2023 was an amazing year for music! This was the first year of my M.Arch which means some days I would close my work laptop at 5:30 and then immediately open my personal laptop to keep drafting or sign on to a zoom call for lecture. As my screen time doubled, so did my playcounts. Here is a look at my favorite new music from 2023...
Format: ARTIST record ("Song" Favorite Line, if applicable)
2HOLLIS 2 ("Blackbirds" Treat me like the right eye/ I know that there's no way to get around) Choosing my #1 this year was easy. It's 2!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I feel like I was still spinning 2Hollis' 2022 release, White Tiger on repeat when 2 descended from heaven. My introduction was "FORFEIT" which feels, much like the rest of the record, like a callback to the days of crunkcore. It's angsty and it's club, with clean vocals/"utterances" (moans), and overdriven synths. Hollis' power is in his laser-focused production - which he does completely on his own, by the way. Rather than giving an impression of nostalgia, 2Hollis builds on the genres he pulls from and allows them to level up through his studied production work and mysterious lyrics. Every song on this record is an absolute banger - which also earned him a spot as my second most-listened artist of 2023.
2. ***MOST ANTICIPATED OF THE YEAR, BY FAR*** MISOGI Escape Artist ("Void Fallen" AT NIGHT WHO CAN I CALL) I had been waiting for a drop from MISOGI since his 2020 EP, little*stars and he really made it worth my wait. My jaw was on the floor halfway through the first listen. Through his web presence, Misogi makes a point of not wanting to be lumped in with draingang, Hyper Pop, or any of the other movements occurring in the musical now. As far as he is concerned, it is mere coincidence that he emerged from the far reaches of the deepweb at about the same time. With Escape Artist he continues to demonstrate the evolution of his sound and its staying power. I have always described his production style as "studied" - It is difficult to pin him to any particular genre. I always hear a slight Japanese Pop influence and the irreversible psychological damage of someone who clocked serious time with Kanye Autotune. Not sure if that's a treatable condition or not.
"Void Fallen" is a prime example of Misogi's genre transcendence. I implore you to try to make sense of the beat that develops at the minute mark. It's not even about music theory but choice of layering. And then he over-edits. It takes Misogi about a minute to strip away the layers of production to reveal raw passion. Notice how he turns the autotune ALL THE WAY UP to beg, "At night who can I call? Sometimes I don't know who I am at all. I think 'what's it all for?' I guess I'm just destined to fall." This song makes me grow wings, fly up to space, experience the death of a distant star, and then forget it all so I can go buy lip gloss.
"We're Gonna Make It After All" is my favorite song from the record, but that's a discussion to be had among terminal Misogi fans. It's the emotional, layered, pitch-shifting anime ending side of Misogi at his absolute finest and for some reason he gave it a bassline that makes my car shake.
He has recently released a Starseeker Vol 3 mix to compliment Escape Artist, as well as a limited release of official remixes. He is my fourth most listened artist this year by playcount.
3. No Rome Blueboy Must Die ("Brother" Nothing is easy.) Another record I absolutely did not see coming was No Rome's Blueboy Must Die. After his 2021 record, It's All Smiles I wasn't sure if we would see him again for awhile. He reminds us why he is an underground artist by burying the hit on this release underneath songs like 'Hackney Bounce" and "97RAGER." And then "Brother' emerges - emotional and beautiful - cementing his place in the "R&B Hall of Fame" in my heart. A classic layered and poignant No Rome hit shines through, strings and all.
Cup full of favors / You'll get it together / Nothing to thank you, it's okay, I'll see you later
Crash on my sofa / Watching my TV / Sleep on my couch, it's okay, nothing is easy
4. Mixed Matches deer in the headlights ("Darkage" It's been awhile since I rolled over barring teeth that I had broke.)
Mixed Matches did little to promote deer in the headlights though it does include some previously released tracks, and I did not see the patterns and signs that would lead to a full release. He is, and has always been, carving his own path. This record is no exception. I think of his work, overall, as the darker side of the current wave of underground synth. Here he is once again hiding dark and personal lyrics behind catchy beats and those signature vox. "cops and robbers (this is happening)" is one hell of an opener and it just keeps rolling from there.
5. Hail The Sun Divine Inner Tension ("Chunker" If I stare at my reflection long enough. I see fire, I see friction, I see trust. -- Enemies fueling my thoughts, taking up space. Why do I have to be so fucking spiteful?) It wasn't all dance music this year, okay? I logged some hours in the prog/screamo categories I'm known to enjoy. HTS delivered some heavy hitters this year by way of Divine Inner Tension. I'd like to focus on "Chunker" as a case study. The video seems both self-aware, and genre-aware. The guitars are mathy, the vocals get intense, but this song still threads the needle with that catchy sing-along chorus that I've come to love them for, and they give us lyrics to compliment.
Other highlights from Divine Inner Tension include, "Maladapted" and "Under the Floor." Yeah, I liked the hits. So sue me!
6. BLIIISS - ALL SOUNDCLOUD RELEASES YES EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THEM 2023 ("if it means something" i'll pick up when you call if it means something / please tell me how to do this right / no matter what you're on my mind)
Number 6 is going to be the one where I call into question the efficacy and relevance of the AOTY list format. Bliiiss is my thesis. I logged countless hours with Bliiiss this year - though the guy did not drop a single "album." I am considering all of his soundcloud posts to be my AOTY #6, since there are enough songs released to constitute a record. I don't quite know yet how we can revise the AOTY concept to better capture the evolution of how artists release music. The "album" as we know it is dying, if not dead already.
But an SOTY (song of the year) list would never satisfy.
There's something special about Bliiiss. I think I discovered him initially through songs he did with buffalobang, like "if it means something." He's worked with some artists I really like. (The song I listened to the most this year, for example, was "addy bender" by bliiiss w/ d1v.) Like a lot of my favorite artists, Bliiiss is not entirely faithful to any one genre. A lot of his songs feature real guitar tracks and this produces a tangible difference in the songwriting. He's kind of no-metaphors, too, his lyrics are raw and honest and easy to understand.
Favorites this year include:
worthit (prod. methboiswag)
dont sleep w/ capoxxo (prod bi2l) <- truly bonkers production, you will NOT believe it
wrong place (feat. buffalo bang)
imfine
ignorance is bliss
7. SECOND MOST ANTICIPATED: D1V Against the Grain ("Dirty Tricks" im off the excstacy im telling u straight from my heart)
(He spelled "ecstasy" that way in the official lyrics ok - he's Swedish, cut him a break on spelling. It's different over there.)
D1v was my most listened artist by playcount this year. It's not just his e-boy ways... "Against the Grain" has an insane production lineup and the bars to back it up. I would say D1v comes from a more traditional "emo rap" background but with Against the Grain he demonstrates that "emo rap" as a genre is simply the cliff he dives from - which can be subverted through the addition of police siren samples - the fall is a genre onto itself. I'm sort of kidding but I'm sort of not. In 2023 he came to prove he's got more to offer. Honorable tracks include "Dirty Tricks," "Birds," and "All It Takes."
I have chosen to link "dog" (below) which came out about a month ago, because I have not been able to stop listening.
BOYSNIGHTSOUT THE ONLY TIME I AM TRULY HAPPY
8. Swoopy Baglife 4 ("easy-going" It's strange we haven't met before / a copy of a copy)
This is more of an Honorable Mention for BoysNightsOut who, as a collective, provided me with countless releases this year. Swoopy has really grown on me for the simple reason that he is, "out there." His lyrics are a window into a world I had never been to before, and will probably not ever be coming back from now that I've arrived. I found myself playing, "rent" a lot, as well as "d1v's room, "saint laurent," and "real estate." Bro got a truly bilingual lineup, too. We are speaking english, swedish, japanese, and spanish on this record - and that's just what I can hear without looking it up.
9. HEALTH RAT WARS ("FUTURE OF HELL")
Sneaking in at the end of the year, RAT WARS was there for me when I needed it most. I didn't find out about this record until release day. I just so happened to have some down time (literally, I was on a train down to DC.) I've been a fan of HEALTH since their hipster days. It's been a pleasure to watch them evolve into something that's not quite goth, not quite metal, but a secret third thing. They're really dialed in, to the point I'd almost describe it as "fan service." They never fully veer into the territory of "too edgy" but they constantly toe the line.
By no fault of its own, 2023 has not been the hottest year. I didn't realize how much I needed the apathetic two-step that is "FUTURE OF HELL" until I was listening to it, and unable to believe how hot it is. And I need the remixes for this record, like, yesterday.
10. sg lily y 22-23rp (EP)
This one made the cut for that star-studded lineup on XTC (sg lily, buffalobang AND eera on one track, lord have mercy) not to mention that incredible Maple remix. SG stands on his own, too, with tracks like "violent" and "camel crush." His work feels stripped down and throwbacky like a myspace demo. I can't wait to see what this one does next.
My #10 is a premonition. I think there will be more good stuff from SG in 2024. <3
Honorable Mentions (singles):
aldn "headstrong gunner": I found myself listening to this song a lot this year, and if nothing else, I'd like to revisit this post in a few years to see if it had the staying power I feel from it now. It's a perfect combination of sad lyrics & upbeat music - with a great video. Go find somebody to be and don't hurt no one.
2hollis "whiplash": Hollis found time to also drop one hell of a pop song. I remember when this came out, thinking to myself, "Wow, I guess bro fell in love."
Thanks for reading! -H