The 30 best albums of 2022

Music returned to its triumphant form in 2022. Multiple artists returned from extended breaks following a tumultuous few years for the industry, showing us just how exhilarating the promise of a new record could be. We were reminded of music’s ability to stir us, allowing us to forge further connections to ourselves and each other.

We thought the first half of the year offered enough to cherish—then we reached the second half. There, we got new stellar albums from acts such as Alvvays, Julia Jacklin, Alex G, Carly Rae Jepsen—oh, and Beyoncé. Excellent records came to us in abundance in 2022, pushing us to expand our best-of list to 30 albums. Indeed, 2022 was the musical gift that kept on giving, and here we’ll celebrate all that we loved from this year.

30. Squeeze, Sasami

On her sophomore record , Sasami swooped in with her blood boiling and her hands ready for carnage. The album was such a departure from her more tender, soft-spoken, self-titled debut record that it was almost hard to believe the two came from the same person. She shreds and screams her way through exhilarating songs such as “Skin A Rat” and “Sorry Entertainer,” but handles more delicate, swooning rock ballads such as “The Greatest” and “Call Me Home” with ease. Squeeze remains one of my personal favorites from the year, both for its risk-taking and the complexity of its sound. [Gabrielle Sanchez]