😁💥👹🌃🐀🤙🙅‍♂️🧚‍♂️🌲🌠🐢🦑🍓🇩🇲6️⃣🆒✅📆🪣📦
~ Ansel's 2023 in Review ~
🍍🖨️💶🍑💚💪🕒🧄🥴🥮🫖☕😵🏍️⛽🛫👕🛠️📝🎼

I'm a bit late starting this year so keeping the graphics lo-fi! Anyway as in previous years I'll be counting down my top albums, artists, and songs of 2023.

I'll start soon with a countdown of the biggest artists of the year, plus new rising stars who've caught my attention in the last year. Feel free to start predicting what'll show up!

Countdown so far:
Rising artists:
1. Tainy
2. Aitana
3. Rakky Ripper
4. Danna Paola
5. Domiziana

Artists:
1. Caroline Polachek
2. Troye Sivan
3. Carly Rae Jepsen
4. Kylie Minogue
5. Bad Bunny
6. Lana Del Rey
7. RAYE
8. Taylor Swift
9. Rose Gray
10. PinkPantheress

Albums:
1. Carly Rae Jepsen - The Loveliest Time
2. Caroline Polachek - Desire, I Want to Turn Into You
3. Troye Sivan - Something to Give Each Other
4. Sugababes - The Lost Tapes
5. Paramore - This Is Why
6. Lana Del Rey - Did you know that there's a tunnel under Ocean Blvd
7. Kesha - Gag Order
8. Sufjan Stevens - Javelin
9. Kylie Minogue - Tension
10. Tainy - DATA
11. RAYE - My 21st Century Blues
12. Christine and the Queens - PARANOÏA, ANGELS, TRUE LOVE
13. SZA - SOS
14. Olivia Rodrigo - GUTS
15. Kali Uchis - Red Moon In Venus
16. Måneskin - RUSH!
17. Jessie Ware - That! Feels Good!
18. Miley Cyrus - Endless Summer Vacation
19. Joesef - Permanent Damage
20. Yves Tumor - Praise a Lord Who Chews but Which Does Not Consume; (Or Simply, Hot Between Worlds)

Songs:
1. MOJABI GHOST - Tainy ft. Bad Bunny
2. One Of Your Girls - Troye Sivan
3. BABY HELLO - Rauw Alejandro ft. Bizarrap
4. La Jumpa - Arcángel ft. Bad Bunny
5. Padam Padam - Kylie Minogue
6. Welcome To My Island - Caroline Polachek
7. Cha Cha Cha - Käärijä
8. Rush - Troye Sivan
9. Blood and Butter - Rose Gray
10. Ecstasy - Rose Gray
11. Ghost - Sigrid
12. AMERICA HAS A PROBLEM - Beyoncé ft. Kendrick Lamar
13. No Regrets - Sugababes
14. Angel - PinkPantheress
15. Tension - Kylie Minogue
16. 1Trago - Danna Paola
17. Los Ángeles - Aitana
18. Nochentera - Vicco
19. Tenemos que hablar - Danna Paola
20. Speed Drive - Charli XCX
21. Nevera (Lei, lei) - Harmonija disonance
22. Gato De Noche - Ñengo Flow ft. Bad Bunny
23. LAS BABYS - Aitana
24. Samo mi se spava - Luke Black
25. Story - Kylie Minogue
26. VAMPIROS - ROSALÍA & Rauw Alejandro
27. Nobody Gets Me - SZA
28. Anything To Be With You - Carly Rae Jepsen
29. What’s The Time Where You Are? - Troye Sivan
30. bad idea right? - Olivia Rodrigo
31. Kill Bill - SZA
32. Spalarkle (Alys) - felicita ft. Caroline Polachek
33. Kamikaze - Carly Rae Jepsen
34. Novi plan drugi san - Filip Baloš
35. Al menos ahora - Marc Seguí
36. Tattoo - Loreen
37. Escapism. - RAYE ft. 070 Shake
38. Echolalia - Yves Tumor
39. One That Got Away - MUNA
40. Got Me Started - Troye Sivan
41. 4EVA - KAYTRAMINÉ (KAYTRANADA & Aminé)
42. Green Honda - BENEE
43. Enchanted - Taylor Swift
44. Last Orders - Joesef
45. Boy’s a liar - PinkPantheress
46. Moonlight - Kali Uchis
47. I Believe - Caroline Polachek
48. A&W - Lana Del Rey
49. Black Mascara. - RAYE
50. mariposas - sangiovanni ft. Aitana
51. Black British - V V Brown
52. I Might Be Fake - Master Peace ft. Georgia
53. Prada - Cassö ft. RAYE & D-Block Europe
54. PLUSH - Simona
55. Whenever I Want - Mura Masa
56. Shy Boy - Carly Rae Jepsen
57. Flowers - Miley Cyrus
58. Ohne Benzin - Domiziana
59. Sun Comes Up - Rose Gray
60. DOGTOOTH - Tyler, The Creator
61. Out Of Time - Slayyter
62. I Been Young - George Clanton
63. The Bend - King Princess
64. Back To December - Taylor Swift
65. SOS - Domiziana ft. Blümchen
66. Full of life - Christine and the Queens
67. TRACCIÓN - Rakky Ripper
68. Aeroplanes - Carly Rae Jepsen
69. LA CHAMBA - Arcángel ft. Peso Pluma
70. Tears can be so soft - Christine and the Queens
71. Kiss Me - Empress Of ft. Rina Sawayama
72. ghosts - yeule
73. Zone 1 to 6000 - Nabihah Iqbal
74. Did you know that there’s a tunnel under Ocean Blvd - Lana Del Rey
75. Not Strong Enough - boygenius
76. Houdini - Dua Lipa
77. RUIDO - Rakky Ripper ft. Rizha
78. Never Ending Song - Conan Gray
79. I Wish You Roses - Kali Uchis
80. Muñekita - Kali Uchis ft. El Alfa & JT
81. Goodbye Evergreen - Sufjan Stevens
82. Sanity (demo) - Paramore
83. Psychedelic Switch - Carly Rae Jepsen
84. Affirmations - Hannah Diamond
85. Sunset - Caroline Polachek
86. For Granted - Yaeji
87. Eat The Acid - Kesha
88. Is It Love - Loreen
89. Running Out Of Time - Paramore
90. River - Miley Cyrus
91. COLMILLO - Tainy ft. J Balvin, Young Miko, Jowell & Randy
92. VOLVER - Tainy ft. Skrillex, Four Tet & Rauw Alejandro
93. Dang - Caroline Polachek
94. Summer Of 99 - Sugababes
95. Can’t Catch Me Now - Olivia Rodrigo
96. Promise Me - Rose Gray
97. Boys - Sugababes
98. get him back! - Olivia Rodrigo
99. Bzrp Music Sessions, Vol. 53 - Bizarrap & Shakira
100. Pierdo el sentido (YUNG PRADO Un Kiss Remix) - Alizzz

Edited January 27, 20241 yr by Ansel

Starting off with...

 

🆙⏫☝️⤴️⬆️👆💹↗️🔝🔺🔼📈

RISING ARTISTS .·•*°

📈🔼🔺🔝↗️💹👆⬆️⤴️☝️⏫🆙

 

5. Domiziana

Domiziana is a name I first heard through BJSC with her song Ohne Benzin. I really got into the Charli-XCX-if-she-HAD-been-big-in-Germany vibes and it's become one of my fav BJSC discoveries, even if I never bothered charting it! Then later in the year she collabed with another German BJSC icon Blümchen on the song SOS, which this time I did chart. I love her kind of hyperpop meets techno sound and it's soundtracked a lot of 2023 moments.

Domiziana's 2023 chart history:

2023 07 SOS (ft. Blümchen)

 

4. Danna Paola

Danna was not totally new to me - I'd seen her in Elite and listened to her Mika collab (Me, Myself) a few times. But this year 1Trago changed all that, a hugely catchy pop song that reminds me of some of the biggest recent dance pop hits like The Motto. It was an instant #1 for me, and the followup 'Tenemos que hablar' did just the same. This song is still fast paced but in a more reflective, quiet way, leaning into 80s synthpop. Then she capped off the year with an Aitana collab - more on that later!

Danna's 2023 chart history:

2023 01 1Trago

2023 01 Tenemos que hablar

2023 30 AQYNE (with Aitana)

 

3. Rakky Ripper

Rakky has had a great year, starting off with appearing in Benidorm Fest with TRACCIÓN - unfortunately she didn't make it as far as the final, let alone Eurovision, but it was great to see hyperpop represented in a national final and on primetime TV. She's followed that up with an album containing loads of great tracks like the high-energy RUIDO. On top of all that, I bumped into her twice at Primavera Sound in Madrid (once at former BJSC entry LVL1's pre-festival show where she performed LVCKY alongside them and once in the crowd for Kyary Pamyu Pamyu) and she was so lovely!

Rakky's 2023 chart history:

2023 36 TRACCIÓN

2023 10 SALVAR EL POP (ft. KICKBOMBO)

2023 05 RUIDO (ft. Rizha)

2023 30 ROTTEN

2023 15 NO PUEDO DORMIR (ft. LVL1 & eurosanto)

2023 32 MALOS DÍAS (ft. Delgao & D3llano)

 

2. Aitana

Aitana was a name I knew through some kinda meh song contest entries around the site, but it wasn't until I heard 'mariposas' on the radio that I really got into her, eventually sending that song to BJSC and earning what at the time was my best result yet. This year she launched the Alpha era, drawing off different dance genres like trance and house. Two of her songs in particular (Los Ángeles and LAS BABYS) have absolutely made my 2023!

Aitana's 2023 chart history:

2023 05 Los Ángeles

2023 06 LAS BABYS

2023 22 miamor (ft. Rels B)

2023 20 Ella Bailaba

2023 30 AQYNE (ft. Danna Paola)

 

1. Tainy

Tainy is a name that's been around for actually quite a long time but he really caught my attention this year - and I think it's fair to say 2023 was the year his career really reached new heights. His album DATA received huge praise (named the 3rd best album of the year by Rolling Stone!) and features big name collabs with Bad Bunny, J Balvin, Rauw Alejandro and more. Tainy's role is producer and he really shines on a varied collection of sounds brought together by a futuristic concept. I'll leave the rest of my DATA thoughts for my albums countdown but it's fair to say that with his song MOJABI GHOST spending 6 weeks at #1, the all-time record, Tainy is the rising artist of 2023.

Tainy's 2023 chart history:

2023 01 MOJABI GHOST (ft. Bad Bunny)

2023 11 VOLVER (ft. Skrillex, Four Tet & Rauw Alejandro)

2023 14 PASIEMPRE (ft. Arcángel, Jhayco, Myke Towers, Omar Courtz, Arca & Bad Bunny)

2023 20 FANTASMA / AVC (ft. Jhayco)

2023 08 COLMILLO (ft. J Balvin, Young Miko, Jowell & Randy)

Hi Ansel!

 

Can't watch from your list, heard of Domiziana (obviously because I'm German), Aitana and Tainy. Don't know if any of them will catch on for me, but we'll see.

 

Really need to catch up on my list as well.

Hi Ansel!

 

Can't watch from your list, heard of Domiziana (obviously because I'm German), Aitana and Tainy. Don't know if any of them will catch on for me, but we'll see.

 

Really need to catch up on my list as well.

Hey Sergej! Maybe you'll see something you like by some of them when the songs countdown starts! Thanks for commenting ^_^

🥘🌸🐅🕶️🎮🤬🧜‍♂️🔴🦷⛲📌

ARTISTS OF THE YEAR

�🚦🍩🔑🧩🐰🌅🐎🚖🦠💱

 

10. PinkPantheress

PinkPantheress reached new heights with 'Boy's a liar' this year, and she's absolutely continued that momentum with a series of hits. The biggest of those has been Angel, her contribution to the Barbie soundtrack, which deserved to be one of the movie's big hits alongside Billie, Dua and Charli's tracks.

PinkPantheress's 2023 chart history:

2023 06 Way Back (with Skrillex & Trippie Redd)

2023 03 Angel

2023 28 Turn Your Phone Off (ft. Destroy Lonely)

2023 10 Mosquito

2023 17 Capable of love

2023 05 Nice to meet you (ft. Central Cee)

 

9. Rose Gray

Rose's chart history for 2023 might not look too impressive, but all the singles from her EP Higher Than The Sun (including this year's hits Sun Comes Up and Ecstasy) have hugely soundtracked my year. She's moved further into 90s dance, even sampling Groove Is In The Heart on her song Happiness, and I'm looking forward to what comes next for her.

Rose's 2023 chart history:

2023 03 Sun Comes Up

2023 01 Ecstasy

2023 11 Happiness

2023 31 Afraid Of Nothing (ft. Kungs)

 

8. Taylor Swift

Obviously Taylor has had a big year, with two albums to talk about. For me the highlight of the two was Speak Now, which has long been a favourite of Taylor's albums for me, with songs like Enchanted and Back To December finally getting a chart moment. 1989 was a more muted moment as Taylor album bombs go, given that it's actually one of my least favourite of her albums, but you can't deny the impact of charting so many songs in 2023.

Taylor's 2023 chart history:

2023 03 All Of The Girls You Loved Before

2023 21 If This Was A Movie

2023 23 Safe & Sound

2023 28 Eyes Open

2023 39 The Alcott (with The National)

2023 10 Hits Different

2023 01 Enchanted

2023 04 Back To December

2023 05 Sparks Fly

2023 06 Better Than Revenge

2023 10 Speak Now

2023 14 Long Live

2023 16 Mine

2023 19 The Story Of Us

2023 24 Innocent

2023 27 Castles Crumbling (ft. Hayley Williams)

2023 35 Timeless

2023 23 Haunted

2023 02 You Are In Love

2023 04 I Know Places

2023 09 Out Of The Woods

2023 11 I Wish You Would

2023 12 Style

2023 15 Say Don't Go

2023 18 How You Get The Girl

2023 20 Clean

2023 23 Wonderland

2023 25 Blank Space

2023 30 New Romantics

2023 39 Is It Over Now?

2023 06 You're Losing Me

 

7. RAYE

RAYE's renaissance as an independent artist has been so great to see, from Escapism to another huge hit with Prada. I really enjoyed the rest of her album too, including Black Mascara being a big hit for me, and one that I think could've been big given a push IRL.

Raye's 2023 chart history:

2023 05 Black Mascara.

2023 14 The Thrill Is Gone.

2023 22 Environmental Anxiety.

2023 37 The Weekend (with Stormzy)

2023 07 Prada (with cassö & D-Block Europe)

 

6. Lana Del Rey

Lana returned brilliantly this year with Did you know (etc), earning her 2 new top ten hits to join the albums title track from the end of 2022. I love that she brought back some pop influences for this album without sacrificing the more folksy direction that she's gone down since Norman Rockwell.

Lana's 2023 chart history:

2023 06 A&W

2023 06 Peppers (ft. Tommy Genesis)

2023 17 Fishtail

2023 25 Grandfather please stand on the shoulders of my father while he's deep-sea fishing (ft. RIOPY)

2023 33 Kintsugi

2023 32 Say Yes To Heaven

2023 39 Take Me Home, Country Roads

 

5. Bad Bunny

Bad Bunny started the year at #1 with La Jumpa, and hopped his way across the top ten with several more features throughout the year - including the year's longest-running #1 MOJABI GHOST. I have to be honest, I sometimes find Bad Bunny's solo stuff a bit one-note, so I really enjoy when he shines on another artist's track and matches their vibe instead.

Bad Bunny's 2023 chart history:

2023 05 Gato de Noche (with Ñengo Flow)

2023 10 Tormenta (with Gorillaz)

2023 38 WHERE SHE GOES

2023 01 MOJABI GHOST (with Tainy)

2023 14 PASIEMPRE (with Tainy, Arcángel, Jhayco, Myke Towers, Omar Courtz & Arca)

2023 17 K-POP (with Travis Scott & The Weeknd)

2023 16 UN PREVIEW

2023 37 MONACO

2023 40 TELEFONO NUEVO (ft. Luar La L)

 

4. Kylie Minogue

Kylie didn't just reinvent the English language this year, she launched a hugely successful era. 3 consecutive #1s have proven Tension to be a smash album, with two more top tens to boot.

Kylie's 2023 chart history:

2023 01 Padam Padam

2023 01 Tension

2023 01 Story

2023 08 Hands

2023 10 Love Train

2023 22 Vegas High

2023 26 Things We Do For Love

2023 29 Hold On To Now

2023 39 Green Light

 

3. Carly Rae Jepsen

After The Loneliest Time, I was a little unsure what to expect next from Kylie. It was still a great album, but with more filler than she usually gives us. Still, tracks like the title track and Western Wind continued to rack up big streams for me this year. Then we got The Loveliest Time - a no-skip album that charted in its entirety and might be her best work since Emotion. Songs like Anything To Be With You and Aeroplanes lean heavily into the weirder pop Carly has curated post-Emotion, while Kamikaze is full-power pop perfection.

Carly's 2023 chart history:

2023 28 Bad Thing Twice

2023 02 Shy Boy

2023 02 Anything To Be With You

2023 04 Kamikaze

2023 03 Aeroplanes

2023 07 Psychedelic Switch

2023 13 So Right

2023 16 Come Over

2023 19 Shadow

2023 21 Put It To Rest

2023 25 Stadium

2023 31 After Last Night

2023 23 Kollage

2023 40 Weekend Love

 

2. Troye Sivan

Troye has long been one of those artists whose chart success doesn't reflect their popularity, and I'm so pleased he finally had a much deserved breakthrough with this era. The singles were perfectly chosen and already iconic, tapping into gay culture and imagery with perfect precision.

Troye's 2023 chart history:

2023 03 Rush

2023 03 Got Me Started

2023 01 One Of Your Girls

2023 04 What's The Time Where You Are?

2023 17 In My Room (ft. Guitarricadelafuente)

2023 26 Honey

2023 29 How To Stay With You

2023 34 Still Got It

 

1. Caroline Polachek

Caroline had to be my #1 artist, after an impeccable second album. The eclectic mix of pop subgenres is absolutely addictive - who knew bagpipes could sound so good? I saw Caroline live at Primavera this summer and it was one of the highlights of the whole festival (probably only matched by Rosalía, Christine and the Queens and Villano Antillano), she put on an incredible show and proved herself as the biggest pop star outside of the charts.

Caroline's 2023 chart history:

2023 02 Blood and Butter

2023 01 Welcome To My Island (Charli XCX & George Daniel remix)

2023 03 I Believe

2023 19 Fly To You (ft. Grimes & Dido)

2023 01 Spalarkle (with felicita)

2023 02 Dang

 

Hey Ansel :hi:

 

Caroline is a fabulous pick for your Artist of the Year :wub: she has been such a highlight of mine as well with that flawless second album! I actually went back and listened to pretty much everything she's ever released, including with Chairlift, off the back of it. Obsessed with her voice in general and the quirky choreography in her videos too *.* Taylor is also a great shout, from the re-recorded albums to watching the Eras tour movie in the cinema, cannot wait to see her live for the first time in August!!

 

Troye has also had such a good year, snap #1 in our charts with 'One Of Your Girls' <3 of course Lana as well ('A&W' and 'Peppers' as her highest charting for you this year? taste!) and RAYE, 'Escapism.' at #1 was such a good start to the year in 2023. 'Environmental Anxiety'. is my favourite album track from her latest record so nice to see that in your chart history too!

 

Looking forward to the rest ^_^

Hey Ansel! Some great picks in your artist list there, especially Troye, Carly, Kylie and Taylor. Glad One of Your Girls was the Troye track that hit the top spot for you, it's my favourite from this era!

Hey Ansel :hi:

 

Caroline is a fabulous pick for your Artist of the Year :wub: she has been such a highlight of mine as well with that flawless second album! I actually went back and listened to pretty much everything she's ever released, including with Chairlift, off the back of it. Obsessed with her voice in general and the quirky choreography in her videos too *.* Taylor is also a great shout, from the re-recorded albums to watching the Eras tour movie in the cinema, cannot wait to see her live for the first time in August!!

 

Troye has also had such a good year, snap #1 in our charts with 'One Of Your Girls' <3 of course Lana as well ('A&W' and 'Peppers' as her highest charting for you this year? taste!) and RAYE, 'Escapism.' at #1 was such a good start to the year in 2023. 'Environmental Anxiety'. is my favourite album track from her latest record so nice to see that in your chart history too!

 

Looking forward to the rest ^_^

Hey Jade! Yay glad you've enjoyed Caroline this year too - ashamed to say I've only heard a couple of Chairlift songs actually but have to agree she has such a distinctive voice and I've loved the whole aesthetic around this album! Hope you have a good time at the Eras tour, so jealous!

Glad we've had so many songs in common too, quite a few of the ones you've mentioned will show up later (spoilers!) ^_^

 

Hey Ansel! Some great picks in your artist list there, especially Troye, Carly, Kylie and Taylor. Glad One of Your Girls was the Troye track that hit the top spot for you, it's my favourite from this era!

Hey Joseph! Taste, serious faves of mine there and they're all gonna show up a lot more here. One Of Your Girls is gorgeous and I've loved the way it turned into a genuine hit for Troye!

📀🕺🔭💿✉️🍽️💽🥏🏐👼🤿

ALBUMS OF THE YEAR

⏳📀🏝️💽🚇📼⚽⁉️🎱🪐🔮

 

20. Yves Tumor - Praise a Lord Who Chews but Which Does Not Consume; (Or Simply, Hot Between Worlds)

19. Joesef - Permanent Damage

18. Miley Cyrus - Endless Summer Vacation

17. Jessie Ware - That! Feels Good!

16. Måneskin - RUSH!

15. Kali Uchis - Red Moon In Venus

14. Olivia Rodrigo - GUTS

13. SZA - SOS

12. Christine and the Queens - PARANOÏA, ANGELS, TRUE LOVE

11. RAYE - My 21st Century Blues

So we can hurry up and get onto the top songs of the year, here's a slightly shorter commentary on the first half of my favourite 2023 albums! Yves Tumor first caught my attention with Echolalia and I've really enjoyed everything since, including seeing them live in the summer! Joesef's album feels very 00s UK soul a la Amy Winehouse, especially on my favourite track Last Orders. Miley Cyrus's megahit Flowers might be a bit overplayed now, but there's some great gems on the album like Island and Handstand, even if it's an uneven listen overall. Next we have Jessie Ware, who doesn't quite live up to What's Your Pleasure but any album with Free Yourself on it deserves every bit of praise. Måneskin have lost a bit of their appeal for me since the switch to mostly English songs, but there's still an infectious energy on tracks like SUPERMODEL, TIMEZONE and GOSSIP. Kali Uchis launched a stunning era with a very deserved minor UK hit from Moonlight, while Olivia Rodrigo leaned heavier into pop-rock for her second album and is all the better for it. SZA's SOS is slightly bloated (and that's before the deluxe has dropped!) but features some of her best (Good Days, Nobody Gets Me, Kill Bill). Christine and the Queens put on an incredible theatrical show at Primavera this summer, playing almost exclusively songs from his new album which is an incredible feat of world-building (although again, rather long). Finally, RAYE's long awaited debut lands at #11, thanks to its varied genres and powerful messages about the environment and music industry misogyny.

Now my turn to be jealous in return with you seeing Yves live :lol: Praise a Lord Who Chews but Which Does Not Consume; (Or Simply, Hot Between Worlds) is an incredible album :wub: 'God Is A Circle' got me into it but 'Echolalia' is certainly essential as well <3 also totally agree that 'Handstand' is a highlight on Miley's album!! A refreshing swerve on it *.*

Now my turn to be jealous in return with you seeing Yves live :lol: Praise a Lord Who Chews but Which Does Not Consume; (Or Simply, Hot Between Worlds) is an incredible album :wub: 'God Is A Circle' got me into it but 'Echolalia' is certainly essential as well <3 also totally agree that 'Handstand' is a highlight on Miley's album!! A refreshing swerve on it *.*

Ah yeah they were amazing live! Glad you liked Handstand too - I wish the album had gone more in the quirkier electronic direction that song and River seem to hint at.

📀🕺🔭💿✉️🍽️💽🥏🏐👼🤿

ALBUMS OF THE YEAR

⏳📀🏝️💽🚇📼⚽⁉️🎱🪐🔮

 

10. Tainy - DATA

9. Kylie Minogue - Tension

8. Sufjan Stevens - Javelin

7. Kesha - Gag Order

6. Lana Del Rey - Did you know that there's a tunnel under Ocean Blvd

5. Paramore - This Is Why

4. Sugababes - The Lost Tapes

3. Troye Sivan - Something to Give Each Other

2. Caroline Polachek - Desire, I Want to Turn Into You

1. Carly Rae Jepsen - The Loveliest Time

 

My top ten albums of the year reaches the top ten with Tainy's DATA at #10. This album features a lot of big names on vocals like Bad Bunny, and blends electronic/synth sounds with more conventional reggaeton and R&B. Up next is Kylie, bringing her sound into 2023 and beyond with her boldest sounding album in a long time. Then comes Sufjan, whose Javelin is a stunning heartwrenching collection that blends together various sounds throughout his career, from the acoustic sound of Carrie & Lowell to Age Of Adz style electronic grandeur.

Next is Kesha with a huge return to form after the middling High Road. Gag Order is unapologetically raw and honest about Kesha's struggles, from the quiet reflection of Fine Line to the existentialism of Eat The Acid. Lana's Ocean Blvd injects energy back into Lana's sound after a slower few albums, although the high moments come on the more NFR-esque title track, Grandfather, and the R&B influences of A&W/Peppers. I dare you to skip a single track on Paramore's This Is Why, a short-but-sweet record bringing together everything that solidifies Hayley's experimentation during her solo era.

The Sugababes long-awaited return may have come in the form of previously unreleased tracks from around a decade ago, but the mature R&B and pop sound absolutely gives the group a reason to exist again in 2023. No Regrets is an anthem, and alongside Flatline it firmly feels like the perfect grown-up wintry album. Troye went full main pop boy on Something To Give Each Other, a masterclass in dance pop via singles Rush and Got Me Started, followed by pure pop emotion in One of Your Girls. Then we come to Caroline Polachek for a whirlwind ride through varied sounds from triphop to Celtic (and I still firmly believe that in a parallel universe Mabel could've recorded Bunny Is A Rider).

Finally, it's time for my defining album of the year. That award without a doubt goes to Carly for her gorgeous The Loveliest Time, a collection of songs that prove how she's managed to keep such a diehard fanbase. She's dug harder into the offbeat and is all the better for it, with every song having its own quirks and personality.

Before I start on the songs countdown proper... fancy another one?

 

📟📠☎️🔌💾🖨️⚖️🧮📚🗞️📇⏳🕰️🗝️

RETRO COUNTDOWN

🗝️🕰️⏳📇🗞️📚🧮⚖️🖨️💾🔌☎️📠📟

I've deemed "retro" as anything pre-2021/2022 (I think the newest thing here is 2019?) so don't worry, I'm not trying to call anyone old! This is just the songs I've streamed the most this year which won't make my countdown, despite soundtracking my year heavily.

 

20. Dandy Warhols - Bohemian Like You

19. Sal Solo - San Damiano

18. Madonna - Swim

17. Madonna - La Isla Bonita

16. Madonna - Skin

15. Gustavo Cerati - Engaña

14. OBK - El cielo no entiende

13. When In Rome - The Promise

12. Madonna - Drowned World / Substitute For Love

11. All Saints - Pure Shores

10. Madonna ft. Anitta - Faz Gostoso

9. Madonna - Nothing Really Matters

8. Lana Del Rey - Radio

7. Timbaland ft. Katy Perry - If We Ever Meet Again

6. Madonna - Don't Tell Me

5. Madonna ft. Lil Wayne - Revolver

4. Kylie Minogue - Some Kind Of Bliss

3. Cornershop - Brimful Of Asha (Norman Cook Remix)

2. Fiction Factory - (Feels Like) Heaven

1. Madonna - Beautiful Stranger

 

My biggest "retro" song of the year is Madonna's Beautiful Stranger - in fact it's my #1 song of the year according to Spotify! It might seem rather random but I've spent the year really delving into Madonna's catalogue (hence the amount of her here). Beautiful Stranger features on my cooking playlist so that's been a staple throughout the year, Revolver (don't judge x) is a pre-drinks staple (my flatmates are definitely not sick of it), and La Isla Bonita is pretty much the central piece of my dissertation! Other specific songs to draw attention to are the gorgeous (Feels Like) Heaven, and Gustavo Cerati, another artist I fell in love with (especially his Bocanada album).

 

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RECENT COUNTDOWN

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And a second countdown - these are songs from before 2023 but a little more recent, mostly having charted before the cut-off in January.

 

10. Beyoncé - PURE/HONEY

9. Central Cee - Ungrateful

8. Charli XCX - Used To Know Me

7. Sebastián Yatra - Tacones Rojos

6. Shygirl - SLIME

5. Bizarrap & Villano Antillano - Bzrp Music Sessions, Vol. 51

4. Carly Rae Jepsen - Western Wind

3. ROSALÍA - DESPECHÁ

2. Charli XCX - Hot Girl (Bodies Bodies Bodies)

1. Bizarrap & Quevedo - Bzrp Music Sessions, Vol. 52

 

The big winner here is Bizarrap - I love the summery feel of his Quevedo collab and Villano Antillano really shows off her personality on her track (she was also incredible live, everyone was jumping to this song!). Elsewhere, Charli's Hot Girl really grew on me with its tongue-in-cheek vocal-fried lyrics, and a friend introduced me to Central Cee's Ungrateful which turned out to be a revelation.

The Caroline, Lana, Paramore and Sufjan albums were all big highlights of the year for me too :wub: great list!

 

Love the idea of a retro countdown too. Ray of Light is one of my all-time favourite albums and definitely top Madonna record, here for that invasion <3

The Caroline, Lana, Paramore and Sufjan albums were all big highlights of the year for me too :wub: great list!

 

Love the idea of a retro countdown too. Ray of Light is one of my all-time favourite albums and definitely top Madonna record, here for that invasion <3

Yay I'm glad you enjoyed those albums too! And ugh definitely feel like I've been missing out by not getting into Ray Of Light til now, what an album!

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TOP 100 SONGS OF THE YEAR
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(Hope the emojis display properly for you because they're not for me x)

100. Pierdo el sentido (YUNG PRADO Un Kiss Remix) - Alizzz
It would be wrong not to include this song somehow - 'Pierdo en sentido' gave me my first song contest win! I really didn't expect it as this doesn't really sound like the sort of thing that would set the pop forum alight, but the pitched up vocals and powerful beat have made it a perfect party anthem.

99. Bzrp Music Sessions, Vol. 53 - Bizarrap & Shakira
Again, I couldn't not include this - I was living in Spain when this came out and it was just unavoidable. At the school where I worked, the kids would sing this all day (one teacher even set her class the task of translating it into English in the hopes they'd get bored of the song!), then I'd hear it on the bus home, and then I'd play it myself :lol:

98. get him back! - Olivia Rodrigo
As I said before, something I really liked about Olivia's album is that she doubled down on the rockier sound of 'deja vu' and 'brutal' rather than focusing on ballads. This song is a great example of that, with a shouty chorus and talk-sung verses. Importantly it doesn't take itself too seriously, and is screaming out to be sung along to.

97. Boys - Sugababes
Boys is the first of 3 Sugababes songs to come - I think I was drawn to this because it's exactly what you expect from the Sugababes, pure pop fun. On an album balancing pop bops with more serious sounding fare, this definitely stood out to me.

96. Promise Me - Rose Gray
Promise Me actually reached #75 on last year's countdown, but it did well enough at the start of this year to earn itself a repeat! Promise Me, as I probably said last year, reminds me a lot of Madonna's Ray Of Light with soaring vocals over a dance beat making for a hypnotic combination.

95. Can’t Catch Me Now - Olivia Rodrigo
Olivia has had a big year, and she topped it off with an appearance on the latest Hunger Games soundtrack! Regardless of recent events and manufactured drama that may or may not (emphasis on the latter) exist, Olivia has often mentioned Taylor's Speak Now as a favourite album of hers, so it seems like a full circle moment for her to replicate the Eyes Open / Safe & Sound soundscape in her own way. I might not have seen the film in question, but the bridge is so dramatic and cinematic it's surely a perfect fit for the movie.

94. Summer Of '99 - Sugababes
Apparently it's not been long enough since I talked about the Sugababes, so here they are again! Summer Of '99 is a fast-moving pop song but equally reflective on the band's early years. If I'm going to compare it to anything else they've done, the production feels a bit About You Now-y, with the same sort of catchy chorus and singability.

93. Dang - Caroline Polachek
Dang is a great encapsulation of how Caroline fits an offbeat sense of humour into her music. It's hugely catchy but equally about nothing at all, and its biggest selling point is a frankly iconic performance on American primetime TV where she turned the entire thing into a lecture - I need the slides in PDF form asap.

92. VOLVER - Tainy ft. Skrillex, Four Tet & Rauw Alejandro
VOLVER is a great example of what makes Tainy's album so good, mixing futuristic electronic production with artists usually known for reggaeton. Skrillex/Four Tet deliver an instrumental worthy of A.G. Cook's PC Music work, with Rauw Alejandro (who will never be forgiven no matter how good the music is, Team Rosalía x) on lyrics.

91. COLMILLO - Tainy ft. J Balvin, Young Miko, Jowell & Randy
Straight back into Tainy (without spoiling anything you won't hear from him for quite some time, but he will be back) - this song was originally left off the album but later re-added. It's club-ready and features a fair few vocalists (including Young Miko, who also added a great guest feature to the remix of Bad Gyal's Chulo).

Oh my god. Not the biggest fan of 'Dang' and kinda glad it was left off the album, but how good is that TV performance :cheeseblock:

My faves and some comments of those I have heard:

 

Albums:

1. Carly Rae Jepsen - The Loveliest Time > I haven't been *too* enamoured by a Carly album since 'EMOTION'. A couple of gems though! <

2. Caroline Polachek - Desire, I Want to Turn Into You > Heard this for the first time like a month ago, it was ok. Nothing I'd go back to though tbh. <

3. Troye Sivan - Something to Give Each Other > A great album. Took a while to grow on me to the level of 'Blue Neighbourhood' and 'BLOOM', but it's up there now! SO GOOD! <

4. Sugababes - The Lost Tapes > STUNNING album. <

9. Kylie Minogue - Tension

11. RAYE - My 21st Century Blues

14. Olivia Rodrigo - GUTS

18. Miley Cyrus - Endless Summer Vacation > It's a very under appreciated album! Glad to see you name 'Island' as a highlight! <

 

Songs:

94. Summer Of 99 - Sugababes > They should release this as a single and see it smash!!!! <

97. Boys - Sugababes

98. get him back! - Olivia Rodrigo

99. Bzrp Music Sessions, Vol. 53 - Bizarrap & Shakira > Very unexpected but a BOP! I actually forgot to add this to my top 100 when doing my countdown lmao oops x <

I love the two Olivia tracks so far. She's yet to release a bad single in my opinion :wub:

 

I really enjoyed the Bizarrap/Shakira song and it was brilliant to see it get Shakira back in the UK charts!

Hey Ansel, from your retro one first

 

20. Dandy Warhols - Bohemian Like You

19. Sal Solo - San Damiano

18. Madonna - Swim

17. Madonna - La Isla Bonita

16. Madonna - Skin

13. When In Rome - The Promise

12. Madonna - Drowned World / Substitute For Love

11. All Saints - Pure Shores

9. Madonna - Nothing Really Matters

7. Timbaland ft. Katy Perry - If We Ever Meet Again

6. Madonna - Don't Tell Me

3. Cornershop - Brimful Of Asha (Norman Cook Remix)

1. Madonna - Beautiful Stranger

 

so much Madonna :wub: a big fan of the Timbaland/Katy one as well despite how dated it appears now! Loving the Olivia appearances, haven't checked any of the Sugababes tracks oops. Will try and do so at some point lol!