Best of: Albums recorded during quarantine
As the world came to a pause and everyone was left in a state of uncertainty, musicians turned toward what they know how to do best: making music. Photo illustration by HARRY LADA, Art Director
This has been the worst year for music. I don’t mean that in terms of the music that was released (we’ll get into that later). It was the worst year for music in the sense that we didn’t get to have those adrenaline-inducing, lost-in-a-general-admission-pit experiences that lasted until the early hours of the morning. There were no festival lineup announcements in the infamous Coachella weekend Instagram spams that our eyes frantically scanned through to find our favorite artists. Instead, we were forced to experience the rush of a new album in our childhood bedrooms at 9 p.m. on a Thursday night, refreshing our Spotify accounts for the newest releases of the week.
But the releases themselves have been absolutely killer. For music junkies, this past year of quarantining meant listening to music constantly as a way to cope with the frantic state of the world. At the beginning of the pandemic, Spotify saw a 31% increase in monthly active users. Isolation has allowed our favorite musicians to be cooped up in makeshift studios with nothing but their constant flow of creativity and time. With artists like Charli XCX documenting the entire process via Twitter and Instagram and Taylor Swift dropping not one, but two surprise albums, the outlook of the past year’s album releases were shaped by the pandemic.
As everything slowly starts to open up, and more and more people become vaccinated, we’re inching our way back into a sense of “normalcy.” For this last issue, I want to take a look back on some of my personal favorite albums that were made and released during quarantine, soundtracking this past year of confusion and chaos.
No. 5 “Times” - SG Lewis
SG Lewis’ debut album “Times” is the soundtrack to the night out with friends that we didn’t get to have, but so deserved. With luscious synths and pulsating house beats, he brings the nightlife to you in audio format, totaling to a 10-track, 40-minute euphoric frenzy. His production has the same exact feeling as both the look you give yourself in a bathroom mirror at a house party when you realize you’re too far gone and that “let’s get out of here” glance you give to that person you’ve been eyeing all night.
Favorite Songs
“Impact” - I sent this song to my friend and he said that he wanted nothing more than to be at a club with this playing. That statement has never left my mind since then.
“Heartbreak On The Dancefloor” - If there’s any song that’s ever captured that existential moment where you’re out with friends and say to yourself, “Damn, I’m actually so sad,” it’s this one.
No. 4 “Folklore” - Taylor Swift
I have a weird relationship with this album. It reminds me of a lot of things that I want to forget and a period in my life where I was dealing with the most intense, grueling sadness I’ve ever felt. I woke up one day in July to a Twitter post from Swift saying she was releasing an album she recorded in quarantine and that same night I was crying in a Jamba Juice parking lot to “Cardigan” right after my closing shift ended. Crazy how that happens, huh?
Favorite Song
“Cardigan” - This one stings, but it means the most to me. For her to reminisce about being drunk with an old lover under a streetlight makes me think she read a few pages out of my journal. For her to talk about being haunted by the constant what-ifs with someone is like a slap in the face. And for her to pen the lyrics “You drew stars around my scars / But now I'm bleeding,'' it just shows that she gets me.
No. 3 “Future Nostalgia” - Dua Lipa
While Dua Lipa’s “Future Nostalgia” wasn’t quite exactly recorded during the pandemic, it was regarded as one of the time’s saving graces by music connoisseurs.
Let me quickly tell you why “Future Nostalgia” is one of the best things to happen to pop culture in a long, long time. In a music industry currently filled with whispered vocals attempting to get that “indie” sound, she gave us an album of bops and maximalist production. There is not one single filler song on the album, each one deserves their spot (out of the 150 songs she wrote) on the tracklist. From the album’s retro imagery to its vibrant, playful music videos to its perfected choreography, this was more than an album — it was a moment.
Favorite Songs
“Levitating” - The first time I heard the album was when it leaked a month early (I’m impatient). I just knew this would be the one. And it was. It’s a feel-good track that I deserve to hear blasted out loud in a concert venue surrounded by a bunch of strangers.
“Break My Heart” - Sampling the classic “Need You Tonight” by INXS, this song is the definition of future nostalgia. The infectious melody and stress of syllables in the chorus is so damn addictive, you can’t help but move to it. And don’t even get me started on the bridge. Dua just harmonizes with herself over atmospheric production, leading to the most beautiful, cinematic 15 seconds on the album. Perfection.
No. 2 “In A Dream (EP)” - Troye Sivan
I’m going to flex for a second and let you all know that I’ve been a Troye Sivan stan since the beginning. His growth has been incredible. Watching him come to terms with his sexuality on YouTube in 2014 to having seen him live in concert three times, I’m proud to have been there for it all.
For me, there’s something special about being queer and having a queer artist sing about love, sex, pain and pandemic mundanity over stellar production. “In A Dream” is Sivan’s raw confessional, offering a mature insight into his life while giving his fans something during a musical drought as he works on his third studio album.
Favorite Songs
“STUD” - Troye Sivan has always shed light on the queer experience in ways many other artists haven’t. “STUD” is a club anthem with grimey beats that discusses the pressures men have regarding their physique within the confines of gay hookup culture. Sivan sings about intense, lustful desire in a gay nightclub while reminding us that we’re all feeling the same insecurity: “How much of me would you take? / And how much of me would you change?”
“could cry just thinkin about you” - I don’t even have any words for this one. The song speaks for itself. All I need to do is quote the following lyrics: “Every line I write is something about you / Every guy I want looks something just like you / Every book I read, I only read for you / Every art piece is just to remind you / I don't know who I am, with or without you.”
No. 1 “how i’m feeling now” - Charli XCX
“How i’m feeling now” is the quintessential quarantine album. Challenging herself to come up with a full-length studio album in under a month, Charli XCX set out to create a body of work that was an embodiment of the state of confusion, anxiety and loneliness she was feeling. Up until the album’s release on May 15, 2020, Charli XCX would post about her creative process to bring her fans closer to the development of the album, even going on Instagram live to use their comments to write lyrics.
Charli XCX brought phase one of quarantine to life through her music. From discussing everyday feelings of repetition on “anthems” (“I'm so bored (Woo) / Wake up late, eat some cereal”) to yearning for nights out with her girls on “c2.0” (“I miss them every night / I miss them by my side”), Charli was able to preserve the intense emotions from the beginning stages of quarantine in an album that will be looked back on as a historic artifact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Favorite Songs
“claws” - If there’s one thing Charli XCX is going to do, it’s have lyrics that don’t make any sense but sound so good together. “Claws” is an infectious hyperpop track that has an addictive melody, bound to get stuck in your head. For many fans of Charli XCX, it’s an embodiment of that first month into quarantine, a reminder of what it was like to slowly get into the rhythm of the pandemic.
“party 4 u” - This was my favorite song of 2020. To give some context, Charli performed this track live back in 2017 once and then never released it. It became a song highly regarded among fans and, in a way, having it on this album was a secret between her and hardcore stans that know the history behind it.
Lyrically, this song means a lot to me. The way Charli XCX writes about yearning and heartbreak in such a specific way feels like we’re learning the most intimate details about her relationship with an old lover. All I know is when I get to hear the lyrics, “I wish you'd get here, kiss my face / Instead, you're somewhere far away” over clashy, jarring production in a venue full of strangers, I’ll have tears in my ears. Those tears won’t just be because of the fact that this song helped me get through pandemic heartbreak, but because I’ll know that we’ve returned to a state of normalcy where concerts simply aren’t a thing of the past anymore.