My Favorite Albums Of 2020

Let's face it: 2020 sucked and there is no sugarcoating that fact. With no tours and a lot of musicians putting recording and album releases on hold, there was not a whole lot to get excited about regarding Glam music in 2020. That said, it seems like 2020 will shake out as the biggest year for straight Metal releases... ever. (What is more Metal than being locked down because of a global pandemic?)

2020 did produce many strong releases, including a surprise from a mega band. So here is a list of my faves from the year past and may 2021 be better. It has to be, right? RIGHT?!?!

AC/DC - Power Up

Obviously this is going to be on every "best of" rock list for 2020. A nice pandemic surprise that seemed to collectively cheer up the rock world. With great social media teases, a live launch on YouTube and official videos, AC/DC did their best to make us rock. That classic sound abounds on Power Up. With AC/DC, you know exactly what you are going to get - and we got it.

Corey Taylor - CMFT

The legend goes that Taylor has been working on solo tracks for, like, forever. Thankfully, Taylor finally released a solo project. The singer, known for his work as frontman of mega acts Slipknot and Stone Sour, has a pretty big range. I love Slipknot with their heavy drums and aggressive lyrics. My husband loves Stone Sour for their more melodic side. I enjoy Corey solo because tracks on CMFT remind me of party tunes. CMFT came out in early October. I think "Black Eyes Blue" is the best rock single of the year.

L.A. Guns - Renegades

Steve Riley's version of L.A. Guns released Renegades just before Thanksgiving. I prefer the Tracii Guns version of the band but Renegades is a strong effort and "Crawl" is a great tune that grew on me over time. The album is basic Sunset Strip rock - and that is glorious.

Richie Kotzen - 50 For 50

Everyone knows I love Richie Kotzen. He is a guitar master and an absolutely prolific songwriter. He seems to churn new tracks constantly. Kotzen released 50 For 50 to celebrate his 50th birthday. Clocking in at just under 3 and a half hours, you can pop this album on while settling in to work in the morning and not have to change artists until lunchtime. I really dig the track "As You Are."

Metallica - S&M2

Metallica teamed up with the San Francisco Symphony for another go 'round of orchestral adaptations and pageantry. I talked about the album and film when both came out over the summer. It was pretty divisive here, with most saying they do not care for orchestral version of Metal songs. I love them -- and always have. Pretty much all the classics are here like "One" and "Wherever I May Roam." There are some other tracks that satisfy like "The Day That Never Comes" and "The Iron Foundry, Opus 19" by Russian composer Alexander Mosolov. This is one of the albums I was most excited about in 2020 - and the corresponding film is great. If you have time to watch the film of the live performance, do it. If you prefer to just listen to your music, then enjoy the tracks available below.

So there you have it: my faves of 2020. Do any of our favorites overlap? Tell me your picks in the comments section. I can't wait to hear what you've loved - and if you have an album you hated - share that too!

Comments

[Snoot]

AC/DC is on my list too. Thundermother and D-A-D frontman Jesper Binzer both released great rock albums in 2020.

[Bkallday]

Shocking to hear Allyson likes Slipknot. Very good band! AC/DC also makes my top 5 for 2020. Also agree that Renegades was a very pleasant surprise. My top 5:

1. Testament-Titans of Creation
2. AC/DC-Power Up
3. Warbringer-Weapons of Tomorrow
4. Avatar-Hunter Gatherer
5. Benediction-Scriptures

2020 was a sucky yr for life but a great year for metal, indeed.

[Allyson]

Yes, I'm a big Slipknot fan - I love their live show! - Allyson

[Basileus]

I didn’t listen to a ton of new releases this year, so I’ll cheat a bit and include a couple of albums not released this year that I heard for the first time this year:

- ACDC, Power Up
- Rolling Stones, Goats Head Soup Deluxe Edition
- Peter Gabriel, Growing Up Live
- Cult of Luna, A Dawn to Fear
- Flying Lotus, Flamagra
- Thundercat, It Is What It Is
- Toto, 40 Tours Around the Sun
- Kamasi Washington, The Epic

[Shawn]

2020 what a year,,,,,,,,,,, EVH, Leslie West and too many others to name........

Music - Found myself lost in the past to get me to the future but recently discovered some things worth listening to...

Thundermother =Heatwave
Wikkid Starr - Sudden Impact
AC/DC Power Up

[bubbarocks1]

Top 5
1. Harem Scarem
2. Arctic Rain
3. Black Stone Cherry
4. Black Swan
5. H.E.A.T

Honorable Mention:
Ragged Saints
Those Damn Crows
Pride Of Lions
AC/DC
Perfect Plan

[Endo]

I really dug the new AC/DC and Springsteen. Hearing that music and those voices near the end of the year was like a warm blanket.

Two albums really stood out for me this year:

Massive Wagons - House of Noise
Cold Years - Paradise

I know the Wagons brought plenty of smiles to my face despite this crappy year.

[Chris]

There were a few great ones for me this year (aside from AC/DC, which everyone else has already mentioned).

Girish & The Chronicles - Rock The Highway. Phenomenal album from an Indian band. Stellar musicianship and incredible vocals.

Platinum Overdose - Back for the Thrill. Great 80’s rock.

Tokyo Motor Fist - Lions. Great to hear another album from Ted Polley and Steve Brown.

[JV]

My favorite of the year so far is Michael Grant & The Assassins - Always The Villain

[Glenn]

Some of my favorites from this year came from Sons of Apollo ,Dirty Shirley, Jeff Scott Soto and Sevendust .I hope you all check them out the same way I've enjoyed all your lists. Happy New Year fellow Glamsters!