2023 has been a subtly fantastic year for music; below is a single music lover’s attempt to narrow it down to a top ten list.
10. Desire, I Want To Turn Into You by Caroline Polachek
Desire is a record of wondrous escapism. Polachek’s elastic pop mastery and endlessly original production choices fashion a hit parade of yearning made lusciously tangible.
Check Out: “Welcome To My Island” and “Billions”
9. Let’s Start Here. by Lil Yachty
In one of 2023’s most astounding stylistic shifts, the panache with which Yachty bridges trippy bubblegum trap and syrupy psychedelia only accents his creative spirit.
Check Out: “the ride-” and “WE SAW THE SUN!”
8. Lahai by Sampha
Sampha’s long-awaited comeback album is a meditative aerial pilgrimage. Taking the scenic route through a spiritual journey, the British singer compliments his philosophical ponderings with an effortlessly divine voice and tranquil R&B songwriting.
Check Out: “Spirit 2.0” and “Suspended”
7. UGLY by slowthai
Grimy post-punk instrumentation and emotive writing take slowthai to dismal places, but even when the world gets ugly, the rapper never stops preaching that “U Gotta Love Yourself.”
Check Out: “Selfish” and “HAPPY”
6. Javelin by Sufjan Stevens
Stevens pairs some of his most tender songwriting with ornate folktronic flourishes, proving that the singer-songwriter is still bursting with creativity. A bittersweet tribute to his late partner, Javelin is as heart-wrenching as it is pristine.
5. O Monolith by Squid
Perhaps rock’s most idiosyncratic offerings in years, Monolith revels in twisting the listener’s perspective in bizarre new directions. Emboldening their oblique compositions with dynamic performances and surging climaxes, Squid cements themselves as one of punk’s most thrilling young bands.
Check Out: “Swing (In A Dream)” and “Undergrowth”
4. After the Magic by Parannoul
Using the soaring standards of dream pop and post-rock, the Korean songwriter crafts a glistening sonic journey translating love and beauty through a musical prism. Packed with ascendant highs of lush orchestration over Parannoul’s dreamy rock soundscapes, ATM is a study in wintry euphoria.
Check Out: “Polaris” and “Arrival”
3. SCARING THE HOES by JPEGMAFIA & Danny Brown
STH thrives in chaos; off-the-wall performances and bombastic beats practically burst out of the speakers. The dynamic duo—composed of two of hip hop’s most riotous MCs—delivers concentrated manic energy in the form of madcap anthems.
Check Out: “Garbage Pale Kids” and “Kingdom Hearts Key”
2. Wallsocket by underscores
Wallsocket is an eclectic portrait of American suburbia, pulling from the extremes of pop music to craft a vivid aesthetic collage. Firing on every cylinder possible, underscores packs mind-bending production, wry lyricism, and addictive hooks into a hypermodern classic.
Check Out: “Locals (Girls like us)” and “Shoot to kill, kill your darlings”
1. Did you know that there’s a tunnel under ocean boulevard? by Lana Del Rey
Ocean boulevard is the singer’s most personal release, coalescing her intimate songwriting and pop diva alter ego into the truest expression of who Lana Del Rey is in 2023. Elegant and vulnerable, the record is Lana’s moving declaration to be immortalized in American musical iconography—and she is very successful.
This article also appears in our December 2023 print edition.
