Music Year in Review–2023
Music Year in Review–2023
Well…the curtain is closing on another sonic safari around the sun and that means it’s time to take a look back at the musical offerings of the past year. Many artists in 2023 were inspired to challenge our ears and brains with exploratory vibes and mystifying lyrics and, while we can’t review every deserving album, we more than doubled the amount of albums that we reviewed last year, which is a big leap forward for the sagacious scribes of Psychedelic Scene.
We examined some standout LPs like the brilliant, blissed-out psych-pop debut from Melbourne, Australia’s Sunfruits, the first album since 2015 from alternative rock/indie pop/neo-psychedelia of Pittsburgh’s The Garment District, the surprisingly satisfying sophomore set from San Francisco’s little-known kaleidoscopic cabaret act Grooblen, and the latest offering from the trippy, world-infused folk-rock by the perpetually mysterious Swedish neopsych vets Goat.
Here then, is a list, in no particular order, of the 26 albums, one EP, and two singles we reviewed in the year 2023. For your convenience, we’ve assigned a letter grade to each (except for the singles).
On behalf of writers Rob Cavenagh, Brian Kuhar, William Faulk, Bill Kurzenberger, Emily Adair, Pete Christensen, Adam Thornton, Sandra Blemster, and Gwen Smith, I wish you a happy holiday season and a trip-tastic 2024!
Joy of the 4th–Bhopal’s Flowers—A-
Flowers Telegraphed to All Parts of the World—The Garment District–A
“By the River” (single)—The Crystal Teardrop
Prepared for a Nightmare by Mayflower Madame–B
News from the Invisible World by The Fierce and the Dead–B
A Wormhole Is a Freeway to the Stars—Grooblen–A
Data Doom by Frankie and the Witch Fingers–B
Datura by Lorelle Meets the Obsolete–B
Dreaming in Pink—The Astronomical Miracle–B-
Of Tomorrow by The Telescopes–C
Sea of Sorrow by Tombstones in Their Eyes–B-
Chan Says and Other Songs by Caleb Nichols–B-
“Nine Times Nine” singlel by The Crystal Teardrop
Ice, Death, Planets, Lungs, Mushrooms, and Lava by King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard–A
The Hypnogogue by The Church—B+
Nivraym Revisited by Koenjihyakkei–B+
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