Taylor’s Top 25 Albums of 2020 - #5-1

Editor’s Note: This part 5 of a 5 part series. Part 1 can be found here. Part 2 can be found here. Part 3 can be found here. Part 4 can be found here.

We’re finally at the conclusion of my top 25 albums of 2020. I love each of these albums just about as much as the others. I ranked this particular five based on how often I revisited the album, how it stuck with me, and the overall subjective musical quality I attribute to the record. We’ve waited to get to the top of the list, and we’re finally here! Here are my top five albums of 2020.

#5: Phoebe Bridgers – Punisher

I fell in love with Phoebe Bridgers while she toured as an opener for Julien Baker a few years back. I got the chance to see her twice and I was astounded by her voice and keen sense for heartfelt, often crushing, songwriting. Her second solo album, Punisher, is a great follow-up to Stranger in the Alps. Unlike projects with Connor Oberst and boygenius, Bridgers uses this record to show her talent for mixing in thematic lyrics with contrasting sounds and melodies. The record is dynamic in its highs and lows in terms of tone and timbre.

Tracks like “Chinese Satellite” and “Graceland Too” show that Bridgers isn’t bothered by relying on keen production to enhance her work. “Halloween” and “ICU” don’t even seem like they’re meant to be on the same album. Yet, in the scheme of the album, they come exactly where they’re supposed to. The album’s ending, “I Know The End” is her best song yet, ripe with cathartic screams and a very personal perspective on touring, becoming famous, and still struggling to feel a part of anything.

“So we spent what was left of our serotonin/To chew on our cheeks and stare at the moon” – “Graceland Too”

#4: Adrianne Lenker – songs

Adrianne Lenker is on one of the most historic tears any songwriter has had in decades. Her work with the band Big Thief is stellar, and her solo work offers a unique side of her we see come out a bit more bluntly. On songs, we get a lot of the grace and musicianship we hear with Big Thief but in a much more delicate manner. There are a lot of moments on songs that feel almost like a Pop song if not for the Folk stylings Lenker conquers time and time again.

The accompanying two-track album, instrumentals, is 37 minutes long. The oddity that is the non-vocal side of this project really makes you appreciate how much thought is put into the music Lenker plays. She’s an incredible guitarist, an instrument she plays with the same preeminence we find in her songwriting. She leans heavily on midwest imagery in her music, something I appreciate as a midwestern myself. She also plays her music with the sort of direction we hope our lives head in: forward, growing greater and greater with each passing minute. It’s a gorgeous album that brought me much peace this year.

“Honey in your mouth when you gave me my name/Tears in your eyes when you pull it likе a chain.” – “Half Return”

#3: Pinegrove – Marigold

If 2016’s Cardinal is the raw energy of youth, and 2018’s Skylight is the reluctance, then Marigold is our optimistic side. Pinegrove’s Evan Stephens Hall is probably my favorite songwriter after Adrianne Lenker, but it’s worth noting I listened to Marigold more than any other album in 2020. Spotify was quick to remind me that I spent weeks of time listening to this record over and over again. I’m a huge Pinegrove fan, but this album was the nature-minded retrospective I hoped the band would record 5 years from now. It’s an added bonus to get it so soon in their young career.

The best moments on Marigold are riddled with Pinegrove tropes: lyrics about birds and flowers, the admittance of hypocritic behaviors and shortcomings, and plenty of self-doubts. I love every track on Marigold, but the two albums I’m ranking higher are simply more monumental in terms of individual albums and the artists’ careers. That said, I’ll likely still see Marigold rank highly in my Spotify Wrapped report next year as well. It’s one that certainly stays with me in a way no other album in 2020 did.

“So it would be good to talk/For my sanity/Now do what you feel like you gotta do/But be good to me” – “The Alarmist”

#2: Fiona Apple – Fetch the Bolt Cutters

Fetch the Bolt Cutters is one of the finest returns to music after a relatively long hiatus we’ve seen this millennium. Fiona Apple’s fifth album proves that even the all-time greats can improve their craft. Apple’s 2012 album “The Idler Wheel…” was high on my Best Albums of the Decade list because I love that she pushed herself to grow in scope and substance in her songwriting. If I thought that album was a leap forward then Fetch the Bolt Cutters is a leap for all music being written and recorded in the present moment.

Apple’s lyrics are a barrage of feminism, humanity, and reflections on love for the self and others. “Cosmonauts” and “I Want You To Love Me” are the shades of Fiona Apple we know and love. Other tracks like “Fetch The Bolt Cutters” and “For Her” feel like new horizons for the artist. Her incredible voice and talent behind the piano no longer limit her ability to expose us to the congenital feelings and thoughts we know exist but can’t quite access. A gift to all forms of art, Fetch the Bolt Cutters leaves me praying we don’t need to wait another 8 years for more music from Fiona Apple.

“And you strike me, I’ve been exact/But you know that you never really go to the mat/You tie everything all pretty in the second act/When you know that it didn’t go exactly like that” – “For Her”

#1: Waxahatchee – Saint Cloud

In a time where Indie Rock would get mainstream radio and cultural exposure, many would hear what I’m hearing on Saint Cloud. I’m a longtime fan of Katie Crutchfield’s work, and she made a high ranking on my Best Album of the Decade list last year with 2013’s Cerulean Salt. I mean this wholeheartedly and honestly: Saint Cloud is one of the best singer-songwriter albums we’ve gotten in years. The song structures alone are something we’d expect from some of music’s best. The lyrics are poignant and captivating, without distracting from the entire piece of music. All of it demands Crutchfield be included with the best musicians in the game right now.

There are so many tracks on Saint Cloud that could be considered the album’s strongest song. In reality, I’d argue 10/11 tracks on this record are the same quality of excellence. Standouts personally include “Lilacs” and “War”, but “Can’t Do Much” is my vote for the best love song written in the past 20 years. It’s upbeat and realistic without dreaming up a relationship that’s unbelievable. It’s just pure love and, most importantly, a crucial story to tell about a relationship’s ebbs and flows. Without the downs, there can’t be ups, and every bit of it is beautiful.

“And if my bones are made of delicate sugar/ I won’t end up anywhere good without you/I need your love too” – “Lilacs

I fear Crutchfield won’t get the credit she deserves for this record, but here’s me doing my part to convince you to listen to this album. I hope you enjoyed this year’s countdown of my 25 best albums of 2020. What made your top 10? Let me know in the comments!