Top Releases Of 2020

Oli Williams leads the way with his breakdown of his favourite 2020 releases. From there some of the team drop their top releases of 2020. Enjoy and Happy New Year!

Oli Williams

I've not been an album guy much this year, generally just going through my Release Radar each week on Spotify and listening to more by bands as they come.

However it would be remiss of me not to mention a couple of awesome albums:

'Can't Complain' - Kill Lincoln

Well-produced, high energy Ska-punk that doesn't pull any punches. It's probably my album of the year and I'm awaiting a UK tour from these guys.

'Nothing Is True And Everything Is Possible' - Enter Shikari

Totally mis-read parts of this album on review, and on further listens was even more blown away.

Tracks from 2020:

5 Dance Tracks:

'Johnny's On-line' - Camp Kubrick - Classing this as a dance track is a stretch, it's full on 80's synth-pop but is as good as anything released in that decade.

'Driver' - Pendulum - One of two new tracks from the Drum & Bass outfit, and this one was absolute filth. A banger that keeps pounding away

'Live Without Your Love' - Love Regenerator (Mark Broom's Acid Mix) - Calvin Harris decided to re-invent himself as an alter ego, and the tracks he's released are essentially old school Acid House. This is the best of them and the thumping bass drum throughout this track is awesome.

'Detroit 3AM' - David Guetta - I've always hated Guetta, but this year he's put out some really banging house tracks that are dirty as all hell.

'You' - Jay - In a year when the summer was either non-existent or started in March (you decide) this was a great soundtrack that felt like a dance festival anthem.

5 Hip-Hop Tracks:

'No Pressure Intro' - Logic - The first track from the last album (apparently) from Logic. Some awesome samples and lyrically well formed as ever.

'Ju$t' - Run The Jewels Feat Pharrell and Zack de la Rocha - The first time I've completely connected with RTJ, and totally get the hype now. Epically well made track.

'Boss Bitch' - Doja Cat - I'm a total Doja Cat fan, although 'Say So' is probably her poorest track. This is the only track released in 2020, but highly reccommend her album from 2019 which has better tracks.

'Godzilla' - Eminem & Juice Wrld - Proving once and for all that Eminem can absolutely destroy the Mic, his speed beats even Rap God, and Juice Wrld has another Posthumous hit.

'Lupe Back' - Lupe Fiasco & Talib Kweli - Utilising the track 'Doomsday' by Nero, This Rap track is brisk and in your face.

5 Rock Tracks:

'The Adults Are Talking' - The Strokes - I was a huge fan of The Strokes when they came out in 2001 and sparked the Garage Rock copycats. This is the first track in years I've been a fan of by theirs

'T.I.N.A' - Enter Shikari - The third single release off the new album, and comes closest to matching earlier Shikari tracks while embracing the new direction.

'Forget Me Too' - Machine Gun Kelly (feat Halsey) - I wanted so badly to hate MGK's attempt at Pop-punk, but it's just too good. Between this and My Bloody Valentine, he has two incredible rock tracks, and Halsey can belt out pop-punk vocals.

'Mouth Full Of Dirt' - Four Year Strong - Classic FYS, blasting you with the heavier pop-punk sound that made them so famous.

'Quarantine' - Blink182 - Yeah.... it's a Covid song, look it was this or Hypa Hypa by Eskimo Callboy and to be honest you need the video to appreciate that song.

On Repeat all year(Not all 2020)

'Bright Spring Morning' - Suburban Legends

'Guillotine' - Death Grips

'Get Fucked Four Eyes' - Kill Lincoln

'Hollywood' - Art vs Science

'On My Own' - Anamanaguchi feat HANA

'Rocket Fuel' - DJ Shadow feat De La Soul

'Got To Keep On' - The Chemical Brothers

'All Black Everything' - Bloody Beetroots & Gallows

'LALA' - NOBRO

'Go' - Grimes & Blood Diamonds

Aleutia Tolley

1: Paradise Lost - 'Obsidian'

2: CJ Wildheart - 'Siege'

3: King 810 - 'AK Concerto No.47'

4: Deftones - 'Ohms'

5: Lamb of God - 'Lamb of God'

6: Trivium - 'What The Dead Men Say'

7: Static-X - 'Project Regeneration Vol.1'

8: Levellers - 'Peace'

9: Gaz Brookfield - 'Lockdown'

10: Metallica - 'S&M2'

11: The Wildhearts - '30 Year Itch'

12: Mastodon - 'Medium Rarities'

13: Def Leppard - 'Hits Vegas'

14: Five Finger Death Punch - 'F8'

Gordon Rae

1. The Used - 'Heartwork'

2. Boston Manor - 'Glue'

3. Biffy Clyro - 'A Celebration Of Endings'

4. Phoxjaw - 'Royal Swan'

5. Vukovi - 'Fall Better'

6. Silverstein - 'A Beautiful Place To Drown'

7. Enter Shikari - 'Nothing Is True And Everything Is Possible'

8. Bring Me The Horizon - 'Live At The Royal Albert Hall'

9. Ice Nine Kills - 'I Heard They Kill Live'

10. Waterparks - 'Fandom Live In The UK'

11. Stand Atlantic - 'Pink Elephant'

12. Killer Be Killed - 'Reluctant Hero'

13. Milk Teeth - 'Milk Teeth'

14. Bury Tomorrow - 'Cannibal'

15. Deftones - 'Ohms'

16. All Time Low - 'Wake Up Sunshine'

17. Parkway Drive - 'Viva The Underdogs'

18. Creeper - 'Sex, Death & The Infinite Void'

19. Twin Atlantic - 'Power'

20. Darko US - 'Pt. 1 Dethmask'

Michael Braunton

1. South of Salem - 'The Sinner Takes It All'

2. Ginger Wildheart - 'Headzapoppin'

3 . Beyond the Black - 'Horizons'

4 . Ryan Hamilton and the Harlequin Ghosts - 'Nowhere To Go But Everywhere'

5 . The Wildhearts - '30 Year Itch'

6. Volturian - 'Crimson'

7. Less than Jake - 'Silver Linings'

8 . Nightwish - 'HUMAN. :II: NATURE.'

9. Phil Campbell and the Bastard Sons - 'We're The Bastards'

10. Metallica - 'S&M2'

11. Firewind - 'Firewind'

12. Ginger Wildheart - 'Ginger Wildheart's Birthday Bash 2018'

13. British Lion - 'The Burning'

14. Massive Wagons - 'House Of Noise'

15. Lordi - 'Killection'

16. Burning Witches - 'Dance With The Devil'

17. CJ Wildheart - 'Siege'

18. Hollywood Undead - 'New Empire Vol 2'

19. Hearts and Handgrenades - 'Turning To Ashes'

20. Turmion Katilot - 'Global Warning'

Scott Hamilton

Top 5

1. 'The Days Of My Confinement' – Tensheds 2. 'Freedom Machine/Mortal Babies' – Paul Miro 3. 'Weltschmerz' - Fish 4. 'Letter To You' – Bruce Springsteen 5. 'Savage Purge' – Carol Hodge Runners Up (Alphabetical Order) 'Ape Confronts Chaos' – Baby Chaos 'Ghosts Of West Virginia' – Steve Earle 'Ghosts V & VI' – Nine Inch Nails 'Nowhere To Go But Here' – Ryan Hamilton and the Harlequin Ghosts 'Peace' – The Levellers 'Reunions' – Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit 'The Tribunal' – Molitoth 'Tomboy' – Givvi 'Things That Never Were' – The City Kids Live Albums (Alphabetical Order) '30 Year Itch' – The Wildhearts 'Idiot Prayer' – Nick Cave 'Live In Europe' – Holy Moly and The Crackers 'Live In Newcastle' – Frank Turner 'Make Siddowa' – Nick Parker and the False Alarms 'S&M2' – Metallica