2023 Music Feelings - Songs

A testament to a catchy motif making a great song.

This song sold me on the mystery and atmosphere of Jane Remover for the rest of the album. Truly teleports me to somewhere strange and far and unreal.

As the first Slowdive single from this album, this song signaled what I thought was an experimental direction for them. While the rest of the album failed to knock me out, "kisses" delivers with a bright, shoegazey vibe.

Not making it into the stream of singles released in 2022, the melody from "Pretty In Possible" is permanently stuck in my head on a day-to-day basis. This song expertly displays Caroline's songcraft and range.

Probably my latest addition to this list, Nina Pitchkites sings about being wayward but reminiscent, while upbeat guitars chug alongside her. The dichotomy captures feelings of both ennui and disruption that's so common now.

Discord, a plodding guitar transforming into cacophony, and a slow, measured lyrical nature. This song sets the ideal tone for the rest of Wednesday's brooding, perfected album.

One must wonder, at this point, if Carly saves her best work for the B-sides that seem to follow every record.

In the way that anger can verge on the precipice of violence, "Turbines/Pigs" walks between a lullaby and the head-ringing sound of a bull stampeding through a middle school band room.

I dabble in k-pop, and this blends the bubbliness one might expect from a standard pop foray with the smoothness and lightness from current American trends.

I assume eating 200 volts of electricity is the same feeling as when the first "OOH OOH" comes in.

Hovvdy's transformation from jangly indie folk into dynamic pop music is everything I need and "Jean" is the best example yet. Relaxed vocals, and an emo-esque commitment to stripped back lyrics brings a feeling of watching a friend comfortably play this on a warm summer porch.

The intro riff on this song has a dedicated neural pathway in my brain. I think about it when I'm doing dishes.

The line "sometimes a drink feels like family" burnt a hole in my heart Mitski that's not fair you can't keep doing this.

I liked this song so much I tried to learn all the words like I was 15 years old committing bad rap songs to memory but my brain is full of worms now so it didn't work. I got pretty far though, I know most of the chorus.

In the pantheon of DJSTTDJ, a lot of songs blend together. It's a beautiful blend that keeps giving, but only rarely does a song or part of a song transcend the context and break me out of my reverie. "Brave" is a transcendant banger, and it feels like a pop song from another dimension. At this point I have to assume that's where Sabrina harnesses most of her musical power.

This is a silly song not just about being top dog, but one rife with metaphors and references to Laura Dern. The problem (not a real problem) is it just oozes vibes, there's nothing tongue-in-cheek about the dog barks in the background. At face value, a song like this shouldn't feel so cool, but Magdalena Bay crafts such a feel-good, feel-badass track about being the number one dog chased all over by paparazzi. Can't get enough.