Top 5 Albums of 2022

40 Watt Sun ‘Perfect Light’ (5/5)

From the opening guitar in “Reveal” you are aware that ‘Perfect Light’ by 40 Watt Sun is going to be a very special record. “I’ll cross the distance in your eyes” is a beautiful lyric within the opener and it sets the stage for what’s to come. “Behind My Eyes” is otherworldly and quite perfect, reminiscent of the seminal Red House Painters work. The centerpiece “The Spaces in Between” has an eloquent piano and strong vocals that contain gorgeous melodies and perfectly drawn out syllables. It’s hard to believe the track is almost 10 minutes long because it seems to be much less and also endless at the same time. “A Thousand Miles” has the most enjoyable instrumentals on the album, with the masterful percussion matched with the understated guitar work and you can get lost in the song very quickly. The vocals are wonderful and they grow on you with each listen. “Of all the days of my life, I knew you here beside me” is a heartbreaking lyric in its delivery. This is another instance where the 9 minute plus runtime feels like it could be 5 minutes or 15 minutes depending on your mood when listening to it. The songwriting on this record is second to none so far this year and fully encapsulates the imagery within.

Sharon Van Etten ‘We’ve Been Going About This All Wrong’ (5/5)

‘We’ve Been Going About This All Wrong’ is the strongest and most beautiful Sharon Van Etten album since ‘Tramp’. It opens with the glorious “Darkness Fades” which is a perfect starting point and a wonderful acoustic-rock inspired slow burner that builds up to a layer of extremely well produced percussion, basslines and synths. Sharon’s vocals shine especially bright on “Darkness Fades” and “Born” where she sings her heart out with her emotion-filled lyrics and does so with so much maturity in her singing style. The album has some great electronic beats within on tracks like “Headspace” and “Home to Me” which conjures up a simple piano and dark floaty backing vocals. “Anything” includes a distant tambourine sound and talks of “peace and war” reminiscent of Jefferson Airplane. “Come Back” has a lo-fi produced acoustic guitar and a chorus that gets stuck in your head. The way she belts out “come back” after singing it so intimately is awe-inspiring. The final number “Far Away” is up there with the opener and “Born” as my personal favorites. The percussion is easy on the ears and her breathy backing vocals really add to the beauty of the track. Not to mention, “Doesn’t matter where she is, not far, I’ll be here for a little while” is one of my favorite vocal parts by anyone in 2022.

Bear’s Den ‘Blue Hours’ (4.5/5)

Bear’s Den are a duo whose latest album ‘Blue Hours’ features extremely strong indie-rock songwriting with really beautiful production elements, horns and most notably, gorgeous piano. The title track is a rocking arrangement somewhere between Frightened Rabbit and The National. “Frightened Whispers” is a wonderful take on electronic production with an easy listening songwriting technique that picks up a quarter of the way through and becomes an ear-worm. “Shadows” is the standout centerpiece that sounds like it could’ve been written by Coldplay. The piano is unquestionably intimate and beautifully arranged. The way the song adds elements like percussion and synths really is wonderfully executed. “I want you and all the shadows that walk beside you” is one of the strongest lyrically sang moments of the year. “All That You Are” has an amazing guitar tone to it and is one of the slower songs on the record, and it moves effortlessly throughout its 4+ minutes. The final number, “All the Wrong Places” is a wonderful way to end ‘Blue Hours.’ It’s chalk full of intimacy and the simplified beat does it justice and the vocals here are some of the best on the album. “You we’re crying, while we were laughing, rolling around on the floor” is sang perfectly and is one of my favorite parts to sing along with in a song this year. This is my personal favorite song on the album due to being the most emotionally expressive and haunting.

S. Carey ‘Break Me Open’ (4.5/5)

Kurt Vile ‘(watch my moves)’ (4.5/5)

Kurt Vile, the shaggy-haired, weirdo rock musician has self-produced his latest album ‘(watch my moves)’ and it’s full of up’s and downs, but mostly up’s. The opener, however, is a downer because it feels unneeded and like it should have just been a demo. “Flyin (like a fast train)” does have very strong elements to it, like the guitar and drum machine sounding percussion part, and the vocals come off as downtrodden and casual but there’s something reflective about them. “Palace of OKC in Reverse” is a reversed guitar part with simple percussion and brasses and the continuation of this combination really pays off with repeated listens. “Mount Airy Hill (Way Gone)” includes gorgeous guitars and awkwardly sang vocals that have a childlike quality to them. “Chazzy Don’t Mind” is written about his friends band Chasity Belt among other things and is one of, if not, my favorite song of the year. The songwriting is profound and the production really pulls you in and never wavers. “Wages of Sin” has a classic quality to it and has some nice lyrical stanzas. The last song, “Stuffed Leopard” is another one of strongest songs of the year by any artist or band, as the guitar is glorious and the songwriting really shines throughout the 6+ minute runtime.