favorite albums of 2023
Yeahhhhh here we go!!! |
| 50 |  | Hot Mulligan
Why Would I Watch
One of the biggest (if not the biggest) new bands in the pop-punk/emo scene. Very catchy stuff |
| 49 |  | PVRIS
EVERGREEN
Alt-pop/alt rock with some hip-hop and R&B influence |
| 48 |  | Girl Ray
Prestige
Upbeat indie rock filtered through disco and funk |
| 47 |  | strongboi
strongboi
The best bedroom pop/"chill vibes" type album I've heard in a while. Side project of Alice Phoebe Lou. If you like TOPS and Men I Trust, get in here |
| 46 |  | Kali Uchis
Red Moon in Venus
R&B/neo soul with psychedelic influences. Her voice and the production is amazing |
| 45 |  | Big Bliss
Vital Return
Interpol style NYC indie rock/post-punk. Don't sleep on this |
| 44 |  | Slow Pulp
Yard
Very 90s style indie rock/dream pop/shoegaze |
| 43 |  | Kylie Minogue
Tension
Electronic/dance - sort of like Future Nostalgia, but better |
| 42 |  | Bully
Lucky For You
Indie rock with an early 90s vibe |
| 41 |  | Overmono
Good Lies
Electronic/dance/club vibe for fans of Disclosure, Fred again.. and Burial. The way that they transformed the samples on this album is amazing |
| 40 |  | The Murder Capital
Gigi's Recovery
Amazing post-punk out of the UK, lots of great build-ups/twists and turns in these songs |
| 39 |  | Andy Shauf
Norm
Singer-songwriter/chamber folk - great production and great lyrics |
| 38 |  | Geese
3D Country
One of the best young post-punk bands out - this album is more experimental and more intense than their debut |
| 37 |  | Kiana Ledé
Grudges
Really good up and coming R&B. Feels like she's in her college season but she should be joining the big league soon |
| 36 |  | Navy Blue
Ways Of Knowing
Jazzy/soulful hip-hop, frequent collaborator with Earl Sweatshirt and MIKE. Fans of "real hip-hop" will like this |
| 35 |  | Water From Your Eyes
Everyone's Crushed
Indie pop with noise rock and electronics piled on top of it. The Blow meets Dan Deacon meets Animal Collective |
| 34 |  | Jamila Woods
Water Made Us
The neo-soul of Ari Lennox with the experimental R&B of SZA |
| 33 |  | Rod Wave
Nostalgia
Trap/R&B (heavy on the "blues") - much better than his peers |
| 32 |  | City and Colour
The Love Still Held Me Near
Folk/singer-songwriter/alt rock/alt country. His best album in a while |
| 31 |  | Travis Scott
Utopia
The most experimental that a trap album can get while still remaining mainstream. Just like the movie Avatar was big on visuals, Travis is big on his production/sound design |
| 30 |  | Lankum
False Lankum
Irish folk. By far, the most unique album on this list. Try it out at least once |
| 29 |  | Genevieve Artadi
Forever Forever
Jazz, psych and art pop in a blender. Labelmates with Thundercat, fans of his stuff will like this one |
| 28 |  | M83
Fantasy
Combines of the 80s synthpop/new wave of his recent albums with the shoegaze/dream pop of his early work |
| 27 |  | Lil Yachty
Let's Start Here.
Complete reinvention of Yachty from Soundcloud rapper to Tame Impala style psych/funk music. The biggest surprise of the year |
| 26 |  | Teezo Touchdown
How Do You Sleep At Night?
A hip-hop foundation, but branches off into pop, rock, R&B. Very experimental and Teezo has massive potential as an artist |
| 25 |  | Carly Rae Jepsen
The Loveliest Time
Electronic/dance/pop but slightly more experimental than I was expecting |
| 24 |  | Beach Fossils
Bunny
Their traditional indie surf rock with a lot more dream pop/shoegaze influence this time out. At times this really does sound like it came from the 90s. |
| 23 |  | Unknown Mortal Orchestra
V
Psychedelic/funk/indie rock with lo-fi production. This band always delivers |
| 22 |  | Westside Gunn
And Then You Pray for Me
Another great hip-hop curation from the mastermind of Griselda |
| 21 |  | Helena Deland
Goodnight Summerland
Folk/singer-songwriter stuff from one of the best kept secrets of this genre. Amazing melodies/harmonies on this album |
| 20 |  | Drake
For All The Dogs: Scary Hours Edition
This record follows the standard Drake formula of hip-hop/R&B songs. The bonus tracks which make up the Scary Hours addition have the kind of rapping that fans have been waiting for |
| 19 |  | Larry June and The Alchemist
The Great Escape
The chillest hip-hop album to be released this year. Dom Kennedy meets Curren$y/Wiz Khalifa. Amazing production from The Alchemist |
| 18 |  | Wednesday
Rat Saw God
Scrappy indie rock/slacker rock/slightly alt-country. Like Big Thief if they were heavier |
| 17 |  | Charlotte Cardin
99 Nights
Pop soul/alt pop style album - Think Amy Winehouse meets King Princess. I was surprised at how good this was |
| 16 |  | Sofia Kourtesis
Madres
Electronic/dance/house music with songs sung in both English and Spanish. My favorite electronic album of the year |
| 15 |  | Skyzoo
The Mind of a Saint
Jazzy/boom bap hip-hop album based entirely around the FX show Snowfall |
| 14 |  | Teenage Wrist
Still Love
Alternative/hard rock/emo. Think Switchfoot and Third Eye Blind but more emo |
| 13 |  | Citizen
Calling the Dogs
The Strokes-style indie rock from one of the biggest bands in the scene. Excellent pivot from them |
| 12 |  | Killer Mike
Michael
Southern Hip-Hop from 1/2 of Run the Jewels. Amazing gospel/soul production from No I.D. |
| 11 |  | Yves Tumor
Praise a Lord Who Chews, But Does Not Consume...
Psychedelic/experimental indie rock, some Prince influence |
| 10 |  | Bombay Bicycle Club
My Big Day
Upbeat indie rock with many featured artists. All of these songs sound like singles |
| 9 |  | Sampha
LAHAI
R&B/Neo-Soul with experimental/electronic production. Like James Blake, but better |
| 8 |  | Narrow Head
Moments of Clarity
This is a lot of things at once (grunge, shoegaze, space rock, nu-metal) with hooks for days. Hum meets Deftones meets Swervedriver |
| 7 |  | Julia Wolf
Good Thing We Stayed
Alt-pop/trap hybrid with some ballads mixed in. Good flow, good lyrics, good singing voice |
| 6 |  | Beartooth
The Surface
A Day to Remember-style heavy music (post-hardcore, emo, metalcore, whatever you want to call it) with super positive lyrics. A super motivational/feelgood album |
| 5 |  | Gumm
Slogan Machine
I don't listen to hardcore but this is the best hardcore album I've heard in years (including Turnstile, Gel, Scowl, Drain, etc). Front to back, good stuff |
| 4 |  | Fall Out Boy
So Much (For) Stardust
Their best record in years! A compromise on their older pop-punk style and newer radio rock style |
| 3 |  | Sleep Token
Take Me Back to Eden
Metalcore with a heavy amount of pop and electronic mixed in. You either love it or hate it, there is no in-between |
| 2 |  | Paramore
This Is Why
Combines the pop-punk of their early work with indie rock and post-punk. An excellent maturation of their style |
| 1 |  | Caroline Polachek
Desire, I Want To Turn Into You
Art pop, electronic, every song sounds different. Only hyperpop adjacent, less hyperpop than her previous album |
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