Top 50 Albums of 2022

"I'm trying to grow a mushroom about as big as Al Green!"

It was actually a quicker process than usual narrowing down this list to 50, but that’s mostly because I’ve somewhat given up on producing an “““““accurate””””” ranking. 2022 was a strong year for music, and if you listened to the latest Pulp Friction, you already have some idea of what jumped out to me.

That being said, I definitely surprised myself with what ended up making the list, with significant changes up until pretty late in the game. Before we get into my top albums, here are some honorable mentions:

• Wyoming - Nana Lourdes: A really cool pop album that got surprisingly little fanfare this year. To be fair, it came out in November.

• Grotto - Wilma Vritra: Wilma Archer always lets his freak flag fly with the production on these projects. Some of the most unique hip hop beats in recent memory.

• Finally, New - They Hate Change: Speaking of unique hip hop beats, They Hate Change are a newer group setting themselves up for a bright future.

• Electricity - Ibibio Sound Machine: I love a fun, weird dance record, so this afro-funk fusion group is always on my good side.

• Surrender - Maggie Rogers: The best Angel Olsen album of 2022.

• CHAOS NOW* - Jean Dawson: There’s so much nü pop punk going around right now, but Jean Dawson is more musically and emotionally interesting than most.

• Cave World - Viagra Boys: A kinda perfect dance-punk concept album about Luddite conspiracism.

• Young Hot Ebony 2 - Father: Funniest album of the year.

• HOLY FVCK - Demi Lovato: Remarkably stirring vocals only slightly hampered by juvenile lyrics. “29” is unforgettable.

• Mr. Morale and the Big Steppers - Kendrick Lamar: An embarrassing, overwrought shitshow of a Kendrick album that still came fairly close to making this list.

50) BEWARE OF THE MONKEY - MIKE

Highlights: As 4 Me, No Curse Lifted (rivers of love), What Do I Do?, Stop Worry! (feat. Sister Nancy)

I’m never not impressed by MIKE’s ability to carry a single multisyllabic rhyme over the entire track, but that’s not the only trick up Beware of the Monkey’s sleeve. On “As 4 Me,” he lays out his goal: “This my only chance left to prove to y’all I’m the best rapper in the fucking world.” Sure enough, he finds ways to expand on his sound, pulling out some of his best production and most reflective bars to date.

49) YOU STILL HERE, HO? - Flo Milli

Highlights: Bed Time, Conceited, On My Nerves, Big Steppa, Roaring 20s

If I’ve said it once, I’ve said it a thousand times: Flo Milli shit!!!

48) BOTHERED/UNBOTHERED - JER

Highlights: BOTHERED, You Got Yr —-- Card Revoked, Cold Truth, UNBOTHERED

You might know JER as Skatune Network, the ska cover project that’s built up a large audience yearning for that sweet, sweet ska revival. On Bothered/Unbothered, the We Are the Union trombonist makes their best case yet for reviving the genre. Ska is a proto-punk movement grounded in the ‘60s’ political unrest, and JER deftly applies ska-punk language to today’s social woes.

47) FOR THE LOVE OF DRUGS - Quinton Barnes

Highlights: To Freedom, Fuck Alive, Scenes Of, Tunnelvision

If you picture a clubby gay(er) JPEGMAFIA, you might start to get an idea for Quinton Barnes’ sound. For the Love of Drugs has the same wry sense of humor and brash production, but with a playful energy that’s ready for the dancefloor. On “To Freedom,” he samples Nicki Minaj’s memeworthy Harriet Tubman tirade while rapping in equal measure about free expression and late-night hookups to Ginuwine.

46) SOFT SPOT - Chelsea Jade

Highlights: Superfan, Big Spill, Good Taste, Tantrum in Duet

Graduating from a decade as “Lorde’s friend,” Chelsea Jade delivers her most exciting pop statement piece yet with Soft Spot, a record that lies somewhere between Jack Antonoff’s yellowed alt bops and Marian Hill’s minimal experiments. It’s compellingly slight on first listen, but increasingly rewarding as you let it simmer.

45) GEMINI RIGHTS - Steve Lacy

Highlights: Helmet, Bad Habit, Amber, Sunshine (feat. Fousheé)

On the one hand, TikTok is the cognitive equivalent of an unfiltered ‘50s cigarette. But on the other hand, it gave Steve Lacy a #1 hit, so it’s impossible to say whether or not it’s bad. Lacy’s second solo record is the IGOR to his first album’s Flower Boy, a more cohesive, sharpened take on his sound. I might even like it more than the Internet albums.

44) NO THANK YOU - Little Simz

Highlights: Gorilla, No Merci, X, Broken

One of the reasons I hold off on making these lists until the year is well and truly over is because there’s always a buzzer beater. Even so, it’s sometimes hard to recognize how impactful an end-of-year release is when it’s fresh out (if I could go back, I’d definitely have thrown Whole Lotta Red on the 2020 list). That could very well be the case with NO THANK YOU, a record that carries the sound and weight of Simz’s acclaimed 2021 album, Sometimes I Might Be Introvert, but with some subtle new directions to look out for.

43) 10 - Westside Gunn

Highlights: Peppas (feat. Black Star), Science Class (feat. Busta Rhymes, Raekwon, Ghostface Killah, Stove God Cooks), Switches on Everything (feat. Run the Jewels, Stove God Cooks), Red Death (feat. Benny the Butcher, Stove God Cooks)

This climactic finale to Westside Gunn’s Hitler Wear Hermes series got overshadowed by Gunn’s seemingly last-minute decision to rename it simply 10 after a certain nazi controversy. “Drop the Hitler, it’s cleaner.” As funny as that is, this is also a stuffed—and stacked—conclusion to the series, featuring everyone from A$AP Rocky to Black Star, with plenty of space for Gunn himself to shine.

42) SUPERNOVA - Nova Twins

Highlights: K.M.B., Fire & Ice, Puzzles, Toolbox

Nova Twins arrive at barn-burning punky rock by way of Sugababes (who also dropped a good album this year!). The duo is big on hooks and harmonies, but their sound has progressed to a much more thrashy space than any of their pop punk revival contemporaries. I like the WILLOW album as much as the next gal, but can you headbang to it?

41) BLACK GIRL MAGIC - Honey Dijon

Highlights: Love Is a State of Mind (feat. Ramona Renea), In the Club (feat. Eve), Not About You (feat. Hadiya George), Show Me Some Love (feat. Channel Tres, Sadie Walker)

Undoubtedly, there was a lot of tossing and turning over how Honey Dijon would follow up her high-profile work on Beyoncé’s RENAISSANCE. If you were one of the people worried about that, you must not have enough faith in Dijon, who had a stellar dance album in her back pocket the whole time. With features ranging from Eve to Dope Earth Alien, there’s no shortage of “Black girl magic” to go around on this album, but the real wizard is Dijon and her production tour de force.

40) THE FOREVER STORY - JID

Highlights: Raydar, Bruddanem (feat. Lil Durk), Just in Time (feat. Lil Wayne, Kenny Mason), Money

If you paused to check your email, you might not have noticed that this was JID’s biggest year yet. He kicked the year off with the stirring lead single “Surround Sound,” squeezed out a Grammy nom for his work on Doja Cat’s album, and not only had his top-selling album to date but also a top five Billboard hit with Imagine Dragons’ “Misery.” Amidst all that, he delivered his strongest creative work to date, combining his trademark superhuman flows with stirring rumination on his success.

39) SHAPE UP - Leikeli47

Highlights: Chitty Bang, Free to Love, BITM, Jay Walk (feat. Miss J Alexander)

In case you found yourself wondering, “When does shit get serious?” …This is when shit gets serious (Sorry, JID). Shape Up is Leikeli47’s most infectious collection of dance-rap bangers yet, full of new experiments (“Free to Love”) and send-ups to her house influences (“Jay Walk”). Leikeli47’s been a uniquely compelling woman in hip-hop since before the late-’10s explosion of female MCs, but she still has an enviable command of her craft.

38) I LOVE YOU JENNIFER B - Jockstrap

Highlights: Neon, Greatest Hits, Debra, 50/50 - Extended Mix

Few albums this year are as stuffed with surprises as I Love You Jennifer B, the debut from electronic producer Taylor Skye and Black Country, New Road vocalist Georgia Ellery. Like this year’s memorable BC,NR record, Jennifer B has a maximal, all-consuming sound that belies some particularly evocative dance lyrics. It’s Pitchfork pop doused in Fatboy Slim and Aphex Twin, with ever-exciting results.

37) BEING FUNNY IN A FOREIGN LANGUAGE - The 1975

Highlights: Looking For Somebody (To Love), I’m in Love With You, Wintering, About You

Matty Healy’s problematized rockstar antics have brought The 1975 back into the public consciousness, but they’ve been quietly improving on their writerly throwback pop sound for years. It’s rare nowadays for an act to be helped by having Jack Antonoff on production, but if you listen to their overstuffed Notes on a Conditional Form, you’ll understand why this streamlined record is a big improvement.

36) FEW GOOD THINGS - Saba

Highlights: One Way or Every N***a With a Budget, Fearmonger (feat. Daoud), Soldier (feat. Pivot Gang), Few Good Things (feat. Black Thought, Eryn Allen Kane)

Some years back, De La Soul shouted out Saba as one of the best current rappers in the game. It’s not hard to see why on Few Good Things, which the Chicago artist dropped with the restrained grace of an old master at the start of the year. It’s more unassuming than some of the big hip hop records this year, but it presents so-called “conscious rap” with a rare lack of pretension and ineffable skill.

35) LAS RUINAS - Rico Nasty

Highlights: Black Punk, Messy (feat. Teezo Touchdown, Bktherula), Gotsta Get Paid, Skullflower

Speaking of less unassuming hip hop records, they don’t get any more bombastic than Rico Nasty, who expands her character every which way on Las Ruinas. She’s a sharper rapper, a brighter pop star, and a more riotous “Black Punk” than ever before on this, her weirdest and most accessible album to date. It reminds me the most of an early Danny Brown album, but it’s hard to imagine Danny Brown going so smoothly over a Marshmello beat.

34) CRASH - Charli XCX

Highlights: New Shapes (feat. Christine and the Queens, Caroline Polachek), Lightning, Yuck, You Used to Know Me

I think we were all a little skeptical when Charli XCX took a swing towards radio-friendly pop. Don’t get me wrong, she still had an otherworldly talent for it, but between the aggressively self-aware persona and a couple less-than-stellar singles (looking at you, “Beg for You”), fans and critics alike were ready for this one to be a misstep. Lesson learned: never doubt Charli.

33) DIRT FEMME - Tove Lo

Highlights: No One Dies From Love, Call on Me (feat. SG Lewis), Attention Whore (feat. Channel Tres), How Long

Imagine how long we’ve been waiting for a good Tove Lo album. It’s been just about a decade since the Swedish pop star dropped her breakout hit, “Habits (Stay High),” but she’s struggled ever since to stretch her clearly impressive pop skills over the length of a full LP. Until now, that is. Dirt Femme is certainly darker and more mature than Lo’s previous releases, but it’s also stacked wall-to-wall with earworms and slick synth production.

32) THE OVERLOAD - Yard Act

Highlights: Dead Horse, Rich, Quarantine the Sticks, 100% Endurance

One of this year’s most welcome surprises was Yard Act, the stripped-back UK art rock outfit that went from dropping their debut in January to collaborating with Elton John in June. Their music is instantly compelling, combining Father John Misty’s stonefaced humor with the unpretentious no-wave of Lydia Lunch. At the same time, their penchant for half-hopeful storytelling makes their Elton John collab feel somehow fitting.

31) DAWN FM - The Weeknd

Highlights: Gasoline, How Do I Make You Love Me?, Take My Breath, Every Angel Is Terrifying, Less Than Zero

While not quite as accessible as After Hours, Dawn FM represents another bold new direction for one of the great living pop stars, The Weeknd. From playing Kate Bush at the Super Bowl before it was cool, he’s moved on to channeling Future Islands on tracks produced in tandem by Max Martin and Oneohtrix Point Never. The Jim Carrey stuff is kitschy, but the star power is more undeniable than ever.

30) DISRESPECTFUL - Bad Boy Chiller Crew

Highlights: Don’t You Worry About Me, Get Out My Head, Always Be My Baby Boy (feat. Becce J), The Things You Do

This UK collective is bringing back early aughts rave music with pop panache and b-boy bombast. On tracks like “Always Be My Baby Boy,” aggressive rap vocals are seamlessly integrated with glistening pop hooks, creating tracks that are sure to remind you of better days, whether you wax nostalgic for molly pacifiers or PlayStation 2 games.

29) TOPICAL DANCER - Charlotte Adigéry & Bolis Pupul

Highlights: Esperanto, Hey, Ceci n’est pas une cliche, Mantra

Rarely are experimental records quite as instantly enjoyable as Topical Dancer. Its quirky structures and provocative lyrics are reminiscent of Esperanza Spalding, but both Charlotte Adigéry’s smooth vocals and Bolis Pupul’s infectious production make it impossible to look away (listen away?). It’s timeless and fresh in equal parts, the sort of brimming-with-ideas record that often turns out to be much more influential than it initially seems with time. Let’s hope so.

28) CANDID - Ivy Sole

Highlights: Call Me, One More Night (feat. Topaz Jones), Bamboo, What You Deserve

I think I first heard Philly rapper Ivy Sole on the Shura song “elevator girl” back in 2020, but this was definitely my first exposure to their own output. Not unlike Saba, she has a mature, measured tone that could feel underdeveloped from another artist, but totally transcends thanks to her knack for songcraft and, yes, candid storytelling.

27) LOVE ME FOREVER - Pinkshift

Highlights: nothing (in my head), the kids aren’t alright, Trust Fall, BURN THE WITCH

Returning once again to that ol’ pop punk revival, Pinkshift is one of the most promising signs that it’s more than just a costume for TikTok-chasing pop stars. The Baltimore trio has all the genuine rage their pop punk forebears came out the gate with, combined with a distinctly modern sensibility that never strains for clout. The album speaks to pop punk’s efficacy as an outlet for Gen Z, a generation for whom, as one track opines, “the kids aren’t alright.”

26) TILT - Confidence Man

Highlights: Feels Like a Different Thing, Holiday, Push It Up, Break It Bought It

I’m a bitch who loves to have fun, and no one was having more fun on wax this year than Confidence Man. The Australian pop act has always had a whimsical image in the vein of Deee-Lite, right down to the wonderfully kitschy stage names (Janet Planet!). But on TILT, they combine that swagger with a ‘90s rave sound, leading to pitch-perfect dance tracks like “Feels Like a Different Thing” and the ineffable “Push It Up.”

25) WORLD WIDE POP - Superorganism

Highlights: Black Hole Baby, Teenager (feat. CHAI, Pi Ja Ma), Solar System (feat. CHAI, Pi Ja Ma, Boa Constrictors), Don’t Let the Colony Collapse

With abusive members ousted and a sparkling new array of collaborators, weirdo pop band Superorganism returned in 2022 to notably less fanfare than their beloved 2018 debut. As could reasonably be expected, the allegations against former member Mark Turner were enough for many former fans to stop paying attention, just as Brockhampton saw its fanbase shrink after similar news. In the meantime, however, Superorganism’s sound has only continued to grow, sharpening their oddball tendencies with transcendent pop hooks.

24) LUV 4 RENT - Smino

Highlights: No L’s, Pro Freak (feat. Doechii, Fatman Scoop), Settle Down (feat. Cory Henry, Ravyn Lenae), Pudgy (feat. Lil Uzi Vert)

This album kicks off in earnest with one of the most unforgettable song intros in recent memory, on “No L’s”: “Knock knock knock / Loud knocking / Good weed knocking at your door.” Smino’s always been a subtly ingenious rapper, overlooked relative to his contemporaries only because his stylistic pattern is too complex to be read. With touches of Missy Elliott-era pop rap on this record, he still effortlessly flows between cloudy melodies and razor-sharp bars, furthering a style that rewards repeat listens and is damn near impossible to replicate.

23) YOU CAN’T KILL ME - 070 Shake

Highlights: Cocoon, Body (feat. Christine and the Queens), Come Back Home, Se Fue La Luz

Perhaps the last train out of Kanye station, 070 Shake has proven to be one of the most unique and expansive artists in an exceptionally crowded R&B field. This record continues the trend from her last album, Modus Vivendi: tormented vocals, lovestruck lyrics, and challenging sci-fi production. But on this album, the epic, cinematic scope feels more refined. It’s a mesmerizing record that knows exactly what it is.

22) MUNA - MUNA

Highlights: Silk Chiffon (feat. Phoebe Bridgers), What I Want, Solid, Anything But Me

MUNA’s been rocking this whole damn time, but their self-titled third album reveals just how transcendent their mature synth-pop can be. Every riff glitters, every hook dazzles, and even more lowkey moments carry a much-needed sense of joy. It’s an all-killer-no-filler pop album that sets MUNA up for a The 1975-style rocket to the stars.

21) RAMONA PARK BROKE MY HEART - Vince Staples

Highlights: MAGIC (feat. Mustard), PAPERCUTS, BANG THAT (feat. Mustard), ROSE STREET

RAMONA PARK BROKE MY HEART plays with the same depressive minimalism as Vince Staples’ self-titled previous record. But where Vince Staples is a true low-concept slow burn, RAMONA PARK returns to some of the more overarching themes seen on Summertime ‘06 and Big Fish Theory. This isn’t to say that abundance is the only thing working in this album’s favor—his shorter albums are shorter for a reason—but that it allows him to find both earwormy grooves and palpable discomfort in the search for stolen youth.

20) THE CAR - Arctic Monkeys

Highlights: Sculptures of Anything Goes, Body Paint, Hello You, Mr. Schwartz

Have the Arctic Monkeys drifted further into esotericism, or did they happen upon a perfect moment in the early-’10s Tumblr era for their Morrissey-esque baroque humor to capture an audience? Whatever the case, their new album builds upon the loungey, methodical sound of Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino, marrying it to some of their earlier, less glitzy rock tendencies. It may be true that, as drummer Matt Helders says, “It’s never gonna be like ‘R U Mine?’ and all that stuff again,” but it’s hard to listen to “Sculptures of Anything Goes” and not see the skeletons of that dead era cheekily peeking out.

19) LOVE SUX - Avril Lavigne

Highlights: Cannonball, Bite Me, Kiss Me Like the World Is Ending, F.U.

I really did wrestle with this one. Avril’s been a certified artist-not-to-watch since the “Hello Kitty” fiasco, when most otherwise-reasonable people became more content to imagine that she had been replaced by a noname assistant. However serious her bout with Lyme disease was (and it seems like it was pretty fucking serious), it set her up for a rebirth that was desperately needed. Avril may be the singular biggest blueprint for today’s pop punk revival, and Love Sux proves she can still do it better than just about anyone else.

18) CAN I TAKE MY HOUNDS TO HEAVEN? - Tyler Childers

Highlights: Old Country Church, Can I Take My Hounds to Heaven?, Purgatory, Heart You’ve Been Tendin’

To make a quick case against this album, which wound up with a somewhat more tepid response than I imagined, there’s really no good way to listen to it. The ambitious project by neo-country artist Tyler Childers consists of eight gospel songs served up three ways: first in a jammy, rock-infused style consistent with Childers’ typical sound (Hallelujah); then in a glitzier, more polished style flush with strings and gospel choirs (Jubilee); and finally in a largely instrumental scratch mix reminiscent of a melting Fatboy Slim (Joyful Noise). It’s a record that demands to be listened to piece-by-piece; months later, I still feel like I’ve only fully explored maybe 2 of the 8 (6 of the 24) tracks.

17) PREY//IV - Alice Glass

Highlights: LOVE IS VIOLENCE, EVERYBODY ELSE, THE HUNTED, FAIR GAME, SUFFER AND SWALLOW

At age 34, Alice Glass’ debut solo album is far from the beginning of her story. She makes a point of this by adding “IV” to the album’s title, a reference to the numbered naming convention of Crystal Castles albums. Since detailing abuse by her former bandmate Ethan Kath, this record was her first opportunity to share her own side of the story. As you’d imagine, it’s a volatile, fragile, unglamorous LP. But in the electronic underground, you’d be hard-pressed to find someone who wasn’t influenced by Glass, and this sharp, unmistakable return is an instant triumph for that alone.

16) I DON’T GIVE A FUCK ABOUT THIS RAP SHIT, IMMA JUST DROP UNTIL I DON’T FEEL LIKE IT ANYMORE - $ilkmoney

Highlights: S.F.C.S.S.S.$ (P.a.a.M.F.); Cuummoney Amiliani; Jodi Don’t Like Me No Mo :-(; Emmm, N**** You Is Tasty >:)

When you listen to the sheer delirium in $ilkmoney’s voice on some of these tracks, you might find yourself questioning his assertion that he “doesn’t give a fuck about this rap shit.” He brings a “should I be listening to this?” mania to his tracks not heard since early Eminem, with a similar lyrical density and absurd sense of humor. This isn’t to say that anyone would ever think to compare him to Eminem in terms of content or personality. He just has the dedication and creativity of a hungry newcomer with best-in-his-class talent.

15) JAZZ CODES - Moor Mother

Highlights: GOLDEN LADY (feat. Melanie Charles), MEDITATION RAG (feat. Aquiles Navarro, Alya Al Sultani), RAP JASM (feat. AKAI SOLO, justmadnice), BLUES AWAY (feat. Fatboi Sharif)

Jazz Codes is an odyssey through the rich interwoven history of Black music, but not a didactic one—and certainly not a triumphant one. Rather, Philly-raised experimenter Moor Mother is doing “the work of memory,” as she laments on “DUST TOGETHER.” The history of Black music—indeed, of Black America—is one of continual displacement, where new arts are regular formed and reformed, bearing echoes of once-new arts that cry out to be remembered. On standout track “BLUES AWAY,” she and Fatboi Sharif cry: “You took the blues away from me, now my heart won’t sing.”

14) ALL OF US FLAMES - Ezra Furman

Highlights: Throne, Dressed in Black, Book of Our Names, Point Me Toward the Real

All of Us Flames belongs to a grand tradition of trans rage folk punk, but Ezra Furman’s raw vocals and illustrative lyrics produce the exact stir of emotion our current moment calls for. Jewish lore is intertwined with folk tradition and decidedly modern anxieties on this record, producing both rallying cries like “Book of Our Names” and shocking diary entries like “Ally Sheedy in the Breakfast Club.” It took a while for this one to hit me, but it hit me like a ton of bricks.

13) DRILL MUSIC IN ZION - Lupe Fiasco

Highlights: AUTOBOTO (feat. Nayirah), KIOSK, MS. MURAL, NAOMI

The past decade for Lupe Fiasco has been virtuosic, delicately crafted, and often unlistenable. He’s always been a maximalist, but records like DROGAS Light and DROGAS Wave are so dense with sound and inspiration (alongside hit-or-miss production) that it’s tough to even consider them as pieces. It’s no surprise, then, that Lupe’s best record since at least 2015 was written and recorded in the span of three days. His ideas are still sharp and fantastical, but with more control than we’ve seen from him since his first two records.

12) HOMOSEXUAL - Darren Hayes

Highlights: Do You Remember?, Homosexual (Act One), All You Pretty Things, We Are Alchemists, Homosexual (Act Two)

As beloved as the Savage Garden era was, I think we were all fairly reasonable in assuming we wouldn’t hear from Darren Hayes again. Homosexual comes at the end of an 11-year hiatus, and it finds Hayes completely reborn on a record of Timberlake excess and otherworldly synth pop grooves. Its triumphant self-assurance comes not only from Hayes’ position as a 50-year-old gay man, but from a former pop megastar escaping the shadow of his reputation and forging a truly new path.

11) THE LONELIEST TIME - Carly Rae Jepsen

Highlights: Surrender My Heart, Talking to Yourself, Bad Thing Twice, The Loneliest Time (feat. Rufus Wainwright), Anxious

Simply put, our greatest living pop musician has done it again. This album had an uphill battle coming out of the gate for fans. Some felt the cover was tacky, others were unimpressed by goofy singles like “Western Wind” and “Beach House” (which rock, by the way). But by the time the album properly came out, there was no denying it. From the transcendent title track to the bountiful bonus songs, this is an album with all the crafty lyricism, best-in-class production, and devastating emotion we’ve come to expect from Carly.

10) PREACHER’S DAUGHTER - Ethel Cain

Highlights: American Teenager, A House in Nebraska, Family Tree, Sun Bleached Flies

Ethel Cain soared out of the underground this year with Preacher’s Daughter, a record that earned her rave reviews and shoutouts from everyone from Florence Welch to Barack Obama. Whether or not Obama is really paying attention, this record deserved every bit it got. Cain expands on the Lana Del Rey pop sound with infusions of classic rock, droning electronica, and doom metal. But this isn’t the type of album that paints with all the colors of the wind; it’s a stunningly cohesive piece of music, rattling around themes of religion, imperialism, and misogyny with an almost unbelievable degree of focus.

9) IT’S ALMOST DRY - Pusha T

Highlights: Let the Smokers Shine the Coupes, Dreamin of the Past (feat. Ye), Hear Me Clearly (feat. Nigo), I Pray for You (feat. Labrinth, Malice)

Get it while it’s hot, folks, we’re just about to exit the six-month statute of limitations on praising albums Ye was involved in. Months before outing himself as a Nazi, the disgraced ex-billionaire went back to his Blueprint roots with It’s Almost Dry, a record for which he traded off production with the Neptunes. It’s a testament to Pusha T’s savvy that he got this record together at the last possible moment for it to be… well, a moment. He brings a clear-eyed energy to this record that makes it well worth the wait, bringing equal parts humor and malice (and a bit of Malice) to top-shelf beats by two of the best producers in hip hop history.

8) NO FEAR OF TIME - Black Star

Highlights: o.G., So be it, Yonders, Freequency (feat. Black Thought)

In between harassing women so bad you have to leave Twitter (in Kweli’s case) and hosting a podcast with post-disgrace Dave Chappelle that can only be listened to through a conch shell, where do you find the time to make an album? Say what you will about these guys, but Yasiin Bey and Talib Kweli are exceptionally gifted musicians (Bey especially), and when you throw in Madlib on production, you’re gonna get a great album every time. Like the aforementioned podcast, it’s practically illegal to listen to this album, but if you get the chance, you’ll be rewarded with cosmic lyricism, stellar beats, and fun trade-off chemistry only slightly weathered by age.

7) NATURAL BROWN PROM QUEEN - Sudan Archives

Highlights: Home Maker, Selfish Soul, ChevyS10, TDLY (Homegrown Land)

Sudan Archives’ 2019 debut Athena is a great album, but it almost functions as a proof of concept. “A violinist and an R&B singer?” The violin hasn’t disappeared on Natural Brown Prom Queen, but it takes a backseat to leave room for another element from the equation: Sudan Archives isn’t just an R&B singer, she’s one of the best we got. NBPQ problematizes that classic vision of the prom queen, questioning—while in the same breath forging—Sudan Archives’ ability to attain that teen fantasy. On the title track, the prom queen becomes a stand-in for all the colorism, racism, and unfair beauty standards impressed upon Black women, broadening out on the expansive LP to encompass drama, sex, fantasy, and an underlying euphoria.

6) AETHIOPES - billy woods

Highlights: No Hard Feelings, NYNEX (feat. E L U C I D, Quelle Chris, Denmark Vessey), Haarlem (feat. Fatboi Sharif), Versailles (feat. Despot)

As a music critic, I’m contractually obligated to like billy woods’ work with Armand Hammer, but if I’m being honest with myself, the numb darkness present on those records doesn’t appeal to me as much as this comparatively volatile album. There’s head-spinning production like on “Sauvage” and a who’s who of underground rap features from Boldy James to El-P, but whenever woods is in frame, it’s obvious who the main attraction is. His desperate bars fold over each other like crashing waves, whether he’s aligning day traders to drug dealers on “Versailles” or flipping the “savage” narrative of colonialism on “Wharves.”

5) WATERSLIDE, DIVING BOARD, LADDER TO THE SKY - Porridge Radio

Highlights: Back to the Radio, Birthday Party, U Can Be Happy If U Want To, Jealousy, Splintered

I first became enamored with Porridge Radio’s apocalyptic post-punk on their 2020 album Every Bad, but Waterslide, Diving Board, Ladder to the Sky turns everything up to 11. As always, they use simple repetitions to staggering effect (see “I don’t wanna be loved” on “Birthday Party”), but the cuts are deeper, the sound is crunchier, and shades of grunge and Modest Mouse make them stand out among their growing field of Brit-post-punk peers. Lead singer Dana Margolin has a Post Malone-esque warble that adds to the devastating weight of her simple, delicately-crafted lyrics.

4) MOTOMAMI - Rosalía

Highlights: SAOKO, CHICKEN TERIYAKI, BIZCOCHITO, G3 N15

Rosalía faced a fair deal of controversy for coming out the gate with a flamenco album, and up to this point, it hasn’t been clear if she would truly escape that shadow, in spite of her obvious artistic achievements. MOTOMAMI is somewhat of a reset for the Spanish artist—she’s still cutting edge, just in a new way. MOTOMAMI is an expansive pop album on par with Pop 2 and 1000 gecs, but with a splash of Yeezus and a genre-bending avant garde core that creates a sound all its own. It’s perhaps the liveliest record of the year, with a new surprise lurking around every corner.

3) AMERICAN GURL - Kilo Kish

Highlights: AMERICAN GURL, NO APOLOGY!, ATTENTION POLITICIAN, ON THE OUTSIDE (JUSTIN’S SONG), INTELLIGENT DESIGN (feat. Jesse Boykins III)

It’s hardly news that Kilo Kish is one of the most talented artists working today, period, and it’s certainly not news that she’s being overlooked. But when an album is as hooky, as expansive, as undeniable as AMERICAN GURL, the total lack of reception is a bit of a head-scratcher. The album structures itself as an all-too-brief arcade game, adding a retro tinge to Kish’s ever-present futurism. She’s had projects this funny, this quirky, this experimental before, but none with as much cohesion, and certainly not with such a high density of bangers.

2) RENAISSANCE - Beyoncé

Highlights: ALIEN SUPERSTAR, CUFF IT, BREAK MY SOUL, VIRGO’S GROOVE

One of Beyoncé’s greatest superpowers, which I spoke about on a recent Pulp Friction, is her ability to create the best project possible for a given moment. In 2013, Beyoncé was the best album she possibly could’ve released. In 2016, Lemonade was the best album you ever heard… in 2016. For 2022, RENAISSANCE was the moment, so much so that it totally memory-holed a Drake album built around a similar conceit. It’s no wonder Drake said “Honestly, Nevermind,” because there’s just no competing with Beyoncé when she’s got an idea locked and loaded. RENAISSANCE is such an expansive record that you could spend years unlocking its treasures—which makes the notion that it’s merely part 1 of a three-part cycle a kinda terrifying notion.

1) CHEAT CODES - Black Thought & Danger Mouse

Highlights: Sometimes, The Darkest Part (feat. Raekwon, Kid Sister), Belize (feat. MF DOOM), Aquamarine (feat. Michael Kiwanuka), Violas and Lupitas

As much as I was enamored with this album from the lead single, it probably took me a few months to reckon with it being my favorite of the year. For the relatively little fanfare it got, this record is a monumental moment. One of the best rappers of all time teams up with one of the best producers for a record that finds both of them multiple decades into their careers and sounding as fresh as they ever have. As usual, Thought ruminates on heavy topics, but even his braggadocio sounds like the stuff of poet laureates. As he repeats on “The Darkest Part,” “It ain’t an easy odyssey for you to follow me / We do kinesiology with no apology.”