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newmusickarl · 4 months

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Top 10 EPs of 2023

As we have seen, 2023 has been a mega year for new albums with LIES being named as my Album of the Year earlier this week. You can read why I was such a fan of that record, along with more on the rest of my Top 50 picks by scrolling below or simply flicking through the New Music Weekly archives for December.

However, as many great longplayers we received in 2023, there was an equal abundance of great shortplayers too. In today’s hectic world where the demand for “snackable” (shout out Andrew Belt for my word of 2023) content has risen, the humble Extended Play has seen a big resurgence. So I’ve looked back over the last 12 months and picked out my ten favourites of the year. As always, I’ve gone for an eclectic selection that pulls from various genres including pop, rock, electronic, R&B, and indie. So depending on your taste, hopefully you’ll find something to enjoy on this list.

Here we go then, my Top 10 EPs of 2023…

Honourable mentions

Forever Means by Angel Olsen

White Magnolia by Bear’s Den

The Rest by Boygenius

Heady Metal by Divorce

Julie Byrne with Laugh Cry Laugh by Julie Byrne & Laugh Cry Laugh

Alaska Sadness by Katie Keddie

That Sweet Breath by Lowmello

My Eyes, Brother! by Opus Kink

Not The Baby by Prima Queen

See You In The Dark by Softcult

10. Modern Day by Bloxx

Kicking off the list with London-based indie quartet Bloxx, who have had a bit of a tough time recently. With multiple shows in recent memory cancelled, it was great to see them make a welcome return in 2023, with Modern Day their first new EP since 2021’s Pop Culture Radio.

Much like their output till now, it is a collection of five songs that showcases the band’s talent for writing catchy hooks and memorable riffs, with the strong opening trio of Modern Day, Television Promises and Runaway helping it secure a spot on this year’s list.

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9. Not As I by George FitzGerald

It was also a great year for synth-driven shortplayers as one of my favourite electronic musicians of recent times, George FitzGerald, released a new four track effort - Not As I.

Opener Mother is worth the price of admission alone, a beautifully ambient groove featuring American musician SYML on vocal duties. That said, the mind-melting synths of Venera, the spacey chimes of the title track and the pulsating soundscapes of All Roads make this one well worth 15 minutes of your time.

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8. More Truth by Daniel Avery

Sticking with 2023’s best electronic releases, DJ and producer Dan Avery also released a companion EP to his acclaimed 2022 album, Ultra Truth.

Featuring seven excellent new tracks that didn’t quite make the final cut originally, including trippy Georgia collaboration Going So Low and the accurately titled Bliss, it’s another absorbing collection from the Bournemouth musician who seems incapable of putting a foot wrong.

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7. Freak Show by ALT BLK ERA

As you can probably tell if you’ve made it this far onto my blog, I am a big champion of new music. On top of that, I am also a big champion of new music emerging out of my world-class local scene in Nottingham. And of all the fantastic Nottingham acts who had a breakout 2023, ALT BLK ERA are the ones leading the charge.

Word is finally getting out about this alt-rock sister duo, who fuse mind-melting electronica, heavy rock and razor-sharp bars for a sound that is entirely of their own making. This was highlighted this week when the pair received a prestigious MOBO award nomination for Best Alternative Act, nominated alongside the likes of Arlo Parks, Skindred and Young Fathers.

So, with ALT BLK ERA seemingly right on the cusp of blowing up in popularity, now is the time to get yourself acquainted with their hypnotic genre-defying sound. Debut EP Freak Show released back in August is the perfect introduction for those not already familiar, with the opening trio of I’m Normally Like This, Misfits: SOLAR and the horn-backed title track all well worth checking out, alongside fan favourite Oggy. I promise you, it’ll be unlike anything else you’ve heard in 2023.

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6. Homospace by Mickey Callisto

When I was first introduced to Liverpudlian pop sensation Mickey Callisto at Dot-to-Dot Festival earlier this year, it was obvious from the get-go he was a natural-born showman destined for big things. An enigmatic, commanding presence on stage, it was an utterly captivating performance that made for one of the highlights of the day and left me eager to see where his career would go next.

Well, this November saw Mickey releases his first EP titled Homospace and I’m pleased to say it’s a star-making debut release - in more ways than one. Here’s what I said in my review for 5-9 last month:

“Loosely inspired by Arctic Monkeys’ Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino, Mickey’s debut EP sees him transport the listener into outer space for a visit to “a gay nightclub on the moon”. The sounds that welcome you upon entry are a mesmerising blend of disco, psych-rock and 80s-inspired synth-pop, with Mickey lyrically jumping between personal stories and cosmic metaphors. The result is a joyful, imaginative orbit around some ambitious planetary pop. This is a fantastic, high-concept debut EP from Mickey; one that is not just a lot of fun to experience, but also offers the perfect introduction and showcase for his talent. Offering a welcome escape into some vivid musical nebulas, once you’ve taken the trip to the outer limits, you’ll be reluctant to return back down to Earth.”

Read my full review for 5-9 here

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5. The High Life by Bloc Party

2022 was the year Bloc Party got their mojo back. Whilst the band’s 2016 album Hymns still had its moments, it very much reflected a band going through a transition. Indeed, Alpha Games was still far from a perfect record, but if you had ever been a fan of Bloc Party then there was plenty of familiar pleasures on offer. Following on from that effort then, and this year the indie icons released a new four-track EP where they sound even more rejuvenated.

It’s a fun collection, with summery indie belter High Life kicking things off, before brilliant KennyHoopla collab Keep It Rolling flourishes with that classic Bloc Party sound. Similarly Blue sees Kele finally get back in touch with his younger self, with the song presenting some of his most sincere lyrics in years. Final track The Blood Moon is then my pick of the bunch, with shades of Bigmouth Strikes Again by The Smiths early doors, before it then transforms into that vintage Bloc Party of old by the end, thanks to Russell Lissack’s signature riffing.

Even if you weren’t quite on board with Alpha Games, Bloc Party fans will find plenty of resemblance to that band they fell in love with all those years ago on Silent Alarm and Weekend In The City here on The High Life. Another positive step in the right direction for one of my all-time favourites.

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4. A Little Lost, A Little Found by Grace Carter

It can sometimes be lost on us as listeners just how derailing the pandemic was for new artists breaking out during that time. After discovering Grace Carter at Live At Leeds fest in 2018, it was evidently clear she was heading for superstardom. The following year cemented this prediction, as the London-based singer-songwriter made the BBC Sound of 2019 list and she set off supporting mainstream heavyweights like Dua Lipa and Lewis Capaldi on tour. However ever since the pandemic struck, Grace has been lost in the wilderness unable to further shine a spotlight on her evolving talent – until now.

Her incredible 2023 EP is Grace getting back to basics, releasing a collection of heartfelt pop ballads that explore identity, family, love and racial injustice. From the exquisitely produced groove of Pick Your Tears Up, the gospel-influenced Riot, the atmospheric tribal cries of Mother and the quirky vocal inflections of Hope, it is littered with moments that quickly remind us of Grace’s songwriting talent.

This is the mesmerising sound of Grace Carter finding herself again and getting things back on track – hopefully she has a clear run this time around.

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3. Welcome To My House by Yonaka

It doesn’t feel like too long ago I was stood watching Brighton rockers Yonaka perform in the 1am graveyard shift at Dot-to-Dot festival back in 2017. With a then long-haired Theresa Jarvis jumping off the stage to sing her lungs out amidst the modest, onlooking crowd, I was instantly entranced by the band’s energetic songs and performance. Fast forward to now and the band are now a prominent name within the British rock scene, with their songs constantly making their way into TV show, game and movie soundtracks. Returning in 2023 with another release packed with addictive commercial rock anthems, you get the feeling this new seven-track mini-album - which comes complete with a music video for every track - will only catapult them further up the chain of popularity.

With each song representing a feeling, memory or emotion within Theresa Jarvis, the trio blaze through each concisely constructed track, with most hovering around the two-to-three-minute mark. Propelled by anthemic choruses, polished production and Theresa’s ever-impressive vocal acrobatics, it’s another tour de force project from the band.

From rousing opener By The Time You’re Reading This to the anxiety-induced PANIC, through to the colossal confidence of Welcome To My House and the full-throttled punk of Hands Off My Money, it’s just an absolute blast from beginning to end. However, the EP’s best moment is arguably reserved for one of the band’s softest, most heartfelt songs to date – Give Me My Halo. Noticeably stripped back compared to the rest of the tracks here, it allows Theresa’s vocals to soar with her raw, passionate cries driving home the song’s uplifting message.

Across their early releases, their 2019 debut Don’t Wait ‘Til Tomorrow, 2021 mini-album Seize The Power and now this EP, Yonaka have built themselves an arsenal of bangers that would put most other British rock bands to shame. A seismic collection of anthems that will no doubt go down a storm when they take it on tour in 2024.

Experience the visual mini-album through the music video playlist here

Listen to the EP here

2. MANHOOD by ROB GREEN

From one visual EP to another then, however you arguably couldn’t find two more different in sound.

During my first visit to Hockley Hustle festival in 2022, an all-dayer around the cultural heartbeat of Nottingham, soul-pop sensation Rob Green’s acoustic set was such an undisputed highlight, I was wondering how he could possibly top it this year. Well, he managed it.

Performing in the corner of Broadway Cinema’s café with the Rob Rosa String Quartet accompanying him, people were literally queueing at the door to catch even the smallest glimpse of his incredible thirty-minute set. And rightfully so, as the enigmatic performer proved once again his unrivalled ability to bring immeasurable positive energy to a room and leave the audience joyously radiant by the end. I always thought if he could bottle that energy and transfer it to his studio output, he would be unstoppable. Based on his MANHOOD project released at the start of November, it looks like he had the same idea.

Unlike any other shortplayer released in 2023, MANHOOD is a stunning new visual EP that explores masculinity, self-love and racial identity. Centred around his heartfelt recent singles I’ll Be Around and What Are We Waiting For, the other parts are short vignettes made up of beautiful gospel harmonies, catchy hooks, conversation recordings and deep spoken word passages. With the film version impressively shot in a single take too, it all makes for a powerful 10-minute experience.

A special project by a very special talent, MANHOOD gives the perfect insight into Rob’s unrivalled charm and heart as both an artist and performer. Due to take the project on a UK tour next year, I implore you to go out of your way to see his life-affirming live show if you can – I guarantee you’ll want to capture the positivity in the air and bring it home with you.

Watch the MANHOOD short film here

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1. Sucker by bexx

“Sometimes falling in love feels like the most important thing in the world, especially when you’re not doing it.” – bexx, 2023

For me, the very best shortplayers should be all killer no filler – with most at four to six tracks long, there really is no excuse on that front. Additionally for me though, they should also take you on a conceptual journey or tell you a story in the same way any great album would. Enter Notts-hailing, synthpop superstar bexx, with her banger-filled debut EP that guides the listener through the highs and lows of her hapless love life.

Ever since discovering bexx through a support slot for Fickle Friends at the start of 2022, she has been on a roll. From her incredible breakout single Hard To Love complete with soaring 80s-tinged guitar solo, to more recent efforts like the extremely catchy One More Night and body positive, rock anthem Prettier, bexx has shown her knack for writing addictive, resonant pop songs is as good as anybody in the genre right now. Taking her first big step forward in 2023, she finally released this her debut EP and it is just the perfect showcase for her talent.

Sucker presents five songs about the eternal search for human connection and the stumbling blocks along the way. It is an EP filled with irresistible tongue-in-cheek humour and packed wall-to-wall with cathartic, anti-love songs with which any amiable cynic can relate. This is “unserious, heartbreak pop” of the highest order and it makes for the most joyously fun EP of the year.

The opening title track is the perfect tone-setter, as bexx describes the urge to text back a former lover, with her wry lyricism firmly at the fore on lines like “I still wonder, do you wonder, how I’m doing, who I’m under – I’m not lonely, I’m just going through the motions.” It’s this light-hearted take on these common melancholic feelings that makes bexx so refreshing and the song itself is one of her most instantly gratifying yet, thanks to its hooky chorus.

Inescapably catchy single I’m Disgusting follows, where bexx describes becoming that hopelessly lovesick romantic she’s always despised (“The lovey-dovey shit belongs on the TV, I’d rather die”). However, the honeymoon period of the relationship quickly ends, as bexx then throws us listeners into the brutal break-up on excellent single, Stupid. Culminating in the frustration-fuelled refrain “I hate this song, ‘cause it’s about you”, it is tailor-made for heartbroken festival crowds to sing back with angst.

Recent single Bad For Each Other is then undoubtedly the EP’s best moment, with bexx found unravelling a toxic friends-with-benefits relationship (“Steal a kiss, 3AM, just a secret between friends – even though I don’t feel used, still a little bit confused”). Once again channelling some palpable rock energy with a guitar-driven chorus, it is mixed seamlessly with a brilliantly produced electronic beat on the quieter, almost whispered verses.

After taking this wild journey with bexx through her romantic life, navigating attraction, sex, heartbreak and all the mixed emotions found along the way, the EP’s climatic song Haha, I’m dying alone can’t help but feel brutally poignant. This is the moment where bexx finally lifts that shield of humour that she’s carried throughout just a little bit, but enough to show the vulnerability hiding underneath - acknowledging that making a joke out of these feelings is her way of coping with the strain of it all. It’s another special, brilliantly written pop song and it’ll have you reaching through your headphones to give bexx a big comforting hug at the end of it.

For a first outing, bexx really couldn’t have crafted a better shortplayer to introduce new listeners into her world. A collection that has been cohesively pulled together and is simply beaming with the catchy, singalong choruses and witty takes that have made her music such a joy to behold. She has really knocked it out of the park with this batch of songs and it is no surprise that it has held on throughout the year to remain my favourite EP of 2023.

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Thanks for reading – I’ll be back next week with final year-end awards, including my favourite live shows and Top 100 songs of 2023!

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