The Best Songs of November 2023 // New Music Friday!

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"Houdini" // Dua Lipa

Dua Lipa's long-awaited lead single for her upcoming third album is finally here and it is incredible! Dua is one of the best pop artists out right now, there truly isn't a song of her's that I don't absolutely love. "Houdini" is so modern and fresh, while still feeling like a natural sonic progression from the sound of her sophomore album Future Nostalgia. It is her first collaboration with Kevin Parker, the Tame Impala influence is all over this song in the best way possible. The pop psychedelic production is amazing, it is such a cool sound for her to be experimenting with right now. "Houdini" is one of my favorite songs of the year, I haven't been able to get out of my head since I first heard it! As always, I'm really looking forward to hearing more music from Dua in the new year! Catch her before she goes... ✨

"Alma Mater" // Bleachers & Lana Del Rey

"Alma Mater" is the second single released in support of Bleachers upcoming self-titled fourth album, to be released in March. This song does a beautiful job at evoking such a unique sense of nostalgia and longing, as all of the best Bleachers songs do. I have been thinking so much about the line, "some dreams I wake up thinking about, some dreams are meant to die". Jack Antonoff perfectly captures the East Coast in a way that no other artist can. The rhyming of "We're screaming 'fuck Balenciaga' as we drive past the Wawa" is a lyric only he could ever write. The song also features vocals from Lana Del Rey, her voice is so incredibly beautiful and adds a little extra magic to the song. 

"Can't Catch Me Now" // Olivia Rodrigo

"Can't Catch Me Now" is the powerful theme for the new film The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, written and performed by Olivia Rodrigo. It is the prequel to The Hunger Games series, I haven't seen it yet or read the corresponding book, but I absolutely loved the original trilogy and look forward to checking it out soon! This song is so beautiful, I love that Olivia continues to follow in the footsteps of artists like Lorde and Taylor Swift by releasing her own iconic track for the soundtrack of this series! 

"The 1975 (Live From Madison Square Garden)" // The 1975

A year after their performance at Madison Square Garden on their At Their Very Best tour, The 1975 released a live album from the show. I didn't go to this particular show the album was recorded at, but I did have the most amazing experience seeing them live at Madison Square Garden this month on their Still...At Their Very Best tour! I am working on writing my full review of that show, it was such an incredible night that I will never forget. They are one-of-a-kind live performers, I am constantly blown away by their stage presence, storytelling, and attention to detail when it comes to their stage design. The entire album is amazing, but for the sake of this list I chose the opening song of their show, aptly titled "The 1975". I had tears in my eyes during the opening of the show when Matty sang this at the piano and hearing it again takes me back to that moment! Needless to say, if you haven't had the chance to see them live for yourself, I highly recommend checking out this live album and the full performance on their YouTube channel! I will be sharing my full experience of seeing Still...At Their Very Best soon! 

"The Parting Glass" // boygenius & Ye Vagabonds 

boygenius is honoring Sinead O'Connor's life and legacy with a cover of a traditional Irish and Scottish folk song that she recorded in 2002. It is such a beautiful and touching tribute to the late artist, who passed away earlier this year. It is a farewell song, traditionally sung to and with friends as they depart. Proceeds of this song benefit Aisling Project, an after-school program for children and young people in Dublin, as chosen by the O'Connor estate. 

"santa doesn't know you like i do" // Sabrina Carpenter


Sabrina Carpenter released such a cute Christmas EP this month, fruitcake, which I have been absolutely loving. It is made up of six original holiday pop songs, that are filled with really fun and clever lyrics. It very much fits in the same category as Ariana Grande's 2015 EP called Christmas & Chill, which is original Christmas music that isn't necessarily overtly merry and bright, but is more evergreen and fits in the style of the rest of their music. I can't wait to continue listening to this throughout the holiday season and beyond!



This is a part of an ongoing New Music Friday series I started earlier this year, if you're interested, I would love for you to check out previous favorites here. Over the next month I am going to be sharing many of my year-end favorites to close out 2023, with a lot more music content to come in the new year. I hope you'll come back and check it out!

Thanks for reading! Let me know your thoughts in the comment section below! I hope you had a great Thanksgiving, thank you for your continued support! 


photo credit to all owners - header designed by Melissa Kacar


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