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20 April 2024

Here's how it works: The Recent Releases chart brings together critical reaction to new albums from more than 50 sources worldwide. It's updated daily. Albums qualify with 5 reviews, and drop out after 6 weeks into the longer timespan charts.

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New

Taylor SwiftThe Tortured Poets Department

"A terrific reminder of the intense, personal connection Swift can conjure in song" (10/10 - The Independent). "Surprisingly flat and, at times, cringeworthy" (6/10 - NME)

New

Pearl JamDark Matter

"It’s thrilling. It’s moving. It’s surprising. It’s a band still operating at the peaks of their powers" (10/10 - Kerrang!) "Experiment with new sonic avenues after years of playing it safe" (8/10 - NME)

New

Lucy RoseThis Ain't The Way You Go Out

"It’s hard not to be in awe of the scale of her growth and transformation" (9/10 - DIY). "Nothing here is a misfire, as Rose deftly navigates new approaches" (8/10 - All Music)

Highest Recent Ratings

Albums to watch

RideInterplay

"When they delve into the big guitar histrionics of yesteryear, as on “Light in a Quiet Room,” the results are breathtaking" (9/10 - Under The Radar). "One of the most intriguing albums of their career to date" (8/10 - Clash)

ElbowAudio Vertigo

"This is phenomenal stuff" (10/10 - The Arts Desk). "An album that further cements their legacy" (9-10 - Clash). "It’s nice to see Elbow stepping outside their comfort zone" (8/10 - Under The Radar)

Kacey MusgravesDeeper Well

"Revels in Laurel Canyon folk and psychedelic pop on her fantastic sixth album" (10/10 - The Independent). "Ring it up as another jewel in the crown" (8/10 - The Irish Times)

Kim GordonThe Collective

"An astonishing work that’s at least as good (if not better) than some of the albums with which she made her fame and fortune" (10/10 musicOMH)

Yard ActWheres My Utopia?

"Wry, riveting, chaotic, and infectious throughout, Where's My Utopia? easily upstages what was an impressive debut" (All Music). "A resounding, charismatic and dance-heavy sophomore LP" (Paste)

Liam Gallagher & John SquireLiam Gallagher John Squire

"This is too much fun to be a one-off" (Mojo). "The half-inched tunes come and go rather forgettably but they’re charged with an electric vigour" (The Independent). OR "An excruciating exercise in bluster and swagger" (The Irish Times)

IdlesTangk

"The sound of a band who’ve finally arrived" (Northern Transmissions). "A raucous expression of love, TANGK is raw, vulnerable and inimitably IDLES" (The Skinny). "Their best yet" (The Irish Times)

Poll of Polls 2020 Phoebe

The ultimate, definitive Best Albums Of 2020

It's the annual ADM Poll of Polls, our roundup of the critics' end-of-year best albums lists - the ultimate, definitive Best Of The Best Ofs, 2020. And this year it's closest ever with only four points separating the top two.

We've compiled the rankings from all those magazines, newspapers and websites among our sources which publish their albums of the year. The end result is a comprehensive reflection of the critical favourites of the year. It's the ultimate, definitive "Best of the Best Albums of 2020" chart.

Sources: Albumism, Beats Per Minute, Clash, Consequence of Sound, Crack, DIY, Exclaim!, Gigwise, God Is In The TV, Kerrang!, Loud And Quiet, Mojo, musicOMH, NME, No Ripcord, Northern Transmission, Paste, Pitchfork, Pop Matters, Rolling Stone, Slant, Spectrum, Sputnik, The AV Club, The Guardian, The Independent, The Line Of Best Fit, The Quietus, The Skinny, Uncut, XS Noize
(50pts are awarded to the album named No.1, 49pts to the No.2 and so on).

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1279 Phoebe Bridgers - Punisher
1226 Fiona Apple - Fetch the Bolt Cutters
1080 Run the Jewels - RTJ4
958 Dua Lipa - Future Nostalgia
877 Perfume Genius - Set My Heart on Fire Immediately
839 Waxahatchee - Saint Cloud
832 Taylor Swift - folklore
704 Moses Sumney - græ
700 Yves Tumor - Heaven To A Tortured Mind
655 Rina Sawayama - SAWAYAMA
650 Jessie Ware - What's Your Pleasure?
568 Bob Dylan - Rough and Rowdy Ways
538 Fleet Foxes - Shore
509 HAIM - Women in Music Pt. III
502 Fontaines D.C. - A Hero's Death
467 Adrianne Lenker - songs
459 Thundercat - It Is What It Is
454 Charli XCX - how i'm feeling now
430 Laura Marling - Song For Our Daughter
403 SAULT - UNTITLED (Black Is)
401 Róisín Murphy - Róisín Machine
370 Kelly Lee Owens - Inner Song
357 Grimes - Miss Anthropocene
355 Soccer Mommy - color theory
346 Porridge Radio - Every Bad
316 Deftones - Ohms
315 Chloe x Halle - Ungodly Hour
290 The Microphones - Microphones in 2020
287 Lady Gaga - Chromatica
283 Hayley Williams - Petals for Armor
276 Bad Bunny - YHLQMDLG
269 J Hus - Big Conspiracy
257 Jay Electronica - A Written Testimony
254 Freddie Gibbs & The Alchemist - Alfredo
246 Caribou - Suddenly
232 SAULT - Untitled (Rise)
231 Adrianne Lenker - instrumentals
225 Lianne La Havas - Lianne La Havas
202 Megan Thee Stallion - Good News
200 Bartees Strange - Live Forever
189 Sufjan Stevens - The Ascension
181 Bill Callahan - Gold Record
177 Moses Boyd - Dark Matter
175 Jeff Rosenstock - NO DREAM
175 Mac Miller - Circles
168 Idles - Ultra Mono
168 Jason Isbell & The 400 Unit - Reunions
166 Lil Uzi Vert - Eternal Atake
166 U.S. Girls - Heavy Light
164 Crack Cloud - Pain Olympics

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SEE 2009 RESULTS HERE

SEE 2010 RESULTS HERE

SEE 2011 RESULTS HERE

SEE 2012 RESULTS HERE

SEE 2013 RESULTS HERE

SEE 2014 RESULTS HERE

SEE 2015 RESULTS HERE

SEE 2016 RESULTS HERE

SEE 2017 RESULTS HERE

SEE 2018 RESULTS HERE

SEE 2019 RESULTS HERE

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Latest Reviews

Taylor Swift The Tortured Poets Department

Swift’s prolific nature is a double-edged sword; her unfiltered creativity is a boon for die-hard fans but could be overwhelming for casual listeners. Nevertheless, what remains indisputable is the closure this volume brings to a tumultuous chapter in Swift’s life Dork

Taylor Swift The Tortured Poets Department

Thorny on arrival but ultimately insightful, TTPD is a mature, messy, and grippingly honest look into Swift’s tortured psyche Northern Transmissions

Cloud Nothings Final Summer

Baldi has clearly carved out his own corner of plainspoken wisdom; on Final Summer, unfortunately, the songs don’t quite do his insights justice Under The Radar

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Fresh stuff

Fresh stuff

Only God Was Above Us by Vampire Weekend

"Neat summation of where they've been, while still looking forward" (10/10 - The Skinny). "Their most accomplished album yet" (9/10 - DIY). "Sprawling ode to a long-gone, old New York City" (8/10 - NME)

Maggie RogersDon't Forget Me
"The sound of an artist beginning to sink cosily into her own skin, and enjoying herself enormously in the process" (8/10 - DIY). "Perfect for blasting out on a sunny day driving along a highway" (8/10 - musicOMH)

Nia ArchivesSilence Is Loud
"This is truly an album of someone who’s grown up completely native to the information glut age" (10/10 - The Arts Desk). "Her trailblazer status has never been more assured" (9/10 - DIY)

The LibertinesAll Quiet On The Eastern Esplanade
"Their most ambitious and expansive record to date" (8/10 - The Independent). "Its 11 new tunes display energetic rock-pop hooks, plenty going on in the lyrics" (8/10 - Arts Desk)

Bob VylanHumble As The Sun
"Bob Vylan are here to make long-lasting change, and you are their army’s newest recruit" (8/10 - Clash). "Their rebellious spirit is intertwined with a sense of total, inspiring self-love" (8/10 - Kerrang!)

Sum 41Heaven :X: Hell
"A true grand finale, and it's one worth reveling in" (8.8/10 - Sputnik Music). "Without any shadow of a doubt, the album of their career. What a way to leave" (8/1- - Kerrang!)

Julia HolterSomething in the Room She Moves
"The distinct work of an unparalleled songwriting experimentalist" (9/10 - Loud And Quiet). "Warming, aqueous, immersive and endlessly engaging" (9/10 - Uncut)

Chastity BeltLive Laugh Love
"By opening up their songwriting process, the band have managed to carve out an even more singular sound" (8/10 - DIY). "Overall this record is a heady, expansive treat" (8/10 - Mojo)

Bolis PupulLetter to Yu
"Succeeds in melding melancholy with joyous electronica" (8.4/10 - Northern Transmissions). "A compelling journey of grief, loss and the effects of ancestry" (8/10 - musicOMH)

Justin TimberlakeEverything I Thought It Was
"Some focus and editing would have really helped because there's a great album buried somewhere in here" (6/10 - All Music). "Makes me want to enrol in a nunnery immediately" (4/10 - Evening Standard)

Moor MotherThe Great Bailout
"A dense and visceral history lesson from Moor Mother" (8/10 The Line Of Best Fit). "One of her most bracing works" (8/10 All Music). "A grand, artistic and political statement" (8/10 Mojo)

All-time top 10

Since we've been around, that is. So, the highest-rated albums from the past twelve years or so. Rankings are calculated to two decimal places.