Best of 2023 – Top 25 albums

by Juno Daily on 19.12.2023 at 13:08pm.
Last edited: 19.12.2023 at 18:17pm.

The ultimate rundown of 2023’s best albums

Creep Show – Yawning Abyss (Bella Union)

The Francis Bacon-style sleeve is a clue to the contents here, or at least part of them, as the impending apocalypse that was gathering steam for real in 2023 casts a dark shadow over much of the lyrical content of Yawning Abyss. But when your vocalists are one John Grant and Stephen Mallinder of Cabaret Voltaire fame, nothing is as straight forward as it seems, and despite the world seemingly crashing around their shoulders, the pair – who wrote the lyrics together in Grant’s adopted home Iceland after Covid scrapped plans for the four to meet and create at Benge’s studio in Cornwall – manage to poke as much pisstaking fun at disaster as seems reasonably possible. Literally laughing in the face of fear, you might even say. Which is all very well, but without a decent vehicle to propel such verbal dexterity it’s not much use. Lucky that Benge (Wrangler, and a prolific producer to artists including John Grant) and Phil Winter (Tunng) complete the Creep Show line up then, sticking their heads together to create addictive, light touch electro beats and hooks sturdy enough to land a whale. Describing it as a mix of “darksynth, industrial funk and experimental noise,” at the time, our review noted the skeletal grooves and surreal, vocodered voices of the title, with the likes of ‘Bungalow’ and ‘Moneyback’ carrying on the album’s extant deathly techno-dysoptian vibe.

Sleaford Mods – UK Grim (Rough Trade)
The dynamic Brit post-punk/alternative hip-hop duo of Jason Williamson and Andrew Fearn, better known as Sleaford Mods, are testament to resignation not always being tangentially linked to age. Following on from 2021’s career-height Spare Ribs, this year saw the unveiling of their sonically sprawling, lyrically pissed right off twelfth full-length UK Grim. Taking aim at the Tory-led government, as well as peers in other modern post-punk acts and their perceived patronising that can come from espousing political ideals, this time around Mr. Jason has zero intention of making friends while he ponders and barbs. Boasting features from Jane’s Addiction eccentric frontman extraordinaire Perry Farrell and a sultry, snide, standout appearance from Florence Shaw of Dry Cleaning on the synth-laden highlight ‘Force 10 From Navarone’, it’s bizarre to think how deep into their tenure the mods are when they’re able to consistently move the goal posts, musically expand and keep their avid listeners enthralled, entertained and a little depressed. Recently endorsed by Robert Downey Jr., this is the soundtrack to our end times, and it slaps.

Gazelle Twin – Black Dog (Invada)

It can often take months or even years of therapy to even begin to start addressing the real reason you’re in the room talking to a trained professional. For Gazelle Twin, it has taken three albums – and more than a decade – to get to a point where it feels comfortable enough to turn her razor sharp songwriting gaze inwards. So, whereas before we heard observations on outward looking subject matter, here we take a turn for the insular. The result is an altogether darker experience, musically and thematically. There’s a constant sense of drama and tension to this art-pop odyssey, and subjects such as childhood trauma – and its impact on our adult selves – are never off the table. Almost operatic, while there’s plenty here to challenge, not least the universal expectation that later in life things get less scary, ultimately Black Dog is also about overcoming and confronting our most existential fears.

Caroline Polachek – Desire I Want To Turn Into You (Perpetual Novice)

Real life siren and avant-pop diva Caroline Polachek has always felt like a rare talent hiding right beneath the surface of mainstream exposure. While her work as part of Chairlift established her within the indie spheres as a songwriting force to be reckoned with, it was venturing out on her lonesome that produced 2019’s breakout Pang, redefining her as pop’s potential saving grace. Four years on and Desire I Want To Turn Into You offers up a meteoric swing for the fences, complete with 80s synth-lines, Phil Collins-sized percussion, lilting exotic acoustic plucking and a voice that’s equal parts lush, sultry, commanding and hypnotic. Channelling the art-pop of Kate Bush into more modern facets, not only is this the pop record of the year, but the one that your death metal or liquid drum & bass purists will even admit to having given a spin.

Chocolate Hills – Yarns From The Chocolate Triangle (Orbscure/Cooking Vinyl)

This was the year that Chocolate Hills – the band that Alex Paterson formed with Paul Conboy – stopped being juist another one of the many offshoots of The Orb and started being a prospect in its own right worth paying particular attention to. One reason why was a superbly promising debut gig at Rough Trade East, where the pair’s agenda of mixing up organic instrument sounds like melodica, guitar and piano, with more traditonal Paterson ambient styles. But the main advert for their advancement was this, their second and most accomplished album, based on the myths and legends of the seamen of old, albeit with a seriously psychedelic twist. Veering from the Conboy-voiced vocal drunken sailor’s lament ‘Compass I Fell In Love’ to the drum and bass-powered ‘Centre of the Triangle’ and ‘Mermaids’, it’s a heart-tugging, emotionally engaging journey that not only gives a fresh take on the familiar Orb sound but actually sounds like Paterson has found a new sonic sparring partner capable of bringing out the absolute best in him. All aboard, would be our advice.

Killer Mike – Michael (Loma Vista)
Before he was one half of Run The Jewels, King of Atlanta himself Killer Mike was an immensely successful solo MC, and now for the first time since his current project’s inception, he’s taking an introspective respite to examine his career to date. The succinctly titled Michael portrays a complicated figure, hardened by poverty, drug abuse and grief, reminding oneself to stop and appreciate their good fortune. Featuring dynamic, genre-morphing production that marries elements of gospel, funk, soul, jazz, trap, boom bap and r&b, while boasting a ludicrous array of guest verses from the likes of Cee Lo, Andre 3000, Future, his own partner in musical crime El-P and even a poignant spoken word section from comedic genius Dave Chappelle, the resulting project is an hour-long sonic celebration of everything hip-hop has been and has since matured into, whilst featuring Killer Mike’s most earnest and vulnerable verses from a decades-spanning tenure.

African Headcharge – A Trip To Bolgatanga (On U Sound)

In the annals of On-U Sound’s mighty legacy within experimental dub, African Head Charge stands tall as one of the most essential projects. Bonjo Iyabinghi Noah and Adrian Sherwood’s partnership yielded some of the most percussively rich records on the label and there is a long and winding run of albums to take in from the 1981 debut My Life In A Hole In The Ground through to 2012’s Voodoo Of The Godsent. Finally Noah and Sherwood are back at it with arguably their most incisive album in years, billed as a musical journey to Noah’s current hometown in north Ghana. The layers and detail loom out of the mix at you with disorienting wonder, as Noah’s trademark drum patterns fly into Sherwood’s dubwise acrobatics with spectacular results. Look out for this limited pressing – the special luminous vinyl edition.

Blink-182 – One More Time… (Columbia/Sony)
Following the amicable departure of Alkaline Trio’s Matt Skiba, and the re-enlisting of original vocalist/guitarist Tom DeLonge, pop-punk heroes Blink-182 finally return with their first classic line-up album in over a decade. Brought together through vocalist/bassist Mark Hoppus’ successful battle with lymphoma, the members agreed they needed one more time to get things right, and the resulting, aptly titled project delivers on all fronts. Simultaneously pursuing the darker, more mature sound of their self-titled and 2011’s original comeback album Neighbourhoods, whilst re-discovering their juvenile sense of humour and nursery rhymes on meth approach to sugar-coated pop-punk antics, One More Time… offers an expansive victory lap of almost every sonic form Blink have taken to date (with elements even pulled in from their plethora of side-projects such as Boxcar Racer, +44, Angels & Airwaves). Lyrically delving into Hoppus’ cancer diagnosis, DeLonge’s divorce, drummer Travis Barker’s plane crash, while still making time for 30 second cuts about cumming too fast or telling someone to shut up, the ninth overall Blink album is testament to the fact that maturing and growing up aren’t always one in the same.

Shame – Food For Worms (Dead Oceans)
2021 saw South London post-punk heavyweights Shame undo any established rhetoric surrounding their debut LP Songs Of Praise with the ugly, anxious and cathartic sophomore follow up Drunk Tank Pink (one of Juno’s favourite albums of that year). Following a period of reflection, uncertainty and label pressure, the band were given a deadline to return to their old haunt at the Brixton Windmill to unveil new material, with the resulting experiment leading to the bulk of what makes up Food For Worms. Painted into somewhat of a corner, the purposeful sonic meandering of these 10 cuts refuses to lend a hand or point of reference as they musically shift from psychedelic riffage, to lush acoustic-led Britpop arrangements, to soulful grunge-crooner balladry. Led by the enigmatic Charlie Steen, who delves further into feelings of isolation, generational turmoil and personal loss whilst retaining his razor-sharp wit and sardonic demeanour throughout, on LP3 Shame negate any naysayers and continue to push themselves further in and out of their communal and individual comfort zones.

Zulu – A New Tomorrow (Flatspot)

Los Angeles based powerviolence mob, Zulu, have been making waves in the hardcore scene over the past few years, thanks in no small part to the crushing power of their two EPs, ‘Our Day Will Come’, in 2019, and the 2020 follow up, ‘My People…Hold On’. Combining blisteringly heavy bursts of grind-inspired hardcore, juxtaposed with everything from samples of classic r&b and soul to reggae cuts and momentous speeches from black history, there’s a unique freshness to the band’s approach, elevated by their ferocious anti-racist lyrics and sobering critiques of gentrification and white privilege. Their upcoming debut full-length, A New Tomorrow, promises to build upon the vision of their earlier releases with a self-produced melting pot of expansive, focused punk, and outsider influences from every facet of black culture. With guest vocal features from members of Soul Glo and Playytime; Zulu appear to be leading the charge for an entirely new wave of punk to come.

David Holmes – Blind On A Gallopping Horse (Heavenly)

David Holmes’ first solo album since 2008’s The Holy Pictures, Blind On A Galloping Horse now comes to Heavenly Recordings. A politically-charged LP full of sonic interrogations of political disaster and turmoil, Holmes here joins the cast of artists using their art to provide solace to music fans suffering at the hands of the Uncertainocene. With updated versions of the previously released singles ‘Hope Is The Last Thing To Die’ and ‘It’s Over If We Run Out Of Love’, as well as a recording of an unreleased song by Holmes’ late friend Andrew Weatherall, we’re reminded of conflict, migration and othering, as all manner of voices combine to form a diverse but unified whole against a backdrop of leftfield post-punk – be they the spoken word accounts from Afghan and Ukrainian refugees now welcomed as residents in Belfast, or the French and Irish observers of the UK’s turmoil of recent years.

Matthew Herbert X London Contemporary – The Horse (Modern)

We all know that Matthew Herbert is a far out sonic experimenter who will look to make music with and from anything. But this project might be his most outlandish and extraordinary to date. It starts with him looking for the largest possible animal skeleton to explore though music. He settled on a full size horse and from that made flutes from its thigh bones and bows from ribs and hair. Gut strings stretched over the pelvis feature in the mid-section and even more bizarre than that is the fact he travelled to ancient cave paintings of horses in Northern Spain to record reverb at their door. Brilliantly bonkers as ever.

The Umlauits – Slags (Prah)

Eight strong Peckham crew The Umlauts are poised for big success in 2024, so this is your chance to get on their bus early. They’ve played the length and the breadth of the UK several times this year, conquered the hippest festivals and, now, released their first bit of vinyl in the shape of the wonderully named Slags, which collects the best bits of their former EPs and a handful of new songs into their first – as opposed to their debut – album. If Kraftwerk had become seduced by the borderline sauce and deft innuendos of Pulp, they might have sounded something like this, but only if they’d combined their German, English, Italian and Spanish language editions all into one. The fact that their multi-lingual lyrics were conceived purely as a way to wind up Brexiteers makes us love them even more, but, casting their politics aside for a moment, the likes of ‘Energy Plan’, ‘Boiler Suits & Combat Boots’ or ‘Sweat’ would seduce just about anyone.ssssssss

Militarie Gun – Life Under The Gun (Loma Vista)
The punk breakout success of the year, Militarie Gun have been active in the scene over the past half-decade, touring relentlessly on the back of a handful of promising EPs, but no one could have anticipated the mainstream success and crossover appeal their exceptional debut full-length would offer. Following the genre-less expansive approach adopted by Turnstile, Life Under The Gun runs through hardcore, pop-punk, Britpop, college rock and indie-pop all within the span of 12 tracks and 30 minutes, while lyrically delving into early thirties malaise and detailing the feelings of obsolescence that came with frontman Ian Shelton’s brother’s incarceration. Anthemic, aggressive, sincere, sardonic and above all else, instantaneously catchy, the debut has brought Militarie Gun the type of overnight success that has seen one of their singles featured in a Taco Bell advert, while the now viral clip of Post-Malone accosting the vocalist at their merch stand after a show screaming the words verbatim to opening track ‘Do It Faster’, should tell you all you need to know about how much you’re sleeping on the gun.

Phoxjaw – notverynicecream (Hassle)
Every year, there’s at least one absolutely cracking album that slips through the cracks of mainstream popularity, and the award for 2023 goes to Bristol alt rock lunatics Phoxjaw, whose sophomore endeavour notverynicecream offers a head-melting myriad of ideas in just over three quarters of an hour. Drawing on elements of post-punk, grunge, noise rock, sludge metal and indie-pop, whilst utilising a plethora of synthesizers, arpeggiators and loops to craft a uniquely bizarre maelstrom of avant/post-everything rock, you can hear influences from the likes of Biffy Clyro and Queens Of The Stone Age to more leftfield post-hardcore and alt-metal acts such as Glassjaw, Deftones, and Reuben. Led by the whimsical and animated delivery of frontman Daniel Garland, whose absurd lyricism balances the mundane, macabre, humorous and heinous state of our place in the world with surrealist Monty Python fashion, Phoxjaw just might be cursed with the mantra – “too heavy for the pop kids, too plain strange for the heavy kids”.

Everything But The Girl – Fuse (Buzzin’ Fly)

Everything But The Girl have transposed themselves from fragile indie pioneers to cross-fertilising their unique songwriting with drum & bass and house in the 90s, with the likes of ‘Walking Wounded’ becoming unexpected dancefloor anthems. True experimenters, the duo of Tracey Thorn and Ben Watt now continue to tap into today’s zeitgeist – making their comeback in 2023, and arriving without prior announcement, this time they turned their tender production choices to styles such as future house and UK garage. Echoes of Bicep and Overmono teem on this record, as heartfelt retellings of personal strife and brushes with death make up its lyrical subjects.

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Black Country, New Road – Live At Bush Hall (Ninja Tune)
Following the departure of vocalist/guitarist/primary lyricist Isaac Wood literally the week of releasing their critically acclaimed sophomore effort Ants From Up There in early 2022, London chamber-post-rock collective Black Country, New Road were left with the unwanted task of picking up the pieces of their band and attempting to meet their bloated list of promotional tour dates sans any of the material they’d previously crafted with Wood. Taking a brief respite to re-enter rehearsal spaces and concoct an entirely new set, the members were quick to point out that these newly penned cuts were not destined for any future studio effort, but as more dates passed and the bootleg nature of their fanbase obsessing intimately over every unfamiliar song performed live continued to grow, the group found themselves at an impasse. Opting to meet their avid supporters in the middle by recording three consecutive nights in Bush Hall as part of a live album/concert film, the resulting, aptly titled Live At Bush Hall serves as one of the few live LPs made up entirely of new material with no apparent plan for there to ever be any other versions. In essence this is the accidental third full-length from BC, NR and offers a curious insight into the many directions they could potentially take their project. Bassist Tyler Hyde’s vocal cadence, delivery and dramatic inflections make her sound like an ideal replacement for Wood, which makes perfect sense as her contributions take up the majority of the runtime, while both the indie-pop ditty ‘Across The Pond Friend’ by sax/flute/wind man Lewis Evans, and the haunting, cathartic bombast of ‘Turbines/Pigs’ by pianist May Kershaw, confirm beyond a solitary doubt that the band, who just over a year ago appeared to be on the ropes, are only just getting started and learning to tap into their myriad of potential.

Ben Folds – What Matters Most (New West)
Alternative piano-rock legend Ben Folds made his highly-anticipated return this year with the eclectic and succinct What Matters Most, his first full-length of new material in almost a decade. Focusing on the vital need to search for happiness and fulfilment in an ever-increasingly unwelcoming world, told through his reliably bizarre and enthralling narratives, we hear orchestral odes to former classmates obsessed with QAnon conspiracy theories, a baroque chamber folk ditty about breaking up with someone in a paddleboat and the awkward row back to shore, and even a semi-autobiographical soul banger detailing on-tour infidelities of the past. Where composer maestro and Elton John alumni Paul Buckmaster used to handle arrangements, this time around Mr. Folds utilises his years of study to conduct his own swelling pieces, which as ever, contrast greatly with his often whimsical and direct penmanship. Humorous and jovial, yet attempting to reign in and control communal sadness through anecdotal comparisons, What Matters Most further cements Ben Folds as the consistent heir to the throne of Randy Newman; a phenomenal and sardonic storyteller with a piano as his pen, returning when the world needs him for a little bit of clarity, a smattering of cynicism and a whole heap of heart.

Robert Hood & Femi Kuti – Variations (M-Plant)

Detroit techno innovator Robert Hood and Afro beat king Femi Kuti is not a pairing we thought we would see but it is one we are glad we have. They join forces on the former’s M Plant label for this superb collision of musical worlds. It is unified by Afro beats and a unique mix of futuristic ideals with Femi’s improvised jazz sax leading the way over Hood’s cosmic synth sounds. The album was recorded in just one 30 plus minute take which is all the more of a testament to each artists’s abilities. Femi’s exquisitely free-flowing playing and Hoods signature grooves are perfectly intertwined in this great coming together of two avant art forms.

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100 Gecs – 10,000 Gecs (Big Beat)
The utterly ridiculous hyperpop duo of Dylan Brady and Laura Les, better known as 100 Gecs, broke through in 2019 with their critically lauded debut LP 1,000 Gecs, which exuded a purposefully obnoxious maximalist approach to glitch, chiptune, gabba, trap and pop-punk. If you feel like that sounds like a DJ set in hell, it only means you’re sane. Four years on, and their sophomore project designed to be 10 times better than its predecessor (hence the title), does the most Gecs thing imaginable and leaves the hyperpop mutations they helped to inspire an entire new wave of internet kids to pursue, in the proverbial dust. Leaning directly into their once micro-dosed genres for full song trips this time around, a cut like ‘Hollywood Baby’ delivers one of the catchiest pop-punk bangers of the year while both ‘Frog On The Floor’ and ‘I Got My Tooth Removed’ go full on digi-ska punk. Then you have the psych-twang slacker college rock of ‘Doritos & Fritos’, the Beck at his most trip-hop stylings of ‘The Most Wanted Person In The United States’, and even a Limp Bizkit-indebted nu-metal track, ‘Billy Knows Jamie’, which eventually devolves into cybergrind harsh noise. 10 tracks, 25 minutes, a lifetime of musical absurdity.

Oneohtrix Point Never – Again (Warp)

Daniel Lapotin is a highly versatile talent – the results of his stint producing The Weeknd also surfaced this year – but this is the full, unexpurgated Oneohtrixpointnever experience without a drop of dilution. So yes, it is arguably his most complex and challenging – “spanning everything from Mingus-in-space double bass reflection to walls of blazing, My Bloody Valentine-style guitar textures” our review said – but it’s also probably his most ambitious and accomplished too, and defintitely takes you on a trippy, heady journey. Recommended, and when the associated live show hits these shores in 2024, you’ll want to be there.

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Paramore – This Is Why (Atlantic)
While once the emo/pop-punk group you’d lie to yourself and friends about hating, the latter years of Paramore’s career trajectory have taken quite a unique shape. Following an extended hiatus which saw frontwoman Hayley Williams deliver two exceptional solo albums in 2020’s Petals For Armor and 2021’s companion-piece Flowers For Vases/Descansos, the band would then regroup for their much hyped follow up to 2017’s After Laughter. Distancing themselves from the dance-pop machinations of their previous material, This Is Why taps into 80’s and 90’s post-punk with obvious influences and near homages to the likes of Talking Heads, up to more modern acts such as Bloc Party (who the band took out on tour as support for this latest album). Crisp production, frenetic guitar work and a career-best performance from Ms. Williams, who has finally learned that less can often be so much more with regards to her vocal delivery, while lyrically, we unpack post-COVID anxieties, self-deprecating perspectives on socialising and the increasing futility of watching the news. For a band that little over a decade ago, could get you ridiculed for enjoying, Paramore have legitimately dropped one of the best alt-rock records of the year. Yes, we said it.

Theo Parrish – Cornbread & Cowrie Shells For Bertha (Sound Signature)

Theo Parrish never plays by the rules and his latest album offering, his first for three years, was no exception. The Detroit deep house hero offers up two epics – the 18 minute dancefloor epic ‘Dance Alone’ and the Afro-slanted ‘Cleo’s Theme’, which gets pretty close to 11 minutes – that have no doubt been filling dancefloors since its release back in June. But rather than repeat that formula with dimninishing returns, the rest of the album is made up of experimental curios, from the seriously off kilter beats (and not much else) of the title track, to beatless organ/Spanish guitar interlude ‘Real Deal. Genius and eccentricity often dance close, but rarely this close.

City & Colour – The Love Still Held Me Near (Still)
Easily one of the most heart-rendering albums of 2023, the seventh full-length from City & Colour (the solo project of Alexisonfire’s Dallas Green) materialised through a form of catharsis while processing the tragic and untimely passing of longtime friend and recording engineer Karl “Horse” Bareham, who passed away during one of the band’s tours across Australia. Already known for his deeply vulnerable, melancholic musings, The Love Still Held Me Near delivers a deep thud of a gut-punch as it unpacks the loss of a friend, the pain that can come from a lack of closure, and the bitterness of being left to grieve. As the project has morphed over the years from minimal acoustic-emo to full blown Americana-tinged folk rock, musically Green’s band pull from bluegrass and psychedelia to paint sprawling sonics beneath his vulnerable poetic descriptions. A true work of pain, grief, and the innate drive to make peace with one’s lot.

Compiled by Zach Buggy & Ben Willmott