![New Project (5).png](https://finals.blog/api/uploads/New_Project_5_f0017c799b.png)

Major shouts to Aramis from Enumclaw for this best-of list, our fourth in a series following [Katy Davidson's (Dear Nora)](https://finals.blog/posts/KATY-DAVIDSON'S-(DEAR-NORA)-TOP-10-SONGS-OF-2022), [Hua Hsu's](https://finals.blog/posts/HUA-HSU'S-TOP-TEN-SONGS-OF-2022), and [mine](https://finals.blog/posts/BEST-MUSIC-2022). 

If you don't know Enumclaw, read their [Finals Q&A by guest writer Stas THEE Boss](https://finals.blog/posts/Tacoma%27s-Enumclaw-Is-Not-Acting-Fake-Humble). And watch [this video](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vcMwNO5RGMM) (they have great videos). People say indie rock is dead, that it has nothing to offer and nothing more to tell us. To that, I say your cord is unplugged. Listen to Enumclaw. And listen to Aramis' playlist! It's 80% indie rock and 100% rules. 

<iframe style="border-radius:12px" src="https://open.spotify.com/embed/playlist/2ynf943ulM1JD9sYnk6U8p?utm_source=generator" width="100%" height="380" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" allow="autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; fullscreen; picture-in-picture" loading="lazy"></iframe>

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ARAMIS JOHNSON'S (ENUMCLAW) TOP 10 SONGS OF 2022

Internet guy

![katydavidson.png](https://finals.blog/api/uploads/katydavidson_6a5694a91c.png)

Shout out the homie [Katy](https://finals.blog/posts/FANTASY-FIT:-Katy-Davidson-(Dear-Nora)) for not only crafting a list but also writing about it. See their commentary below and jump into the playlist asap, which includes EDM, west coast rock, Colombian ASMR...I'll let Katy tell you about the rest. And check out [my list(s)](https://finals.blog/posts/BEST-MUSIC-2022) if you haven't. Katy's band Dear Nora is on there. 

-Andrew

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"DREAMER" - Nostalgic, melodic, and danceable. Very needed.

"DIABLO" - MOTOMAMI is hands down the best album of 2022. 

"Magnetic Personality" - Try to write a pop song melody as good as this. 

"Wake Me up to Drive" - May the road rise up to meet you. aka Life.

"Shirt" - Finally we're gonna get an album after having to endure all of these incredible singles. Try to write an R&B melody better than this.

"Trölla-Gabba" - There's really no one else in "popular music" operating at Björk's level. Though this is basically experimental contemporary classical. 

"Gotta Let It Go" - West coast forever. Long Beach forever. Barry Johnson has the best voice. 

"El Galatzó" - Dare to be different. I wish I were in a Colombian jazz club right now. 

"Music for a While" - French, soft-focus, candelabras, mist, shadows.

"Highest Building" - Flume and Oklou jammer. Crunch your brain on this compression.

-Katy Davidson

KATY DAVIDSON'S (DEAR NORA) TOP 10 SONGS OF 2022

drug-man

![New Project (3).png](https://finals.blog/api/uploads/New_Project_3_eb64fade22.png)

As the blunt ash falls into the ashtray, I look back on 2022 and must say my fav music was drill and club rap. Both sub genres gave us dope beats to step to and exciting breakout stars, and were super fun to keep up with over the course of the year. 

Honorable mention to based freestyles, Florida fast rap, drain music, backpack rap, baile funk, SoundCloud rap, jungle, and indie rock, which also had great 2022s.

Related to drill, I’ll say it was a thrill living in NY during the year of Ice Spice. She evolved the style into the pop realm with a handful of Bronx bangers, all created with her right-hand producer Riotusa. Haters (like Drake) will tell you she’s only famous because she’s fine. Really she did it with music, making her mark with sticky lingo (“munch,” “smootchy,” “like…”) & relatable, relationships-based raps. She purposefully set herself apart and it paid off. And it helped that she had her own sound, versus the prevalent cookie cutter drill type beats, which Riot told me was all about  s p a c i n g    o u t    t h e    d r u m s. (Peep my interview with Riot [here](https://finals.blog/posts/RIOTUSA-on-Ice-Spice-Clearing-Samples-and-Influencing-NY-Drill), and shouts to Alphonse Pierre for hyperlinking it on [Pitchfork](https://pitchfork.com/thepitch/ice-spice-munch-feelin-u-is-the-new-york-rap-song-of-the-summer-weve-been-waiting-for/).)

Just as exciting in NY, but more on the club tip, was the rise of producer Cash Cobain, who made a [new-school classic album](https://pitchfork.com/thepitch/cash-cobain-and-chow-lee-are-the-horniest-rappers-out/) as a duo with Chow Lee. Their horny sample driven music was  fluid and fly. As far as club rap, I had them tied for first place with Bandmanrill and MCVertt from Newark, who went from dropping explosive loosies, to engaging with Bronx drill, to putting together a strong major label debut album. A full arc. 

The dynamic duo was a def a story in 2022. Ice & Riot, Cash Cobain & Chow Lee, Bandmanrill & MCVertt…also billy woods & Preservation, French Montana & Harry Fraud…and I would like to see that continue in 2023. I think those kinds of authentic team ups are good for music, though I can’t put my finger on exactly why. 

In 2022 I also stayed closely following Brooklyn, where I dwell. This year I spent a lot of time listening to Lord Kayso, maassai, Anysia Kim, JWords, Nappy Nina, Geng PTP, amani, bstfrnd, 26AR, Tazzo B, Galcher Lustwerk, Rocko Ballin, Surf Gang, AKAI SOLO, and Ka. It was cool to see those acts rock rare shows and put out amazing music. Brooklyn seems to be in a good place artistically. 

And additionally I was tapped into my native home area of the Pacific Northwest. The rap from the area was very strong (my favs were Khris P and Tawpo), and the indie rock was great too (shout out Enumclaw and dear nora). [Playlist here](https://open.spotify.com/playlist/32ubY3QYM0pzhcw6r6dt4J?si=9cda840114fe4a0d). 

The last thing I’ll say is the best concert I saw in 2022 was by the always loquacious and effervescent [Stas Thee Boss](https://finals.blog/posts/The-Second-Act-of-Stas-THEE-Boss), who proved one night in Brooklyn that live band rap can be transcendent. Her album *S’WOMEN 2* is one of my most anticipated of 2023.

Finally, here are two year-end playlists, one long and one short, of tracks I loved that are on Spotify. They of course lack some of the year’s defining sounds, like DJ Frisco 954’s Florida fast rap which is on SoundCloud, and amani’s incredible *spook sampler* which was on bandcamp and then deleted. Spotify sucks but I use it predominantly, for now, and that’s why you’re getting these lists on that streaming service. 

Stay locked in with Finals for the remainder of the year -- we have a little more year-end content to come, and an interview with Jaime Brooks dropping soon. And tap in with [Hua Hsu's Finals Top 10 list](https://finals.blog/posts/HUA-HSU'S-TOP-TEN-SONGS-OF-2022) if you haven't already -- jams on there. 

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BEST MUSIC 2022

![New Project (2).png](https://finals.blog/api/uploads/New_Project_2_af3c42b08c.png)

It's year end list szn again, and we are kicking things off with friend of the blog Hua Hsu. His essential list of 2022 songs includes UK club rap, rugged American hip-hop, piano balladry, Japanese indie rock, Brazilian singer-songwriter, hard-as-hell jazz, and “other.”  Go buy his new book [Stay True](https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/688054/stay-true-by-hua-hsu/) for yourself or someone’s holiday present!  

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HUA HSU'S TOP TEN SONGS OF 2022

yeah

matson

![IMG_2284.jpg](https://finals.blog/api/uploads/IMG_2284_49c2024d9b.jpg)

In the words of billdifferen: [*Oh shit I forgot I have a website that I need to run...*](https://billdifferen.blogspot.com/2022/09/da-billdifferen-roundup-4-back-to-our.html)

I've been slacking on Finals. We did get three posts up in August ([Tomu DJ Q&A](https://finals.blog/posts/HALF-MOON-BAE:-A-CONVERSATION-WITH-TOMU-DJ), and Fantasy Fits with [Alphonse Pierre](https://finals.blog/posts/FANTASY-FIT:-Alphonse-Pierre) and [Katy Davidson](https://finals.blog/posts/FANTASY-FIT:-Katy-Davidson-(Dear-Nora))), but just one in September ([Shoes OTY](https://finals.blog/posts/Top-10-Shoes-of-2022)). This here might just be my lone October post. I'm a dad and a student, and school is kicking my ass & I spend most of my "free time" playing with blocks and puzzles. What can I say? Sometimes we blog, sometimes we don't. But today I feel like procrastinating for a second and I have some music to share for your fall listening. 

First is 16 minutes of random cool tunes, which I hesitate to call a "mix" although the songs do fade into each other. Just something I felt like making. Some rare and unreleased stuff in there. Artists in order are MIKE, Micachu/Kimbie, 10.4 Rog, dear nora, Naomi Punk, myself, and Ess Ford/Gunior. It's good for a rainy day. 

<iframe width="100%" height="300" scrolling="no" frameborder="no" allow="autoplay" src="https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/tracks/1356539305&color=%23ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&show_teaser=true&visual=true"></iframe>

If you wanna click around on [my SoundCloud](https://soundcloud.com/andrewmatson) there are a few other playlists I've been adding to recently too, "[beats](https://soundcloud.com/andrewmatson/sets/beats)" (I made "Crying" this week) and "[edits](https://soundcloud.com/andrewmatson/sets/edits)" (different beats underneath Earl Sweatshirt, Big L/Fat Joe, and Ice Spice). Yes, I tried a "Munch" remix. 

<iframe width="100%" height="300" scrolling="no" frameborder="no" allow="autoplay" src="https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/tracks/1355151442&color=%23ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&show_teaser=true&visual=true"></iframe>

<iframe width="100%" height="300" scrolling="no" frameborder="no" allow="autoplay" src="https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/tracks/1342542448&color=%23ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&show_teaser=true&visual=true"></iframe>

Additionally I made a guitar-specific Spotify playlist which you should check (as well as my often-updated "[Finals - Listening Lately](https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5y59z0bz2oMeNWIlgowEPO?si=2aec6563f2ee4a2f)" and "[Neo New York](https://open.spotify.com/playlist/4UNO8AnxpkuPUGZmlbloqf?si=b5ce155e4f2e4e5c)" playlists) because fall is the right time to listen to more guitar music. Many classics and a few new joints on there, heavy on the crunchy/anthemic with intermittent chill songs.  

<iframe style="border-radius:12px" src="https://open.spotify.com/embed/playlist/5cdMyFxty1YpoP5kVEHOuk?utm_source=generator" width="100%" height="380" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" allow="autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; fullscreen; picture-in-picture" loading="lazy"></iframe>

That's it! Happy fall music listening. I hope you kick wet leaves and vibe tf out. I bet the next time you'll hear from me on Finals it'll be on some end of the year list type blogging. I've been keeping a list of songs of course, and projects too. I'll say that looking back at 2022 music, it was a good year for based freestyles, Jersey club, NY drill, Florida fast rap, drain music, backpack rap, baile funk, SoundCloud rap, jungle, and indie rock. I found many more songs than full projects to be excited about. I'll probably blog a list of 50+ songs but just keep the projects to a tight ten. Wonder what format the songs list should take...individual links? A weighty page of embeds that breaks your browser? Spotify playlist like last year (hella 2021 lists are on [my Spotify profile...](https://open.spotify.com/user/andrewmatson?si=df2f53551877480a))? Zipped folder? Does anyone keep files anymore? Is anyone reading this??

Featured Post

ARAMIS JOHNSON'S (ENUMCLAW) TOP 10 SONGS OF 2022

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KATY DAVIDSON'S (DEAR NORA) TOP 10 SONGS OF 2022

BEST MUSIC 2022

HUA HSU'S TOP TEN SONGS OF 2022

Fall Faderade

HALF MOON BAE: A CONVERSATION WITH TOMU DJ