- Only albums that were officially released in 2020 are included in this list.
- I go through in depth my system for ranking albums here, but it is essentially the average score of all the tracks in the album. For albums with tracks released in previous years, I carried over their score from those years to calculate the score for this year.
- Only the initial release of the album is considered for the calculation. So, therefore, deluxe versions, extended versions, versions with digital bonus tracks, and such were not acknowledged.
- LPs and mixtapes are included in this list. EPs, original scores and soundtracks, live recordings, DJ mixes, and compilation albums are not. Shout-out to Khruangbin and Leon Bridges’ Texas Moon EP and Ela Minus and DJ Python’s ♡ EP.
- Just like in Everything Else, I am purposely excluding albums from the Phillippines due to any unconscious bias I may have, but a shout-out to Laughing in Milk by Ligaya Escueta and Fuzz Sounds by Spacedog, Spacecat.
- You can follow along on Spotify as well.
- And with that, here are dragon new warm albums of 2022 that I believe in.
#040: Shygirl – Nymph
release date 30 September 2022
label Because Music
genre queer club, London rap, dusky electronic
#3 on DMY 25 Best Albums of 2022
#3 on The Forty-Five Albums of the Year 2022
#9 on Crack Magazine Top 50 Albums of 2022
“It is a bold and beautifully executed album that will certainly breed dance albums of a predominantly sexual nature in its wake, and its share of haters and critics.”
—Northern Transmissions
#039: Gabriels – Angels & Queens – Part I
release date 30 September 2022
label Atlas Artists | Parlophone
genre heartful soul | cinematic R&B
#13 on Piccadilly Records Top 100 Albums of 2022
#17 on PopMatters 80 Best Albums of 2022
#17 on The Sunday Times 25 Best Albums of 2022
Taboo | To The Moon And Back | The Blind
“From the unashamedly rhapsodic to the surprisingly tender, Angels & Queens, Part I touches the heart at every turn.”
—The Arts Desk
#038: Shabason & Krgovich – At Scaramouche
release date 7 October 2022
label Idée Fixe
genre Zen-like pop | whisper-soft pop
What Comes Back | I’m So Happy With My Little Dog | I’m Dancing
“On their second collaborative album, the Toronto saxophonist and Vancouver singer find common ground in the beauty of mundane moments and minuscule gestures.”
—Pitchfork
#037: The Range – Mercury
release date 10 June 2022
label Domino
genre kinetic dance, nostalgic IDM, melancholic electronica
Not For Me | Relegate | Violet
The not-to-be-missed fourth album by EDM artist James Hinton aka the Range is simultaneously his most retro sounding and forward-looking. Mercury is engrossing.”
—PopMatters
#036: Ethel Cain – Preacher’s Daughter
release date 12 May 2022
label Daughters of Cain
genre gothic middle-Americana, Florida Panhandle Lana Del Rey
#1 on Crack Magazine Top 50 Albums of 2022
#1 on Gigwise 51 Best Albums of 2022
#1 on Sputnikmusic Top 50 Albums of 2022
#1 on The Line of Best Fit Best Albums of 2022
American Teenager | A House In Nebraska | Hard Times
“Change, escape and identity are not easy things to navigate, and ‘Preacher’s Daughter’ is the dark, unsettling, sprawling beauty that comes out of it.”
—DIY
#035: Harry Styles – Harry’s House
release date 20 May 2022
label Columbia | Erskine
genre gleefully bombastic pop
#1 on USA Today 10 Best Albums of 2022
#2 on Yahoo Entertainment Best Albums of 2022
#5 on Rolling Stone 100 Best Albums of 2022
Late Night Talking | As It Was | Satellite
“As it’s released into the world, these songs are yours to sing to, dance to, cry to, laugh to. It’s yours to travel to, to make a home to, to do ‘whatever you want’ to. This isn’t just Harry’s home anymore; it’s ours.”
—Dork
#034: Rachika Nayar – Heaven Come Crashing
release date 26 August 2022
label NNA Tapes
genre wide-eyed and ethereal ambient
#29 on Pitchfork 50 Best Albums of 2022
#35 on Stereogum 50 Best Albums of 2022
#38 on The FADER 50 Best Albums of 2022
Our Wretched Fantasy | Heaven Come Crashing | Sleepless
“The Brooklyn composer injects the ambient wash of her past work with flashes of dancefloor emotionality, striking a balance between reflective contemplation and the ego-melting thrills of a warehouse party.”
—Pitchfork
#033: Destroyer – Labyrinthitis
release date 25 March 2022
label Merge | Bella Union
genre intoxicating pop | artsy-fartsy rock
#14 on Northern Transmissions Best Albums of 2022
#16 on MAGNET Top 25 Albums of 2022
#17 on Exclaim! 50 Best Albums of 2022
Suffer | June | All My Pretty Dresses
“Dan Bejar’s marvelously inscrutable songwriting reaches beyond meaning. On his most live-sounding record in years, he finds clarity when language recedes and the music takes over.”
—Pitchfork
#032: Ravyn Lenae – Hypnos
release date 20 May 2022
label Atlantic
genre ethereal R&B | holographic reverbs and whispered lullabies
#18 on NPR Music 50 Best Albums of 2022
#19 on Okayplayer 22 Best Albums of 2022
#22 on A.V. Club 30 Best Albums of 2022
M.I.A. | Skin Tight | Where I’m From
“The 23-year-old Chicago singer’s long-awaited debut makes a close study of R&B history, floating through weightless vocal arrangements with uncommon poise.”
—Pitchfork
#031: Fontaines D.C. – Skinty Fia
release date 22 April 2022
label Partisan
genre heavy, but never heavy-going | snarling guitar music wedged firmly in the post-punk framework
#1 on Hot Press 50 Best Albums of 2022
#1 on Northern Transmissions Best Albums of 2022
#2 on Louder Than War Albums of the Year 2022
Jackie Down The Line | Bloomsday | Roman Holiday
“‘Mother Ireland’ is hovering over and guilt-tripping the lads making these mordant songs of alienation and disaffection.”
—The Arts Desk
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