Music thread

@Mr.Myoozik
Most i agree with here, though there’s a couple i think aren’t bad. Overall great list here.

My 10 Favorite Hits of 2023:

This year will go down as a pretty bad year overall, which goes along with the music which like I said, was more frustrating than anything. Despite that, this year did have a lot of songs that I really liked and enjoyed and ones that I will definitely revisit in the future. The year was bad and the music may have been bad, but a lot of the songs to me were good, so let’s see which of these songs I enjoyed from this year that didn’t seem to end. As usual, Year End hits so let’s get started.

10- Dance The Night by Dua Lipa (Hot 100 Peak: #6): Barbie The Movie was a great movie, I really enjoyed it and I thought it was interesting, funny, clever and sharply written. As I said, two soundtrack songs were made for this movie and we’re starting with the best of the two. Dua Lipa by that point hasn’t released any new music in roughly a year and this was her big comeback, and what a comeback! The disco throwback sound is great and sounds both retro and modern with how it balances the old school sounding while having a contemporary feel to it. The lyrics about dancing and having a good time are sharply written and compliments the production very well and of course Dua herself sings it with great passion. It isn’t any higher because it does sound like her previous material such as Levitating and it doesn’t do anything new with the disco sound, but dammit is still a fun and upbeat song that goes along with such a movie. I can’t wait for Dua Lipa has in store for next year!

9- Golden Hour by JVKE (Hot 100 Peak: #10): Despite Tik Tok mostly focusing on older songs, it still can bring forward newer songs from newer artists, and this one is one of my favorites of them. The singer JVKE (Jake) has been active on YouTube and Tik Tok for a while and has been waiting for that big break and he finally got it. At first, it might seem like a simple love song about how great this girl is with a lot of imagery of glowing and shining, but it’s the execution where it really shines through. He sings it with so much passion and gusto that I can forgive his admittedly kinda weak singing, but he has conviction and who can take that away from him? Of course, the piano playing is great, the strings are nice and the beat brings it all together to form this bombastic sound to it that makes it soar. The pseudo-rap in the verses is awkward I’ll admit and is why this song isn’t any higher, but it certainly makes the song stand out among his peers. Sadly I think Jakey boy here is gonna be a one hit wonder and if he is, then I’m glad that this was his one hit because it’s a really good one.

8- Until I Found You by Stephen Sanchez (Hot 100 Peak: #23): My favorite of these Tik Tok hits and a song that I would never expect would get big. We’ve been living and breathing throwback sounds for quite a long time, but out of all these genre revivals, I did not expect that the late 50’s/early 60’s pop sound would get a chance in the mainstream again, but I’m glad it did. The most obvious comparison with this song is Paul Anka with its sound and especially subject matter, and I think it’s better than most of his material. The old school sound with the guitar, light drums, cello and vocal filtering all work seamlessly and sounds authentic, Stephen’s singing is great and invokes the singing of that era and compliments the singing of the uncredited female vocalist and the lyrics about finding love again after so long is very romantic and sweet. Just like with JVKE, this is another obvious one hit wonder and it will go down as one of my favorite one hit wonders of the 2020’s.

7- What Was I Made For? by Billie Eilish (Hot 100 Peak: #14): Another song from the Barbie soundtrack and coincidentally, another comeback song for an artist who hasn’t released any new music in a while. I’m not the biggest fan of Billie Eilish, I find her moody, downtempo pop to be not my thing at best, I prefer her more aggressive stuff. This song however, instantly won me over with and without the context of the movie. Billie’s singing is good like usual, the sparse production is well made like usual, but what made me fall in love with it is the subject matter. It’s about self-reflection and trying to figure out what your purpose in life is, which is instantly relatable not just to me but to anyone in this world figuring out their place in the world. It works within the movie and it definitely works as its own standalone song for anyone who’s unsure of how to feel about themselves and wanting to change. Alright Miss Eilish, you won me over with this song.

6- Bebe Dame/Un x100to by Grupo Frontera & Fuerza Regida/Bad Bunny (Hot 100 Peaks: #25/#5): Like I said, I actually liked the Regional Mexican trend of this year despite the cookie cutter sound and having some pretty culturally questionable lyrics. When it comes to my favorite, it’s a tie between two songs from the group Grupo Frontera. The first one is a collaboration with band Fuerza Regida which is a group that has drug cartel writing to their songs but luckily they don’t do that here. Both groups beg for forgiveness and wishes to rekindle a broken relationship and ask for a second chance. It’s a nice sentiment that I can respect and both singers play each other very well with a good cumbia sound that sounds tight and controlled with a good groove behind it with the guitars, accordion and drums. The second collab that Grupo Frontera made is with Puerto Rican superstar Bad Bunny and I think its just as good despite the admittedly stupid title which is hard to say. The lyrics are similar to the other song which is about sulking of a relationship gone awry and asking for forgiveness. The writing is good, both singers also have good chemistry and sell the emotion that they’re going for and the production is nice with the accordion getting a chance to shine through. Both great songs from a good group from an odd trend that I also like.

5- Heart Like A Truck by Lainey Wilson (Hot 100 Peak: #29): Now we’re getting into the country songs that I really like. Sadly, country music lately has been dominated by males and doesn’t leave a lot of room for females to get big, but those that do slip by I’m grateful that they did such as this one. Lainey Wilson knocks another one out of the park with this positive inspirational song about powering through and comparing her tough willpower to a truck, and it just works with the clever wordplay. The production sounds good with the muted guitar and drums giving it both this raw power and warmness to it that balances both equally and of course Lainey herself performs it very well and hits that long note beautifully. What else can I say? It’s just a very beautiful and well made song with a powerful message and I hope Lainey Wilson continues to get bigger and bigger in a music scene that only pushes away people like her, but as she said, she has a heart like a truck.

4- Tennessee Orange by Megan Moroney (Hot 100 Peak: #30): Another female country song that got big this year, and one that I like just as equally as Heart Like A Truck. This time, it’s a love song about a boy who’s a fan of a rival college football team where despite that, she has a deep affection for him. Now, I don’t care for football, let alone college football so I can’t relate to the lyrics, but I still think the writing is great and shows that you can love anywhere even in spite of some differences, that I can highly appreciate. The production is light and warm with the steel pedal guitar, acoustic guitar and drums blending together well and Megan’s singing having this warm, inviting feel to it. I don’t know much about sports but when you make a song about it and have me praise it, then you know you did something right and this song definitely did.

3- Fast Car (Tracy Chapman cover) by Luke Combs (Hot 100 Peak: #2): It would be redundant to say that Luke Combs is one of the best country singers in recent memory where it seems like no matter what he makes, he’ll always make it sound great, even if it’s a cover like this one. Now we all know the original, the 1988 acoustic folk song by Tracy Chapman about struggling to get by while wishing for better things. It’s one of the best hits of the 80’s with extremely well written lyrics that anyone can appreciate and relate to. Now how does Luke Combs tackle it? He gives it this great country flair that matches the sound of the original while not being a retread and being faithful by not straying too far and making it unrecognizable. His singing is great like usual and gives it a gruffer feel to it to those who are living in the country and also struggling to make ends meet. The perfect example of a song to show country’s dominance but for the better and to show how this often neglected genre can produce some great music.

2- Cruel Summer by Taylor Swift (Hot 100 Peak: #1 (From its original peak of #29 in 2019)): Even though I bemoaned the fact that Tik Tok unnecessarily brought back some songs from the previous decade, this song is without a doubt my favorite of these songs and I’m glad that it got a second chance because it is perfect in every sense of the word. Originally from her 2019 album “Lover” which wasn’t released as a single, it got a resurgence not just from the app, but because of her highly successful The Eras Tour, and I could not be any more thankful. The production is fantastic, the singing is top notch and the lyrics about an uneasy romance are expertly written which makes you feel for Taylor and sympathize with her. There’s really not much I can say or add, the song is just perfect in every way that no amount of praise will do it justice. Despite my glowing praise for it, it isn’t my number one because it’s technically not a 2023 hit, and it pains me because I really friggin love this song so much! Regardless, phenomenal song!

Honorable Mentions:

Lavender Haze by Taylor Swift: A more modern song from her recent album, I really like the atmosphere for this one, it’s very well done.

Fukumean by Gunna: My favorite rap hit of this year with a good beat and tight rapping with the Yeah sample being catchy as hell. Not all of the rap of this year was bad.

Where She Goes by Bad Bunny A unique song where he tries his hand at the Jersey Club song, and he does it pretty well, and I’m not too big on the Jersey Club sound overall.

Anti-Hero by Taylor Swift: Another song from Miss Swift herself, this time a self reflection song about her own attitude and how others perceive her. I admire this level of self pity and self awareness.

Lift Me Up by Rihanna: The soundtrack song for Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, I think it’s better than the movie, I’m just waiting for Rihanna’s proper comeback.

Sure Thing by Miguel: This song is from 2011 and made the Year End for that particular year which is why it isn’t on the list, but I still think it’s a very solid R&B song.

11- Next Thing You Know by Jordan Davis: A nice little country song about life and enjoying every moment of it, I like songs like these even if I’m not planning on having a family of my own.

1- I Remember Everything by Zach Bryan feat. Kacey Musgraves: (Hot 100 Peak: #1): With country getting big again, a certain subgenre of country also gained a resurgence, that being Americana and even folk. Seems like this genre is finally starting to evolve after years of sound stagnancy, and I’m happy that it did cause it produces top notch sounds like this. Zach Bryan is the artist who’s leading this new revolution when we all thought that he would be a one hit wonder from last year but thankfully he didn’t. His second big hit is about remembering a relationship that has long went by and wondering if it could’ve went better, and he absolutely sells it with his emotional and raw singing here and bringing underrated female country singer Kacey Musgraves to provide the female point of view. Both performers have really great chemistry and it makes you want these two to make it up and get back together. This is complicated with the beautiful production of the guitar, drums and violins giving it this light rootsy feel to it while having an orchestral lush to it. I am more than happy to see this type of sound get popular again because it deserves it, and with that I rank I Remember Everything as the best hit song of 2023.

And that concludes my best hit songs of 2023, like I said, I really enjoyed a lot of the songs from this year despite the infamy of the more terrible songs. Now we move onto 2024 which we can all hope will be much better this year for both the world and for music.

@Mr.Myoozik
I definitely agree with the inclusion of the Dua Lipa song and the Tracy Chapman cover by Luke Combs.
Another good list altogether!

5 hours it took me to make these two lists and I listened to these songs on repeat while writinh them, both the good songs and bad songs. Phew, do I really need a breather…

@Mellow Rhythm: Thank you, I liked doing these lists

@Leo: Thanks as well

I can Phil it Collin in the air tonight.

p+oioiliklklkj

My favourite songs in 2023

Scourge of the Offspring Cattle Decapitation
Chasing Light Metallica
Scorched Quadrant Scar Symmetry
The Surgeon Overkill
Promise from Eurovision song contest finalist Voyager
Blood Blind Cannibal Corpse
Warmen Are Here For Now Warmen
Hanged by my Hand Enforced
Cult of the Machine Holy Moses
Deep in the Night Primal Fear
Panic Attack Judas Priest
Lost Linkin Park
Good Good Things Drain
Cult of Shaad’oah Horrendous

2023 is really the year I fully departed from listening to metal music to ventured into rap, hip-hop, and gangster game.

Some crazy plot twist. …or character development so to speak.

Sepultura has announced the band are to end after tour it was announced days ago can we have one more time with Max and old bandmates

Nobody cares for Sepultura anymore after Cavalera left.

Good riddance.

@Count Oxymagomedov Sear
Both Cavaleras have left

I should’ve known better listening to a NSBM band but man it sucks so fucking much that the final song of La Sanie des siècles – Panégyrique de la dégénérescence has explicitly fascist lyrics because the album has such an amazing sound to it

And by fascist lyrics I don’t mean just spouting off racist stereotypes but straight up saying the Holocaust was good, fucking Famine man

Although weirdly if you were to cut out just one specific line out of the song, the lyrics would read as an anti-Holocaust song, which is probably why Famine wrote it there in the first place

Well at least the rest of the album seems to be clear of such nonsense, on the surface at least

@Count Oxymagomedov Sear
I don’t know about that. They seemed to have a pretty big turnout at Bloodstock this year.

@𝕸𝖊𝖑𝖑𝖔𝖜 𝕽𝖍𝖞𝖙𝖍𝖒♪
Max has Soulfly and Cavalera Conspiracy left who are still going

Honestly but man has Guns N Roses had two awful tracks this year

Never again I’ll listen to bro country it sucks like trap music or cringe from TikTok

@Dashie41 YT
I know

@Dashie41 YT
It’a a good thing bro-country is dead so you won’t have to worry about hearing it on the radio

Hol’ up that inbred genre has it’s own subgenre too? “Bro country”. 🥴

@Count Oxymagomedov Sear
Yes, it was awful

@Count Oxymagomedov Sear
@Mr.Myoozik

Great, another subgenre to not even touch with a ten foot pole, whether it’s dead or alive!

I actually like country, it’s often neglected when talking about music as a whole and has some genuine gems to it both past and present, but out of all the sub-genres, bro-country was the worst thing to come out of it in the early to mid 2010’s. It thankfully stopped being popular and I would say that the genre is evolving now seeing that Americana and more folksy-type country is getting popular.

@Mr.Myoozik
I’m more of a Folk/Bluegrass guy myself, but it’s undeniable how influential Country is, and how impactful it can be when done right.
I have an enormous amount of respect and admiration for Dolly Parton, including but not exclusively due to her ability to cross genres well

Whenever people say “I think now that rock isn’t as popular, it will become more like jazz,” I have to resist the temptation to grab them by the shoulders and shake them and shout, “THAT’S NOT A GOOD THING! DO YOU REALIZE HOW THAT’S NOT A GOOD THING?!”

@TheHappySpaceman
That’s *not exactly my attitude, and I’m not so worried about it all