EDITOR’S RECOMMENDATIONS

Music

let’s talk music

and that’s a wrap! What an amazing year for music. While it is true that some of the best albums of 2023 were actually released in 2022, with Taylor Swift and Beyoncé dominating the year through global stadium tours, blockbuster movies, and countless digital column inches, this year was also a fantastic one for globe-spanning artists chasing creative breakthroughs and growth.

Although it was really hard to choose these 9 albums, I want to make it clear that my parameters were mostly related to the albums that I listened the most as a whole, that were interesting with full concepts and storylines and that I believed added value to their genre in general.

1 - That! Feels Good! by Jessie Ware - Disco is familiar territory for Ware —2020’s What’s Your Pleasure looked towards Giorgio Moroder’s blueprint for arpeggiated synths and light-up dancefloor grooves, helping kickstart pop music’s disco revival. Like Donna Summer before her, she eliminates the distance between dancefloor ecstasy and sexual pleasure, suggesting an imperceptible difference between the two. With the trust of funk bass and spontaneous yelps, Jessie invites us to her party - one that you do not want to miss. Seriously recommend it.

2 - RR by ROSALIA & Rauw Alejandro - This three-song EP was their chance to share their buzzy relationship on their own terms. Although they only gave a small peek into how they sound together, the project gave a lot of high-quality vocals, production and stories. I was completely obsessed since the beginning and my love for this EP continues to grow.

3 - Did you know that there's a tunnel under Ocean Blvd by Lana del Rey - The album’s deeply personal tone is immediately apparent from its first song, “The Grants.” Hyper introspective, Del Rey now seamlessly integrates the broader topic of nostalgia with a confessional discussion of her own personhood — a testament to her artistic maturity and emotional depth. One of her best albums to date.

4 - Cracker Island by Gorillaz - Being honest, this is the first full album of the group that I’ve listened, so I cannot write about their previous sound. With a handful of attention-grabbing features, a touch of hip-hop, a splash of dub, and great big helpings of Damon Albarn’s big-hearted melodies, Cracker Island made me really curious to get to know Gorillaz a bit more. 

5 - Saturn Return by Rêve - I’m definitely making a separate post about this one, since I’d bet you guys do not know her. As the first album by the Montreal-born singer, this isn't so much an entrance as an ascension. If the planets align, Saturn Return should help launch Rêve into the orbit of household names and generational talents — she's a star going supernova. Imagine Carly Rae Jepsen but sexy.

6 - L’AMORE - Madame - With the lead single being one of my favourite tracks of this year's Sanremo festival, "IL BENE NEL MALE", Madame rightfully deserved a spot on this list (the only italian singer!). What I liked particularly about this album, is that she defintely made the transition to become a singer-songwriter. Many of the songs are beautifully crafted masterpieces with storylines and different realities. And trust me when I say that you do not need to know Italian to be transported to her world.

7 - Escandalo Íntimo by Luisa Sonza - I always try to listen to Top50 Brazil playlist on Spotify to keep myself updated on my country’s music scene, and this album brought to me a refreshing touch that I truly missed in brazilian pop music. Spanning through various genres, from powerful ballads to MPB and Sertanejo, Luisa starts to claim her spot not only as a singer, but as a consolidated brazilian artist in ascension.

8 - 1989 (Taylor’s Version) by Taylor Swift - For Taylor Swift, 2014 might have felt like one long debutante ball. On her fifth album, 1989, she emerged as a pop superstar, trading her six-minute open letters and vivid diary entries for songs that were bright, punchy, and dramatic. Years later and the 1989 (Taylor’s Version), is the fourth entry in Swift’s series of re-recordings, going in the same way toward fleshing out a new chapter in her career. The “vault” tracks reveal humanizing depth and maintains the same artistic level we come to expect from her. It was her year after all.

9 - Silence Between Songs by Madison Beer - The only one that I had already mentioned in past editions, “Silence Between Songs” was the first time we saw Madison Beer with real artistic potential. With wistful orchestration, mellow guitar, and sweeping cinematic strengths, Beer’s powerful voice and transparent lyrics make this sound a sweet surprise of 2023.

The end

This is the first time I’ve done something like this and I am super excited to share my opinions with you guys. Thanks for reading it and let me know if you decide to give it a chance to any of the albums mentioned above.