Goldie Boutilier - “Good Ol Days” - 2023, Goldie is a Canadian songwriter that has been making music her whole life, but professionally since the late 2000-teens. She released an awesome EP this year that includes this track. Really looking forward to a full length from her.

The Murlocs - “Russian Roulette” - 2023, The Murlocs are the side project of Ambrose and Cookie from the Australian experimental rock band, King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard. This album is one of my favorites in the indie rock scene this year.

Butch Bastard - “Little Black Shoes” - 2023, Butch bastard is a side project of Ian Murray from Seattle band, Poor Moon. This is a blues shuffle that would’ve fit swimmingly back in the 70s.

The Hold Steady - “Flyover Halftime” - 2023, Long time established rockers, The Hold Steady, continue to release solid albums. I had kind of lost track of them over the years, but this newest album is definitely worth a listen.

Indigo De Souza - “Time Back” - 2023, This song by new artist, Indigo de Souza, is basically a Gen Z anthem. It is one of the most raw emotion break up songs that I have ever heard. If you are over 20 years old, this song is a crapshoot of whether you might like it or not.

Genesis Owusu - “Tied Up!” - 2023, Kofi Owusu-Ansah is a Ghanian-Australian rapper and singer. This track is a funk masterpiece that would’ve made Prince proud.

Yazmin Lacey - “Sign and Signal” - 2023, This album was my favorite of the Soul/Blues/Gospel genres this year. She sings a smoky lounge R&B that is an excellent night time soundtrack.

Jordan Ward - “WHITE CROCS” - 2023, Jordan Ward started his career in LA as a backup dancer for Justin Bieber and Becky G. His brand of hip hop also leans pretty heavily into Soul and Dance music. This track features R&B/Soul singer Ryan Trey.

Water From Your Eyes - “Out There” - 2023, This is an indie pop duo that released a really cool album back in May. They are doing something authentic and different, and I will definitely be following their future releases.

Aesop Rock - “Mindful Solutionism” - 2023, Aesop Rock released my favorite Hip Hop album this year, hands down. It is a concept album that explores the disingenuousness of modern day corporations claiming to build applications that help improve your life, but truly just suck you deeper into reliance on their product.

Asake - “Sunshine” - 2023, Asake is a Nigerian singer and songwriter named Ahmed Ololade. He is known for his own unique Afrofusion music that incorporates traditional Indigenous Yoruba music called fújì, and more modern African music like Afrobeat. He started his career in dance and theater, but turned to music, releasing his first album in 2022. Since then, he has taken the industry by storm.

Meshell Ndegeocello - “Vuma” - 2023, Meshell is an absolute monster bass player, who also happens to sing and rap with incredible proficiency. She has been nominated for multiple Grammys since the early nineties, and has been featured on albums by Madonna, John Cougar Mellencamp, Guru, The Rolling Stones and Chaka Khan, amongst others. She is joined on this one by Thandiswa, a powerful singer from Transkei (a pre-apartheid, nominally independent, South African state), and brilliant Chicago vibraphonist, Joel Ross

Tapioca - “Terra Preta” - 2023, Tapioca is a Belgian and Brazilian duo that blends MPB (Musica Populara Brasileira - a blend of Brazilian samba with jazz and rock) with Hip Hop and Soul. The duo was founded by Alessandro “Le Tagarel” Vlerick - singer, rapper, lyricist - and Simon “SiKa” Carlier - producer and composer.

Y La Bamba - “Mas Manos” - 2023, This Portland, OR indie band draws much of their influence from Mexican-American lead singer and founder, Luz Elena Mendoza. Luz has claimed her mother’s native Michoacan, Mexico, offered music like rancheras, corridos, boleros, and huapango, as well as grupero, Tex-Mex, and norteño, that all shaped her childhood and eventually her songwriting.

J Boog - “Pennies From Heaven” - 2023, J Boog is one of the top modern reggae singers from the US. This song is a cover of the famous song written in 1936 by Arthur Johnston and Johnny Burke. J Boog joins the ranks of famous performers that have popularized the songs over the years - Frank Sinatra, Billie Holliday, Louis Prima, Doris Day, and a slew of others - but he puts his reggae twist on it.

Ratboys - “Black Earth, WI” - 2023, Not only is this one of my favorite indie rock albums of 2023, this song in particular makes my top 10 favorite songs of 2023. Ratboys has a similar sound as the band Wednesday, which is getting a ton of love for their release this year. Ratboys, however is a little bit more mellow, and appeals to me more than Wednesday overall.

Swede and Skogen - “Stung” - 2023, I love the 2000s garage rock sound of Swede and Skogen. This was a single they released in December.

Mustard Service - “(Your Cat) Don’t Stand a Chance” - 2023, The witty lyricism and catchy indie-pop hooks makes Mustard Service one of my favorite finds of 2023. This song in particular gets stick in my head constantly, so I couldn’t leave it off of this retrospective playlist.

Laith - “79” - 2023, In a year full of massive country albums, Laith stood out to me by writing outside of the regular country box. Musically, this song kind of reminds me of a modern Leon Russell. He is a Houston guy, so I hope to catch a show this year.

Andrew Gabbard - “Yer Time’ll Come” - 2023, Andrew is an Ohio rocker that would have fit in with the country tinged rock and roll acts of the 70s. He is currently part of the touring band for the Black Keys.

Jaimie Branch - “The Mountain” - 2023, This song is unfortunately linked to tragedy. Jaimie was a world class trumpet player and this posthumously released album is my favorite jazz album of 2023. This song also features bass and vocals from collaborator, Jason Ajemian. It is a cover of The Meat Puppets, “Comin Down,” however retitled for this release.

Gabriels - “If You Only Knew” - 2023, Gabriels consists of gospel singer, Jacob Lusk, producer and keyboardist, Ryan Hope, and producer/composer and violinist Ari Balouzian. They have almost reinvented gospel music on this album in my opinion. It is number two in my top Soul/Blues/Gospel albums of 2023 along with Yazmin Lacey above.

Julie Byrne - “Summer Glass” - 2023, This song was just too beautiful not to have finish the playlist. Julie has created her own style of folk music, adding electronic instruments like synths and sequencers to traditional guitars, harps, and strings. This album was one of my favorite folk albums this year.