best of 2022

RECORDS/TAPES/CDs

Human Remains - Robert Haigh

If A City Is Set Upon A Hill - Current 93

Music For The Death Cult Church - Controlled Death

Death Synth Box - Controlled Death

Antidawn - Burial

Expressed, I noticed Silence - M Geddes Gengras

Is there any point in writing here anymore now that ChatGBT has arrived? The year end round up was always the biggest post of the year with thousands of people reading it. In the last two years though visits to CardrossManiac2 have waned to just a trickle of people. This has only happened since I've added the occasional post criticising current political absurdities. I do not toe the retarded party-line orthodoxies of Google plus I openly call them corrupt so like they used to always suspend me on twitter they've probably demoted my posts, pretty much shadow banned me and buried the blog. No anti-establishment sentiments allowed! Having said that does anyone read blogs anymore? I know I don't, so...

It was another year of being out of action most of the time. Only a handful of albums from 2022 really register in my brain right now so go elsewhere for a more thorough overview of current music. It's hard to imagine that it was only as recent as 2019 that 45 new records were mentioned in my year end list. The above list is in no particular order. I have vague recollections of enjoying a few other new albums in 2022 by the likes of Pan American, Sulk Rooms, Rangers, N Chambers, Huerco S, Deepchord and that's about it. It's always touch and go as to whether Moon Wiring Club make it into the list. The mail has been slow to Australia this Christmas so they miss out as I'm yet to hear Medieval Ice Cream. I didn't even realise Actress and Diamanda Galas had new albums out in 2022 so... oh wait I forgot, Kemper Norton released two excellent tapes of experimental rural psychedelia/drone-y dark ambient. The highlight being the traditional tune My Love Is Gone at the end of the Rife cassette. 

The music innovation era died with the great 20th century, maybe there was a slight afterglow into the 00s up until about Burial's record. Plus the odd flicker here and there in the 00s with Young Thug, Future and the like. I now realise I was so lucky to live through the 70s, 80s and 90s...

Current 93's David Tibet

The first four above albums were made by artists who are reaching late career peaks after getting started in the 80s. I think both Robert Haigh and Current 93 have retired so these might be their final offerings. Robert Haigh the mastermind behind the genius jungle act Omni Trio, continues to excel with another impeccable LP of exquisitely melodic piano vignettes. Current 93's If A city Is Set Upon A Hill has David Tibet at the top of his game as he recites his doomed mystic verse with startling restraint and age-d charm. Legendary Japanese rock star noise performance artist Maso Yamazaki aka Masonna is in the midst of an absolute purple patch with his dark ambient cosmic noise project Controlled Death. This blaze of creativity that started in 2018 has now amassed over 24 releases and has gone unnoticed by everybody in music media as far as I can tell. Get on board it's a gas! Antidawn is Burial at his blissful, beautiful and beat-less best. Burial aka William Bevan aka the most idiosyncratic and innovative musical visionary of the 21st century reminds us why he holds this undeniable title with an elegiac soundtrack for 2022. Funnily enough M Geddes Gengras's ace cosmic-ambient jam Expressed, I Noticed Silence is the most retro record on the list yet Gengras is the youngest of the lot. His career began in the mid-00s in the hypnagogic era.

I heard no pop radio or any music radio for that matter in 2022.

I did hear some newly made jungle...what's the point? It's the new garage rock revival except for me it's worse. I wasn't there in the 60s so the 80s revivals of garage and psych were fine with me. Eventually I would become fully acquainted with what they were referencing and my record collection today is more a reflection of that than the 80s 60s revivalists. Still can't go past The Stems though! So this new jungle shit just stinks to high heaven because I was right there when jungle originally emerged and then through subsequent beat permutations etc. Nu-jungle, or whatever the fuck it is, as a signpost for youngsters of where to go back to to find when the amazing burst of innovation and excitement happened is fine but come on people beyond 40 you know the score. My dad didn't hear the Black Crowes in the 90s and say "Gee Tim have you heard this terrific new group. They're like an exciting new take on The Rolling Stones. Don't miss out on these amazing new innovations" No, he knew better. 

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REISSUES/COMPILATIONS/ARCHIVES

Classic Productions by Surin Phaksiri 2: Molam Gems 1960s - 80s - Various

Wamano Groove Shakuhhachi & Koto Jazz Funk 76 - Kiyoshi Yamaya, Toshiko Yonekawa, Kifu Mitsuhashi

Peru Selvatico: Sonic Expedition Into The Peruvian Amazon 1972 - 86 - Various

Cumbias Psicodelicas: Ayahuasca Volume 2 - Various

Sonido Verde De Moyobamba - Sonido Verde De Moyobamba

The Afrosound Of Colombia Volume 3 - Various

Orkos - Maha

Mawood - Abdel Halim Hafiz

Mogadishu's Finest The Al Uruba Sessions - Iftin Band

Sense May Come - Controlled Bleeding

Neptune's Lair - Drexciya

Convextion - Convextion

A Spare Tabby At The Cat's Wedding (LP Edition) - Moon Wiring Club

Last year I had something like over 30 records in me reissues/compilations list. This year I've got not one disco compilation and only one reissue of Japanese music. Apart from my lack of paying attention, there did seem to be not as many enticing releases from the usual "reissue label" suspects. This game goes in cycles though doesn't it?

EM Records continue to excavate terrific tunes from 20th century Thai pop genres luk thung & molam. This year we got a double vinyl dose of exquisite molam productions by Surin Phaksiri. These splendid tracks were all originally specifically released on 7" vinyl during the cassette era of Thai music. All songs are getting the reissue treatment for the first time on this historic release that has been years in the making.

There was at least three choice Peruvian psych-cumbia archival releases in 2022. I don't understand why the complete 70s catalogues of legendary groups like Los Destellos, Juaneco y Su Combo, Los Orientales de Paramonga, Los Wembler's de Iquitos, Los Mirlos et al. don't get the comprehensive reissue treatment. I would have thought this would have happened after those Roots Of Chicha compilations came out in the 00s. We have to be content to get a track here and there on a compilation or if you're lucky a greatest hits collection. It is impossibly rare to see a reissue of an LP for a Peruvian cumbia group. Anyway we get two compilations of Amazonian cumbia from the great Analog Africa label and a second dose of Cumbia Psicodelicas from Peruvian label Repsychled (get it?).

Tresor reissued Drexciya's 90s electro masterpiece Neptune's Lair. I've always said it was the last great 90s album and it belongs in everyone's collection. Get the cd as the vinyl version doesn't have all the tracks.

Maybe It's just listlessness from a combination of the sweltering 40 degree heat and anaemia but I really cannot get enthused to write any further. Perhaps more on a better day...

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ON THE TELLY

THE SOPRANOS

The best show on telly twenty three years ago was 2021's best show and 2022's best show and so on for eternity. This year I've realised my memory's so far gone that I can probably watch Sopranos every year until I die which is handy because current television and movies are bullshit.   

SLOW HORSES

We tried to watch so many new tv shows but I think they all got switched off during the first episode because they were bollocks so it was lucky that we got two seasons in one year of the only watchable new show in 2022. Spies hey?

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WAR IN UKRAINE CAUSES DEAD HUMAN PEOPLE CRISIS 

*Some US officials have estimated that as many as 200 000 human people have already died in this proxy war. At least 7000 civilians are dead including 428 kids. That's 428 DEAD CHILDREN: These are WAR CRIMES! It all could have been easily avoided. Our governments have got blood on their hands and it's a revolting tragedy! Lets stop support of this festival of death, help save human people from being killed and demand a ceasefire now.