The Wire's Releases of the Year 2020

Listen to a selection of tracks from this year's Top 50 Releases Of The Year, as voted for by The Wire 's contributors. You can read more about the artists featured in our chart, as well as those featured in the Top 50 Archive Releases Of The Year,...

Source

# 1

Workaround by Beatrice Dillon

Album • Feb 07 / 2020 Electroacoustic IDM

# 2

Circuit City by Moor Mother

Album • Sep 25 / 2020 Jazz Poetry Free Jazz

# 3

The Cycle by Mourning [A] BLKstar

Album • May 15 / 2020 Neo-Soul Trip Hop

# 4

Rough and Rowdy Ways by Bob Dylan

Album • Jun 19 / 2020 Singer-Songwriter Americana

# 5

Duma by Duma

Album • Aug 07 / 2020 Industrial Post-Industrial Cybergrind

# 6

Suite for Max Brown by Jeff Parker

Album • Jan 24 / 2020 Jazz Fusion

# 7

Fast Edit by Still House Plants

Album • Aug 14 / 2020 Experimental Rock

# 8

A Late Anthology of Early Music, Vol. 1: Ancient to Renaissance by Jennifer Walshe

Album • Feb 21 / 2020 Musique concrète Sound Collage A cappella Data Sonification

# 9

Bakunawa by White Boy Scream

Album • Jun 05 / 2020 Neoclassical Darkwave Sound Collage

# 10

Stolen Car by Carl Stone

Album • Sep 25 / 2020 Plunderphonics Glitch Pop

# 11

God Has Nothing To Do With This Leave Him Out Of It by Backxwash

Album • May 28 / 2020 Industrial Hip Hop Horrorcore

# 12

Shrines by Armand Hammer

Album • Jun 05 / 2020 Abstract Hip Hop East Coast Hip Hop

# 13

Cantus, Descant by Sarah Davachi

Album • Sep 18 / 2020 Drone Ambient

# 14

Blqlyte by Zeroh

Album • Jan 29 / 2020 Experimental Hip Hop Sound Collage Abstract Hip Hop Drumless

# 15

Both by Bill Nace

Album • May 22 / 2020 Drone Noise Free Improvisation

# 16

Lamentations by William Basinski

Album • Nov 13 / 2020 Tape Music Dark Ambient

# 17

Re Imaginos by Albert Bouchard

Album • Nov 06 / 2020 Progressive Rock

# 18

Telyn Rawn by Rhodri Davies

Album • Jul 31 / 2020 Chamber Folk Avant-Folk

# 19

Innocent Country 2 by Quelle Chris + Chris Keys

Album • Apr 24 / 2020 Abstract Hip Hop Jazz Rap Conscious Hip Hop

# 20

The Passion Of by Special Interest

Album • Jun 19 / 2020 Synth Punk Industrial Rock

# 21

Who Sent You? by Irreversible Entanglements

Album • Mar 20 / 2020 Jazz Poetry Avant-Garde Jazz

# 22

Figures by Aksak Maboul

Album • May 22 / 2020 Progressive Pop

# 23

Couldnt Wait to Tell You... by Liv.e

Album • Jul 31 / 2020 Neo-Soul Hypnagogic Pop

# 24

Harbors by Ellen Fullman + Theresa Wong

Album • Aug 14 / 2020 Modern Classical Ambient Spectralism

# 25

Red Summer by ONO

Album • May 01 / 2020 Industrial Experimental Rock

# 26

Shall We Go On Sinning So That Grace May Increase? by The Soft Pink Truth

Album • May 01 / 2020 Ambient Ambient Techno

# 27

Swirling by Sun Ra Arkestra

Album • Oct 30 / 2020 Avant-Garde Jazz

# 28

Fetch The Bolt Cutters by Fiona Apple

Album • Apr 17 / 2020 Art Pop Singer-Songwriter Progressive Pop

# 29

SIGN by Autechre

Album • Oct 16 / 2020 Ambient Electronic IDM

# 30

oviparity by gogoj a.k.a Sheng Jie

Album • Jan 03 / 2020

# 31

Artlessly Falling by Mary Halvorson's Code Girl

Album • Oct 30 / 2020 Avant-Garde Jazz Vocal Jazz

# 32

A Written Testimony by Jay Electronica

Album • Mar 13 / 2020 Conscious Hip Hop Abstract Hip Hop

# 33

Live in Sharjah by PRAED Orchestra!

Album • Nov 23 / 2020

# 34

LIVE by Angel Bat Dawid + Tha Brothahood

Album • Oct 31 / 2020 Spiritual Jazz

# 35

Tara Clerkin Trio by Tara Clerkin Trio

Album • Feb 17 / 2020 Art Pop

# 36

Illusory Expansion by Crazy Doberman

Album • Jul 26 / 2020 Free Improvisation

# 37

skins n slime by Oliver Coates

Album • Oct 16 / 2020 Electroacoustic Modern Classical

# 38

Visions of Bodies Being Burned by clipping.

Album • Oct 23 / 2020 Horrorcore Industrial Hip Hop Experimental Hip Hop

# 39

Silver Ladders by Mary Lattimore

Album • Oct 09 / 2020 Ambient New Age

# 40

NEGRO by Pink Siifu

Album • Apr 29 / 2020 Sound Collage Industrial

# 41

Recognition by Sara Serpa

Album • Jun 05 / 2020 Vocal Jazz Chamber Jazz

# 42

It Is What It Is by Thundercat

Album • Apr 03 / 2020 Psychedelic Soul Neo-Soul Jazz-Funk

# 43

All Thoughts Fly by Anna von Hausswolff

Album • Sep 25 / 2020 Drone Minimalism Ambient

# 44

Éons by Neptunian Maximalism

Album • Jun 26 / 2020 Avant-Garde Jazz Drone Metal

# 45

GANG by Headie One + Fred again..

Album • Apr 03 / 2020 UK Hip Hop Experimental Hip Hop UK Bass

# 46

Low and Beyond by Neil Charles

Album • Jan 01 / 2020 Avant-Garde Jazz

# 47

Auto by Wendy Eisenberg

Album • Oct 16 / 2020 Singer-Songwriter Art Pop Experimental Rock

# 48

Dialectic Soul by Asher Gamedze

Album • Jul 10 / 2020 Spiritual Jazz Cape Jazz

# 49

Fall to Pieces by Tricky

Album • Sep 04 / 2020 Trip Hop

# 50

Tree Time by Sylvia Hallett

Album • Jun 03 / 2020 Drone Electroacoustic Free Improvisation