Top 10 Albums of 2022

Dr. Acula - Self Titled

This album is Dr. Acula’s first in just about a decade, and is entirely unlike anything they’ve previously released. Lacking some of the familiar party tracks from earlier albums, this full-length release is surprisingly mature and borrows heavily from elements of death-, metal-, grind-, and mathcore (with a splash of doom and black metal) to make something truly special. It’s bursting at the seams with seemingly endless breakdowns and riffs that when I first heard it, I nearly burst out laughing at how ridiculous and silly, but somehow coherent, it all is. This album stays true to their horror-culture roots, delivered with impressive vocal and instrumental variety.

Listen to: The Abominable Snowman of Pasadena

Jetty Bones - Push Back

Technically a 2021 album (in that this actually came out in 2021, but this is my list so 🤷🏽‍♂️) but one that at first pass sounds fun, upbeat, and energetic. However, after a second listen-through, it’s clear that this cheerful-sounding pop record tackles dark subjects head-on in the most substantial way. From tracks pulled straight out of the 80s to a country-styled ode to Dolly Parton, to the last track, which was actually penned as a suicide letter five years prior to this album’s release, Kelc Galluzzo let down her defenses and really let the listeners experience her raw emotions. And as a fan, I’m grateful for her vulnerability and I’m incredibly glad she stayed.

Push Back is one of the most unique pop albums I’ve heard in a long time, and I found comfort in a wonderful collection that is far from being filled with one-dimensional songs. This is a record I kept coming back to throughout 2022, and one you should absolutely check out as well.

Listen To: Nothing

Mint Green - All Girls Go To Heaven

Hailing from Boston, Mint Green are a four piece whose stated mission is to is to capture the things everyone feels, but never says aloud. And I think that they absolutely succeeded in that. A blend of pop-punk, indie-rock, and even moments of straight up punk, this album showcases that they cannot (and should not) be contained within a singular genre. From upbeat tracks like Body Language to the more melancholic sounds in Trying, this is a fantastic debut for band.

Listen to: Trying

Alexisonfire - Otherness

This is Alexisonfire’s first album in 13 years. And what a comeback album at that. Otherness is also just a perfect way to describe this album, as the band has forged a completely new sound that blends their classic styling with a more modern and experimental one, all the while still sounding and feeling like the Alexisonfire we all know and love. In other words, this is a true maturation of their sound.

I am so excited to see what comes next for Alexisonfire.

Listen To: Reverse the Curse

Harry Styles - Harry’s House

This album is what happens an artist steps out of the spotlight (so to speak) to live his life. Despite being a bit more intimate and less stadium-sized than previous albums, and despite lacking something as immortal as Watermelon Sugar, this album as a whole is extremely well turned out. It ticks many of the right boxes, has abundant charm, and is a solid reflection of the pop star who made it, including being heavier and more serious in places than I was honestly expecting. This is a great foundation for what we can expect next from Harry Styles.

Listen To: Cinema

Sentinels - Collapse by Design

This album, according to my Spotify Wrapped, was my most played album for 2022, despite it having been released at the tail end of 2021. From start to finish, this album is unrelenting with obscenely heavy, earth-shattering breakdowns and guttural vocals blasted seemingly with ease. The chemistry between these two allows for a fluid composition that flows seamlessly from one track to the next, never losing momentum.

Coming in at 48 minutes of sheer brutal energy, Collapse By Design doesn’t reinvent the rulebook, but I don’t think that was ever the intent. Instead, this record presents itself as precise and calculated and easily cements the band as a frontrunner in the entire metalcore genre.

Listen To: Inertia

Wet Leg - Self Titled

From across the proverbial pond, this is another self-titled 2022 debut, and one that really doesn’t take itself all that seriously in the best way possible. The duo made a casual decision to start this band while riding atop a ferris wheel, and despite that, the two women come on fierce, cool, lusty, funny, and not at all apologetic.

While the lyrics give an air of aloofness, their sound could just as easily fit right in with the best of the mid-90s and the mid-00s, from Elastica to Franz Ferdinand to most notably, Pavement. It’s all silly fun and games, with a sprinkling of poignant observations around how lame most dudes are, to dating apps and doom scrolling.

Wet Leg has hooks for days, and I am 100% here for it.

Listen To: Chaise Lounge

Dance Gavin Dance - Jackpot Juicer

Jackpot Juicer is not only Dance Gavin Dance’s longest record to date, but it’s also one rife with tragedy and controversy, from the death of longtime bassist, Tim Feerick, to the departure and subsequent return of lead vocalist, Tillian Pearson.

This album, despite its apparent excess, features the band at its best both vocally and instrumentally. There’s enough variety here that its 63-minute run time never feels to drag on. And while it does feel very much like a Dance Gavin Dance album, that’s something I can appreciate given how it stands out from the rest of their contemporaries in both genre and industry.

Listen To: Polka Dot Dobbins

Bilmuri - Goblin Hours

Bilmuri seemingly has an infinite well from which to draw from, as Goblin Hours is the band’s 14th album in six years. I’m not even sure which genre to categorize this in, because it melds and blends so many different sonic soundscapes together in a manner that shouldn’t work or make any sense, but just…does?

It’s mostly cheesy, sometimes confusing, but overall an album filled with fun, easy to listen to tracks, and that’s really all that matters; feeling the artist’s passion and fun pour out and fill your ears.

Listen To: MUSCLE BOUND DENIZEN (희망 없다)

We Were Promised Jetpacks - Enjoy The View

The third and final 2021 album on this list, Enjoy The View clearly shows that even 18 years after forming, this Scottish band has only just begun to hit its stride. This album is definitely less dense and riff-heavy than previous entries in their discography, but I think that that’s what makes this album really shine.

It’s a more restrained, refined, maturation to their signature sound. The delicately intricate guitar lines meander alongside the vocal melodies, which have long been the touchpoint with the rest of this band’s back catalogue. As frontman, Adam Thompson said, “It's rainy and miserable in Scotland and there are lots of angry people. In a way, that's a big part of why our music sounds the way it does. It's music that sounds sort of like that.”

As a former emo kid myself (it’s not a phase, mom!) this album struck a particular chord in me, and I cannot wait to see where this takes WWPJ next.

Listen To: Fat Chance