Tag Archives for Faye Webster

The Rundown: October 2024

I’m both delighted and dismayed that I decided to hold myself to doing flash reviews of every new album I can in this year, 2024. We’re deep enough in now that I can confidently say this year has been one of the all-time greats. 1967, 1994, 2016 – these years welcome 2024 with open arms. It also means I’ve had absolutely no time to do other writing for this blog or to catch up on older music at all. And quite frankly, I’m getting tired of these posts. But we’re close enough to the end, even if I’m not at all close to actually clearing out my “new albums to listen to” list. I’ve got 36 quick ones for you this time, and there’s a lot of heavy hitters. I’ve run out of time to listen to stuff I don’t expect much out of. Coming up below is some black metal, a couple of difficult indie albums, some alternative legends, yet another excellent post-punk album, one of the biggest pop albums of the year, and an album from some pals that is unbiasedly brilliant. Let’s crack on.

Orville Peck – Stampede

Ugh. I wrote about the EP Peck released earlier this year, when it wasn’t yet clear if it was going to be part of a bigger album. At the time, I said it was worryingly inconsistent, and the full album isn’t different. If you follow me on social media, you may know that I’ve jokingly adopted a pun of Peck’s name as my handle, because his music means a lot to me. But his third album just isn’t it. All fifteen songs are collaborations, and seven of them are covers (often done with the original artist). It’s a weird move for an artist who’s growing in popularity but still establishing himself. Peck’s first two albums put him concretely in the world of outlaw country/y’allternative, but some of his other releases have seen him branch out into poppier worlds. This album is all over the place, intentionally. There’s straight country, like the delightfully funny “You’re an Asshole, I Can’t Stand You (And I Want a Divorce)” and the tepid closer “Rhinestone Cowboy.” But there’s also pop (“Midnight Ride”), indie (“Death Valley High”) and an ill-advised mariachi song (“Miénteme”). The expanded branches work better on paper than practice. Given that there’s so many covers done with well-established artists (Elton John, Margo Price, Kylie Minogue, etc), it implies that Peck didn’t have the songwriting well mined. I don’t think this is true! It just seems like it. Also, it feels like Peck is gunning for the crossover country money. Can’t blame him, crossover country is very hot right now – but his first attempts have a glossy inauthenticity to them that is just unfortunate. The more pop-friendly he goes, the more plastic it all sounds. And when you hear the few great songs, like the Beck and Margo Price collaborations, it makes the dullness of the other tracks all the more apparent. 

Grade: 7/10   Initial release date: 8/2/24

Pharmakon – Maggot Mass

Weirdly, I don’t remember my thoughts on this one too vividly. Pharmakon is quietly one of my favorite artists, just not one I listen to often – her music is extreme industrial, pushing the sonic territories of noise. Her songs are often expansive, harsh and pulsating, but with hints of melody too, which sets her apart from the goofy pure harsh noise. Lyrically, she sings largely viciously raw songs about skin, bodies and illnesses. Maggot Mass is no different, as every song here is menacing and uncomfortable. This record is missing the one key song of her previous works, which hampers it a bit. No track feels like a standout, they’re all a muddy slog together. But if you’re into extreme music, you can’t do wrong with her catalog.

Grade: 7.5/10   Initial release date: 10/4/24

Amyl & the Sniffers – Cartoon Darkness

I’m a simple man, if a song has fast guitars and Amy Taylor yelling some stuff at me in a thick Australian accent, then I like that song. I absolutely adore Amyl & the Sniffers, and their third album is chock full of drunk-punk goodies. These songs are exactly what you expect and exactly what they need to be – a collection of fast and loose punk songs that are sometimes about vulnerability, and sometimes about beer. While the band ventured out into more exploratory terrain on the second album, they double back down into fun punk here. Uncoincidentally, I like this record more than their second one (their debut remains an all-time favorite, though). Put it on and destroy your own house.

Grade: 8/10   Initial release date: 10/25/24

Rubblebucket – Year of the Banana

Although the indie duo Rubblebucket only popped up on my radar with their last album, 2022’s Earth Worship, they’re actually now seven albums and fifteen years deep. My thoughts on the last album were that I loved the loose, bright and horn-based songs but wished some of them had a little more oomph to them. Well this is that record, a set of alternative songs that are taut in production but loose in vibes, with a lot of sunny energy to them. There’s no attempt to reinvent the wheel, just craft it so it runs smoothly. It’s just some very fun indie. Also, some quick research tells me that this band has been local to me this whole time and I had no idea. Neat!

Grade: 7.5/10   Initial release date: 10/18/24

FIDLAR – Surviving the Dream

The debut FIDLAR album will be one that I always cherish, a surf-punk classic. But it was obvious from the start that band’s gimmick – songs almost exclusively about drugs and booze – wouldn’t last. They’d either die or sober up. For the second album it was, well, both. In the intervening years the band has pumped out some good songs here and there, but the general concept of their music has gotten staler and staler. Their fourth album is just kind of…sad. The songs about needing to get loaded to survive no longer sound true and paranoid like they did in 2013, they now sound wimpy and unbelievable. The band has also turned a bit towards a pop-punk sound, which is probably a solid idea – they can rope in more fans, especially the sad, older punks. But in my eyes specifically, it’s off-putting. They still bring the heat more often than not, and it does save the album. From a music standpoint, they’re not going through the motions. It just seems that they no longer really have anything to say, and it makes the affair seem pointless. Early songs like “No Waves” felt like melodic cries for help, these feel like pale imitations. 

Grade: 7/10   Initial release date: 9/20/24

Speed – ONLY ONE MODE

I’m not really sure how to classify this album, which means it’s probably pretty effective. The nu-metal revival is alive and well, best seen in bands like Speed who pluck out elements of it to incorporate into something else. Toss in hardcore punk, hip-hop and metalcore and you’ve got nearly all of the metal zeitgeists of the past 25 years mixed together. The end result isn’t necessarily as interesting as it should be, some songs come off as surprisingly limp despite the chaotic energy. But the ones that work are thrashing. This feels like it could be the start of a new hardcore era, this is a band to watch. And the whole thing is over in 24 minutes.

Grade: 7.5/10   Initial release date: 7/12/24

Hana Vu – Romanticism

I came into this one after hearing a track on the radio, a fun romp of an indie-pop song. Even with the song I knew, the cover art and title had me expecting something more along the lines of chamber pop. It’s more indie-pop/indie rock, and it’s largely stellar. It’s an all DIY affair, which adds a looseness to the music; this isn’t another overproduced saccharine record. It is perhaps a bit too long or a bit too repetitive, the album as a whole is fun but feels like its lacking in something. But as individual parts, there’s a lot of fun tracks here. 

Grade: 7.5/10   Initial release date: 5/3/24

Etran de l’Air – 100% Sahara Guitar

I mean what else do you expect with a name like this? I’ve mentioned it a few times throughout this project but I have a secret love of African music, especially African guitar music, so this was up my alley. I listened to this on a toasty summer day walking around downtown Boston, wich was probably ideal. It’s a solid and really fun set of African rhythms filtered through American rock, just like Mdou Moctar and countless others. It isn’t as strong as some others – too many songs that meander through a midtempo lull – but it is still very fun and wildly confident.

Grade: 7/10   Initial release date: 9/13/24

Sinai Vessel – I SING

How’s this for full-circle: ten years ago, back when I used this blog largely to cover new emo bands, I wrote about Sinai Vessel’s EP “profanity.” I was – if I recall correctly, which I may not – the first person to cover their music. Now, Sinai Vessel is one person, and he’s on a retirement tour. Caleb Cordes last album, I SING, is just as vulnerable and emotional as anything else he’s released. In 2014, I referenced how the band had been called “punk for sissies” and used the then-zeitgeisty term “tender emo.” That style tends to grow and mature, and it has here – soft, personal indie music that always eschews any form of oomph. I will say, it was all a little too lowkey for me – man-and-a-guitar music tends to be hit-and-miss in the PGMR world. But even in that scene, it’s unique, because it lacks any flashiness and showmanship, in favor of personality and rawness. So while this wasn’t really for me, it should find a nice niche home. Congrats on a great career!

Grade: 7/10   Initial release date: 7/26/24

Sabrina Carpenter – Short n’ Sweet

I love the harmless pun of the title, referring to both the 36-minute runtime and Carpenter herself. Now, surely you’ve already heard this album, I got to it a bit late. It’s utterly delightful, I loved it. It scratches the same itch that Carly Rae Jepsen does – bouncy pop songs that deal with the complexities of relationships that also aren’t plastic. It can be difficult in today’s landscape to make pop music that’s truly authentic but this album is, top-to-bottom. It’s raunchy and clever, nearly every song is a winner. It’s easy to see why this is the album that’s really broken her out of Disney containment; if it wasn’t for Chappell Roan, this would’ve been Carpenter’s year to lose. And if it wasn’t for Charli, this would probably be the best pop album of 2024. Those aren’t exactly setbacks, this is an album we’ll be talking about for years to come.

Grade: 8/10   Initial release date: 8/23/24

Spectral Wound – Songs of Blood and Mire

The best black metal albums are ones with minimal to no melodies and production that sounds like the band is in the next building, which makes Spectral Wound all the more remarkable. The band manages to make black metal with melodies and crisp production that isn’t any sort of “experimental” or “pseudo” black metal. It’s just black metal. Pummeling walls of guitar and guttural vocals, the loudest that music can be. But there are melodies, and even some lyrics that recognize the band’s stance testing the confines from the inside. There’s a meta element to this album that feels foreign to traditional black metal. This isn’t as excellent as their previous album, 2021’s A Diabolic Thirst, but that was a high bar to clear. This is still an excellent, maximalist metal record.

Grade: 7.5/10   Initial release date: 8/23/24

Undeath – More Insane

I’ve said it before and I will say it again – I’m clueless when it comes to writing about death metal. It’s not that I don’t know anything about the genre (although it’s far from my favorite metal subgenre), but I can just never find the right words as to what makes an album unique or not. This rips, though, it’s one of the more interesting death metal albums I’ve heard in a while. There’s no prolonged ideas or tedious songwriting, just a bunch of raucous blasts and a some very fun, unpredictable songs. Nothing happens twice, which is the mark of a death metal band that isn’t allowing themselves to be complacent within the genre. Also the cover is sick as hell and offbeat for the genre. It rocks!

Grade: 7.5/10   Initial release date: 10/4/24

The The – Ensoulment

It’s only been fairly recently that I’ve started to gain an appreciation for the lighter new wave and 80’s pop bands, so The The is one that I’ve never really spent any time with. Truthfully, this is probably the first time I’ve ever really listened to them. It wasn’t really “for me” necessarily but I appreciated what it was – minimalist synth-pop with a lot of spoken word vocals. The band’s first album in ~25 years is unassuming and niche, not looking to gain any younger fans. It sounds akin to some of Roger Waters’ late-career solo albums in its grizzly, vocal-forward songwriting and light melodies. It’s interesting, it’s a little too barebones. 

Grade: 7/10   Initial release date: 9/6/24

Toro Y Moi – Hole Erth

I always appreciate artists stepping out of their comfort zone, and when you’re someone like Toro Y Moi, you don’t even necessarily have one. Chaz Bear, aka Toro Y Moi, had a pretty unique and signature sound for a few years before it was imitated by millions; he was a founder of chillwave, the synth-heavy retro-pop sound that emerged around 2010. His last few records have been more indie-based, but this one leans far more into hip-hop. It doesn’t really work, honestly. He doesn’t sound nearly tough enough or, alternately, too energized – he’s trying to marry some styles that have irreconcilable differences. It’s ultimately just too limp. Some assists from Kevin Abstract and Kenny Mason actually give the end of the album a boost. The last 4 songs or so are worth the time. And there’s a lot of good ideas throughout. But it’s just a little too sedated and plastic. 

Grade: 6.5/10   Initial release date: 9/6/24

Body Meat – Starchris

Based on the album cover and the way I saw this record described, I was expecting something much more neurotic and possibly industrial. I made the mistake of listening to it just after the Toro Y Moi record, and it’s quite similar – chill indie-pop, just more experimental. Songs are drawn out and there’s occasional chaotic elements thrown in. But it’s very jazzy, too. The individual elements of this record are relatively standard, but the complete songs are pretty unique. It’s always bordering on going noisy and heavy, but usually stays funky. It’s a fun one.

Grade: 7.5/10   Initial release date: 8/23/24

Porridge Radio – Clouds In The Sky There Will Always Be There For Me 

Another winner from one of the most unique acts in indie music. The British trio makes indie music that is at home with bands like Built to Spill, but might make listeners a little uncomfortable. Singer Dana Margolin has a gritty voice resembling Francis Quinlan from Hop Along, but with a backing band that’s filtered through the looseness of Hole. The whole album is off-the-cuff and extremely raw. It could even be more Tom Waits than anything. The music this band makes is wholly unique, and it’s fair to say that some normal indie fans will be turned off by it. But I’ve been way onboard with them for a few years now, and this is a real standout. 

Grade: 8/10   Initial release date: 10/18

Machine Girl – MG Ultra

There’s nothing out there like Machine Girl. They have a lot of elements that I theoretically shouldn’t like, but I love their music. I guess the way to describe the duo is techno-hardcore, hardcore music with a lot of glitchy electronic elements and unpredictability. More often than not, this album is heavy and gonzo, which is right up my alley. It’s fun as hell, while still being mildly off-putting to anyone trying to embrace traditional electronic or hardcore music. Though Machine Girl have been at it for over a decade, I can see this unholy hyperpop-metal concoction being a new scene soon.

Grade: 8/10   Initial release date: 10/18/24

Coldplay – Moon Music

Does it matter what I say here? You made your mind up about Coldplay a long, long time ago, and new albums from them are pretty meaningless to anyone outside the fanbase. You might be surprised to learn that I am, in fact, a huge Coldplay fan. I don’t love everything they’ve done, but I do think a lot of it is better than what people credit them with. Moon Music might be their hokiest release yet, but that’s part of the charm. The lackadaisical cover art and the song title that’s just an emoji don’t exactly hint at high art, and many of these songs do sound like the U2 castoffs that Coldplay are notorious for. But hey, I think they’re pleasant. They pull in some surprise guest appearances from the likes of Jon Hopkins and top-five-alive rapper Little Simz. The spaciness of their music works pretty well here, as the more ambient songs are generally the better ones. But hey, it’s Coldplay – if you’re reading this blog, you’re probably not going to listen to this.

Grade: 7.5/10   Initial release date: 10/4/24

Hell Beach – BEACHWORLD

I knew nothing about this band before I saw them open for Buzzcocks, which itself is an unbelievable endorsement. On stage, I thought they were an enthralling punk band with a lot of positive energy and a stage presence well beyond their nascent years. They had just put out their debut record, which doesn’t quite capture the same energy. It’s much more of a standard pop-punk record, surprisingly. That’s not really my thing, personally, so it was a bit of a letdown for me. A lot of these songs got kind of lost amongst each other. But I don’t want to be negative, because the songs had already blown me away live (and they’re relatively local!). If you like pop-punk, these folks seem a lot more historied than they are. It’s a solid debut record, even if it wasn’t what I was looking for. 

Grade: 7/10   Initial release date: 8/9/24

Megan Thee Stallion – MEGAN

I’m historically bad at writing about hip-hop and you developed an opinion on Megan long ago, so this is a throwaway review. Let’s just say, this album solidifies Megan as a star. Even without the shit in her personal life, this would be a bombastic and confident record for the ages. But knowing what’s gone down, it’s downright glorious. It’s sexy, it’s funny and most importantly, it’s freeing. It’s a home run trot of a record. Like nearly every modern rap album, it’s too long – there are not enough different ideas to satisfy the 52 minute runtime. But, there’s a lot of songs that are just fun winners, and what else do you expect from Megan? There’s an extended edition of the album I have not yet heard, which has a tantalizing feature from metal band Spiritbox ! 

Grade: 7.5/10   Initial release date: 6/28/24

Shannon and the Clams – The Moon Is In The Wrong Place

I was deep into the whole surf-punk Burger Records scene in the early 2010’s, so naturally I was on board with Shannon and the Clams. I lost the way with them as I feel they settled into a state of somewhat tedious indie, but I still always want to give them the benefit of the doubt. I really dug this album! The band has a lot of spunk back. They’re still firmly indie, but they’re pulling influences in from doo-wop and skate punk. The whole effort comes off like the 60’s garage rock records that I want to hear them doing. It’s a style of music I personally adore, and this one is pretty solidly fun. The ballads are effective enough, and the more energetic songs are pretty rousing. What more do you need?

Grade: 7.5/10   Initial release date: 5/10/24

Hinds – VIVA HINDS

It’s been a long four years since the last Hinds album. In that time, the bassist and drummer both left, reducing the band back to the two vocalist-guitarists that initially formed it. That might be a disaster for some bands, but for Hinds it was freeing. I’ve been in their camp since the first album from the Spanish indie duo, and this record is probably their best one yet. These songs are sweet and unassuming, but confident and broader. That last note is important – this is the widest-ranging Hinds album, with tender songs, rousing ones like the excellent “En Forma,” and space for both Beck and Grian Chatten to show up and do their own thing. The 2024 indie pot has way overflowed, and in a different year this would be a standout. It’s still a real winner.

Grade: 8/10   Initial release date: 9/6/24

Geordie Greep – The New Sound

Geordie Greep has lost his goddamn mind. The former frontman for black midi is on his own after the band’s sudden break-up. The indie band was already bizarre, but now Greep is in full control and he’s unrestrained. The core of this album still sounds like black midi, with rapid-fire songs filled with staccato and unpredictable rhythms, and a lot of talk-singing, to where the end result feels like musical vertigo. But he’s also added Latin elements, jazz, blues, bongos, a lot of paranoid oomph, and just even more unpredictability. Oh and there’s the genuinely moving cover of a 40’s pop song that closes it all out. It’s an impressive solo debut, especially for one as wildly ambitious as it is. If you liked black midi, as I often did, then you’ll like this. 

Grade: 8/10   Initial release date: 10/4/24 

Arab Strap – I’m totally fine with it don’t give a fuck anymore

Arab Strap is another group I’ve never really listened to, so I can’t compare this record to previous ones. Based on the opening song, “Allatonceness,” that album title is an all-out lie. It’s got the same pulsating intensity of IDLES’ “Colossus,” one of the all-time best album openers. The rest of the album isn’t nearly as vicious, but it’s all very raw and largely minimal indie. It’s a pretty dismal and misanthropic album, though the band is clearly energized and having some fun. This is a record for people who are sick of indie-pop dominating their indie radio.

Grade: 7.5/10   Initial release date: 5/10/24

Uttertomb – Nebulas of Self-Destruction

Yes, this one has a weirdly similar cover. One thing I’ve noticed over the past few years is that while I love metal, much of what I listen to just doesn’t stick with me. I’m writing these reviews a few weeks after listening to all of these albums, but the metal ones are like a blank slate. From what I remember, this is some dreary death metal, not your hokey and bombastic Aborted-type stuff but metal that’s got a layer of mud over it. A quick search tells me this is a proper debut album, even though the band has been around for over a decade. I feel bad that I’m not giving them a proper space here, because it’s an exceptional record. Vile, gloomy and heavy as hell. You know what? I should spin it again. 

Grade: 7.5/10   Initial release date: 4/19/24

Denzel Curry – King of the Mischevious South Part 2

Hot damn. I accidentally slept on this one for a while despite loving basically everything Curry has done so far. Curry has made a name for himself making rap that’s intense without straying too far from genre conventions. This is more of a down-to-basics hip-hop mixtape that shows he can knock something a little more “normal” out of the park too. As a mixtape it is looser and more low-stakes than an album would be, but he puts in no less effort. Bombastic to the core. It’s a quick affair, maybe even a little too short. But Curry can practically do no wrong to this reviewer. This could end up being my favorite rap release of the year, who’s to say.

Grade: 8.5/10   Initial release date: 7/19/24

Teens In Trouble – What’s Mine

I know very little about this band, but the name and album art gave me a vibe that it might the rare pop-punk that I actually like. Judged a book by its cover, and I was spot on. This is some solid, low-stakes punk. It’s definitely pop-punk, but gone are the whiny cliches and post-nasal drip vocals. The pop-punk I like is the stuff that focuses on the punk – PUP, Beach Bunny, etc – and this falls under that category. Taut, guitar-forward and melodic punk rock. It never goes out of style. Miss Cayetana? Look no further. 

Grade: 7.5/10   Initial release date: 3/19/24

The Only Humans – It’s a Beautiful Night. I Think I’ll Disappear Forever. 

Full disclosure – I know most of the members of this band. I’m ex-coworkers with three of them, and am actively friends with one. But removing any bias, I’m including a lil review here because this album is genuinely excellent. The band has the proper and orchestral look of the Decemberists, with the music to boot; and, singer Tim Howd sounds like a dead ringer for John Darnielle. The expansive album is a conceptual one, as death invades from all angles. But the record is a lot of fun, and no two songs are really the same. My personal fave is the maximalist “Esplanade.” I know it’s a way overinflated year for indie, but if you’re trying to look beyond the headliners, please check this one out.

Grade: 8/10   Initial release date: 10/18/24

Nilufer Yanya – My Method Actor

I haven’t heard the British singer’s first two albums, but it appears that her third album is her best so far. It’s tough to imagine something that surpasses this. It’s the melding of indie and pop, but in a wholly different way than the American indie-pop albums that have flooded the year. This is suave, cool and loud – there’s a lot of pumping guitar that disrupts the soulful songwriting. The end result is almost unclassifiable, as if rock and R&B have been jammed together. Her voice is excellent, confident but smooth, and these songs are unique and just fun. I feel that this is a record I’ll be revisiting, as these songs need more attention from me. This is one rocks, folks.

Grade: 7.5/10   Initial release date: 9/13/24

Cursive – Devourer

When all is said and done and the dust on Cursive’s career is settled, they’d better be recognized as one of the most underrated groups in music history. Ask a casual indiehead and they’ll say they love The Ugly Organ. Well folks, Cursive is still putting out records that good twenty years later. Their tenth album Devourer is simply one of the best rock records of the year, and it doesn’t even have a damn Wikipedia page. It’s apocalypse time on Devourer, in case you were expecting the mood to have softened. But it is very fun, the band is still treading the same thin line of emo, indie and rock. Plus, in the last few years they’ve expanded to include a full-time trumpeter and cellist. It’s a unique affair even if it doesn’t sound like one at a first glance. People are sleeping on Cursive, y’all should get with them.

Grade: 8/10   Initial release date: 9/13/24

Fange – Perdition

Like some of the best metal albums I’ve heard this year, I don’t actually know where this recommendation came from. Fange is on their seventh album, but were totally off my radar until this year. It’s catch up time for me, because I loved this. The French band does a punishing mix of industrial, death metal, sludge and a touch of rock (for melody seasoning). The vocals are menacing and the music is both metrical and unforgiving. It’s all very heavy and intense, but the band finds ways to warp a little melody in there as well. It’s closer to industrial than anything else, but you wouldn’t ever confuse this with Nine Inch Nails. It’s straight metal, too.

Grade: 8/10   Initial release date: 2/9/24

Yard Act – Where’s My Utopia?

I somehow completely missed Yard Act’s first album, but their 2023 standalone single “The Trench Coat Museum” completely roped me in. Their second album regrettably doesn’t feature the song, but it follows in the same trend – tongue-in-cheek music that blends post-punk through indie. It’s one of a hundred great post-punk albums this year, and maybe the best of the lot. The band is a lot heavier and faster than, say, Cheekface, but with the same humor and spoken-word vocals. “We Make Hits” is one of the best songs of the year, a meta song about selling out in the face of global destruction that sounds ripped from the LCD Soundsystem playbook. The band never stays quiet or complacent, adding riotous elements to practically every song. Even the lengthy “Blackpool Illuminations” seems to be a self-reflective ballad, before it turns into James Smith arguing with himself through two mics like an old Jim Gaffigan bit. It’s riveting stuff. Not quite one of the best albums of the year, but it’s charting high on my list.

Grade: 8/10   Initial release date: 3/1/24

Blood Incantation – Absolute Elsewhere

I’ve said elsewhere that death metal is one genre where bands don’t have to be innovative and often aren’t – because even the most template death metal bands will still find a big audience. But some bands do experiment, none more so that Blood Incantation. Their 2019 record Hidden History of the Human Race is no less than one of the five or so best metal records of the last decade. The band has only grown more experimental, as this record edges hard on progressive rock alongside death metal standards. It’s only two songs – six on streaming, each song broken up into three sections – both over 20 minutes. Both tracks are odysseys, with sections of unfiltered death metal in parts. But both songs embrace prog rock just as much. The second track, “The Message,” takes an obvious inspiration from Animals, the best Pink Floyd album. It’s a purely unique record top-to-bottom, and an obvious candidate for metal album of the year.

Grade: 8/10   Initial release date: 10/4/24

Faye Webster – Underdressed at the Symphony

There’s not really any reason why I slept on this one for so long, I’ve been a moderate fan of Webster’s for a bit now. I loved the lead single “But Not Kiss,” one of my favorite songs of 2023 (although I wasn’t hot the second single “Lego Ring” despite the presence of Yachty). I appreciated this as a colder version of singer-songwriter Webster. Her previous albums have been somewhat playful, here she seems largely detached. She seems to aiming for the same chord as Lana Del Rey, of retro-sounding orchestral pop with present-day cultural references. It’s not the same end result, as other influences are worked in too, but it is an interesting comparison. Ultimately, I found this very solid but with some undercooked moments. Lyrically it’s her best work, musically it has flashes of genius and flashes of flatness, some songs are a little too empty. But on the whole, it’s a great indie record.

Grade: 7.5/10   Initial release date: 3/1/24

Escuela Grind – DDEEAATTHHMMEETTAALL

About two songs into this four song EP I went “hey wasn’t this band up to some weird shit earlier this year?” and googled it to find out that they have been accused of a litany of awful crimes that I was not aware of prior to hitting play. It’s a shame, they were both an incredibly interesting group and a local export, and I feel awful for ever supporting them. Just noting that here, and I’m not bothering with the full-length they just put out. Fuck ‘em. Also this EP is boring filler.

Grade: whatever/10   Initial release date: 1/12/24

Pixies – The Night The Zombies Came

The worst thing that a Pixies album can be is boring. This album is boring. I’m over the moon that a version of Pixies exists in 2024 – hell, I just got to see them for the very first time somehow – but all of their reunion albums have been somewhat ill-advised. This is far from the nadir of 2014’s Indie Cindy, but it’s an album that plays everything too safe. Almost every song here is tepid and slow, like it’s adult alternative. What’s worse is that there are one or two songs that sound like old Pixies, tantalizing reminders that these slow-burners are a choice. Nothing here is bad, but nothing here is worth the effort. It just exists. It feels like a “remember us?” album, but Pixies don’t need to be doing that, they can keep touring without any new music and people won’t ever forget. It’s ironic that the band that founded the concept of touring a full album would slip to stopgap status. Not terrible, but for die-hards only.

Grade: 7/10   Initial release date: 10/25/24

And there you have it! 36 albums – I’m sure you’ve heard some of these, and I hope you find some gems you may not have known about. Think this post was long? Next month’s will probably be longer. I’m scrambling to listen to everything I can in a shorter and shorter amount of time. As I’m writing this post on 11/23, I’ve already got 35 albums in the tank. Buckle up. Next month you’ll find: a double dose of an indie rap legend, yet another post-punk winner, a very healthy does of disturbing metal, some Christian rap, and the surprise release of the year.

35 Songs I Loved This Year

Jump to: Fav albums 100-76 | 75-51 | 50-26 | 25-1

Hello and welcome to another edition of excessively long year-end coverage courtesy of me, someone who has had too much time on their hands lately. 2023 was a great year for music, yet again. My Spotify playlist where I dump all new songs I like is up to 563 (!!) tunes as of the time of writing. And while a condensed version of songs I loved is at 77 entries, I decided to cap it at 35 for my own sanity. I have a lot of album posts coming up.

These are 35 songs, from 30 artists, that I really enjoyed. I didn’t put a great deal of thought into these since there were so many to choose from, and I’ve left this list alphabetical. Also, I should note, much of the new music I discovered this year was thanks to the Sirius indie station I listened to on my commutes, so both my songs and albums lists are heavily indie-skewed this year.

100 Gecs – “Frog on the Floor”

I mean how else could this start? One of Gen Z’s most shining bands is out here reflecting their generation in shedding away any sort of musical norms. Is this a pop band dropping a ska song in the middle of the album? Yes. Is this just a song about a frog? Yes. Is it catchy as hell? Yes. I’d be lying if I said this wasn’t one of my most-played songs this year, despite really sounding like a children’s song. Hell it’s basically made by children. 

KEY FROG PUN: I heard he was telling croaks at the party.

Arlo Parks – “Devotion”

The sophomore Arlo Parks album was excellent, but it did see the alt-R&B singer move away from jazzy indie in favor of more rote pop beats. So it makes this song – which starts off as a sultry coital anthem before doing a hard reset into straight rock – all the more out of place. Catch a Deftones namedrop early as a hint of what’s to come. Loud and catchy R&B rock; it’s simple, yet unique.

KEY NAMEDROP: Shaking to Deftones, glitter in my bones

Big Thief – “Vampire Empire”

Even in a year where indie titans Big Thief have only released two songs, they make the list. The Best Band In Music is known primarily for disastrously sad songs, so this seemingly genuine love ode feels extra suspicious. But whether there’s a flipside to this one or not, it’s one of the band’s most inventive tracks yet, with some of Adrienne Lenker’s best-ever vocals. 

KEY LYRIC: I wanted to be your woman, I wanted to be your man / I wanted to be the one that you could understand

Bully – “Days Move Slow” & “Lose You”

There’s a few instances on this list where I couldn’t narrow it down to one song per artist, and they always relate anyways (except one instance). Alicia Bognanno’s grunge-flavored indie has always been filled with a certain sense of ennui, but on her best-yet album, it comes with a purpose. The album is dedicated to Alicia’s late dog, Mezzi, and these two tracks about the impermanence of life – and the impermanence of grief – represent some genuine and complex emotion. Some assistance from Soccer Mommy bolsters the latter track, but they’re equally great.

KEY GOOD BOY: RIP Mezzi, the best boy

Cherry Glazerr – “Ready For You”

Cherry Glazerr have always been an indie group of the guns-a-blazing type, edging closer to straight rock than anything else. The second single off their new album is their best track yet, with heavy melodies and Clementine Creevy’s best-ever vocals. Her powerful vocal rhythm dominates this song and adds a hefty layer of confidence into the lyrics. Although the lyrics are actually quite vulnerable, they sound vaguely threatening under the guitars and vocals. Side note: catch this band live if you have the opportunity.

KEY I’M THE JOKER: Wish I could meet you with my eyes / I’m sick inside my twisted mind

Clark D – “It’s a Stickup!”

I didn’t listen to much rap this year, just wasn’t in the mood really! But this song by local rapper Clark D fell into my lap at the end of the year and hot damn is it one of the most fun tracks of 2023. An absolutely manic and tongue-in-cheek track with the highest possible energy. It’s a banger to the max, and doesn’t even stretch to 2:30. Add in a wild verse from kei and you’ve got a monster song. He cleaned up at the Boston Music Awards and proved that this song translates very, very well to a live setting.

KEY SCREAM IT: BITCH YOU GETTIN’ ROBBED

Death Cab For Cutie – “An Arrow in the Wall”

It’s been 15 years since I said “hey I really like this new Death Cab song,” and naturally this is the one that sounds the least like Death Cab. The Postal Service tour must have had a positive effect on Ben Gibbard’s primary indie group, as they trade in their guitars for a gloomy, minimalist beat. There’s a sense of foreboding in this that is totally foreign to DCFC, and it’s a welcome change.

KEY LYRIC: This machine was built to be broken

Faye Webster – “But Not Kiss”

Faye Webster exists in the same tragic indie-folk sad girl scene as, say, Phoebe Bridgers, but she’s always had a comical innocence to her music. That’s stripped away on this cold, baroque tune centered on a pounding, two-chord piano line and a simple but powerful “yeah yeah” in the chorus. It’s simple, but good luck getting it out of your head.

KEY LYRIC: I want to sleep in your arms………..but not kiss

feeble little horse – “Steamroller”

I’ve obviously been listening to mainly indie here this year, but there aren’t many indie bands like this anymore. These young upstarts are channeling the likes of Dino Jr. and Pixies in the way they layer their stuff under fountains of distortion. Underneath all the peels is a paranoid and apologetic tune about personal space, but it’s okay if you never make it that deep. Just enjoy the experience.

KEY RELATABLE PARANOIA: I’m the only one who sees me naked

Genesis Owusu – “Leaving the Light”

This list isn’t ordered at all (hopefully you’ve figured that out by now), but if it was, this would be #1. This absolute banger is my favorite song of the year, as it stands. It isn’t a particularly unique or wheel re-inventing song, but it is a paranoid dancehall banger. Owusu’s album STRUGGLER, which will be found on my albums list, is an album that is about a paradoxical concept – humans surviving an apocalypse. The song’s lyrics are simultaneously paranoid and prideful, and the music is blood-pumping synthy funk. It’s extremely easy to overlook the fact that the song is intended to be violent and depressing! The biggest party of the year is, in fact, the apocalypse.

KEY EARNED BOAST: Crush me with your holy hell, I feel no damage

The Hives – “The Bomb”

God bless the Hives. Their first album in 11 years sees the dance-punk legends stretching out a bit, crafting some songs that aren’t quite as high-energy as before. Logical – they’re in their mid-40’s now, even if Pelle Almqvist did split himself open and soldier on recently. But the Hives blueprint still works. “The Bomb” is a barely-two-minute track with a BPM of 1000 and the most ridiculous lyrics of the year. There isn’t a point to songs like this, it’s just extremely high-energy, goofy fun. And if the Hives can still do it this well, then they’re never going to lose it.

KEY PELLE ALMQVIST: What do you wanna do? Get down! What don’t you wanna do? Get up! What don’t you wanna not don’t do? Not get down! What don’t you wanna not don’t wanna not do? Not get up! 

Jason Isbell & the 400 Unit – “Deathwish”

I’m a big fan of everything Isbell has done, but there’s something specific that permeates all of my favorite tracks of his – vocal melodies. This song, the first track off his country band’s “Weathervanes” album, starts immediately with a lengthy but simple and effective vocal rhythm. It’s something that runs through the course of the whole song, very repetitive but never tiring. Isbell’s songs are often lyrically despondent, but not necessarily sad songs – this one feels downtrodden immediately, which only adds to the effectiveness. This is downright hopelessness.

KEY EXTREMELY RELATABLE OPENING LINE TO YOUR ALBUM: Have you ever loved a woman with a deathwish? 

Jenny Lewis – “Psychos”

I love dirtbag Jenny Lewis. Twenty years ago, she was singing youthful and introspective indie ballads about love and loneliness. Now, she recognizes that her era has passed, and is singing offhand country-folk songs like this one with vaguely problematic lyrics like a cool aunt. To be clear, the lyrics of this song are not good, but the 11pm-on-a-weeknight-in-a-bar vibe of this song is excellent. And, her voice has improved significantly since the Rilo Kiley days. I hate to say it, but she’s a lot cooler now than before. 

KEY RELATABLE NONSENSE: This shit is crazy town

Jungle – “Back on ‘74”

I get that I have a broader spectrum of music than most people, but one of my hardest beliefs around music is that I can’t trust anyone who doesn’t like funk. The band’s latest hit, their biggest in both America and their native UK, is a smooth and sultry vocal song ripped out of the 70’s. The nostalgic lyrics touch on past innocence and lost opportunities, but it’s more than acceptable to shut the thoughts out and just enjoy the fluid melodies. This is a banger, after all. I believe this song has gotten big on The Tik Tok website, so here’s to a whole new generation getting into soul music. Oh, and if you’re only going to watch one video on this list, make it this one.

KEY CRY-DANCE: Never gonna cry anymore, where did it all go?

JW Francis – “Swooning”

Some of the artists on this list are ones I’m extremely knowledgeable on. This is not one of them. I know absolutely nothing about this guy, but I do know that this is one of the most well-constructed songs of the year. At its core, it is a simple indie song about struggling to find the words to tell someone you’ve fallen for them deeply. But there is a lot going on – a rumbling guitar rhythm backs a sweet synth, there’s a guitar freakout, there’s a riff that mimics a butterfly, and there’s a late-song octave change. For people who like to analyze individual elements of songs, this one is a goldmine. Really fun stuff.

KEY LYRIC THAT REFLECTS THE MUSIC: Oh my, I’m swooning / I think we hit the right chord, new tuning

King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard – “Gila Monster”

The second proper Gizz metal album is unlike the first, which was loose thrash. This album is dense, slow and heavy. But much like “Infest the Rat’s Nest,” it centers on an apocalypse and the animals that take over afterwards. In this one, we’re praising the new king, a Gila Monster, whose adorable face graces the album cover. This one is raw and catchy, bolstered by Ambrose taking over for vocals at the bridge and pumping things into a new gear. 

KEY SCREAMABLE CHORUS: Gila! Gila! Gila!    Gila! Monster!

King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard – “Set”

I couldn’t keep these together. The second Gizz album of 2023, “The Silver Cord,” is an electronics one, cashing in their Kraftwerk tickets. Like “Gila” this one is just fun as hell. And like “Gila,” it kicks into high gear off a bridge where Ambrose loses his mind. There’s five different things going on at once musically, which doesn’t even address the cryptic lyrics about ancient Egypt. Everything here is manic. I didn’t think I would like electronic Gizz this much, but I was wrong.

KEY NONSENSE: Eighty years of conflict, crocodile dog birth, Lucifer inverted, slender usurper, piece of work

Lifeguard – “Alarm”

My, where did this one come from? One of the most rousing rock songs of the year comes out of these upstarts, literal children who are channeling the best days of Pixies and Bikini Kill. The song is intensity above all, but it remains extremely catchy too. It’s an absolute bruiser, and it makes the band sound both as youthful as they are, and far more experienced than it. Although I’ve heard this one on indie rock radio, I’d hesitantly call it punk.

KEY VAGUE BUT SCREAMABLE CHORUS: Switch! Switch! Trip or take me!

Lil Uzi Vert – “Nakamura”

Almost no one has a better entrance theme in the world of professional wrestling than Shinsuke Nakamura, so much so that he had to add Japanese lyrics to it to try and quell American audiences from singing it throughout his matches. It was also begging to be sampled. Well Uzi was of course the man to do it. That wildly memorable violin line serves as the foundation of this song, with Uzi rapping over it. This was an easy slam-dunk for any artist, and a shoo-in for this list.

KEY GO WATCH IT RIGHT NOW: Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Sami Zayn from NXT Takeover: Dallas

Little Dragon – “Slugs of Love”

There isn’t much to say about this one other than it’s just one of the most fun bangers of the year. There’s a sax hit just seconds into the song that lets you know it’s gonna be a fun one. The music is fast and funky, the vocals are upbeat, and the lyrics are chaotically funny and sexual. Try getting this one out of your head.

KEY NO THANKS: Have a feast at the table / slugs of love 

M83 – “Amnesia”

Easily one of my favorite songs of the year; I absolutely did not think that Anthony Gonzalez had songs like this one left him. The slow synth build-up feels ominous, building to one of the biggest cinematic choruses you’ll ever hear. It’s Kaela Sinclair’s short but powerful lines during the chorus that really make this one stand out. The song sounds like a late night drive through a crowded but sleepy city on a warm night. It’s got a fullness to it that feels free and warm, even with a touch of dread thrown in. It might be the best song of 2023.

KEY PHRASE I’VE BEEN SHOUTING IN MY CAR: Four minutes with you

Mandy, Indiana – “Pinking Shears”

One of the best new bands of 2023 is also one of the most confounding. Quite possibly the shortest song on this list, this Mandy, Indiana track mixes mechanical percussion, heavy synths and buried vocals into one burst of sound that is very catchy while still dense and wholly unique. Oh, and it’s all in French. The end result isn’t really classifiable, and it sounded out of place on indie rock radio. It isn’t quite my favorite song of the year, but it might be the new one I’ve listened to the most times.

PHRASE CLÉ: Je suis fatiguée, tu sais parce que je suis fatiguée

MJ Lenderman – “Rudolph”

It wasn’t enough for the band Wednesday to drop an all-timer album on us, the guitarist had to drop this excellent solo track too. A crisis of faith plagues the speaker, professing his love to someone from within the walls of a seminary. Throw in some self-doubt, Rudolph the Reindeer and a Pixar reference, and you get a rollicking spellbinder. As with his other solo songs, this is an americana-grunge tune, with rough guitar and loose vocals.

KEY LYRIC: I wouldn’t be in the seminary if I could be with you. 

Model/Actriz – “Donkey Show”

The opening track from my favorite debut album of 2023 is a manic mess. The group starts hauntingly soft, with just a little synth line that sounds like a bug crawling around, until the rest of the band kicks in heavily. The song wastes no time in getting intense – singer Cole Haden sounds like a man who has just realized he is in deep trouble. On the first few listens of this song, I thought “wow this is heavy.” After a few more, I thought, “this is also….groovy.” It’s not like anything I’ve heard before. The song sounds comparable to “City Song” by Daughters, but it swaps out 50% of the paranoia in favor of funk. You can absolutely dance to this, but it might only happen in the nightclub from Blade. 

KEY TROUBLING VAGUENESS: All night, me and my wretched device

The New Pornographers – “Really Really Light”

There’s hardly anything new about the pornographers, who admittedly wear out the formula a bit on their ninth album. But the opening track is an absolute delight of breezy indie. The lyrics are both poetic and empty, singing about nothingness. The fading guitar lick that runs the song sounds like wind entering your car windows on an empty Midwestern highway. There’s a certain listlessness to this song, like everything about it exists only to kill time, but it’s a pleasant feeling. A distinct balance that only a band this deep into the game can pull off. 

KEY BOREDOM: We sit around and talk about the weather / My heart just like a feather / really, really light

Orbit Culture – “Vultures Of North” & “Descent”

Sometimes you just need some good death metal. Orbit Culture’s newest album is a victory lap and a breakthrough, with a bunch of great songs that do a lot with a little. These two songs feature rhythms that are, quite frankly, very simple! But they’re super fun and incredibly catchy while still being heavy and brooding. The growled vocals are top notch and the production is stellar. The metalheads probably have this band on radar already, but here’s a note in case you don’t.

KEY BROODING: The descent into madness is all I see, and it’s all I’ve seen

Palehound – “Eye on the Bat”

How much fun can one song be? Local legends Palehound hit an absolute home run (pun intended) on their latest album’s title track. The song kicks off with a fun and complex acoustic guitar line, with bright and cheery vocals and one quick slide guitar hit thrown in too. Although the song is ostensibly about how grueling a tour can be, the lyrics cherry-pick some nostalgic moments too. This feels like a song we’ll still be listening to in a decade. Spin it a couple times:

KEY SAME: Black Sabbath as the sun goes down ‘cause I like heavy metal / We’re the only people for miles around and we’re headbanging to Paranoid.

The Rolling Stones & Lady Gaga – “Sweet Sounds of Heaven”

I’m not gonna sit here and pretend that the new Stones album is anything really worth listening to, but you’re doing yourself a disservice if you skip this one. This 7+ minute track is possibly the best Stones song since…the 80’s? Gaga brings the best out of the Stones, who face down mortality on this apocalyptic track. Her background vocals provide a moving aura that earnestly feels akin to “You Can’t Always Get What You Want.” There is also a vulnerability here that we don’t see from Mick much, though it’s still wrapped in ego too. 

KEY LYRIC: No, I’m not goin’ to Hell, in some dusty motel / And I’m not goin’ down in the dirt.

Sleep Token – “The Summoning”

One of the first new songs I heard in 2023 ended up being one of the best, a heady and highly conceptual song that acts as metal, but dissuades any real classification. A simple and pounding riff comes and goes as huge choruses rise and fall, as the song meanders between radio rock and straight metal. The whole thing has this aura that there’s a great bridge coming, but where it ends up going is unpredictable – an extended ambient segment followed by a poppy, jazzy coda. The song messes around with genres and expectations, with supreme confidence.

KEY RADICAL TONAL SHIFT: Oh, and my love, did I mistake you for a sign from God?

Slowdive – “Alife”

This is aural Xanax. We should be so thankful that Slowdive reunited back in ~2015 because the niche they left behind had been imitated by countless bands, but never perfected. While many of their shoegaze contemporaries like My Bloody Valentine and Ride often searched for bliss and clarity in sheer volume, Slowdive did it in minimalism. “Alife” recaptures the stunning and cathartic aura of their original 90’s work. Everything is so slight that it feels improvised, but it’s all so polished that it could’ve only been done by perfectionists.

KEY LYRIC: Two lives are hard lives with you. 

Slow Pulp – “Cramps”

Slow Pulp is an indie-pop group that would usually not get mistaken for doing anything heavy or edgy, but the first single off their newest album is just that. The song, which yes is about period cramps, comes complete with fuzzy guitar and full-to-the-brim vocals. It’s an extremely fun song, reminiscent of a more 90’s indie pedalboard sound, and helps the band expand their sound some. It’s a simple song, but I spun it a whole bunch this year.

KEY I AM NEVER JEALOUS OF PEOPLE WITH PERIODS: I play out the same scene, bleeding on my new sheets / I wanna bake out on the concrete

Wednesday – “Bull Believer,” “Chosen to Deserve,” “Quarry”

One of these things is not like the others! I couldn’t help but include three songs by the Band of the Year in here. For those unfamiliar, Wednesday deliver a brand of americana-infused indie with a healthy amount of heavy guitar, in a total package that feels similar to Neil Young on paper, though not in practice. “Chosen to Deserve” and “Quarry” are country-fried indie tunes that tell tales of American loneliness; the former is a first-person tale of two bored people forcing a relationship, the latter is a walk down a poor street deep in the suburbs. “Bull Believer,” meanwhile, is a 8+ minute dose of heavy grunge that culminates in minutes of screaming. You simply won’t believe it’s from the same album. 

KEY STORYTELLING TIME: Somebody called the cops on Mandy and her boyfriend / When they busted in they found that her house was a front for a mob thing / Pulled guns and cocaine from the drywall wrapped in newspaper / We gathered in the tall grass and watched unblinking as they cuffed ’em and hauled ’em away

There were of course many, many other songs I wanted to write about for this list. Real quick, here’s five that just missed the cut: 26Fix – “Stonekiller” (electronic/indie), Full Body 2 – “wonder limit” (shoegaze/hyperpop), The Kills – “New York” (guitar indie), Nation of Language – “Sole Obsession” (electronic/indie/new wave), Slaughter to Prevail – “Viking” (deathcore)

Check back in tomorrow when I start my official countdown of *cough* my 100 favorite albums of 2023!