By Henry Lipput
My favorite albums in 2022 were a great mix of old favorites,
recent favorites, and brand-new favorites. In the following paragraphs I’ve
spotlighted the releases that tickled my ears the most, added links to where
you can find them, and chose my favorite tracks from each of them (where
available I’ve included links to where you can hear the songs). As in the past
this list of albums is only Part One of my 2022 year-end review; Part Two, with
singles, EPs, live releases, compilations, and reissues, will hopefully be
posted by the middle of February (since for some reason my blog doesn’t let
folks subscribe if you follow me on Twitter or Mastodon you’ll see Part Two as
soon as it’s posted).
Freedy Johnston, Back on the Road to You (Forty Below Records)
Although it’s been seven years since Freedy
Johnston’s Neon Repairman, from the opening notes of his great new
album Back on the Road to You it’s clear he hasn’t missed a
beat. My favorite songs on Back on the Road to You recall the
things I’ve liked in his past work like the glorious pop of “There Goes a
Brooklyn Girl” made me think of Never Home’s “I’m Not Hypnotized” and
the five-minute long instant classic “Somewhere Love” has the same melancholy
vibe of his masterpiece Blue Days, Black Nights.
Karen, Karen (Old Bad Habits Label)
Karen is a British supergroup made up of musicians who have
worked with other bands: Davey Woodward on vocals and guitar (The Brilliant
Corners, The Experimental Pop Band, Davey Woodward and the Winter Orphans),
Hugo Morgan on bass (The Heads, Loop), and Tom Adams on drums (Beatnick
Filmstars, Secret Shine, The Total Rejection). Karen released an EP, Filwood
Broadway in 2018 and the self-titled release Karen is advertised as their first and
only album. Woodward’s songs chronicle working class Brits (“Carrier Bag”) and
rocky romances (“Too Late”). I’m a sucker for Woodward’s broken-hearted,
yearning vocals as well as his lyrics whether it’s for a love song or a story
song. Favorite track: “Estuary”
Lannie Flowers, Flavor of the Month (Spyderpop Records/BigStir Records)
One of my favorite discoveries of 2021 was the reissue of Lannie Flower’s album Home. In 2018 Flowers was working on the songs that would become Home but also coming up with some that didn’t fit his vision of the album. Rather than putting those tunes aside he decided to issue them as free monthly downloads as a March to Home series. Flavor of the Month contains theses songs (remixed by Flowers) but also the new single “Summer Blue” and is the first physical release of these songs (and if you buy the vinyl for Flavor you’ll get a CD containing the original March To Home tracks). The album is a masterful collection featuring straight-up rock and roll with some power pop thrown in for good measure. Favorite track: “What Did I Know”
The Shop Window, A 4 Letter Word (Bandcamp/Spinout Nuggets)
Love is all over the new album, A 4 Letter Word from The Shop Window: there’s love in the lyrics and love in the playing of the songs. Band is also a four-letter word, and this love is best shown in the way the four members of the band (at the time of the album’s recording) love playing together. This is clear as soon as the needle hits the vinyl on the album’s first song, “Eyes Wide Shut,” it’s clear from Mann’s opening licks and jangles, the solid background provided by Martin Corder’s bass and Phil Esphee’s drums, Syd Oxlee’s keyboard washes, and then the intertwined vocals of Mann and Oxlee. Favorite track: “Lay of the Land”
Josh Rouse, Going Places (Yep Roc Records)
I’ve been a fan of Josh Rouse’s music since 2005’s splendid Nashville album. His latest, Going Places, is almost as good. Rouse spent the last few years his family in Spain, writing songs to be played in a small club; I had a ticket to see him in a small club here in Pittsburgh but wasn’t ready yet to be out in a group of people (my loss). With its tune-heavy songs (“Henry Miller’s Flat” and “Hollow Moon”), his gentle vocals (“Indian Summer”), and arrangements that feature the use of horns and some cool old-school organ fills (“Apple of my Eye”), Going Places is made to be heard live (but equally excellent on your stereo or headphones). Favorite track: “Apple of my Eye”
Tamar Berk, start at the end (Bandcamp)
Singer-songwriters can be a serious bunch and Tamar Berk
is no exception. On her second solo album (a strong follow-up to 2021's the restless
dreams of youth -- no sophomore slump for Berk), she once again writes
honestly about adult relationships. Perhaps not intended as a concept album,
the album opener, “Your Permission,” opens the door for her to put on various
moods and attitudes in her songs: “Can I ask your permission/To be someone else
today/To say what I want to say/In a different sort of way.” The songs range
from rockers (“real bad day”) to piano-based confessionals (“you already knew”)
and dancing-around-the-living-room pop (“alone tonight”).
SUPER 8, Universal Journey (Bandcamp)
Universal Journey from SUPER 8 aka Trip aka Paul Ryan is
an out-of-this-world delight. The album is the first since 2020’s collaboration
on the Lisa Mychols and SUPER 8 album (Mychols provides guest vocals on many of Universal
Journey’s songs). The opening and
closing tracks on Universal Journey (“Universe,” “Feel,” and
“The World Is Happening”) make up a soundtrack to a viewing of the incredible
Webb telescope photos. And “Galactic 9,” with vocals from Mychols, is the sexy
sound of space travel with visions of a ship full of mile-high-and -a-half
members.
The Jazz Butcher, Highest in the Land (Tapete Records)
I knew little to nothing about the band The Jazz Butcher
when its leader Pat Fish died in 2021. But the people whose musical opinions I
respect on Twitter had a lot to say about the importance of his music to their
lives. As a result, I've been listening to, and enjoying, their final album and the first
in nine years, The Highest in the Land. The album is full of
wonderful tunes and there’s a block of gorgeous ones in the middle of the album:
“Sea Madness,” “Don’t Give Up,” “Amalfi Coast May 1963.” It has certainly given
me a good reason to take a deep dive into the band’s back catalog (founded in
1982 they had an 11- album run in the first 13 years of their career).
The Vague Ideas, New York Letters (Trouserphonic)
New York Letters is set during the period John Lennon lived in New York between 1971 and 1980 and this unique idea is the result of a collaboration between US-based musician and writer Mare Rozzelle and UK-based songwriter and musician Glenn Prangnell. The songs take the form of letters and messages both to and from Lennon. “Bread and Jam (Letter to Julian)” fittingly recalls Double Fantasy’s “I’m Losing You” as John writing to his young son and the amazing “Revolution 9”- inspired “Prelude to the Lost Weekend” is Prangnell’s look at Lennon’s state-of-mind as he leaves Yoko. The last two songs on the album are the saddest as well as the most beautiful. “When You Turn Five (Lullaby for Sean)” is the future that neither of them will see together. And “No More Crying (Message to Paul)” is a love song to McCartney; it’s his version of “Here Today” and even begins with the same chord. Favorite track: “No MoreCrying (Message to Paul)”
Armstrong, Happy Graffiti (The Beautiful Music/Country Mile Records)
With the release of his radiant third album Happy Graffiti Armstrong (Julian Pitt) has made it clear, with his trademark DIY use of vocals, acoustic guitars, and synths, he doesn’t sound like anyone else because he has a sound all his own. One of the themes in Armstrong’s work is the idea of walking with a friend or partner and having a conversation to work out problems. In terms of musical themes “Keep on Walking,” for example, is one of Happy Graffiti’s songs in which upbeat arrangements bump up against melancholy lyrics. “Eyes Open Wide” and “In a Memory,” however, are straight-up gorgeous sad songs. Favorite track: “Songbird”
Caleb Nicols, Ramon (Kill Rock Stars)
Ramon is not only the album’s title but also the last name Paul McCartney took when The Beatles had their first real gig in 1960 as the backing band for Johnny Gentle on a tour of Scotland. On “Ramon,” Nichols borrows the line “Ram on, give your heart to somebody soon” from McCartney’s RAM. Nichol’s take is just as lovely and melancholy. The centerpiece of the album is the relationship between Mr. Mustard and Captain Custard. “Mustard’s Blues” recalls McCartney’s “Let Me Roll It” and the neatly six-minute “From a Hole in the Road” (or is it a hole in the heart?) with its repeated line “I’ve been dreaming you” and then “I still dream of you” becomes a mantra. The final song on Ramon (and my new favorite Christmas song) is “I Fell in Love on Xmas Day.” Favorite track: “Ramon”
Crossword Smiles, Pressed & Ironed (Big Stir Records)
Ringing guitars, short sharp bass lines, wonderful close
harmonies, and tunes a-plenty, that’s what you get on Pressed &
Ironed, the debut album from Crossword Smiles. The band is a brand-new
collaboration between Detroit, Michigan, pop stalwarts Tom Curless (guitar,
drums, and vocals) of Your Gracious Host and solo efforts and Chip Saam (bass
and vocals) of The Hangabouts as well Curless’s backing band The 46% (and
Neighborhood Weekly Radio’s Indie Pop Takeout). Inspired
by the sound of 80’s and 90’s college radio, Curless and Saam dip into their
musical grab bags to create songs that both reflect and build on what they’ve
grown up listening to.
