KCRW’s Top 30: Arlo Parks, Mac DeMarco, Sans Soucis

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Arlo Parks takes the lead with her poetic prowess. Photo by Alexandra Waespi.

Rarely has our prediction game been so off. Last week, we noted the three-way game of musical chairs emerging between Benny Sings, Everything But The Girl, and Little Simz. Of that core group, only Little Simz remains, and she’s fallen to number four. Everything But The Girl falls from number one to number 19, and Benny Sings falls off the list entirely (along with last week’s poster girl, Fazerdaze). 

It’s shaping up to be a far less predictable year than we’d initially thought, so let’s shift the gaze over to what’s new. Our favorite tell-it-like-it-is poetess Arlo Parks has at last shifted her forthcoming album, My Soft Machine, into peak position, and hot on her heels are alt-R&B impressaria Biig Piig and high priestess of beatscapes, Yaeji. Elsewhere, we’ve got the prince of vibey rock and roll Mac Demarco, synthpop-room-brightener Sans Soucis, and surrealist-soundscape-crafter Jared Mattson all joining the first timers club.

Try saying all of those tongue-twisty descriptors five times fast, or better yet cue up our Top 30 Spotify playlist and let the good times roll. 

Top 30 Albums (1.31.2023)


1 Arlo Parks My Soft Machine
2 Biig Piig Bubblegum
3 Yaeji With a Hammer
4 Little Simz NO THANK YOU
5 Oddisee To What End
6 NGAW NGAW
7 Kali Uchis I Wish You Roses [Single]
8 Induce Beautiful Distortion
9 Gorillaz Cracker Island
10 Kelela Raven
11 Overmono Good Lies
12 Fever Ray Radical Romantics
13 boygenius the record
14 Sylvan Esso No Rules Sandy
15 The Arcs Electrophonic Chronic
16 The National First Two Pages of Frankenstein
17 Surprise Chef Pash Rash [Single]
18 Les Imprimés I’ll Never Leave b/w If I [Single]
19 Everything But The Girl Fuse
20 Young Fathers Heavy Heavy
21 Braxe + Falcon Step By Step Remixes
22 Neil Frances High (Feat. PawPaw Rod)
23 Phoenix Alpha Zulu
24 Mac DeMarco Five Easy Hot Dogs
25 Junior Boys Waiting Game
26 Låpsley Cautionary Tales of Youth
27 Rogê Curyman
28 Sans Soucis Merchant [Single]
29 Jared Mattson Peanut
30 Glyders Maria’s Hunt