It’s kind of hard to believe that our Best Albums of 2023 list includes albums by blink-182 (with Tom!), Fall Out Boy, and Paramore, but that’s just the world we live in right now (and we wouldn’t have it any other way). Much like our Best Songs list, this year’s collection of albums saw many of our longtime favorites make surprising splashes with legacy-defining releases (Andrew McMahon in the Wilderness, Kesha, Killer Mike), along with young artists hitting their stride in incredible fashion (Olivia Rodrigo, boygenius, Sleep Token).

Take a look at our list below and share some of your favorite albums of the year with us in the replies!

15. Real Friends – There’s Nothing Worse Than Too Late

Real Friends’ latest outing picks up where 2021’s Torn in Two EP left off. While the album (EP?) doesn’t reinvent the band (“The Damage is Done”), it does showcase them at their absolute best. Melodic, emotional, and sounding as if it has always been here, There’s Nothing Worse Than Too Late is a masterclass of blending the old school pop punk of the early 2000s with the modern sound and directness of current emo bands (“Tell Me You’re Sorry”). – Kyle Schultz

14. Off Road Minivan – May This Keep You Safe From Harm

An all-American rock album, a fresh take on the shoegaze / post-hardcore vibes that have taken over this latest wave of emo, May This Keep You Safe From Harm has it all. I love an album that feels deeply personal, and with the use of voicemails and recordings it feels just that. Every second of the album is purposeful, from the title to the lyrics, and it’s a picture of relationship at its core, both the good and the bad. We have songs about friendships gone awry (“Victim Complex” and “Pity Sex”), to songs memorializing a friend lost to cancer (“Cheerleader”). The album discusses how we use and metabolize the things life throws at us, and it’s a great reminder that we should all be taking inventory of where we fit in the lives of those around us. Off Road Minivan has been a great addition to the latest slate of Tooth and Nail bands, and, along with labelmates like Valleyheart, gives me hope that we may enter another few years of solid releases from the label. – Nadia Alves

13. Killer Mike – Michael

Killer Mike has been no stronger to our Best of the Year features over the past decade, always appearing alongside El-P in the form of Run the Jewels. On his first solo effort since 2012, Mike strips down the persona we know so well to reveal the human behind it all, delving into his roots as an Atlanta native and his own journey. Adding gospel and soul influences to the mix, Mike details the passing of his late mother and explores the pain of the black experience in America in startlingly personal detail. It’s a more-layered and dense mix of sound than the often stripped-for-parts, bass rattling of Run the Jewels, but El-P makes a surprise cameo appearance late in the record, along with heavy hitters like Ty Dolla $ign, Young Thug, Andre 3000, and even Jagged Edge. – Kiel Hauck

12. The Gaslight Anthem – History Books

The Gaslight Anthem’s return to status is spectacular enough, but to do so through an album that reflects on the past and overcoming the brutalities of the past feels special. Somber, reflective, and analytical, History Books is a work of beauty that neither overindulges or rests too carefully.

From the dark imagery of “Spider Bites” to the therapeutic duet with Bruce Springsteen in “History Books”, the album embraces gratefulness with dynamic imagery and sincerity. Capped off with the gentle folk sound of “A Lifetime of Preludes,” History Books is crafted gorgeously as some of the best of Gaslight Anthem without retreading their past albums. – Kyle Schultz

11. Sleep Token – Take Me Back to Eden

This was an album that I simply couldn’t stop listening to this year, from each single release, to the day we finally got the full picture. I haven’t seen it on a lot of year-end lists, and that shocks me, because it felt like it was all I was hearing about for months, and now all I hear are crickets. Take Me Back to Eden is ambitious and interesting, one of the more creative offerings of the year. I think it turns people off a bit because it jumps around sounds and blurs the lines of genre, but that is exactly what draws me to this project. For too long the hardcore scene has been accused by critics of being formulaic and blasé, and I think with Eden Sleep Token turns that accusation on its head and provides not only a fresh iteration but also almost allows and beckons other bands to jump in and experiment as well. Where else can we find a jazz breakdown (“The Summoning” and “Aqua Regia”), EDM-lite (“DYWTYLM”), and one of the hardest tracks of the year (“Vore”)? This album has a touch of everything and it’s exciting. – Nadia Alves

10. Kesha – Gag Order

One of the greatest shames of the year in music is the absence of love for Gag Order, the best album Kesha has ever written. Dropping the glimmer and sheen of her past work, Gag Order is stripped, experimental, and an artful exploration of trauma and the hard climb out of the horror. Here, Kesha uses her voice as an instrument that gives the songs the most personal of touches. There’s no stone left unturned here, from the opening moments of “Something to Believe In” to the crushing grief of “Hate Me Harder”. Gag Order fulfills Kesha’s contract with Kemosabe, a fact that, if there’s any good in the world, will empower Kesha to step into a new world where a story like Gag Order need not be written. Nevertheless, it’s a powerful entry into her story. – Kiel Hauck

9. Andrew McMahon in the Wilderness – Tilt at the Wind No More

After two decades and several projects, Andrew McMahon still manages to find the heart of emotion in his music and present it as a snapshot of a larger story. Tilt at the Wind No More feels like a collection of short stories about growing up that pushes his solo career further into the realm of pop with winks back to the era of Jack’s Mannequin and Something Corporate. 

The haunted strings of “Lying on the Hood of Your Car” recounts the late night dreams of youth. “New Friends”, a marshmallowy pop song plays tongue-in-cheek by trying to patch things up with someone because you don’t want to have to meet new people. Closer “Smoke and Ribbons”, a pop jam that takes its time to breathe, reflects on a happy life, and McMahon sings, “I can feel you in my heart like an ocean / I let you drive my car, I’m never looking back again”. Tilt at the Wind No More finds McMahon at his best, telling stories of life with vibrant poetics. The album is glazed with optimism and love, which stacks against anything he’s ever written. – Kyle Schultz

8. Hot Mulligan – Why Would I Watch

It appears a hallmark for me this year is just openness. I have been drawn all year to honesty in my favorite music, the songs and albums that really tell it like it is and don’t gloss over the tough stuff – aka Why Would I Watch by Hot Mulligan. I’m drawn to artists that want to just let it all out and in turn provide everyone around them with some catharsis. I got to see Hot Mulligan live this year and it was exactly that. They played the entirety of the new album and it felt good to be in a room with a bunch of people who were looking for that in their music. Whether we’re talking about coping mechanisms from our therapists (“And I Smoke”) or a song about the loss of a pet (“Betty”), there’s no shortage of something that will hit yout heartstrings here. It’s a fun Midwest emo album with a not-very-hidden dose of hard truths. – Nadia Alves

7. Paramore – This is Why

In many ways, we knew this was coming – the final and full transformation of Paramore into cultural icons destined to break free from the pop punk shackles of their youth. It’s debatable whether This is Why will ultimately be the band’s defining work, but it’s impossible to ignore the unique path that Paramore – and more specifically, Hayley Williams – have carved. The album can be defined as post-punk, but place the emphasis on “post.” Williams and co. explore new terrain in ways that would make you think Riot! never happened. As much as they honor their past, a new day of Paramore has fully dawned, and it’s something to behold. – Kiel Hauck

6. Fall Out Boy – So Much (for) Stardust

For the last decade, Fall Out Boy have subverted expectations and become one of the biggest pop bands in the world, discovering new ways to rule the music world and test themselves as writers. So Much (for) Stardust may be one of their finest achievements yet by going back to their roots and writing an album that sounds like the pop punk band of old while infusing it with the glitz and spectacle of their modern selves. 

So Much (for) Stardust revives the guitar wizardry that made FOB famous without rehashing their old work. Instead, they swagger into it with the confidence of a band that has conquered everything else. “Love From the Other Side” harkens back to the days of Infinity on High but with the depth of intricacies from MANIA. “What a Time to be Alive” reflects on life before and after COVID, but appreciating life just the same overlaid by a bouncing shimmer of happy guitars that sound straight out of a Thirteen Going on Thirty soundtrack. 

Every new FOB album is an adventure, and each has their own fans and haters. So Much (for) Stardust manages to showcase everything about the band that made them such a powerhouse without losing the edge of experimentation. – Kyle Schultz

5. Mitski – The Land is Inhospitable and So Are We

Mitski is ever-changing, ever-evolving, ever-creating. She has really embraced the softer, vintage-country sound here with The Land Is Inhospitable and So Are We. Dare I say it may be her most melancholic album yet. She is constantly grappling with the difficult parts of herself, and her vulnerability is what keeps me coming back, jealous that I feel the same but can’t express it as well as she can. “I want someone to take this soul / I can’t bear to keep it” in “The Deal” is such a perfect encapsulation of the album. Mitski has all of these things in her which she just doesn’t have the capacity to hold so she give it to us. Each time she releases an album I am so filled with anticipation to see what direction she has turned in her creative journey. The Land Is Inhospitable and So Are We is stunning but it’s going to haunt me, and that feels like Mitski’s goal all along. – Nadia Alves

4. boygenius – The Record

The music of Lucy Dacus, Julien Baker, and Phoebe Bridgers has defined a decade of It’s All Dead music coverage. It’s fitting that the collective best work falls at this point in our timeline. The Record perfectly blends the styles and personalities of the trio into a work that feels unlike anything we’ve heard from the indie rock world in the past decade. Building upon the groundwork laid in the group’s self-titled 2018 EP and each artists’ most recent solo work, this proper debut proves that even the most understated of our underground heroes have what it takes to break through to the mainstream, and quite possibly, turn our expectations of mainstream success upside down. – Kiel Hauck

3. blink-182 – One More Time

Blink-182 has been one of the loves of my life. And like true love, they have often broken my heart. The drama between the members has been almost as legendary as their music, with each new era bringing with it just as much baggage as the last.

One More Time is a promise to both Mark, Tom, and Travis, as well as their fans. The album is a conduit that moves away from past issues and forges ahead. It’s vibrant, emotional, and above anything else, just fun. 

The opening bounce of “Anthem Part 3” almost forced tears out of me, bringing back the joy of a 15 year old listening to “Anthem Part 2” open Take Off Your Pants and Jacket for the first time. As much as I praised the California era, the energy behind One More Time is unique to the original members. It was like seeing a long-forgotten friend after decades, remembering all the good times, and picking back up where you left off.

The renewed energy of blink-182 is infectious from start to finish. Whether it be the positive outlook (“Anthem Part 3”), the tearful therapeutic reflection (“One More Time”), or the cathartic acceptance (“You Don’t Know What You’ve Got”, “Other Side”), it’s all met with the same joy and cheesy ease that encouraged them to title a song “Dance With Me” (yuck) but fill it with a chorus of “Ole ole ole ole” that you will never stop singing. 

It’s easy to say that One More Time is “more than just an album,” but it’s true. The album puts to rest many of the demons that seem to have haunted the band and the scene in equal measure. For a band that helped launch the pop punk boom of the early naughts to feel this inspired, energetic, and renewed, it’s hard not to feel it everywhere even during the darker edges of songs (“More Than You Know”). – Kyle Schultz

2. Hozier – Unreal Unearth

I waxed simply poetic about Unreal Unearth when it released, and I feel the same with each passing day. The only reason Hozier wasn’t my top artist was because we have a physical copy of the album in each car. It sits there ready to transport me away whenever I am dissatisfied with Top 40 or tired of my newfound obsession with metalcore. He waits there in Purgatory, ready to regale me with tales of times past (“Francesca” and “I, Carrion”), and with pleadings to remember the hard things of the now (“Butchered Tongue” and “Eat Your Young”). 

 The album is based on Dante’s Inferno (I discussed that at length in my review) but what has stuck with me is how entrenched Andrew Hozier-Byrne himself is entrenched. He loops together these myths and warnings against sin with political treatises on Irish history and stories from his childhood. It’s just such an incredible example of the intertwining that we have with the art that speaks to us. I have taken so much meaning from it personally already and it has been such a pivotal album, the definition of “soundtrack to your year.

I’ve driven around the neighborhood after work just to hear the final notes of “Unknown / Nth” before heading back home, only to find Jeremiah listening to the same song in the background as he was finishing up his reports for the next workday. Hozier has created something truly special and awe-inspiring with Unreal Unearth, something that is both so timeless and new. Everytime I listen, I find something new that surprises me. – Nadia Alves

1. Olivia Rodrigo – GUTS

It would have been understandable had Olivia Rodrigo followed up her stellar debut album, SOUR, with something slightly less culture-shifting. In 2021, that debut not only set a high standard for a swath of pop newcomers while revitalizing pop punk for good measure, it also perfectly encapsulated the modern teenage experience in a way that hadn’t been touched in a generation.

But guess what? GUTS is even better. Again, she didn’t have to do this. But GUTS expands on the sonic building blocks laid on SOUR in surprising and impressive ways. GUTS finds Rodrigo leaping forward as a songwriter, tapping into societal themes of coming-of-age and the double standards that we hold young women to. And it’s all done with the same dose of wit and turn-of-phrase that has made new Rodrigo music appointment listening.

GUTS expands its borders with more freedom for Rodrigo to spread her wings: From the gritty garage rock vibes of “all-american bitch” to the modern pop melting pot of “get him back!” There’s more to explore here, even when she’s one-upping her “driver’s license” excellence with lead single “vampire”. In a year defined by the world’s biggest pop supernova in Taylor Swift, Olivia Rodrigo continues to stake her claim to the eventual pop throne. – Kiel Hauck

Honorable Mention

Lana Del Rey – Did You Know That There’s a Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd
Jeff Rosenstock – HELLMODE
El Michels Affair and Black Thought – Glorious Game
The Callous Daoboys – God Smiles Upon the Callous Daoboys (EP)
Spiritbox – The Fear of Fear (EP)

Posted by Kiel Hauck