We’re halfway through the year and sharing our favorite albums of 2023 thus far! Here’s John O‘s list of current favs, plus a few words about each pick.
I’ve been spending a lot of time in the past, as people my age are wont to do, listening for specific instances of past feelings, and evocations of past times brought on by the music. For our job here in music retail, we are compelled to concentrate on the latest and greatest things coming out today. It’s a challenge to balance, especially when the new stuff is a direct reimagining (rehash?) of what came before. Frankly, THIS is nothing new. Sounds, words, music have been imitated, mutilated, revised, rearranged, re-everything, for as long as humans have been getting together to jam. Of course, recorded music has changed the game, and a century and a half of time is a mere blip on the scale, but the only thing you have is today, and how you want to spend it. Nothing is forever, not even you.
Sleaford Mods – UK Grim
If having an English man harangue you over loops and sounds is your thing, the Mods are the thing. It’s certainly my thing. They are a real band, and have gotten up the noses of people who have a very defined version of what a band should be. The onslaught of outraged punters complaining about their recent Wembley Stadium set, opening for Blur, inspired great amusement amongst the fanbase, and the band as well. Jason Williamson’s lyrics and tunes (yes, they are tunes), combined with the simple, yet confoundingly complex musical backings of Andrew Fearn are endlessly inventive, and always surprising. They have a sensibility that states: This is who we are, this is what we do, and we will do it as long as we are interested. It’s not for everyone. Nothing is for everyone.
Billy Nomates – Cacti
This record also redefines what being a performer means these days. Nomates is a great singer, a huge voice applied to personal concerns, like what it means to connect. Electronic backings and songscapes compel forward motion that hearkens back to the dance club and the bedroom. “Blue bones (death wish)” is my favorite song of the year, up there with the best work of Annie Lennox and Heaven 17.
SDH (Semiotics Department Of Heteronyms) – Fake Is Real
Forward propulsion, synths, whispered not screamed, SDH charts a course between the club and the darkness outside, trying to find meaning and discovering that it doesn’t matter at all. For all intents and purposes, fake is real, and modern life is a continuum of distractions. The music, again, reminds me of the disco club music I listened to when I was young enough to be admitted to the clubs, to find connection, and to lose myself. This is their second album, preceded by a few EPs and endless remixes. As is the norm for this genre, whatever it is.
I’m sure there are precedents for each of the artists I’ve listed. I don’t think I care. I know that there are people doing similar things, that did it first, that you may or may not like better. It doesn’t matter. What matters is: Does it reach you? Does it sound good to you? Does it add light (or darkness) to your life? As the well worn trope says: Good artists borrow, great artists steal.
Dirt Russell – Outside Dogs
Hondo and Angela also take the idea of what a band is and smash it on the ground. They fold, spindle and mutilate the heavy sound into something that is all their own. An incredible record from start to finish. Very compelling live band, who sound like a multitude on stage.
Amber Arcades – Barefoot On Diamond Road
Dreamy pop with electronics and orchestra, textures and longing. It also is deferential to the past, and yet not precious about it. It sounds like real people, singing about real things, and is flat out gorgeous to listen to with the lights out.
There is more. There is always more. The new Youth Lagoon is Trevor’s best work, a solo album that contains the joy of rediscovery, of purpose, and reconnecting with your past and coming to a reckoning with your future. Hannah Jadagu is an artist with a viewpoint, and is already great, and will become greater as she proceeds, learning and progressing. Aperture is a great pop confection, guitar and vocal driven. “Say It Now” is a great song. The DEBBY FRIDAY record, GOOD LUCK, mixes harsh electronics with laid back beats and forward motion, depending on the track. Really solid from beginning to end. Treefort 2023 brought several people into my musical orbit: Hannah Jadagu, Causeway, Sun Atoms, Bike. Oh my god, BIKE! Their new album would definitely be on my list if we had any to sell. Regardless, it’s out there. Listen to Arte Bruta. It’s streaming everywhere. Motorik filtered through a Brazilian worldview. No comparisons do them justice. Go see them. Go see Oruã, also from Brazil. They are in a constant state of reinvention. Thank you to Doug for bringing them into our orbit. And I keep hearing things from 2022 that I missed. Confidence Man, Sofie Royer, Ari Lennox, Grace Ives. Got to keep the ears open. Although I hear things from the past that I missed ALL THE TIME!! Does that make it new again? Hey, I’m just asking questions!
The kids that work for us play things in the store that I at least find interesting, even if I don’t buy all of it. It’s inspiring to peek at their journey, and I try not to be all “been there, done that” with them because, even though I’m here now, and standing right next to them, they have different circumstances that they have come from. My only function is to stand as a cautionary tale about how to get to now. Which is all I’ve ever been interested in. It’s all we have.
Thank you to all the people who have shared things with me, however unwittingly. The customers, my coworkers, the hosts of my favorite radio programs, the bloggers and my friends. I am indebted to you all.
P.S. There is more out there for you than you think. Be open.
Tags: 2023 staff picks2023 staff picks thus farstaff picks
