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Eric Wiersema writesCHIRP Radio’s Best of 2023: Eric Wiersema
Throughout December, CHIRP Radio presents its volunteers’ top albums of 2023. Our next list is from DJ/Assistant Music Director Eric Wiersema.
At the risk of sounding cliche, 2023 was a great year for music! To be fair though, during my seven-year tenure with CHIRP, I can’t recall a bad year for music. As a DJ and an Assistant Music Director, I consider myself extremely lucky to be exposed to around 20 great new albums per week and always having an endless supply of great music from all genres at my fingertips. However, this blessing can also be a curse during the year-end list season. I often struggle to remember everything I listened to throughout the year and the nonstop influx of new music makes it increasingly difficult for even some of the best albums to have the staying power they deserve. After an extensive review of my vinyl and streaming habits this year, I still managed to come up with quite a few albums that left a lasting impression and will be revisited for years to come. As an accountant by trade, I like lists and rankings, but please take this order with a grain of salt. I probably already changed my mind ten times before this list was published!
#1 The Window by Ratboys (Topshelf)
The only album on my list whose ranking most definitely won’t change is my AOTY, the fifth and latest release from our hometown heroes, Ratboys. I have been a huge fan of this alt-country/emo outfit ever since I first discovered them six years ago when a band photographer friend brought me to their GN album release show. I was instantly blown away and went straight to the merch table to pick up a vinyl copy immediately after the show. Every subsequent album has been better than the previous and The Window is no exception. It is insanely catchy, heartfelt, and frontwoman Julia Steiner’s twangy vocals perfectly compliment their incomparable blend of folk, country, and emo. Favorite Tracks: “Morning Zoo”, “Crossed That Line”, “It’s Alive!” “The Window”
#2 Praise a Lord Who Chews But Which Does Not Consume (Or Simply, Hot Between Worlds) by Yves Tumor (Warp)
I first got into Yves Tumor, the moniker of experimental electronic artist Sean Bowie, from their fourth album, Heaven to a Tortured Mind. The unique blend of rock and psychedelic soul was instantly addictive and helped me fill the void that TV On The Radio left behind on their extended hiatus. Bowie continues to push sonic boundaries incorporating elements of post-punk, shoegaze, alternative dance, industrial, and even a little bit of hard rock/metal. I can’t wait to see what their future has in store! Favorite Tracks: “Meteora Blues”, “Heaven Surrounds Us Like a Hood”, “Operator”, “In Spite of War”
#3 Rat Saw God by Wednesday (Dead Oceans)
Rat Saw God is one of the most interesting albums that I heard this year. I know, I know, grunge and shoegaze revivalists are a dime a dozen in 2023 and some of the best ‘90s “heavy shoegaze” acts (ie: Failure, Hum) have long since reunited. However, none of these bands ever incorporated a distinct country element in their music, let alone blended these 2 polar opposite genres in a way that felt cohesive and natural to paint a rather bleak portrait of small town life. Favorite Tracks: “Bull Believer”, “Chosen to Deserve”, “Bath County”, “TV in the Gas Pump”
#4 Lucky For You by Bully (Sub Pop)
Speaking of grunge revivalists, there are few acts that do the genre justice and make it their own as well as Bully’s Alicia Bognanno. On her fourth album, she really shines as a songwriter and adds a bit more of a pop sheen with slightly slicker production. Overall, the songs are loud and catchy and would have been all over alternative radio played alongside The Breeders and Hole had this album been released about 30 years earlier. Favorite Tracks: “Days Move Slow”, “Hard to Love”, “Lose You”
#5 Land of Sleeper by Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs (Rocket)
Sludge/stoner metal is having a bit of a moment right now and all of my favorite heavy albums this year, more or less, fall into this category. Land of Sleeper provides everything I look for in a stoner metal album: plodding heavy riffs, earth shattering drums, and loud bellowed vocals. Perfect for fans of Electric Wizard, High On Fire, and Sleep. I can’t wait to see them at Lincoln Hall in February! Favorite Tracks: “Ultimate Hammer”, “Terror’s Pillow”, “Big Rig”, “Pipe Down!”
#6 My Soft Machine by Arlo Parks (Transgressive)
This London R&B artist delivered a strong sophomore effort to follow up her excellent 2021 debut, Collapsed In Sunbeams. Arlo Parks has demonstrated both significant sonic and lyrical growth on this album. My Soft Machine expands far beyond the trip hop and neo soul stylings of her debut, exploring disco, funk, house, and psychedelic soul. She even incorporates grunge riffs on single “Devotion” and repurposes a Fontaines D.C-esque riff on “Dog Rose” not to mention collaborating with Phoebe Bridgers on the ballad “Pegasus.” Favorite Tracks: “Devotion”, “Blades”, “Purple Phase”, “Puppy”
#7 The Twits by Bar Italia (Matador)
When composing this top ten list, I am especially careful when I decide to include an album released later in the year, which was the case with The Twits (November 3rd). I am always worried that these inclusions are the result of my inherent recency bias rather than the quality of the album. After giving The Twits album its fair share of additional listens, I concluded that it is just that good! The London band seamlessly combines post-punk, noise rock, and even traces of Britpop. Some easy reference points include Dry Cleaning, Fontaines D.C., Pixies, Sonic Youth, and Suede. Basically, if you like late ‘80s- early ‘90s indie rock and the recent revivalists, you’ll dig this! My biggest concert regret of this year is not being quick enough to grab tickets to their recent sold-out Empty Bottle shows. Favorite Tracks: “My Little Tony”, “Twist”, “Calm Down With Me”, “Hi Fiver”
#8 HELLMODE by Jeff Rosenstock (Polyvinyl)
Pop-punk will always hold a special place in my heart. During high school through my freshman year of college, it was pretty much the only kind of music I listened to. I still occasionally enjoy revisiting my ‘90s and early ‘00s favorites, but the teen angst-ridden lyrics hit differently as a dude rapidly approaching his late thirties. They almost feel a little childish and embarrassing like Rosenstock himself regarding attending house shows as an adult in his 2015 track “Get Old Forever.” Rosenstock makes pop-punk for aging scene kids like me who are struggling with navigating the complexities of adulting in our late stage capitalist hellscape. The source of the angst might be a little different, but punk rock has no age limit. Play it loud, play it often! Favorite Tracks: “Will U Still U”, “Liked U Better”, “Doubt”, “I Wanna Be Wrong”
#9 Good Luck by Debby Friday (Sub Pop)
This Nigerian-born, Toronto-based experimental electronic artist put out a fantastic debut this year! Good Luck should appeal to a wide variety of goth and industrial fans utilizing aggressive beats that would pair well with acts like Boy Harsher and Pixel Grip. “Heartbreakerrr” and “Pluto Baby” contain elements of industrial hip hop that would make Death Grips fans feel right at home. Friday even successfully tries her hand at accessible electropop on the single “So Hard to Tell” Favorite Tracks: “So Hard To Tell”, “I Got It”, “Hot Love”, “What a Man”
#10 10,000 Gecs by 100 Gecs (Dog Show/Atlantic)
If you would have told me just four years ago that the next 100 Gecs album would make one of my year-end lists, I would have been seriously concerned about your mental wellbeing. Not gonna lie, when I first heard the ‘Gecs 2019 debut, 1000 Gecs, I officially felt old and out of touch with the youths and instantly felt the urge to tell someone to get off my lawn. The way they won me over this time was through appealing to my elder-Millennial nostalgia by seasoning their brand of hyperpop with the nu-metal, pop-punk, and ska of my not-so-glory days. Yeah, I guess I’m officially old either way you slice it. Whether I am feeling nostalgic about questionable music from my adolescence or going through a pre-midlife crisis, 10,000 Gecs is a damn good listen! Favorite Tracks: “Dumbest Girl Alive”, “Doritos and Fritos”, “Billy Knows Jamie”, “The Most Wanted Person in the United States”
Honorable Mentions
Honorable Mentions Kate Davis- Fish Bowl- Anti
Jenny Lewis- Joy’all- Blue Note
Lydia Loveless- Nothing’s Gonna Stand in My Way Again- Bloodshot
King Tuff- Smalltown Stardust- Sub Pop
*Squirrel Flower- Tomorrow’s Fire- Polyvinyl
*Sincere Engineer- Cheap Grills- Hopeless
Feeble Little Horse- Girl With Fish- Saddle Creek
*These Beasts- Cares, Wills, Wants- Magnetic Eye
Be Your Own Pet- Mommy- Third Man
The Gaslight Anthem- History Books- Rich Mahogany/Thirty Tigers
*Ovef Ow- Vs, The Worm- What’s For Breakfast?
Death Valley Girls- Islands in the Sky- Suicide Squeeze
*REZN- Solace- Self-Released
Tirzah- trip9love…???- Domino
The Kills- God Games- Domino
Protomartyr- Formal Growth in the Desert- Domino
The Murder Capital- Gigi’s Recovery- Human Season
Anna Hillburg- Tired Girls- Speakeasy Studios SF
Seablite- Lemon Lights- Mt. St. Mtn.
Jessie Ware- That! Feels! Good!- Interscope
*Indicates a local artist
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