The music is an excellent fit for Ivey’s observant and smart lyrics that frequently examine the flawed and unfortunate occupants caught in the struggle of life. Ivey’s finely crafted songs fall somewhere between Americana and pop, which means they’re melodic, but have enough grit to give the music some welcome weight. “Lucifer On The Sofa” rocks a bit harder than some Spoon albums - edgy guitars bring extra bite to “Wild,” “The Devil & Mister Jones,” “The Hardest Cut” and “Satellite” - and the pop hooks are just as sharp. Now 10 albums in, Britt Daniel and crew continue to mine a minimalist rock approach and sound as fresh as ever. If ever a band understands the notion of less is more, it’s Spoon. Fans of groups like the Posies or Cheap Trick will want to get to know the Well Wishers. This veteran group continues to be one of the most reliable power pop bands going, and it delivers another album filled with crisp, guitar-centered tunes with sturdy vocal melodies. You will begin to receive our weekly Hoopla Events updates. On his sixth album, Negrito offers another lively tour through rock, soul, funk, gospel and other styles, with some sharp social commentary. Fantastic Negrito: “White Jesus Black Problems”įantastic Negrito is proving to be the closest thing the current music scene has to Prince. Far from a flavor of the month, this collection will be a timeless power pop classic. “Flavor of the Month” is another first-rate outing, with 14 relentlessly melodic, mostly energetic songs in the tradition of the Beatles and Big Star - all of which were previously released as download-only singles. Lannie Flowers: “Flavor of the Month”įlowers got on the power pop radar in the 1970s in the band the Pengwins and has gone on to build a formidable solo catalog. Mixing stirring rockers (“The Barka-Darling River,” “At the Time of Writing”) with quieter tunes possessing appropriate tension (“We Resist,” “We Are Not Afraid”) and a good bit of social commentary, “Resist” is one of the Oil’s best albums. The group left the door open to perhaps some further music making, but if “Resist” is the Oil’s final album, the band went out with a bang. This dynamic band - which I consider the best ever to come out of Australia - played its farewell tour this year. If the outsized talent of this band wasn’t already apparent, the Tedeschi Trucks Band made an emphatic statement with 2022’s most ambitious project - four thematically linked albums all joined under the title “I Am The Moon.” It’s a rich and varied musical banquet with very few lulls, as guitarist Derek Trucks and singer/guitarist Susan Tedeschi lead the band through 24 solid-to-stellar songs that encompass Southern-tinged rock, pop, country, soul and blues, with plenty of impressive playing throughout the four albums. So here are this year’s albums I felt stood above the crowd. Still, I checked out a ton of albums in 2022 - 2,200 on Spotify alone, plus albums I hadn’t heard that landed on multiple best album lists. And having seen the best album lists from Rolling Stone, Paste and many other outlets, I also know I’m not tapped into what’s trendy or hip.
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