25 Tracks That Defined 2020 It s been a journey.
If 2020 produced nothing else of positivity in our lives, it provided ample time to soak up new music.
With gigs, club nights, and festivals largely shuttered, our evenings were instead spent seeking out new artists, and re-visiting releases that might otherwise have passed us by.
When the Clash team began collating our Albums Of The Year list, it quickly became apparent just how fertile 2020 had really been - virtually every genre is represented, from underground jazz to nu metal via the burgeoning offshoots of UK rap.
Focussing on our favourite tracks, we decided to forego the ranking system, and simply present 25 favourite moments from this tumultuous year.
Having had to wait 16 years for
The Avalanches to follow-up their seminal debut, Since I Left You , the gap between We Will Always Love You and 2016âs Wildflower feels minuscule in comparison. Any worries that The Avalanches settling into a (relatively) regular album release schedule will dampen their creative fire is quickly dispelled, however, with a listen to any of the albumâs 25(!) tracks.
The obvious thing to jump out when you consider We Will Always Love You is the sheer range of guest collaborators, which includes artists as diverse as Johnny Marr, Vashti Bunyan, Rivers Cuomo and Tricky.
Whatâs remarkable, though, is the Melbourne duoâs ability to synthesise the essence of these featured musicians into The Avalanchesâ DNA such that the cameos enhance the tracks without ever detracting from them.