Here at AFZ, sharing the special flares of everyone’s listening habits is a fun and intimate way to better understand each other’s love for music. For 2023, we’ve compiled not only our Spotify Wrapped results, but chose our top 9 albums of 2023 for each person, with special honorable mentions and features.
People love to learn about their uniqueness. There has been a rise in the popularity of certain listening analysis sites such as Receiptify, Airbuds or Spotify Pie. That’s why when Spotify Wrapped rolls around (Or Replay for the Apple Music Users), everyone is eager to share and consume the niches that different people engage with. This year, Burlington, Vermont came out as the top listening location for the vast majority of queer listeners, and trends like this will only continue to grow in complexity. We wanted to showcase our personal music trends of the year.
[Graphics by Amanda Florence.]
Here’s what our lists look like:
ANDI / @andibopp
Fav album to listen to when I’m feeling sexy: Sexy by Coco & Clair Clair (2022)
Album my ex showed me but it’s still really good: Wish You Were Here by Pink Floyd (1975)
Album for when I want to be an early 2000s country girl: star-crossed by Kacey Musgraves (2021)
Album that might sound like shit to some people but sounds like anything and everything to me: The Moldy Peaches by The Moldy Peaches (2001)
Album for when I wanna dance around in my undies: What Did You Expect From The Vaccines? by The Vaccines (2011)
Album I listened to alone on a fire escape and had a spiritual experience to: Ultrapure by Briston Maroney (2023)
Album I discovered the day after my breakup and it became my breakup comfort album: I Miss You Already + I Haven’t Left Yet by Del Water Gap (2023)
Album I listen to when I just want to feel so GIRL: GUTS by Olivia Rodrigo (2023)
Album I put on when I want ultimate indie folk rainy day alone vibes: Bridge Over Troubled Water by Simon & Garfunkel (1970)
MAD / @madalyns.photos
Album that made me feel very proud of how far I’ve come. From first discovering Field Medic in 2018 and hearing little teasers about the Dope Girl Chronicles for so long, it felt surreal that it is finally 2023. This feels like it can answer the question, “Where do you see yourself in 5 years?” – Dope Girl Chronicles by Field Medic (2023)
Album for when you want to feel like a cool hippie while on a hike – Demos and Rarities by The High Curbs (2023)
Album that I put on late at night while I manifest, edit photos, and to get lost in the creative groove with – everything is alive by Slowdive (2023)
Album to feel like goddess. That is all. – Red Moon In Venus by Kali Uchis (2023)
Album that makes me move and groove. It literally has such a versatile flow of genres, and tezzo’s voice is one that is so incredible. – How Do You Sleep At Night? by Teezo Touchdown (2023)
Album that I was genuinely was so excited for this year. It’s from an Indie-Rock band I had discovered from my exchange in Germany. Finding music in a language you are learning I think is the best way to pick it up quicker. – Es ist Abend und wir sitzen bei mir by AnnenMayKantereit (2023)
Album that makes me feel sexy and sad at the same time, reflecting old mistakes, while manifesting new goodness – Blondshell by Blondshell (2023)
Album I found of a cool new band that makes me feel like I time traveled back to the 60s – 3D Country by Geese (2023)
Album to release all the rage to – Only Constant by GEL (2023)
ELLA / @elladxnovan
Album that makes me feel seen and less alone: Light Is Gone 2 by Field Medic (2023)
Album that makes me feel like the strongest baddie in the entire gym: GLOW ON by Turnstile (2021)
Album that I know literally every lyric to every song and could talk about how genius it is forever: Shadowglow by Flipturn (2023)
EP that makes me wanna dance like a crazy person when I am walking to class: Elevator Hum/Nothing Works/Sympathy by Declan Mckenna (2023)… p.s. I can’t wait for the full album!
Album that I absolutely fell in love with this year. I listen to its songs on a daily basis. It captures my overall vibe so well: Orange Blood by Mt Joy (2022).
EP that makes me wanna cry (in a good way) and makes me feel like I am in a movie: Fruitland by Adam Melchor (2023)
Album that has been the soundtrack for so many lifelong memories with some of my best friends. I reconnected with it this year: How Do You Love? by The Regrettes… (rip)
EP that I was not expecting but was SO HAPPY to get: Turn Off Anything On Again by String Machine (2023).
EP that I never thought I would love as much as I do. Also makes me feel like I want to drive really really really fast (don’t worry I resist that urge): YIN YANG TAPES: Winter Season (1989-1990) by $uicideboy$
ERIKA/ @erxka
For as long as I can remember, I have loved sad music that’s overly descriptive. For that reason, it’s no surprise that artists like Phoebe Bridgers and Samia are consistently at the top of my listening statistics. However, that doesn’t mean that I’m afraid to listen to more alternative, upbeat sad tracks either– hence why MUNA and The Japanese House are always on repeat.
These 9 albums hold a special place in my heart for more reasons than one, and I hope they can find a place where you can love them too.
My personal album of the year: The Record by Boygenius (2023)
An album that makes me cry while banging my head: In the End It Always Does by The Japanese House (2023)
An album that makes me feel like I can take over the world in gay way: The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess by Chappell Roan (2023)
An album that makes me proud to be queer that I can never shut off: MUNA (Self Titled) by MUNA (2022)
If you’re looking for a new alternative band to dive into, Slow Pulp is consistently creating hit after hit and demonstrated their talents perfectly in their latest album, Yard (2023)… (Plus, you can still get those small hints of sadness if you’re into that like I am)
An EP for days when you’re full of nostalgia and driving with the windows down: In My Dreams You Laugh At Me by Ally Evenson (2023) (You will cry at least once.)
An album for yearning and crying. An album for when it feels like the world is ending but you know full well you have to get up and do everything again tomorrow: Honey by Samia (2023)
An album for sad girls that still like to have fun: Blondshell (Selft Titled) by Blondshell (2023).
Last but not least, an album I have not stopped listening to since its release in 2017: Stranger in the Alps by Phoebe Bridgers is my top album of all time and I will be taking no further questions. Thank you.
HANNAH / @tallant.png
This album and band will forever be part of my genetic code; it will be passed on to my children, and they too will value the creative mind of PUP as I did. In Stefan, Steve, Nestor, and Zack, we trust 🙏 They were the first band I submitted a press request for, and I am beyond grateful for this full-circle moment: The Dream is Over by PUP (2016)
This was my second year living away from home; this album cured my homesickness and brought me back to my Appalachian roots. Amelia is one of my close friends and has supported my business since day one. I cover a lot of her shows, and my photograph is featured in the inner spread of the album: Overalls and Lingerie by Amelia Empson (2023)
From the song “Painted Skies” while driving through the Shenandoah Mountains, to blasting “Long Road” to keep my eyes from taking the next train to sleepy town as I travel home, The Wilson Springs Hotel’s music is the soundtrack to my adventures. I’ve had the honor of covering and meeting this band twice, and I declare this band to be some of the best performers Virginia has to offer. Their 2023 release can speak for itself: Old Thoughts and Memories by The Wilson Springs Hotel (2023)
*Read with Appalachian twang* When I miss my brother, I listen to Tyler Childers and Zach Bryan. Both of these albums help heal my uneasy mind and misguided heart. These albums will send you through every season this country offers and every emotion your brain can experience. My spirit guides for this year: Purgatory by Tyler Childers (2017) and Zach Bryan by Zach Bryan (2023)
AN EP FOR THE GIRLIES BY THE GIRLIES! GET YOUR ICE CREAM, YOUR BESTIE, AND SPONTANEOUSLY CREATE AN ENTIRE MUSICAL USING THE SONGS, (credit to Catie Turner & Jordan Suaste). THERE’S NO OTHER WAY TO COPE WITH THE HIGHS AND LOWS YOU’LL FEEL LISTENING TO The Space Between by Sophie Holohan (2022)
Every time this album comes on, my 2018 Honda CRV speakers prove that the interest I’m paying on the car is worth it. These bangers fueled my pre- and post-Grey Day ’23 hyperfixation: THE PLAYA$ MANUAL by Ramirez (2020)
Part of my religion. Enough said. Canon Event: BALLADS 1 by Joji (2018)
A jazz fan, rapper, and F1 driver walk into a bar- this is what they cook up. This album offers a vast array of well composed samples and orchestral symphonies. You start the album off thinking you’re about to listen to a rap album, but you’re quickly transformed into a different world full of jazz, rap, smooth beats, and F1 commentators. I’ve been following IDK for the past few years, and this album is peak. Jay IDK went above and beyond. Let this album take you on a ride. Buckle up and get ready to take a 53-minute and 22-second ride through the depths of your creative mind: F65 by IDK (2023)
PATTI / @piecesbypatti
2023 was an insane year for me… I lived in a foreign country for half of it, visited California on a solo trip, graduated college, and went through the trials and tribulations of being a teenage girl in her twenties. Without this soundtrack to my life, I can’t imagine how this year would have continued for me. I want to point out a few awesome albums that I loved overall, along with specific songs/albums that have memorialized 2023 in my mind through sound waves.
An album that changed my life: hypochondriac by brakence (2022). Releasing in December last year, with its experimental, gritty sound, I found solace in my fellow Columbus native who I ran cross country meets against at age 14 (brakence and I went to neighboring suburban high schools). Hearing his development and embracing this sound into my life has created an auditory staple in my early 20s.
An album that ripped at my heart while watching the candles burn on our rickety Italian table in the tiled kitchen: flounder by quinnie (2023).
The EP I listened to while traveling on spring break to shoot my first ever show; the album that felt like blurry Amsterdam nights and twinkling lights in the distance and a shaking fever and weeklong travels in the same clothes: Disturb the Norm by Riovaz (2023).
My discovery of my love for midwest emo through twangy indie sounds: 11:11 by Pinegrove (2022).
A continuation of my midwest emo/folk rock discoveries; A show that I met new photographer friends, got drenched for, felt chills seeing live, connected with an insane amount of lovely fans and people: Waiting to Spill by the Backseat Lovers (2022).
The album and artist I can’t believe I wasn’t paying attention to: Call Me if You Get Lost: The Estate Sale by Tyler, the Creator (2023).
A celebration of girlhood: the good, the bad and the ugly. The album I cried to while folding my laundry, making my bed and curled up alone, while also screaming to in the car: GUTS by Olivia Rodrigo (2023).
An empowering combination of dark, spunky vibes and a new breed of secular worship music for the girlies. The album that feels like fall goes to: Paint My Bedroom Black by Holly Humberstone (2023).
Finally, my overall soundtrack for the year was i care so much that i dont care at all by glaive (2023). I followed the release of this album through early demo leaks, conversations with other fans, and finally, two shows on the tour for this debut album. A perfect summary of the messy strings of life to finish up my 2023.
Honorable mention albums go to Being Funny In A Foreign Languge by the 1975 (2023) and THE FIRST TIME by The Kid LAROI (2023).
AMANDA / @m4nda.jpeg
Album that I wish I could listen to with my younger self. Easily my soundtrack for 2023, this release is a sheer masterpiece compiling so many different genres and intricate sounds that is so good I had to see it performed in five different states! Perfect if you want to inject some summer nostalgia into your veins. This album tells the story of the struggles of growing up facing hardships whilst also the feeling of overcoming the shit life throws your way and making it yours. I have such an immense connection with this album; nothing will ever come close to the feeling this album evokes in me. This artist has been keeping me going for a while now and I am so so grateful. My top album, artist, and songs from the entirety of the year… all Sunburn by Dominic Fike (2023) p.s. i love u dom, thank you always
Album that makes me dance until I can’t breathe, scream each word at the top of my lungs, cry like a baby, and makes me feel every little feeling I have ever experienced in my whole life: Honey by Samia (2023)
Album that makes me feel like I am Lizzie Mcguire (don’t ask I don’t know either): This Is Why by Paramore (2023)
Album for boogieing and transcending through all layers of time and space: Ooh Rap I Ya by George Clanton (2023)
Album that makes me feel ALIVE in every sense of the word and makes me go feral every time I listen!!!!!!!!! A proud representation of the Atlanta scene: LOFI PANIC by Big Yellow (2023)
Album that I am convinced was crafted by God themself and after one listen made me order their entire discography on vinyl. This project is easily one of my top 5 favorite albums of all time. “Ebony Eye” is the epitome of musical genius and I am so glad I can listen to it 38 times a day: Praise A Lord Who Chews But Which Does Not Consume; (Or Simply, Hot Between Worlds) by Yves Tumor (2023)
Album that makes me feel like I am floating through the stars transporting to another dimension, and keeps me coming back year after year: We Will Always Love You by The Avalanches (2020)
Album for serving C*NT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! and nothing less. This record has so many sweet sounds like none other. “Still Got It” is easily one of the best produced songs that has come out this year and is my favorite off of the project by far. Coincidentally made by my favorite person that I’ve been listening to since I was 13 (thanks middle school amanda): Something To Give Each Other by Troye Sivan (2023)
Album that makes me shake some nonexistent ass and feel like the absolute baddest b*tch alive: Juno by Remi Wolf (2021)
*Honorable mention that should be on this list but it just came out so I didn’t get to put it on in time… ANTHEMS MADE BY QUEEN MOTHER HERSELF… Pink Friday 2 by Nicki Minaj (2023)