Our 2023 year in review ends with the top 10 albums of the year as voted on by the AllMusic community. Some old favorites, some new names, and an outpouring of support from the K-Pop nation, and we’re excited to share the top 10 results as voted by you, the AllMusic reader. Thanks again for reading and supporting AllMusic this year, and we look forward to bringing you more music in 2024.
“The hallucinatory blend of folk, rock, electronics, and field recordings allows Harvey to venture deeper into the dreamspaces she’s hinted at previously. She partially improvised the music with longtime collaborators John Parish and Flood, and the occasionally loose playing expresses the album’s slippery relationship with reality perfectly.” (Read the Review)
“Now more than a decade into making music, Lana Del Rey has honed a style so unique she’s almost a genre unto herself. Full of brilliant strides forward, Ocean Blvd is a crucial chapter in Del Rey’s ongoing saga of heartbreak and enchantment.” (Read the Review)
“Collectively, boygenius feels heftier and hookier than Baker, Bridgers, and Dacus do on their own, and this collective instinct towards immediacy pays great dividends: it’s bracing to hear such introspective singer/songwriters embrace the pleasures of a united front.” (Read the Review)
“…Homme isn’t a memoirist; he has an ear for striking phrases that gain import through a full-band arrangement. By working exclusively with a lineup that’s been largely in place for 16 years — only drummer Jon Theodore hasn’t been around that long, he’s been a part of the group for a decade — Homme is able to steer QOTSA toward their essence, laying down a foundation of gnarled, greasy guitars that allow the band either to soar to the horizons or plummet to earthy depths.” (Read the Review)
“…track-for-track, Memento Mori is their most solid effort since Angel and a catalog best, a wonder coming four decades into their career. Facing mortality and the inevitable sunset of their lengthy, storied careers, Gore and Gahan transform tragedy into something profound and universally relatable.” (Read the Review)
“Blur gives Albarn’s songs depth and dimension, as Graham Coxon decorates the margins left by the elastic rhythms of Alex James and Dave Rowntree. The Magic Whip hinted at the essence of this chemistry but The Ballad of Darren revels in it, resulting in an album that feels age-appropriate without being stodgy: it’s mature and nuanced, cherishing the connections that once were taken for granted but now seem precious.” (Read the Review)
“Part of the subtext of Isbell’s work from Southeastern onward is gratitude that he’s been given the chance to do better work as a healthier man, coupled with the responsibility not to waste his opportunities on trivial themes. Both of these ideas are present on Weathervanes, as is his ability and drive to make music worthy of his fans’ high expectations. This LP is a triumph, an outstanding set of songs and performances from someone who has already proved they’re one of the strongest, truest voices in American roots rock.” (Read the Review)
“Because it has no grand conceptual hook and because the Stones so thoroughly integrate their superstar guests — not only are Gaga and Wyman here but so are Stevie Wonder, Elton John, and McCartney — it doesn’t overwhelm upon an initial listen the way the lengthy Voodoo Lounge or A Bigger Bang do; that small scale is its strength. At its heart, it’s nothing more than the Rolling Stones knocking out some good Rolling Stones songs, which seems like a minor miracle after such a long wait.” (Read the Review)
“Some of these songs surge, some simmer, but they all return to an idea essayed on the title track: “stuff coming out, stuff going in/I’m just a part of everything,” a worldview that’s intimate and all-encompassing. What makes I/O unique, even special, is that the process of searching isn’t central to the finished product. There’s no restlessness here, only acceptance, a quality that gives I/O a quiet power that can’t help but build over time.” (Read the Review)
“As the songs flow in and out of one another in hypnotic fashion, the primary focus is on those lush vocals. Layover is a gorgeous dose of adult-oriented pop that might be unexpected for those expecting the big BTS sound, but that’s a big part of the allure.” (Read the Review)Source
