Year-End Lists

Vanity Fair: Our 20 Favorite Books of 2023

[see also 2022 • 2020]

• The Lookback Window
  Kyle Dillon Hertz
• Biography of X
  Catherine Lacey
• a "Working Life"
  Eileen Myles
• Sonic Life

  A Memoir
  Thurston Moore
• Idlewild
  James Frankie Thomas
• Blackouts
  Justin Torres
• Eastbound
  Maylis de Kerangal
• Our Secret Society

  Mollie Moon and the Glamour, Money, and Power Behind the Civil Rights Movement
  Tanisha Ford
• Bob Dylan

  Mixing up the Medicine
  Parker Fishel and Mark Davidson
• The Slip

  The New York City Street That Changed American Art Forever
  Prudence Peiffer
• The Men Can't Be Saved
  Ben Purkert
• Those We Thought We Knew
  David Joy
• Omar Victor Diop & The Anonymous Project, Being There
  Omar Victor Diop & Lee Shulman
• The Woman in Me
  Britney Spears
• Traffic

  Genius, Rivalry, and Delusion in the Billion-Dollar Race to Go Viral
  Ben Smith
• Bottoms Up and the Devil Laughs

  A Journey Through the Deep State
  Kerry Howley
• Land of Milk and Honey
  C Pam Zhang
• Let Us Descend
  Jesmyn Ward
• The Hive and the Honey
  Paul Yoon
• Tom Lake
  Ann Patchett

Dasia Moore: 6 Favorite Poetry Collections of 2023, as published by The Boston Globe

1. suddenly we
   Evie Shockley
2. I Do Everything I'm Told
   Megan Fernandes
3. In Gorgeous Display
   Ugochukwu Damian Okpara
4. The Lights
   Ben Lerner
5. Removal Acts
   Erin Marie Lynch
6. Village
   LaTasha N. Nevada Diggs

The Boston Globe: Our 50 Favorite Albums of 2023

• Zach Bryan
  Zach Bryan
• But Here We Are
  Foo Fighters
• Since Time Is Gravity
  Natural Information Society
• Sundial
  Noname
• Dear Departed
  Sam Burton
• Hackney Diamonds
  The Rolling Stones
• 10,000 gecs
  100 gecs
• Solar Music
  Butcher Brown
• Love in Exile
  Arooj Aftab, Vijay Iyer, and Shahzad Ismaily
• The Source
  Kenny Barron
• The Open Book Sessions
  Ronica & The Blazing Stars
• The Fatalist
  Buffalo Nichols
• The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess
  Chappell Roan
• Michael
  Killer Mike
• Strays
  Margo Price
• The Enduring Spirit
  Tomb Mold
• Get Behind The Wheel
  Eilen Jewell
• Weathervanes
  Jason Isbell and The 400 Unit
• Zodiac Suite
  Aaron Diehl & The Knights
• Songs and Symphoniques: The Music of Moondog
  Ghost Train Orchestra & Kronos Quartet
• Struggler
  Genesis Owusu
• The Comeback Kid
  Marnie Stern
• Ready to Eat
  Beauty School Dropout
• Old Soul
  Stephen Marley
• For Motivational Use Only, Vol. 1
  Jermaine Dupri / Curren$y
• I Am Not There Anymore
  The Clientele
• the record
  boygenius
• Lean In
  Gretchen Parlato & Lionel Loueke
• The Biggest Life
  Summer Dean
• Goodtime Charlie
  Mick Flannery
• Red Moon in Venus
  Kali Uchis
• Yard
  Slow Pulp
• Quaranta
  Danny Brown
• Just Won't Burn
  Susan Tedeschi
• Diatom Ribbons Live At The Village Vanguard
  Kris Davis
• Desire, I Want to Turn Into You
  Caroline Polachek
• everything is alive
  Slowdive
• False Lankum
  Lankum
• Where Are We
  Joshua Redman
• The Land Is Inhospitable and So Are We
  Mitski
• Golden State
  Logan Ledger
• The Loveliest Time
  Carly Rae Jepsen
• Jaguar II
  Victoria Monét
• 6
  Kenny Mason
• 72 Seasons
  Metallica
• Good Living Is Coming For You
  Sweeping Promises
• The Third Mind 2
  The Third Mind
• Mélusine
  Cécile McLorin Salvant
• Black Classical Music
  Yussef Dayes
• The Soul of Epirus vol​..II
  Petroloukas Halkias & Vasilis Kostas

Odie Henderson: 10 Best Movies of 2023, as published by The Boston Globe

[see also 2022 • 2021 • 2020 • 2019 • 2018 • 2017 • 2016]

1. Past Lives
   Celine Song
2. American Fiction
   Cord Jefferson
3. Barbie
   Greta Gerwig
4. Air
   Ben Affleck
5. You Hurt My Feelings
   Nicole Holofcener
6. The Taste of Things
   Trần Anh Hùng
7. The Holdovers
   Alexander Payne
8. Anatomy of a Fall
   Justine Triet
9. It Ain't Over
   Sean Mullin
10. Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret.
    Kelly Fremon Craig

Runners-up

11. Carmen
    Benjamin Millepied
12. John Wick: Chapter 4
    Chad Stahelski
13. All of Us Strangers
    Andrew Haigh
14. BlackBerry
    Matt Johnson
15. Full Time
    Éric Gravel
16. Fallen Leaves
    Aki Kaurismäki
17. Blue Jean
    Georgia Oakley
18. Bottoms
    Emma Seligman
19. The Boy and the Heron
    Hayao Miyazaki
20. Flora and Son
    John Carney

A few more documentaries worth celebrating

• Menus-plaisirs - Les Troisgros
  Frederick Wiseman
• Sly
  Thom Zimny
• Every Body
  Julie Cohen
• Bill Russell: Legend
  Sam Pollard

Paste Magazine: The Best Novels of 2023

[see also 2022 • 2010s • 2018 • 2017]

• Day
  Michael Cunningham
• Yellowface
  R.F. Kuang
• Loot
  Tania James
• The Last Tale of the Flower Bride
  Roshani Chokshi
• The Villa
  Rachel Hawkins
• Morgan Is My Name
  Sophie Keetch
• Fourth Wing
  Rebecca Yarros
• Let Us Descend
  Jesmyn Ward
• All the Sinners Bleed
  S.A. Cosby
• Lone Women
  Victor LaValle
• Chain-Gang All-Stars
  Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah
• Pineapple Street
  Jenny Jackson
• The Future
  Naomi Alderman

The Skinny: Albums of 2023

[see also 2022 • 2021 • 2020 • 2019 • 2018 • 2017 • 2016 • 2015]

1. Heavy Heavy
   Young Fathers
2. Desire, I Want to Turn Into You
   Caroline Polachek
3. Javelin
   Sufjan Stevens
4. the record
   boygenius
5. Maps
   Billy Woods & Kenny Segal
6. The Land Is Inhospitable and So Are We
   Mitski
7. Raven
   Kelela
8. Guts
   Olivia Rodrigo
9. False Lankum
   Lankum
10. This Is Why
    Paramore

Didn't quite make the cut

11. Scaring the Hoes
    JPEGMafia and Danny Brown
12. Did You Know That There's a Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd
    Lana Del Rey
13. Angel Numbers
    Hamish Hawk
14. Radical Romantics
    Fever Ray
15. Something to Give Each Other
    Troye Sivan
16. I've Seen a Way
    Mandy, Indiana
17. Crazymad, for Me
    CMAT
18. Lahai
    Sampha
19. The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess
    Chappell Roan
20. Rat Saw God
    Wednesday

Glide Magazine: 20 Best Album for 2023, in alphabetical order

[see also 2022 • 2021 • 2020 • 2019 • 2018]

• Night Construction
  Bohannons
• Solar Music
  Butcher Brown
• All Her Plans
  Cable Ties
• Western Cum
  Cory Hanson
• Wild & Precious Life
  Duane Betts
• Angels & Queens – Part II
  Gabriels
• 3D Country
  Geese
• Struggler
  Genesis Owusu
• Come Around and Love Me
  Jalen Ngonda
• Swinging Stars
  Mapache
• Altitude
  Marty Stuart and His Fabulous Superlatives
• And Southern Star
  Mikaela Davis
• Calm Ya Farm
  The Murlocs
• Relentless
  The Pretenders
• Black Bayou
  Robert Finley
• Food for Worms
  Shame
• Anarchist Gospel
  Sunny War
• Rat Saw God
  Wednesday
• Zango
  Witch
• This Stupid World
  Yo La Tengo

20 Honorable Mentions (in alphabetical order)

• The Returner
  Allison Russell
• The Ballad of Darren
  Blur
• The Fatalist
  Buffalo Nichols
• Higher
  Chris Stapleton
• Cut Worms
  Cut Worms
• Reflector
  Daniel Donato
• Data Doom
  Frankie and the Witch Fingers
• All of This Will End
  Indigo De Souza
• Let's Start Here
  Lil Yachty
• Art Dealers
  Low Cut Connie
• Valley Of Heart's Delight
  Margo Cilker
• City of Gold
  Molly Tuttle
• Jenny from Thebes
  The Mountain Goats
• Bewilderment
  Pale Jay
• The Window
  Ratboys
• Morning
  Sami Stevens
• Desire Pathway
  Screaming Females
• The Third Mind 2
  The Third Mind
• Cousin
  Wilco
• Heavy Heavy
  Young Fathers

Resident Advisor: The Best Albums of 2023

[see also 2018 • 2015 • 2014 • 2012 • 2011]

Album of the Year

• Raven
  Kelela

Other Best Albums

• Desire, I Want to Turn Into You
  Caroline Polachek
• Imagine This Is a High Dimensional Space of All Possibilities
  James Holden
• trip9love...???
  Tirzah
• La Onda
  Regal86
• Good Lies
  Overmono
• Playing Robots into Heaven
  James Blake
• Pearls Don't Lay On the Shore
  Mr. G
• Fluid Meditations
  DJ Gigola
• The Ancient Truth
  Maara
• Crash Recoil
  Surgeon
• Agartha
  Wata Igarashi
• Praise a Lord Who Chews but Which Does Not Consume; (Or Simply, Hot Between Worlds)
  Yves Tumor
• Flood City Trax
  Nondi_
• Tikiman Vol.1
  Paul St. Hilaire
• Atlas
  Laurel Halo
• Ansiedade
  DJ Danifox
• a.s.o.
  a.s.o
• Madres
  Sofia Kourtesis
• The Chants Of The Holy Oyster
  various artists
• ULTRAKUNST
  Brutalismus 3000
• Inflatable Gravestone
  Mun Sing
• Natural Wonder Beauty Concept
  Natural Wonder Beauty Concept
• Homesick
  Ciel
• Changing Channels
  Pangaea
• Swells
  K-LONE
• Jbal Rrsas
  Deena Abdelwahed
• Choral Feeling
  Oceanic
• Radical Romantics
  Fever Ray
• Signs
  Purelink

Stef Rubino: 10 of the Best Queer Albums of 2023, as published by Autostraddle

• Fountain Baby
  Amaarae
• All of This Will End
  Indigo De Souza
• Why Does the Earth Give Us People to Love?
  Kara Jackson
• My Back Was a Bridge for You to Cross
  Anohni and the Johnsons
• Water Made Us
  Jamila Woods
• i’ll be fine if i want to
  Miki Ratsula
• Raven
  Kelela
• Mid Air
  Romy
• Praise a Lord Who Chews but Which Does Not Consume; (Or Simply, Hot Between Worlds)
  Yves Tumor
• The Greater Wings
  Julie Byrne

Complex: The Best Albums Of 2023

[see also 2022 • 2021 • 2020 • 2019 • 2018 • 2017 • 2016 • 2015 • 2014 • 2013 • 2012 • 2011]

1. A Gift & a Curse
   Gunna
2. SOS
   SZA
3. Utopia
   Travis Scott
4. Scarlet
   Doja Cat
5. Michael
   Killer Mike
6. Jaguar II
   Victoria Monét
7. Nadie Sabe Lo Que Va a Pasar Mañana
   Bad Bunny
8. Heroes & Villains
   Metro Boomin
9. Like..?
   Ice Spice
10. Let's Start Here
    Lil Yachty
11. Glockoma 2
    Key Glock
12. Sundial
    Noname
13. Call Me If You Get Lost: The Estate Sale
    Tyler, The Creator
14. Mañana Será Bonito
    Karol G
15. Set It Off
    Offset
16. Ganger
    Veeze
17. 3MEN2 KBRN
    Eladio Carrión
18. Split Decision
    Central Cee and Dave
19. The Great Escape
    Larry June and the Alchemist
20. Never Enough
    Daniel Caesar
21. Voir Dire
    Earl Sweatshirt and the Alchemist
22. For All the Dogs Scary Hours Edition
    Drake
23. Hood Hottest Princess
    Sexyy Red
24. Falling or Flying
    Jorja Smith
25. Gumbo
    Young Nudy
26. Through and Through
    Baby Rose
27. No Thank You
    Little Simz
28. Larger than Life
    Brent Faiyaz
29. A Great Chaos
    Ken Carson
30. Heaven
    Cleo Sol
31. Burning Desire
    Mike
32. Heaven Knows
    PinkPantheress
33. Love Sick
    Don Toliver
34. Fountain Baby
    Amaarae
35. Red Moon in Venus
    Kali Uchis
36. Clear 2: Soft Life
    Summer Walker
37. Forward
    Jordan Ward
38. AftërLyfe
    Yeat
39. Too Good to Be True
    Rick Ross and Meek Mill
40. Magic 2
    Nas
41. Kaytraminé
    Kaytraminé
42. Pink Friday 2
    Nicki Minaj
43. Raven
    Kelela
44. Quaranta
    Danny Brown
45. Playa Saturno
    Rauw Alejandro
46. Welcome 2 Collegrove
    2 Chainz and Lil Wayne
47. Lahai
    Sampha
48. Won't He Do It
    Conway the Machine
49. To Be Eaten Alive
    Mariah the Scientist
50. TEC
    Lil Tecca