Written by Barlovv
It’s June, which means we are half way through 2022 – so lets talk best albums of the year. The albums are not listed in any particular order, but – because this is a list on the internet – are – obviously – objectively the best of the year and absolutely not a matter of opinion, so if you disagree you’re wrong. 2022 is shaping up to be a banger of a year musically, and that’s a relief given what piss it has been otherwise. Anyways, lets get into it folks –
Soul Glo – Diaspora Blues
I haven’t moshed in probably a decade, so it’s nice to remember what getting the shit kicked out of you to music feels like. Soul Glo takes zero time in blasting into Diaspora Blues – it’s fast, it’s angry, and it couldn’t be more welcome in a year this infuriating.
foxtails – fawn
Growing up on a steady diet of screamo music that all basically sounded the same, with guys who looked exactly like me, foxtails is a breath of fresh fucking air. Every second of fawn feels like a genuine expression of pain and fear and despair – all of those in the best possible way. I knew I loved the album in the first minutes, and that has not changed.
Monuments – In Stasis
A metalcore/djent album featuring Mick Gordon – the man behind the soundtrack to Doom and Doom Eternal – on more than one track? The album was begging me to love it, and so I do. It may not be breaking new ground or advancing the art form, but sometimes this is the exact thing you need.
Earthless – Night Parade of One Hundred Demons
There’s something almost nostalgic about Earthless, it seems like the kind of thing my dad would have been into and knew a guy who knew a guy who sold them weed or something. That’s so oddly specific, but it’s hard not to get specific during a 20 minute song of psychedelic rock music. All of that is to say, this was one of the first albums I listened to in 2022, the album that got my interest in music up and running again, and really, is prbably the reason I’m writing for this website right now. So.
Animals as Leaders – Parrhesia
There was no reality where Parrhesia wasn’t going to be on this list. Animals as Leaders absolutely shreds through this album and delivers more top-notch prog metal – as is their way. You can’t go wrong here, just listen to it.
Bloodywood – Rakshak
Do you ever find yourself wondering what Linkin Park might sound like if they were a bit heavier and from India? I hadn’t either, but now that I’ve heard it there’s no going back. Bloodywood mix metal and nu metal with some traditional music. It rules pretty hard and you should be listening to it.
Confess – Revenge at All Costs
Metal can, at times, be hilariously self serious and eye rollingly un-self aware. That’s why when a band comes around like Iran’s Confess, who found themselves facing 14 years and 70 lashes for anti-government and anti-religious views, it’s a nice reminder that there are folks for whom metal genuinely puts them at risk and who put something on the line to create the art that means something to them. This album fucking rules.
Anchoress – Stay Positive
One of my all time favourite bands puts out an album extremely close to my birthday – what am I going to do? Not put it on my list? Anchoress are an extremely good post-hardcore band from Vancouver, BC who don’t know how to put out a bad album. You will like what you hear, so get to it.
Otoboke Beaver – Super Champon
No question about it, Super Champon is one of the most chaotic albums I’ve ever listened to. Managing to combine an almost sickly sweet cuteness with ferocious intensity in a way that feels like it shouldn’t work at all, but super fucking does. There is, admittedly, some language and cultural barriers in place that I have to admit lacking context for, but it doesn’t make a single bit of difference to how hard this album slaps.
Zeal and Ardor – Zeal and Ardor
After Devil is Fine cemented itself as one of my favourite albums of all time and the single “Vigil” made me cry in a grocery store, I was completely on board with the Zeal and Ardor hype train. Thankfully, I was rewarded again with this self titled effort – which shows off a tremendous amount of skill in a whole lot of different genres. It’s just so good.
Olhava – Reborn
A late edition, but ooooooh baby is it a good fucking record. Four songs span over an hour of brutal and desolate soundscapes. Black gaze is a genre that I never knew the name of, but now that I do, it’s kind of all I really want.
Black Country, New Road – Ants From Up There
I am absolutely on my hipster bullshit with this one, but what can you do? When you like a thing you just do. It definitely took some time to get on board with Black Country, New Road but at some point it absolutely clicked in my brain and was exactly what I wanted. It’s another of the first albums that I heard this year, and it also helped me to get more interested in seeking out new and different music.
Bo Burnham – Inside (Deluxe)
So many rules are being broken with this one, it came out on June 1st, it’s an original release from last year, honestly there’s no legitimate reason that I can put this on my best of the first half of 2022 list… but Bo Burnham released over an hour of cut content from Inside and I want more people to watch and/or listen to it. Any excuse to big up Bo Burnham is one I’m going to take.
