2023 has come and passed, and with it another magnificent blend of new and old artists were enjoyed.
According to Last.FM, I listened to 4170 unique artists in 2023, which equals out to 6.69 plays per artist. Apparently 30% of those artists were ones I had never listened to before, which is pretty cool in my book. Top tag was "Rock", top listening hour was 9p-10p, and top listening day was Saturday. No surprise there, right?
Let us dive into the most played artists.
Here's the key for the artist list:
TY. Artist (LY)
Top Track: Track (TY)
25. Alice in Chains (NR)
Top Track: Would (24)
Alice in Chains made their way into the Top 25 for the first time in 2023, spurred on by the remastered release of their classic 1992 album "Dirt". That album has always been one of my all-time favorites, and the remaster brought them back into a heavier than usual rotation.
24. Teenage Wrist (NR)
Top Track: Taste of Gasoline (8)
I've known about Teenage Wrist for 3 years now, and in that time they've been on the Top 20 twice (#1 in '21, #7 in '23), and the Top 25 Artists twice as well, landing at #18 in 2021. And while "Something Good" finished at 49, "Taste of Gasoline" was again one of the most played songs. Anyone who says there's no good new music is really missing out on bands like this
23. Brave the Sea (NR)
Top Track: The Devil Brought Tequila (33)
A local debut to the Top Artists chart, Brave the Sea released their newest record "Lady Death" in 2023, with top song "Where I Belong" landing at #15 in the Top 20. All told they had 4 songs with double digit streams, and their back catalogue continues to grow in strength. There is nothing but greatness ahead for these dudes.
22. Soundgarden (NR)
Top Track: Mailman (T141)
Top 25 Artists staple Soundgarden returns after falling out for the first time last year. Coincidentally they've landed at #3 three times since 2018, and though "Mailman" didn't get a massive amount of plays, they had six other songs with at least 5 plays throughout the year, among the 45 total tracks that I played. I am as happy to see them back this year as I was surprised to see them leave last time around
21. Aurelio Voltaire (10)
Top Track: Friends in the Dark; Captains All; Land of the Dead (T398)
Make it 4 years in a row that Aurelio Voltaire has captured a spot on the Top 25 Artist list, although I honestly thought he'd be higher on the list after releasing a new album in '23. As it stands, his was more of a quantitative statistic, with a humongous 77 different songs getting at least 1 stream in the past year. I'm hoping he is able to perform closer to home some time soon, as he hasn't had a tour come through in almost a decade now.
20. Brave Saint Saturn (17)
Top Track: These Frail Hands (38)
There comes a time in the winter months, almost every year, where I get heavy back into Brave Saint Saturn. They're the perfect melancholy band for the darker months, and despite only having 3 total albums they're usually somewhere in my most played artists. "These Frail Hands" found me where I needed it last year and carried them up to #20.
19. Sam Cooke (24)
Top Track: Chain Gang (T28)
The Man Who Invented Soul continues to keep pace with the newer artists on this list... or at least artists who have released music in the last 50+ years. Sensational Sam had 2 of the 50 most streamed songs, with "(What A) Wonderful World) being 39th. All told he had 10 songs with at least five streams on the year, and continues to be in several of my favorite playlists.
18. Blindside (7)
Top Track: Painting (T28)
Blindside appears for the 3rd time in the six year history of the Top 25 Artists (made possible by the good folks over at Last.FM), falling back 11 spaces after a massive rise in '22. Seeing them live that year rekindled my love for them and, even if they never do release new material, I think they'll always be somewhere near the most played for artists.
17. Rammstein (1)
Top Track: Lügen (T225)
I expected a slight fallback after the German metallers attacked the airwaves last year (also propelled by a once-in-a-lifetime live performance), but I wasn't sure where they'd land. They've only missed once in six years, although 17 is the lowest they've landed since 2020. Not that their number of plays was low this year, but they had 352 less streams in 2023 than they did the year before - a testament to just how absurdly obsessed I was with them at that time.
16. Fuel (NR)
Top Track: Hemorrhage (In My Hands) (T50)
Fuel returns after a 3 year absence, despite getting 0 new streams from their not-so-well-received newest record, released in 2022. It was their first 3 albums continuing to carry their weight - as good of a 3 album run as any band has put out (Sunburn, Something Like Human, Natural Selection). Any time I'm feeling good and angsty, I usually fall back on Fuel.
15. Switchfoot (22)
Top Track: On Fire (Ingrid Andress Version) (T50)
Even though Switchfoot made it for the first time last year, I didn't expect their surge in 2023, which was thanks to the 20th anniversary edition of "The Beautiful Letdown" including newly interpreted versions of every song on the album. It made for a fun distraction over the summer and propelled "On Fire" up to #19 on the Top 20 Countdown. The band had 8 other songs with at least 5 plays over the year and jumped up 7 spots.
14. Five Iron Frenzy (12)
Top Track: Dandelions (T111)
Few bands have been as consistent as Five Iron Frenzy; this being their 3rd time in the top 15 and their 5th appearance in six years. For all the goofy songs that they have at their disposal, it is usually the more somber ones that get the most plays, and "Far, Far Away" or "Dandelions" usually takes the crown once it's all said and done. The band had an astonishing 92 different songs that received at least 1 stream last year.
13. Circle of Dust (13)
Top Track: Yurasuka (T93)
Speaking of consistency, Circle of Dust matched their highest showing for a 3rd time at #13, propelled by 11 songs with at least 5 plays, including three in double digits. 74% of their plays came from their release "Disengage", which I usually throw on if I'm taking a road trip of any considerable distance - it's the perfect "rockin-on-the-road" music, lol.
12. Trans-Siberian Orchestra (14)
Top Track: What Child Is This? (T181)
The Kings of Christmas continued their annual year-end assault on the Top 25 Artists for their 4th consecutive year, hanging around in the top 15 once more. Once October hits, I throw on their Halloween-themed "Night Castle" record and it is lights out come November.
11. Owl City (NR)
Top Track: Kelly Time (T56)
For all the usual suspects on the countdown, Owl City is one of 4 making their debut this year, and perhaps the last likely to find a resurgence. Their new release "Coco Moon" was a refreshing breath of air - a throwback to his older material that got me pining for a revisiting of his back catalogue and I ended up listening to everything he has ever released. It all felt as good as it did when it first came out, and I really didn't discover anything that hit me in a new way, save for "Kelly Time", which came in at #11 on the Top 20 Countdown.
10. Audioslave (NR)
Top Track: Getaway Car (T93)
Audioslave makes their third appearance on the Artists list, as a ping-ponging adoration for Chris Cornell always keeps them somewhere in range. The only thing that keeps the band from being a usual contributor is that they only released 3 records and called it a day. In spite of that they had 13 songs with at least five plays, six of which had at least 10, and surprisingly it was "Getaway Car" that surpassed the usual bigger hits to notch the Top Track spot.
9. Demon Hunter (6)
Top Track: The Negative (T28)
It wouldn't be a Top Artist list without Demon Hunter, one of only 5 who have made it every year since I started using Last.FM. They've registered as high as #6 and as low as #23 but never fallen out, thanks to their prolific nature of releasing an album almost every two years of their existence. It's wild to think that they now have 10 albums to their name, and even though their newest "Exile" didn't make much of a splash this year, they still have an impressive list of achievements to their name.
8. Sevendust (19)
Top Track: Home (T111)
Make it 4 years in a row for for rockers from Atlanta, reaching their highest mark this time around at #8. Sevendust had 18 plays more than Demon Hunter, the biggest jump from one spot to another so far, propelled by 11 songs with at least 5 plays. Their newest album also didn't splash onto the Top 20, but the angstier the year, the more 'Dust shows up.
7. Relient K (NR)
Top Track: Over Thinking (T160)
The highest of the 2023 debuts, Relient K made a big splash over the summer when I saw them at Furnace Fest and got a nice boost at Christmas to shoot into the Top 10, making them the highest debut artist since 2020. They caught the right fire at the right time, and were pleasantly fantastic to see live after it had been 20 years since my last RK concert.
6. Rome (25)
Top Track: Swords to Rust - Hearts to Dust (T129)
Rome released 2 new records in the last 12 months and had four different songs with at least 10 plays over the year, as I continued to work my way through his rather lengthy discography. He is my wife's favorite artist and we have found a shared respect and adoration for him over the years... I am simply baffled by the fact that he can pump out a new album almost every single year.
5. Assemblage 23 (2)
Top Track: Dissonance (37)
It's hard to say a band that had well over 200 streams and who finished with the 5th most of any band to be having an off year, but technically this is the lowest he's landed in the Top 25 Artist ranking, so yes, this was an off year for Assemblage 23. Still, he had 14 songs with at least five streams, and 3 in the top 100 ("Endure" at T70 and "Could've" at T77), so it wasn't like the year went without him.
4. Anberlin (4)
Top Track: Paperthin Hymn (T50)
Three straight years at #4 for Tampa's terrific quartet, who ended up with 52 more streams than Assemblage 23. The band might not be releasing any new music now that singer Stephen Christian has stepped away from touring with the group, but they still had six songs with double digit streams, and 17 with at least five. The institution continues as the years go by.
3. The Broken Relics (23)
Top Track: Rodeo (3)
Well well, look who snuck in with their new album? Ready for some crazy numbers?
#3. Rodeo. #5. Birthday. #18. Night in the Desert. #21. Crosswalk. Their new album was easily the most anticipated and subsequently the most played album of the year by over 70 streams. Talk about a massive jump in their 5th year of existence.
2. VNV Nation (3)
Top Track: The Farthest Star (35)
Well, if you've known or followed me for any amount of time, you know whew who the last two artists would be, but I'll entertain you just the same. VNV has been 3rd or better every year I've been tracking these numbers, had 5 songs with at least twenty plays, and, oh yeah, I got to see them live again! Having nine songs with double-digit plays will rocket you up any chart as well...
1. Cold (5)
Top Track: Sad Happy (7)
...but, even with all that, Cold finished a somewhat preposterous 127 streams ahead of VNV. "Sad Happy" (7) and "When Angels Fly Away" (10) were the bruisers but they also had an eye-popping 28 songs with at least 5 streams (if they all had only 5 that would be 140 plays right there...) and, well, yes, I also got to see and hang out with them as well. I can get used to seeing my favorite band every year, haha.
It's been a really good run of years for seeing my favorite bands live, and I couldn't be happier both supporting the local scene and my national favorites.
Once again, I absolutely could not do all of this without the help of the number-munchers over at Last.FM. I owe them my eternal thanks for letting me drop onto their site multiple times per day to peruse numbers, and of course the good peeps over at The Universal Scrobbler for letting me add songs that aren't immediately added to my count.
Here's to another great year!!
