Things that got the staff of The Tribune through the pandemic year

Heath Harrison, community editor

1. Phoebe Bridgers – “Punisher” – With multiple Grammy nominations and a string of socially-distanced appearances on nearly every talk show, Bridgers’ second album broke her into the mainstream and served as a soundtrack to the pandemic lockdowns.
2. Pearl Jam – “Gigaton” – The band emerged from hibernation with their first new album in seven years, did not disappoint and displayed vitality at a level not seen since their early years.
3. Paul McCartney – “McCartney III” – The former Beatle wrote, recorded all the parts and produced this album from his home during lockdown. His knack for catchy hooks are as strong as ever at age 78.
4. Beabadoobee – “Fake It Flowers” – Stunning debut from Filipino-born Brit that sounds like it could have come straight from the heyday of ‘90s alternative rock.
5. Bully – “Sugaregg” – Alicia Bognanno, now solo, released her third album, a dense, high energy collection of guitar fuzz.

Jeremy Hotlzapfel, marketing specialist

1. Music – Bright Eyes – “Down in the Weeds, Where the World Once Was” (Dead Oceans)
2. Music – Frank Hurricane – “Love Ya Love Ya” (Feeding Tube Records)
3. Game – “Goblin Sword” – Nintendo Switch (Gelato Games Limited)
4. TV series – “Ted Lasso” – AppleTV+
5. Movie – “The Devil All the Time” (Netflix)

MacLean James, administrative assistant

1. Barack Obama – “A Promised Land”
2. Phoebe Bridgers – “Punisher”
3. Fiona Apple – “Fetch the Boltcutters”
4. Christian Lee Hutson – “Beginners”
5. Suzanne Collins – “The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes”

Mark Shaffer, reporter

• Sturgill Simpson “Sound & Fury.” I bought this in March before the pandemic got terrible and this was the perfect soundtrack for dealing with the lockdown and having to find new ways to deal with life’s new normal.
• “Always Be My Maybe” Netflix. A great, little romantic comedy starring Ali Wong and Randall Park. Funny, funny stuff with a hugely awkward restaurant scene starring the one and only Keanu Reeves.
• Pearl Jam “Gigaton.” Pearl Jam was back with their 11th studio album and back to a straight forward rock sound. “Dance of the Clairvoyants” and “Superblood Wolfmoon” get played very loud in the car.
• “The Mandalorian.” All action, very little talking. Just a simple man trying to save Baby Yoda from the Empire and get him a good home. All the fun Star Wars was meant to be.
• YouTube. Thanks to all the people who actually know how to fix things for putting their videos online. So much easier to repair my car when I know what I’m looking at. Still wondering why every car fix requires a 10 mm socket and why I can’t ever find a 10 mm socket despite the fact I have at least seven of those sockets by this point.

Sarah Simmons, general manager

1. Music — Fiona Apple – “Fetch the Boltcutters”
2. Music — Andrew Bird – “Are You Serious”
3. Music — Ezra Furman – “Twelve Nudes”
4. Book — Bill Bryson – “At Home: A Short History of Private Life”
5. Music — Amanda Palmer – “Theater is Evil”