Best Music of 2023 Discussion Thread

[monasterymonochrome]

Continuing this thread with one I'm split on:



Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit - Weathervanes

I don't know. There are stretches of this record that I really like! Particularly that early run of "King of Oklahoma" through "Middle of the Morning" - but then this record just keeps happening. I like Isbell, I like his voice, his songwriting style can be a little on-the-nose but I mostly like it. But an hour of him here is just too much. The melodies start to feel identical. The arrangements stay in the middle of the road, and I get bored. It takes until "This Ain't It" to kick me in the ass again - and that's like 50+ minutes into the record! It's a good record, well executed, whatever. I just don't know if he's for me anymore. So it goes.

Did you hear this record? What did you think? Was this a letdown / return to form / more of the same to you?

[obmit]

I don't think the Janelle Monae record is all that bad. After catching it live I came to appreciate it as a party record/victory lap. I wasn't expecting another ArchAndroid, or Dirty Computer. It's just a fun album, def not her tho. I can def see why it is viewed as a disappointment given her track record.

Surprised at the Shame response, I've always been kinda iffy on them but this one captured me quicker. It's their best imo, tho I haven't returned to it in awhile...

Squid I can see being a disappointment to some since they streamlined their sound to make it pop more. But I still dig it quite a bit.

Came around to the Armed album after being put off by the damn near numetal feel but it's actually a banger to me.

I was initially excited about boygenius but now I'm kinda over hearing about them. I dig the record but haven't put it on in awhile.

Both National albums and UMO were mid to bore.

[teekoh]

I enjoyed the Shame album, too, though I don’t think it matches the high bar of their other stuff.

[monasterymonochrome]

One more for today - on a more positive note:



Ana Frango Eletrico - Me Chama De Gato Que Eu Sou Sua

Possibly the most fun album I've heard this year. Ana Frango Eletrico (they/them) is a rising Brazilian singer/composer and their whole record rules. An amalgam of Prince, Stereolab, UMO/Mac-esque guitars, and tremendous Brazilian-inflected rhythms and harmonies ("Coisa Maluca"). Sometimes it's like a spruced up, bilingual take on Caroline Rose's Loner (see: "Boy of Stranger Things"), sometimes it's an unabashed party ("Electric Fish" is a SOTY contender). Songs veer from sleekly minimal (the Stereolab-esque "Let's Go To Before Again") to infectiously maximal ("Debaixo do Pano" - another SOTY contender). This only came out late last month, but I already love love love it. May contend for the top 10 of my final list. Give it a shot!

Did you hear this record? Did you listen to it after reading this? How many more name-drops do I need to add to this write-up to convince you to listen to it?

[dij22]

Nov 28, 2023 9:05:37 GMT -6 monasterymonochrome said:

Continuing this thread with one I'm split on:



Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit - Weathervanes

"This Ain't It"

This would probably be my SOTY if "Chosen to Deserve" didn't exist

[chvrchbarrel]

i really like this militarie gun record

[kb]

i was sleepin on this album from melenas, a spanish band who clearly loves stereolab.

[monasterymonochrome]

Nov 28, 2023 11:20:55 GMT -6 dij22 said:

Nov 28, 2023 9:05:37 GMT -6 monasterymonochrome said:

Continuing this thread with one I'm split on:



Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit - Weathervanes

"This Ain't It"

This would probably be my SOTY if "Chosen to Deserve" didn't exist

Ayy "Chosen to Deserve" SOTY gang rise up!

[mookie]

Nov 28, 2023 11:24:04 GMT -6 chvrchbarrel said:

i really like this militarie gun record

I have had this one saved for several weeks but kept forgetting to give it a shot.  It was very good, thanks for the reminder.

[monasterymonochrome]

Nov 28, 2023 13:35:06 GMT -6 mookie said:

Nov 28, 2023 11:24:04 GMT -6 chvrchbarrel said:

i really like this militarie gun record

I have had this one saved for several weeks but kept forgetting to give it a shot.  It was very good, thanks for the reminder.

Listened to this at the gym this morning and loved it. Good shit.

[claypoolfan]

Will this be like 2021 when a hardcore/indie crossover band wins everyone over and sneaks into the board aoty top slot??

[monasterymonochrome]

Welcome to another day of 2023 discussion! Today - let's talk buzz bands!



Wednesday - Rat Saw God

Starting off with my favorite & perhaps the buzziest band of all - Wednesday. Shit, they're so buzzy they even have a song about getting stung by a yellowjacket ("What's So Funny"). I first started hearing about these guys sometime last year. Spotify seemed determined to autoplay them after ever indie-adjacent record I heard. Then this year they were everywhere. And for good fucking reason - this record is awesome. Karly Hartzman is one of the best young songwriters in the game. Much ado has been made about the universality of her lyrical specificity, how this record feels like doing hoodrat shit with your hoodrat friends, etc. I think this is cool. But I also love how she'll drop knock-out lines in the middle of these Carolinan suburban sleaze tails. Think "At night I don't count stars, I count the dark" from Turkey Vultures, or "Now everywhere is loneliness, and it's in everything" from SOTY Chosen to Deserve. And, of course, much much more has been said about how Wednesday is leading a sort of indie alt-country / DBT-core wave. I also like that, and Hartzman and her partner Jake (aka MJ) Lenderman's guitars are scuzzy, earthen, and - often - bleak here. If there's a knock on the record, it's that it could use a little more melodic diversity. That was my complaint when it first came out, and I've warmed up to it waaay more, but there's def still room for improvement. Which is honestly really exciting to me. This Wednesday / Lenderman wave is my favorite movement in indie rn, and this record is a cornerstone of said new canon.

Did you hear this one? Did it live up to the hype? Will it win P4k's AOTY? What were your favorite / least favorite buzz bands from 2023?

Some other notable buzzers below (ranked approximately in order of how much I enjoyed their record):

• Water From Your Eyes
• Feeble Little Horse
• Florry
• Slow Pulp
• Hotline TNT
• Model/Actriz
• Mandy, IN
• Bar Italia

[thebosma]

Wednesday album will be very high on my list. Annoyed that their Milwaukee show sold out before I grabbed a ticket to it but I imagine they’ll be back around again soon.

[mookie]

I don't understand why everyone is so into the Wednesday album, but I am very happy for you all!

Model/Actriz and Mandy, Indiana will rank pretty high for me, loved both of those albums. Water From Your Eyes and Feeble Little Horse should make it too. Hotline TNT was a late arriver, but has been getting my attention the last few weeks. Bar Italia is up there in the "how is this so heavily hyped" sweepstakes for me this year.

[zircona1]

Wednesday and Model/Actriz put out my favorite albums this year I'd say.
Tried a bit of Mandy, Indiana today. Will try the rest later.
Militarie Gun didn't do much for me, guitar tones are on point, maybe it's the vocalist. 

I'm cramming.

[teekoh]

Listened to the Water From Your Eyes record this morning and it’s very much up my alley. I’m kinda bummed I hadn’t checked them out before they got big(ger).

[monasterymonochrome]

Nov 29, 2023 15:27:02 GMT -6 teekoh said:

Listened to the Water From Your Eyes record this morning and it’s very much up my alley. I’m kinda bummed I hadn’t checked them out before they got big(ger).

Funnily, I saw them open for Pavement last year before I’d ever heard of them and *hated* it

Didn’t expect to like their record as much as I do. Been in pretty steady rotation since the summer. I’ve since missed them do a couple free shows in NY b/c of conflicts. I’m curious to see what if their live show hits different now that I’m familiar with the material

[monasterymonochrome]

Nov 29, 2023 14:53:34 GMT -6 mookie said:

I don't understand why everyone is so into the Wednesday album, but I am very happy for you all!

Model/Actriz and Mandy, Indiana will rank pretty high for me, loved both of those albums. Water From Your Eyes and Feeble Little Horse should make it too. Hotline TNT was a late arriver, but has been getting my attention the last few weeks. Bar Italia is up there in the "how is this so heavily hyped" sweepstakes for me this year.

I’d guess the Big Thief 2022 AOTY coalition is pretty identical to the Wednesday fan club haha

[goodson]

bar italia - tracey denim
bar italia - the twits
chuquimamani condori - dj e
ken carson - a great chaos
caroline polacheck - desire i want to ...
kelela - raven
freak heat waves - mondo tempo
lana - ocean blvd
dougie poole - rainbow wheel of death
tirzah - trip9love...?
wednesday - rat saw god
jam city - presents efm
nourished by time - erotic probiotic 2
earl - voir dire
fever ray - radical romantics
crushed - extra life
pinkpantheress - heaven knows
slow pulp - yard
everything but the girl - fuse
a.s.o. - s/t
ryuichi sakamoto - 12

off the dome

[Tweet]

Buzz bands (another phrase that doesn't mean anything anymore!) with albums this year that I like, in no real order I don't think:

The Tubs
Militarie Gun
Black Belt Eagle Scout
Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs
Wednesday
ok cool
Bonny Doon
Indigo de Souza
Rose City Band
Geese
Snooper
Stuck
Mandy, Indiana
Squid
Fiddlehead
cumgirl8
Ratboys
Deeper
Slow Pulp
Jane Revolver
Hotline TNT

[thebosma]

Nov 29, 2023 16:01:44 GMT -6 goodson said:

chuquimamani condori - dj e

Everybody should listen to this btw

[fiveiron83321]

Nov 29, 2023 16:10:31 GMT -6 Tweet said:

Buzz bands (another phrase that doesn't mean anything anymore!) with albums this year that I like, in no real order I don't think:

The Tubs

<#

[monasterymonochrome]

Nov 29, 2023 21:22:35 GMT -6 fiveiron83321 said:

Nov 29, 2023 16:10:31 GMT -6 Tweet said:

Buzz bands (another phrase that doesn't mean anything anymore!) with albums this year that I like, in no real order I don't think:

The Tubs

<#

Really need this band to do a US tour

[monasterymonochrome]

Nov 29, 2023 16:13:18 GMT -6 thebosma said:

Nov 29, 2023 16:01:44 GMT -6 goodson said:

chuquimamani condori - dj e

Everybody should listen to this btw

Holy shit - two tracks in and this is awesome

[venom]

Nov 29, 2023 16:10:31 GMT -6 Tweet said:

Buzz bands (another phrase that doesn't mean anything anymore!) with albums this year that I like, in no real order I don't think:

The Tubs
Hotline TNT

i've really enjoyed that tubs album. probably related, i've put on a few more richard thompson records this year than the last couple.

on the other hand, i was very disappointed with hotline tnt live and have not even gone back to their album since then. but i should give it another shot.

[mookie]

I haven't had a chance to look at the list yet, but I'm sure it's awful as always

[chvrchbarrel]

Nov 30, 2023 11:07:56 GMT -6 mookie said:

I haven't had a chance to look at the list yet

too busy with the olivia rodrigo pictures probably

[monasterymonochrome]

Nov 30, 2023 11:07:56 GMT -6 mookie said:

I haven't had a chance to look at the list yet, but I'm sure it's awful as always

It's a'ight I guess.  Right down the middle of the road, as expected.

SPOILER: Click to show

Rolling Stone’s Top 50 Albums of 2023
50. Dominic Fike – Sunburn
49. Yo La Tengo – This Stupid World
48. Gunna – a Gift & a Curse
47. L’Rain – I Killed Your Dog
46. Everything But the Girl – Fuse
45. Kylie Minogue – Tension
44. Jenny Lewis – Joy’all
43. Megan Moroney – LUCKY
42. Samory-I – Strength
41. U.S. Girls – Bless This Mess
40. Kara Jackson – Why Does the Earth Give Us People to Love?
39. Veeze – Ganger
38. KAYTRAMINÉ – KAYTRAMINÉ
37. Asake – Work Of Art
36. Water From Your Eyes – Everyone’s Crushed
35. Drake – For All The Dogs
34. Troye Sivan – Something To Give Each Other
33. NewJeans – Get Up
32. Bad Bunny – nadie sabe lo que va a pasar mañana
31. Model/Actriz – Dogsbody
30. Miley Cyrus – Endless Summer Vacation
29. Kali Uchis – Red Moon In Venus
28. Caroline Polachek – Desire, I Want To Turn Into You
27. Wednesday – Rat Saw God
26. Amaarae – Fountain Baby
25. Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit – Weathervanes
24. Kesha – Gag Order
23. Christine and the Queens – PARANOÏA, ANGELS, TRUE LOVE
22. Young Nudy – Gumbo
21. Lana Del Rey – Did you know that there’s a tunnel under Ocean Blvd
20. Janelle Monáe – The Age of Pleasure
19. JPEGMAFIA & Danny Brown – SCARING THE HOES
18. Jessie Ware – That! Feels Good!
17. ANOHNI and the Johnsons – My Back Was A Bridge For You To Cross
16. Becky G – ESQUINAS
15. Sufjan Stevens – Javelin
14. KAROL G – MAÑANA SERÁ BONITO
13. Noname – Sundial
12. Chappell Roan – The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess
11. Blondshell – Blondshell
10. Zach Bryan – Zach Bryan
9. Victoria Monét – JAGUAR II
8. billy woods & Kenny Segal – Maps
7. Mitski – The Land Is Inhospitable and So Are We
6. Paramore – This Is Why
5. Olivia Rodrigo – GUTS
4. Lil Yachty – Let’s Start Here.
3. Tainy – DATA
2. boygenius – the record
1. SZA – SOS

[monasterymonochrome]

Only gonna do a few more of these - maybe another week's worth. Everything from here on out in Top 10 or in AOTY contention. Today, let's talk about some 2000s indie legacy acts...



Sufjan Stevens - Javelin

It sort of feels like Sufjan's first Big Statement album since 2015's Carrie and Lowell, which is wild. I was convinced of this until wikipedia reminded me of 2020's The Ascension, which I've totally memory-holed. Man's been busy, either way. Planetarium, The Greatest Gift (C&L b-sides), and a host of collaborations (with Angelo De Augustine, or his dance pieces). This one feels... different tho. Stripped back, raw, and with a painful, wide-eyed beauty. Carrie & Lowell was a statement on human fragility. Javelin echoes this in parts. But it's also about transcendence, a balance between fullness and emptiness. To me, it's about love. These songs seem to chart the dissolution of a relationship - as we learned upon its release, Sufjan's longtime partner recently passed away - and this context, to me, imbues the album with an extra-overt aura of grief that eluded the first round of already effusively positive reviews. But idk. This album is crushing, yes. "Will Anybody Ever Love Me" cuts like a knife. "So You Are Tired" is especially heavy. But there is so much love here. Whether aurally via sweeping strings and electronic swells. Or the frequent pairing of Sufjan's voice with a gorgeous backing choir. Javelin can be bleak, austere at times. It delves into the depths of heartaching loneliness. But it doesn't sound lonely. It sounds warm. It sounds like sunrise. "Shit Talk" - the album's emotional centerpiece - perhaps best demonstrates this, ending a track about the despondence of perseverance with a parting message: "I will always love you."

This album has dominated my last two months of listening. Sometimes I think it may be his best since Illinois, but idk if that's crazy talk. All I know is it's really really good.

Did you hear this one? What did you think? How does it stack up in his discography?

[monasterymonochrome]

Nov 30, 2023 12:38:46 GMT -6 monasterymonochrome said:

Only gonna do a few more of these - maybe another week's worth. Everything from here on out in Top 10 or in AOTY contention. Today, let's talk about some 2000s indie legacy acts...



Sufjan Stevens - Javelin

It sort of feels like Sufjan's first Big Statement album since 2015's Carrie and Lowell, which is wild. I was convinced of this until wikipedia reminded me of 2020's The Ascension, which I've totally memory-holed. Man's been busy, either way. Planetarium, The Greatest Gift (C&L b-sides), and a host of collaborations (with Angelo De Augustine, or his dance pieces). This one feels... different tho. Stripped back, raw, and with a painful, wide-eyed beauty. Carrie & Lowell was a statement on human fragility. Javelin echoes this in parts. But it's also about transcendence, a balance between fullness and emptiness. To me, it's about love. These songs seem to chart the dissolution of a relationship - as we learned upon its release, Sufjan's longtime partner recently passed away - and this context, to me, imbues the album with an extra-overt aura of grief that eluded the first round of already effusively positive reviews. But idk. This album is crushing, yes. "Will Anybody Ever Love Me" cuts like a knife. "So You Are Tired" is especially heavy. But there is so much love here. Whether aurally via sweeping strings and electronic swells. Or the frequent pairing of Sufjan's voice with a gorgeous backing choir. Javelin can be bleak, austere at times. It delves into the depths of heartaching loneliness. But it doesn't sound lonely. It sounds warm. It sounds like sunrise. "Shit Talk" - the album's emotional centerpiece - perhaps best demonstrates this, ending a track about the despondence of perseverance with a parting message: "I will always love you."

This album has dominated my last two months of listening. Sometimes I think it may be his best since Illinois, but idk if that's crazy talk. All I know is it's really really good.

Did you hear this one? What did you think? How does it stack up in his discography?

Also, I assumed the track "Everything That Rises" was a reference to Flannery O'Connor.  Turns out the actual quote (and almost certainly Sufjan's reference point) is taken from the writings of Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, sort of a Cosmic Jesuit from the 1920s.  This led me down a wikipedia rabbit hole about transcendental / new-age Catholic theology the other night.  Only Sufjan could make that happen lmaooo