The Best 40 Albums of 2023
This list could change on another day or week, but this is where it currently sits.
40. PinkPantheress: Heaven Knows
An unoffensive, fun pop record that's great for working.
39. Oneohtrix Point Never: Again
Another solid journey. A few uninspired moments in the front half, but the payoff is awesome.
38. Zach Bryan: Self titled
Country record of the year.
37. Vidrio: Titanic
Great little experimental jazz record.
36. L’rain: I Killed Your Dog
35. Jonathan Bockelmann: Childish Mind
8/10 Modern classical guitar with jazz and flaminco flare throughout.
34. Ratboys: The Window
8/10 - Great folk rock record
33. Hayden Pedigo: The Happiest Times I Ever Ignored
32. The National: First Two Pages of Frankenstein
31. Joanna Sternburg: I’ve Got Me
8/10 - A simple and captivating folk record.
30. Christopher Adler: Landscape Traces: New Music for Khaen, Vol 2.
8/10 - Adler's performances on the khaen, a Laos mouth organ, are intense.
29. Feeble Little Horse: Girl With Fish
28. King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard: PetroDragonic Apocalypse
8/10 These boys don’t slow down and won’t quit.
27. Sprain: The Lamb as Effigy
8/10 - A remarkable post-rock record, but not for everyone. It’s the sound of sincere pain and misery, the sound of modern man separated from God, self worth, and hope.
26. 100 Gecs: 1000 Gecs
8/10 - A wild ride. Catchy, glitchy... the sound of the internet in musical form.
25. Colin Stetson: When We were that what wept for the sea
8/10 - The continuous-breathing saxophonist does it again. Love this man's body of work.
24. Andre 3000: New Blue Sun
8/10 - A flute record from one of the best rappers of all time. Put me in a trance. Beautiful and unexpected album from one of our most talented creative minds.
23. The Japanese House: In the End it always does
8/10 - What a record.
22. George Clanton: Ooh Rap | Ya
8/10 - Nostalgic vibes all over the place. A fun, chill time.
21. Stornoway: Dig the Mountain!
8/10 - Lovely little indie folk record.
20. Paramore: This is Why
8/10
19. Jeff Rosenstock: Hellmode
8/10 - A rollicking and emotive punk opus.
18. Michalis Kouloumis, Tristan Driessens & Miriam Encinas Laffitte: Music for Shepherds and Sultans
8/10 - Beautiful and meditative
17. Caroline Polachek: Desire, I Want to Turn Into You
8/10 - I didn’t think this would be for me while listening to the opening track, and then the record kept going… What a pop record.
16. boygenius: the record
8/10 - It’s as good as everyone says it is.
15. Mitski: The Land is Inhospitable and so are we
8/10 - From the first choral singing of the word “family” on the first track, I knew this was going to be a special one…and it is. The lyrics, the vocals, the tunes. Get into it.
14. Lonnie Holley: Oh my oh my
8/10- An album that stands alone in sound and story.
13. The Lemon Twigs: Everything Harmony
8/10 - A modern soft rock album with flavors from the 70s. Awesome and I cannot stop listening to it. The most earworms per record on this list.
12. billy woods and Kenny Segal: Maps
8/10 - Absolute stunner of a hip hop project.
11. Lana Del Rey: Did you know that there's a tunnel under Ocean Blvd
8/10 - Wasn’t a Lana fan before this record but yowza, this one is special and excellent.
10. Sampha: Lahai
8/10 - The man is creating something all his own, and I am into it.
9. Tiny Habits: Tiny Things
9/10 - Had a little love affair with this pretty thing. Soft harmonies and tender lyrics give the feeling of a living room show with friends. Listen.
8. Parannoul: After the Magic
9/10 - An epic shoegaze journey from South Korea.
7. Aberdeen: Held Together
9/10 - An instrumental jazz-rock gem of an album. Emotive, inspiring, and passionate. This indie-rock brass band from Brooklyn has me in it's claws.
6. McKinley Dixon: Beloved! Paradise! Jazz!?
9/10 - My favorite hip hop project of the year. From the production to the lyrical execution, this thing rules.
5. Sufjan Stevens: Javelin
9/10 - An emotional and haunting record from one of our best.
4. Schnittke: Psalms of Repentance
10/10 - Capella Amsterdam & crew put together something special here. Wow.
Cicada: Seeking the Sources of Streams
10/10 - A record that soundtracked countless working hours. Careful and beauteous.
Arvo Part: Tractus
10/10 - Gorgeous, frightening, lovely, emotional. Another dose of music that feels holy from the legend himself.
Silvia Perez Cruz: Toda la vida, un dia
10/10 - I quickly fell in love with this Spanish folk record. Absolutely delicate, beautiful, and moving from the beginning to end. You must listen.