Our methodology has grown less and less coherent over time, but these days it's mostly pulled from a bunch of other shows and lists that we compile throughout December:
1. MTVZ's Top 100 of 2020 Video Countdown -- MTV used to air their top 100 videos of the year on New Years Eve and then reaired on New Years Day, and now they don't anymore, so we started doing it for them, hypothetically imagining their inclusions if the tone and branding were similar to how they appeared throughout "The '90s," a.k.a. the only calendar decade when MTV aired one of these specials every year. Most of the pop and rap that we enjoy or that seemed ubiquitous throughout a given year will appear here, as long as the songs had videos.
2. WXCI After Hours' Top 102 of 2020 -- This is our attempt at re-imagining an "alternative rock" radio format that actually sounds like a rock station, focusing on metal, loud rock, and "alternative" in its broadest possible definition. We started the overnight block on Memorial Day weekend 2019 and hopefully it will last throughout 2021.
3. Late Night Noise "Best Of 2020" Parts 1 and 2 -- This is our Monday night show focusing on "stuff that sounds like drugs or satan." It's not really a "noise music" show despite its title; abrasive 25-minute-long Merzbow tracks appear only rarely. Instead, we play "noisy" stuff -- more abrasive and often absurd metal or hardcore, the weirdest and most warped experimental stuff we can find, and anything lofi or outsider or "found." For the sake of variance, about 10% of the show does not fall into these categories.
To locate the stuff that appears in these little projects, we typically check on a multitude of sources.
A few that come to mind right now include the category-sorting options at Rate Your Music, although we suspect they got overtaken by /mu/ nerds throughout the past 5 or 6 years. We also usually browse Post-Trash - probably the only consistantly updated websource that focuses on current rock music. Matt Korvette from Pissed Jeans has a monthly updated blog that we love. ILM's annual Tracks and Albums polls have been useful in the past for finding non-charting pop and rap, and we still consider them a resource worth exploring, although their recommendations since 2017 have grown decreasingly aligned with our preferences. Same goes for The Singles Jukebox, but it's worth putting time into the research when we finally find something that rules.
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For the past half-decade, we were blessed to recieve sneak peeks of The Dime Store Hegemon Radio Hours's "best of" lists. The show airs Wednesday nights on KONR in Anchorage, Alaska, and we'd be lying if we didn't admit that it's among the most consistantly helpful resources for radio, MTVZ, and our end-of-year lists.
We're not sure why we only thought of this now, but we asked permission to post the entire list here. So let's "let her rip" as they say.
An abridged version of the list was aired on the show's January 13th edition:
Playist: https://spinitron.com/KONR/pl/12412013/Dime-Store-Hedgemon-Radio-Hour
Here's a copy+paste:
2020 Records (this is a lot)
This is a lot of records. Yikes. Make sure and check out the highlighted ones if you can, but also all of them.David Nance - Staunch Honey – I can’t believe how good this record is.
Bonnie "Prince" Billy - I Made A Place – I love this record. It’s so positive and cozy and insular while still being weird or at least strange.
https://bonnieprincebilly.bandcamp.com/album/i-made-a-place
Thiago Nassife – Mente – This music is weird and I don’t know how to describe it. It’s like French African synth post-punk but also not. I love it. It’s extremely vibe music but then also it isn’t. It is possible that, because I have never listened to a Talking Heads album, this music is just normal to everyone who has. Some of it sounds like T. Rex too.
The Spits – VI – the Spits do it again.
Nothing – The Great Dismal – I sent this to you already. It’s also a good shoegaze record but I still think the Wednesday one is better.
Shrinkwrap Killers – Feral Rats Have Become Our Only Friends – poppy- punk rock that is definitely Spits influenced but not dumb like they are (in a good way).
Panopticon - Live Migration – This is a live black metal album that sounds better than most regular black metal albums. What an incredible group.
Limousine Beach - Stealin' Wine + 2 Single – Just some good rockin’ baby. Dudes from Carousel. So glammy. Sorta sounds like the Sweet or something?
Rebel Wizard - Magickal Mystical Indifference – this might be lame ass poser shit but I love the song (title) “The Mind Is Not Your Friend.” Kinda stonery music with some industrial elements that has good samples throughout.
Mike Polizze - Long Lost Solace Find – this is the dude from Purling Hiss (right?) and Kurt Vile plays guitar. It’s that type of music (singer-songwriter) but in a good way.
Fyzical - Demo 2020 – dumb music that rules -
Boris – NØ – this is one of my favorite records of theirs – I either like when they make weird pop music or punk.
Home Blitz - All Through The Year – this album has the coolest song of the year on it.
[Note: Pretty sure this is referring to "Final Decay."]
Geld - Beyond the Floor – this is insane music and I love it. They put a few slower jams on this record. It’s psychedelic dbeat which is like, a dream come true for me. So nasty sounding
Hum – Inlet – duh!
namatay sa ingay - Ang Talim ng Galit – I like this, especially the song TNT. For a punk band to make a 4 song record that is this varied, I think that’s cool
P22 - Human Snake – I think this came out on Dean Spunt’s label? It’s sure weird and it’s pretty cool.
Vintlechkeit - Svartskogen Svartwinter etc. – This is very cool black metal and ambient stuff. Very wintery
The Cowboy - WiFi on the Prairie – weird punk that is slightly unhinged but also quite melodic and interesting
Cirith Ungol - Forever Black – I feel like I don’t know enough about how to talk about metal or the different types of metal. This to me just seems like “good metal” in a varied way and it’s ok that the band is LOTR themed because it’s good.
Tidiane Thiam – Siftorde – this record sounds like it was recorded around a campfire but also features the most insane guitar playing. This is a record that doesn’t really lend itself to specific songs – it’s just a full on vibe.
KeiyaA - Forever, Ya Girl – I really do like off-kilter R&B – I guess this reminds me of that Melanie Charles record from a few years ago (what happened to her?) but way more assertive
Hallelujah! - Wanna Dance – varied punk, kinda funky maybe? Very weird, a lot of synth. Has a song called “your duck” and also “burka for everyone” which are both good song names
Subliminal Excess – 2020 – this record is perfect hardcore punk. It’s insane. It’s menacing, angry, the guitars sound insane, so many riffs, great vocals.
Yves Tumor - Heaven to a Tortured Mind – everybody loves this dude now.
FACS - Void Moments – do you like music like this? I don’t think I know how to describe it other than maybe art punk. Like, it’s arty music that is aggressive and slightly threatening and weird. I like it. I watched them play an online streamed concert this year and they were great, just a great rock group
Lohesh - The Ascension – this is my old roommate Zach’s band in DC. It’s post-punk but not like you are thinking. It’s got some jams on there. The vocals are very strong imo. She can really belt it out. I guess it is goth-y(?). Moss Creep (last track) is really good.
Royce da 5'9 - The Allegory – good record
Lavender Flu - Barbarian Dust – I truly cannot believe this album came out this year – February feels like years ago. They cover Venom and also a song by a First Nations dude from rural Canada and it all just sounds like cool van/biker rock music.
Chiller – Chiller – this is their new record, which has the same name as their old one. PGH dudes. Burly (but not tough) hardcore. Short songs, crazy guitar playing.
Wednesday - I Was Trying To Describe You To Someone – I have a hard time imagining that someone put out a better shoegaze album this year.
Six Organs of Admittance - Companion Rises – I love this band and I think this is some of their/his most concise work in the vein of the type of music I like the most – the sort of spaced out desert rock raga type stuff.
Soakie - s/t- Extremely mad women -
The Men – Mercy – I actually don’t know if I have listened to this whole record but it has one of my top 5 songs of the year on it (Children All Over the World) that was immediately added to my “twice in a row” playlist
MHYSA – Nevaeh – Oh, you thought the KeiyaA record was weird? Well, this one goes off the rails. I love it.
Kveltertak – Splid – it blows my mind they don’t have a bandcamp. This is on spotify or youtube or whatever. This is good metal from the north, like trad metal not some death metal or anything. It rocks like crazy. Riffs riffs riffs riffs. Honestly this is what I wish the Refused sounded like. It’s kind of like buckcherry was good maybe and also from Sweden or something.
Chubby and the Gang - Speed Kills – All Along the Uxbridge Road is an insane song. I love this album. It’s like somewhere between Oi/Hardcore/the Dictators. It’s top 10 for me this year, maybe top 5.
Wax Chattels – Clot – this is what I think indie rock should actually sound like. Kinda punk weird arty music. Of course they are from New Zealand or something.
Goblin USA - Demo 2020 – this tape sounds insane. It actually sounds like a monster singing for a sludgy hardcore band. It’s so cool. Also calling your band Goblin USA rules. The song “Loose Flesh” is so awesome.
Kate NV - Room for the Moon – I always think this is like, beeps and boops but it’s way more than that.
Hiroshi Yoshimura – Green – the most peaceful music I have ever heard. I love this record.
Go Hirano - Corridor of Daylights
Oh also, I forgot to put this one in there. It should be in the top ones.
So many more!!!
Some of these deserve to be up there, but I haven’t gotten there yet.
Terrace Martin, Robert Glasper, 9th Wonder & Kamasi Washington EPs
Drakeo the Ruler & JoogSzn - Thank You For Using GTL
All Hits - Men and Their Work
Powerplant - A Spine/Evidence EP
Woods - Strange to Explain and the collection one
Melenas - Dias Raros
Cinder Well - No Summer
Rat Cage - Screams From the Cage
WOW - Come La Notte
Dungen - Dungen Live
Man Eaters - Gentle Ballads for the Simple Soul
Freon - PYK
Three Knee Deep - s/t
Terrace Martin - Soul Juice EP
Nudie Mag - Our Milk
Jocko - Wise Man/Majority Rule
U.S. Girls - Heavy Light
En Attendant Ana - Julliet
Gunn-Truscinski Duo - Soundkeeper
Psychology Machine - Never Trust Anyone With More Money Than You
GAG – Still Laughing
ISS – Too Punk For Heavy Metal
Chill Parents - At the Barricades
Necrot - Mortal
Duma - s/t
Also Very Good!
These records are all super great. It is crazy how many incredible records, of all different types, came out this year.
Naked Roommate - Do the Duvet
CCR Headcleaner - Street Riffs
The Green Child - Shimmering Basset
H.C. McEntire - Eno Axis
Cass McCombs - Sweet Lucy/Wild Mountain Thyme EP
Wild Flowers of America - Lost in the Salvation
Uniform - Shame
R. Boyd & Dusk - High Country Skyway
Lambchop - Trip
Body Double - Milk Fed
Bent Arcana - s/t
Alien Nosejob - Once Again the Present Becomes the Past
Alien Nosejob - Suddenly Everything is Twice As Loud
Emma Ruth Rundle & Thou - May Our Chambers be Full
Ilsa - Preyer
Kurt Vile - Speed, Sound, Lonely KV EP
Death Valley Girls - Under the Spell of Joy
Eartheater - Phoenix: Flames Are Dw Upon My Skin
Shlomo - Heaven Inc. EP
Kelly Lee Owens - Inner Song
Body Count - Carnivore
GBV - Mirrored Aztec
Roger Eno & Brian Eno - Mixing Colours
Bowel Rupture/Punisher Split
Joe Pernice - Richard
The Whip - s/t
Initiate - Lavender
Ecostrike - A Truth We Still Believe
Steve Hartlett - both records but I like solitude for dummies more because I have listened to it a lot.
Whettman Chelmets - 1000 Faces
Crack Cloud - Pain Olympics
Bing & Ruth - Species
Julianna Barwick - Healing Is a Miracle
Margo Price - That's How Rumors Get Started
Kawaguchi Masami's New Rock Syndicate & Kryssi Battalene - s/t
Oranssi Puzuzu - Mestarin Kynsi
Pottery - Welcome To Bobby's Motel
No Age - Goons Be Gone
Jim Whitte & Marisa Anderson - The Quickening
Mourning a Blkstar - The Cycle
Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith - The Mosaic of Transformation
Mark McGuire - Nothing In This World
KA - Descendants of Cain
Sven Wounder - Eastern Flowers
Blake Mills - Mutable Set
Forgotten Tomb - Nihilistic Estrangement
Ritual Clearing - s/t
Primo - Sogni
So Cow - But What Has That Done to the Scores?
Fu Manchu - Fu30, Pt. 1 Single
Local H - Lifers
Irreal - 2020
Kohti Tuhoa - Elä Totuudesta
Qlowski - Ikea Youth/Grinding Halt
Masterpiece Machine - single
Glâsbird - Norskfjorōr
RZA - Guided Explorations
Stephen Malkmus - Traditional Techniques
SMUT - First Kiss
Wasted Shirt - Fungus II
Shopping - All or Nothing
Elkhorn - The Storm Sessions
Walter Martin - The World At Night
Wire - Mind Hive
Chromatics - Closer to Grey
Annihilator - Ballistic Sadistic
Kirk Windstein - Dream in Motion
Amos Pitsch - Acid Rain
Zulu - My People . . . Hold On
Brett Naucke & Ryley Walker - I Am Aware We Do Not Save One Another Very Often
Venom Prison - Primeval
Gord Downie - Away Is Mine
Haircut - Cake
Rolex - s/t EP
North Americans - Roped In
Oneohtrix Point Never - Magic Oneohtrix Point Never
The Bats – Foothills
The Nels Cline Singers – Share the Wealth
Heathered Pearls – Cast
Com Truise – In Decay, Too
Lithics – Tower of Age
Autechre (?)
