SZA - "Good Days"

On Christmas, SZA dropped "Good Days," her second new song of 2020.

Darkside - "Liberty Bell"

The duo of Nicolas Jaar and Dave Harrington have resurrected their Darkside project with the announcement of a new record and a new song which is out now!

Burial - "Chemz"

Burial ends the year with a jaw-dropping 12 minute track called "Chemz." It's the A-side of an EP due in 2021.

Albums of 2020

Eddie Van Halen once said, "I don't love bands, I love songs." That stuck with me earlier this year after he passed and I thought a lot about the ways I process and discover music. I don't share the same sentiment as Eddie. I do love bands, but I also love songs. However, what I really love are albums. If 2020 gave us anything, it was the gift of time which has felt slow, rushed, and also suspended. However if anything, we certainly had a lot of it and I loved to spend the newfound time listening to albums. Still my favorite format of music, I love sitting down and listening to a work of art. This year I listened to over 100 new albums from 2020 alone, a lot of old Jazz (I listened to Coltrane's entire studio album discography in chronological order back in the early days of the pandemic), and finally understood Yo La Tengo. This year allowed me to push myself and make so many new musical discoveries, but I hope there is something here for everyone. The new standards in jazz from Jyoti, Nubya Garcia, Jeff Parker, and Moses Boyd, the rising hip-hop of Ka, Shabazz Palacs, and Freddie Gibbs, the return to rock of Bully, Gum Country, and Country Westerns, and the overall dominance from our reigning queens Phoebe Bridgers, Haim, Waxahatcee, and of course Fiona's modern day masterpiece. The commitment of sitting down and listening to an album is something I strive to do daily and gives me a comfort like no other. This year, that felt extra special. These are my favorite records from 2020.

Songs of 2020

At this point, there isn't much left to say about 2020 so I won't add more to what we all already know and are feeling, but will say that I am grateful that the year brought so much good music. When so much is wrong and feels hopeless, music is there to comfort and console. I appreciated all of the newfound time to discover more new music than ever this year and hope it also provided support to you as well. Here are 100 of my favorite songs from 2020.

Madlib and Four Tet - "Road of The Lonely Ones"

Madlib is no stranger to collaborations. For his latest output, he's teamed up with IDM icon Four Tet for a new record called Sound Ancestors which will see a release in January 2021.

Sun June - "Bad Girl"

Austin five-piece Sun June have shared another single from their upcoming record, Somewhere.

The Comet is Coming - "Imminent"

Following last year's Trust in The Lifeforce of the Deep Mystery, The Comet is Coming has returned with a new single to close out 2020.

Thom Yorke, Burial, Four Tet - "Her Revolution" / "His Ropes"

The iconic trio of Thom Yorke, Burial, and Four Tet have surprised released two brand new tracks only available on an extremely limited, 100 copies total, 12 inch. Luckily, the two tracks have made it to YouTube.