![]() ![]() Water from Your Eyes - Everyone’s Crushed The resulting album is one of Foo Fighters’ best, and proves a heartwarming fact: In spite of everything, Foo Fighters have a lot of gas left in the tank. We meet Grohl actively in crisis mode, torn between acceptance and denial, between love and its futility. On Foo Fighters’ latest, But Here We Are - their first without longtime drummer Taylor Hawkins - they fall somewhere in the middle. Some respond with an immediate dedication, cementing the pangs of that loss in a moment in time. Many artists retreat, take a few years to collect themselves, and emerge when the fire has died down. There are many ways to look at artistic output after a devastating loss. But together, like on the stunning “Not Strong Enough,” they are indestructible. Bridgers’ “Emily I’m Sorry” is made all the more moving with Dacus and Baker’s ethereal echoes behind her, and Baker’s “$20” is made all the more rousing by the primal screams that detonate in the song’s climax. It’s no debate that these three - Phoebe Bridgers, Lucy Dacus, and Julien Baker - make each other better. It’s a fully-formed statement from three songwriters who are tied together beyond mere friendship, a testament to the joys of collaboration, and a masterclass on how to make three part harmonies as compelling as possible. Liz Shannon Millerĭespite its title, t he record is not like other records. “Sober Together” in particular stands out for its empathy, as Teitelbaum sings about a friend who’s fallen off the wagon: “I can’t blame you, it’s in the blood/ Part of the disease is giving up.” Sometimes metaphors are nice, but there’s a special sort of power to be found in just saying what you mean. Instead, she’s playing with her own textual landscapes and dreamy instrumental moments, while her deliberately literal lyrics explore relationships, salad, and the hotness of Veronica Mars’ Logan Echolls (Jason Dohring). Yet, the artist recording as Blondshell never feels like an imitation. Singer/songwriter Sabrina Teitelbaum’s first studio album goes down so smooth for those nostalgic for the heyday of ’90s girl rock. Mike has often reflected on the key role that Black women have played in his life, but he reaches a new peak on the standout single, “MOTHERLESS.” - W. MICHAEL is worth the wait: a soul-baring collection of deeply personal songwriting that nevertheless contains the kind of bars-on-bars rapping that RTJ fans have come to love. Music, though as that record was produced by his Run the Jewels partner El-P, you have to go all the way back to 2011’s Pledge to find the last time he was truly on his own. This is Killer Mike’s first solo album since 2012’s R.A.P. Please enjoy 30 albums that have brought us joy this year. This year has once again produced more great music than an average person has time to listen to, and it is a privilege to celebrate those records. ![]() We’ll know more in another six months, though it probably doesn’t matter. Certainly, 2023 has seen no shortage of electrifying debuts and sophomore scorchers. And one more theory, the industry might find itself in a moment of transition, as so many of the greats of five or 10 years ago reach a natural pause while the next generation makes a case for their own greatness. As more people spend time with these records, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see them vault up lists like this one. Then, too, June saw a flurry of releases from established icons which are necessarily hard to rank on such short notice. Perhaps it’s hard to reach a consensus among a handful of people screaming into the void. Part of the answer may have to do with our emaciated media environment, which every month seems to support fewer music journalists. Well, so far in 2023, the juggernauts have failed to materialize. But usually by this time, public opinion has coalesced around a couple of big name titles, and these mid-year lists attempt to bring attention to the less-heralded of those transcendent albums, even as the juggernauts suck up most of the oxygen. Once again, artists have produced some truly transcendent art. We’re still spoiled with great music, of course almost too much, certainly more than a casual listener can consume - a constant truth of the streaming age. The summer flowers are in bloom, but the usual summer musical consensus is nowhere to be seen. Check out our list of the 30 best albums of 2023 so far below, and stay tuned for more rankings throughout the week. It’s the mid-point of the year, which means it’s time to check in with the best pop culture has had to offer.
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