Illegal Foreign Object

Sometimes, an album just gets in there, ya know? It worms into your heart, becomes part of you, and stays with you forever. The following albums touched my heart and/or made me reassess some things in 2023.

When Miles Davis’s legendary drummer Billy Cobham names you among his prized pupils, you have chops for days. Dayes is an incredible drummer, and Black Classical Music is not only a representation of this fact, but of his brilliance as a bandleader.

Required listening: “Black Classical Music”, “Rust”, “The Light”, “Marching Band”

Mario and Sarah Quintero are quite the powerhouse husband-and-wife duo. Teaming with drummer Chris Enriquez, the trio self-recorded and produced Alchemy For The Dead, a massive wall of ethereal, chaotic sound.

Required listening: “Beyond The Broken Sky”, “The Alchemist”, “Sunset Burial”

Shook is an assault of jittery post-punk, message-based hip-hop, haunting narration, and R&B-infused punk rock. From beginning to end, the album keeps you on your toes.

Required listening: “Irreversible Damage”, “73%”, “I Can’t Stand It”

“recognized”, the opening track on Why Does The Earth Give Us People To Love? sets the tone for the remainder of the album. Jackson pulls no punches — she experiences and lays bare feelings of love, compassion, annoyance, fear, and heartbreak throughout this beautiful, gut-wrenching album.

Required listening: “no fun/party”, “dickhead blues”, “pawnshop”

Alabama’s Lonnie Holley is a giant of improvisational artistry. His music career began the day he decided to record the improvised songs he sang while working on one of his hundreds of assemblage sculptures. Holley’s voice is a soul-soaked, and as powerful as it is fragile.

Required listening: “Oh Me Oh My”, “Testing”, “None Of Us Have But A Little While”

This album’s pop perfection grabbed my by the ears and slammed my face into the wall. It’s fuzzy, sugary riffs remind me of the best parts of mid-’90s bands Dig and Silverchair.

Required listening: “Sunshine”, “Still Love”,

Take Me Back To Eden is a genre-defying album that takes the listener on an journey through an almost endless stream of twists and turns. Singer Vessel is amazing.

Required listening: “Chokehold”, “The Summoning”,

I was broken-hearted when Seattle singer/songwriter Shawn Smith passed in 2019. His voice was a comfort through many rough times in my late-teens and early-twenties, and was a sound I can still rely on to give me shelter when my mind is playing tricks on me. Brad is anything but a “Stone Gossard side project” (as it’s often been described) — it’s a showcase of one of the most emotionally charged voices of the Nineties. In The Moment That You’re Born, the album Brad was working on when Smith passed, is a fitting send-off — a celebration of groove, grunge, melancholy, and friendship.

Required listening: “In The Moment That You’re Born”, “Take Me Back Home”, “Hey Now What’s The Problem?”, “Simple Subtraction”

Funneling South African jazz through American R&B, jazz, and funk, Bokani Dyer’s Radio Sechaba is a beautifully optimistic, lively sound that draws you in and holds your ear.

Required listening: “Mogaetsho”, “Tiya Mowa”, “Picturesque”

One of the most intense, soul-stirring blue-eyed soul records ever made, My Back Was A Bridge For You To Cross is an exercise in personal exploration and a conceptual nod to Marvin Gaye’s What’s Going On.

Required listening: “It Must Change”, “Sliver Of Ice”, “Rest”, “Why Am I Alive Now?”

Jacob Lusk’s gospel-soaked vocals soar to heights few will ever see, and along with UK-born keyboardist/producer Ryan Hope and Los Angeles-born violinist/producer-composer Ari Balouzian creates music that wraps itself around your heart and refuses to let go.

Required listening: “Offering”, “Angels And Queens”, “Glory”, “One And Only”

That’s all for today, kids! Check back tomorrow for rollicking rockers rolling!