[Shaun]

#40 - "The New Abnormal" by The Strokes
After 'Comedown Machine' in - I think? - 2014, I assumed the Strokes were dead and buried after their mixed reception to Angles/First Impressions on Earth, and the trashing that album received. So I was more than pleasantly surprised by The New Abnormal - a wholly new take on the Strokes' sound and a huge shift away from their tendency to try and recreate 'Is This It?', with some samples of The Psychedelic Furs and Generation X.


#39 - "Before Love Came to Kill Us" by Jessie Reyez
Something of an overlooked release; Reyez's debut in 2020 was pretty explosive and full of the production and mania that you might find in a 2000s M.I.A. record. Between the boastful 'DOPE' and the genuinely decent Eminem and 6lack features, there's a lot to make sure that she should be on my radar for a few years to come


#38 - "Leave It Beautiful" by Astrid S
Since placing highly on a Norwegian version of Pop Idol back in 2013, she's been releasing the odd single that's really excited pop fans (especially Scandipop fans, of which I am a proud member)... but no albums. 2020 saw her debut and - at ten tracks long - it's a little bit of a passing breeze rather than anything magnificent, but all ten tracks are very good indeed.


#37 - "Hotspot" by Pet Shop Boys
Considering the duo release an album probably as often as they change their bedsheets, it can be difficult to get excited about a new one... but something about this one struck a chord. Perhaps it was the urgent disco of 'Dreamland' featuring Years & Years (did it come before or after the recording for 'It's a Sin', I wonder?), perhaps it's the touch of industrial rock of 'Will-o-the-Wisp'... perhaps they're just always good.


#36 - "Fake it Flowers" by beabadobee
Aside from being exceptionally beautiful, and dominating Tik Tok for a month or so at the start of the first lockdown with that Powfu collaboration, it's difficult to pinpoint what about her made this record (and the singles building up to it) so engaging. She has a very direct, no-nonsense garage pop vibe that can usually be pretty boring, but there's a knack for writing a hook or melody that keeps me coming back. The Line of Best Fit described her as "a beacon of nostalgia for '90s kids", and that's pretty accurate.


#35 - "Zeros" by Declan McKenna
Probably just makes this list on the basis that 'Daniel, You're Still a Child' was basically a big nod to David Bowie's 'Fame'. Most of the album felt a little too nostalgic and directly-inspired (in the same sense that Adam Lambert can be very annoying since he's a tribute act at best), but the songwriting here was good and lovely.


#34 - "Suddenly" by Caribou
I'd sort of kept Caribou at arms length since I first found him (I think in 2009, with 'Swim') since he's certainly enjoyable but didn't quite grab me. Truth be told, I probably forgot about him until I heard Radio 1 playing 'Never Come Back' on the way to work one day and it just got my foot tapping. Lot of electro and house moments on 'Suddenly' that were a nice distraction from the world being on the cusp of COVID.


#33 - "R.Y.C." by Mura Masa
Pitchfork have a worrying fixation with trashing absolutely anyone who happens to come from the UK, and then someone from the Guardian went all Dezzy and gave it a 1 star whilst savaging the artist without much reference to the album itself, so the reviews for this were somewhat underwhelming... but **** 'em! Maybe there's a reason the Guardian can't keep afloat, and I'll be streaming 'Deal Wiv It' when they inevitably fold in three years time! A lot of different sounds and collaborations here - Clairo, slowthai, Wolf Alice, Georgia - all of which are worth checking out.


#32 - "folklore" by Taylor Swift
Thankfully, the list of publications paid to lie and tell us this was the album of the year was mercifully short. But putting aside my frustrations with modern music press and its fixation with such a bland artist, 'folklore' was a solid album indeed and a growth in songwriting and lyricism from Swift. I just... preferred the other one, and it's still to come in this list and after 'Reputation' the only way was up, really, wasn't it?


#31 - "Good News" by Megan Thee Stallion
Please tell me why I keep thinking she spells her name Meghan? It just seems an unfortunate setup for a Prince Harry punchline and it's something I need to snap out of. 2020 might have ended up with a side-project of Megan's ending up overshadowing her solo material, and debut album, but if you can look past the post-WAP landscape, 'Good News' was full of enough dynamite that made her fascinating as a solo artist. Maybe we'll all tire quickly of her signature "ahhh" in time, but for a debut album there's enough hits to make sure she endures.