20 Chat Pile GOD’S COUNTRY(Flenser)
2022 has been quite the year for Oklahoma’s Chat Pile, who were virtually unknown until the release of debut LP God’s Country in July. But thanks to said album’s nine slices of brilliant sludge rock, they have become one of the most hyped underground bands in the world. It’s easy to hear why. Tracks like Slaughterhouse and Why are so relentlessly pummelling yet groovy that Chat Pile pull off the near-impossible – abrasive dissonance that nevertheless gets stuck in your head.
19 Yard Act THE OVERLOAD(Island)
Arriving fully-formed with this debut album, Yard Act sounded less like a band discovering their sound than one who have already perfected their hyper-specific brand of spiky, danceable post-punk. Though the heavily politicised (and often hilarious) lyrics of vocalist James Smith are often the main talking point, guitarist Sam Shjipstone colours the surreal songs of The Overload with all manner of angular staccato riffs. A crowning moment for the UK’s breakthrough stars of the year.
18 The Smile A LIGHT FOR ATTRACTING ATTENTION(XL)
In the last few years, Thom Yorke and Johnny Greenwood have delivered stellar solo music, but A Light For Attracting Attention, the debut album from the pair’s side project The Smile, is their first collaboration since Radiohead’s 2016 LP A Moon Shaped Pool. And there is much for Greenwood enthusiasts to savour – with tracks such as The Opposite and Thin Thing featuring some of his most intricate guitar work since 2003’s Hail To The Thief.
17 Alter Bridge PAWNS & KINGS(Napalm)
Alter Bridge’s seventh album saw Mark Tremonti and Myles Kennedy get heavier, riffier and harder to predict than ever before. The two guitarists, who’d both used recent solo projects to explore different sides of their musical personalities, smashed up their, with Kennedy authoring many of the record’s heaviest riffs – like and – and laying down a torrent of fret-scorching solos. Tremonti, on the other hand, turned his attention more towards songwriting than the aggressive speed metal stylings that had first propelled him to guitar god status, and switched into frontman mode for the ballad . Both relied as heavily as ever upon PRS guitars for recording, and Tremonti’s collection of Dumble, Cornford and signature PRS amps took care of much of the tonal heavy lifting.
