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algabor writesCHIRP Radio’s Best of 2023: Al Gabor
Throughout December, CHIRP Radio presents its volunteers’ top albums of 2023. Our next list is from volunteer Al Gabor.
#1 The Record by Boygenius (Interscope)
As formidable as Lucy Dacus, Phoebe Bridgers and Julien Baker are on their own, they reach new heights when they combine efforts. On The Record, the harmonies are sibling-quality; the songcraft is superb. The songs here convey the charged nature of love and friendships of people in their twenties, how an unfolding relationship is not just discovering things about the new person in your life, but finding out things about yourself.
#2 First Two Pages of Frankenstein by The National (4AD)
A different kind of break-up album. Lyricist and vocalist Matt Berninger felt himself tearing at the seams, unable to write. The words he finally set down are permeated with self-doubt and an accumulating sense of loss. A heartrending album.
#3 The Window by Ratboys (Topshelf)
The Ratboys have putting out some great stuff in the last few years, but take a leap forward on The Window. From the Crazy Horse-like slow-build guitar freak-out of “Black Earth, WI” to the poignancy of title song, the band goes from strength to strength here.
#4 Desire, I Want to Turn Into You by Caroline Polachek (Perpetual Novice)
Caroline Polachek shows off her ability to make pop magic by combining multiple genres and wide-ranging instrumentation (Flamenco? Bagpipes? Really? … Why not?). But what makes this album so compelling is the power and versatility of her voice, an expressive, transcendent instrument.
#5 Yard by Slow Pulp (Anti-)
Originally from Madison, Wisconsin, now based in Chicago, Slow Pulp is getting some serious buzz. Yard is a great title for this beguiling album: the music has a barefoot on the patio feel, Indie folk rock with some scruffy but effective vocals.
#6 Radical Romantics by Fever Ray (Mute)
Fever Ray (Karin Dreijer) is a crowd, a chorus, a revelation. The many tones, colors, and distortions of their vocals on Radical Romantics add an element of searching and discovery to these songs. The soundscape of the album is protean and inventive.
#7 Hollow by The Handsome Family (Milk & Scissors Music)
In their first studio album in seven years, the Handsome Family continue to mine their version of what critic Greil Marcus called the music of “old, weird America.” Why isn’t Rennie Sparks more widely considered one of the best lyricists around? Her imagery is startlingly vivid, but the stories these songs tell are enigmas, shadowy in a good way.
#8 This Stupid World by Yo La Tengo (Matador)
Doing what they do best—and keeping it vital and exciting. A good trick for a band recording together for, say, ten years. But when the band has been around for forty years, it’s damned near miraculous.
#9 Rat Saw God by Wednesday (Dead Oceans)
A potent mix of Americana and shoegaze, set aflame with Karly Hartzman’s cinematic lyrics.
#10 Gold by Cleo Sol (Forever Living Originals)
Moving, gorgeous songs of faith by the woman who provided the vocals behind so many great Sault songs.
Honorable Mentions
Mitski The Land Is Inhospitable and So Are We
PJ Harvey I Inside the Old Year Dying
MJ Lenderman and the Wind Live and Loose!
The New Pornographers Continue as a Guest
Jessie Ware That! Feels Good!
Next entry: CHIRP Radio’s Best of 2023: Danielle Sines
Previous entry: CHIRP Radio’s Best of 2023: Geoffrey D. Wessel