This is batch 5 of the posts that I make for noting some of the great albums which came out in current year of 2020, and usually touch upon 3-4 albums which have been added to my library this year.
Rina Sawayama - SAWAYAMA
Genre: Art-Pop, Experimental-Pop, Synth-Pop
Release Date: April 17, 2020
Oh so another album in an ever-growing trend of 80s dance/synth-pop revival in the current pop scene, well yes but this album has a ton of surprises in store as well. With Clarence Clarity on production, the weird sonic textures for a pop album are thrown at us right from the opening track. The front end of the album borrows quite heavily from alternative/nu-metal ideas (I know! In a pop album), but it works quite nicely and makes me very excited for the future of this sound. The synth-pop revival sounds with amazing and very modern sound is still there from her debut EP. The lyrical material is not very deep but still touches on a variety of topics which is still rare considering pop standards. Last but far from least Rina is in total control of her voice and the emotion she wants to get through, it is super forceful in STFU and Dynasty, while still being extremely tender and vulnerable in Chosen Family and Bad Friend.
Irreversible Entanglements - Who Sent You?
Genre: Jazz, Jazz Fusion
Release Date: March 20, 2020
Moor Mother has done some fantastic work, she a musician, poet and an activist, and she sings and write lyrics for Irreversible Entanglements, surrounded by talented jazz musicians from Chicago's amazing International Anthem recording co. This album is jazz with aggression of a hardcore-punk band and with poignant lyricism of a razor-sharp political rap track. Some of the improvisations on this record almost feel like a noisy drone assault. I cannot say enough good things about this album and I love it to pieces, but it comes with a caveat this is definitely not for everyone, and even seasoned jazz listeners might get turned off. However, if you are looking for something new and refreshing for your ears, this is it.
Intronaut - Fluid Existential Inversions
Genre: Progressive Metal, Post Metal
Release Date: February 28, 2020
There is an age-old question, what happens if Between The Buried and Me spent the entire album cycle to Times of Grace by Neurosis? Well, now we have the answer.
But in all seriousness, this album presents a unique blend of metalcore, progressive metal, and post-metal (or atmospheric sludge if you will) and they nail the execution, this is also an album which has one of the most cohesive flow in 2020. Lyrically the themes explored are largely philosophical bordering on pretentious, but the important thing is they don't cross that line. On a very important note is the production, IT IS NOT OVERDONE TO THE POINT OF STERILITY! That's a great sign and the band manages to escape the modern production tropes plaguing progressive metal currently, even with the clean sound and plethora of sonic textures being used the production manages to sound organic, specifically the drum sound, my god the DRUMMMMMMMS. It has been a while since I have enjoyed a progressive metal album, I am happy!
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