The 100 best songs of 2022
Whether you heard them on TikTok, on the radio or on a fresh slab of old-fashioned vinyl, new songs helped make sense this year of a world that seemed to need more interpretation with every passing month.
Here, in ascending order of greatness, are our picks for the 50 best of 2022 — note that we restricted artists to one entry apiece — followed by 50 more to hear, to love, to be enlightened by.
50. Zach Bryan, “Something in the Orange”: One of the year’s most compelling newcomers inexplicably failed to land a best new artist Grammy nomination, but don’t let that detract from the rippling sincerity of this streaming-smash highlight from Bryan’s sprawling “American Heartbreak” album.
49. Kenny Mason, “Zoomies”: Mason’s was far and away the finest trap-metal concept album about an artist’s dog to come out this year.
48. Baby Stone Gorillas, “Keep Goin”: The white-hot L.A. rap group assails a soul sample on “Keep Goin,” its members jumping in and out of frame as they pass the baton with an uncanny chemistry.
47. Kali Malone, “Living Torch I”: Absolutely nothing and everything happens in these gorgeous 18 minutes of organ drones. Light some candles
