainz)
6.Dua Lipa-Hallucinate
5.Yves Tumor-Gospel for a New Century
4.The Weeknd-Too Late
3.Bring Me the Horizon-Kingslayer (feat. BABYMETAL)
2.Rina Sawayama-XS
1.The Weeknd-After Hours
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Re: Top 50 of 2020 - The #1's

Post by JohnErle »

silversurfer19 wrote:
March 12th, 2021, 11:43 am
Thanks for your contribution, can't wait until next year when you list the entire back catalogue of Sparks in your top 50, using the documentary soundtrack as your excuse to do this to us again!
:shock: (Note to self: Do exactly as Surfer suggests.)

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Re: Top 50 of 2020 - The #1's

Post by Shrykespeare »

JohnErle wrote:
March 12th, 2021, 1:09 pm
silversurfer19 wrote:
March 12th, 2021, 11:43 am
Thanks for your contribution, can't wait until next year when you list the entire back catalogue of Sparks in your top 50, using the documentary soundtrack as your excuse to do this to us again!
:shock: (Note to self: Do exactly as Surfer suggests.)
(smack)

This is the sound of me facepalming. I wonder if Smash Mouth will release a new album this year...


As for Stravinsky's only hit... well, it was a miss.

I did enjoy some of your stuff, particularly AC/DC. The rest ran the gamut from absurdly amusing to absurdly annoying.
Happy 60th birthday Jet Li! (4/26/23)

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Re: Top 50 of 2020 - The #1's

Post by JohnErle »

Tranny,

I never thought I'd see the day when pop singers would outnumber shouty demons in one of your countdowns. Satan must be like “WTF, Dude?!?” Then again, most pop divas would gladly sell their souls to the devil in order to be famous, so maybe this is all part of your master plan to bring about hell on earth.

As for your #1, it was definitely the most interesting song I've ever heard from him, and the first I've ever wanted to add to a playlist. I was worried when that very simple backbeat kicked in after the two minute mark, but there were enough interesting things happening around it to keep me engaged. I'm still not sold on his singing, which is usually heavily processed, to the point where I can't tell how much of it is natural and how much is autotune.

I plan to check out this RTJ album in full, so if their next album is any good I may live long enough to have a crossover with you yet.

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Re: Top 50 of 2020 - The #1's

Post by JohnErle »

Shrykespeare wrote:
March 12th, 2021, 2:17 pm

(smack)

This is the sound of me facepalming.
Oh, relax. You'd need a top 250 to cover the entire history of Sparks.
I wonder if Smash Mouth will release a new album this year...
Not if I can help it.

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