I have long since lost the ability to really put together a year-end best-of list. There’s more music available these days than ever before, and in many ways more better music than ever, if “more better” can be considered a thing. I did participate this year in some year-end voting activities, and toward that end I put together a list of what I thought, respectfully, represented the better end of more better for 2023. Of course, after I completed the following list of 20 such records, still more music came out — but this is, I think, a solid and representative selection:
- Bill Frisell: Four
- Dedalus Ensemble: Performing Brian Eno: Discreet Music/Music for Airports/Thursday Afternoon
- The Necks: Travel
- Lia Kohl: The Ceiling Reposes
- Loraine James: Gentle Confrontation
- Eivind Aarset and Jan Bang: Last Two Inches of Sky
- Between: Low Flying Owls
- Markus Floats: Fourth Album
- Scott Tuma: Nobody’s Music
- Sarah Davachi: Long Gradus
- Éliane Radigue: Naldjorlak
- Ryuichi Sakamoto: 12
- Boxhead Ensemble: Ancient Music
- Machinefabriek with Monika Bugajny: Recytle
- Philip Jeck & Chris Watson: Oxmardyke
- Marcus Fischer: Dodecalogues (vol.1)
- Oliver Coates: Aftersun (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
- Stephen Vitiello with Brendan Canty: Stephen Vitiello with Brendan Canty
- John Luther Adams: Darkness and Scattered Light
- Earth: Even Hell has its Heroes (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)