PostGenre’s Best of 2020

For nearly everyone, 2020 has been a time of difficulty. A pandemic. Intense political uncertainty. Murder hornets (?). It has not been an easy twelve months. To help cope, many look to the artist to provide an escape from their current circumstances. Fortunately, we are in the midst of a creative quasi-renaissance in which musicians are continually exploring new ideas and avenues of expression. It should also be remembered that often creative genius tends to flourish in the worst of circumstances. This fact suggests there will be an intriguing 2021. But it has also resulted in the issuance of several fascinating albums in 2020. Below is our team’s ten collective favorites of these many excellent recordings. Shutdowns have limited social gatherings and commercial activity but they have not, and cannot, foreclose upon ingenious invention. — Rob Shepherd

10.    Eric Revis, Slipknots Through A Looking Glass (Pyroclastic)

On Slipknots Through A Looking Glass, bassist Eric Revis leads a talented quintet including Bill McHenry (tenor sax), Darius Jones (alto sax), Kris Davis (piano), Chad Taylor (drums, mbira). Justin Faulkner also steps in for Taylor on two tracks. The band is reserved and compelling with a combination of smooth horns and a catchy bass line that sounds fit for a noir film on “Earl & the Three Fifths Compromise.” Although the spacious “House of Leaves” has a very different mood, it’s another strong example of just how cinematic Revis’ compositions can be. The way “House of Leaves” progresses from unsettling minimalism to gorgeous melody could be the perfect score to creepy walk through a mysterious dark forest. The soulful and discordant conversation Revis has with Davis on “Baby Renfro” shows that he has a fantastic groove, but other highlights have less to do with head-nodding rhythms and more to do with improvisational prowess. Both saxophonists blaze through powerful solos as Davis moves between frantic structure and brilliant chaos on “Shutter,” a colossal tune driven by Taylor’s rapid knock. Slipknots Through A Looking Glass is an engrossing album of vibrant rhythms and avant-garde fire. — Brian Kiwanuka

Slipknots Through A Looking Glass is available on Bandcamp or through our Amazon Affiliate Store.

7 (tie).     Pat Metheny, From This Place (Nonesuch)

Still innovating the game, guitarist Pat Metheny spent time playing with his quartet of drummer Antonio Sanchez, bassist Linda May Han Oh, and newcomer Gwylim Simcock on piano. He recorded their work together then had the Hollywood Studio Symphony conducted by Joel McNeely play arrangements to back the quartet. That said, it’s still very much a Pat Metheny album, the compositional ticks are there, which if you’re a sucker for them after all this time, they definitely satisfy here because Metheny is always going to do his thing, even while still innovating the game. — Anthony Dean-Harris

From This Place is available at your nearest music shop or in our Amazon Affiliate Store.

7 (tie). Jennifer Curtis & Tyshawn Sorey, Invisible Ritual (Tundra/New Focus)

Just as Sorey- already one of the preeminent composers of his generation- is not a stereotypical “jazz” percussionist, Curtis is not a conventional violinist, having also played drums in “rock” bands. Both artists’ eclectic tastes pervade Invisible Ritual.  Hues of the blues, rock, classical, jazz, and Celtic, East Asian, and Appalachian music emerge throughout its eight movements. “IV” seemingly marries Eastern European fiddle with Mahavishnu Orchestra like melodies and driving drumbeats before morphing into a frenzy of notes and pizzicato phrases. Throughout the album, one can sense the impression of both Steve Reich and Henry Flynt, among many others.  At times, the duo even escapes expectations on their instruments’ respective timbres. In addition to Sorey putting aside his sticks to sit behind a piano, Curtis produces unexpected but welcome tones with her four strings. For a few moments in “II,” she finds a way to make it sound like she is wielding a panflute from an indigenous group in Latin America, to which she is met with a series of gongs. And on “VII,” manipulation on the vibrancy of strings produces new tones entirely. Overall, Invisible Ritual is an intricate exposition on the universality of sound. — Rob Shepherd

Invisible Ritual is available on Bandcamp or in our Amazon Affiliate Store.

7 (tie).     Nate Wooley, Seven Storey Mountain VI (Pyroclastic)

The latest entry in a song cycle named after monk-philosopher Thomas Merton’s autobiography, Seven Storey Mountain VI is a monumental achievement in the integrated genres of jazz, new music, noise, and rock. At times equally beautiful and unnerving, this 45-minute work comprised of the talents of an ensemble of 14 musicians is a record that fans of any of the above genres should experience at least once. An inspired, important release, and just another album that shows why Nate Wooley is one of America’s greatest gifts to creative, improvised music. — Daniel Palmer

Seven Storey Mountain VI is available on Bandcamp

5 (tie).     Ambrose Akinmusire, on the tender spot of every calloused moment (Blue Note)

on the tender spot of every calloused moment is emotive most of all, exploring musical spaces which are often dark and contemplative but always emotionally moving. At times, it feels like exploring another world, one which ranges from gentle to intense and aggressive and which improvises into a transcendent place where few groups reach. One of the most gifted trumpet players in contemporary jazz, Ambrose Akinmusire explores the range of the instrument, improvising with the fire of free jazz and a unique, blues-oriented sound. Alongside him is a great band including Justin Brown, whose drumming guides the album into tight grooves and abstract, chaotic forms. Exciting and almost meditative, Akinmusire has crafted a masterpiece which is surely his best album yet. — Colin Stanhope

Rob Shepherd’s full review of the album is available here. 

on the tender spot of every calloused moment is available at your nearest music shop or in our Amazon Affiliate Store.

5 (tie).     Okyung Lee, Yeo-Neun (Shelter Press)

Cellist Okkyung Lee, a fixture in the east coast avant-garde scene shines on an album incorporating elements of drone, jazz, experimental, baroque, and many more. “Many more,” because this album unfolds and becomes increasingly more complex upon repeated listenings. The minimalist, personal ambience of the tracks is deceiving, as this is a rich, enlightened record that is equally exciting to both new and long-time fans of more adventurous music. This is also a wonderful introduction to Okkyung Lee’s world. — Daniel Palmer

Read Brian Kiwanuka’s full review of the album here. 

Yeo-Neun is available on Bandcamp or in our Amazon Affiliate Store.

4.     Mary Halvorson’s Code Girl , Artlessly Falling  (Firehouse 12)

Mary Halvorson’s Code Girl is hard to pin down. One could say it’s part avant-garde jazz and part progressive rock, but Halvorson’s compositions and approach to the guitar are so unique that genres feel reductive. Artlessly Falling is Code Girl’s sophomore effort, Halvorson returns with much of the original band (drummer Tomas Fujiwara, bassist Michael Formanek, and vocalist Amirtha Kidambi) with the addition of saxophonist Maria Grand, and Adam O’Farril, who replaces Ambrose Akinmusire. The result is just over an hour of hauntingly beautiful music, with Canterbury Scene legend Robert Wyatt being featured on three tracks. Wyatt has an entrancing weary voice that pairs excellently with the hypnotic guitar patterns and eerie background vocals of “The Lemon Trees”. He shares vocal duties with Kidambi in “Walls And Roses”, and Halvorson offers impressive bursts of distortion in response. The guitarist, as always, is notable for her shredding, but the album is more focused on songcraft as a whole. The beautiful interplay between Grand and O’Farrill on “Last-Minute Smears” puts Halvorson’s impressive harmonic and melodic writing for horns on full display. Artlessly Falling is another success by a musician who is impossible to imitate. — Brian Kiwanuka

Artlessly Falling is available on Bandcamp or in our Amazon Affiliate Store.

3.     Luke Stewart Exposure Quintet, Luke Stewart Exposure Quintet (Astral Spirits)

This Chicago-based quintet spent 2020 creating a record that is firmly steeped in the jazz tradition while simultaneously propelling it light-years forward. The chemistry on this album is not only infectious but also incredibly moving. There is a certain skill set required to achieve what this quintet has achieved, without feeling too academic. Another stellar release from Astral Spirits, one of the most innovative record labels around today. — Daniel Palmer

Check out Daniel’s full review here. 

Luke Stewart Exposure Quintet is available on Bandcamp

2.     Jeff Parker, Suite for Max Brown (International Anthem/ Nonesuch)

As hard as Jeff Parker went in on his first album for International Anthem in 2016, The New Breed, he goes even harder melding more soundscapes in the midst of the groove. It’s all a bout of brilliance that builds to the ten and a half minute closer, “Max Brown,” that is almost impossible not to dance to. All along the way with compatriots like drummer Jamire Willaims, bassist Paul Bryan, Rob Mazurek on piccolo trumpet, his daughter Ruby Parker singing vocals, and numerous others, Parker warps the ear in a feeling that’s hard to let go.— Anthony Dean-Harris

Suite for Max Brown is available on Bandcamp or in our Amazon Affiliate Store.

1.    Tyshawn Sorey- Unfiltered (Self-Release) 

In a year when nobody could go anywhere, the polymathic MacArthur laureate was seemingly everywhere. Because it was released just before the quarantine, Unfiltered might not get the recognition it’s due, but it’s astonishing—more than two hours of now churning, now whispering music. Note the names of the mostly young players here, all of whom might someday point to this recording as the moment that launched their careers. — John Chacona

Unfiltered is available on Bandcamp.

Stay turned as we will be sharing a few writers’ individual lists as well. Feel like our list missed one of your favorites? Agree or disagree with the choices above? Please comment below.