2020: Halftime Report
Best New Albums and Best Reissues
Time moves in strange ways in 2020, as we all know. Having days, hours, weeks and months expand and contract at will is surely a byproduct of living through a pandemic, and because of this elasticity, it can be harder to assess what's happened over the last six months. Still, it's an interesting exercise, perhaps even a useful one: with the world spinning so fast, it's easy to miss things so hopefully, you'll find a new album or two to explore here.
I know I have missed many records in 2020 already. Listening time has been at a premium in a way it never has been during my adult life, so I've had to prioritize due to work, taste, and mood. (I haven't been able to get through or to Perfume Genius, Jehnny Beth, or Maria McKee due to the latter.) Additionally, this limited listening time has meant that I've spent more time with old favorites than perhaps I would've had otherwise but, then again, there is a lot to explore on the Fiona Apple, Bob Dylan, and Stephen Malkmus albums.
On the other end of the spectrum, it does seem as if the reissue release schedule is slowing down, a situation not helped by the pandemic throwing the physical marketplace into turmoil. Still, there have been some terrific archival work happening, including excavated unreleased albums by Bobby Bare and Neil Young. Additionally, I would offer a blanket recommendation for any compilation from Bob Stanley and Pete Wiggs: they do tremendous work in documenting lost yet vital eras and styles.
Standard disclaimer: albums are arranged in loose order of preference, a ranking that's bound to change by the end of the year. All of the following are records I like enough to spin a second time this year, possibly even more than that.
New Albums
Fiona Apple—Fetch The Bolt Cutters
Bob Dylan—Rough And Rowdy Ways
Stephen Malkmus—Traditional Techniques
Soccer Mommy—Color Theory
Jason Isbell & the 400 Unit—Reunions
Phoebe Bridgers—Punisher
The Strokes—The New Abnormal
Brandy Clark—Your Life Is A Record
Lilly Hiatt—Walking Proof
Waxahatchee—Saint Cloud
HAIM—Women In Music, Pt. III
Mike & The Moonpies—Touch of You: The Lost Songs of Gary Stewart
X—Alphabetland
Kip Moore—Wild World
Whitney Rose—We Still Go To Rodeos
Caroline Rose—Superstar
Ashley McBryde—Never Will
Carly Rae Jepsen—Dedicated Side B
Kelsea Ballerini—Kelsea
Mandy Moore—Silver Landings
Charli XCX—How I’m Feeling Now
Puss N Boots—Sister
Norah Jones—Pick Me Up Off The Floor
John Anderson—Years
Hot Country Knights—The “K” Is Silent
Dua Lipa—Future Nostalgia
Hayley Williams—Petals for Armor
Wade Bowen & Randy Rogers—Hold My Beer, Part 2
…And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead—X: The Godless Void And Other Stories
Lady Gaga—Chromatica
Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever—Sideways To New Italy
Sam Hunt—Southside
Brendan Benson—Dear Life
Jessie Ware—What’s Your Pleasure?
Pam Tillis—Looking for a Feeling
Frances Quinlan—Likewise
Torres—Silver Tongue
Run the Jewels—RTJ4
Pearl Jam—Gigaton
Paul Weller—On Sunset
Kenny Chesney—Here And Now
Luke Haines & Peter Buck—Beat Poetry for Survivalists
Drive-By Truckers—The Unraveling
The Cadillac Three—Country Fuzz
Huey Lewis & The News—Weather
Tim Burgess—I Love the New Sky
Tenille Townes—The Lemonade Stand
Butch Walker—American Love Story
Marcus King—El Dorado
Little Big Town—Nightfall
Willie Nelson—First Rose Of Spring
Corb Lund—Agricultural Tragic
Margo Price—Perfectly Imperfect at the Ryman
M Ward—Migration Stories
Early James—Singing For My Supper
Niall Horan—Heartbreak Weather
Selena Gomez—Rare
Gone West—Canyons
Lukas Nelson & Promise Of The Real—Naked Garden
Ben Watt—Storm Damage
The Claudettes—High Times in the Dark
Watkins Family Hour—Brother Sister
Aoife Nessa Frances—Land of No Junction
The Cadillac Three—Country Fuzz
Carly Pearce—Carly Pearce
Swamp Dogg—Sorry You Couldn’t Make It
Algiers—There Is No Year
Pet Shop Boys—Hotspot
Kesha—High Road
Ingrid Andress—Lady Like
Maddie & Tae—The Way It Feels
Hinds—The Prettiest Curse
Built to Spill—Built To Spill Plays the Songs of Daniel Johnston
Lucinda Williams—Good Souls Better Angels
The Howling Hex—Knuckleball Express
Della Mae—Headlight
Secret Sisters—Saturn Return
Shelby Lynne—Shelby Lynne
Black Lips—Sing in a World That's Falling Apart
Ray LaMontagne—MonoVision
Courtney Barnett—MTV Unplugged: Live In Melbourne
Liam Gallagher—MTV Unplugged
The 1975—Notes on a Conditional Form
Reissues
Bob Stanley & Pete Wiggs Present Occasional Rain [Ace]
Tea & Symphony: The English Baroque Sound 1968-1974 [Ace]
Supergrass—The Strange Ones 1994-2008
Bobby Bare—Great American Saturday Night
Neil Young—Homegrown
Iron City Houserockers—Have A Good Time…But Get Out Alive (40th Anniversary)
Kursaal Flyers—Little Does She Know: The Complete Recordings [RPM]
Bob Stanley & Pete Wiggs Present The Tears Of Technology [Ace]
Cream—Goodbye Tour Live 1968
Mojo Nixon—The Mojo Manifesto: The Original Album Collection
The Everly Brothers—Down In The Bottom: The Country Rock Sessions 1966-1968 [Cherry Red]
Grateful Dead—June 1976
Sam Cooke—The Complete Keen Years 1957-1960
Andrew Gold—Something New: Unreleased Gold
The Shoes—Elektrafied: The Elektra Albums 1979-1982 [Cherry Red]
Johnny Cash—The Complete Mercury Recordings
Stone Crush: Memphis Modern Soul 1977-1987 [Light in the Attic]
The Honeycombs—Have I The Right: The Complete 60s Albums & Singles [RPM]
Game Theory—Across The Barrier Of Sound: PostScript
Scott Walker Meets Jacques Brel [Ace]
Duke Ellington—Money Jungle [Blue Note Tone Poet]
Elton John—Live from Moscow 1979
Kraut! Teil 1 Der Norden [Bear Family]
Def Leppard—The Early Years 79-81
John Lee Hooker—Documenting the Sensation Recordings 1948-1952 [Ace]
The Coasters—Rocks [Bear Family]
Destination Lust—The World Of Love, Sex And Violence: 32 Erotic Fantasies From The Vault [Bear Family]
Destination Health: Doc Feelgood’s Rock Therapy, 30 Bop Pills for Your Recovery [Bear Family]
Iggy Pop—The Bowie Years
Brian Wilson & Van Dyke Parks—Orange Crate Art: 25th Anniversary Edition
Herbie Hancock—The Prisoner [Blue Note Tone Poet]
Laura Branigan—Self Control (Expanded) [Cherry Red]
Grant Green—Nigeria [Blue Note Tone Poet]
The Grateful Dead—Workingman’s Dead: The Angel’s Share
The Stooges—The Stooges (John Cale Mix) [Vinyl Me Please]
David Bowie—ChangesNowBowie
David Bowie—Ouvrez Le Chien (Live in Dallas 95)
The Staple Singers—Come Go With Me: The Stax Collection
Big Joe Turner—The Complete Boss Of The Blues [Bear Family]
Rush—Permanent Waves [40th Anniversary]
Bobby Hatfield—Stay With Me: The Richard Perry Sessions
Hank Williams—Pictures from Life’s Other Side
Prince—Up All Nite With Prince: The One Nite Alone Collection