12 Favorite EPs of 2022

Another year of great releases shows why the shortplayer format is made for these times.

Dec 02, 2022

I’ve always loved the EP format. I think it started back in the late 90s when I grabbed The Aeroplane Flies High box set, which included all of the singles from Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness by my beloved (at the time) Smashing Pumpkins. In addition to the songs that dominated MTV and alternative radio, these EPs included b-sides and covers, each with their unique mood to match. Learning that there was a middle ground between a single and the album set me off on discovering a new way of music that is typically shorter than twenty minutes in the runtime.

Twenty-plus years later, there’s never been a better time for the EP. With shortened streaming attention spans, it’s the perfect way of demonstrating what an artist is about. For those artists without previous releases, it’s a great way to build hype. For vets, it’s a smart way to release a project that may not fit in the grander scheme or tease what is to come on an LP.

Below is a list of twelve short players I thoroughly enjoyed this year - some would qualify for the top of my upcoming Album of the Year list had they been longer! (Also, outside of my AOTY Top 10, I’m not ranking albums this year. I’ve decided that if you enjoy so many records, there’s no point in saying one is better than the other.)

Here’s the playlist. I recommend throwing it on shuffle and discovering something tasty!

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Note: I do not include EPs from Mama Mañana Records as I find it a bit corny to have your own releases on a list. If I didn’t have my hand in them, Hubba and Gold Tides dropped excellent EPs this year, which I would love regardless. The artists and I appreciate you streaming them in the meantime. Also, I recently sat down with the Santa Fe New Mexican to discuss starting the label, and you can read that here.

Barry Can't Swim - More Content

I said I wouldn’t do rankings this year, but Barry Can’t Swim’s More Content is easily my favorite EP of the year. Joshua Mainnie, the London-based producer who records as Barry Can’t Swim, has been the most exciting electronic music talent in the past few years and was also at the top of my list last year with the Amor Fati EP. More Content (what a brilliant name in the age of commodified art) is another dancefloor-ready set of songs that finds that enchanting spot where house music hits at an entirely human level. The classically tinged “Sonder” is downright heavenly, and “Can We Still Be Friends?” is a brilliant collaboration with newsletter favorite Laurence Guy. At the same time, “God Is the Space Between Us” includes a lovely vocal feature from Taite Imogen, and “Fiorucci Made Me Hardcore” is the perfect tribute to 90s rave culture.

By completely mastering the EP format multiple times now, Mainnie’s full-length debut is towards the top of my most anticipated record of 2023. In the meantime, I highly recommend listening to this gorgeous mix for BBC Radio 6 that showcases Mainnie’s brilliance as he blends influences while discussing his upbringing in Edinburgh.

Pastel - Isaiah

Do you love A Storm in Heaven-era The Verve? Then I have a can’t-miss second shoegaze outing for you by Pastel, the latest Manchester hype band. Sure, they may wear their influences a little too on the sleeve - sometimes lead guitarist Joe Anderson apes Nick McCabe’s riffs like David Puddy using Jerry Seinfeld’s signature bedroom move - but Isaiah continues to show why these lads deserve the praise they’re receiving across the pond. Mix in a little Stone Roses, The Charlatans, and Damon Albarn’s haircut, and you have a formula that I absolutely adore. Full credit to Matt McLister at Blinded By the Floodlights for introducing me to Pastel. You can read his review here.

Cold Atlantic - Copycat Guitar

What I said in my review: Jared McCarthy started with the Brooklyn band Panama Wedding, but Cold Atlantic is his long-simmering solo project, and his debut EP Copycat Guitar dropped yesterday. Inspired by Brothertiger's Paradise Lost album, McCarthy reached out to Jon Markson, the record’s producer, and soon found himself working with not only Markson but also Jon Jagos of Brothertiger on this set of songs. Copycat Guitar offers four perfect songs that almost lean too hard into the “pop” of the chillpop genre, but McCarthy pulls it off with bouncing beats and soaring choruses that rattle around your brain long after the EP is over. “Nobody Else” is a late-80s chart-topper, while “Stupid Heart” will have you asking, “how’s it going to be?” like you’re Stephen Jenkins with some tasty synths.

Donny Benét - Le Piano

Sydney’s reliable neo-disco dude Donny Benét released Le Piano in early spring, and this breezy four-track instrumental outing dominated my summer listening. Recorded entirely with vintage synths and drum machines, Benét nails the Japanese city pop influence and aesthetic on the title track and wobbly “Cappucino.” The true highlight here is “Forgotten Spring,” an atmospheric number that recalls Jan Hammer’s “Crockett’s Theme” from Miami Vice. Combined with the EP cover, forget Colin Farrell - I now want a reboot with a ponytailed Benét taking over for Don Johnson.

Jacques Greene - Fantasy

What I said in my review: Two years ago, Jacques Greene's Dawn Chorus was a massive success. Full of huge beats, the album exposed the Canadian producer to a broader audience and found its way to many year-end lists. Greene’s latest, Fantasy, heads in the opposite direction, dropping breakneck club beats in favor of atmosphere.

Fantasy is Green’s response to the anxiety and isolation brought on by the lockdowns of the past few years and opens with “Taurus,” a dance between hazy pads and vocal samplings from Leanne Macomber that pays off with Aphex Twin results. “Memory Screen + Fantasy” is a tale of two songs as it starts as a steady house track before disappearing into a trance that never finds a way to wake up. While the smoky “Sky River” features vocals by Satoimagae that euphorically fit the song’s driving backbeat, instrumentals “Relay” and “Leave Here” are Fantasy's best as they search for nostalgia in their warm introspection.

Soshi Takeda - Same Place, Another Time

Soshi Takeda’s therapeutic Same Place, Another Time dropped back on January 4th, and eleven months later, I still can’t get enough. The Japanese producer takes the listener on the audio equivalent of a lovely weekday hike with well-placed chilled-out nostalgia. There’s no one else on the trail as you roam from the meditative “Analog Photography” to the gentle percussion of the title track for a twenty-eight-minute break from the world.

Matthieu Faubourg - Aqua

This year, more people than ever have asked me for house recommendations. I’m beyond ecstatic that folks are rediscovering this marvelous genre that never went away, which Beyoncé and Drake most certainly did not bring back, no matter what The New York Times claims. For a starting point, my answer is always the same: listen to anything from Shall Not Fade. The Bristol-based label not only collects a roster of producers from diverse backgrounds but also releases EPs at a breakneck pace - if something floats your boat, you’re in luck, as you’ll indeed be treated to a variety of new house music each month. Aqua is an excellent example of what the label offers. Paris-based producer Mattieu Faubourg explores the ocean’s depths on the title track and a funky space disco club on “Galactic.” Meanwhile, the b-side features the vocal belting grooves of “Velvet” before floating away “In the Clouds.”

Luxury Noise - A Light At a Certain Hour

Paul Nunn, a Denver-based producer who performs as Luxury Noise, is having a prolific year. I’ve featured Coast To Coast Collective, the always-changing lineup of chillwave artists he co-founded. At the same time, Nunn also released the excellent remix-heavy full-length Second Light and continues to drop a few grips of outstanding singles over the past few months. For my year-end entry, though, I want to return to my first introduction to Luxury Noise. A Light At a Certain Hour is an attractive collection of Nunn’s signature atmospheric vaporware that falls into what I call the “mallcore” category that recalls indoor palm trees and a beige tile ambiance. Songs like “Out” will have you wishing you could strut on over to the Virgin Megastore to pick up A Light At a Certain Hour on the longbox format, and I continue to look forward to any new Luxury Noise track.

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NewDad - Banshee

Galway’s NewDad is no stranger to the newsletter, with last year’s Waves also featuring on the EP roundup. Banshee sees the indie shoegaze band bringing back the same team, but this batch of songs finds some added sunshine with the confidence dialed up to an eleven. Although they continue to make a splash in the UK, their stateside presence deserves more, as Julie Dawson and Company’s brand of bedroom pop is far better than most similar groups finding praise here. With two EPs of all killer, no filler now under their collective belt, a full-length debut should send them into the indie atmosphere.

KaySoul - What Is Blackness?

Another can’t-miss outing on Shall Not Fade, What Is Blackness? is a deep grooving house set from South African producer, KaySoul. After the slow-burning opener “That Blackness,” KaySoul invites a series of collaborators with a huge payoff. “Africanus” features Gustavo Martinez, who adds his Columbian flair to the subtly jazzy track, and Steve Faetz joins in with some playful keys on the pulsing “10 Ways.” On “East Meets South,” KaySoul teams up with fellow South African Kurtx for a laidback outing before “Yak” closes the set on a memorable high note.

TOPS - Empty Seats

What I said in my review: It’s a fact that I can’t resist Canadian dream pop, and there’s no one better at it than TOPS, who keeps getting better with each release. In addition to their flawless four-album discography, TOPS is always a great singles and EP band, and Empty Seats is no exception with some of their finest work yet. Collecting their latest singles, “Perfected Steps” and “Janet Planet,” along with last year’s “Waiting” and “Party Again,” makes for one of the standout shortplayers of the year. Also, kudos to the Tuesday release, which makes me nostalgic for the old days when you had the workweek to listen to a new album.

Weather Underground - Making a Day of It

Making a Day of It is the debut EP from Dublin's four-piece Weather Underground and the portrait of a young band full of raw passion. Songs like “Selfish Song” and “In Room” are unprocessed indie rock at its rock club-ready finest and serve as a reminder of how great the genre can be when it’s not bogged down by glossiness. I first came across Weather Underground from Headstuff Music Editor Andrew Lambert, who noted the following in his review:

“The Raheny quartet’s Making A Day Of It EP skillfully blends the complimentary styles of the band’s dual songwriters, with frontman Daniel Brady’s infectious indie bangers offset by drummer Daniel Kearns’ psychedelic bedroom rock. Closing track and highlight ‘If I Get To Sleep’ falls somewhere in between the two, a charming slice of Cure indebted indie pop that makes effective use of the band’s newfound secret weapon – the almighty kazoo.”