![](https://ajazznoise.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/aJN-2020-cover-pic.png)
Between COVID-19 putting a stop to touring, and Bandcamp Fridays, there’s been a lot of music released in 2020. The following are the albums that settled deepest into my heart, imagination and/or gut this year. In the proverbial no particular order…
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![](http://ajazznoise.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Argonauta-cover-989x1024.jpg)
Ferran Besalduch
“Argonauta”
(call it anything records)
“…a gloriously artificial natural world… a self-contained ecosystem of treated sounds that operate in relation to each other but owe little to any other musical zone.” Full review here.
![](http://ajazznoise.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/An-Uncaught-Bird-cover-1024x1024.jpg)
KØS
“An Uncaught Bird”
(Forlaget Kornmod)
“… fresh, subtle, spacious and a somehow optimistic elegy for whatever it is you haven’t yet realised you’ve lost. ” Full review here.
![](http://ajazznoise.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/astroturf-noise-cover-1024x1024.jpg)
Astroturf Noise
S/T
(577 Records)
“The sweet spot on the dial between two neighbouring radio stations, miscegenating sweet bluegrass mandolin and violin-led tunes with contorted electronic drone and noise.” Full review here.
![](http://ajazznoise.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Descension-cover-1024x1024.jpg)
Patrick Shiroishi
“Descension”
(Thin Wrist)
“I don’t think I’ve ever met a Patrick Shiroishi recording I don’t like. But this? This is special.” Full review here.
![](http://ajazznoise.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/CHORD-III-cover-1024x1024.jpg)
CHORD
“CHORD III”
(punos music)
“…pure noise, but also form, movement, (d)evolution, and warmth… CHORD is excess done with love. . ” Full review here.
![](http://ajazznoise.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/Onde-di-sabbia-cover.jpg)
oAxAcA
“Onde Di Sabbia”
(2 Headed Deer)
“… an elegantly balanced cocktail of solid rhythms, bent blues, grandiose riffs, and subversive composition. ” Full review here.
![](http://ajazznoise.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/mi-specchio-e-rifletto-cover-1024x1024.jpg)
Silvia Tarozzi
“Mi specchio e rifletto”
(Unseen Worlds)
Listen repeatedly and let these exquisite pieces crawl inside your soul; for me, one of 2020’s most emotional and quietly exciting albums.
![](http://ajazznoise.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/Solid-cover-1024x1024.jpg)
Phicus
“Solid”
(Astral Spirits)
“Pickups groan and scream, tachycardic drums carry a metallic gleam, and the bass lurks with playful menace. Phicus are no simple noisefest, the whole of Solid is a poised yin-yang of brutality and elegance. ” Full review here.
![](http://ajazznoise.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Peculiar-Velocities-cover-1024x1024.jpg)
Eris 136199
“Peculiar Velocities”
(self-published)
Via this combination of three unique filters (filterers?) the world’s chaos sounds very, very different… Full review here.
![](http://ajazznoise.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Pedreres-cover-1024x1024.jpg)
Nad Spiro
“Pedreres”
(Munster Records, Geometrik Records)
Guitar’n’pedals exploration of the ghosts of old quarries in Barcelona’s Montjuïc – haunting, evocative, quietly thrilling.
![](http://ajazznoise.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/disput-e-guerra-cover-1024x1024.jpg)
Marina Cyrino, Henrique Iwao, Matthias Koole, Marco Scarassatti
“Disputa e Guerra no Terreiro de Roça de Casa de Avó”
(oem)
“…this beautiful, quietly cacophonous conversation is beyond sensible or original description “. Full review here.
![](http://ajazznoise.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Arter-cover-1024x1024.jpg)
Karin Johansson & Lisen Rylander Löve
“Arter”
(Havtorn Records)
“…a structured foam of intricate sounds, scaffolded bubbles of silence trapped in perfect place. ” Full review here.
![](http://ajazznoise.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/Walk-It-Dry-cover-1024x1024.jpg)
Sly & the Family Drone
“Walk It Dry”
(Love Love Records)
“It bruises. It’s relentless. It can be heavy as fuck (heavier than most). And it can convey a quiet stiletto sense of dread.” Full review here.
![](http://ajazznoise.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/cut-throat-cover-1024x1024.jpg)
J Frisco
“Cut Throat”
(self-published)
The Friscos return with album #2: punk energy, pop sensibility, jazz finesse – rearrange those six words in any order, still works.
![](http://ajazznoise.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/The-Earth-with-her-Crowns-cover-1024x1024.jpg)
Laura Cannell
“The Earth With Her Crowns”
(Brawl Records)
Heartrending violin and recorder improvisations inside and inspired by the old Wapping Hydraulic Power Station – a music from an ambience.
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