2023 has been a crazy year for me. My life has not been the most exciting but this is a music blog and the music has been amazing this year! I’ve got myself to a bunch of gigs, even getting to do a whopping three gigs in other countries. I know that’s not a lot for some people, but for me it was huge! I’ll get to those later in the blog. It was a year of new discoveries, rediscovered favourites and all new experiences. Whether it be my brain melting when I found out about Villagers of Ioannina City, the maddening catchiness of Kontrust or infectious charisma that Project Renegade exude. It’s been a wild year. Also, it’s been a decent year for the blog. Though I haven’t cranked out as many posts as I would have liked, I think I’ve still put out some good content for you, my fantastic readers. Plenty of reviews and interviews for the year. It’s also been a year where I have made a bunch of new contacts that I hope will allow me to give you more interesting content.
It’s been 12 years since I started this blog. My first post all those years ago was my top 20 albums of 2011. So, it never really feels like the end of the year without doing some sort of retrospective of the last 365 days. I’m also including some gig highlights in here too because there have been some incredible shows in 2023. Some I have already reviewed and some I never mentioned on the blog. Yeah, it’s been a good year for me and I hope it has been for you too and I hope your 2024 will be filled with great music and experiences. So, without any more waffle, let’s crack on!
In all honesty, I’m not sure how to write this year's blog. I don’t really want to do a straight up top 10 whatever. Because that’s long and boring and I don’t think you, dear reader, would want to read that. Over the last few years, I have tried to keep this end of year blog fresh and more interesting to read. So, in the wise words of Monty Python… And now for something completely different. Let’s talk about some of the biggest things that left an impact on me and that I’m likely to take into the new year and further. I think we can start with some of the biggest concert experiences of the year.
One experience I will never forget is making my way to Eindhoven in September for the return of one of my all-time favourite bands, Stream of Passion. This was just surreal. It was the first time in my life where I traveled to another country for the sole purpose of a concert. No additional plans or extended stay around it. Just a plane there, go to the concert and then get a plane home. Which was a fun time and nice not to lug a suitcase around to hotels. This was my second time in Eindhoven ever, I was there in 2019. This was like returning home after a long time. Eindhoven is such a wonderful city and the music scene there is so wonderful. This was my first time at the Dynamo, a great venue in the heart of the city. This is where Stream of Passion chose to make their return to the stage. The last time I got to see them live was in Wolverhampton in 2016, so it’s been quite the wait for their return. Let me just say this, they haven’t missed a single step.
The performance of the band was amazing, going for a solid 1hr 40mins. The energy for the crowd was electric and you can just tell it meant the world to the band. The highlights of the night were: Opening with the double hitter of "Monster" and "A War of Our Own"; their cover of Sonata Arctica's "I Have a Right"; the overwhelming chanting and cheering from the crowd stopping the band from moving on with the set; the band just casually hanging out after the show. Nights like this are a priceless experience. On top of that, they also released their new EP, Beautiful Warrior. A bit of a statement and experiment at the same time. It’s so good to have new material from the band and I hope it's not the last we hear from them!
In June, I did a bit of a European road trip. Starting in Vienna and traveling to Munich. There were two concerts on this vacation. Two massively special shows; two artists that I've wanted to see for a long time. Weirdly enough, the shows were completely different from what I thought. In Vienna, I went to see the man, the myth, the legend, Mr Hans Zimmer. In Munich were the German mega-stars, Rammstein. In all honesty, being more of a heavy metal fan, I thought I was going to enjoy Rammstein more. If I'm honest though, it was Zimmer that took the win on this vacation!
Ok... Let's talk about Rammstein last night in Munich. It was a spectacular show. The set was great, a good mix of newer material and classic numbers. The pyro and effects were amazing, fireworks and smoke galore. Yet, there seemed to be very little life to the band. I know Rammstein are not known for overly-animated performances. I do feel that everything was so, a matter of fact. One song just leads to another with little breathing room. But the band themselves felt quite lifeless. As if they were playing it safe. By no means a bad show. However, on this holiday if I compare it to Hans Zimmer. Zimmer wins hands down. Even at stadium shows, I've been to... Muse had a much more lively and dynamic show. I'm not saying I had a bad time, not at all. It was awesome and being a part of that crowd was second to none. The enthusiasm and passion of the Munich crowd was amazing and I'm glad that I could have been a part of it. Not too sure how I feel about it. I'm sure in hindsight, I will be glad to have had the experience. It was truly once in a lifetime.
I think the most surreal experience of the year was getting to see the legendary masters of rock, The Who in my little town of St Helens. It was completely on a whim as well, no excessive build up needed. One day my brother texted me out of nowhere asking if I wanted to go. To which the answer was, instantaneously and emphatically, yes. I was strange seeing rock and roll legends grace our little working class town. These acts are usually reserved for massive cities and well known arenas. However, getting to see them in our rugby ground, Totally Wicked Stadium was a treat indeed. A band I grew up listening to. I remember having the greatest hits album and they played pretty much every number from that greatest hits. From “Won’t Get Fooled Again” to “Magic Bus”; from “Baba O’Riley” to “Who Are You” and many more. It was such a pleasure to see the greats, Roger Daltrey and Pete Townshend perform. They don’t sound like they missed a step since the 60’s Daltrey still being able to use the full force of his voice and Townshend can still bust out the rock moves on the guitar. Armed with a collection of musicians they performed a set that left all classic rock fans with a smile on their face.
It was also an amazing year for the underground. Some of my favourite shows this year have been in the smaller venues with artists showing their stuff. MY-HI caught my attention, putting on an absolute clinic in a boiling hot venue on one of the hottest days of the year. Their set was completely electric and they put so much passion and energy into their performance. Liverpool’s Novacrow is a band I have seen time and time again but in April was the first time I was able to watch them with their new material from their most recent album, Look At Me Now. Which was a wild show with all the trimmings and Novacrow’s signature brand of insanity. They will remain as one of my favourite bands to watch live. Every time you watch them it’s a new experience and they never seem to run out of new ideas to entertain the audience. I think it was a good year to watch Last Reserves. I watched them live twice and they pushed through the year. They’re an insanely intense and fun band to watch live. They run through the set so smoothly and are able to bring all of that punk aggression and blend it with the finesse of a well-seasoned showman. They are an absolute top-tier band and one of my personal favourites on the UK underground rock scene. If you get a chance check them out!
I think my year opened and closed with two of my favourite shows! In February, I went to see one of my all time favourite artists KT Tunstall. I have seen KT live in concert six times now and she never ceases to amaze me. Her music has always resonated with me. In fact I wrote an entire essay about her Mind, Body, Soul trilogy. Anyway, her performance in Manchester as part of her UK tour, was simply immaculate. For me, it more than cemented Tunstall as one of the best performers in modern rock. The set itself included every song from her recent album NUT, plus some of her greatest hits and deep cuts. The way she can hold the audience in the palm of her hand is a wonder to behold. She just has this magic when she performs live. She has an enchanting aura when she’s playing that makes every person in the room stand up and pay attention. The newer songs like “Demigod” and “Dear Shadow” really shine well in the set and feels like classic KT strutting her stuff. Then songs like “Three” and “I Am The Pilot” keep KT relevant in the current error of pop and rock.
So this next section I’ll keep brief because I’ve talked about them enough this year as is, but this blog would be remiss if I didn’t give them a quick mention. This year I have completely fallen in love with the Greek metal titans, Villagers of Ioannina City. Their music spoke to me so instantaneously and with such effect that I spent an entire week listening to their entire back catalog on repeat. I wrote an entire blog when I found about them if you want to read that. Then, no sooner had I discovered them, they announced a UK tour. Which I bought a ticket for without hesitation. Again, I wrote an entire Gig Report so I won’t cover old ground. However, my 2023 was very much dominated by them.
A list of all the gigs I went to in 2023
14 Jan - Trivium / Heaven Shall Burn / Malevolence - Manchester
06 Feb - Apocalyptica / Epica / Wheel - Manchester
16 Feb - Jesse Malin / Trapper Schoepp - Manchester
26 Feb - KT Tunstall / Andy Burrows - Manchester
01 Mar - The Rock Orchestra - Manchester
18 Mar - Last Reserves / Helle / Bleach Brain - St Helens
08 Apr - Novacrow / Apparitia / Spitfyre - St Helens
14 Apr - Skillet / Like A Storm / Eva Under Fire - Manchester
21 Apr - Delain / Xandria - Manchester
03 Jun - Hans Zimmer - Vienna
07 Jun - Rammstein - Munich
08 Jul - MY-HI / Vulture Cult / Last Reserves - Liverpool
21 Jul - The Who / UB40 - St Helens
26 Jul - Keifer Sutherland / Fine Lines / Sari Schorr - Manchester
08 Sep - Stream Of Passion - Eindhoven
16 Sep - Robert Jon and the Wreck / Caitlin Krisko and The Broadcast - Liverpool
20 Oct - Gabrielle / Wallis Bird / Skinny Living - Liverpool
05 Nov - Villagers of Ioannina City - Manchester
24 Nov - ELO Tribute Show - Warrington
Now that we’ve talked about that, let’s move on to my favourite albums of 2023 and good lord… Where do I even start on this one! There have been so many albums in 2023 that I have adored and I don’t really want to rank them in some sort of arbitrary list. However, people like tier lists or top 10’s because it’s some kind of order in the chaos. It’s clean and easy to understand. However, I’m on a bit of a role with this blog. So I’m going to cherry pick some of my highlights and then I’ll list a complete ranking afterwards. So if you want to scroll to the bottom just to get my ranking, go for it. However, if you’ve read this far, hopefully you’ll want to read a little further.
I think my favourite album of 2023 has to be Kontrust’s Madworld. This album came out at the tail end of the year but man was it worth the wait. Loud, fun, catchy and contains a combination of silly and thought-provoking lyrics. It’s been a long time since we’ve been graced with new music from the Austrian crossover metal legends but here we go. Madworld is an absolute ride of a record with exquisite production. The new material feels like classic Kontrust but the new members Julia and Joey add a new flavour to the music, in particular new vocalist Julia Ivanova. Her personality and charm are infectious on this record and working in conjunction with Stefan Lichtenberg, the pair bounce off of one another making for incredibly fun songs to sing along to. No wonder this was one of my most listened to albums of 2023, even though it came out in November.
Speaking about my most listened to albums. If you believe my YouTube Music Recap (yes, I use YouTube Music), then my most listened to album of the year came from Icelandic singer-songwriter Daði Freyr. His album, I Made An Album was definitely one that I had on repeat this year. The songs are so catchy that they were left stuck in my head hours and days after I listened to them. Freyr is such a great songwriter and performer. The songs almost feel timeless. Most of the tunes sound like they have stepped right of the 80’s with it’s synth elements, funky baselines and infectious hooks. If you haven't checked this one out this year, then I urge you to give it a go.
I think one of the first albums that I really loved from this year is the new album from Gorillaz, Cracker Island. This album has been in the background for me this year. Each song was one that got stuck in my head for one reason or another. I think the song “Silent Running” was my anthem of the year. It might not have been my most played song but it was one that I deeply relate to and one that soundtracked my life throughout the year. When you take that in combination with songs like “Oil” (featuring the legendary Stevie Nicks), the title track “Cracker Island” and “Tormenta", it was just such a banger of a record.
I think an album that would make you drop everything and listen to it on repeat without fail would be the new album from Project Renegade. Their latest album, Ultra Terra was one that took me completely off guard. I only got it because I was contacted by their press agent with interview availability. So I gave the album a listen and it was such an experience. It’s pure metalcore to the bone with all the bells and whistles. I even got to chat to the vocalist Marianna about the production and writing of this album and, man, they were able to really craft something special with Ultra Terra. Songs like “The Millennial March” really raised my eyebrows and the single “Token” was a statement piece. It was, what I like to call, a ‘We’re here’ single. A song that serves no other purpose other than to let you know the band exists and they’re amazing. This album was one of my favourite albums of the year.
The last album I want to highlight is this one. The latest album from Rodrigo Y Gabriela. In Between Thoughts… A New World is, in my opinion, the best album of 2023. I mean it’s instrumental, flamenco prog-rock. How can you not like it? There’s no pretentious ideology, no controversial lyrics, nothing more than a true and pure musical experience that keeps the listener captivated for the run time. The skill and talent of the pair really shines bright on this album. Songs like “True Nature”, “Descending To Nowhere” and the title track “In Between Thoughts…. A New World” are immensely impressive whilst being surprisingly minimalistic. They do so much with so little. They take the simplest of chord progressions or musical patterns and spiral it off into something truly wonderful and magic!
My Top 40 Albums of 2023
- Rodrigo Y Gabriela - In Between Thoughts… A New World
- Kontrust - Madworld
- Delain - Dark Waters
- Project Renegade - Ultra Terra
- Daði Freyr - I Made An Album
- Rainover - Nox
- Gorillaz - Cracker Island
- Liv Sin - KaliYuga
- Connor Price - Spin The Globe
- ReoNa - Human
- Lovebites - Judgment Day
- Babymetal - The Other One
- City And Colour - The Love Still Held Me Near
- Redemption - I Am The Storm
- Pendulum - Anemia
- Paul Gilbert - The Dio Album
- Within Temptation - Bleed Out
- Silent Skies - Dormant
- Suzi Quatro & KT Tunstall - Face To Face
- Cowboys In The Campfire - Wronger
- The Gaslight Anthem - History Books
- Lacey - This Is All We Are
- Ashley Sherlock - Just A Name
- Caivano - Caivano
- Ashley McBryde - The Devil I Know
- Priya Ragu - Santhosam
- The Dollyrots - Night Owls
- Black Stone Cherry - Screamin’ At The Sky
- Chris Stapleton - Higher
- Kvelertak - Endling
- Lacey Sturm - Kenotic Metanoia
- Robert Jon And The Wreck - Ride Into The Light
- Stream of Passion - Beautiful Warrior
- Saliva - Revelation
- Bones - BasketCase
- Hanabie - Reborn Superstar
- The Balladmongrels - Trouble
- Nana - How To Start A Garden
- Chris Stapleton - Higher
- Xandria - The Wonders Still Awaiting
Wow, that was a blog and a half. 2023 certainly contained a lot of memories. So many gigs and albums to remember for a lifetime. I look forward to 2024 and all of the new musical adventures I’ve going to get myself into. Happy New Year and I hope your 2024 is filled with amazing music and experiences.
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