If It's Too Loud...

Sometimes you feel like an album changes you on a molecular level. In The Garden, By The Weeds may have done exactly that to me this year. It all starts with "YKWIM," which has a glitchy music box quality to its intro before rolling directly into an upbeat number with sweet harmonies and an even sweeter sentiment. As the album progresses, it builds on the entire musical theme, with plenty of electronic drums, keyboards, and noisy guitar serving as a foundation for Josaleigh Pollett's gorgeous voice. The album is expertly sequenced, musically deft, and reveals something a little new and different on every listen. "YKWIM," "Empty Things," "Earthquake Song"... they all give a sort of Laura Veirs-by-way-of Jenny Owen Youngs vibe; the sort of song structure and emotional lift that keeps you hooked while keeping you guessing. Even more transitional songs like "The Nothing Answered Back" shine through with ideas and mus...

Sometimes an album from a local act comes out of nowhere, grabs you by the lapel, and refuses to let go. That's what Noble Dust did this year with A Picture for a Frame . In many ways, this album is Jeff catnip - it's folk-adjacent music with soaring instrumental choices, but also inspired by historical letters between the lead singer's grandparents during World War II. The total package creates a timeless-sounding record that feels like it would come out of a brewpub in 2023 or a rural tavern in 1923. It's just a beautiful record, with so many lovely little choices throughout - the distant-sounding trumpet, the strings, the lyricism of songs like "At Sea," the jaunty love song "Abbey" (which is probably my favorite song of the year)... it all just works and needs to be heard to truly appreciate. Noble Dust doesn't have a ton of Spotify listeners, and they're a Boston-area act that deserves to be at the top of everyone'...

Concept albums can be very hit-or-miss, but Aesop Rock's second straight solo concept record after Spirit World Field Guide is not only his best solo effort in some time, but is one of his best efforts period. There's always a danger, when having a "technology and its impacts" piece of art in front of you, that it becomes incredibly strident, dated, and out-of-step (if not out of touch entirely - looking at you, The Circle by Dave Eggers). Aesop Rock puts that aside very early, setting up the aesthetic from the very start before the driving... everything of "Mindful Solutionism." From there it's classic Aesop Rock - "Pigeonometry" feels vast and elevated in its scope, "Kyanite Toothpick" having a battle rap feel, and even a more spoken-word piece like "On Failure" feels on brand and on point. In short? This album rules, and I'm glad it exists. Songs of Note: "Mindful Solutionism," "In...

This album changed how I listen to rap music. I'm still new-ish to rap. Outside of the super-popular stuff, my knowledge and understanding of rap music was really, really, really low until about 10 years ago. Even today, I tend to like stuff a little more off the beaten path; it took until this past summer for me to "get" Kendrick Lamar, for example, even though I gravitated to an act like Atmosphere rather easily. It was probably when "Sculpting With Fire" dropped at some point late last year that I realized this would be something truly special. The song doesn't adhere to any real expectations, which sets itself up as a truly disorienting listen out of context. In context of an album with some truly incredible sampling and memorable verses throughout, peppered with a number of shorter vignette songs to ease the transition? This sat near the top of my list for a while before the last month or so - the whole thing is near flawless whethe...

I said it back when this came out, and I'll say it again: I am fully aware that I am not the target audience for Olivia Rodrigo's brand of New Adult breakup songs, but I am absolutely here for it nonetheless. 2023 will rightfully go down as the year of Taylor Swift, but for my money? Olivia Rodrigo is the dark horse candidate for stealing the crown away. Rodrigo excels not in changing the game, but perfecting it - every song on GUTS has clearly defined and obvious inspirations (I maintain that "all-american bitch" is her channelling Weezer's "My Name is Jonas," and no one can tell me "get him back!" isn't "Pepper" by the Butthole Surfers), but the raw, unvarnished honesty and self-deprication on the album is a welcome change from a lot of the pop music efforts to hide one's true feelings in a veneer of metaphor and code. As much fun as it is to conspiratorize over the color selection of Tay-Tay's confetti, it...

Another surprise listen for this year launches itself into my best-of list. I missed this when it first came out in April, and on my initial listen in the fall, found it to be super compelling; unique in its presentation of folk-style storytelling, while also showcasing Jackson's distinctive voice. Still, I feel like I slept on it a bit. Every time I listened, I found something more to love, and something that kept me coming back for more. What I love most about this album is how well Kara Jackson jumps between confession and humor, from stark and quiet to more lush and chaotic. "no fun/party" and "rat" couldn't be more different in many ways, but both are awesome. "dickhead blues" and "free" lamenting the state of one's love life in two very disparate approaches. The album is full of these little contradictions of sorts, and ends up being one of the more memorable listens of 2023. Songs of Note: ...

This album was probably the biggest surprise for me in a year of great music. The project of singer-songwriter Shalom Obisie-Orlu, and featuring some production from producer Ryan Hemsworth, this is alt-rock done right. It's got a lot of different elements in play, equal parts Hatchie and Hole, and is full of surprises across its runtime. This one is a grower, too - while I liked it on first listen, more and more revealed itself over subsequent listens that made me realize how it was truly one of the best of the year. Songs of Note: "Happenstance," "Soccer Mommy," "Did It To Myself," "Lighter"

I am too old to enjoy 100 gecs as much as I do. Listen, this album isn't for everyone. I get iot. It doesn't help matters that this is sort of a major label coming out party for the duo, and the mainstream introduction to hyperpop is a little less frenetic and a little more melodic. The production values and level of investment is clear, and 25 years ago they'd probably be accused of "selling out." But then you're about midway through and a song called "Frog on the Floor" comes on that's basically a love letter to 1990s ska music with a frog croaking on the downbeat and you realize that the evolution of sound is deliberate. At well under under 30 minutes, it's gone before it starts in many ways, but it's also deliberately scattered across its runtime in a way that shifts themes before you can get into a groove. That unpredictability means that a song like "Hollywood Baby" and its traditional noisy rock trapp...

The three women of boygenius are having a moment, and I'm here for it. This is a multiple-Grammy contender, has the Taylor Swift seal of approval, has Rolling Stone apparently confusing Lucy Dacus with Julien Baker , and it just a musically superior album than most of what I listened to this year. Where the record ultimately excels is that, while you can probably figure out who was the lead songwriter from track to track if you're a fan of all three members, the songs do not end up being solo showcases with their friends as backups. There's a little bit of magic in this collaboration, and it's great to see everyone getting their due. The album itself? It's gorgeous singer-songwriter stuff sometimes ("True Blue," "Cool About It"), it's radio-friendly rock ("Not Strong Enough," a favorite track of the year period), or just loud indie rock ("$20," "Satanist"). The band easily shifts between dif...

Sometimes an album comes out of nowhere and catches your ear, and then decides to stay there for a little while and uncover more and more as it sets up shop. Such is the case with Angel Numbers , Hamish Hawk's album that provides a glossy sheen and gorgeous melodies to accompany his distinctive baritone. It's a little bit Britpop, a little bit chamber/artsy, and owes as much to the Smiths and Scott Walker as it does in blazing its own path. The high production values and polished presentation don't make it feel like a perfect and pristine work, but it *is* a high-quality achievement of music in an era where it's more difficult than ever to capture an audience. Songs like "Elvis Look-alike Shadows" and "Angel Numbers" sound both familiar and foreign, and more straightforward forays into pop territory in "Money" and "Think of Us Kissing" feel accessible without being stale. Hawk strikes a great balance on a musical tightrope a...