2022 Year End List : Taylor's Favorite Albums
New releases in 2022 including compilations and reissues!
I love going through well-curated gift guides and end-of-year lists. It never ceases to amaze and terrify me how much incredible art is out in the world that can so easily get missed if you aren’t looking for it or following up on people’s recommendations!!!
In the spirit of personal recommendations, non-algorithmic lists, and honoring artists, I offer you an alphabetized list of my favorite albums released in 2022, including a few reissues/compilations! But before we get to that I have a brief PSA:
BUY YOUR FAVORITE MUSIC. Buy merch at shows. Buy digital albums. Buy physical albums.
Spotify is not the future, babes!!!!!
And you can sign here for justice at Spotify. Now, without further ado, I hope that you can find a new record or song that you love from this list, or from someone else’s end-of-year roundup. And please please share your favorite album(s) from this year with me!!!
Happy listening! <3
Afraid of Nothing - Harrison Whitford
You may know Harrison Whitford’s musical touch already and not even realize it, as he is a frequent guitar player on Phoebe Bridger’s music. This album is sad and sweet and tender and it carried me all throughout the year. Especially Salvation Army and Secret Garden, which I listened to almost every weekday morning on my way to work before the sun was up. Anyplace I Am has been known to make me cry like a baby if it catches me off guard.
Big Time - Angel Olsen
When this was released I was in a post-breakup-haze and trying to figure out what the hell I was doing with my life but hearing Big Time (the song) brought me more joy than I even thought I could have!
Big Time is what modern Americana-country dreams are made of!!! <3 Thank you Angel Olsen <3
Dragon New Warm Mountain I Believe In You - Big Thief
Every song makes me cry for a different reason—happy tears and sad ones! This is by far the furthest that they’ve explored sonically on an album and I remain really impressed with how they pulled it off. A 20-song album with no skips in my book!!!!!
Emahoy Tsege Mariam Gebru - Emahoy Tsege Mariam Gebru
A reissue of some incredible piano songs by Gebru. I haven’t heard anyone play like them. I ordered this record on the most recent Bandcamp Friday and I am anxiously waiting for it to come in!! Get your physical copy while you still can! <3
Florist - Florist
I heard this and loved it a lot, then sent it to my good friend and collaborator Janie, who also fell in love with it. More recently my mom texted it to me asking if I’d heard it and said, “this reminds me of what you, Janie, and Micah like to make and listen to!!”, which was cute and true, I hope <3
Red Bird Pt. 2 (Morning) made me sob while I was driving the first time I heard it and I couldn’t even tell you why besides the fact that the lyrics are so subtly touching.
Greatest Weapon / Under The Water - Hand Habits
Ok, this is a single and not an album but I just could not resist!!!
Released in partnership with Psychic Hotline (run by the lovely folks at Sylvan Esso) who put out a killer series of singles over the last two years.
God Save The Animals - Alex G
Alex G!!!!! When Blessing was released as a single I actually thought it was just one of those Spotify errors where some random artist got their music released under a different, bigger artist’s name cause the song is so weird in comparison to some of his other singles and older music… However, it is in fact his song, and when I heard the album as a whole after its release it fit right in perfectly.
I also saw him in concert a few months ago and it was mostly goth high schoolers in the audience, which I was not expecting but probably what I should have expected??
Anyways, this album gets better with every listen. Very good work, Alex G.
How Is It That I Should Look At The Stars - The Weather Station
At the start of the year, I was making a lot of long drives across town after sundown and for some reason, this album made for really great company. Thoughtful lyrics with mostly sparse production but always gorgeous piano. Deeply emotional. Perfect for cold weather listening.
I don't know who needs to hear this… - Tomberlin
The production on this is sooooo crisp. Tomberlin’s vocal range and depth shines and soars like never before.
I’m The Sky: Studio and Demo Recordings, 1964-1971 - Norma Tanega
I have a separate post in the works about Norma Tanega and other female folk artists who tried their hand at the commercial music industry in the 60s but never found much success. Tanega eventually gave up seeking success in a solo music career and lived out her life as a prolific painter, ESL teacher, and experimental musician and percussionist.
Now, 2 years after her death, Anthology Recordings released this compilation album of Tanega’s music featuring her previously released albums as well as her unreleased demos. Her songs, voice, and life were filled with joy, humor, and love.
Lighten Up - Erin Rae
So much happiness on this album!!! Another gorgeous take on Americana-country with really memorable melodies and lyrics that have me beside myself with every listen.
Like A Plane - Markus Acher
Released by my friends at Moone Records on vinyl in the US, alongside a live-performance tape, this album keeps me coming back for more. I really can’t get enough of Acher’s voice and I’ve been on a big Spirit Fest and Notwist kick lately, both of which Acher is a part of. <3
Off Cuts - Frou Frou
Miss Imogen Heap does it again!!! The first time I listened to this I was in Nashville, driving alone amidst remarkably green trees on an overcast day to go pick up lunch, and I was totally hooked. I was in that Chick-Fil-A line fully bopping out. (Listen to her first Frou Frou album if you haven’t already!)
Rolling Golden Holy - Bonny Light Horseman
I was engrossed by the first Bonny Light Horseman album, so I was really looking forward to this record. It feels like summertime music to me now, probably because of its release date, but it is so beautiful and worth listening to from top to bottom (like all of these albums!). Exile and Summer Dream remain my top favorites.
Slow Leak - Laney Esper
During my Nashville trip, and kind of on a whim, I found myself at Laney Esper’s EP release show for reasons not actually pertaining to Laney, but I ended up so captivated by her voice/songs that I found her on Spotify later that night so I could keep listening. Going Away Parties turned out to be an essential song for me this year. <3
Warm Evenings, Pale Mornings: Beside You Then - Caleb Dailey
Last, but CERTAINLY not least. I had the privilege of hearing songs from this album performed at 4 different, equally intimate shows this year thanks to the house shows Caleb and Micah (Moone Records) put on. Warm Evenings… is a cover album of folk songs, but Caleb and his band have managed to make them deeply their own. It is almost hard for me to return to the recordings (which are very powerful in their own right) after having the luxury of hearing the songs in their live beauty so many times, but I actually listened through it today and, yea, it still makes me cry like I’m hearing it for the first time.
Purchase LP in the US here.
That is all for now - sending you love and lots of good music - comment or reach out to me if you fall in love with anything listed here because that would make me so happy!
Stay safe and warm. With love,
Taylor…<3