Here's the annual wrap up of my top tapes for the last twelve months. Nothing much really changes from year to year with these things. I like tapes that fall under the broad categories of experimental music, noise, and synth jams. There's probably some guitar and other instruments in the mix, too. It didn't necessarily make the list, but I was buying a lot more harsh noise for 2023. Sometimes you need to hear the gnarly stuff.
I capped any label at two tapes and tried to get as much variety on the list as possible, although I didn't buy a ton of tapes in 2023. Unifactor was surprisingly quiet with only three tapes and a Bee Mask record reissue. Constellation Tatsu had a mere six tapes on the year, which were all top notch.
2FAC's I Lobe The Secular World was one of my favorites and their sounds had heavy Metalux vibes going on. Lauren Pakradooni returned with a new Tether cassette that combined her usual tape work with occasional vocals that resembled Metalux as well. The bosses at Hausu Mountain each dropped a solo tape showcasing the unique sounds that have made their label a highlight of the experimental music world. Strategy put together a batch of cosmic dub that might be Paul Dickow's finest creation yet. Demon Life is the power trio of noise veterans Rodger Stella, Kyle Flanagan, and Tim Gick. As expected, they churned out a batch of demonic harshness. Acid Twilight wrangled together another fine collection of mysterious hypnagogic sprawl to add to their interesting discography.
As always any tape had to be released in the calendar year and I had to listen to it a lot. And if you are one of those types who needs a definitive cassette of the year, then that honor goes to Canicula by Ludmila Nunes on No Rent. Nunes also had a very good tape of deconstructed rock band nosies on Flat Plastic, but I felt the blasted out nether zone sounds of Canicula were a much more fully realized artistic statement.
The list goes band/album/label for those with questions of that nature.
01. 2FAC - I Lobe The Secular World - Unifactor
02. Acid Twlight - Shadow Wrangler - Not Not Fun
03. Akasha System - Ancient Path Complete - 100% Silk
04. Marcia Bassett & Sergej Vutuc - Covering The Surface - Yew
05. Demon Life - s/t - Flat Plastic Home Media
06. Eternities - Realness - Harmonic Ooze
07. Andra Ljos - Megalithic Statues of Vishapakar - Not Not Fun
08. Alina Kalancea - Alchemy - Important
09. Monokle - Ultraflowers - Constellation Tatsu
10. MrDougDoug - SOS Forks AI REM II - Hausu Mountain
11. Mukqs - Stonewasher - Hausu Mountain
12. Ludmila Nunes - Canicula - No Rent
13. LeeAnn Peppers & Motion Sickness of Time Travel - split - Humanhood Recordings
14. Strategy - Graffiti In Space - Constellation Tatsu
15. Tether - Jostle Bask - Refulgent Sepulchre
16. tinnitustimulus - Icterine - No Rent
