It’s time I stopped talking about myself.

I listened to A LOT of music throughout the year. Not all of it is new, new. As in not all originally released in 2023, but they were new to me or were re-released this year in a new way (that counts!). So hopefully you’ll find something.

Slipknot – Volume 3. The Subliminal Verses

I am not a big Slipknot fan. Subliminal Verses though is an incredible LP. I got hold of the purple vinyl pressing this year and was glad I did. ‘Vermillion Part 2’, ‘Circle’ and ‘Danger! Keep Away’ are all strange standout tracks in Slipknots back catalogue and I had a real attachment to those tracks in my teen years. Hearing them again here on vinyl was amazing. Even the heavier stuff on this LP – ‘Duality’, ‘Before I Forget‘ – is well made, fierce and with clever lyrics. Their first two LPs I could take or leave as it was all about shock value and violence; they really stepped up on this album and a lot of their subsequent releases show further progression from here. Their 2022 album ‘The End, So Far’ has some great moments too; but this a one album per band kinda list.

R.E.M. – UP

A classic album re-issued in November of this year. R.E.M. are mostly responsible for my interest in music. Until I heard the album Reveal, music was just background, but that album woke me up. That being said; having obsessively collected their back catalogue in my teen years, Lifes Rich Pageant and Up stood above as my favourites. They are very different sounding albums, but both great in their own way. Up hadn’t been on vinyl in a long time, and the new 2-LP pressing of it was beautiful. Stand out tracks for me are the opening ambiance of ‘Airportman’ and ‘Walk Unafraid‘. Micheal Stipes lyrics throughout the album are engaging and the rest of the bands experimentation with synthesisers and drum machines is incredibly well done, and was quite daring for them at the time.

King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard – Ice, Death, Planets, Lungs, Mushrooms and Lava

Where to begin with this one…I’ve been a King Gizzard fan for a while and for anyone else who is, you’ll know that keeping up with this band is difficult! Insanely prolific and very hard to pin down to just one genre of music. Amazing as always. Omnium Gatherum and K.G. were up to now my favourites, but I do think Ice, Death, etc may have stolen their place. An entire side of vinyl is dedicated to the song ‘Iron Lung‘, and it is so listenable, and repeat listenable.

Beastwars – Blood Becomes Fire

I first came across this band on a BandCamp compilation album series called Weedian (terrific stoner rock and metal compilations that gather music from a given city/state/country per album). I’m a bit late to the scene as this album came out in 2013! This album is fierce in all the right ways and even manages some moments of calm. It’s not my usual style, but I seriously enjoyed this. Stand out tracks for me are; ‘Caul of Time’, and album closer, ‘The Sleeper‘.

Andrew Bird – Outside Problems

Andrew Bird is a musician I’ve been a fan of for quite along time. His song Armchairs is still the most played on my iTunes to this day. I almost completely missed Outside Problems being released somehow. Last years Inside problems and its accompanying videos were fantastic and a recommendation too. Outside Problems is a different album though as it is an instrumental compilation of improvisation and noodling on various instruments, mainly centered around his amazing violin skills.

Crosses – Goodnight, God Bless, I Love U, Delete

Deftones are up there as one of my favourite bands and Chenos vocals are obviously a very big part of their sound. Crosses has been an on/off project for a good number of years. As and when they do appear with new music, it is usually of very high quality and worth the wait. This full length album is fantastic! The rock and electronica elements all come together well. I hesitated when I saw El-P guesting on a song, worried that this album was going to descend too far into rap territory throughout – fortunately I was wrong, and also that particular song ended up being my favourite anyway.

Heather Bond – The Mess We Created

I first stumbled across Heather Bonds music during the covid lockdowns. I believe she had been working on this album for quite some time and was posting little snippets of audio and video from it. Lead single ‘Ich Weiss Nicht’ is a very very catchy tune and with very thoughtful lyrics. Aswonderful as the instrumentation on the album version is, the live in Nashville youtube video showcases the songs versatility in a different way. The album is very worth a listen. Some simple pop sounds, lavish strings, electronic influences in places…I can’t say enough good things about it.

DIIV – Is The Is Are

The algorithm worked! It found my some decent modern shoegaze. This album is brilliant from start to finish. Walls of guitars and reverb heavy, whispery vocals…it’s a fantastic trip. There are slow sad songs and upbeat rock tunes in equal measure. Dopamine is the fast paced single that got my attention initially, and whilst it remains a favourite, it has some serious competition for favourite song from its brethren on the album.

The Brian Jonestown Massacre – Their Satanic Majesties Second Request

Again, I’m very late to the party. This album is a more modern release but has all the sound characteristics of a late 60’s rhythm n blues/psychadelic effort – and it does it so very, very well. Think Beggars Banquet era Rolling Stones and you’ll have an idea of where this is coming from. The song ‘Anemone’ has been circling my playlists all year and is unlikely to leave anytime soon.

Wilco – Yankee Hotel Foxtrot

Wilco have quite possibly been my band of the year. I had developed a minor obsession with the song ‘I Might’ a few years ago after my brother put it on a compilation tape in the car. I never really sought out any more by them though for some reason…until now. This year I’ve acquired four of their albums and I love them all. Yankee Hotel Foxtrot is probably what is considered there essential release, and it’s not without reason. Their style became more electric influenced on this album, but beneath the studio trickery and imaginative sounds, the superb songwriting Jeff Tweedy and co were known for still shines through. If you pick up any of the songs from this album and strum them on an acoustic guitar, or play them at an upright piano, they still sound amazing. The album closer Poor Places is the song that drew me to this album, but honestly if it starts playing the album from track one I’ll be in a trance state and just listen to it right through without moving or doing anything else.

The Smile – A Light For Attracting Attention

So this ended up in most magazines best of 2022 listings…and I didn’t get it at the time. The album on the whole sounded ok, a bt noodly, no real standout moments for me. I listened to it once (on the double yellow vinyl, of course, because I’m a Radiohead completionist with my collection…) and then shelved it, not sure if I’;d pick it up again. Wheras Thom Yorkes ‘Anima’ or Ed O’Briens ‘Earth’ have received consistent play on the turntable…this looked doomed to remain in its sleeve. So why is it on this list? I had a revelation with it. I kept hearing snippets of it here and there and noticing different elements to the songs that appealed to me. ‘Free In The Knowledge’ I believe is one of Thom Yorkes most heart felt set of lyrics and the simple arrangement, that initially put me off, is exactly what those words needed for accompaniment. I listened to the LP in a new frame of mind…there are still in my view one or two filler tracks, but on the whole its pretty solid. The songs aren’t trying to relive Radiohead, if anything it sounds like they’re conciosuly moving as far away from that sound as they can; and that’s actually not a bad thing. Listened to in that framing, the album makes sense and works. Just don’t expect anything to sound like ‘My Iron Lung’, ‘Idiotheque’ or ‘There There’ – you’ll be disappointed. Listen to the record as a new project within its own boundaries and appreciate the word weaving and the beautiful string arrangements.

The Pixies – Wave of Mutilation

Every best of the year list requires a ‘best of’ compilation. Here we go. I don’t need to explain this one. The classic Pixies albums are fantastic and a single record that compiles the highlights can only be a great thing! **this being said, do check out new Pixies albums, because the latest few records have been amazing too.

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This was by no means a full list of what I’m listening to right now, but it gives a snapshot. I might start putting together some spotify lists in the future to share where I’m at and whose sounds I’m digging.

Thanks for reading and I hope you find some new songs from this list.

CFx