Monday, December 28, 2020

2020 in summary

Well, now. What an all-round shitshow that has been, eh?

We won't go on about the same things everybody else has been on about, only to specify that it has been quite a good year for recorded music, not that we really posted about it because who gives a shit about music blogs and specifically this one any more, but it's brought us the following...

STN's top 50 albums of the year


50 Charmpit - Cause A Stir
49 The Mountain Goats - Getting Into Knives
48 Cable Ties - Far Enough
47 LYR - Call In The Crash Team
46 Alex Chilltown - Eulogies
45 Summer Camp - Romantic Comedy
44 All Things Blue - Get Bit
43 Honey Cutt - Coasting
42 Ghostpoet - I Grow Tired But Dare Not Fall Asleep
41 illuminati hotties - FREE I.H: This Is Not the One You've Been Waiting For
40 Soccer Mommy - Color Theory
39 U.S. Girls - Heavy Light
38 Gwenifer Raymond - Strange Lights Over Garth Mountain
37 The Mountain Goats - Songs For Pierre Chuvin
36 Wife Patrol - Too Prickly For This World
35 Seazoo - Joy
34 Andy Bell - The View From Halfway Down
33 Magana - You Are Not A Morning Person
32 Anna Burch - If You're Dreaming
31 Eve Owen - Don't Let The Ink Dry
30 Elvis Costello - Hey Clockface
29 NNAMDI - Brat
28 Sarah Walk - Another Me
27 TORRES - Silver Tongue
26 Emma Kupa - It Will Come Easier
25 Islet - Eyelet
24 Marlowe - Marlowe 2
23 The Beths - Jump Rope Gazers
22 Keeley Forsyth - Debris
21 Protomartyr - Ultimate Success Today
20 Owen Pallett - Island
19 Shopping - All Or Nothing
18 Bob Mould - Blue Hearts
17 Phoebe Bridgers - Punisher
16 Dana Gavanski - Yesterday Is Gone
15 Other Lives - For Their Love
14 Laura Marling - Song For Our Daughter
13 Sufjan Stevens - The Ascension
12 Run The Jewels - RTJ4
11 Grawl!x - Peeps
10 Harkin - Harkin
9 SAULT - Untitled (Black Is)
8 Adrianne Lenker - songs/instrumentals
7 Chemtrails - The Peculiar Smell Of The Inevitable
6 Baxter Dury - The Night Chancers
5 SAULT - Untitled (Rise)
4 Nadine Shah - Kitchen Sink
3 Bill Callahan - Gold Record
2 Perfume Genius - Set My Heart On Fire Immediately
1 Fiona Apple - Fetch The Bolt Cutters



And here's the selected tracks to represent the year. Now, we know full well that 40 From 40 was intended to cover 1970 to 2009, but it's a brand now - even if one that only we know about and believe in - so there.

40 From 40 Plus: 2020





And for your 2020 deep dive, the rolling Spotify playlist we've been updating all year.

You know, while we're here and making the annual post to keep up appearances, we may as well look ahead to what will either be the great release of a year or even worse, 2021. Obviously this doesn't count surprise quarantine-made drops, and doubtless there'll be another seventeen SAULT double albums to come, but these are either already announced or we know they've been or are about to be recorded and the prospects for each are exciting, so...

21 For '21


Arab Strap (5th March)
Arcade Fire
Arlo Parks (29th January)
Big Thief
Cloud Nothings (26th February)
Courtney Barnett
Dry Cleaning
Fightmilk
The Goon Sax
illuminati hotties
Jane Weaver (5th March)
Lorde
Noname
Parquet Courts
Peaness
Public Service Broadcasting
Spoon
St. Vincent
Still Corners (22nd January)
TORRES
Weyes Blood