Most Anticipated of 2023

Most Anticipated 2023

Last month we shared our favorite albums of 2022, and as we’re ramping into 2023 it’s a good time to look at what we’re anticipating throughout the year. What records do we think we’re going to fall in love with over the next few months? What albums can we just not wait to hear? A bunch of contributors have written up blurbs about the albums and artists we’re most excited about, and we’d love to hear what’s on your most anticipated list as well.

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Review: Paramore – This Is Why

What do you do when the world around you gets a little strange? Paramore seem to embrace the weird on This Is Why, their quirky sixth studio album that largely relies on post-punk chord progressions, Bloc Party influences worn proudly on their sleeves, all mixed in a blender on the highest speed to see what concoction comes out in the end. In the interviews leading up to the release of this record, the band seemed to be getting more comfortable in their collective skin. They mentioned that the songs they were crafting for the follow up to After Laughter were more “guitar-driven” and the band found themselves “listening to a lot of older music” that inspired them to make a career in music in the first place. Whereas After Laughter was originally seen as fairly dramatic departure from the punk-tinged sound the band had cut their teeth to early on, the same could easily be said about this next dramatic leap of faith on This Is Why. Paramore has always been a band that has challenged the artistic norms of what is expected of them, and have grown accustomed to their audience wanting a certain “version” of themselves. In what may be their most polarizing record to date, Paramore continue to push the envelope of creativity in dramatic ways, and find their band going through yet another reinvention. The metamorphosis of this trio may just be complete.

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Review: Babyfang – In The Face Of

There’s something amazing that happens when a group of musicians come together, with a like-minded approach to their sound, and deliver music that sounds completely different than anything else currently out there. Babyfang are here with their debut EP, called In The Face Of, that re-captures youthful exuberance paired with lyrics brimming with substance about making real change in this world. The band is Théo Mode (guitarist), Canteen Killa (drummer) and 13th Law (bassist), with all of the members being instrumentalists, producers, singers, and songwriters. Packed with talent, the band falls somewhere between the unpredictability of The Mars Volta, the pop-sensibilities of Radiohead, and the rock and roll spirit of The Rolling Stones. In the band’s own words, “The music is a response to / an expression of all that we’ve felt in the face of everything that has been / is happening right now; a lot of rage and joy and hope and sadness and gratefulness of just being able to make this music at all.” Babyfang might just be the most important band to storm onto the scene in years.

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