Pet Door Show Best of 2023
Ya know what, this year sucked. Personally, globally, you name it. It has been a year that made me question whether kindness and compassion were any more than Santa Claus for adults, a fairy tale that we tell to make the world seem nicer but don’t actually live by. There’s not really any cover for naivety when people are on the news defending the killing and maiming of Palestinian children. A lot of my core beliefs that I took for granted have been challenged this year in a way that honestly just makes me want to go into the woods and find a nice quiet pit to lay in forever. But I hope 2024 brings us not just peace, quiet, comfort, and love, but also justice, care, fairness, and respect, and I know that complacency hinders betterment.
One of the things that has kept pulling me out of that pit is music. On the Pet Door Show (Thursdays 2–4pm Pacific / 5–7pm Eastern / 10pm-12am GMT on Shady Pines Radio), I exclusively play new releases by independent and underplayed artists from around the world who have fewer than 5,000 instagram followers. This year, I have gotten to play some incredible songs, created and released without the resources and weight of a major label, all the more impressive for the effort, community, and determination of expression that brought them into being.
I am thrilled to share this year’s Pet Door Show Best of 2023. These are my absolute favorite 31 tracks (of 1,220!) released in 2023 that I’ve played on the Pet Door Show (in the order they were played on the Pet Door Show Best of 2023 episode on Shady Pines Radio). As ever, they’re of a variety of genres and geographies, all by independent and underplayed artists with under 5,000 instagram followers. These are the tracks that particularly got their hooks in my brain, that exposed some vulnerable facet of human experience and created a connection I didn’t know I needed, the tracks that made me feel, think, laugh, and dance, and hit play again and again. There’s also a Spotify playlist and it’s pretty excellent, but I do encourage you to support the artists by purchasing any music that you enjoy using the links provided.
Enjoy! Let me know what your favorites are.
La Felix — HOT
Single released May 6, 2023.
Tāmaki Makaurau, Aotearoa. Pop funk.
Vincent Ahehehinnou — Bozan
From the album La Vie Est Belle, released March 10, 2023.
Cotonou, Benin. Afrobeat.
Djeli Moussa Conde — Korte
From the album Africa Mama, released January 27, 2023.
Paris, France. Folk afrobeat.
Os Fugitivos — Absurdo
From the album Samburá, released October 30, 2023.
Maceió, Brazil. Indie pop samba.
Ceitidh Mac — Bulldog
From the EP Seabird, released November 10, 2023.
Newcastle, England. Art folk.
Daudi Matsiko — Fool Me As Many Times As You Like
From the upcoming debut album The King of Misery, due to be released January 14, 2024.
Nottingham, England. Folk.
Colectivo Waykicha — Primavera
From the album Sobre la tierra, en el mundo andando, released March 21, 2023.
Lima, Peru. Folk.
Minda Lacy — The Angry Song
From the album Loneliest Bug, released April 9, 2023.
Portland, OR. Folk singer-songwriter.
Creekbed Carter Hogan — full time no benefits
From the Split album with Large Brush Collection, released March 24, 2023.
Austin, TX. Folk americana.
Prateek — If I Were A Dog
From the album ’Til June, released April 7, 2023.
Boston, MA. Folk singer-songwriter.
Margaret Tracteur — Yodel à plumes
From the album L’heure du thé avec Margaret Tracteur, released February 17, 2023.
Québec, Canada. Honky tonk folk punk.
Nora Kelly Band — Purgatory Motel
From the album Rodeo Clown, released August 25, 2023.
Montréal, Canada. Country.
Premium Leisure — Choosey
From the album Bug Blood, released December 21, 2023.
Oxford, England. Indie pop.
Long Island Railroad (Smushie & Ryan Gebhardt) — The Fruit
From the EP Long Island Railroad, released September 15, 2023.
Minneapolis, MN / Chicago, IL. Indie.
Langkamer — Hatchet
From the album The Noon and Midnight Manual, released May 18, 2023.
Bristol, England. Indie americana.
Pijama Piyama — Los Niños De Rana
From the album Pijama Piyama y Los Niños De Rana, released August 26, 2023.
Phoenix, AZ. Cumbia psícodelica.
Sunfruits — Made To Love
From the album One Degree, released April 28, 2023.
Naarm, Australia. Psych rock.
Picnic — Famous
From the EP But I Like It, released April 28, 2023.
Sunderland, England. Rock merengue.
Cloud Café — Honey
Single released September 1, 2023.
Amsterdam, Netherlands. Indie rock.
Rodeo Boys — Sugar
From the album Home Movies, released June 16, 2023.
Lansing, MI. Garage punk.
LAWN CHAIR — Sunset Heartbreak
From the EP Eat the Beans and Wear the Jeans!, released April 28, 2023.
Köln, Germany. Indie post punk.
Dog Door — Fresh Peach Pie
From the EP Every Door is a Dog Door, released December 1, 2023.
Naarm, Australia. Alternative rock.
Garbage People — Roseline
From the EP Dma, released April 24, 2023.
Buenos Aires, Argentina. Post punk.
Buddy Wynkoop — Relatable
Single released March 11, 2023.
Portland, OR. Post punk.
Gala Magalí & Sofía Nahir Abdala — Vecinas
Single released September 22, 2023.
Buenos Aires, Argentina. Indietronica.
Mary Ancheta Quartet — Gotta Get It
From the EP Level Up, released June 2, 2023.
Vancouver, Canada. Jazz.
Lukah ft. LottaLox — Melanin Child
From the album Permanently Blackface (the 1st Expression), released September 1, 2023.
Memphis, TN. Hip hop.
Hxndrx — Conquer
From the album 2nd Kings, released March 2, 2023.
New Orleans, LA. Hip hop.
Pat Lagoon — Jungle
Single released February 16, 2023.
Waterford, Ireland. Hip hop.
Speaker Bullies ft. DJ Jon Doe — Nobody Better Than
From the album Art of Disrespect, released July 7, 2023 on Soulspazm Records.
Atlanta, GA. Hip hop.
Líricas del Caos & Las Parceras, ft. La Zea, Drea, Queen Ashanti, Tina, Yela Quim, Maquifera, Agatha, Tiaret Natural — Aborto Libre
From the album Arborteras, released September 28, 2023.
Bogotá, Colombia. Hip hop.
That’s the end of this year’s Pet Door Show Best of 2023! I hope you enjoyed this list. If you did, check out the Pet Door Show Best of 2022, and keep your eyes out for the Pet Door Show’s list of up-and-coming artists you should know in 2024, which I’ll be posting soon. If you like the Pet Door Show, I’m a volunteer DJ and actually pay money to keep the Pet Door Show running and the archives up on Mixcloud, so if you’d like to buy me a coffee it would be much appreciated! Tune in to the Pet Door Show every Thursday on Shady Pines Radio, 2–4pm Pacific / 5–7pm Eastern / 10pm-12am GMT. Thanks for listening.