Best Albums of 2023: Honourable Mentions
Best Albums of 2023: Honourable Mentions
Tomorrow, we’ll be publishing our Best Albums of 2023 list, which marks the end of our coverage for 2023, and the start of our annual Christmas break. We’ll be back midway through January with some releases we felt slipped through the cracks in 2023, and what we’re excited about for 2024.
For now though, Cups N Cakes founder in exile Jeff MacCallum and current head honcho Sean Davis Newton teamed up to write about 10 albums that it frankly broke our hearts to leave off of the Best of 2023 list. They are still deserving of all kinds of praise and well worth a listen, so we’ve decided to highlight them here.
Still Depths - Best plan for your life
Calgary’s Still Depths explored noise in ways no other Canadian bands dared in 2023 with the release of their sophomore album, Best Plan For Your Life. A myriad of sounds and instruments clash together to deliver a cacophonous journey not for the faint of heart with tongue-in-creek lyricism that engages the listener to come back and pay closer attention.
- Jeff MacCallum
Dominique Fils-Aimé - Our Roots Run Deep
Dominique Fils-Aimé delivers another monumental achievement that I wish the rest of the CnC team appreciated as much I did. She uses her voice as an instrument better than any other artist in Canada, looping vocal sounds then singing over her own voice to make mesmerizing tapestries to get lost within. Our Roots Run Deep is another triumph.
- Jeff MacCallum
Masahiro Takahashi - Humid Sun
Toronto electronic/ambient artist, Masahiro Takahashi gave us the perfect lazy day record with Humid Sun. Warm mellow vibes permeate through your psyche as you listen to this impressive kaleidoscope of downtempo beats punctuated by stunning synths and thoughtfully selected instruments such as saxophone, flute, clarinet, and piano.
- Jeff MacCallum
Khotin - Release Spirit
On Release Spirit, Edmonton electronic producer, Khotin, explores a downtempo ambient approach to electronic music. It’s an album to get lost within, like an enjoyable dream, you work to stay in its world and if you should come back to reality, your instincts are to immediately hit the snooze button and return to its cozy world as quickly as possible.
- Jeff MacCallum
Myst Milano - Beyond the Uncanny Valley
Myst Milano caught our attention with 2021’s Shapeshyfter and the Toronto rapper has only gotten stronger and more visceral on Beyond the Uncanny Valley. The album serves up an unrelenting assault on the senses, it hits so hard I could envision hardcore kids moshing to these tracks.
- Jeff MacCallum
Population II - Électrons libres du québec
It took three long years for Montreal’s Population II to follow up their impressive debut album. It’s safe to say it was worth the wait. On Électrons libres du québec, they gift us a prog masterpiece. Cosmic forays into psychedelic realms that stay firmly grounded in hard rock and prog rock aesthetics with an increase in production value make Population II’s sophomore effort one that mustn’t be overlooked.
- Jeff MacCallum
Ryan Bourne - Plant City
Calgary’s Ryan Bourne is one of the cities most beloved musicians. Everyone from Chad VanGaalen to Shane Ghostkeeper to Lab Coast employ his services and this year he finally released his extremely long awaited album, Plant City. From 80s stadium synth rockers, to quiet folk tunes, to bright pop perfection, Plant City offers it all and it’s never convoluted due to the presence of psychedelia that ties the album together with a warm, hazy bow. It’s a storybook ending to hear one of Calgary’s most prolific collaborators craft such an exquisite release… it’s time for his pals to back him up for a change.
- Jeff MacCallum
Stacy Lloyd Brown - Rhubarb Pie
Stacy Lloyd Brown’s debut Rhubarb Pie is hands down the best folk record of the year. Maybe our writers aren’t huge folk fans like I am, but it never found any traction among the team, minus Kyra Heneghan-Smith’s stellar review of the record that we published back in September.
It’s about as homegrown as you can get, and Stacy Lloyd Brown’s production work is compelling throughout. Whether it’s the little bits of foley on “Fangs of Fortune”, or the golden age of Disney harmonies on “Weeping Willow”, Lloyd Brown has a keen sense of exactly what sounds just work and shows a hell of a lot of restraint, leaving lots of space for the vocal and lyrics to take centerstage.
And boy, are they heartbreaking; the whole record is very soft and sweet, but there is something that feels tragic and melancholic at it’s core. It’s a break-up record after all, and it succeeds in being vulnerable and tender, without resorting to sappiness or being uncomfortably confessional.
It’s a wildly good debut record, and was a strong contender for my personal favourite of 2023. I saw him play at The Aviary in Edmonton this past October, and his live show is fantastic to boot. One to keep an eye on.
- Sean Davis Newton
Haley Blais - Wisecrack
The release of Haley Blais’ sophomore album Wisecrack marked another enormous leap forward for the Vancouver singer-songwriter. The production is an incredible fit with Blais’ melodic and thoughtful compositions, which range from the classical infused folk of “Concrete” to the quiet-loud-quiet guitar freak-out of “The Cabin”. It’s gorgeous, vibrant, and finds Blais seemingly at her most self-assured and her most vulnerable at the same time. The results are pretty special, and album highlight “Beginner’s guide to birdwatching” is about as good of an album closing track as you can get.
- Sean Davis Newton
Helena Deland - Goodnight Summerland
Piano instrumental opener “Moon Pith” sets the tone for what’s to come on Helens Deland’s 2023 record Goodnight Summerland: it begins mournfully, and then slowly morphs into a more hopeful and almost playful transition into “Saying Something”. The arrangements are lush, and make plenty of use of endlessly multitracked acoustic guitars and Deland’s harmony vocal lines. “Who I Sound Like” is a particular highlight; Deland sings almost as quietly as you can imagine a person singing, almost as if she was trying not to wake the neighbours while writing it. It captures a vulnerability and immediacy that is rare these days, almost as if you’re the first person ever to hear it, and it’s being shared only with you.
*Cups N Cakes is presenting Helena Deland’s show at Winterruption in Edmonton on January 27th at the McDougall United Church. It’s going to be fantastic.
- Sean Davis Newton