Better late than never. A third of the way into 2023 may seem pretty late in the game to post about the best of 2022, but life is busy and I got lazy (lazier than usual) about my comments. Well, here is is … finally.
Ismatic Guru – “I Didn’t Like It” (from Ismatic Guru II EP): This is just over a minute of frenetic madness where punk and electronic music explode. It’s not the most original thing, but it’s fun and kind of wild. I also wouldn’t disagree if you told me it was kind of contrived.
Ibibio Sound Machine – “Protection from Evil” (from Electricity): 2019’s Doko Mien was interesting, but ultimately failed to keep my attention. Electricity is a different story. “Protection from Evil” has a consistent pulse, but the changes in tension make it feel varied and even a bit mysterious.
Ezra Collective – “Togetherness” (from Where I’m Meant to Be): The labels say jazz, but I hear more reggae. I think the rhythm is more reggae and the melody is more jazz perhaps. Anyway, it’s an interesting mix.
Carla dal Forno – “Come Around” (from Come Around): Maybe it’s just the reverb, but this song seems to have everything that was cool about late 60’s art rock. I love all of the empty space in the mix.
Zander Schloss – “I Have Loved the Story of My Life” (from Song About Songs): Sometimes, a record isn’t great in a measurable way. Maybe Schloss’s time in the L.A. punk scene and in weird Alex Cox movies predisposes me, but I really like the idea of loving the good and the bad in life.
Toro Y Moi – “Days in Love” (from MAHAL): 70’s funk rock being dragged through the 80’s and into the present is a pretty good recipe … and this song is subtly catchy to boot.
The Cromagnon Band – “Thunder Perfect” (from Dismantle): There is something of Spinal Tap’s “Jazz Odyssey” here, but I brings out how Tap mocked things that weren’t often all that bad. This is like 70’s prog rock gone right.
a fungus – “Trace” (from It Already Does That): Steady diet of … Fugazi and maybe the Minutemen.
Black Country, New Road – “Chaos Space Marine” (from Ants from Up There): I do enjoy when something is musically diverse and still cohesive. Black Country, New Road do that in the vein of the Decemberists.
Héloïse Werner and Daniel Shao – “Benedictine Recitation” (from Phrases): This does sometimes feel more like a vocal exercise than a song, but it is strangely beautiful.
Charlotte Adigery and Bolis Pupul – “Esperanto” (from Topical Dancer): There is a catchy melody in the call and response vocals that rides on a deep bass line and lots of layers in between, none of which seem superfluous.
Haru Nemuri – “Never Let You Go” (from SHUNKA RYOUGEN): This punk/rap/pop/electronica song maintains a nervousness even as the energy ebbs and flows.
Sudan Archives – “NBPQ (Topless)” (from Natural Brown Prom Queen): There is a cool Middle Eastern/North African vibe to this track, but it mixes very naturally with Western pop music. I love how the lyric “Stare up at the moon” leads into a dreamy section (even if I think it might be an anime reference). It’s a pretty busy four minutes.
Rat Child – “Changes” (from My Morning and Afternoon’s Work): This reminds me a bit of Sade’s Lover’s Rock, but more earthy than smooth. There is something similar musically, but where Sade’s charm is distance, Rat Child’s is closeness. Rat Child’s bandcamp page mentions Nina Simone, but I don’t quite hear that.
Benjamin Clementine – “Delighted” (from And I Have Been): The strings bring a sophistication to the soulful vocals. Arrangements like this risk sounding affected, like an effort to prove that it isn’t just a dumb pop song. Not so here.
The Sixteen and Harry Chrisophers – “…a link in a chain…” (from A Meditation): The album sets the words of 19th Century theologian Saint John Henry Newman to music. “…a link and a chain…” was composed by Scottish composer/violinist Lisa Robertson and it captures the rich history of Church music without residing in the past. It is living music for a living Church .. or for anyone searching for beauty in this world or the next.
Big Thief – “Time Escaping” (from Dragon New Warm Mountain I Believe in You): Big Thief went from being one of the better indie rock bands to being one of the best on this record. No one track can capture the variety of the record, so I picked this one out of many good options.
Free Time – “Half Measures” (from Jangle Jargon): This song makes me imagine that I love driving.
2nd Grade – “Teenage Overpopulation” (from Easy Listening): This tongue-in-cheek power pop is kind of silly almost like a cross between “Teenage Rampage” and “Astro Zombies.”
Craig Finn – “Messing with the Settings” (from A Legacy of Rentals): I don’t have much in common with the speaker in Finn’s song, yet I find the connection with this song to be intensely personal.
Attacca Quartet/Caroline Shaw – “Blueprint” – (from Evergreen): Rather than simply transporting the past, in this case Baroque music, into the present age of studio recording, Caroline Shaw pulls her music across the centuries, giving it a sense of continuity rather than displacement.
Sault – “Life We Rent But Love is Rent Free” (from Untitled (God)): Sault has an optimistic innocence without being Pollyanna. This song’s humanness celebrates both where we are and where we strive to be.
You can check out Missed Hits on Apple Music or Spotify.