Hey and welcome. Apologies for the massive wait for August albums. It’s basically October. I went on vacation for a week earlier in the month. The weeks have tended to melt by without much hubbub, making me completely lost track of time. But we’re still here, keeping the Recommended Albums streak up. In my defense, it feels as though August has always been a slow month for new releases. Looking through old Recommended Albums posts, notable August releases (for me) include Kornel Kovacs’ The Bells (2016), Esther Rose’s You Made It This Far (2019), Indigo De Souza’s Every Shape You Take (2021) and Marci’s self-titled debut (2022). One year I’ve purposely excluded until now is 2018, which easily takes “Best Recommended Albums of August” post, featuring The Beths’ Future Me Hates Me, Mitski’s Be The Cowboy, Tirzah’s Devotion, and more. Three albums featured in my Best Albums of the 2010s list. Notable to say the least! We’ll be seeing more of Tirzah in September!

Do any of the records from August 2023 have a shot to make my Best Albums of the 2020s list? We’ll have to see, only time will tell. But nah, probably not, if we’re being honest. There are some cool records, don’t get me wrong. Lots of new-to-me names (Kibi James, Mary Jane Dunphe (PS: the lead singer of CCFX!!), Edsel Axle (PS: the solo guitar project of Rosali!)) + some real freaky shit (dadá Joãozinho, draag me) + more cool records. But for the most part these are records to fill in some gaps on your Best of 2023 list. Am I saying to skip this month’s Recommended Albums post? Not in the slightest. You could find your AOTY here. Am I saying that September, a month that is nearly 86% over already, has featured better albums already, I’d say yeah. But still, listen away, why don’tcha.

Activity – Spirit in the Room [Western Vinyl]
Thick smoke billows from beneath the soft soil of a graveyard, hazy silhouettes of those we’ve lost somewhat visible at the right angle.

Buck Meek – Haunted Mountain [4AD]
A traveling flower salesperson travels vast dirt roads across America and sets up camp under a massive spider web covered in dewdrops emulating stars.

dadá Joãozinho – tds bem Global [Innovative Leisure]
Getting lost in a densely-populated city where packed-in storefronts, scattershot common areas, wild decoration and elaborate housing buildings all rotate and shift positions while you aren’t looking, the pieces of which move as if bound to a rubik’s cube.

draag me – lord of the shithouse [Doom Trip]
Being incredibly active on a forum founded on unspooling conspiracy theories, but after months of posting, you realize that you made every account posting, and you’ve been having conversations with yourself alone.

Edsel Axle – Variable Happiness [Worried Songs]
The first airplane is taken out of its display case and made to fly open skies once again, sputtering and falling apart before horrified onlookers eyes, but continuing to churn and chug through the air valiantly despite losing parts and shaking in the wind.

Genesis Owusu – STRUGGLER [Ourness / AWAL]
Waterskiing on a red carpet that’s trailed behind an old, gaudy muscle car with billowing exhaust pipes, mean-mugging and crossing your arms the whole time.

Jaimie Branch – Fly or Die Fly or Die Fly or Die ((World War)) [International Anthem]
Large fissures suddenly crack through our planet, the voices of millions screaming for change amplified by fiery, ancient earth walls.

Kibi James – delusions [Bayonet]
A swirling, mini-vortex that carries loose flower petals and playing cards that had scattered across a city park.

Mary Jane Dunphe – Stage of Love [Pop Wig]
The year is 1996 and you’ve built a wagon and pulley system to roll your desktop computer around with you. You are chatting with hot singles in your area on the subway via a dial-up connection, somehow.

SPELLLING – SPELLLING & The Mystery School [Sacred Bones]
A band comprised of three witches, two warlocks, one mad scientist, a vampire, a bog monster, four ghosts and a creature comprised of fungus meet in a 1970s recording studio to lay down their masterpiece.

GR8 TRACKS OF AUGUST 2023::

• Activity – “Icing”
• Edsel Axle – “Some Answer”
• Gaadge – “Candy-Colored”
• Genesis Owusu – “Leaving The Light”
• Genesis Owusu – “Tied Up!”
• Kibi James – “shame”
• Kibi James – “sweetest thing”
• SPELLLING – “Cherry”
• SPELLLING – “Hard to Please (Reprise)”
• Supershy – “Feel Like Makin’ Love (feat. Roberta Flack)”