my favorites from 2023
Hey everyone, it's me again. I was hesitant to write something this year as Sakuma Nobuyuki already approached me to list my favorite songs of 2023 for AVYSS ENCOUNTERS 2023. That's why, this year, I have decided to do something different and list my favorite albums from 2023, and just general albums that have been on repeat for me this year. Due to limited time (as I am writing this on the 31st of December), I will not be posting a Japanese translation, so I suggest just using DeepL instead. Sorry.
Favorite Albums Released in 2023
Texas 3000 was admittedly a band I had not heard of until this year, but I am glad to have found them. tx3k effortlessly flows between very high-energy midwest emo-sounding tracks like Bones For Doug and Connector Fuck Man into slower, more acoustic tracks like Define. I am a really big fan of the vocals on this album and am excited to hear what else they have in store for 2024.
While it may be because it is lilbesh ramkos first solo album, I personally think this is his most fleshed out project yet. While 終末collection is just shy of 20 minutes runtime, every track here is just as catchy as the next. Sometimes, I have even found myself looping the song "i (dont) know." 20 or so times in a row while I work on school papers, and it gets stuck in my head for the rest of the week. This album is too easy to not listen to the full thing once you start one track, and I think that is also because of ramko’s production, which just keeps on getting better and better. Thank you for all the great music this year, especially galaxy express 808 with Telematic Visions, which is probably one of my favorite songs this year.
Another short yet very addictive album is Andy's "Jersey Season," which clocks in at just 11 minutes of runtime, with the longest songs being only 2 minutes. This creates a very in-your-face jersey club with robotic-level vocal chops from Andy. With samples ranging from the ココロ図書館 OP all the way to a classic lolicore song like Readth by Waqs, it's easy to tell why this album has become loved by so many. If you haven't already, please check out this album, and you might as well check out my 200 BPM album mix on my Soundcloud because it ties the whole album together in a fun way.
When I first found out about Lily Fury, I thought he was just a DJ until I saw a video of him on Twitter going absolutely crazy on the drums while an anime VJ played in the background. Just from the description of that video, it's a no-brainer as to why I instantly went to check out this album. "Hinemosphere" is truly an experience. With three 7-minute songs that take you on a journey of multiple styles ranging from grindcore-esque drums to droning guitars reminiscent of shoegaze all in one song, it's a good album to listen to while lying down and fully taking every little detail in.
Hearing the first track off Revolver for the first time, "summer" I was instantly reminded of works like MIKE and Earl Sweatshirt. The production from both botsu and nul is amazing and provides something new to experimental rap, especially on the Japanese side of things. Revolver is a fun listen because some songs have trap-like instrumentals with very autotuned vocals. Then, the next song will be very experimental hip-hop-sounding with a very straight-sounding delivery. A good example of this juxtaposition is going from track 8, "seaside memory" to track 9, "nazoloop 65."
Some Honorable Mentions
I would like to write about every album obviously but I don't have the time or energy for that at all so here are some other albums from this year which I enjoyed.
Albums Not From 2023
A lot of my time listening to music is usually spent listening to albums not from the current year, so here is what else I have been enjoying a lot that is not new. (without embeds so the page doesnt get much longer lol)
ゑでぃまぁこん - カミナリデンゴン (2013)
ゑでぃまぁこん - かおがある (2007)
スチャダラパー - 5th WHEEL 2 the COACH (1995)
DJ Rashad - Double Cup (2013)
SLAUSON MALONE 1 - A Quiet Farwell, 2016–2018 (Crater Speak) (2019)
SALON MUSIC - MASH (1995)
岩本清顕 - SOUGI+ (1983)
Various Artists - Namba BEARS omnibus "Japan liberation" (2020)
パスカルズ - 映画「川っぺりムコリッタ」 (オリジナル・サウンドトラック) (2022)
Thanks! (End)
I wanted to include more about my own works and DJ in 2023, but I have already written so much, and my head is starting to hurt, so I may start a bit earlier next year so I can do this part how I want to next year. I just want to say thank you to everyone who has been supporting me since 2021. It's hard to believe I started making music 3 years ago now, and while that may seem like a short time to most, I never even thought I would still be doing it for this long. Thanks to everyone who listens to me or invites me to DJ for their parties. I'm immensely grateful for all the opportunities I have been given, and I can't stress that enough.
If you have made it to the end of this, congratulations and Happy New Year.
-Ethan / aphextwinsucks
https://twitter.com/aphextwinsucks