3. Gigi Masin - Calypso
Genre: Ambient
Put On A Playlist With: Brian Eno, Harold Budd, Jon Hassell, early 80's Vangelis
One of my favorite ambient artists of all time made a grand return to recorded music this year with the tantalizing and nearly perfect Calypso, a dreamscape of ambient, jazz inflected sunlight that at times feel transcendentally inspired in a manner that's hard for me to put into words. It's an elusive feeling that I've only gotten from a few others, with the best work of Brian Eno, Jonn Serrie and Vangelis's work on Blade Runner and his 1990 masterpiece The City being some prominent examples. The takeaway here is that if you want an ambient album that really stands out as something special, this is the one that did it for me in 2020.
2. Dirty Loops - Phoenix [EP]
Genre: Jazz, Pop, Fusion, Funk
Put On A Playlist With: Stevie Wonder, Snarky Puppy, Michael Jackson, Earth Wind & Fire, Pat Metheny, Casiopea
Quite likely the most talented band in 2020, genres aside. Distilling the best ideas from R&B and pop music and combining that with high energy jazz-fusion chops that put them on par with the world's best session and jazz musicians....it just isn't hard to see why a lot of people rave about them. They're a trio of monsters that don't even need a guitarist. And even if you hate the style, listening to Henrik Linder play bass is practically a religious experience.
1. Jakko M Jakszyk - Secrets & Lies
Genre: Art Pop, Progressive Rock
Put On A Playlist With: King Crimson, David Sylvian, Talking Heads, early 80's Peter Gabriel
While King Crimson themselves have not put out an official "record" under the name since the early 2000's, Jakko is by all measures the lead vocalist for Fripp's various ventures in and around the KC brand at this point. In 2011 he put out a "projeckt" with Fripp and some other heavyweights called Scarcity Of Miracles which was gorgeous and awesome, and this new solo outing (after years of recording-related hiatuses) has elements of that album, plus nodding back at times to classics like Red and Islands.
In a year that has felt increasingly dark and helpless to me as it has gone along, an album in this style that's this good is a godsend even if it isn't King Crimson itself. It has the dreaminess of Fripp's outing with David Sylvian, the underrated Gone To Earth, plus a good mix of uptempo pieces and dreamier, Starless-esque proliferations. In particular, 'The Trouble With Angels' has the feeling of a classic KC ballad whilst closer 'Separation' has a vivacious stomp to it that sounds like a remnant of the Lizard sessions from four decades ago.
So a big thank you to to Jakko, Tony Levin, Robert Fripp, Mel Collins, Peter Hammill, Mark King and all of the other masters who participated on Secrets & Lies - you not only created a masterpiece, you have fashioned a record that I'll be listening to for years to come.
Last edited by Anteater; 12-08-2020 at 08:54 PM.
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