The question of how to find peace hung heavily over the years most impactful records.
Best of 2022
The best entertainment of the year, as chosen by Vultures critics.
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2022 was a rough year.
Too many lives were lost.
Too much cultural progress was erased.
The music released in this climate struggled to grapple with constricting times.
Harry Stylessang aboutthe comforts of home.
Kendrick Lamargot into self-help books.
Heres a survey of the best albums that pushed the cultural dial this year.
10.Meshuggah,Immutable
10.
Delightfully, it turns out to be a spiel from Haake on AI.
9.Sudan Archives,Natural Brown Prom Queen
9.
8.Nilufer Yanya,PAINLESS
8.
The breathy trouble bubbles and froths like water; the opener the dealer has a palpable Stone Roses swagger.
The writing is cerebral, and the grooves are impossibly delicate.
7.Ari Lennox,age/sex/location
7.
OnA/S/L,power and softness cohabitate.
If Ari asks you to Stop By for a while, its implied youll be leaving.
Its telling that the hookup song is called Waste My Time and the meet-cute song is called Boy Bye.
6.Steve Lacy,Gemini Rights
6.
Its about a breakup, but its also about getting back out there on the rebound.
Read Craig Jenkinssinterviewwith Steve Lacy.
5.Soul Glo,Diaspora Problems
5.
The bong rip and the Can I live?
at the top of Gold Chain Punk (whogonbeatmyass?
4.The Smile,A Light for Attracting Attention
4.
Every time Thom Yorke lands on a signature sound, he smashes it to bits.
This all makes the Smile a shock.
Read Craig JenkinssreviewofA Light for Attracting Attention.
3.Bad Bunny,Un Verano Sin Ti
3.
El Apagon gives a tribute to Puerto Rico a blast of infectious EDM.
Read Gary SuarezsreviewofUn Verano Sin Ti.
2.Vince Staples,Ramona Park Broke My Heart
2.
Its a worthy scion of the gangsta-rap tradition preceding it.
Read Craig JenkinssreviewofRamona Park Broke My Heart.
1.Beyonce,Renaissance
1.
The wait for the seventh proper Beyonce album was as long as the finished product is great.
Its a face-melting display of vocal excellence, full of flawless runs and perfectly placed harmonies.
Honorable Mention
The Weeknd,Dawn FM
Read Craig Jenkinsreview ofDawn FM.
Earl Sweatshirt,SICK!
Its a trip watching a master of his crafts working out how accessible they need to be.
The songs are deceptively sweet and tuneful but beset by incredible anxiety.
Its a testament to Sabas talent and versatility thatFew Good Thingsis a smooth ride.
These songs take chances, and Lenkers writing remains intense and impressionistic.
Read Justin Curtosinterview with Big Thief.
The punishing Hidden Species (Vitrification of Blood, Pt.
On its third album, the band torches its own playbook.
Its more like Vein is looking for more tools to smash us in the head with.
Production is plush and intricate; even the keyboards in the Eurythmics soundalike Good Ones seem beefy.
The questions about ownership that this raises are sensible.
The optics are iffy, but the sonics are pretty.
Read Craig Jenkinssreview ofMotomami.
Lean in, and you hear harsh truths coated in pop sensibilities.
Lambert bringsMarfas spirit of change, and a few of its songs, toPalomino, her ninth solo album.
The new tracks ache and shake and strut.
She knows what shes doing.
Impressively, hes playing most of this music by himself.
The world is changing, you cant reverse it, Olsen sings in the volcanic Go Home.
The truth is with you, you cant rehearse it.
Flo Milli,You Still Here, Ho?
Read Tirhakah Lovesinterview with Flo Milli.
His albums examine their subjects on a granular level.
Read Craig Jenkinssinterview with John Darnielle.
This summersThe Elephant Mans Bonesfinally delivers an album-length pairing of Marcis gangster chronicles and the Alchemists expert sample chops.
Read Craig Jenkinss 2021interview with Freddie Gibbs.
Read Craig Jenkinssinterview with Titus Andronicus singer-songwriter Patrick Stickles.
Read Jason P. Franksguide to BjorksFossora.
But then life happened.
Mercer got wrapped up in his flagship outfitsHeartwormsalbum, and Danger Mouse pecked away at several different projects.
Read Craig Jenkinssinterview with Danger Mouse.
His eighth album is a showcase for that versatility.
79th and Stony Island and Crenshaw and Homeland reconcile an Illinois upbringing with the SoCal present.
Burner Account and Multi-Game Arcade Cabinet bounce bars off indie-rap luminaries such as Billy Woods and R.A.P.
Hes steeling himself for more jarring twists, seeking understanding amid lifes peaks and valleys.
These songs come and go like fast-approaching storm fronts, leaving you stewing long after theyve blown over.
My town was a wasteland / Full of cages, full of fences / Pageant queens and big pretenders.
Lesser performers might collapse into self-parody traipsing through their creative and romantic pasts.
Swift handles it with factory-like precision.
The twists never distract from the message.
Lyrics often address a weary we.
Weve all become strangers.
Oh, we dont have time anymore to be afraid.
We are more than just the pain.
Spoiler alert: The balm for our pain is companionship.
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