Well, we made it. 2023 is almost over and I couldn’t be happier. To put it bluntly, this year fucking sucked. But the one shining spot, one of the things that kept me going through the year was the music. Though there were some duds (as there always are) there were a lot of great albums from old favorites and new favorites. So before we close out 2023, here’s a look back at the music that grabbed my attention this year.
Memento Mori – Depeche Mode
The future of Depeche Mode seemed uncertain following the death of founding member Andy Flecther in 2022. Many speculated it would be the end of the band. But Martin Gore and Dave Gahan carried on in honor of their fallen brother to release their eerily titled 15th album Memento Mori. After the disappointment of 2017’s Spirit, this was a welcomed return of classic Mode. Now a duo, Gore and Gahan leave behind their half-hearted political songs to focus on the overarching theme of death. Strangely enough, this was already in place before Fletcher’s death, yet his absence weighs heavily on the record. Listening to tracks like “Ghosts Again,” “Don’t Say You Love Me,” and “Soul With Me” are more solemn in light of his passing.
This is Depeche Mode’s strongest album since Playing the Angel. The album is a perfect blend of the many moods of the band from melancholy and brooding to upbeat industrial-synth songs that make you want to dance despite their lyrical content. Honestly, I didn’t expect to enjoy the album so much. I enjoyed Delta Machine but didn’t revisit it often, and I didn’t like Spirit at all. This is the first record of theirs in a long time that I enjoyed from start to finish. Songs like the chilling “Speak to Me,” the industrial-tinged “Before We Drown,” and the groove-laden “Caroline’s Monkey,” quickly made it one of my favorite releases of the year.
Memento Mori is an excellent album and, in some ways, a return to form for Depeche Mode. Gahan’s vocals are as strong as ever and Gore still knows how to write provocative songs. It’s just a shame Fletcher wasn’t a part of it. We still don’t know if Depeche Mode will continue as a duo after this. They can clearly keep the band going, but if they decide to make this their final album at least they’d go out on a high note.
Sleep Token – Take Me Back to Eden
The buzz surrounding Sleep Token was too big to ignore. After countless articles about this mysterious band, I decided to check them out. I liked singles like “The Summoning” and “Aqua Regia” enough to listen to their new album. And that’s when I checked out. I can’t get into this band. Sometimes I like Vessel’s vocals and find them unique. Other times it sounds like he has marbles in his mouth, and I find them unbearable.
Songs like “Chokehold” and “Granite” are captivating with their sonic shifts and experimental nature. Others were too Imagine Dragons for me. No matter how many times I listened to it, I couldn’t click with this album. The songs are too laborious and long. The vocals can be grating and midway through I tuned the whole thing out. I appreciate the band’s eclectic mix of rock, metal, pop, and R&B, but otherwise, Sleep Token isn’t for me.
Back to the Water Below – Royal Blood
Royal Blood confused and shocked critics with their disco-infused sound on Typhoons. On Back to the Water Below, they return to their tried-and-true hard-edged sound while finding new ways to expand upon it. And though it works, it doesn’t make for their most exciting album. I wasn’t a huge fan of this one when I first heard it. I thought it was fine, but it didn’t grab me like their last album, which I loved. Over time the record grew on me, but I still wouldn’t call it my favorite.
Here, the duo focuses on mid-tempo, piano-led songs, such as “Pull Me Through,” “How Many More Times,” and “There’s Goes My Cool.” This adds some variety to the record. Without them, it would sound like well-worn territory. Don’t get me wrong, songs where they return to their formula like “Shiner in the Dark,” and “Triggers” feel so good. But I appreciate that they’re hell-bent on finding new ways to incorporate and evolve their sound. Maybe they’ve learned their lesson from their second album, How Did We Get So Dark? Back To The Water Below is a fine album with some standout tracks, but it’s not one I’ll return to often.
Neon Noir – Ville Valo
As a longstanding HIM fan, I was thrilled when Ville Valo announced his solo album, Neon Noir. We already got a taste of his solo material with 2020’s Gothica Fennica EP. This is an expansion of that. So what does his solo album sound like? A lot like HIM. You can’t help but compare the two. On top of that, Valo isn’t trying to hide the similarities. In several interviews, including my own, he alludes to it as a HIM-adjacent album. He’s just doing what he knows best. And honestly, you wouldn’t expect anything less.
Neon Noir has all the familiar Valo/HIM staples: sweet crooning vocals, gothic romanticism, and dark lyrics about love and death. It’s not as heavy as HIM, but the songs would fit right at home on later albums like Tears on Tape and Screamworks: Love In Theory and Practice. There are some absolute bangers here: “Loveletting,” “Neon Noir,” and “Echolocate Your Love” being highlights.
Though it has all the trappings of a HIM album, it’s great to hear from our favorite goth heartthrob once again. When I saw Valo on tour earlier this year, it was clear he was having a great time making new music and honoring HIM’s legacy. I like that he doesn’t shy away from the HIM connection. Instead, he embraces it acknowledging the role it had in his life. Neon Noir is a love letter to every HIM fan who is still mourning the band. It’s sure to make your vampire heart flutter.
TRUSTFALL – Pink
It should be no surprise to see this here. I haven’t liked any of Pink’s recent albums, but because she is one of my favorite singers, I had to check this out. And, what a shock, I hated it. Much like Hurts 2B Human and Beautiful Trauma, TRUSTFALL is safe, bland, and boring. It’s yet another instance of Pink trying to keep up with pop trends. If she were adding her own spin on it, it would be fine, but she’s just copying other pop stars. Lead single “Never Not Gonna Dance Again” sounds like a poor man’s version of Justin Timberlake’s “Can’t Stop the Feeling.” Others like “Last Call” and “Hate Me” are indistinguishable from other singers on the radio.
The biggest issue with TRUSTFALL and the albums that came before it is they’re not fun. Pink’s music used to be fun, upbeat, and lively whether she was talking about partying or facing her demons. Now, everything is so morose and sappy. The album is littered with ballads and mid-tempo numbers dealing with the same tropes: Pink’s childhood, how shitty love can be, fighting your inner demons. It’s such a disappointment because she bears no resemblance to the badass I fell in love with. Her music was biting and sassy. Everything oozed with her no fucks given attitude. She wasn’t your typical pop star; now she is even though she tries to pretend like she isn’t. She’s trying to have it both ways and it just doesn’t work. It’s time for me to accept that Pink is not that person anymore. And the sooner she accepts that the better it’ll be.
The Above – Code Orange
Code Orange is one of those bands I always heard about, but never got into. Yet, this is the album where I finally got it. As soon as I heard “Take Shape” I was hooked. I was surprised by just how good the album was. Many of the songs stuck with me long after the album ended. What drew me in were the various moods and sounds explored.
Songs like “Splinter The Soul” and “Grooming My Replacement” are so fucking brutal, while “Never Far Apart” and “Mirror” are downright ballads with Reba Meyers’ haunting vocals front and center. Others like “The Mask of Sanity” and “I Fly” are high energy and more rock forward. Their genre-blurring sound is fresh and exciting. It hits that sweet spot of melody and aggression, which I’m a huge sucker for. They’re not doing anything Earth-shattering, but it keeps you on your toes; you don’t know what’s coming next. Their refusal to be labeled made it into my top five of the year.
CMF2 – Corey Taylor
Sigh. What was I expecting from this album? I dubbed Corey Taylor’s debut solo album as the worst of 2020, so I shouldn’t be surprised that the follow-up is a dud. But it’s not all bad. In comparison, CMF2 is a more cohesive album than its predecessor. Taylor finally seems to have landed on a solid direction for his solo stuff leaning into the hard rock with a Southern twang sound. It’s not terrible, it’s just not that interesting. And thankfully, there are no cringey rap songs on this record.
Aside from that, the album is just…there. It’s a nothing record that you put on as white noise. Very little about it is engaging. I hated Pink’s new album too, but at least that made me feel something. I get absolutely nothing from this album. The one song that I kind of like, “All I Want is Hate,” is just a rip-off of Slipknot. The thing that made you excited about Taylor’s debut was the novelty of it. What does a Corey Taylor album sound like? Now we know, so that curiosity and excitement are not there. While CMF2 is an improvement from the last record, it’s still subpar.
The Death of Randy Fitzsimmons – The Hives
Just when it seemed like The Hives were gone for good, they returned with their long-awaited new album, stylish new suits, and lore. Though not a concept album, the band did reveal the mysterious sixth member named Randy Fitzsimmons as the Svengali behind the band. His disappearance caused the band to lay dormant for a few years until they received notice of his passing. When they went to inspect his tombstone, they discovered a new batch of songs that make up their latest album. At least, that’s what they say.
The Death of Randy Fitzsimmons was 11 years in the making and it was worth the wait. This is a triumphant return for the Swedish rockers. If you’ve heard other Hives records then you know what to expect here: loud, brash garage rock anthems that’ll get you strutting like Howlin’ Pelle. The album picks up right where they left off on 2012’s Lex Hives. As guitarist Nicholaus Arson told me during our Illinois Entertainer interview, they could do something else, but they wanted to make something that screamed The Hives are fucking back. And they knocked it out of the park with this album.
The band still sounds as cocky, in your face, and energetic as they did a decade ago. Clearly, they haven’t lost their edge. Songs like “Bogus Operandi,” “Countdown to Shutdown” and “Step Out of the Way” hit you like a freight train. The album is just a good time, which is missing from rock music these days. The album may not be anything groundbreaking, but it is a reminder that rock is supposed to be loud, fun, and dangerous. And who better than The Hives to give rock music a swift kick in the ass?
My Guardian Angel – Ultra Q
Whenever I see bands featuring the offspring of famous musicians in the news, I scoff. It feels like they’re only getting coverage because of their famous parents. But that’s never been the case with Ultra Q. The band may be founded and fronted by Jakob Armstrong, son of Green Day’s Billie Joe Armstrong, but they don’t need to ride on his coattails. They firmly stand on their own thanks to their immense talent. After rebranding (they were formerly known as Mt. Eddy), and a few experimental EPs they finally nailed their sound on their debut album My Guardian Angel.
They leave behind their punk rock roots for a more low-key, dreamy sound. On songs like “Rocket,” “Klepto,” and “Wrip” they lean into a post-punk, shoe-gazey sound, while “I Watched Them Go” is heavy drum and bass. Whereas past material was jangly, raw punk rock, the overall vibe here is mellow, almost lo-fi.
The music is just good. It shows how much they’ve grown and evolved as musicians. My Guardian Angel is Ultra Q firmly separating themselves from everything Mt. Eddy represented. As the band told me during our interview, this represents their next chapter; this is the album where Ultra Q has finally arrived. And I can’t wait to see what else they have in store for us. If you haven’t listened to Ultra Q, do yourself a favor and check them out.
Pretty Vicious – The Struts
The Struts are keeping glam rock alive and well in the 21st century. But when that’s your entire gimmick, it starts to get old. And that’s the problem with their fourth album, Pretty Vicious. It’s been there, done that territory for the UK band. Another album’s worth of songs about partying, the rockstar life, living it up, and scandalous adventures.
There are some bonafide jams on here. “Do What You Want” is boot-stomping fun, “Too Good at Raising Hell” is frontman Luke Spillar at his cheekiest, and “Rockstar” is a crowd-pleasing anthem. But the rest of the album feels too similar to what they’ve already done before. Everything feels a bit samey here. For the most part, the record is a good time, but very little about it makes you want to revisit it after hearing it once. You understand what the album is about within the first three songs leaving you unenthused for what’s to come. It’s not terrible, rather it’s a disappointing record.
RAT WARS – HEALTH
I only started listening to HEALTH within the last year, but I can already say this is my favorite release of theirs so far. After teaming up with heavy hitters like Poppy and Nine Inch Nails for the varied collaborative DISCO4 project, the band returns with RAT WARS, their first album standing on their own in nearly five years. It takes the grit, industrial noise, melancholy, and lust of previous albums and takes it to greater heights. The album is darker, heavier, and harder than anything we’ve heard from them before. Songs like “CHILDREN OF SORROW,” “HATEFUL,” and “CRACK METAL” are absolutely crushing.
As always, vocalist Jake Duzsik’s voice proves to be a powerful force on the album despite how softly he sings. There’s something hypnotic about his vocals. Oddly enough, they can be a soothing presence during the album’s most intense moments. With RAT WARS, HEALTH delivers one of their strongest records to close out 2023.
Dogsbody – Model/Actriz
This record is unhinged. When I first heard it, I had no idea what the hell was happening. Yet, that’s what drew me in. Dogsbody is a mess, not in its production, or quality, or writing. More in that it sounds like someone on the verge of a breakdown. It’s hard to even classify the music. It’s noisy, alternative rock with hints of punk, sleaze, and dance. Whatever it was, it was unlike anything I was listening to at the time. The music is harsh, discordant, brash, and frantic. Some of it sounds terrifying enough to score a horror movie. But what really sells it is singer Cole Haden’s crazed delivery.
Songs like “Crossing Guard,” “Mosquito,” and “Pure Mode” see him going from panic to desperation to seduction to fragileness sometimes all within the same song. Every minute it sounds like he’s spiraling out of control. Near the end of the album, he’s nearly weeping. Whether you love or hate how manic it is, Dogsbody is an arresting record. From the beginning, it commands your attention and proceeds to hold it with how demented it sounds. Maybe you want to turn it off, but you also want to know just how insane it gets. After a few listens this instantly became one of my favorite releases of the year.
ONE MORE TIME… – blink-182
The past two years have been a whirlwind for blink-182 fans. After yet another reunion, a massive world tour, and new single “Edging,” we finally got their comeback album ONE MORE TIME…, which the band claimed as the best of their career. While I wouldn’t call it better than classics like Enema of the State or Untitled, it certainly lived up to the hype.
There are so many things I love about this album. It captures the various iterations of blink from the “mature,” darker sound (“Terrified,” “More Than You Know”) to their goofy, juvenile humor (“Turpentine,” “Turn this Off”) and even that sweet classic pop punk sound (“Dance With Me,” “Blink Wave”). But what stood out to me the most was its cohesion. This truly sounds like it was made by a band united. 2011’s Neighborhoods is solid but felt off in places. It was easy to tell which songs Mark and Tom wrote. It didn’t help that the album was recorded apart from each other. Here, they sound like a band and more importantly friends that want to make kick ass music together.
It’s also their most reflective album. Everything is on the table here: the breakups, getting older, and facing their mortality. They’re open and honest about their tumultuous history, whereas on Neighborhoods they never addressed it. If anything, it seemed like they wanted to sweep it under the rug as if it never happened. This honesty resulted in “ONE MORE TIME,” the most emotionally charged song of their career. I never thought a blink-182 song would make me cry, but when Tom sings “Do I have to die to hear you miss me?” I’m breaking out the tissues. The songs on the album range from beautiful to silly and upbeat. And I love every second of it.
This is a wonderful time to be a blink-182 fan. We’re getting awesome new music from blink-182, watching them play amazing shows, and seeing them bond again. This is the reunion we wanted back in 2011. We wanted it to feel genuine and real. This time, it seems like Mark, Tom, and Travis want to do this. They’re nothing but all smiles and laughs during their shows. More importantly, they’re open and honest with each other and the fans. Listening to this album and seeing their reunited brotherhood makes you smile. It gives you hope that this time things will be different.
EndEx – 3TEETH
On their fourth album, 3TEETH uses their heavy industrial sound to lambast everything wrong and unjust in society…just like they did on their last album and the one that came before that. EndEx doesn’t find the industrial outfit traversing new territory. It’s aggressive, face-melting industrial/metal/rock music as Alexis Mincolla screams about society’s ills. And it sounds so good.
This is another solid album from 3TEETH. It’s an intense ride with music so brutal it assaults you yet leaves begging for more. The collaborations with DOOM soundtrack composer Mick Gordon are album highlights. Songs like “Higher Than Death,” “Slum Planet,” and “Merchant of the Void” pack an extra punch; they leave you bloody and raw. Other standouts include the oddly mellow “Drift,” which features a crooning Mincolla, and “Paralyze” featuring Ho99o9. Of course, a 3TEETH album wouldn’t be complete without an industrialized version of an 80s staple, and this time it’s Tears for Fears’ “Everybody Wants to Rule the World.” EndEx may be your typical 3TEETH album, but that doesn’t mean it’s boring. It’s still a wild time.
SANGUIVORE – Creeper
Creeper’s sophomore album Sex, Death, and the Infinite Void was my top pick for 2020. And this year, they’ve taken the top spot again with their third album SANGUIVORE. The band goes bigger and louder on this album, taking the drama, theatricality, and sensuality of their previous album and cranking it to 11. This is the album Creeper has been building up to. Past releases saw hints of where they were going, but this is the record that best represents the Southampton outfit.
One thing I love about the band is their mysterious, chameleon nature. A new album means new look, new sound, and new mythos – this time they’re vampires. It’s reminiscent of David Bowie and his alien-like nature. They truly capture the bigger-than-life aura of 70s and 80s rockstars that isn’t prevalent in the social media age. It’s this attitude that keeps their music exciting and interesting. You never know what the band is going to tackle next. Gothic country song? Sure. Doo-wop? Why not? This time they present us with their rock opera about doomed lovers Mercy, a vampire who was turned at 19, and Spook, an old man she has complete control over.
The concept is beautifully introduced in the opening track “Further Than Forever,” which finds frontman Willam Van Ghould channeling Bonnie Tyler and Meat Loaf. From there, the album is 80s goth and new wave; the Misfits meet Sisters of Mercy wrapped up in a Jim Stein package. And it’s fantastic. Just like before, they move beyond their punk rock roots to incorporate elements of rockabilly (“Chapel Gates,” “Lovers Led Astray”), goth rock (“Cry to Heaven,” “Teenage Sacrifice”), and even synth disco (“Black Heaven”). It’s a wonderfully varied album that proves you can’t pin Creeper down. Just when you think you’ve figured them out, they defy expectations. SANGUOVIRE is peak Creeper. It’s loud, spooky, sexy, and fun like a good vampire movie.
That’s it for 2023! I had a lot of fun with music this year. I put a lot of effort into listening to new artists and new songs every week. It helped me discover new artists and albums I wouldn’t have found otherwise. If you want to know what other new music caught my attention, check out my 2023 New Music playlist. Otherwise, enjoy the rest of the year, and see you in 2024!
Musical Fiction 