Best Albums of the 2020s (so far)

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1.

Ants From Up There 

 Black Country, New Road

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"When I started listening to this album and was midway through Chaos Space Marine I thought to myself there is no way they can keep this level of quality up for an hour and they really proved me wrong. They have decided to change their style up from the first album and create a more grandeur sound...""When I started listening to this album and was midway through Chaos Space Marine I thought to myself there is no way they can keep this level of quality up for an hour and they really proved me wrong. They have decided to change their style up from the first album and create a more grandeur sound and it really pays off. The rich instrumentation is a joy to listen to and so in depth that you can keep coming back and exploring more which is such a difficult feat to accomplish. The keyboard on this album is brilliant and is utilised just right to create the effect they are going for. The string arrangements are delicate and beautiful but also quick and aggressive and they aid in some fantastic tempo switches. Then there is the wind instruments which are performed phenomenally and are vital to this album as they create a lot of the sonic landscape on most tracks. Finally, the vocals and lyrics are outstanding and Isaac has massively improved his penmanship and vocal control. He weaves his way through his words creating a brilliant narrative on every song he is on and slowly builds up to these grand conclusions that are very rewarding for the listener. There is a lot of risks and experimentation on this album and I think it really pays off with the music sounding so rich and luxurious. There are no weak tracks and this album is consistently stunning. Overall, you could tell from their debut that this group had so much to offer and this demonstrates exactly that, as this record is just incredible. It is unfortunate to hear about Isaac leaving the band as this group is oozing potential and if they carried on the way they were going they could possibly be the greatest band of all time and possibly create the greatest album ever recorded as this one comes very close. " [More]
- Untitled | Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +9 votes (10 helpful | 1 unhelpful) A maximum of 5 top-voted qualifying comments are selected for each album. To provide the best experience for visitors, comments are excluded if they refer to data corrections, contain excessive profanity, are written in all caps, are non-English, are too short, consist of conversations between users, or contain lists of best tracks etc.

Year of Release:

2022

Appears in:

618 charts

Rank Score:

7,258

Rank in 2022:

1

Rank in 2020s:

1

Overall Rank:

214

Average Rating:

 85 (616 votes)

Comments:

58

2.

The New Abnormal 

 The Strokes

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"I don't think I've ever seen a larger disparity between the critics' and audiences' reaction to an album as for this one. Everyone seems to be loving the album except the music critics and honestly, this is the victory The Strokes deserved. For a band who were put on the highest pedestal by the c...""I don't think I've ever seen a larger disparity between the critics' and audiences' reaction to an album as for this one. Everyone seems to be loving the album except the music critics and honestly, this is the victory The Strokes deserved. For a band who were put on the highest pedestal by the critics before they even really started the career, their whole discography since Is This It has felt like an attempt to gain that acclaim back, and they kept failing to impress them, and along the way, their fans. But this album is a goddamn beast! a spectacle worth the 7 year wait, a redemption arc for one of the biggest band of the indie rock era; and I am almost glad that the critics are shitting on this obvious masterpiece, since now majority of their GP audience can finally tear the band's image away from their critique. And maybe this will help The Strokes themselves become more liberated from the Is This It era. Because, honestly, I was getting real tired of reading about how "they used to be so good in their first two albums" in literally every article about the band thereafter (and that one The National song). I absolutely adore this album, and I cant wait to scream "drums please Fab" when they finally start performing it live. Fuck the critics man. This is the Strokes' year." [More]
- Vatsal | Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +17 votes (17 helpful | 0 unhelpful) A maximum of 5 top-voted qualifying comments are selected for each album. To provide the best experience for visitors, comments are excluded if they refer to data corrections, contain excessive profanity, are written in all caps, are non-English, are too short, consist of conversations between users, or contain lists of best tracks etc.

Year of Release:

2020

Appears in:

590 charts

Rank Score:

4,778

Rank in 2020:

1

Rank in 2020s:

2

Overall Rank:

350

Average Rating:

 82 (828 votes)

Comments:

88

3.

Fetch The Bolt Cutters 

 Fiona Apple

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"Percussively, I listen and just think: "why aren't more people doing this?" and "why hasn't anyone done something like this in this way before?" Yes, it's good. It's inventive, creative and just... very very percussive. There is a feel of all the sounds being created w/ kitchenware utensils and p...""Percussively, I listen and just think: "why aren't more people doing this?" and "why hasn't anyone done something like this in this way before?" Yes, it's good. It's inventive, creative and just... very very percussive. There is a feel of all the sounds being created w/ kitchenware utensils and pots and pans. This is proof that there's more innovation possible when creating great percussion than just adjusting how you EQ the kick and snare. To my ears it's not so jarring and esoteric as everyone is making it out to be. In fact I find it more accessible than her other albums. I've been unable to get into her too much because of her voice doing the half talking half rapping thing, but here it's so tightly coupled w/ the percussion and the rest of the song that it fits much better whether she is singing or talking. In fact she'll get done w/ a melody before I realize "oh hey she went from talking to singing and I didn't notice" I can tell it's a very personal album for her and a pent up anger over some political and socioeconomic issues she's very opinionated about. I hear some Beyonce and Solange in the vocals and most prominently the lyrics w.r.t. the identity politics of it all. I'm not necessarily entirely ideologically aligned but I can appreciate she executed on her goals as an artistic statement. Probably could have been 10 songs as the triplet triplet boom boom gets a little exhausting by the end but overall yeah pretty great record." [More]
- corenfro | Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +10 votes (10 helpful | 0 unhelpful) A maximum of 5 top-voted qualifying comments are selected for each album. To provide the best experience for visitors, comments are excluded if they refer to data corrections, contain excessive profanity, are written in all caps, are non-English, are too short, consist of conversations between users, or contain lists of best tracks etc.

Year of Release:

2020

Appears in:

619 charts

Rank Score:

3,372

Rank in 2020:

2

Rank in 2020s:

3

Overall Rank:

515

Average Rating:

 81 (699 votes)

Comments:

56

4.

Sometimes I Might Be Introvert 

 Little Simz

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"Might be the most ambitious and complete hip hop album that came out since TPAB. Hope she will get the success she deserves."
- DavideBerna | Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +19 votes (21 helpful | 2 unhelpful) A maximum of 5 top-voted qualifying comments are selected for each album. To provide the best experience for visitors, comments are excluded if they refer to data corrections, contain excessive profanity, are written in all caps, are non-English, are too short, consist of conversations between users, or contain lists of best tracks etc.

Year of Release:

2021

Appears in:

494 charts

Rank Score:

3,368

Rank in 2021:

1

Rank in 2020s:

4

Overall Rank:

517

Average Rating:

 83 (409 votes)

Comments:

27

5.

Punisher 

 Phoebe Bridgers

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"This albums' slow climb to the very top is representative of how it affects the listener. I first heard it and was like "yeah that was fine". Then months passed and I gave it no attention. Then I went back to it, and realized how much more than 'fine' it actually is! If it doesn't capture you on ...""This albums' slow climb to the very top is representative of how it affects the listener. I first heard it and was like "yeah that was fine". Then months passed and I gave it no attention. Then I went back to it, and realized how much more than 'fine' it actually is! If it doesn't capture you on first listen, give it another chance. This album is the epitome of a slow burner, and really captures the melancholy of 2020." [More]
- chuchunezbie | Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +3 votes (3 helpful | 0 unhelpful) A maximum of 5 top-voted qualifying comments are selected for each album. To provide the best experience for visitors, comments are excluded if they refer to data corrections, contain excessive profanity, are written in all caps, are non-English, are too short, consist of conversations between users, or contain lists of best tracks etc.

Year of Release:

2020

Appears in:

577 charts

Rank Score:

3,367

Rank in 2020:

3

Rank in 2020s:

5

Overall Rank:

518

Average Rating:

 80 (538 votes)

Comments:

38

6.

Dragon New Warm Mountain I Believe In You 

 Big Thief

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"What a delightful album! This year is already shaping up to be a great one for music. I'm loving the vocals on this record, they're so quaint and inviting. I usually hate long albums but this one feels just right, it's not bloated and it doesn't drag on for one minute."
- AvalancheGrips | Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +6 votes (6 helpful | 0 unhelpful) A maximum of 5 top-voted qualifying comments are selected for each album. To provide the best experience for visitors, comments are excluded if they refer to data corrections, contain excessive profanity, are written in all caps, are non-English, are too short, consist of conversations between users, or contain lists of best tracks etc.

Year of Release:

2022

Appears in:

509 charts

Rank Score:

3,360

Rank in 2022:

2

Rank in 2020s:

6

Overall Rank:

520

Average Rating:

 82 (418 votes)

Comments:

35

7.

For The First Time 

 Black Country, New Road

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"(An awesome mix of post-rock and post-punk and post-otherstufftooprobably, with consistently awesome rhythmic explosions, wild horn solos and just a little something for the whole fam.) This album is really, really cool. It reminds me of Slint and King Crimson and a little of Talk Talk (the parts...""(An awesome mix of post-rock and post-punk and post-otherstufftooprobably, with consistently awesome rhythmic explosions, wild horn solos and just a little something for the whole fam.) This album is really, really cool. It reminds me of Slint and King Crimson and a little of Talk Talk (the parts of Talk Talk when they really fucking explode). The musicianship is on point and while not next-level virtuosity, it more than suffices to create these big, huge multi-parted somewhat experimental rock songs. The horn parts steal the show throughout. The drummer is clearly a badass. The riffage and the build ups and breakdowns are all so cathartic. It's just a freakin rock solid album. The vocalist is hit or miss for me. He has that Conor Oberst, perpertually-on-the-edge-of-a-nervous-breakdown style that can wear thin, but generally he nails the intense shouted and screamed vocla bits. The lyrics aren't great, but not bad either, they are kind of purposefully mundane. Mundane but expressed in such an intense way they almost trick you into thinking they are quite deep and ominous. There is not a bad song here. Haven't heard the earlier single version of Sunglasses, so can't comment on whether the band made a mistake re-recording it (apparently the single is more intense and brilliant than this album version, per the loud fan outcry) but I have heard this version and its amazing and epic and just builds up so logically yet frantically. The propulsive, mind-blowing rhythmic explosion of the opening instrumental served to get me very VERY excited for the album, and that closer is an instant classic if ever such a term should be used. "Opus" is one of the most hypnotic, gorgeous and, idk another word for it, maybe "authoritative" or "assured" closing statements I've personally heard. That is how you close your much anticipated debut album." [More]
- Mercury | Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +6 votes (7 helpful | 1 unhelpful) A maximum of 5 top-voted qualifying comments are selected for each album. To provide the best experience for visitors, comments are excluded if they refer to data corrections, contain excessive profanity, are written in all caps, are non-English, are too short, consist of conversations between users, or contain lists of best tracks etc.

Year of Release:

2021

Appears in:

481 charts

Rank Score:

3,311

Rank in 2021:

2

Rank in 2020s:

7

Overall Rank:

527

Average Rating:

 81 (538 votes)

Comments:

44

8.

Imaginal Disk 

 Magdalena Bay

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"This is one of the most amazing things to come out of synth pop in a while; the hooks and production are just sublime."
- Cargusbralem | Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +9 votes (9 helpful | 0 unhelpful) A maximum of 5 top-voted qualifying comments are selected for each album. To provide the best experience for visitors, comments are excluded if they refer to data corrections, contain excessive profanity, are written in all caps, are non-English, are too short, consist of conversations between users, or contain lists of best tracks etc.

Year of Release:

2024

Appears in:

297 charts

Rank Score:

2,658

Rank in 2024:

1

Rank in 2020s:

8

Overall Rank:

642

Average Rating:

 83 (258 votes)

Comments:

20

9.

Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers 

 Kendrick Lamar

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"I don't comment on here too often but really wanted to give my opinion on Auntie Diaries and some first impressions of the album. Obviously can't speak for any other trans or queer people but there's so much I love about Auntie Diaries and I think it tackles ideas around prejudice, tolerance and ...""I don't comment on here too often but really wanted to give my opinion on Auntie Diaries and some first impressions of the album. Obviously can't speak for any other trans or queer people but there's so much I love about Auntie Diaries and I think it tackles ideas around prejudice, tolerance and acceptance so well. I've seen some criticism of Kendrick using misgendering and deadnaming* from people who still see the positive intent of the track but I think these are actually vital to getting his point across. A lot of the song comes from a place of tolerating but not understanding the trans people in his life. Saying 'my auntie was a man now, we cool with it' gets across a kind of acceptance but the misgendering in this line and in the verses show that his uncle still isn't being seen as who he really is. The final verse changes this. When push comes to shove and Kendrick is forced to challenge this mindset he doesn't just tolerate his cousin, he accepts her. There's a deeper understanding from this point on. Ending the verse by talking to her directly really gets this new closeness across. Through transition I've been scared of people not accepting me at all but I've also been scared of people accepting me as a surface level thing. Like they're being polite and playing along instead of seeing me for who I am. It often starts that way with people but after some time you see a shift from tolerance to acceptance in the way Kendrick's last verse describes. Without the uncomfortable moments in the track, it wouldn't have been able to get across these subtle points at all. If Kendrick had written a track just about how proud he was of the trans people he knew it would be nice and all, but it wouldn't really get to a deeper level, challenge the listener or keep within the themes of the record. The record as a whole is very dense and I'll have to give it a few listens before I can form anything like a full opinion but some stuff has stood out on first listen. Most tracks here are really good but a couple didn't do much for me, I think a bit of an edit could have made things a bit more focussed. I really appreciate the lyrical themes of breaking destructive cycles through forgiveness and mutual understanding. The individual songs build to this brilliantly but Kendrick making a point of including Kodak Black on the album hinders this message, I think his inclusion here is a mistake. Mother I Sober is one of Kendrick's best songs and shows that he is a one of a kind artist. I'm really looking forward to going back over this and seeing how much reveals itself on repeat listens. * I do wish he hadn't deadnamed Caitlin Jenner though. He knew the other people who were deadnamed in the song and probably had their blessing before releasing it, this won't have been the case with Caitlin. Deadnaming her felt very unnecessary." [More]
- JamesMowbray | Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +17 votes (18 helpful | 1 unhelpful) A maximum of 5 top-voted qualifying comments are selected for each album. To provide the best experience for visitors, comments are excluded if they refer to data corrections, contain excessive profanity, are written in all caps, are non-English, are too short, consist of conversations between users, or contain lists of best tracks etc.

Year of Release:

2022

Appears in:

480 charts

Rank Score:

2,629

Rank in 2022:

3

Rank in 2020s:

9

Overall Rank:

651

Average Rating:

 81 (456 votes)

Comments:

34

10.

Promises 

 Floating Points, Pharoah Sanders & The London Symphony Orchestra

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"(47 minutes of minimalist spiritual jazz-meets-classical-meets subtle electronic touches. I, at first, honestly thought this would probably be something that made me think I just didn't "get it" but by the end of the 1st listen and certainly by the end of the 2nd, I did feel a certain calm come o...""(47 minutes of minimalist spiritual jazz-meets-classical-meets subtle electronic touches. I, at first, honestly thought this would probably be something that made me think I just didn't "get it" but by the end of the 1st listen and certainly by the end of the 2nd, I did feel a certain calm come over me and a certain wonder at the beauty of the music and life in general. Its a delicate, stirring, touching album that I highly recommend.) I am so set on listening to music in search of hooks, interesting riffs, drum fills, showy bite-sized solos, lyrical snippets, word plays, melodic bits, walls of sound, and many many other ear-catching and immediate and tangible things. I listen to most music and it provides what it is quick and there is something distinct and bright and loud and up front to latch on to. Very rarely does an album come along that stops me and slows me and makes me just BE. Occasionally an ambient or new age album will do it, or a more minimalist jazz album, but I listen to those albums so rarely sometimes I forget what it's like to be given a gentle "shhhh" by an album. Obviously, as I am commenting on Promises - this recent collab between electronic artist Floating Points (who I had zero previous experience with), jazz legend Pharaoh Sanders and the London Symphony Orchestra - I must be indicating that this was one of those rare albums that made me stop overthinking and stop bloody fidgeting and just experience music. And, yes, you figured me out. That is exactly what I am getting at. This album on first 2 tries was rejected by me. I was up and about and getting ready for work and I put this on, and it was like my whole body and mind just said "nope" and I couldn't do it and I stopped it and put on probably a loud Grindcore or Post Punk album instead. Then a week or so later I tried again and yet again I felt like I just couldn't give this piece the time and peace it deserved. Finally today, Monday the 12th of April, after a long and stressful weekend of work, I woke up and played this album and almost the same response happened. I heard those same 7 notes played over and over and 4 minutes in I was close to just writing it off as something I just personally "don't get" or "it's not made for me". Then something happened. I told myself to just shut up, be still for a bit and just experience the music. Don't check twitter, don't play some stupid game on your phone, don't do it. Don't look online at other reviews, don't read news stories, don't start reviewing the album track by track, etc. Instead, just be still and listen to the music, the minimal and repetitive electric piano, the soulful and sad and yet peaceful and perfect saxophone "speeches" from Sanders, listen to the subtle orchestral bits swelling and waxing and waning underneath the 2 main musical instruments, listen and observe those subtle changes and the way they slowly grow and then shrink and then grow again. As I did this, I admit I started feeling myself relax and enjoy not just the music more but also I started to appreciate my current situation, I started smelling the proverbial roses. And when the album ended I enjoyed the silence for a few moments and I thought about what I had heard. I started writing this and pushed play again on Promises. My experience perhaps will be mirrored or at least similar for many other music fanatics that generally don't listen to this type of cerebral, slow and building music. There are no major pay offs in terms of large walls of sound and fury like you'll hear on many other jazz and classical and post rock pieces/albums. The start of the piece may seem familiar for many music fans, but outside of some increased intensity on Movement 6, this album isn't one to build and build until an inevitable loud and intense resolution. This work seems more to be a rumination all the way through. It takes these subtle, minimal elements and themes and rides with them and creates a quiet chamber where the listener can simply Be with the music and think of promises, life, future, past, people you know and people you may yet come to know. It's, for me anyway, a 47 minute piece of music I can put on to gather myself. That's not say that one can't also listen to this and hear some vibrant and tangible details. Because, there are dozens of moments when I was listening when I heard a particular saxophone melody that was gorgeous and clear, there are moments when the subtle electronic synth part sticks its head out and plays about with something, there are symphonic swells that can make you misty-eyed and inspired, and those are excellent moments. In the main, however, for me anyway, this is an album less involved in moment-to-moment highlights and more involved in creating its own space in this wild world we live in, a space where we can take stock, relax, ruminate and Be ourselves. It does this near-flawlessly and all musicians involved in Promises contribute what they have to creating this atmosphere with no one (not even the legend Pharaoh Sanders) ever seeming to be showy or stealing the show intentionally. Every note and little detail is there to create the atmosphere of the music. I'd be lying if I said this was 100% my style, or if I said this album alone has sold me on the virtues of minimalism and this sort of slow building atmospheric music. I doubt I will listen to this for a week non-stop or come to the conclusion this is my favorite album of the year. I doubt I will go and do one of those funny music nerd things where I research everything I can on this style and listen to almost exclusively this sort of music for months. I still prefer, given 2 or 3 options before me, a wild and loud and hook-filled album over a slow work of minimalist Third Stream or whatever this is. I will say though, that my expectations were surpassed by this and I have been enriched by having listened to this album a couple times. And, yes, its one of the better albums I've heard this year. And I suspect I will be coming back to it for years to come, If the genre description or the way this album is spoken of is possibly turning you off or making you think its an abstract and perhaps pretentious album and so you are thinking to avoid it, I recommend going ahead and clearing out 47 minutes of your life and listening. I was in the same boat as those of you who thought it wouldn't connect, and yet it did as you can see from this rambling and pointless little write up. If you finish the album and you don't feel at least a little more at peace and a little more enriched, well, 1.) I will be surprised and 2.) you can move on from the album and listen to your usual jams whatever those may be (There is nothing wrong with that either.)." [More]
- Mercury | Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +6 votes (7 helpful | 1 unhelpful) A maximum of 5 top-voted qualifying comments are selected for each album. To provide the best experience for visitors, comments are excluded if they refer to data corrections, contain excessive profanity, are written in all caps, are non-English, are too short, consist of conversations between users, or contain lists of best tracks etc.

Year of Release:

2021

Appears in:

394 charts

Rank Score:

2,587

Rank in 2021:

3

Rank in 2020s:

10

Overall Rank:

668

Average Rating:

 79 (315 votes)

Comments:

18

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Total albums: 1,000. Page 1 of 100

Best Albums of the 2020s (so far) composition

Top 1,000 Top 500 Top 250 Top 100

Year	Albums	%
2020	197	20%
2021	199	20%
2022	194	19%
2023	169	17%
2024	142	14%
2025	98	10%
2026	1	0%

Artist	Albums	%
King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard	12	1%
Taylor Swift	7	1%
Black Country, New Road	4	0%
파란노을 [Parannoul]	4	0%
Charli XCX	4	0%
Bad Bunny	4	0%
Nas	4	0%
Show all

Country	Albums	%
	518	52%
	233	23%
	45	5%
	39	4%
	29	3%
	19	2%
	15	2%
Show all

Compilation?	Albums	%
No	993	99%
Yes	7	1%

Live?	Albums	%
No	987	99%
Yes	13	1%

Soundtrack?	Albums	%
No	997	100%
Yes	3	0%