After a predictably slow, albeit gem-studded, January, February has come and blown the doors completely open. Despite being the shortest month of the year, it provided us with a heap of great tracks and even better albums in both the metal and non-metal realms. Only time will tell if this year’s AOTY will come from February like last year’s did, but right now the odds are looking pretty great.
One last thing. Substack is telling me that this is too long for email so you can check the whole post out on your browser to see everything.
Metal Albums
Rolo Tomassi - Where Myth Becomes Memory
I honestly thought there was no way that Rolo Tomassi could match the quality of their 2018 album, Time Will Die and Love Will Bury It. And I didn’t think that for a negative reason, but because that was easily one of the best projects released in 2018. Well, whatever perception I had was clearly wrong, because Where Myth Becomes Memory meets and even exceeds its predecessor in many arenas. The guitar work and drumming on this record perfectly balance themselves between providing an atmosphere while being compelling on their own merit. Song structures are varied and compelling, and never stretch on for too long like so many metal records do. Best of all is the stunning combination of lead singer Eva Korman and harsh vocalist James Spence. Their voices perfectly compliment one another, and Korman’s voice is particularly needed on a record this aggressive. It’s not only one of the most impressive records released by Rolo Tomassi, it’s one of, if not the most impressive metal records of a young 2022.
Zeal & Ardor - Zeal & Ardor
After landing squarely atop our best EP’s of 2020 list, Zeal & Ardor has returned with a self-titled record that’s even more compelling than 2020’s short and stellar Wake of a Nation. Like before, the band addictively and poignantly combines elements of black metal, and melodeath with black spirituals, further cementing themselves as one of the most unique acts in the metal space. On top of that, the album is brutally heavy in a way that should be off-putting but instead only adds to its appeal. The vocals are among the best performed and most interesting of any metal band currently operating, and the harsh vocals are particularly impressive in their tone, force and duration. As expected, the instrumentation is on another level, combining elements of djent, black metal, death metal and even groove metal at times, it manages to remain exciting and addictive even when it’s bursting into the lines between metal and noise. Like Rolo Tomassi, this too is one of the best metal records of 2022, if not the best, and has only grown in my estimation since my first listen.
Mass Worship - Portal Tombs
On Portal Tombs, Mass Worship creates one of the most overwhelming, dread-inducing atmospheres in the world of metal. At any point in time, you’re likely to have all three instruments working in tandem to create a huge, bass-laden sound. The use of toms on the drum kit is prominent throughout and there’s a deep, bassy tone that permeates throughout the background of the record. If you’re a fan of bands like Bather or Vous Autres then you’ve likely heard this addicting tone before, but that doesn’t make it any less impressive to hear what’s happening on Portal Tombs.
Korn - Requiem
I certainly did not expect to be writing positive things about Korn in the two thousand and twenty second year of our satanic overlord, but I’m not going to lie to you in some vain attempt to be cool. This Korn album absolutely rules. If you had any love for Korn back in the day, or were at all interested in the countless imitators and groups inspired by Korn’s (often unfairly derided) blend of rap and metal, then this might be the best album to come from that genre in about a decade. It treads back over the familiar ground of early Korn albums while cleaning up the production enough to let the well-composed lyrics and shockingly potent instrumentation to shine through. It’s easy to go ahead and write off Korn, nu-metal and anything to do with the metal that emerged in the late 90s and early 00s, it’s probably even fair at this point, but that era is still a part of metal history. There are ideas worth exploring from that time period, and Requiem contains just about all of them.
Cult of Luna - The Long Road North
It’s fair to argue that Cult of Luna is THE post-metal band of the 2000s. There are a few others that could credibly lay claim to the throne, but it’s no understatement to say that Cult of Luna exists alongside royalty, and are indeed royals themselves. After putting out records for 22 years, the band clearly has some more things that they have to say, which is impressive of any band reaching past the 20 year mark. The Long Road North is a bit more approachable than some of their previous records. Their sound is not as enveloping or suffocating as it has been, but the extra breathing room gives them ample space to explore new and knotty concepts. Like most other post-metal acts, Cult of Luna creates songs that are as lengthy as they are complex. They’re not afraid to drown you in atmosphere, as they do in the back half of “The Silver Arc” nor are they afraid to go borderline feral, as they do in the closing moments of “An Offering to the Wild.” Whatever your proclivities, chances are that Cult of Luna has at least some section of a song that will resonate with you, but it’s the composition and composure that they bring across the 69-minute runtime that makes this record truly shine.
Alto Arc - Alto Arc
It’s difficult to say whether or not Alto Arc’s self-titled album (EP maybe?) fits into the wider realm of metal. In truth, the only thing lumping them into the front half of this month’s recap rather than the non-metal back half is the presence of harsh vocals. Whatever you want to call this record hardly matters, as it’s excellent regardless of a label. It smashes together elements of metal vocals, indie-pop and industrial music to carve out a space that is wholly their own. It’s the rare album that is almost impossible to describe. All that I can say to do it any justice is that a majority of the album sounds like a prayer or summoning ritual for something more terrifying and beautiful than words can communicate.
Black Dresses - Forget Your Own Face
No matter what Black Dresses do it seems to be excellent. After a turbulent 2021 that saw them release the unimpeachable Forever in Your Heart and then allegedly ending the project they’ve returned to release Forget Your Own Face. The record doesn’t exactly reach the heights of Forever in Your Heart, but it still contains their inventive, manic and completely off the wall musical stylings. It’s the kind of music where you genuinely wonder if the people making it are okay, and while I can’t speak to that (though I hope they are) the music itself is undeniably impressive.
The Body & OAA - Enemy of Love
If there’s one thing about The Body that you can count on, it’s that they’re always ready to enter into a collaboration, and that whatever collaboration they do will be good. This crossover with The OAA (AKA A.J. Wilson) sees them push further into the electronic space than usual. The OAA warps and manipulates the stomach-knotting screams of The Body’s Chip King into strange background noise, and also adds a sense of greater structure to The Body’s more recent atmospheric sound. While it’s still a Body record at heart, The OAA’s flourishes allow us to see even more facets of the already multifaceted experimental act, and we should be grateful that for all their longevity, The Body seems thrilled to be putting out new music as often as possible without sacrificing quality.
Sadness & Unreqvited - Sadness/Unreqvited
It’s no secret that Sadness is one of the most impressive black metal acts currently releasing music. As a single performer, the music they create is some of the most invigorating in the space and is a perfectly balanced act of craft, passion and reverence for the style. Their half of the record is my favorite, to be certain, and contains some of the most aggressive music I’ve heard them make. But that doesn’t mean the Unreqvited half of the split is skippable. It is on the whole cleaner and less visceral than Sadness’ contributions, but the clean production does enable you to hear some powerful instrumentation and enter into a much more contemplative space than most metal bands allow. While both acts have more impressive projects than this split, they may each deliver their magnum opus soon if this split is any indicator of where they are headed.
Non-Metal Albums
Big Thief - Dragon New Warm Mountain I Believe in You
Big Thief is one of the acts that everyone seems to love that I don’t really get. But that said, even I can appreciate the breadth and scope of this immaculate double album. The album flits between being sparse and full, but it’s the singing and lyricism that will pull you in, provided you are so inclined. It’s a bit more folk-inspired that I typically gravitate toward, and even then I find much of the record completely undeniable. If you listen to nothing else from the album, at least give “Simulation Swarm” a go, since it’s maybe my song of the year.
Shamir - Heterosexuality
Shamir may not be the most consistent act in music today. They always have interesting ideas but the execution doesn’t always pan out exactly like I want. It’s not a particularly rare space for an artist to find themselves, but after debuting with Ratchet in 2015, it’s hard not to want Shamir to pull all the pieces together. Ultimately, I’m not sure that heterosexuality fully does that, but it gets a hell of a lot closer than anything else they’ve released since their debut. There are occasionally clunky lyrics that can pull you out of the experience, but the production and vocal performances are mind-blowing. If you can put up with a few flaws (that may not even be flaws to you) then you’ll be rewarded with one of the best pop records of 2022.
Beach House - Once Twice Melody
Being a music critic that loves Beach House is just about the most predictable thing about me. But I can’t help it when they make music this good. Sure, the memes aren’t entirely wrong that Beach House has released one album several times over, and sure, the music isn’t even particularly invigorating, and yes, I have fallen asleep listening to Beach House more than once. In my mind, all those things are benefits rather than detriments. What impresses me most about this record though is the length. It’s incredibly risky to release a double album no matter who you are (at least dangerous for the critical reception, it’s actually good for your streaming numbers but that’s a different conversation). Beach House, one of the most atmospheric and dreamy bands currently putting out music, releasing a double album is borderline insanity. As it turns out, the immaculate vibes of a Beach House song only grow with time, and sitting and listening to an 84 minute album of this style of music is as good as any yoga class or guided meditation.
Black Country, New Road - Ants From Up There
There’s always a risk when a band gets too big too fast. Usually, that risk appears in their sophomore effort, which falls flat after a miraculous debut album. And while there were ramifications to the fast found fame of Black Country, New Road, they were mercifully absent on Ants From Up There. In truth, this album needs to be picked over with a much finer comb than their debut does. There are fewer immediately revelatory moments, but that’s just because there are fewer post-rock crescendos in which you can lose yourself. But if you’re looking for post-rock, this might be the album that mastered the modern format of it, or at the very least, finally learned how to put it inside of something else more digestible. What is happening on this album is profoundly exciting from a music development standpoint, and the blend of horns, talk-singing, post-rock and just about every other genre under the sun is compelling to listen to as it is to contemplate its ripple effect. To close this out, I spoke with a friend about how the generation currently rising to musical prominence was going to be the first genre to crack the “post-genre” code. I think this is the album that finally did it for guitar music, and only time will tell if it’s a buzzy record now or something meticulously pored over in 20 years.