Here lies some music and some musical encounters that I found compelling during 2022. It’s not a best-of list. Instead, it’s simply a list of musical items that reflect a personal experience of music this past year that are worth checking out if you didn’t already catch them. Sharing is caring after all.

When I’m buying albums, and yes, I still buy albums, I’m looking for things that are off the beaten path. For that I generally turn to Bandcamp where my collection is easily accessible in one digital location. Additionally, the app provides several ways to get tipped off to new and cool things. Bandcamp Daily promotes 2 or 3 albums every single day and Bandcamp radio is a weekly show that features a guest artist who curates a selection of juicy new releases. The search feature is itself a treasure trove of a deep dive if you’re looking to get completely lost in the world of, say, dark wave goth. That’s just one example of a sub-sub genre they’ll generate search results for.

This year I leaned heavily into ambient. I suppose it felt like a year to be lost and content. It was a sorta-post-panny world that warranted reflection and quiet diligence. Ambient music fit the bill for me. Of course, I’m always on the look out for new punk, Colorado artists, Classical and jazz. That music found its way into my listening rotation as well. But, if I had to pick, thoughtfulness is the theme that connects all these disparate offerings.

2022 Records of Note

Wovenhand is the dark country project of Colorado visionary David Eugene Edwards (16 Horsepower). “Silver Sash” is his 10th studio album in the 20 years he’s been recording as Wovenhand, but it is the first time he’s brought on Chuck French (Planes Mistaken for Stars) as co-writer. French brings a notable grit and wail that elevates the album to something like stadium rock crammed into WAV files. Denverite Jason Begin (Christie Front Drive) can take some credit here as he recorded these songs at his home during the pandemic. Start to finish this is a solid record baked up right here in my hometown.

Zola Jesus, the pen name of Nika Roza Danilova, gave her devoted fans, of which I am one, another tome of deeply, darkly, carefully crafted elegies back in June. “Arkhon” was as commanding as any of her previous albums but gave a new exploration of layering. Her clear and powerful contralto voice remains dominating but delicate artifacts of her singing fade in and out beneath the lead lines. It gives the effect of waiting for her voice to blossom rather than always taking the driver’s seat. Her 2017 album “Okovi” made my end of year mixtape that year and it shows us a Zola Jesus who is bare and bearing it all in a story of true vulnerability. If that is held in reference to “Arkhon” then this album gives us an artist who has moved on from the rawness and is ready to show us a polished and formatted version of her story.

A retrospective of an artist who was largely ignored during their heyday always feels like a precious score. Although Oksana Linde is still living and has been composing since the early 80’s she was only given an album debut in 2022. A Venezuelan artist of Ukrainian descent, Linde spent much of her adult life working as a chemical engineer and scientifically chopping apart soundwaves on early synthesizer technology in her spare time. It could be speculated that she has been, up until now, denied her due in the recording industry partly because experimental-electronic music from Latin American has been shrugged off. Lucky for us, then, that Luis Alvarado of Peruvian based Buh Records heard her old recordings on a Facebook post and decided to give her a much deserved vinyl pressing. “Aquatic and Other Worlds” came out in March and I was one of the folks who snagged a copy. She deserves a place alongside other electronic music pioneers such as Delia Derbyshire, Suzanne Ciani and Laurie Spiegel.

It’s hard not to see a lineage in ambient music that continues through young artists currently producing works. In August Rachika Nayar, a musician based in Brooklyn, put out her second full length album, “Heaven Come Crashing”. The spacious, trance-like, pieces involve guitar licks that expand one’s understanding of how a guitar can function. But don’t worry, there is plenty of digital rhythm and loads of synthey sweeps included to fold layers of soundwaves into a soft blanket of listening pleasure. Get lost, but also find yourself exactly where you are.

Pivoting to one of my tried and true forms of music - punk - I found the demo of Croatian band Mižerija a banner addition to the oeuvre. It was recorded at a squat and sounds exactly like all the contradictions spaces like that inhabit. Upbeat and downtuned; revelling and railing; bright and bitter. Getting Croatian stamps with my 7” was a cool bonus. Punk is doing alright and the kids are fine. Btw, you can’t stream this so throw ‘em a few bucks to listen on Bandcamp.

Caroline Shaw has teamed up with the Attaca Quartet once again on her latest album “Evergreen”. Each composition here is inspired by literature. That’s not to say that there is text in each “essay” - there largely is not - but that the link between written expression and musical expression is close and Shaw would like to remind us of that. This album is one of the best in contemporary Classical to come out in 2022. The variation in how the strings execute phrases, alone, is worth a dedicated listen. There is singing, though, and the highlight is the final track “Cant voi l’aube” which meanders around Shakespeare’s lauded quote, “A rose by any other name.” Shaw’s soprano voice harkens back to a Renaissance tone - scant vibrato, perfectly centered pitch and a silvery quality that would fit well in a small, intimate room. It is quite the opposite of the bombastic soprano of Verdi and Puccini we’re more accustomed to hearing in Classical solo repertoire, but it is the voice that is needed for the literary emphasis to transmit.

Mali Obomsawin is a jazz and folk bassist with extensive touring and performing experience. This much anticipated album, “Sweet Tooth”, released in October, is her first foray as a solo artist, composer, arranger and bandleader. She more than proves her mettle here combining not only her chops in jazz and folk but presenting her stories and cultural traditions as Wabanaki, member of the Odanak First Nation (located in present day Canada). In the selection “Pedegwajois” (Little Round Mountain) gentle jazz improvisation undergirds a field recording of Theophile Panadis of Odanak recounting the tale of a young man receiving a teaching from a metawelinno. According to Obomsawin this story is from ancient times before colonization. This elder retelling a story that transcends time, surrounded by Obomsawin’s present, living compositional prowess gifts us with an indigenous continuity and continued influence over popular musics.

Nigerian-American dancer and singer-songwriter Kingsley Ibeneche teased his sophomore album, “Ubu”, with the single, “Asked for Light”. The entire album is stellar but this one track was the one I kept returning to. It’s plea for positivity, love, the touch of something divine and is a meditation on our beautiful aches as we navigate the mortal. It’s a fitting close to a ponderous list of music that came out in 2022. Didn’t we all ask for some light? I hope we all saw some, or at least heard some.

2022 Musical Experiences of Note

One of the best writings on music last year was by my dear friend Sascha Hamilton, whose blog Signals Fill the Void often describes a place I recognize well - punk and broken hearts. Just a few weeks ago they wrote about seeing the band Catharsis play. Their description of the show and its aftermath of reflections on youth and rebellion lingered with me for days. I suppose as we age our desire to change the world doesn’t compromise so much as have to take new forms. In the end we all return to survival but survival is critical rebellion too.

My favorite live show of last year was my friend, and fellow Colorado musician, Coy Lim & Her Halo-Halo Band at Dazzle. The show was packed. So much so that me and my date for the night had to sit in the way back behind the bar. The sound was still good and Coy put on a fantastic show to celebrate the release of her new full length, “Mirror, Mirror”. She’s an artist to keep an eye on for sure!

The best music fest I went to was Down in Denver Fest. I was lucky enough to be a volunteer for the final day and caught most of the acts. Back to back sets from Denver bands - well, it just doesn’t happen anymore. The other two big summer fests that feature local acts rely upon large out-of-town acts to draw in crowds. Down in Denver might be small but it has a mighty heart. Sign up for their email list so you get early notice about next year’s lineup. And, make it a point to support local music!

Lastly, my favorite musical anecdote of 2022 was about the late, great Bing Crosby. Known for his rich baritone voice that practically drips like melted chocolate off the plate at a birthday party, he was already a superstar when he launched a radio show. It was the 50’s and the format was variety. He would sing and interview guests. Maybe there was some storytelling with Foley artists involved - I’m not entirely sure. What is certain is that his show was a hit! Sometime during its run live radio became a thing. Bing wanted in on it but the audio quality was inferior to broadcasting pre-recorded material so he was advised against it by his producers. Nonetheless, he craved that electric feeling a live show gives a performer so undaunted he pursued the live broadcasting. At the debut the swooning, deep timbre of his voice was diminished. Audiences were livid! Fans wrote the station demanding a return to pre-recorded programs. Bing, saddened by the fiasco, lost his energy for the radio show. Soon TV would surpass it anyways and the whole thing faded into the annals of a Wikipedia article. Sadly, Wikipedia doesn’t detail the story of his live experiment. Perhaps this is just an apocryphal account. I heard it on a podcaast sometime this past year and I’ve been obsessed with it’s implications. Because, even if it’s only partly true it’s an amazing tale of people’s expectations. We insist that our singing idols continue to sound exactly as we’ve always heard them. I guess you could call it an emotional attachment to tone.

I hope 2022 sounded pretty good to your ears. And I especially hope 2023 brings even more textures to suit your layered, complicated journey in this realm.