The Doom Loom’s Top 40 Albums of 2020
It has been a crazy year. There is no doubt it was. You don’t need me to tell you that. However, we must count ourselves fortunate that great artists continue to create in a time of despair for most. Art is an outlet. This year, artists have had to become more creative to share their art with us, the patrons. Live shows have been shut down for the most part and many of these albums were written and recorded in hopes of bringing it to the masses. I like to think musicians are artists who are in a unique position to present their art in a way that creates revenue. They depend on this revenue to get them to the next town, the next building, the next fast food restaurant. After the pandemic, what will this underground music world look like? There have been positives this year. Bandcamp was grateful enough to waive fees for artists one day a month. Doom Charts strong and consistent contribution to the underground scene is unwavering. But nothing will quite compare to a merch table at a show. What we can do is keep pushing and promoting the music we enjoy. The Doom Loom presents the top albums of the year. This is my Top 40 of albums that made my year tolerable and hopefully most of yours as well.

40. Pallbearer – Forgotten Days
    Nuclear Blast, Released October 23rd, 2020
    Little Rock, Arkansas

39. Kimono Drag Queens – Songs of Worship
    Copper Feast Records, Released November 6th, 2020
    Sydney, Australia

38. Forming The Void – Reverie
    Ripple Music, May 8th, 2020
    Louisiana

37. Lord Buffalo – Tohu Wa Bohu
    Blues Funeral Recordings, March 27th, 2020
    Austin, Texas

36. Ritual King – Ritual King
    Ripple Music, February 21st, 2020
    Manchester, UK

35. UUBBUURRUU – UUBBUURRUU
    Self Released, January 17th, 2020
    Montreal, Québec

34. Mammock – Itch
    Self Released, Janurary 1st, 2020
    Athens, Greece

33. Jackie Treehorn Ave. – Nervous Breakdown Blues
    Self Released, January 3rd, 2020
    Vicenza, Italy

32. Elden – Nostromo
    Fuzzorama Records, Released January 24, 2020
    Karlstad, Sweden

31. Mount Hush – Mount Hush
    Self Released, February 7th, 2020
    Germany

30. Sleepwulf – Sleepwulf
    Cursed Tongue Records, Released March 6th, 2020
    Kristianstad, Sweden

29. Exhalants – Atonement
    Hex Records, Released September 11th, 2020
    Austin, Texas

28. The Hypnagogics – Endless Nights
    Majestic Mountain Records, Released March 20th, 2020
    Kristianstad, Sweden

27. Vessel – Vagabond Blues
    Majestic Mountain Records, Released February 7th, 2020
    Bendigo, Australia

26. Human Impact – Human Impact
    Ipecac Recordings, March 13th, 2020
    New York, New York

25. Kingnomad – Sagan Om Rymden
    Ripple Music, Released July 10th, 2020
    Sweden

24. Brimstone Coven – The Woes of a Mortal Earth
    Ripple Music, August 21, 2020
    Wheeling, West Virginia

23. Blacklisters – Fantastic Man
    Buzzhowl Records, Released August 28th, 2020
    Leeds, UK

22. Kadavar – The Isolation Tapes
    ROBOTOR RECORDS, Released November 2nd, 2020
    Berlin, Germany

21. Palehorse/Palerider & Lord Buffalo – Legends of the Desert Vol 1
    Desert Records, Released August 21, 2020
    USA

20. Atlanta – Nugrybauti
    Lay Bare Recordings, Released July 22nd, 2020
    Netherlands

19. Mothers of the Land – Hunting Grounds
    StoneFree Records, Released June 19th, 2020
    Vienna, Austria

18. Valkyrie – Fear
    Relapse Records, July 24th 2020
    Virginia

17. Dopelord – Sign of the Devil
    Green Plague Records, March 10th, 2020
    Warsaw, Poland

16. White Dog- White Dog
    Rise Above Records, Released September 25th, 2020
    Austin, Texas
    

15. Motorpsycho – The All is One
    Stickman Records, Released August 28th, 2020
    Trondheim, Norway
    

MOTORPSYCHO – The All Is One

14. Coriky – Coriky
    Dischord Records, Released June 12, 2020
    Washington, D.C.

13. Acid Mammoth – Under Acid Hoof
    Heavy Psych Sounds Records, Released January 24th, 2020
    Athens, Greece

12. Sun Crow – Quest for Oblivion
    Self Released, November 11th, 2020
    Seattle, Washington

11. Colour Haze – We Are
    Elektrohasch, Released January 1st, 2020
    Munich, Germany

10. Vitskär Süden – Vitskär Süden
    Self Released, Released on May 22nd, 2020
    Los Angeles, California

9. Howling Giant/Sergeant Thunderhoof – Turned to Stone Chapter 2
   Ripple Music, Released August 7th, 2020
   USA/UK

8. Elephant Tree – Habits
   Holy Roar Records, Released April 24, 2020
   London, UK

7. King Buffalo – Dead Star
   Stickman Records, Released March 20th, 2020
   Rochester, New York

6. Slomosa – Slomosa
   Apollon Records, Released August 28th, 2020
   Bergen, Norway

5. Foot – The Balance of Nature Shifted
   Copper Feast Records, Released May 1st, 2020
   Melbourne, Australia

4. Slift – Ummon
   Vicious Circle, Released February 28th, 2020
   Toulouse, France

3. Elder – Omens
   Armageddon Shop, Released April 24th, 2020
   Berlin, Germany

2. Lowrider – Refractions
   Blues Funeral Recordings, Released February 21st, 2020
   Stockholm, Sweden
   

1. Narla – Till The Weather Changes
   Copper Feast Records, Released October 23rd, 2020
   Sydney, Australia

“Why? There isn’t much special about this album.”
“No! This album is a big deal.”
“The singer sounds like Jim Morrison. What is so special about this album?”
When you look at the landscape of underground heavy rock in 2020, you will find the shift from more hard edge sabbath style to more experimental heavy psych. With groups like Slift bursting on the scene this year, Narla certainly captured all those aspects of where the tenor of the time is headed. There is so much here and so much to find. Heavy Psych is that sort of fragmented modernist approach for our time. Till The Weather Changes is a skilled jam session subliminally crafted. If you enjoy chaotic drumming and sultry riffs, you won’t be disappointed at all. The cadre from Sydney, Australia touch on so many aspects of what the underground music world embodies.