SSV Best Of: Ambient & Post-Rock 2022
My favourite Ambient & Post-Rock releases of the year.
Hi Pal,
It’s that time of year again when we take a look back at the most memorable music releases of the year. It’s only fair that I give some disclaimers at this juncture.
I did not listen to every album, EP or song that dropped in 2022. These lists only contain the stuff that I listened to.
This list is strictly my personal opinion and as such is very biased.
This is a ranked list.
Stick around for the playlist at the end. Also, you can check out the songs on all platforms using the embedded links on the titles.
10 — Meditations, Vol. 5 by Salt Of The Sound
2022 was a busy and prolific year for the duo — a sentiment that you will read me express about many of the artists on this list. As much as I enjoyed Hymns for Morningtide and I’ve found myself falling in love with their recent collaborative EP with Dear Gravity (Before the Stars Have Left the Skies), the Meditation series has always been what connects me the most to Anita and Ben Tatlow. Volume 5 feels like a story best listened to chronologically from start to finish, with tracks like For This Moment and Connection really standing out for me.
9 — Forever Ago by Matt Tondut, We Dream of Eden
This album is what I’d describe as short and sweet. It’s a progressive ambient project with neo-classical undertones, led primarily by the piano driving the songs as they build to swelling and soothing string layers. Tracks like Almost Home and Cloudburst are prime examples of the quality of this album. I also appreciated the contributions of Lauge, Applefish and Hatsü on the three tracks that were reworked on the album.
8 — Once a Home by Antarctic Wastelands, Norvik
I have a thing for album covers and there’s something quite bleak about this one that made me feel like I was in for a unique experience. It’s not that the album is sad, but there is a sense of inevitability and brevity that the album seems to capture about the human experience that is so palpable. It’s also quite experimental in its approach, which is always a huge bonus for me. There’s a Time for Endings and The Arrival of a Peculiar Guest are standouts in my opinion.
7 — The Sea Remains The Sea by inamomentimalive
A few months ago, I did not even know about this artist. A friend of mine recommended this album and it has become one of my favourite post-rock/ambient albums of 2022. From the start, it is clear that this album was created for an immersive experience. Yet it is still quite gentle in its approach with cinematic droning effects that slowly nudge you into a powerful embrace. Fully Immersed and Great Shifts And Changes, Pt. 2 are examples of this.
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6 — Godspeed (Deluxe) by Dear Gravity
I’m probably cheating for having this album here but it is my list so, you know. I say this because the original Godspeed dropped in 2021 and it was my favourite ambient/post-rock album of that year. But the re-release of the album with four reworked tracks was enough reason for me to place it on this list. The only reason why it is this low is that most of the songs have been out before this year. I cannot speak highly enough of the quality of this album and it is probably my favourite album in the genre in the past five years. Reworks like Reconditioning Has to Start Somewhere - cloudchaos remix and Finish, Remember, Begin Again - Good Weather For An Airstrike remix only enhance the quality of an already stellar body of work.
5 — Mysteries by Antarctic Wastelands
This is the second album on this list by Ben Tatlow’s project Antarctic Wastelands. It dropped early in the year and I totally forgot to listen to it until August. In a short time, it has grown to become one of my comfort albums of 2022. It’s impressive how Ben manages to approach his different projects without sounding predictable or out of ideas. On every song that had him this year, he always keeps things fresh and interesting. Dark Skies, Fading and Static Iridescence are standout tracks for me.
4 — Aerial by Gray North
Gray North released three albums in 2022. Of the three of them, Aerial is my favourite one and it also happens to be the brightest album on this list tonally. A song like What Is Reality is upbeat with electronic infusions, Shadow Figures is mysterious and urgent with a synth-bass progression that is to die for and even the solemn Falling is still hopeful with its warm piano melodies and anthemic crescendo. I am full of respect for this project.
3 — Morning Mist by Broken Peak
Broken Peak is the most prolific artist on this list for 2022 with four albums and three EPs (two of them being collaborative projects) released at the time of writing this. Any of these albums could have made this list but Morning Mist is the album that lives up to its title in the strongest sense. As a concept album, the soundscapes are carefully crafted and suited to capture the mood with tracks like Night Dreamer or Aero managing to be both soothing and near claustrophobic at times, in the way the droning sounds are layered and arranged. It’s a wonderful listening experience.
2 — Liminal: Spaces by Be Still The Earth
This was the first ambient album I listened to this year and it set the benchmark for my expectations for 2022. In retrospect, that may have been a bad decision considering how great this album is. In many ways, this album was a lesson in production and sonic arrangement for me. As someone whose ears tend to appreciate and notice the little stuff, I was blown away by the attention to detail and various seemingly insignificant tonal choices that converged to create some of the most emotionally stirring sounds I’ve experienced in a while. Stillness Replaced, All Disappearing and Depth of Field are all songs that I highly recommend.
1 — Garden Heart: Reworks by We Dream of Eden
An album of reworks may seem like an odd choice for a number-one spot, and in some ways it is. In every sense of the word, this is a collaborative album that featured many of my favourite artists in this scene. Still, I am confident that the original Garden Heart — also released this year — would also have been my number one. Standing out in the ambient scene is one of the toughest things to do because it is instrumental music and there are always foundational similarities with most artists. Every artist on this list is here because I believe that they — to varying degrees — stand out in their ways of expression even within an already crowded scene. We Dream of Eden takes this a step further with his ability to make every project sound thematically distinct while maintaining some of his signature quirks. Garden Heart isn’t the most emotional project of the year, but it’s certainly the most complete musical experience I had in the genre this year. This Thirsty Earth, Hearing The Harvest and Beneath the Canopy are evidence of this.
Bonus: Top 10 EPs, Compilations
10 — Quiet Prayers (Redux) EP by Old Solar
9 — fading lights by Ambient Endeavors, Sonant
8 — Sound For Sleep by Raphah
7 — Resting Place by Be Still The Earth, Broken Peak
6 — Turn, by Before Flags
5 — Theophany by Some Were At Sea
4 — Take Heart by Dear Gravity, Simon Wester
3 — Echoes of the Valley, Vol. 6 (Compilation) by Various Artists
2 — innerspace by We Dream of Eden
1 — The Outpost by Dear Gravity, Broken Peak
That’s it for today.
Catch you at the next one!
Have you listened to any albums on this list? What’s your favourite ambient release of the year? Talk to me about it.
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