The 20 Most Disappointing Albums of 2022
Some of these are good records that have good songs that I thoroughly enjoy but the album just isn't up to snuff with expectations, the hype or just is a complete flop. These are in no particular order. |
| 1 |  | Northlane
Obsidian
My Score: 3.3/5
Desired Score: 4/5
It's certainly not a bad record but coming off their most complete, energetic and unique album to date with 'Alien' I was hoping for a bit more. The experimentation is there but there are more misses than hits. I find the more straightforward songs to be the better tracks on the record whereas I was hoping to see the band find a new level with their songwriting. |
| 2 |  | The Mars Volta
The Mars Volta
My Score: 2.5/5
Desired Score: 3.5/5
Given this band's long and varied career, I was hoping for a great comeback record to establish their greatness but instead we got a messy, inconsistent record that's way too focused on beats than good songwriting. There are some occasionally bright spots on the record but overall, it's not something I want to return to. |
| 3 |  | Dead Cross
II
My Score: 3/5
Desired Score: 4/5
Their debut record was furious, captivating and filled to the brim with chaos and while many of those elements are present on this record, it's the songwriting that fails to bring anything fresh or interesting to the table. The only purpose with the chaos is to be chaotic and not create and interesting tune. The vocals feel a bit too unhinged at times, the guitar work is okay at the best of times and while the drumming is furious and pounding, sometimes it gets a bit repetitive. |
| 4 |  | 40 Watt Sun
Perfect Light
My Score: 2.6/5
Desired Score: 4/5
The hype for this record was off the charts so I was very much looking to be impressed with this record but I was left very disappointed. It's over long, meanders a whole lot and honestly while the instrumentals are very pretty and sound nice, the songs don't really go anywhere and have little flavor at times. |
| 5 |  | We Came As Romans
Darkbloom
My Score: 1.9/5
Desired Score: At least 3/5
The comeback record that was supposed to reestablish this band as one of the premier acts in metalcore instead wastes all its potential on hackneyed lyrics, bad vocal production, terribly boring 'heavy-bits' and surface level emotional levity. It's almost a shameful record to release especially that god-awful closing track. |
| 6 |  | Beyonce
Renaissance
My Score: 1.8/5
Desired Score: At least a 3/5
I was never a massive Beyonce fan but I was looking forward to this comeback record hoping that I would get some mature Beyonce bops. Instead, I got a 40-year-old Beyonce pretending to be a 20-year-old Beyonce and it's really full-on cringe. The instrumentals and beats are so odd, the flow of the record is non-existent. When there are good moments, they get ruined but awful lyrics, a bad melody or just veer off into nonsense. I don't get the positivity behind this record, it's easily her worst to date. |
| 7 |  | Muse
Will of the People
My Score: 2.4/5
Desired Score: 3.5/5
Muse going in a heavier direction was something I was very intrigued by but the record proved to be the biggest mixed bag of silliness I could have imagined. The 'heavier' tunes are decent, the slower songs are very boring, and the mid-paced songs tend to be strange, derivative or blatant knockoffs or better bands. |
| 8 |  | Stick to Your Guns
Spectre
My Score: 2.3/5
Desired Score: 3.5/5
Stick to Your Guns took a long time on this one so I was hoping for something epic considering how good their last couple projects were, but this is bland. Painfully bland at times. The songs feel half-assed, the vocals are standard, there's very little terms of songs that I would want to revisit. |
| 9 |  | Porcupine Tree
Closure/Continuation
My Score: 3/5
Desired Score: 3.5/5
This was one of the most exciting bands at one time. This record should have been an amazing comeback record, but it was just okay. There are some good songs but it's nothing that blew me away unfortunately. |
| 10 |  | Coheed and Cambria
Vaxis II: A Window of the Waking Mind
My Score: 3/5
Desired Score: At least 3.5/5
Coheed is a band with high expectations from their fan base and I think a majority of people were decently happy with this, but I found the first half of the record to be a slog at times. The album closes on a few really great tracks but it's very inconsistent. |
| 11 |  | Alter Bridge
Pawns and Kings
My Score: 2.5/5
Desired Score: 3.5/5
I've enjoyed most of what Alter Bridge have had to offer over the years and while Walk The Sky wasn't quite as hype as Fortress, it still was a very solid record. This record on the other hand does not offer much in terms of quality songs. The heavier bits feel very forced, the lighter songs are boring, there's barely anything worth revisiting. |
| 12 |  | Father John Misty
Chloe and the Next 20th Century
My Score: 3/5
Desired Score: 4/5
There was a ton of hype for this record and I was genuinely let down by how run-of-the-mill some of these songs are. There's a certain nostalgic influence on the overall sound and theme to this record but it really doesn't feel well put together. There are some good songs littered throughout but I ultimately felt this didn't deserve the hype i received. |
| 13 |  | Megadeth
The Sick, the Dying... and the Dead!
My Score: 2.9/5
Desired Score: 3.5/5
The thrash legends were poised to comeback with an extremely strong record but we got a bloated, hackneyed thrash record with the occasional bop. The singles leading up the release were excellent but the album tracks fail to make that sort of impression with okay riffs, decent solos and while Mustaine sounds really solid for a guy coming off a battle with cancer, the lyrics continue to be silly and nonsensical. |
| 14 |  | Parkway Drive
Darker Still
My Score: 1.8/5
Desired Score: 3/5
I enjoyed 'Reverence' regardless of how Parkway fans felt about the transition into a more mainstream sound but this record has basically zero redeemable factors. The vocals are generally bad, the songs are generally boring or absolute headscratchers. It's a mess of an album. |
| 15 |  | The Wonder Years
The Hum Goes on Forever
My Score: 2.4/5
Desired Score: 3.5/5
The golden boys of pop punk seemed like they could do no wrong but this record proved otherwise for me. The songs are pretty standard, not necessarily bad but I wouldn't be able to pick them out of a lineup. It's generally just a boring pop punk album that does little differentiate itself like some of their previous records were so good at doing. |
| 16 |  | Bad Omens
The Death of Peace of Mind
My Score: 3/5
Desired Score: 4/5
There's some incredibly good songs on this record but there's also some really bad songs on this record. The flow is a joke, the heavier songs feel very forced, there are some really great vocal melodies on great songs but there are a couple examples of generic radio metalcore with boring generic melodies and lyricism. |
| 17 |  | Wilco
Cruel Country
My Score: 2.5/5
Desired Score: 3.5/5
Way too long, way too repetitive, just way too boring. |
| 18 |  | Fit For a King
The Hell We Create
My Score: 2/5
Desired Score: 3.5/5
I wanted this band to comeback strong after 'The Path' but it's worse somehow. It's trying so hard to be good that it's boring. It's trying to please everyone while not considering how generic and basic it sounds. The heaviness is so bad, the melodies are so weak that even 'The Path' beats it out. Really disappointing from a band with a lot of talent. |
| 19 |  | Arcade Fire
WE
My Score: 2.5
Desired Score: 3.5/5
A band that continues its descent down the tubes with another less than stellar outing. The singles leading up I thought were pretty solid but the record goes nowhere impressive. The production works sounds very nice but that doesn't save the songs from being bland. |
| 20 |  | Architects
The Classic Symptoms of a Broken Spirit
My Score: 2.8/5
Desired Score: 4/5
This is one of my favorite bands and to see them creating such bland music is very disheartening. The few tracks that are very good are still a shell of what the band used to create. While I love Sam's vocals, they just sound so overproduced on this record. The instruments sound computerized to the point of wondering whether any real instruments were used in the making of this record. I hope this band can bounce back because this really is quite the disappointment. |
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