Music
(and Podcasts)
Year in Review - 2023
The List
(new to me in 2023)
I am a chronic relistener of my favorite tunes.
So much so that one of the six new albums I listened to this year is actually just a rethinking of an album I’ve already listened to (though it definitely stands on its own merits). I don’t say that as a bad thing - when I really love an album I will treasure it forever. It may mean more to me at some points of my life than others, but music serves to ground me in my identity and guide me to understand some of life’s greater complexities. I’ve never considered myself a religious person, but music has been area of my life that has consistently suffused me with a sense of spirituality that I hold dear.
All to say, I revisit albums constantly. But I always try to make time for new music, more often in the form of individual songs than full albums, hence the sparse list above. I am also eternally grateful to Spotify for helping make reviewing my listening habits so much easier; HUGE fan of Spotify Wrapped.
So without further ado, my favorites from 2023…
Highlights
Sometimes your “top song” isn’t really your “top song”, but I was pleasantly (un)surprised to confirm that Out of Line was a defining song for me in 2023, perhaps even a personal anthem of sorts. It’s no coincidence that I latched onto this song while in grad school, influenced by a spirit of curiosity and opportunity, still searching for a stronger sense of identity.
Out of Line is a song about expressing your individuality. I connect with the song because it vocalizes one of my highest ideals - being the truest version of yourself, even and especially if that clashes with “how you’re supposed to be”.
“Isn’t life so fun ain’t it so great
When you’re watching all the rules disintegrate
They’ve underrated being a disgrace
It’s joy when you got all these silly little lines you get to erase”
Johnny Flynn tops my charts again! This is three years running with Johnny Flynn as my top artist, and being in the top .05% is new heights. The addiction is getting worse.
So what is it about Johnny’s music that keeps me coming back?
I wish I had the words to describe it. But I guess that’s sort of the point. Sometimes the music that you connect with most powerfully reaches into that abstract part of the brain that is difficult to put words to. I feel zen when listening to an English folk ballad. Many of his songs have an up-tempo cadence that produce a simply sublime rhythm. His songs are about innocence, mortality, humility, myth, and tenderness, all themes that produce a strong sense of contentment and understanding.
Perhaps it’s as simple as the fact that I love the genre of folk music, and Johnny is my personal ideal of the folk sound. Songs steeped in a sense of grandeur and timelessness, as if they’ve been passed down for centuries, while managing to simultaneously managing to be personal and intimate in the way I connect with them. Just feeling grateful that he keeps producing new music that I get to fall in love with.
Concerts
Only four concerts for me in 2023, which is comparatively few with my last couple of years, mostly due to being busy with grad school and trying to save money. Still, I managed to see three artists for the first time ever live. Even better, I now have a dedicated concert companion in the form of the lovely Mara Potter, which made all of these shows all the more memorable.
All of these shows were fantastic, but then of course I do have excellent taste in music :)
Fruit Bats was one of the earliest concerts I’ve ever attended - on by 6:30 and off by 8. Not a complaint at all, Eric Johnson’s voice is lovely live, I got to hear all my favorite songs, and could still enjoy the whole rest of my evening! I wish a few more artists followed this template…
I was so happy to see that Olive Klug was coming to Seattle after I missed them in D.C. (literally by a day!). Their show was amazing, and really lived up to the months I had spent obsessing over the release of their first album. I know I’ll be seeing them again soon for sure.
I’d seen Watchhouse before, but never been to the Mount Baker Theater up in Bellingham, WA. Beyond being an excellent excuse to take a day trip to the beautiful city of Bellingham, the show was great, and a unique twist on the last time I had seen them. This time around, instead of sporting a full band, it was a purposefully “stripped down” show that featured only the two core members. Despite this, there were still some rocking moments on fiddle and mandolin, and it was fun to enjoy the show with some close friends who went with me and Mara.
John Craigie was everything I thought he’d be and more, and he is my biggest recommendation out of these four artists. His live album Opening for Steinbeck was my number one road trip album amidst the back and forth between Seattle and D.C., and his incredible fusion of humorous storytelling and in-your-feelings folk music still amazes me. This was one of the most unique concerts I’ve ever been to, and few artists I’ve seen have as much charisma. Admittedly, I only knew the one album before getting tickets, but I will now be bingeing every Craigie album and getting tickets again as soon as I can!
FRUIT BATS
April 22, 2023
9:30 Club - Washington, D.C.
Watchhouse (Duo)
November 11, 2023
Mount Baker Theater - Bellingham, WA
Olive Klug
September 20, 2023
Madame Lou’s - Seattle, WA
John Craigie
November 16, 2023
The Neptune - Seattle, WA
Podcast Highlights
I take my parasocial relationships seriously, and there’s no one I spent more time with alone together than Conan O’Brien, and his trusty companions Sona Movsesian and Matt Gourley.
Every week, and now twice that he is doing fan segments, I know I am going to laugh. It’s such a joy to have such an incredibly consistent source of good humor, but what keeps me coming back are the deeper insights that Conan is able to get into with his guests.
It really speaks to Conan’s sense of curiosity that he is able to get all sorts of personalities on his show, and have conversations that are meaningful and hilariousness. One of the people I respect most, and a podcast I will recommend to anyone and everyone.
The It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia (IASIP) podcast was an unexpected surprise when it came out last year. Not in the fact that it was hilarious (I’m obsessed with the show so I had no doubt), but that it exists at all! I suppose they’ve been doing this so long that they felt it was finally time to give the fans a deeper look behind the curtain, with fantastic results.
The show took a pause during the actors and writers strike, and hasn’t been back even after the strikes were resolved. While that’s a little sad, I know they are going to be back eventually, and I’ve been using the time to revisit some old content. For any fans of the show, I highly recommend as it’s a great way to get a better understanding of how this insane premise of a show actually came together, and the incredibly people behind the scenes - writers, directors, guest actors - who contributed their brilliant quirks.
I started reading the Unhedged Newsletter on the Financial Times site when it first started last year, so I was very happy to see the release of a podcast in the summer of 2023 to complement the newsletter. Similar to IASIP, though in a very different way, it’s really cool to hear the voices behind the words I’m reading on a near daily basis.
At the center are three of the finest finance journalists I’ve come across - Robert Armstrong, Katie Martin, and the wunderkind Ethan Wu. This is a great team that I hope sticks with this podcast for a long time to come. The episodes are a snappy 20 minutes or less, so if you’re looking to better understand markets and finance, I highly recommend.
And my 2023 Artist of the Year is…
Yah I’m a year late to the party - like with most things - but I’m finally well aboard the hype train on Noah Kahan.
Even as someone who easily gets obsessed with an album, I don’t think I’ve listened to any album as much or with as much intensity as Stick Season. From the single re-releases with Hozier and Kacey Musgraves to the soul-cutting lyrics, Noah Kahan made me feel things.
And I’m still processing.
What I’m Most Excited For in 2024…
Will the 8-year wait for a new Blind Pilot album finally end in 2024?
I have a long and enduring obsession with Blind Pilot. Starting in the high school days and carrying through today, I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve had the pleasure of seeing them live (though I think it’s at least 12 or 13 times), collecting posters, and re-listening to the three albums they’ve released in total.
But their last release was in 2016, essentially a lifetime ago! I’m never one to feel entitled to new music, but the anticipation of what this group can do when they create something new has been increasingly gnawing at me. Building the hype even more, I heard some of the new material at a concert in Bellingham in 2022 and during a digital-only pandemic concert they aired during the pandemic.
I respect that they’ve been taking their time, but you must understand that their most recent tweet (pictured) sent me. I AM READY! Their home base being in Astoria, OR, PNW shows are guaranteed. I just may have to go twice :D