A Closer Listen
2023 was an extremely healthy year for post-rock, which takes up half the spots on this year’s list. The surprise is that some of the biggest names in the field didn’t make it, while newcomers crashed the party in their stead. One of the greatest facets of the industry is its unpredictability; one can never predict where the next great album will come from, and sometimes they seem to arrive out of nowhere (even when the artists have been active for years). This year’s chart also includes some sparkling folk and jazz, and one musician who moves from modern composition to post-rock, which offsets the move of Sigur Rós in the opposite direction. We hope you’ll enjoy this year’s selection of the best rock, post-rock, folk and jazz as we await tomorrow’s unveiling of the year’s twenty best albums!
Anoice ~ unerasable fire (Ricco)
2023 was full of great records from old favorites, including the latest EP from Japan’s Anoice. A companion to 2020’s invisible wall, unerasable fire finds the cinematic Tokyo quartet further developing their neo-classical sound. Where the previous EP soundtracked the early days of the pandemic, here the group sound darker than ever, channeling global unrest and division into five somber tracks full of drama and tension. While still technically instrumental, guest vocalists Films and Calu provide wordless vocals, which while lacking in clear semantic meaning nevertheless grant the project clear emotional weight. At times sparse and mournful, others pounding and dissonant, unerasable fire channels the gamut of emotions like few others this year despite its short run time. (Joseph Sannicandro)
Original Review
Bex Burch ~ There is only love and fear (International Anthem)
There is a real sense of joy through exploration that permeates the debut album from Bex Burch. Alongside a small collective of improvisers, she crafts music with an unalloyed freedom; let’s see what sounds good today and go with that. Some of the tracks are brief percussive excursions; others are borne along by jazz-centric rhythms. There’s a sense of the fear mentioned in the title through some of the field recordings, but the giddy delight created by spinning this record is love – only love. (Jeremy Bye)
Original Review
Blue Lake ~ Sun Arcs (Tonal Union)
In our initial review of Sun Arcs we celebrated its languid evocation of summer and the peaceful pace of outdoor living. Listening to it now, as winter settles in over much of the world, the spare, zither on “Green-Yellow Field” and “Writing,” takes on a more nostalgic tenor. Inasmuch as the album has something to say for all seasons, on Sun Arcs Blue Lake, aka Jason Dungan, just as effectively evokes a diversity of affective and creative worlds, from folk music to jazz, from film to painting, as well as the various landscapes, Texas and Scandinavia, that inspired it. Sun Arcs feels as intimate as it is expansive, shifting seamlessly between solo instrumentals and musically denser tracks like “Bloom” and “Fur” that introduce an array of stringed instruments as well as horns, all played by Dungen. (Jennifer Smart)
Original Review
The Boats ~ 2 Bears
Judging from the dialogue sampled on the album, The Boats likely have a more serious meaning behind their titular bears than the meme that pops up in my head. It’s evident that a great deal of time and care went into the making of 2 Bears, only their third full-length album in two decades as a band. Recorded to tape just a couple years after the 2015 release of their previous LP, the Melbourne post-rock trio spent the pandemic remixing and reworking these ten tracks, resulting in their most ambitious work yet. While the trio don’t veer too far from their established sound, the arrangements are augmented by occasional touches of brass and strings, dynamic music with gentle passages building to big cathartic crescendos. In an age where some artists seem to release new music every other month, there’s something admirable in taking one’s time. Post-rock tends to be slow music, after all, and we’ll continue to wait patiently for great music done right. (Joseph Sannicandro)
Original Review
Grails ~ Anches en Maat (Temporary Residence Ltd.)
We dropped some pretty big names in our review of Anches En Maat – Morricone! Bacharach! George Harrison! We could have probably added John Carpenter in there if only to underline the cinematic scale that Grails operate in. That they don’t feel like the weak relation to these comparisons is a credit to the realisation of their work. This is panoramic, big sky music; it doesn’t rely on post-rock crescendos to feel epic – as a complete piece, it is immense. (Jeremy Bye)
Original Review
Hammock ~ Love in the Void (Hammock Music)
It’s an impressive third appearance on our ‘best of 2023’ lists for Love In The Void, which is some indication of its quality alone. Hammock topped our predicted list of best 2023 albums on January 1; that anticipation was correct, as evidenced by a showing in our mid-year list. So here we are in December, with a much larger field to choose from, still selecting an album that has proved a consistent soundtrack for the year. It provided rousing motivation when we needed a lift and offered solace through reflective moments. Love In The Void stayed close to our hearts in 2023 and will do so into next year. (Jeremy Bye)
Original Review
J.S. Bach / Dan Tepfer ~ Inventions / Reinventions
Dan Tepfer, renowned both for his mastery of jazz piano and his musical technological innovation, reimagines Bach in Inventions/Reinventions, a project akin to his earlier work, Goldberg Variations/Variations. Merging Bach’s Inventions with his own improvisations, Tepfer fills harmonic gaps left by Bach’s, contrasting Bach’s Baroque compositions with a rich jazz-classical hybrid idiom. The album’s seamless progression from Bach’s originals to Tepfer’s improvisations showcases harmonic evolution and intricate counterpoint, fostering a contemporary dialogue with Bach’s oeuvre while maintaining coherence and intellectual depth. These inspired reflections breathe new vitality into Bach’s work, offering a captivating juxtaposition that resonates throughout the album. (Garreth Brooke)
Original Review
Mirek Coutigny ~ Through Empty Landscapes and New Beginnings (Icarus)
Through Empty Landscapes and New Beginnings marks a significant evolution for Mirek Coutigny, expanding his instrumentation to an eleven-member ensemble and venturing beyond his usual piano and keyboard forte by adding steel drum and foot stomps. Inspired by the pandemic and literature like Emily St. John Mandel’s Station Eleven and Cormac McCarthy’s The Road, the album diverges from post-apocalyptic tropes, envisioning a world reinvented post-crisis. From somber beginnings portraying flu-ridden days to a shift towards hope and the yearning for a remembered legacy, the album weaves a narrative of introspection and societal reinvention. Ella Vermeir’s vocals in “New World” evoke a fresh perspective on a world reshaped by the pandemic, urging reflection on humanity’s trajectory and the opportunity for a collective, purposeful change, challenging listeners to reconsider what truly matters in charting a new beginning. (Garreth Brooke)
Original Review
Spurv ~ Brefjære (Pelagic)
Spurv upped their game more than anyone else this year, adding brass, strings, soloists and a choir. The result is a dramatic album that springs from quietude to cacophony, often within the space of a single track. A long time has passed since people sang along to an instrumental track (Hybrid’s “Symphony” being the last we remember), but we suspect “Krokete, rettskafen” will repeat the trick. If there’s any such thing as a perfect post-rock album, this is it. (Richard Allen)
Original Review
Star of Heaven ~ Live from Öregrund
We love discovering a new post-rock band, and until this year we’d missed out on Star of Heaven. The Swedish quartet is now on their third album, while its fourth will contain songs from this live release, recorded in Öregrunds church. The dramatic contrast is exquisite, the thrill level high. By doing what some older bands have forgotten and some newer bands have not yet learned, Star of Heaven offers hope for a resurgence of the genre. (Richard Allen)
Original Review
Thu Dec 21 00:01:25 GMT 2023