The Best Albums of 202

Mahir Ahmed, MA Global Media and Communications

2022 was a turbulent and chaotic year unlike any other, however, many of us nally got to experience live music again. With the music industry escaping the malaise of the Pandemic and venue restrictions, many artists nally delivered long-delayed, highly anticipated albums. Big names such as Beyoncé, Kendrick Lamar, Björk, Alvvays, Rosalía, and Mitski returned with records that were worth the wait. I’ll be counting down the most prominent and noteworthy releases!

10. Ethel Cain – Preacher’s Daughter

Ethel Cain merges the world of gothic dream pop. In just a little over an hour, songs such as American Teenager hold the ferocious energy of youth, epic synths, and booming drums drive the powerful hooks and shadowy obsessive love. Also, I saw her live recently, and she is phenomenal!

9. Black Country, New Road – Ants From Up ere

London’s Black Country, New Road sophomore album marks the departure of frontman Isaac Wood. e album is a masterclass in technicality and frenetic melodies, jazz-meets-post-punk. Standouts include tracks such as Good Will Hunting, a breakup song that sees Wood’s narrator clinging to a former ame and Chaos Space Marine, which features wistful saxophone passages and amboyant piano keys.

8. Charli XCX - Crash

Charli XCX’s return this year with her biggest album yet, Crash, an album reaching number wwwwone for the rst time in her career, with music that solidi es her pop icon status. e album has incredible features such as

Christine and the Queens and Caroline Polachek on New Shapes only aided its success, as well as a reworking of September’s ‘Cry For You’ on Beg For You with Rina Sawayama.

7. e Weeknd - Dawn FM

I have to admit, I wasn’t sold on this album at rst, but on multiple relistens, it’s clicked for me. A bit of background rst: e Weeknd’s h studio album is produced by a relatively small group, comprised of Max Martin and Daniel Lopetin of Oneohtrix Point Never, the latter of which is a ‘Warp Records’ alumni and architect of the Uncut Gems soundtrack. is is the perfect retro pop classic, lled to the brim with 80s synth and city pop highs without being drowned in sub-bass.

6. Bjork - Fossora

A personal favourite artist of mine, Bjork has used lockdown to cra an exceptional avant-pop record infused with techno beats and ourishes. Plus, features from Emilie Nicholas, Serpentwithfeet and Icelandic electronic trio side project. en there are the tracks, Ancestress, Her Mother’s House and Atopos, which remain highlights of the album. Bjork is back on top form.

5. Kendrick Lamar - Mr. Morale & e Big Steppers

Easily one of the most anticipated albums of the year. e rst words uttered – ‘I’ve been going through something’—instantly set the mood for the album. From the bombastic chorus on N95 to the dramatic journey that is We Cry Together, which features Florence Welch and Taylour Paige. With an artist like Kendrick Lamar, it’s guaranteed that every song will be purposeful and deliberate.

4. Taylor Swi – Midnights

Swi ’s tenth studio album is her best collection of pop songs. While it is a bit of a step down from the interpersonal songwriting of the folklore/evermore era, she more than makes up for it with her collaboration with Jack Antono e restrained, stripped-down production puts into focus her re ned songwriting skills and pop mastery. Midnights is thematically cohesive and sonically engaging, even if Taylor is no longer writing songs like Cardigan or Last American Dynasty.

It is for this reason that gures like Dr Martin Luther King can be celebrated by the FBI, the men who allegedly killed him, or why the Black Panthers and Chairman Fred Hampton can be depicted sympathetically in a lm that took the Academy Awards by storm. Anti-capitalism can’t rely on existing forms of culture to radically change the state of things, the challenge now is how we get around that.

3. Beyoncé – Renaissance

Six years a er Lemonade, Beyonce switches everything up with 90s club sound, with songs such as PURE/HONEY ALIEN SUPERSTAR paying homage to 90s club classics whilst being produced by today’s pop innovators such as Honey Dijon, A.G Cook, Syd, Tems, who o er reinvigorated view of electronic music and beyond. e music speaks for itself.

2. Alvvays – Blue Rev

Alvvays aren’t your typical indie pop band. Every song is a feast for the ears, with memorable hooks, such as the swirling chorus and feedback on Easy On Your Own?. To the witty, self-aware lyricism on Very Online Guy. is is one of those albums to come home wanting to unwind with some sweet melodies that are immediate and sublime.

1. Big ief – Dragon New Warm Mountain I Believe in You

Probably my favourite release of 2022, we have a 20-song double album titled ‘Dragon New Warm Mountain I Believe in You’. Pushing the boundaries of traditional folk instrumentation, Adrianne Lenker and company experiment with trip-hop grooves and wistful harmonies on Spud In nity to the loose, distorted groove of Little ings. e album is a delight for the ears.

Sport & Societies Editor: Hala Haidar