2022 has been a phenomenal year for music of all genres: neckbreaking-riffs, soul-crushing ballads and occasional genius. When it's more important than ever, music continues to bring us together. The mic members are delighted to highlight our favourite albums of the year!
Big Thief ~ Dragon New Warm Mountain I Believe in You
"It's a little bit magic". Big Thief's magnum opus overflows with an otherworldly togetherness and is wickedly well recorded. Drummer James Krivchenia heads up production masterfully, weaving a tapestry of diverse techniques, soundworlds and ear candy. Adrianne Lenker continues to challenge as the greatest songwriter of the 2000s, effortlessly penning timeless song after timeless song (not to mention her 2020 triumph of timeless songs, Songs). It's a warm album full of musings on life and loss, chosen family and friendship, magic and nature. It's a deeply joyful accompaniment to life's unpredictable nature and a rewarding listen for fans already invested on the bands discography, as well as the members' solo work. A passionate contribution to guitar music, DNWMIBIY is an unquestionably timeless collection of songs that will follow me throughout my adult life. I'm taking my chance now to apologise to my future kids for playing Spud Infinity and Certainty constantly throughout their childhoods. I couldn't help it.
(Read the full review here - https://www.themicmagazine.co.uk/post/album-review-big-thief-dragon-new-warm-mountain-i-believe-in-you)
Ewan Samms
Black Country New Road ~ Ants from Up There
Ants from Up There is Black Country New Road’s magnum opus. It is emphatic, vulnerable
and sonically revolutionary. Released in the wake of frontman Isaac Wood’s departure, the
album achieves everything Black Country New Road are capable of. Whilst many would
argue Black Country, New Road to be pretentious, overly complicated, the album is often
more on the nose, more overt in its objective. Wood’s delivery and subject matter is
unapologetically visceral and vulnerable, and the sonic collision of the 7 piece only
emphasises its brilliance. It’s easy, amongst his pained lyricism to forget just how
accomplished the rest of the brand are. Tyler Hyde, Lewis Evans, Georgia Ellery, May
Kershaw, Charlie Wayne and Luke Mark comprise the band, and amongst the almost
orchestral collusion of noise, what emerges is the unparalleled coherence of the group, seen
most poignantly in their Queen Elizabeth Hall performance, where the raw, emotional power
of the album is clear. Black Country, New Road achieve a level of artistic mastery on Ants
from Up There that no album this year achieves, and Basketball Shoes, the album’s final
track is an ode to their accomplishment. There is no better pertinent example of BCNR’s
brilliance than the building cacophony of Basketball Shoes, reaching its crescendo in Wood’s
devastating line, ‘Oh, you’re generous loan to me, you’re crippling interest’. Black Country,
New Road may never revisit the tracks on Ants From Up There again, as they attempt to
forge the band’s new direction post Wood’s departure, but there is no doubt, for me at least,
that Ants From Up There will be lauded for decades to come, as a work of unrelenting
genius.
Will Griffin
Black Midi ~ Hellfire
There will be another Harry’s House, there will be another The Car, but in my eyes there will not be another Hellfire. Black MIDI gifted us this year with an absolute (and excuse the pun) cavalcade of an album. It’s post-punk, it’s jazz, it’s an apocalyptic musical about death and the afterlife. But most importantly to BM frontman Georgie Greep, it’s FUN. Hellfire is a near 40 minute adventure into the wonderful minds of these Brit-school trained cosmonauts. From machinist monologue Welcome to Hell, the fast-paced Jacobean jazz rock number Sugar/Tzu or arguably the quintessential Black MIDI track The Race Is About To Begin, the album forgets to breathe as it attempts to take you on the journey of genre, narrative and technical marvel. The production is booming, it makes every effort to make this explosion of sound palatable. Some will call it a masterpiece, others will call it messy or overwhelming. This album doesn’t care really, it wants your attention. It wants you to take it seriously. but most importantly, it just wants you to have fun.
Riley Halls Backler
Courting ~ Guitar Music
Courting, a band that I already had an eye on, completely grabbed my attention this year with Guitar Music - a killer album that subverts any and all expectations placed upon them. It’s punchy, abrasive and more than anything, a whole lot of fun. Courting refuse to stay in an indie rock, ‘guitar music’ lane with their debut, exploring pop, hyperpop, post-punk and indie rock. You’d think that might lead to a bitty mess, but that’s just not the case; it’s loud, proud and packed with a bite in a way that somehow just works. With incredibly clever and memorable lyrics, the album covers relationships, paypigs, changing cities and image with a well-balanced dose of distortion and auto-tune to create a really unique listening experience. It’s overwhelming in the best possible way, and more than any other album that I’ve heard this year, it makes me ridiculously excited for what’s on the horizon for the Liverpudlian four-piece.
Izzy Morris
Fontaines DC ~ Skinty Fia
From the release of the single Jackie Down the Line, I knew Fontaines DC’s third offering was set to
be yet another masterful body of work. Breaking the chains from punk-inflected debut Dogrel, Skinty
Fia proves to be a gleaming album with troubling undertones intertwined throughout. Tackling
issues of cultural identity, heritage and, ultimately, what its like to be an Irishman in England, this
album feels like a wound that refuses to close. Haunting opener In ár gCroíthe go deo feels both
lonely and overwhelming. Chatten’s tearing vocals fight against stubborn, incorrigible drums in a
track which marks the beginning of a searing, down-swirling drag into reflection and vulnerability.
Songs such as How Cold Love Is and Nabokov were easy to fall in love with. Rumbling guitars open a
cavernous amalgam of sound, with Deegan’s melancholic vocal delivery of, "daze ya, phase ya”,
lending an element of shoegaze to their growing list of influences. With heart wrenching The Couple
Across the Way marking the most distinct deviation from tracks of juvenile resistance featured in
their previous work, Fontaines strip their sound back to placid vocals atop a hypnotic accordion
section. The track is consciously repetitive, echoing deep fears of monotony and growing old,
embittered and unlovable which inhabit us all. Unmistakable fan favourite I Love You is an
anguished cry for the homeland. An irresistible bass hook lures us into a track which flawlessly
intensifies, amassing in an explosive crescendo. In a manner almost possessed, Chatten addresses
disillusionment, Ireland’s shattered political landscape, the housing crisis and male suicide. Skinty Fia
is a rich, introspective evolution of sound for the Irish quintet. It is captivating, moody and melodic-
you could say this is the album Ireland deserves. Arguably their most important offering to date.
Alice Beard
Harry Styles ~ Harry's House
I would happily move into Harry’s House; providing he puts the furniture back on the floor. Picking
the Cheshire-raised star’s third album as my AOTY was easy. I was hooked from the first bright
bouncy riffs of the first single As it Was, to the last anthemic notes of Styles’ love letter to the UK,
Love of My Life. The brilliant brassy crescendos of Music for a Sushi Restaurant provide a brilliant
opening for what is my favourite of Harry’s albums so far, and as if the opening track couldn’t get
any better… HARRY STYLES SCATTING. A gift I never knew I needed until it happened. The album serenades with themes of infatuation, the ends of relationships and memories of previous ones – all done exquisitely, but the expected kinds of love-based pop songs. However, two less common
themes come from the previously mentioned Love of My Life, which is a simultaneous apology and
declaration of affection for his home – if I had to speculate likely because we (we meaning fans in
the UK but in the spirit of honesty I’m including myself) have become a little territorial given the
amount of time he has spent across the pond in recent years. The other comes from the tear-jerking,
beautifully sincere, Matilda; a message of support for a friend who had confided some details of the
suffering they had endured. I have my opinions on the obsession with relatability, but it is the
relatability combined with the empathic nature of this song that allows so many people to feel
listened to and comforted. Harry’s House has something for everyone, and I challenge all of those
who tend to turn their nose up at pop music to not enjoy at least one track.
Jack Knapton
Lamb of God ~ Omen
When your favourite band releases an album it’s always a special occasion, and arguably more
so as a music journalist. I was very wary to wax lyrical about the new Lamb Of God album, as
the previous one hadn’t quite hit the level I had hoped it would, however the new release was
everything I was wishing for and then some. The songs were filled with grinding metallic riffs,
scathing lyricism, and guttural shrieks, with political and social opinions being set loose in the
most aggressive way possible. The title track has gang vocals aplenty, something that always
gives me a little tickle of enjoyment, and album highlight Ditch began with the most
apoplectically angry scream I’ve heard from anyone this year, and possibly so far this decade.
Album closer September Song was key to my enjoyment of the album, as it is a strafe to the left
of Lamb Of God’s usual fare and opens their sound up into a more majestic affair, in direct
contrast to the hardcore-inspired Grayscale that is gone just about as quickly as it arrives,
leaving you with barely enough time to actually process what you’re listening to before it sweeps
you off your feet and down into a pit of crushingly heavy music. Each band member is on
exquisite form, with Randy Blythe howling like some tortured demon and Art Cruz causing
demolition of the eardrum with his bludgeoning artillery of a drumkit. The strings are just as
good, being held up by John Campbell’s uniquely devastating bass lines underneath the twin
guitar attack of Willie Adler’s riffing machinations and Mark Morton’s searing solos. This album
once again reinforces the band's immovable position, incumbent at the top of the metal podium.
Jake Longhurst
Sticky Fingers ~ Lekkerboy
The sticky boys are back! After an over-3-year break since their last album Yours To Keep released, Lekkerboy dropped in April of this year. Having wanted to go back to a more acoustic feel, the album evolved over its production during lockdown resulting in an amalgamation of a variety of genres. Some people prefer an album that flows from one song to the other, but I don’t mind this bouncing around; it means that there’s something for everyone on Lekkeryboy. With the original plan of having a more uplifting and positive album being scrapped due to resurfacing inner-demons of the band members, Lekkerboy contains pieces that cover heartbreak, overcoming addiction, as well as uplifting tracks such as we can make the world glow. My favourite song Napalm falls within the initial production plan predominantly being played by two acoustic guitars with light piano elements adding a poignant, melancholic feeling. “One day, I'll wake up and feel brand new”- my favourite lyric from the track. We are all in a constant state of change and evolution, but sometimes we put pressure on ourselves to feel different immediately. Sticky fingers have always been a band that has been open and vocal about their struggles, with their lyrics highlighting a lot of it. No matter what your personal demons are, you’re not alone, and Sticky Fingers are here to cry, laugh, love lose with you.
Michael Haddad
Malicious Intent ~ Malevolence
Malevolence, under their own record label created in 2019, ‘MLVLTD’, released the modern metal
masterpiece Malicious Intent in May 2022. This album brought the best of the small band and their
rise to becoming a well-known name within the UK metal scene. Due to Malevolence being under
their own record label, this prevented any creative limitations which clearly shows throughout the
album, with the band not holding back on emotion, or fusion of sounds. The band have never
followed the rule book when it comes to modern metal, fusing a range of genres together including,
Hardcore, Punk, Sludge and Thrash to create a belting unique sound like no other.
Malicious Intent showcases raw emotions, through self-reflection and progression, which resonates
with many of the listeners. The album has proven the evolution of metal as well as mature and well-
rounded sound from the band, displaying strength and individual growth. Personally, my favourite
track from the record is Still Waters Run Deep with its thrash guitar riff and bassline, a true anthem
for dedication and resilience, this track feels like one of the heaviest from the album with Hardcore
elements at it’s heart. A track that shows the emotional side of the band Higher Place which is a
slow and steady ballad, which is an outcast within the album, yet fits the band and it’s image
perfectly.Malicious Intent is my personal album of the year due to it’s breakthrough for the band as well as introducing a greatly undefinable sound to the UK metal scene, putting us once again, back on the map for having incredible talent for heavy music.
Kerenza Hudson
Marlowe ~ Marlowe 3
Marlowe is a collaborative hip hop project by rapper Solemn Brigham and producer
L’Orange, and potentially the best musical discovery I have made this year. The brilliant
(now finished) Hip Hop Saved My Life podcast introduced me to their magic, as Romesh
Ranganathan’s infatuation with them was enough to make me curious. His brief feature on
the album in Rom Auditions must have been a dream come true, particularly after his
jealousy of other comedians such as James Acaster, who has featured on similar projects
such as Quelle Chris’s 2019 album Guns (his flow, however, is questionable). Marlowe 3 continues with the duo’s classic incorporation of jazz instrumentation, further
elevating the high energy of Brigham’s clever lyricism. These jazz rap beats, paired with the
continuation of Old-Hollywood-sounding voices guiding the listener, seem to give the album
a timeless hip hop feel. Eddy Appetite’s Bulletproof Steering Wheel is a real ode to classic
skits, and shows the importance of listening to a project as a whole, start to finish, like the
good old days. Always choosing innovation, this album is a genius blend of high energy
tracks like Heist, moving smoothly into haunting vocalisations layered with an easy-going
beat on Plenty Dreams. But again, for something so excitingly diverse, Marlowe 3 still flows
as a whole, and should be at the top of anyone’s list when looking for new creative projects
that aren’t just a string of songs, which are becoming harder to come by in the genre.
I can safely affirm the words of the mysterious voice at the start of Past Life, "the first time I
swing, the second time I shoot, and I do both good", in full knowledge that the third time
doesn’t miss either. Seeing this duo come together in a live show would definitely be
something to look out for; having just finished their European tour in the last month, let’s
hope they bless us with more music soon.
Tabitha Smith
The Smile ~ A light for Attracting Attention
The Smile is a three-piece band comprised of Radiohead’s Thom Yorke and Jonny Greenwood, joined by Sons of Khemet drummer Tom Skinner. Drawing obvious comparisons to Radiohead, The Smile has separated itself from the melancholic alt-rock of the past and produced a fascinating new album that sits in the periphery between post-punk and jazz.
A Light for Attracting Attention gracefully balances the more exciting and heavier side of their sound with some of the most delicately beautiful songs produced by these musicians in their respective careers. From the blistering 5/4 drumbeat driving the sex-pistols-esque, politically charged You Will Never Work in Television Again to the gentle and dreamlike sonic landscape of Open the Floodgates; The Smile refuses to repeat themselves, leaving every song overflowing with musical ingenuity. Thin Thing sees Greenwood playing against himself using a short single delay to create a rhythmically dense progression that then transforms into a snarling riff in the B section. Skinner accompanies this with a franticly chaotic drum grove in 3/4 alongside Yorke’s screaming vocals, giving this track an ecstatic energy that is impossible to ignore.
My personal favourite track Skrting On The Surface sees the band sitting comfortably in a laid-back 11/8 groove with Yorke delivering the album's most intimate lyrics over a finger-picked guitar. The track then goes into a more experimental section that sees Greenwood finger picking the same 11/8 progression panned hard right and then playing a shorter version of the same progression panned hard to the left, the two overlapping guitar parts accompanied by a jazz quartet (led by Robert Stillman) quickly fall out of sync with each other and descend briefly into rhythmic chaos before finally meeting again back on the downbeat a couple of bars later. While this might sound messy and confusing on paper, the result is a truly beautiful fusion.
ALAA isn’t without its flaws, Yorke’s lyricism lacks his usual standard overall and there are a couple of tracks, The Same and Waving a White Flag, that cause the album to feel somewhat bloated in places. However, this album is a triumph from a group of musicians who continue to experiment and re-invent themselves over and over, having already written a catalogue of new songs over the course of their Europe tour this summer, I cannot wait to see what this band does next.
Olivia Hannant
Edited by Ewan Samms
All images courtesy of featured artists' official Instagram pages.
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