{"id":2933,"date":"2023-12-31T19:15:01","date_gmt":"2024-01-01T01:15:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.timelypersuasion.com\/blog\/?p=2933"},"modified":"2023-12-31T19:15:13","modified_gmt":"2024-01-01T01:15:13","slug":"of-the-year-2023","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.timelypersuasion.com\/blog\/of-the-year-2023\/","title":{"rendered":"Of the Year: 2023"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Bidding farewell to a particularly strong year in music with the usual listage:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

ALBUMS<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
    \n
  1. Rides On<\/em> \u2014 The Nude Party<\/strong>
    A delightful romp of a record. My unpopular opinion is it sounds like The Rolling Stones at their peak, but better.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  2. BOOTCUT<\/em> \u2014 Bahamas<\/strong>
    Afie is beginning to make his case for the elusive infallible band tag, going country on his sixth release under the Bahamas monicker while still sounding like himself.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  3. Joy’all<\/em> \u2014 Jenny Lewis<\/strong>
    Another in a solid run of feel-good solo albums starting with The Voyager <\/em>(not that there was anything wrong with her previous records), Jenny’s starting to feel like the old friend you can comfortably pick up where you left off with even after years apart.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  4. Wide Open Light<\/em> \u2014 Ben Harper<\/strong>
    A stark album primarily featuring acoustic guitars and piano, but with the lyrical mix of pleasure & pain Ben Harper has built his career on. My favorite is the jazzy “Trying Not to Fall In Love With You.”<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  5. The 4th Record<\/em> \u2014 The Record Company<\/strong>
    Triumphant return by the thing I miss most about LA. Dropped by their label, the band went back to their roots of DIY modern blues rockers. Reminds me why I started digging them in the first place.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  6. You Know Who<\/em> \u2014 The Pink Stones<\/strong>
    A sophomore album that barely resembles what came before it but still charms with poppy alt-country leanings. Bonus points for the “Still Laughing…” reprise.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  7. Bird Machine<\/em> \u2014 Sparklehorse<\/strong>
    Posthumous albums of leftovers and\/or incomplete “lost records” can be a mixed bag, but this one is a beautiful cap on a legacy and what might have been. Nice touch including an original of one of the Dark Night of the Soul<\/em> collaborations. I’d love to hear a full album of those demos.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  8. Asylum on the Hill<\/em> \u2014 The Felice Brothers<\/strong>
    In a few years I’ll look back at this list and be surprised how low this ranked, but when a surprise new album drops in the middle of December it’s hard to evaluate it fairly. Am I giving it too much credit as a shiny new object? Regardless, The Felice’s keep Felicin’ with these charming modern throwback records. Brother James takes a big step forward, sharing near equal billing with Ian as songwriter on this set.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  9. Metal Marty’s Greatest Hits<\/em> \u2014 Metal Marty Chandler<\/strong>
    A semi-secret Supersuckers country record fronted by one of the greatest guitarists \/ characters in music today? Sign me up! “So if you’re lookin’ you can call off the search; ’cause I’m the baddest motherf@#$er on earth.”<\/em><\/li>\n\n\n\n
  10. In The Moment That You’re Born<\/em> \u2014 Brad<\/strong>
    Posthumous albums of leftovers and\/or incomplete “lost records” can be a mixed bag, and this one fits into that cautionary tale. But it also reminded me how much I miss Shawn Smith so it gets the tenth slot on that alone. “Meadow in August,” “Straight to the Hoop,” and “Hey Now What’s the Problem” earn their spots on the pantheon, and covering Malfunction’s “Stars ‘n You” by Andrew Wood brings Brad full circle in a fitting swan song.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

    SONGS<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
      \n
    1. “Ice Cream (Pay Phone)” \u2014<\/strong> Black Pumas<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    2. “Travelin’ On” \u2014<\/strong> Carly Farmer (Jamie Jackson & Jamie Drake)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    3. “Barbaric” \u2014<\/strong> Blur<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    4. “The Locals” \u2014<\/strong> Metal Marty Chandler<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    5. “Love Feel” \u2014<\/strong> Jenny Lewis<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    6. “Fucked It Up” \u2014<\/strong> Sparklehorse<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    7. “When Susie Was a Skeleton” \u2014<\/strong> The Felice Brothers<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    8. “Meadow in August” \u2014<\/strong> Brad<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    9. “Befriend the Police” \u2014<\/strong> Jim Bob<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    10. “Bad Light” \u2014<\/strong> The Record Company<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

      SHOWS<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
        \n
      1. Supersuckers at the Continental Club \u2014<\/strong><\/strong> 12\/15\/23<\/strong>
        Final night of 3 consecutive shows opening for Reverend Horton Heat. I asked on Instagram if they were planning a country show. They said no. My wife bailed on attending for this reason. They played a country set anyways. It was the highlight of my year. Bonus: Metal Marty played “The Locals” during his mid-show solo set. I also got the setlist.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      2. The Pink Stones at Feel So Good \u2014 3\/17\/23<\/strong>
        A single digit number of people attended this SXSW show at a semi out of the way clothing store doubling as a venue. Proud to be one of them hearing some great new songs in an intimate setting.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      3. Jenny Lewis Austin City Limits Taping \u2014 7\/26\/23<\/strong>
        Only the second time we’ve won tickets to a taping, and the first time to see an artist we genuinely adored.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      4. The Nude Party \u2014<\/strong> 5 Times at SXSW, March 2023<\/strong>
        Yes, I saw the same band 5 times in 6 days during South By, and loved them more each and every time. Varied setlists, matching costumes, and good old fashioned classic rock and roll. My favorite bit of stage banter was from the KUTX morning sessions at Scholz Garden. “I don’t think we went to bed last night. Leave it to radio people to book a showcase at 8am.”<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      5. The Flaming Lips at Moody Theater \u2014 11\/8\/23<\/strong>
        All of Yoshimi + a full second set of classics. Confetti shaped like little pink robots, lasers, inflatables, hamster balls. The spectacle that keeps on giving. More thoughts and photos here<\/a>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      6. Deslondes at Sam’s Town Point \u2014<\/strong><\/strong> 10\/1\/13<\/strong>
        Might be the first time in my life I figured out a secret show using context clues vs. insider information. We planned on seeing Deslondes at a BBQ & baseball festival that sold out. They had a “secret show” without a location specified amidst their Texas tour dates. I know they frequently play Sam’s Town, even curating an annual SXSW event. Popping over to the Sam’s Town calendar had a “secret show” on the same night. I took a shot and hit the jackpot.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      7. Texas Radio at High Noon \u2014 3\/17\/23<\/strong>
        Noon on St. Patrick’s day during SXSW. Barely double digit attendees to see C.M. Talkington perform with Renee Zellweger for free. Unannounced bonus of Paul Leary from Butthole Surfers in the band. Fun rock songs, but the ballad’s where Renee sang (and accompanied on guitar) stole the show. Afterwards most of the crowd made a beeline for Renee, but I waltzed up to Carty and thanked him for making my second favorite film of all time, the grossly underrated Love and a .45.<\/em> Magic all around.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

        BOOKS<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

        Bonus for 2023: Shepherd.com invited me to write about my 3 favorite books<\/a> read this year. Check them out at the link, or peruse how ~1300 other authors<\/a> answered the same question.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        PHOTOS<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

        Second bonus: Pictures to prove it!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        \n
        \"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
        \"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
        \n
        \"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
        \"\"<\/figure><\/div>
        \"\"<\/figure><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

        Bidding farewell to a particularly strong year in music with the usual listage: ALBUMS SONGS SHOWS BOOKS Bonus for 2023: Shepherd.com invited me to write about my 3 favorite books read this year. Check them out at the link, or peruse how ~1300 other authors answered the same question. PHOTOS Second bonus: Pictures to prove…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[16],"tags":[39],"class_list":["post-2933","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-music","tag-of-the-year"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p3pfx3-Lj","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":530,"url":"https:\/\/blog.timelypersuasion.com\/blog\/20-albums\/","url_meta":{"origin":2933,"position":0},"title":"20 Albums","author":"LBDG","date":"March 22, 2009","format":false,"excerpt":"Cross-posting this from Facebook since it seemed to have some relevance here.\u00c2\u00a0 Props to Scott Schnaars for inviting me to participate. Think of 20 albums that had such a profound effect on you that they changed your life or the way you looked at it. They sucked you in and\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Music"","block_context":{"text":"Music","link":"https:\/\/blog.timelypersuasion.com\/blog\/category\/music\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":986,"url":"https:\/\/blog.timelypersuasion.com\/blog\/1-record\/","url_meta":{"origin":2933,"position":1},"title":"#1 Record","author":"LBDG","date":"August 22, 2010","format":false,"excerpt":"While trying to convince Jon Mack to listen to A Love Extreme by Benji Hughes last week I mentioned that it had taken over my favorite album of all time slot. He immediately pushed back that it was a little early for such a bold claim, citing that Music by\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Music"","block_context":{"text":"Music","link":"https:\/\/blog.timelypersuasion.com\/blog\/category\/music\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":1783,"url":"https:\/\/blog.timelypersuasion.com\/blog\/of-the-year-2017\/","url_meta":{"origin":2933,"position":2},"title":"Of the Year – 2017","author":"LBDG","date":"January 2, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"Commentary coming sooner or later... ALBUMS Resistance Radio: The Man in the High Castle Album -- Various Life Will See You Now -- Jens Lekman Colors -- Beck Like a Drunk in a Midnight Choir: RSD Celebrates the Music of Leonard Cohen -- Various St. Mojo -- Sweet Spirit Salutations*\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Music"","block_context":{"text":"Music","link":"https:\/\/blog.timelypersuasion.com\/blog\/category\/music\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":1448,"url":"https:\/\/blog.timelypersuasion.com\/blog\/play-em-all\/","url_meta":{"origin":2933,"position":3},"title":"Play ’em All","author":"LBDG","date":"December 30, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"Christmas Eve was an especially historic day this year. \u00c2\u00a0It ended up being the conclusion of my yearlong project to listen to all 13,747 songs in my iTunes library at least once in 2012. \u00c2\u00a0Started with \"A Commotion\" by Feist and ended with \"I Wrote A Book About Rock and\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Music"","block_context":{"text":"Music","link":"https:\/\/blog.timelypersuasion.com\/blog\/category\/music\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Last Played is Before 1\/1\/12; Media Kind is Music","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blog.timelypersuasion.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/12\/2012-12-26-09.19.33-pm.png?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":760,"url":"https:\/\/blog.timelypersuasion.com\/blog\/all-about-the-benji-hughes\/","url_meta":{"origin":2933,"position":4},"title":"All About The Benji Hughes","author":"LBDG","date":"October 3, 2009","format":false,"excerpt":"Every once in a great while a record comes around that just plain blows your mind. One that lands in heavy rotation, building up steam and momentum with each listen. You may like or even love other albums, but the magical ones like this are few and far between. Music\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Music"","block_context":{"text":"Music","link":"https:\/\/blog.timelypersuasion.com\/blog\/category\/music\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":1742,"url":"https:\/\/blog.timelypersuasion.com\/blog\/of-the-year-2015\/","url_meta":{"origin":2933,"position":5},"title":"Of The Year – 2015","author":"LBDG","date":"January 1, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"My annual best of music list -- which this year will hopefully not be among my only posts of the year. Albums 1. Sound & Color -- Alabama Shakes No sophomore slump here. 2. Sometimes I Sit and Think, and Sometimes I Just Sit -- Courtney Barnett Most anticipated album\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Music"","block_context":{"text":"Music","link":"https:\/\/blog.timelypersuasion.com\/blog\/category\/music\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.timelypersuasion.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2933","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.timelypersuasion.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.timelypersuasion.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.timelypersuasion.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.timelypersuasion.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2933"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/blog.timelypersuasion.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2933\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2949,"href":"https:\/\/blog.timelypersuasion.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2933\/revisions\/2949"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.timelypersuasion.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2933"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.timelypersuasion.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2933"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.timelypersuasion.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2933"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}