DEAR_SPIRIT Tells You About 5 New Records That He Likes

I'm getting ready to flee to a Real Housewives-style house in Mexico with a bunch of friends, and between sunbathing, floating in a pool, swimming in the ocean, eating fresh-caught grouper, and taking tequila shots, I don't expect to have much time for nerdy music blogging. However, I do know that legions of rabid fans are hanging on to my every word, unsure what to listen to, when to listen to it, and generally how to live without my impeccable taste, acerbic wit, and timeless wisdom to guide them. So to tide you over, here, in no particular order, are 5 of my favorite records of 2023 so far. Go support some artists who are trying to make it work in the here and now.

Hamish Hawk - Angel Numbers

I'm not wasting time. This is my current AOTY. Arch, clever songwriting with a wide emotional breadth that both celebrates and takes the piss out of our dumb human endeavors. It's sarcastic and cutting, but warm and sweet at its core -- check out the mid-paced, "Dead Flowers"-esque "Rest and Veneers" for a taste of that sweetness. Fills the Morrissey- and Pulp-sized holes in my heart.

Listen/buy.

Exhibition - The Last Laugh

NYC hardcore/crossover of the highest caliber. My current favorite of an already extremely strong crop of hardcore records to be released this year. If you're not crowd-killing, head-banging, or crushing your PRs: I'm sorry but you're a lost soul and I can't save you.

Listen/buy.

ICECOLD BISHOP - Generational Curse

A heartbreaking exploration of generational trauma and institutional inequity that goes hard as fuck. ICECOLD BISHOP has an extremely versatile voice that effortlessly jumps from a B-Real-sounding yelp to a smooth sing-flow to a distorted scream, and he's fond of running it through filters and effects, so he ends up sounding like he's single-handedly embodying an entire, multi-generational community of voices.

Listen.

Lisa O'Neill - All of This Is Chance

All of This Is Chance starts off on an almost aggressively Irish note: first, we hear O'Neill's thick Irish accent, then she's mentioning potatoes in the second line. But All of This Is Chance quickly reveals itself as a deeply engrossing album full of droning, earthy instrumentation and haunting songs of love, famine, and resurrection. And birds.

Listen/buy.

Hammock - Love in the Void

My favorite pretty-sad post-rock album I've heard in years. It's hard to quantify what makes Hammock and Love in the Void stand out among the countless hordes of bands who move in the same lane, so I'll just say that, from its huge, immersive atmosphere to its patient, breathtakingly beautiful songs, Love in the Void is the most perfect version of itself imaginable.

Listen/buy.