My Top Albums of 2023
1 - Julie Byrne’s The Greater Wings
This has been my most listened to album of the year because of its power to ease chaotic thoughts and energy. It’s also the perfect choice as light background music if you’re not into deeper lyricism dives. Overall, the album is a beautiful, hope-filled tribute to Byrne’s close friend and collaborator, Eric Littmann, who unexpectedly passed away in 2021. Soft strings, synth, guitar picking, harp, and even a wind chime all complement Bryne’s tranquil, low-pitched voice. The songs are incredibly touching and heartfelt depicting vivid scenes full of potent nature imagery and analogies about love, loss, and renewal.
“ I want to be whole enough to risk again,” Summer Glass
“ Your image comes to me like terrains of fire,” Hope’s Return
“ You make me feel like the prom queen I never was,” Death Is The Diamond
2 - Lana Del Rey’s Did you know that there’s a tunnel under Ocean Blvd
Although Del Rey continues to write from the perspectives of different characters, her recent album feels like her most autobiographical work to date. The lyrics are deeply intimate and personal. Some songs are completely gut wrenching like when she expresses doubts about whether she’d make a good mother due to her mental health struggles or when she describes scenes of her family gathered around her grandfather’s hospice bed. Some lighter songs and instrumental interludes are intermittently placed to break up the heaviness, some of which contain unusual and unsuspecting beat drops. Despite the heavy sad girl vibes, I was traveling with my best friend in Kyoto when the album was released and it accompanied me throughout the trip resulting in the most magical listening experience.
3 - Sufjan Stevens - Javelin
At its core, Javelin depicts a great love story and all the highs and lows that go along with a long term relationship. It comes after the loss of his partner, Evans Richardson, who passed away earlier this year. As with many of his other works there are elements of religion and spiritual transcendence that continue to provide comfort and hope during times of grief and the instrumentalism reflects this conveying an uplifting quality despite the difficult substantive lyrics. “Shit Talk” is one of my favorites of the album, not just because of its witty title –it describes a hurtful fight, but how in the end all you want is to be embraced by your partner and not want “to fight at all.” It's an over 8 minute listen and musically it's impressive, ultimately culminating into a gorgeous hymnlike repetitiveness. This is a spectacular album.
4 - Olivia Rodrigo’s GUTS
Olivia is an incredible young woman and an astute, at times poignant, commentator on society who presents old concepts in novel ways that makes difficult topics palatable for a broader pop music audience. GUTS is so much fun to listen to with its pop, at times punk hooks and appropriately placed swear words. She sings about the impossible expectations that women feel in society which resonates powerfully in “all american bitch,” when she sings, “I'm grateful all the time, I'm sexy and I'm kind, I'm pretty when I cry” and then screams out of utter frustration by the end. It's therapeutic to scream alongside her. In “pretty isn't pretty” she sings “I bought all the clothes that they told me to buy, I chased some dumb ideal my whole fucking life, and none of it matters and none of it ends, you just feel like shit over and over again.” It’s lyrics like this that make her so powerfully relatable to women of all ages.
5 - Caroline Polachek’s Desire, I Want to Turn Into You
This album takes you on an exciting, weird, experimental pop music trip and served as a much needed reprieve from the long upstate winter. Even though I haven't the faintest idea of what most of Polacheck’s lyrics are referring to, I found myself closing my eyes, bouncing my head, and envisioning a vacation on some faraway island with the bluest waters, especially with “Welcome to My Island” as the opener. There’s lots of these tropical references throughout the album with songs about passionate, fiery love affairs, some of which tread the lines of obsession. Her vocals are astounding as she hits those tippy top soprano notes! “Believe” is Polacheck’s tribute to electronic, avant garde musician, SOPHIE, whose influence is heard clearly in the electronics of the song and BOTH Grimes and Dido make an impressive duo on “Fly To You.” There's also beats and electronic loops that just sound so cool, like on “Bunny is a Rider”or my favorite “Billions,” with lyrics like “headless, angel, body upgraded, but it's dead on arrival,” and ”twisted, manic, cornucopia.” What does any of this mean? I don’t know but it sure as heck sounds cool and makes me feel like a cool girl while listening to it.
6 - Boygenius - the record
I love these 3 ladies so much as individual artists and it's incredible how well they complement each other’s musical styles on a collaborative album. The album manages to remain cohesive despite it being evident who wrote each song. Musically, the songs are very diverse, some are mellow and acoustic while others like “$20”, “Not Strong Enough”, and “Anti-Curse” are more uptempo. A main motif is the honest and sweet depiction of female friendships, singing acapella on the album's opening tract “Without You Without Them” exemplifies this when they sing “speak to me until your history’s no mystery to me,” and “I want you to hear my story and be apart of it.” I also find it refreshing to hear songs from a female perspective about self-sabotage, disillusionment and identity confusion in adulthood.
“It feels good to be known so well,” “I can't hide from you like I hide from myself,” “I remember who I am when I’m with you.” - True Blue
“I just want to know who broke your nose, figure out where they live so I can kick their teeth in, if it isn’t love then what the fuck is it?” - Revolution 0
“Will you be a nihilist with me? If nothing matters, man, that's a relief.” - Satanist
“You're not special, you're evil.” “You made me feel like an equal but I'm better than you, and you should know that by now” - Letter to an Old Poet
7 - Joanna Sternberg’s I’ve Got Me
Joanna Sternberg has an usual voice which may turn off some listeners initially but give a song another try and you’ll think differently. Sternberg’s voice seems to be of a different era which perfectly suits the simplicity of the folk, jazz, and gospel-influenced musical compositions. The album mostly examines an unhealthy relationship with a narcissist (“People are Toys to You” is the title of one track) and their inability to recognize the dysfunctionality until after the relationship has ended. The greater takeaway is, which also makes the album endearing and sweet, is Sternberg’s self acceptance and perseverance in continuing to love so easily despite all of the heartbreaks.
8 - Mitski’s The Land Is Inhospitable and So Are We
Although the tracks are somewhat disjointed, there are many standout songs on this newest Mitski album which feels like her most stripped down yet. “Heaven'' and “Star” are two of the prettiest songs with gentle cinematic strings and country music that allow her vocals to be at the forefront. In “Heaven” she sings “now I bend like a willow thinking of you.” There's lots of beautiful nature imagery like this but the album also examines her more destructive behaviors like sabotaging a relationship, comparing herself to a dog, or writing about her lack of boundaries when it comes to indulgences. In “When Memories Snow '' she focuses on an interesting analogy as she describes memories as snow blocking a path forward that needs to first be processed or cleared and “I Love Me After You ",” the ending track, has to do with feeling empowered and confident once a relationship has ended. I think this is my favorite album since Be the Cowboy mostly because of how clearly you’re able to hear her voice.