Gothtober - the Top 10 Goth Albums of 2020

It's that time of year again . It might seem early to start this in November , but record labels have pretty much send me most of what this year has to offer already , by the time I am done sorting through the top 10 albums of all the respective genres, I will then compile the top 10 albums of the year. I know many of you are ready for 2020 to be over with. Hate to break it to you but nothing is getting better next year.; As far as 2020 goes for goth there are only two new bands on this years list .The very fact these bands made it on the list speaks to how great these albums are, so it's not a slight that the number 8 album is above the 9th album, there is something that just gives it an edge that makes me want to listen to it more.

After all we can try to look cool and pick the hippest bands for a list, but at the end of the day what makes an album the best is that it makes you want more, you look forward to listening to it again. Sure you can bitch and complain about your favorite band not being on the list. However  I listen to five new albums a day so yes I heard your favorite album and was not impressed. No, I do not care what you think about it. I do hope you can find your next favorite on this list ; and have included links to reviews of these albums if you want to check out audio on these guys. Anyways here are the top 10 goth albums of 2020

10  - Black Needle Noise -"These Mortal Covers" 

 John Fryer one half of This Mortal Coil, released this covers album. Much like with This Mortal Coil, different singers lent their voices . It ranged from an industrial take of Nancy Sinatra's "Bang Bang" to a darker more introspective vision of "What a Wonderful World" .  

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2020/10/gothtober-black-needle-noise-these.html

 

9-Kanga-" Eternal Daughter"

 At the top of the heap for future pop / dark wave. Her voice exudes sex appeal even when just talking her way through a song. Sure there is lots of stuff that came out this year in this vein , she just did it better . 

 https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2020/10/gothtober-kanga-eternal-daughter.html

 

8-Cripple Black Phoenix - " "Ellengæst"

 They lost their singer and went in a darker direction. Bringing in singers from bands ranging from Tribulation to Fotocrime. It is progressive only if you mean becoming progressively more depressing , which is a beautiful thing.

 https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2020/10/gothtober-crippled-black-phoenix.html  

7-Clan of Xymox This darker turn from their 2017 album is much needed. They are now among the top tier with their peers from this era, if there was any doubt.

 https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2020/10/gothtober-clan-of-xymox-spider-on-wall.html

 

 

 6-Alter de Fey- " And May Love Conquer All" 

 Lots of bands claimed to be death rock and are really just punk with some make up on at best, this band is a legit as it gets. Proof that if you stick to your guns the wheel of trends will spin back around to you. In the same vein of death rock as Christian Death. This is text book death rock. What sets them apart is they did not have to worry about capturing a sound as that came naturally.

 https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2020/10/gothtober-altar-de-fey-and-may-love.html

5-Rosegarden Funeral Party- "At the Stake"

 Yes, there is a Siouxsie influence, but that is not what defines their sound, nor are they a tribute act pretending to write originals . They have a sound but they also have songs and are not afraid to beef it up a little bit on the rock side.

 https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2020/06/rosegarden-funeral-party-at-stake.html

 

4-Bestial Mouths- "RESURRECTEDINBLACK" 

 It makes me think of what might happen if Diamanda Galas jammed with Switchblade Symphony. I like that it opens new doors of sound and takes the darkness of this album in another direction, not painting in the same shade of black. A more driving industrial pulse pushes the last song ahead. This works as it is great to hear the dynamic range of this album.

 https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2020/10/gothtober-bestial-mouths.html

3- Marilyn Manson - We Are Chaos 

This and the two releases that follow could have all taken the number one spot, but how much air time they got factored into edging each other into the respective places these albums fell. This one finds Manson picking up where he left off with "Mechanical Animals" . Glam at time but a less gaudy version than "Dope Show".  This album shine the most when he is out of his comfort zone and following in the steps of March Bolan rather than Trent Reznor. 

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2020/09/mariyn-manson-we-are-chaos.html

2-Corlyx< 'Together Apart"

 The duo's first album for Negative Grain finds them making a conscious shift from the more electro industrial stylings of their last album to making a goth album. By goth it leans more toward the post -punk side of the equation on the first song rather than darkwave or death rock. What I like about this is how they are not emulating any one band.

 https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2020/07/corlyx-together-apart.html 

 

1-Sound VVitch- "Becoming" 

 This project based out of New York blends dark wave and industrial, though not neatly falling into either sub genre. It is too heavy for dark wave and works of slow slithering pounds rather than a neat dance floor ready groove. This album is in the number one spot , because the song have just demanded that I listen to them more than other albums. Not just other goth albums, it competes for air time against all of my favorite artists. When you consider the amount of music ingest this is an even more impressive feat and speaks to the quality of these songs. If you are reading this article you like dark music, so you need to give this a listen . 

 https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2020/05/sound-vvitch-becoming.html