My albums of the year
Music merriment just in time for your holiday company.
If the question is how to infuse some fresh euphoria into your conventional holiday festivities, the answer is music.
As a loyal subscriber, you’ve probably noticed by now that music is a big part of my life and consumes a healthy bandwidth of my time. Spotify tracked me listening for 58,065 minutes in 2023 — equivalent to 40 days nonstop — and the streamer doesn’t even include December.
Like wine, music is best shared, so as sure as Santa dropping down the chimney, I present the finest albums I listened to this year. You’ll find a mix of melodic techno, psychedelic rock, hip-hop and even electronic indie pop. The genre diversity of my favorites this year even surprised me.
You probably won’t like it all — earworms are subjective — but my rule is never to say no to sampling new music (unless it’s Taylor Swift). It’s the only way to discover tastes you don’t yet know you’re attracted to.
Here’s a listening cheat sheet for the above top 5, with Spotify links included. Merry, merry:
GENESYS — Anyma: Think big festival sound with operatic underpinnings. The peak of melodic techno. The Italian DJ is best realized on a screen where you can experience his other-wordly Afterlife-fueled visuals, but his high-tech production is the key to this breakout in the electronic world.
If You Sample Just 1 Song: Samsara
LET’S START HERE — Lil Yachty: Top flight rapper turns on the genre to experiment with psychedelic rock. Blowback ensues. The gambit earned mixed reviews from the music punditry, but I fell in love with Yachty’s beautiful coos — and willingness for risk.
If You Sample Just 1 Song: Should I B?
UTOPIA — Travis Scott: A comeback album that was by no means a given. Scott comes awfully close to matching the explosive energy of Astroworld. FEIN was the song of the summer for moshing hip-hop kids and the production on this is marvelous thru all 19 tracks.
If You Sample Just 1 Song: Thank God
MID AIR — Romy: The surprise of the year for me from an artist I didn’t know. It’s a debut album from the British singer with a melancholic aura. Her lyrics touch on love, vulnerability and trust, but make sure to get to track 9 if you’re interested in sparking a dance party.
If You Sample Just 1 Song: Loveher
MEMO — Mathame: The list starts and ends with the core of my tastebuds: melodic electronic. If you liked Anyma, this Sicily-born duo spins a very similar slice of cinematic techno packed with galactic highs and melodic lows.
If You Sample Just 1 Song: Who
