Taylor’s Top 25 Albums of 2020: #20-16

Editor’s Note: This part 2 of a 5 part series. Part 1 can be found here.

We’re truckin’ along with my top 25 albums of 2020. Up next, we have #20-16. I’m especially excited for this batch because it’s arguably the most diverse collection of artists and sounds in the whole countdown. Without further ado, let’s continue with the rundown of my favorite records of the year.

#20: Dogleg – Melee

I’d argue one of my most listened to genres on a regular basis is emo music. It’s been a while since an Emo or Post-Punk album got so much attention from mainstream critics, but Melee is just that good. The wall of sound Dogleg creates on this record is overwhelming and overpowering. As the band’s first record, Melee is a Post-Hardcore album for the ages. The reason so many critics are giving it so much love comes down to its great sense of melody and urgency. Listening to this album releases every emotion in you, all over the course of 35 minutes.

When you listen to Melee, you’re sort of giving in to your more animalistic, adventurous nature. The band is known for being insane at live shows, something we didn’t get to experience this year due to COVID-19. Make no mistake, when live shows return to our regularly scheduled lives, Dogleg will be among the best live acts to catch post-pandemic.

“I never tried to hurt, I only tried to play/a memory, a thought, for everything you say” – “Wrist”

#19: Perfume Genius – Set My Heart On Fire Immediately

Let’s put it this way: if you hadn’t heard of Mike Hadreas or his project Perfume Genius before 2020, you sure have now. Record after record, Hadreas writes about liberation, acceptance, and most importantly, the truth. Whether that truth is ugly and tattered or worn and wretched, Set My Heart on Fire Immediately is a celebration of all that life throws at us and what we do to survive.

As our lives roll along, we forget some things and hold on to others we probably shouldn’t. All in all, it’s not something to find guilt in or lose sleep over, we’re all trying our best. Through incredible Pop riffs and brooding moments of musicality, Hadreas offers us a look at a world where we aren’t good, bad, or anything in-between. We’re just existing and living, and it’s beautiful.

“Jason, there’s no rush/I know a lot comes up/Letting in some love/Where there always should have been some.” – “Jason”

#18: Dua Lipa – Future Nostalgia

Big names like Ariana Grande and Taylor Swift released albums this year, yet Dua Lip wrote and released the most impressive pop album of 2020. Future Nostalgia doesn’t simply hit its steps and stick to the plan Pop music offers its artists today. Sure, there are catchy hooks and memorable choruses worth belting out a club, but there’s layered depth to Lipa’s approach to music. In only her second album, she already knows exactly what she’s capable of and uses every talent at her disposal to stake her claim in Pop.

Equal parts Disco, Funk, and Modern Pop, there’s not a track on Future Nostalgia that doesn’t work. Every minute of the album is a delight to listen to and soak up. Countless dance tracks culminate in a ballad, “Boys Will Be Boys”, that feels like a victory lap after 10 preceding tracks of near-perfection. Only 24, Dua Lipa could have decades ahead of her to continue making her case as a Popstar. The best part is that it doesn’t take much convincing to accept her as a rising queen in the scene.

“No, I couldn’t live without your touch/No, I could never have too much/I’ll breathe you in forever and ever.” – “Hallucinate”

#17: Sufjan Stevens – The Ascension

Sufjan Stevens is a meme of sorts for male indie artists. He’s beloved by many and ridiculed by some simply for being so impactful for the past 16+ years. On 2015’s Carrie and Lowell, we returned with Stevens to his Folk-Acoustic roots. In The Ascension, we quite literally ascend to a new level of the songwriter’s craft. Not unlike other seminal artists turning to electronic music to explore new realms, Stevens opened our eyes to new levels of his prowess on his 2020 effort.

Some people find Stevens just a bit too subdued to really invest in, but the beauty of his work and especially this record, is the slow-paced build-ups to larger, more impactful moments. A lot of Stevens’ past records feel like they have maybe 2 or 3 too many songs on them, but all 15 tracks of this record are pure bliss.

“And I will bring you life/A new communion/With a paradise that brings the truth of light within.” – Run Away With Me

#16: Squirrel Flower – I Was Born Swimming

In Polyvinyl’s best pickup of the year, Ella Williams records tactful and tremendously understated work as Squirrel Flower. On her 2015 self-released album, hints of a transcendental songwriter shined through the DIY-style production. With a better setup this time around, Williams’ songwriting and craft illuminate the eardrums with a sense of something unfamiliar and unseen in her peers. There’s a shade of some of the 1970s songwriting greats as well as a new wave of Indie-Folk artists entering a crowded field. Squirrel Flower feels poised to do them both justice.

Where on Earth are we going to end up with this female singer-songwriter boom we’re seeing in indie music? Well, ideally it’d lead to us discovering the next round of greats. Unfortunately, it also means some will overshadow others. I hope with all my heart Williams gets her credit and praise. She probably doesn’t need it, but she sure as hell deserves it.

“When the moon hits the ground/When the fog rolls in,/I’ll be feeling fine again.” – “Seasonal Affective Disorder”