BEST & WORST OF '22!
- Sophia Cook
- Oct 3, 2022
- 9 min read
Updated: Apr 4, 2023
There’s no way that I could indulge in every release of 2022, but I have found my albums of choice. 2022 has been an incredible year for music– the best one that we’ve had in a while, and it’s extremely deserved. I say this aware that though there have been the Mr. Morale’s of the year, there have also been the Honestly, Nevermind’s. Here’s my favorite, and frankly some of the best, LPs of the year, as well as my least favorites, and albums soon to be released that I’ve been awaiting.
MR. MORALE & THE BIG STEPPERS, Kendrick Lamar
Kendrick Lamar’s first album drop in 5 years. Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers is one of the most, if not the most, anticipated drop of the year. The rapper's fifth studio album focuses on affairs that he’s tackled during his absence. Lamar takes this album as an opportunity to break away at the image he’s made for himself, discussing his deepest personal issues. Mr. Morale ventures into the fight with generational trauma, cancel culture, masculinity, and gender identity, making this Lamar’s most controversial album to date. Since this is a double album, we find that the first half, “Big Steppers”, sets up most of these topics while the latter half, “Mr. Morale”, plunge into them with closer attention. He recognizes heavy burdens that have been put on himself, some by his own doing, which we hear in Crown when he sings, “heavy is the head that chose to wear the crown”. Ultimately, the rapper chooses himself over the image that has been painted for him. With production by Pharrell Williams, The Alchemist, Sounwave, and Oklama, amid many others, Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers was set up to be among the greatest albums of 2022.
GEMINI RIGHTS, Steve Lacy
Singer and producer Steve Lacy has written a nearly toxic love story told during Gemini Rights. I would love to say that this is the best produced album of the year, but I don’t have enough qualifications to make that bold of a statement. The second studio album by Lacy shows productorial improvement in comparison to his debut LP, Apollo XXI in 2019. There are a few weak spots on this record, but overall, it’s a phenomenal sound. The conclusion of this album leaves listeners thinking that Lacy has resolved the relational frustration that he pursues for the duration of the album. It’s a beautiful ending to an altogether beautiful album.
IVORY, Omar Apollo
Ivory, Omar Apollo’s debut LP, is hands down the project to set him off. The range of musical styles that he expounds upon are perfectly topped off by his vocals, highlighting them on the entire record. Apollo doesn’t restrain himself in the sense that his lyrics express who he’s becoming as an artist beautifully. It’s safe to say that the work he’s furnished has shown himself as quite a capable writer and musician. The songwriter has stated that he had to do many rewritings as of November 2021 because the music didn’t feel like him. His sound in the past has been strictly R&B, yet he’s truly expanded his sound. Apollo moves from more techno music to beautiful strung out acoustics, diverging himself into different genres. This first full length studio album has delivered the artist an amazing reputation. Apollo recently released the deluxe version of the album, Ivory (Marfil). This includes 5 extra tracks, which are once again all executed flawlessly.
DRAGON NEW WARM MOUNTAIN I BELIEVE IN YOU, Big Thief
Truthfully, I listened to Dragon New Warm Mountain I Believe in You because I read somewhere that an actor I love listened to Big Thief. Produced by the band's drummer, James Krivchenia, Dragon is a magical album. An interview with Pitchfork* reveals that Big Thief doesn’t believe that they can stray away from who they are, no matter how they sound. They are a remarkable group for this, because no matter what music they make, they’re successfully staying genuine with their fans. Because they all play together while recording, the record truly sounds the way that it looks; down to earth and whimsical. Big Thief has embraced impulse, and began recording whenever inspiration struck. Another thing mentioned in this interview is that the band tries to stay united. They don’t want to dissolve who they are as individuals just for more success. Big Thief is admittedly just a group of people who enjoy making music. You can hear their passion and eccentricity through their sound. Being a 20 track double album, there are some songs that seem to drag on. Still, the entirety of this album is mesmerizing to listen to.
UNLIMITED LOVE, Red Hot Chili Peppers
Being the first album since the return of guitarist John Frusciante, and bringing back producer Rick Rubin, Unlimited Love feels comforting to RHCP fans. This may not be one of the best albums of 2022, but it’s one of my favorites. It’s familiar, yet also new, which may be due to Frusciante’s homecoming. The sound is more mellow than their debut breakout sounds, however it still has the same funk and alternative rock energy. Unlimited Love emanates 90s, which I find makes it more pleasurable. The instrumentals are outstanding, with Flea’s bass standing out in the most stunning way, as per usual. RHCP have never failed to make their music artful and bright, and I think that this album captures where they came from. Even when the lyrics aren’t intricate and meaningful, they sound like their old selves, which is what RHCP fans seem to want. I’m thrilled that they’re releasing another album in just a week and a half, also produced by Rick Rubin.
THE FOREVER STORY, JID
JID has done it. The Forever Story is a phenomenal project. You can tell when an artist really cares about their craft because they pour out everything they have into their work. This is precisely what JID has accomplished. JID talks about this album as him stepping into his legacy. The conceptual contrast of The Forever Story to his debut album, The Never Story shows the growth the JID has experienced in his personal life, as well as his professional life. While the debut is more of a humble beginning, The Forever Story is a record diving deeper into his origin, especially when it comes to his family. In an interview with Apple Music**, JID brings his whole family to praise the stories represented in the album. This record is anything but stale. The first listen may be overwhelming because of how often JID changes his flow, but that’s what makes the album novel. His vocals are something that we’ve never heard from him before, and they impress. The record has universally ecstatic beats that are never stagnant. In my opinion, this may be AOTY.
Now that I’ve covered a few of my favorite, and frankly a handful of the best albums of the year, I’m going to share some of the most disappointing releases of 2022.
DS4EVER, Gunna
Starting the year off with a blow was DS4EVER, being Gunna’s third studio album. Nothing on this album stands out to me; the vocals, beats, or production. I should make clear that I didn’t expect much out of this album, but regardless, it was dry and bland. I felt that almost all of the features on this record outshined Gunna’s vocals, which are on autopilot the whole time. Earlier I mentioned the lyrics on Unlimited Love, and how they’re light, not that meaningful, and a little stupid, but that upholds the brand that the Red Hot Chili Peppers have. In comparison to “stupid” lyrics, DS4EVER has plainly bad lyrics. Quite literally the only thing mentioned in the entirety of this album is having sex and finishing. Yes this is a recurring subject in rap music, but nothing original was done with the record, except for the word “pesbian”. Almost every beat sounds like the same bland beat with nothing special to them.
HONESTLY, NEVERMIND, Drake
In my opinion, Drake dropped the worst album of the year. Honestly, Nevermind, Drake’s seventh studio album, has maybe one hit. I wasn’t a fan of Certified Lover Boy, but he royally flopped on this one. I read a comment saying that there are some artists that are bigger than their music. I think this is a perfect representation of Drake and his brand. These days, fans like him more for his name and who he used to be as a writer and an artist, rather than his new music. It feels like he’s been on autopilot, simply making music to put beat after repetitive beat out, and not because he is passionate about his art. Honestly, Nevermind is an album full of electronic house party beats that flow perfectly into each other, but the writing lacked any kind of precision or care, which may have dented my respect for Drake as a writer.
VIVA LAS VENGEANCE, Panic! At The Disco
I am guilty of having an emo phase. However, this was when Panic! At The Disco made good music. Their releases from 2005-2013, and maybe even Death of a Bachelor, all reigned better than Viva Las Vengeance. Over the span of the last few albums, P!ATD has been below the mark, but maybe that’s just because I know the standard of Panic! music. Brendan Urie can make some singalongs, but nothing remotely comparable to early P!ATD records. I wasn’t planning on listening to this album cover to cover because I didn’t enjoy the title single that came out– it sounded like Urie was in pain singing it, as holds to be true for many of the tracks on this record. And while the album technically sounds good due to its production, the album itself is not enjoyable to me. Viva Las Vengeance was recorded on an 8-track tape in attempts to make it sound older. This may be the only exciting factor of this album. All of the recent Panic! music has been reflecting theater music and lacking depth. Pray for the Wicked was a broadway pop album, and while this record is a bit of a step up from that, it still holds its theatrical aspects. I can hear the nod to Queen that Urie wanted to include on this record, but it’s far too extravagant and taken past the point of enjoyment. I can’t appreciate the music the way that P!ATD wanted me to.
GOD DID, DJ Khaled
I didn’t really expect much from DJ Khaled’s GOD DID. There are definitely parts of this album that stand out, such as Jay-Z’s verse on the title track. The thirteenth studio album consists of a lot of repetitive and thus stale beats. It’s a crime that Ye let Khaled remix Use This Gospel with an uncoordinated Eminem feature. Even though Khaled gets such a range of artists to sing on this record, they all sound so bored. The intro to PARTY is sloppy and I’m not sure why. It’s almost offensive that the 8 minute title track needed more than four straight minutes of Jay-Z, so Khaled also added John Legend and Lil Wayne, among a few others. It is clear that a lot of work was poured into this album, yet it still sounds careless, and it’s almost too cluttered to value.
MAINSTREAM SELLOUT, Machine Gun Kelly
It breaks me to write this, but I do think that Machine Gun Kelly’s mainstream sellout was a bit of a let down. I have seen him twice in the past year, and he puts on an amazing show. However, Tickets To My Downfall was astronomically better than this release. During my first listen to this album, I remember thinking that all the tracks sounded the same, with a majority of the songs barely reaching the 3 minute mark. There are some stand out songs, but a lot of the lyrics lacked attentiveness. The bonus tracks on the deluxe version of mainstream sellout upped the ante of this album for me, but I still do think that it was underwhelming. I admire that he doesn’t want to put himself in a box, genre wise. Still, I don’t want him to milk out the pop punk revival to the point where it’s stagnant. I think that it would be interesting to see him tackling some other genres, as well as making more rap records, but for now, I’m going to stick with Tickets To My Downfall.
Overall, this year has been a very eye opening year for musicians of every genre. There has been so much confession and self reflection, as well as personal growth through these records. I don’t think that this year is over regarding music. There are a few more releases that are contesters to become my favorite album of the year. Here are a few more albums that I’m looking forward to being released, and that you should keep your eyes out for over the next month!
Being Funny in A Foreign Language – The 1975 (October 14)
Return of the Dream Canteen – Red Hot Chili Peppers (October 14)
The Car – Arctic Monkeys (October 21)
Midnights – Taylor Swift (October 21)
Sonder – Dermot Kennedy (November 4)
ALSO A NEW BROCKHAMPTON ALBUM (no scheduled release date yet)
Honorable mentions for favorite/best albums–
2000 – Joey Bada$$
RAMONA PARK BROKE MY HEART – Vince Staples
It’s Almost Dry – Pusha T
Few Good Things – Saba
Make sure to check out the rest of my Spotify to see what kind of music I love, and where this blog will go.
Thank you for reading! I hope that you enjoyed this but if you didn’t, that’s okay too. If you’d like a deeper dive into any of these albums, let me know and I’d be happy to deliver!
LOVE YOU ALL SEE YOU NEXT TIME XOXO
Soph <3
October 3rd, 2022. By Sophia Cook.
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