40 Albums I Loved In 2023

Now in year 16 of the Everything Ecstatic Albums of the Year list, it’s the first time I’ve ever dropped it after the new year. My hope is that people have more time to discover what they might’ve missed last year when they’re not so inundated by the holidays and the furious year-end push of our professional lives. Like, who really has time to discover new music in earnest in December? I feel that.

That being said, I also contributed to a few other publications’ Best Albums of 2023 lists. There’s my column for the Sunday edition of the San Francisco Chronicle featuring six of the year’s best albums (which all appear in this post), the KQED Arts Best Bay Area Albums of 2023 and the incredible endeavor that is Uproxx’s Music Critics Poll.

But onto EE’s Top 40 Albums of 2023 we go. They’re listed alphabetically below, with the album cover art and a single sentence review of each. It’s an easy breezy proposition. Listen to my playlists of my favorite songs of 2023 (“A New Future”) below and of the 40 albums on this year’s list at the very bottom of this post. As always, feel free to re-visit all past Everything Ecstatic albums lists here

Much love, and thanks for reading!

Spinelli

Andre 3000 - New Blue Sun

A stunning, flute-led treatise on the evolution of the creative mind that was unlike anything anyone expected from Andre.

Andy Shauf – Norm

Another solid effort from the prolific and clever Canadian indie singer-songwriter.

Bakar – Halo

If urban pop music is headed in the direction that this young Brit is taking it, we’re in good shape.

Bar Italia – Tracey Denim

The London trio’s breakthrough LP harkens back to the bleak 90s Brit rock that I adore.

Billy Nomates – CACTI

The Leicester no wave artist has been propelled by her continued collaboration with Portishead’s Geoff Barrow and it’s one of the year’s best under the radar releases.

Black Thought & El Michels – Glorious Game

As he continues to ascend in the legacy rap space, Black Thought linked with soul revivalist Leon Michels for this gift of a record.

El Búho – Strata

An ecologically-minded electrocumbia drop from El Búho, who deserves way more recognition.

Elkka – DJ Kicks

I brake for any release in the famed DJ Kicks series and Elkka’s fusion of house, pop and Latin music is an essential mix.

George Fitzgerald – Not As I EP

George Fitzgerald is flat out one of the best electronic producers out there and this quick-hitting EP is more excellent IDM from him.

Janelle Monáe – The Age Of Pleasure

I kneel at the foot of my archandroid Queen.

Jessy Lanza – Love Hallucination

Stellar footwork-soaked pop from Lanza on the Hyperdub imprint, including one of my five favorite songs of the year in “Don’t Leave Me Now.”

Jonah Yano – Portrait of A Dog

BadBadNotGood plays alongside the affable Japanese-Canadian singer and multi-instrumentalist in what was the first album of 2023 to truly wrap me in.

Kassa Overall – ANIMALS

A star in the hip-hop and jazz fusion movement, the drummer, rapper, and poet is one helluva bandleader on perhaps the flyest album of the year.

Kelela – Raven

Kelela has mastered the avant pop art form.

Larry June & The Alchemist – The Great Escape

My favorite hip-hop album of the year sees Larry rounding into form as the best in The Bay with The Alchemist behind the boards.

Little Dragon & April + VISTA – Slipping Into Color EP

Overshadowed by their Slugs Of Love LP, this collab EP was the real gem in the Little Dragon canon this year.

Lucinda Chua – YIAN

No album brought me as much peace and serenity after midnight than the debut LP from the London cellist and vocalist.

Luiza Lian – 7 Estrelas | quem arrancou o céu?

My favorite Brazilian album of the year is an avant-garde take on traditionally-minded vocals, spun around and contorted with dizzying electronic effects.

Mac DeMarco – Five Easy Hot Dogs

An album of instrumentals that Mac put together while road-tripping across the US and Canada.

Madison McFerrin – I Hope You Can Forgive Me

The long-awaited debut LP from Madison McFerrin sees the vocalist wrapped in velvety neo-soul instrumentals and ripping drums.

Nabihah Ikbal – Dreamer

This dreamy Ninja Tune indie pop release hit me out of nowhere and is very close to the top of this list.

Nia Archives – Sunrise Bang Ur Head Against The Wall

I’m so excited for what the future holds for this drum and bass revivalist, especially now that her biggest track (“Baíana”) samples a Brazilian tune.

Overmono – Good Lies

More drum and bass revivalists plz! MOAR! And shout out XL Recordings on another great year.

Quantic – Dancing While Falling

There’s nothing from the globally-minded, multi-instrumentalist, dance-focused mind of Will Holland that isn’t always up my alley.

Rahiil – Flowers At Your Feet

Talk about an indie album that got lost in the shuffle…Blown away by Rahill’s full length debut on Big Dada.

Ratboys – The Window

This was widely considered to be one of the year’s best indie rock albums for a reason.

Salami Rose Joe Louis – Akousmatikous

Another trip into the cosmos with the Brainfeeder signed, Billie Holiday from outer space with a keyboard.

Sampha – Lahai

Sampha’s long-awaited follow up to the Mercury Prize winning Process might just have the best opening track of the year in “Stereo Colour Sound (Shaman’s Dream).”

SBTRKT – THE RAT ROAD

SBTRKT’s Aaron Jerome came out from behind the mask for this fully-instrumentalized beauty.

Shirley Hurt – Shirley Hurt

There’s always one that got away from the tail-end of 2022 and this late December release from last year is gorgeous indie folk that has been soundtracking my late nights.

Skinny Pelembe – Hardly The Same Snake

There is so much promise in the polished sound of this Partisan-signed South African alt-indie singer and guitarist, and it’s all over this amazing record.

Slow Pulp – Yard

Another one of this year’s best indie rock releases came courtesy of this Chicago-based quartet signed to ANTI- Records and led by singer Emily Massey.

Sofia Kourtesis – Madres

Ninja Tune seems to put out the exact type of dance music that I’m looking for in my life and th Peruvian-born producer knocked it out of the park here.

Tirzah – trip9love…???

Look, I had drifted away from Tirzah’s widely-experimental pop over the years, but this one fully brought me back.

Wednesday – Rat Saw God

No other band can execute the disparate sounds of indie rock, country and screamo with such grace like the Karly Hartzman-led Wednesday, who are headed towards Big Thief-like heights.

Wilco – Cousin