My Top 20 Albums of 2022
The best of one of the best years of music I can remember
Last week I did the songs, this week I do the albums.
Once again, this is a list made by me about the albums I loved the most in this wonderful year for music, so please don’t get upset about any of my rankings or snubs. Here is my list of albums, ranked 20 to 1, that were the best I heard from the past year.
Also, my Top 50 Songs of 2022 are now playlists on Apple Music and Spotify if you would like to listen to it.
First, some honorable mentions:
Bronco - Orville Peck — A fun, deeply enjoyable country record that I liked far more than I expected.
hypochondriac - brakence — This glitch rap album has been out just a few weeks, but is so full of great material and originality.
RAMONA PARK BROKE MY HEART - Vince Staples — Really enjoyed this effort from Vince, even more than his self-titled that had a similar sound. It may not be a “Big Fish Theory,” but I really enjoyed what he did with this smoother, laid back sound.
The Loneliest Time - Carly Rae Jepsen — This one just keeps growing on me. Carly Rae is one of the best pop artists for a reason.
Vinyl Days - Logic — When Logic puts effort into a release you can tell. This 30-song album was one of his best in awhile, and managed to be worth the length.
20.) Big Time - Angel Olsen — Angel Olsen went for a more folk-centric sound on this new album, and it absolutely worked. This is a delightful listen of an album from an artist that continues to impress, no matter the sound she chooses.
19.) Once Twice Melody - Beach House — Much of this album was released prior to 2022, but the full release came this year so I’m counting it. Beach House, the kings of spacey alternative music, did it once again here with 18 songs and 85 minutes of excellent material worth coming back to.
18.) Cheat Codes - Danger Mouse and Black Thought — Simply put, one of the best, most consistent rap albums of the year. All 12 songs from this collaboration deliver, with obvious highlights thanks to excellent features like A$AP Rocky, Run The Jewels, Joey Bada$$ and the late MF DOOM.
17.) Sometimes, Forever - Soccer Mommy — Thanks to production from Oneohtrix Point Never, Soccer Mommy completely elevates her already excellent sound with a unique glitch pop blend. There are more accessible cuts like “Shotgun” and “Following Eyes” that delight, but also songs like “Unholy Affliction” that display how much range she has as an artist.
16.) Being Funny In a Foreign Language - The 1975 — After a relative dud on their last project, The 1975 bounced right back with an album deeply in their wheelhouse. The highs aren’t the highest, but this is maybe the most consistent album in the group’s discography.
15.) Harry’s House - Harry Styles — Harry Styles has now gone 3 for 3 as a solo artists on great albums, and while this one doesn’t break much new ground, it’s as enjoyable to listen to as anything he’s ever put out. The first five songs of the record also make for an unbelievably good start.
14.) Dragon New Warm Mountain I Believe In You - Big Thief — Never in my wildest dreams did I expect to love an 80-minute Big Thief album as much as I did. This is as soothing as an album can be, a true comfort food listen in all the best ways.
13.) King’s Disease III - Nas — For Nas to have this much left in the tank at 49 years old is unbelievable. This is as fiery a release as there was in 2022, a true masterclass old-school rap album with strictly bangers throughout the track list. Dare I say it’s his best album since “Illmatic”?
12.) Dawn FM - The Weeknd — I simply cannot get enough of The Weeknd’s new sound. This 80s synth resurgence fits his silky smooth vocals to perfection, and this felt like an excellent sequel to everything accomplished on “After Hours.”
11.) NO THANK YOU - Little Simz — Little Simz is one of the best rappers working today. Not one of the best UK rappers, not one of the best women rappers, one of the best rappers, period. This three-album run is among the best I have ever heard, with her delivery, lyricism and production choices combining for great song after great song. This album doesn’t reach the ambition of the one prior, but it matches it in quality, something that felt impossible to pull off.
10.) The Family - BROCKHAMPTON
This is not the BROCKHAMPTON album we are used to. It’s moody, it’s full of quick-hitters and it has just one vocalist: Kevin Abstract. And yet, it feels whole. This album, the last fully-realized effort the group is likely ever to release, has brilliant production over Kevin’s deep-cut lyrics about how it all went wrong, and how it was all worth it anyway. It’s a lovely send-off for the boyband, even if it’s not what I was expecting going in.
9.) Midnights - Taylor Swift
No, this is not Taylor Swift’s best album — I’d have it more in the middle. But “Midnights” is yet another excellent effort from the biggest pop star alive, with outstanding highs throughout the album. There is an added maturity from Taylor here compared to “Lover,” her last new pop album, and it makes for a deeply enjoyable listen that topped my most listened list for a reason.
8.) Ants From Up There - Black Country, New Road
Black Country, New Road is making music unlike anybody else, and this latest album is their masterpiece. BCNR’s slow burns work because of the outstanding instrumentation and Isaac Wood’s vocals, which are oozing full of emotion on every track here. Wood’s time with the group is over, but he left on the highest of high notes with this album.
7.) Hellfire - black midi
These British lunatics have been on my radar for a few years for what I would describe as music that feels like it is suffocating you. Their previous albums were very good, but “Hellfire” kicked it up 8,000 notches in all the best ways. This album is musical madness with exciting detour after detour until you’re all the way down to hell with them. It’s never an easy listen, but it’s always rewarding.
6.) Melt My Eyez See Your Future - Denzel Curry
Just when it feels like you can put Denzel Curry’s sound into a box, he releases thus groundbreaking album that shows he can do just about anything in hip-hop. Denzel trades his intense delivery for much smoother cuts with excellent melodies, and somehow it completely pays off.
5.) And In The Darkness, Hearts Aglow - Weyes Blood
Weyes Blood continues to make some of the most beautiful music I have ever heard. Each song on this new album manages to be, for lack of a better word, haunting, fully encapsulating my attention no matter the length. There’s a level of calm felt when she sings over these gorgeous instrumentals, and the album even mixes it up with loads of success in the back half. Not a moment is wasted in this 10-track record, making nearly every song a highlight in this wonderful album.
4.) SOS - SZA
It’s hard to know if I am underrating or overrating this album considering it’s been out such a small amount of time, but I think the former is more likely than the latter. Even in two weeks, I cannot stop coming back to this SZA record, which manages to make all 23 songs worth your time. This is a stunning sophomore album from SZA, one that’s packed with great tracks and enough variety to keep your attention. Somehow, the five-year wait was completely worth it.
3.) RENAISSANCE - Beyonce
There’s always reason to be excited for a new Beyonce album, but the “BREAK MY SOUL” single, on its own, had me a little concerned for where she was going. Then I heard the whole album, and I realized I’m a moron for ever doubting. To say Beyonce has done it again would be selling it short. Beyonce made an album with pop and house influences and elevated it to such an extreme level I did not know possible. The way each track seamlessly goes into the next makes for such a satisfying listen, and add to that Beyonce’s brilliant vocal range, and it’s a recipe for one of the catchiest albums in recent memory.
2.) Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers - Kendrick Lamar
Five years removed from his last album, this was about as excited for an album as I’ve ever been. And Kendrick Lamar, maybe the greatest rapper of all-time, came through once again in a huge way. This two-part album is Kendrick at his most vulnerable, his least heroic, and it comes out in a variety of sounds and vibes that I never would have anticipated.
And yet, almost all of it works. The hard-hitters hit as hard as ever. The R&B cuts are brilliantly executed. And, by the end, Kendrick makes it clear that he is no longer trying to be anything he isn’t, he’s just him. He showed it only how he could, with one of the most enthralling, enjoyable albums of the year.
1.) The Forever Story - JID
This list was hard to decide for the first 19 spots. First place wasn’t.
I really enjoyed JID’s music heading into this album. I did not expect that JID had this in him. “The Forever Story” is an hour of hip-hop perfection, from the beats to the performances to the flow of the album down to the lyrics. There’s not a single track out of place, a single moment wasted, a single verse that doesn’t feel up to par.
The first six tracks hit you in the face with energy in a variety of unique ways, and if the album kept that up the whole time I might still be here talking about it at No. 1. But JID instead makes a middle section of slower cuts, all of which are as excellent as anything he’s ever released. From “Kody Blu 31” to “Sistanem,” I am just completely taken aback that he’s managed to pull off this sound.
The album finishes as strong as it started, especially if you include the “2007” bonus track that was a sample issue away from being on the original record. Regardless, this is a special, special album, one of the greatest rap albums I have ever listened to. JID is no longer up-and-coming, he is here. This is an album only someone at the top of his craft could make, and my god did he make it.
“The Forever Story” is undoubtedly the best album I heard in 2022, and it could easily be the best album I hear this decade.
If you are interested in me talking about random topics like this, or on my more focused posts with Big Ten women’s basketball, you can subscribe with the button above or share with the button below.