My Top 10 Albums Of The Year 2023

 10) The Chemical Brothers - For That Beautiful Feeling

I'm not going to pretend I'm a massive Chemical Brothers fan because I'm not. When they went "mainstream" a few years back with Galvanise I had a little flutter with them but really since then nothing. I'm always looking for new music and when I saw this had come out I gave it a go. I was on a whole Fred Again vibe after seeing him live and needed some house/electronic music in my life. This is a completely uncomplicated record. They don't try and push any new boundaries here this is just a pure non commercial house/techno record that I imagine hasn't had much radio play but hits in all the right spots for me. 

9) The Murder Capital - Gigi's Recovery 

I wasn't sure on this album for ages. I heard lots of good things about it but every time I listened to it I just didn't get it. On Wikipedia the bands genre is Post Punk which I don't agree with and maybe that's what was throwing me. This is a gloomy album, it's slow and melodic with moody almost sulky lyrics. This doesn't necessarily mean bad it's just something you would listen to in a certain time and space which is where I think I connected with it. My favourite tracks are Return My Head and Ethel.  

8) The Rolling Stones - Hackney Diamonds

How are these guys still going this strong? FIFTY NINE years after their first release The Rolling Stones are back with a new record and it's fabulous. Angry the opening track is a down and dirty song about rage that feels like the perfect opener while Bite My Head Off is electric. How are these guys in their eighties? There's so many cool guitar riffs and Mick's lyrics and vocals haven't felt this on point in years almost like he's been waiting for the right time to release this album. As I'm writing this I want to bump this record up this list but it's been decided now. This is a superb record from a band that just keep going and going and thank god for that.

7) Grian Chatten - Chaos For The Fly

Cards on the table, Fontaines DC are my favourite band around at the moment so when I saw Grian was releasing a solo album I did have a slight wobble thinking this was the beginning of the end for the band. Fear not, he's stated in interviews that this record is just something he wanted to get off his chest before the next FDC one. 

The Score which was the first single release from the album is a moody, melonic track which kind of sets out the stall for this nine track record. Fairlies is without doubt the best from this record with a real folk like instrumental with violins, acoustic guitars and percussion that wouldn't be out of place in a backstreet Dublin pub! (If you've ever been trust me that's a compliment) These songs feel like they could only live on this album and I think if this was a FDC album we'd all be disappointed it was kinda something Grian needed to do. Maybe Alex Turner should of done the same with Tranquillity Base Hotel and Casino?    

6) Gorillaz - Cracker Island

Beck, Tame Impala and Stevie Nicks. It's safe to say the Gorillaz pulled in the big guns to feature on their latest album Cracker Island. Gorillaz has been something of a main project for Damon Albarn for over twenty years now and they're still producing interesting stuff.

Oil, Albarn's duet with Stevie Nicks is a lovely track while New Gold featuring Tame Impala and Bootie Brown is my favourite track from this record. Don't get me wrong there's filler here and I don't think it's a album we will still be cooing over in ten years time. At times you want them to push more boundaries but there's enough on this album for it to sit comfortably in my top ten. 

5) Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds - Council Skies

Am I bored of the Gallaghers solo stuff? Kinda yeah but there's no denying that Noel still writes great songs. Sometimes it feels like he's going through the motions, it's been a few years now better put out another album and tour. He went in a different direction with his last record Who Built The Moon but I think most would agree it didn't really work. I saw him down in Brighton in July and as expected the old Oasis stuff gets the best reactions but he's still a competent if unenthusiastic performer. 

Council Skies is exactly what I expect from a Noel Gallagher album and do you know what that's fine. Sometimes it's nice to just switch your brain off and not over complicate things. I'm always looking for something different, a fresh idea or new sound and this record was quite refreshing in a sense where I could just put it on in the background and enjoy it. Easy Now is a terrific song, definitely the best on the album while Dead To The World is a emotionally deep side to Noel we haven't seen in a while. This is a solid album from one of our greatest song writers.   

4) Shame - Food For Worms

Shame are a band who I feel should be bigger then they are. Post punk has had a bit of a resurgence in the last few years with bands like Idles and Fontaines DC both topping the charts where Shame haven't quiet got there yet. This is their third album and I'd say it's the most well rounded and complete. 

I haven't been able to catch these guys live yet but from the videos I've watched their gigs go off and I feel like they've been able to capture some of that energy on this album. Opening tracks Fingers Of Steel and Six Pack are fast paced and energetic while the album almost has a half time rest stop with dreamy ballads Adderall and Orchid. Although the album feels a bit all over the place I like that there's not much cohesion and that most tracks are completely different to the next. I feel like Shame are still finding their feet which bodes for a interesting and exciting fourth album. 

3) The Lottery Winners - Anxiety Replacement Therapy 

I'd never heard of The Lottery Winners until this album reached number one and they started getting some traction so yeah, I'm one of those fans. Anxiety Replacement Therapy (ART) is a concept record that works brilliantly. A star studded affair with cameos from Shaun Ryder, Boy George and Frank Turner this is a anthemic rock pop album that delivers massive choruses and genuinely great songs. It's not very often I say this but there isn't a bad track on this record. Whether it's Worry or Burning House or the beautifully poetic autobiographical Letter To Myself there's something for everyone to resonate with here and that is why this record has had so much praise and it's fully deserved. 

The Lottery Winners are at a perfect stage in their career where they're gigging all the time in cool venues that aren't too commercial and tickets are at the right prices. Trust me get onto this group because in a couple of years time they will be huge.  

2) Foo Fighters - But Here We Are

After the tragic death of Taylor Hawkins I don't think anyone knew what to expect from the Foo Fighters. Would they carry on or take a hiatus? Well I guess they chose to throw themselves back into work as a year after Taylors passing they were releasing a new album. I've always said the Foos don't make great albums. They have great singles and are absolutely phenomenal live but their albums as a body of work aren't great... this record has put that theory to bed. 

Dave Grohl performed the entirety of the records drum tracks while the band searched for a drummer and in May 2023 the band announced Josh Freese would be sitting behind the kit for the foreseeable future. Rescued the first single release will slip seamlessly into the bands live repertoire while Nothing At All crescendos into a proper proper head banging rock song. There's a couple of tracks in the latter part of the album that drop off in pace which probably stops this from being my number one album of the year but it's safe to say this is the best Foo Fighters album in years. 

1) Blur - The Ballad Of Darren

I've said this before in a previous post but the new found respect I've found for Damon Albarn as a musician and artist over the last 3-4 years is unmeasurable. Blur have always been a bit meh for me, yes I've sung Parklife on karaoke and loved life and yes I've wo-hoed to Song 2 but I was never really into them. They were just a band that were big when I was a kid and then the front man formed Gorillaz, a band who I've always loved. NOT ANYMORE! 

The Ballard of Darren is my Album of the year 2023 because to be quite honest from when I first started listening to it I haven't been able to stop. I've bought it on vinyl, I've listened to podcasts and interviews about it. I've (tried to) learn Coxon's intricate guitar solos. At only ten songs it's a tight and compact record with nothing unnecessary or filler. This is a meticulously polished, break up pop album with first single The Narcissist setting the tone for what was to come, catchy choruses and honest lyrics. Barbaric is my favourite track from the album, probably of the year with a ludicrously catchy guitar riff while special mentions go out to The Ballad and St. Charles Square. 

Blur are back! Or are they? As Damon seemed pretty sure they were "done for a while" after the tour finished. If this is the last Blur record then I'm gutted it's taken me this long to appreciate them as a band but what a record it is. 

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