2023: To Countdown Or Not To Countdown?

Half Man Half Biscuit - Oblong Of Dreams (#1 in 2022)

For as long as I've had a blog, I've filled most of December with a year end countdown of my favourite albums (and on my old blog, I used to do films, books, TV shows and comics too).

Frank Turner - I Haven't Been Doing So Well (#2 in 2022)

Since 2018, I've been doing a list as long as the final number in the year - 18 for 2018, 19 for 2019... last year, it was my Top 22 of 2022, but I think it's fair to say that the top four at least were all better records than anything I've heard this year. 

Craig Finn - Messing With The Settings (#3 in 2022)

That's not to say it's been a bad year for music. A lot of my favourite artists have put out new discs (or, in Kevin Morby's case, not bothered to put them on a disc at all, just plonked them on the interweb), but none of those records felt like they came from performers at the very top of their game. Unlike the ones I selected by Half Man Half Biscuit, Frank Turner, Craig Finn and American Aquarium this time last year.

American Aquarium - Chicamacomico (#4 in 2022)

I'm also frustrated by the fact that December is never the best time to decide your favourite albums of the past year, since you're still listening to half of them and haven't even heard a bunch more. A good example of this is that I just managed to squeeze the most recent First Aid Kit album into my Top Ten last year after only a few listens. I then continued to listen to it well into the summer, by which time my appreciation had rocketed - it's equally as good as any of the records mentioned above.

First Aid Kit - A Feeling That Never Came

Anyway, the way I feel right now is that there's been a lot of great songs this year, but not as many great collections of songs. (This opinion may well have changed by next March.) Many of the old faithfuls delivered, but didn't quite scale previous heights. That doesn't bother me - I'm not one of those people who expects every record to be better than the last one. But I just didn't think I could subject you all to 23 reviews of 23 albums I liked, but didn't quite love. I managed to cobble together a Top Ten, just like in the old days (sometimes I have to remind myself what this blog is called), but the rest of the time between now and the end of the year, I'm just going so share some of my favourite songs. Like this one...

Spanish Love Songs - Lifers

Spanish Love Songs are one of those cool hipster bands that Ben likes and he's gradually been persuading me to do the same. I was particularly impressed with their song The Boy Considers His Hair Cut, which I featured on a Self-Loathing Friday just over a year ago. And their new album, No Joy... well, that's clearly a no-brainer. They remind me a little bit of Ezra Furman doing their best attempt at Springsteen, or (don't tell Ben) The Killers back when they were cool. And then the write lyrics like these...

It's the notion that your body is never gonna change

The baby fat that's hiding in your cheeks won't fade

And you're not sure why, but when you leave the house you circle the block to cry

And these...

So do you think that we'll outrun it?

Get past the pain of simply being?

Every time you want out of your body

Or can't get your head around this dream

You swore you loved it more

When you couldn't guess the end

It's never adding up

But don't write yourself out of the equation

Is 51 a good time to turn Emo?

Meanwhile, as I mentioned First Aid Kit above, I might as well throw this in to close today, a song in which they help out one of their recent tour-mates on backing vocals. Lola Kirke is a singer and actress (quite successful, it appears, though I can't claim to have seen anything she's been in). Born in London, raised in New York, yet she makes sparkly Americana that verges on good old fashioned Country & Western. George Strait, I'm sure, would approve of the song title below. Judging from the video though, Lola is probably spending time in Alcatraz for indecent exposure. Hopefully she'll be back out soon...

Lola Kirke feat. First Aid Kit - All My Exes Live In LA