Song of the year from the record of the year.
Bootsy’s Best of ‘22
Alvvays Blue Rev - Toronto band makes a tremendous album three leap and deliver the most satisfying rock record of the year. By turns dreamy, noisy, beautiful and harsh—sometimes all in the same song. Gorgeous melodies, clever lyrics, and a decidedly simpatico band make for an amazing (repeated) listen. And those glorious guitars!
Angel Olsen Big Time - This was the record to beat for most of the year. With a veer towards classic country, she delivers her best batch of songs in an already impressive catalogue.
Aldous Harding Warm Chris - Odd duck New Zealander with another terrific record. Near impossible to describe her style—Alt-folk-cabaret-jazz? However you might categorize it, this is wonderful music.
The Beths Expert in a Dying Field - While they may never top the great front-to-back brilliance of their stellar debut Future Me Hates Me, the 3rd album by this NZ combo delivers plenty of their unique charm.
Spoon Lucifer on the Sofa - I’m beginning to think it’s impossible for these Austinites to make a bad album. Bonus points for opening the record with a fantastic Bill Callahan (Smog) cover.
Sharon Van Etten We’ve Been Going About This All Wrong - While not as consistently strong as some of her previous releases, it does contain a handful of songs that rate among her very best. Like Angel O, a national treasure.
Black Country, New Road Ants From Up There - Young Brits follow up their auspicious debut with an even more audacious second LP. Another one that’s almost impossible to categorize as it runs the gamut from math-rock and Klezmer, to be-bop and Steve Reich inspired contemporary classical. Sadly, lead singer-guitarist Issac Wood left the band the day before the album’s release to attend to mental health issues. I wish him the best.
Tony Molina In the Fade - Bay Area miniaturist with another classic collection of Power Pop brevity. 14 songs in 18 minutes, channeling everyone from Thin Lizzy to Elliot Smith.
Horsegirl Versions of Modern Performance - Young Chicago trio's debut skillfully mines shoegaze, alt rock and jangle, making something old sound new.
Yeah Yeah Yeahs Cool it Down - Down-shifting to a mellower sound, Karen O and company deliver a slick, modern sound that doesn't shy away from the dance floor. “Spitting Off the Edge of the World” one of my favorite singles of the year.
And finally, not a new release but a rediscovery of a record I’d initially dismissed…
Sufjan Stevens Age of Adz - I’d loved pretty much everything he’d done up to this point, but AoA was such a radical departure from his earlier sound that I couldn’t really connect with it upon initial listen. As such, I set it aside. Cue to a random shuffle at the studio earlier this year which spun the 25-minute “Impossible Soul.” A few minutes in I stopped what I was working on and just marveled at the sheer audacity of it. Naturally, Age of Adz soon entered the rotation and would eventually become my favorite Sufjan release. A brilliant album that was way ahead of its time. Or at least ahead of my time.
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This is a good list. I had to laugh as at first I thought this was a Tom Verlaine song about Alvvays! I was like "Tom Verlaine released music in 2022?!!?"
I'll have to re-check out Age of Adz again myself. I remember liking it and having an argument about with a friend who hated it when it was released. It kind faded out of memory after that.
Oooh, you WERE in danger of having me poach your pick! Totally agreed. Best album of the year for me, I'd say. I liked their first two, but the third takes such a leap forward that it's honestly incredible. They've honed their guitar tone and vocals into a sort of "Janglegaze" that is warm and spiky and dreamy and just what I wanted to hear more than anything else this year. (The climax to "Belinda Says" shows off some excellent vocal chops, too, and is probably my favorite moment in music this year).
I also think that the Spoon album is being slept on because of how consistent Spoon is. They do what they do and they do it better than just about everyone else.
With Age of Adz, I needed an 'in' to really make sense of it, and "Vesuvius" was that in. From there, everything else started to click on subsequent listens until it may well be my favorite Sufjan album. I'd say it's certainly his most rewarding. On that note, have you heard the "The Christmas Unicorn" from his Christmas album? It plays out similarly to 'Impossible Soul' and ends with an interpolation of 'Love Will Tear Us Apart' that, like you said in your 'Impossible Soul' write-up, you have to just sit back and marvel at the sheer audacity. It's definitely a sometimes food, but it's a good one.