NOW Magazine
The best music of 2020 according to NOW critics
All our music listening habits changed this year, but a few trends still emerged: comfort food, realness and the return of disco By Richard Trapunski, Kevin Ritchie and Kelsey Adams
Dec 18, 2020
1. Backxwash: God Has Nothing To Do With This Leave Him Out Of It
In most years, there’s at least one musician I don’t have strong feelings about, then I’ll see them live and think “holy shit, this is my new favourite artist.” I didn’t get many chances this year, but Backxwash did it for me virtually. I had heard the Montreal-based artist here and there, but I gave this album some spins as part of my Polaris Prize jury duty and it quickly became all I listened to. It’s experimental hip-hop with the spirit of metal, very heavy and very captivating. I’ve heard rappers sample Black Sabbath before, but Backxwash (who was raised in a religious Christian household in Zambia) brought out the legitimately chil