The best songs of 2020 – Part 1

Music hasn’t been so much a form of therapy for me in 2020 as it may have been in 2019 (Bodys will long be one of the most important songs I know), but instead it’s been a welcome, bitter sweet distraction. Rather than screaming out lyrics that resonated with me and dancing in my bedroom, I’ve just been dancing in my bedroom, imagining the songs played live either by me or the band in the forever raucous concert in my head. This year’s list is dominated by tracks that actually hold little personal relevancy, and I’ve found perhaps surprisingly in a year as tragic as this, the uplifting power of the music itself has significantly grown in importance compared to lyrics.

Perhaps thanks to all the extra time, I’ve listened to more music in 2020 than in any other year. There’s been a handful of big releases that should also take some responsibility for that. Beach Bunny’s pint-sized debut album was more addictive than any other album I’ve heard; Jeff Rosenstock’s surprise NO DREAM played the role that Prince Daddy and the Hyena’s Cosmic Thrill Seekers did last year by fueling my summer with punk; autumn saw the return of Vulfpeck with a handful of brilliant tracks with their fifth album. For the purposes of this list I’ve restricted myself to no more than one track per EP/album so as not to see any one of these artists completely dominate (I’m looking at you, Lili Trifilio).

Ranks 50 – 31

Rank	Song	Artist	Rough genre(s)
50	Louis Cole Sucks	Scary Goldings, Louis Cole	funk, jazz
49	Never Thought	Mel Bryant and the Mercy Makers	emo, rock
48	Deleter	Grouplove	rock
47	Switch	Biig Piig	dance, pop
46	Corpus	Atta Boy	pop, rock
45	Giants	Sure Sure	indie pop
44	Move to San Francisco	Circa Waves	pop
43	Cytoplasm	The Doozers	indie rock
42	Train to Mexico	Toby Sebastian	pop, rock
41	Intoxication from the Jahvmonishi Leaves	Binker & Moses	jazz
40	Not Enough	Benny Sings	indie pop, funk
39	Lift Off	Tom Misch, Yussef Dayes, Rocco Palladino	jazz, funk
38	Je te laisserai des mots	Patrick Watson	soft pop
37	Big Picture	La Battue	indie rock
36	Think About Things	Dadi Feyr	indie pop
35	Repressed	Ewy	folk rock
34	Flame	Sundara Karma	rock, pop
33	Peggy	Orchards	math rock
32	Dynamite	BTS	pop
31	Figment Of My Mind	Bruno Major	soft pop

Ranks 30 – 16

30. Feels Right

by Biig Piig (pop, funk)

It’s been a strange year, not least in terms of Biig Piig releases. I’ve been following the Spanish/Irish songwriter since hearing her laidback Big Fan of the Sesh EP, which made me realise how brilliantly the Spanish language is suited to smoky, lazy hip-hop. She’s been releasing single after single in the two years since, and 2020 saw her release another five tracks at regular intervals. March’s Switch offered a very surprising move towards minimalist, DnB-influenced rock, and the subtle coolness and acute sense of style made it a song I could get behind. The maximalist follow-up, Don’t Turn Around, became a very undeserved hit in my eyes, packed with sickly sweet synths and burdened with a remarkably forgettable hook. I was relieved, then, when Biig Piig’s final single of 2020, Feels Right, turned out to be an even bigger smash. It’s a song motivated by the longing for a party, but Jess Smyth refreshingly decides not to wallow in sadness and instead create her own indie banger. Feels Right bounces it’s way from chorus to chorus unladen with unnecessary synth pads or percussion. It also happens to have a bassline funky enough to give pop-funk untouchables Dua Lipa and Charlie Puth a run for their money. We may not be able to dance at a gig anytime soon, but listening to the party in Feels Right is surely the next best thing.

29. My Queen Is Harriet Tubman

by Sons of Kemet (jazz)

I’ve slowly but surely made my overdue discovery of the much-hyped UK jazz scene this year, and Sons of Kemet led the way when I found this gem of a track in January. The first thing that hits you with Harriet Tubman is the percussion. Having two drummers should be a daunting task for any band, but the Sons have miraculously found a way to have both drummers hammering away whilst not clashing with one another or overwhelming the mix. Harriet Tubman is vibrant with cowbells, cymbal splashes and the occasional irregular blasting of a snare that will have you engaged for the entire six minute run time. The pairing of just a saxophone and tuba also seemed impossible to me (at least at the start of my modern jazz discovery). Where is the harmony? As a pianist, the complete lack of fancy chord extensions or the ‘filling out’ of the sonic space between melody and bassline was at first concerning. The solution, it seems, is to just make both the bass and the melody incredible. Shabaka Hutchings’ sax parps are phenomenally punchy, his melodies finding that golden balance between being virtuosic and singable. Meanwhile, Theon Cross’ bassline no longer simply serves to play the root of a given chord, but becomes a melody in itself, conversing with Hutchings in a wild, proud dance. As a celebration of the power and passion of the too-often-forgotten figure of Harriet Tubman, Sons of Kemet can do no better.

28. What Did You Mean (When You Said Love)

by Theo Katzman (singer-songwriter)

Vulfpecker Theo Katzman’s brilliant album was an early contender for album of the year back in January, and What Did You Mean just about pipped great bops like “Best” and The Death of Us to be my top pick for this list. In stark contrast to the unflinchingly anti-Trump opener, subtlety is the name of the game with What Did You Mean, which centres around a silky, creamy groove that will have fans of Fleetwood Mac purring. Katzman also displays a masterclass in lyric-writing, and his account of unrequited love and tragic miscommunication is nothing short of heartbreaking.

27. Hey

by Oscar the Wild (indie rock)

Aussie indie rockers Oscar the Wild were a chance discovery in late spring, and since then their standout single Hey has been frequently used by me to escape into that concert in my head. Hey feeds off the excitement of a young band, with fun bass breaks and an exhilarating hook and vocal performance. The enormous buildup turns a good song into a great one. I keep imagining Ruby Gazzola demanding the crowd to sit down as the backing builds from almost nothing, before eventually kicking into a final chorus and creating pandemonium with the flick of a hand. That sort of thing will always thrill me, even if it’s only imaginary for now.

26. money machine

by 100 gecs (electronic)

2020 was the year me and many many other music fans discovered the talent in the wacky Missouri electronic duo 100 gecs. The standout single money machine played a big part in fueling the hype. For the uninitiated, money machine is an assault on the ears both lyrically and sonically. The bass is nothing short of atomic, and the heavily-processed classic gecs autotuned vocals is a sound that only the gecs can get away with. That’s not to mention the wonderfully bizarre snippets of acoustic guitar and the closing cataclysmic blasts of noise, the latter of which will leave your housemates worrying for your mental wellbeing when played at high volume. money machine is a beautiful mess.

25. インフェルノ

by Mrs. GREEN APPLE (punk)

For some reason anime theme songs tend to be great songs, and Mrs. GREEN APPLE’s インフェルノ(or Inferno) is an excellent example. A hit last year in Japan when it accompanied the series Fire Force, Inferno is a track full of energy and conviction. The switches to an almost-trap beat in the verse are bizarre but surprisignly well executed, and only serve to highlight the moment Motoki Omori rips into the punk chorus with soaring vocals. The stops are razor sharp, the intricate guitar runs are effortlessly clean, the drumming is furious; Inferno is a pristine piece of punk rock.

24. PJFC

by PYJÆN (jazz)

PYJÆN is another exciting slice of UK jazz, the band albeit producing much more accessible, filled-out grooves than the aforementioned Sons of Kemet and Binker & Moses. The thing that stands out to me most about PJFC is the sense of fun. A bright, three-piece horn section provides an array of earworms to enjoy over a rollicking jazz-funk beat, growing and growing to a euphoric singalong finale. There’s a nice squawking sax solo and then a straightforward return to the head. It’s a simple formula, but it remains incredibly effective, and that final repeat when the trumpet goes up an octave never fails to make me smile.

23. Trouble’s Coming

by Royal Blood (rock, pop)

I was worried when I first hit play on Royal Blood’s big, radio-ready 2020 single Trouble’s Coming. The novelty of a two-man rock band has most definitely worn out now since their memorable debut self-titled album in 2014 and the more ambitious follow-up How Did We Get So Dark?. Just how many more arena-filler bass riffs can Mike Kerr produce? Trouble’s Coming would need something special and new and it delivered surprisingly with a healthy helping of funk and disco. The verse riff is actually just an example of Vulfpeck’s favourite “3 on E” bassline as popularised by Jack Stratton favourites like Hollywood Swinging, Good Times, Another One Bites the Dust and many, many more. An almost ever-present strings pedal takes the track even more firmly back into the 70s. That said, the breathtaking production and trademark Royal Blood grit is very much 2020s, and the result is an exciting, unexpected melding of the decades in a killer rock song.

22. Sun For Someone

by Oscar Jerome (jazz)

English jazz guitarist Oscar Jerome released one of my favourite albums of the year with Breathe Deep in August, and for me the opener Sun For Someone was an easy choice as the standout track. This groove is gorgeously dark, with Jack Polley providing an earthquake-like rumble under Ayo Salawu’s astonishingly tight drumming. The central melody is one of Oscar’s most effortless and his face-scruncher of a guitar solo that closes the track is truly something to behold.

21. Cool Girl

by dodie (soft pop)

I’ve loved London singer-songwriter dodie for a while now, but I’ll be the first to admit that that’s mostly because of her candid social media presence rather than her music. Her voice is incredible, but – with the possible exceptions of early banger In the Middle and the beautiful She – most dodie songs just fall a little flat with me. The announcement of her long-awaited debut album To Build A Problem offered an opportunity for a new musical direction, and she’s taken it. Lead single Cool Girl is without doubt dodie’s best song to date, and in fact her first truly great track. It’s still only three ukulele chords, but Cool Girl is miles away from the sugary, forgettable bedroom covers of her early days. Cool Girl is an enticing slow burn, with a beautiful chorus melody cueing the introduction of a chest-thudding kick drum and eventually rewarding the listener with a glorious, angelic build of backing vocals and strings. At the right time and in the right mood, dodie’s song about not fitting in and hiding from yourself is overwhelmingly beautiful.

20. Falling in a Cool Way

by Louis Cole (jazz, funk-rock)

In contrast, Louis Cole’s Falling in a Cool Way – released as part of a live album from shows recorded last year – is probably the ugliest track of the year. It feels like an uncomfortable exploration of the dark side of Cole’s mind. The chords are nasty, the build is enormous and the lyrics talk of “freaky secrets”, jealous revenge and grocery shopping sabotage. The horns in the chorus are monstrous, and Petter 9000’s bass fills are atrociously ambitious and awe-inspiring, the crowd’s roar after each one adding to the drama. Then there’s Henry Solomon’s bass sax solo, which has to be one of my all time favourite sax solos. Solomon throws away any idea of scales or key signatures, instead drunkenly jumping from note to note, octave to octave, using stops to fool the audience into thinking he’s stopped or by presenting his most ridiculous sequence of honks and squeaks. It sounds objectively terrible, and that’s exactly what makes Falling in a Cool Way so hilariously good.

19. Beautiful Faces

by Declan McKenna (rock)

With his sophomore album Zeros, Declan McKenna become one of the hottest rockstars in the UK, scoring himself a slew of international hits. The pulsating Beautiful Faces was the pick of the bunch for me. McKenna performs with glamorous swagger as he hollers about the daunting world today’s young people face. Everything about the track sounds huge, and nothing more so than the guitar solo which comes out of the blue to provide a sucker punch to the listener just as they thought the song was drawing to a close. “Tonight I’m good staying inside, but I’ll be dancing for sure” remarks McKenna in verse two. With a song as good as this during a pandemic, I’ve often found myself doing the same, again and again.

18. The Birdwatcher

by The Fearless Flyers (funk)

This is cheating, really; for this list I’ve tried to stop myself from including covers. As a result, there’s no mention Sarah Reich’s ecstatic tap dance solo in Scary Pockets’ Juice or Andie’s masterclass in kazoo-playing over Redbone. The Birdwatcher started life in 2013 and happened to be the first Vulfpeck track I ever heard, and this year it was adapted by spinoff instrumental funk group The Fearless Flyers, along with a bunch of other classic Vulfpeck tracks. There’s two reasons I’ve allowed myself to slip The Birdwatcher into number 18: 1) I reckon the new horn parts make it different enough to make it worthy of being considered as a song in its own right and 2) it’s just so darn good. The Fearless Flyers give The Birdwatcher the full-band treatment it has deserved for so long; there’s insane Joe Dart bass fills, a wonderfully written horns break, even coolest-saxophonist-on-the-planet Grace Kelly is in the band! The musicianship on this thing is astounding and the final chorus – with Nate Smith crucially waiting until beat two to hit his cymbals – is peppered with a Dart fill here, a Mark Lettieri fill there, plus a staggeringly busy drum groove underpinning it all. The dawn chorus never sounded so funky.

17. Astronaut

by Future Crib (indie rock)

Writing a verse and chorus with different tempos is not for the faint-hearted songwriter. My mind goes back to some of the most horrific Eurovision songs of the last decade, where the link between the two parts is so awkward and disjointed they may as well just play two different songs. The art of the transition is a fine one. Luckily, Future Crib nailed the transition and more in Astronaut, a wonderfully fun little piece of indie rock. Vocalist Julia Anderson sounds more than comfortable over all the chopping and changing, singing about bouncing around and “gravity flips” over a suitably bouncing funk drum groove. The Nashville rockers stick the landing with this track, too, going full showbiz with a drum solo, excruciatingly long pause and a cacophonous final chorus that I’m sure really tears the house down when seen live. Get Future Crib on the bucket list.

16. Don’t Go Away

by The Beths (indie rock)

I’ve got New Zealanders The Beths to thank for my gradual discovery of the surprisingly vibrant Aussie and NZ rock scene this year. Their debut album Future Me Hates Me became one of my all-time favourites in 2018, although this year’s Jump Rope Gazers didn’t quite match that standard. Don’t Go Away, however, stood head and shoulders above its tracklist neighbours as one of the catchiest tracks of the band’s career so far. Elizabeth Stokes sings of paranoia and loneliness, a powerful match for the band’s trademark sunny guitar rock. Like Astronaut, what the band decide to do with the closing minute is genius. A hard rock bridge complete with Hendrix-esque guitar shredding sends us to a noisy half-time rendition of the chorus that explodes with life, in large part thanks to Ivan Luketina-Johnston’s pounding drums. The transition to full-time is as clean as they come. Don’t Go Away doesn’t make one wrong move, and with a fill from Ivan and Elizabeth each the band end in the flurry of a major chord: thank you very much. Goodnight.

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Part 2 with ranks 15 to 1 will be posted on Friday 25th December.