Stereogum's 50 Best Albums of 2023

Stereogum started off as an indie rock-focused website, and that’s still our bread and butter. But it’s getting harder and harder to define “indie rock,” both as a genre and as a web of associations. In 2023, plenty of longtime Stereogum favorites rose to something resembling full-on pop-star status, while some actual pop stars continue to play around with sounds and aesthetics that previous generations would’ve associated with ashtray-smelling dive bars and handmade mixtapes. Context collapse is happening all over the place, and it can be hard to answer a seemingly simple question: What’s good now?

Published: December 05, 2023 14:00 Source

# 1
Album • Apr 07 / 2023 Indie Rock Noise Rock
# 2
Album • Sep 08 / 2023 Pop Rock Singer-Songwriter Alternative Rock
# 3
Album • May 05 / 2023 Abstract Hip Hop Jazz Rap Conscious Hip Hop East Coast Hip Hop
# 4
Album • Sep 15 / 2023 Singer-Songwriter Indie Folk
# 5
Album • Mar 31 / 2023 Singer-Songwriter Indie Folk Indie Rock
# 6
Album • Aug 25 / 2023 Indie Rock
# 7
Album • Jun 23 / 2023 Alternative Rock Post-Hardcore
# 8
Album • Nov 03 / 2023 Shoegaze Slacker Rock Power Pop
# 9
Album • Mar 10 / 2023 Synth Punk
# 10
Album • Mar 17 / 2023 Alternative Rock Hyperpop
# 11
Album • Feb 14 / 2023 Art Pop Alt-Pop Electronic
# 12
Album • Oct 06 / 2023 Abstract Hip Hop Drumless West Coast Hip Hop
# 13
Album • Jun 02 / 2023 Indie Rock Slacker Rock
# 14
Album • Mar 24 / 2023 Experimental Hip Hop Hardcore Hip Hop
# 15
Album • Jan 28 / 2023 Shoegaze Indie Rock
# 16
Album • Apr 28 / 2023 Indie Rock
# 17
Album • Sep 29 / 2023 Indie Rock Slacker Rock
# 18
Album • Jan 27 / 2023 Jangle Pop Power Pop
# 19
Album • Mar 10 / 2023 Art Pop Synthpop
# 20
Album • Oct 06 / 2023 Indie Rock Post-Punk
# 21
Album • Apr 28 / 2023 Disco Dance-Pop
# 22
Album • Apr 07 / 2023 Glitch Pop
# 23
Album • Aug 13 / 2023 House
# 24
Album • Sep 01 / 2023 Dream Pop
# 25
Album • Apr 14 / 2023 Singer-Songwriter Contemporary Folk
# 26
Album • Feb 10 / 2023 Alternative R&B Electronic
# 27
Album • Sep 22 / 2023 Dream Pop Indietronica Indie Rock
# 28
Album • Sep 15 / 2023 Death Metal Progressive Metal
# 29
Album • May 26 / 2023 Experimental Rock Art Pop
# 30
Album • Oct 27 / 2023 Contemporary R&B
# 31
Album • Jul 21 / 2023 Dream Pop Indietronica
# 33
Album • Jun 27 / 2023 Detroit Trap
# 34
Album • Mar 21 / 2023
# 35
Album • Oct 06 / 2023 Indie Folk Singer-Songwriter Chamber Folk
# 36
Album • Aug 18 / 2023 Post-Hardcore Emo
# 37
Album • Mar 26 / 2023 Black Metal
# 38
Album • Feb 10 / 2023 Neo-Soul Alternative R&B Neo-Psychedelia
# 39
Album • Jun 09 / 2023 Slacker Rock Noise Pop
# 40
Album • Aug 25 / 2023 Contemporary R&B
# 41
Album • Apr 21 / 2023 Indie Rock Singer-Songwriter
# 42
Album • May 12 / 2023 UK Bass 2-Step
# 43
Album • Nov 29 / 2023 Atmospheric Black Metal
# 44
Album • Jul 07 / 2023 Chamber Folk Singer-Songwriter
# 45
Album • Mar 03 / 2023 Post-Punk Synthpop
# 46
Album • Jun 09 / 2023 Trap
# 47
Album • May 05 / 2023 Crossover Thrash Metalcore
# 48
Album • Jul 14 / 2023 Indie Rock
# 49
Album • Mar 03 / 2023 Post-Hardcore
# 50
Album • May 12 / 2023 Slowcore Dream Pop Shoegaze