The 12 Best OPM Albums and EPs of 2022
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Thank god the pandemic is (almost) over and we can get down to the real important stuff: music. There were some pretty great releases in 2021, but things really kicked into high gear this year, when artists were finally free to stretch their creative muscles unencumbered by restrictions—physical or otherwise.
Here we present the year’s best OPM albums and EPS of 2022.
ALSO READ
The Best OPM Albums and EPs of 2020
The Best OPM Albums and EPs of 2021
1| Organic
Wonggoys
We’ve been extolling the virtues of this Cebu-based band since 2017. This year, the band finally came out with a full-length record and it’s every bit as pleasant and impressive as we expected. Confident, mature, and hella funky, the album offers a shot of grin-triggering positivity and good vibes, sorely needed after we all surfaced from the dark days of the pandemic. They take a page out of Quest in the impossibly peppy “Good Boys,” “Ig Human” switches between Bisaya and English but the message comes through even for non-Bisaya speakers, and “Queen” is a stirring tribute to their hometown. Organic is a record that helps cast away cynicism and for when you need to believe in the goodness of life.
2| No Goodbyes
Sandwich
There’s not much left to say about the musical geniuses who call themselves Sandwich, but they sure as hell have plenty more to tell us. The five-song EP No Goodbyes is the band’s latest missive. The trademark Sandwich sound is all there: pulsing electric guitars, drumming that won’t quit, and Rayms (Marasigan)’s vocal delivery that’s somewhere between Bono-esque whimsy and Noel Gallagher-ish indifference. Repeating lyrics seems to be a recurring songwriting device (they pop up in “Buhol-Buhol,” “No Goodbyes,” and “Negatives”), perhaps to emphasize or further drill down certain themes or ideas. The whole album feels like a torrid love affair—passionate, insistent, and all-too-brief.
3| My Kosmik Island Disk
Blaster
The lead guitarist of IV of Spades isn’t letting anybody forget his axe-playing skills—his first full-length album as a solo artist is heavy on his acrobatics on the instrument as well as psychedelic, 70s-influenced flourishes. Records, are, of course, primarily experienced auditorily, but there is a strong visual language in My Kosmik Island Disk; it almost seems like the artist wants to show us what’s on his mind rather than just letting us hear it. In “Disko Forever,” it’s a disco floor complete with mirror ball and patrons in bell bottoms and platform shoes; in “Nararararamdaman,” we’re in a mid-century-furnished bungalow with a pair of lovers in that beginning part of a relationship; and in “Kosmik Dream,” well, it’s the vast expanse of the atmosphere filled with splotches of pretty colors. The production is detailed, innovative, and fresh, much like the artist himself.
4| La Bulaqueña
Orange & Lemons
The kings of the concept album (see: Moonlane Gardens) are back. This time, the band that exploded in the mid-2000s with irresistible British indie pop-by-way-of-Bulacan hits is giving us an ambitious all-Filipino record. Frontman Clem Castro has his fingers (and everything else) all over this record. “Pag-ibig Sa Tabing Dagat”—complete with seagulls and ocean waves crashing into terra firma—is a modern kundiman if there ever was one, but it’s in “Ikaw ang Aking Tahanan” where Castro’s songwriting talents are on full display. While one can assume the record is an attempt to appeal to more masa audiences (and no, “Pinoy Ako” probably doesn’t count), make no mistake about it, La Bulaqueña is high art, and snootier, more fastidious music snobs will understand and appreciate its brilliance as much as the tsinelas-wearing, videoke-loving music fans.
5| Don’t Blame the Wild One!
Ena Mori
Ena Mori again makes an appearance in our year’s best, and how could she not? The prodigious singer-songwriter, one of the most exciting voices in OPM in recent years, returns with a thrilling, more expansive sound. Electronic music is Mori’s playground throughout the record, but she never loses her thoughtfulness and questioning spirit. Think Tori Amos and Cynthia Alexander, with a bit of Imogen Heap thrown in. The lyrics are poetic and thought-provoking: in Oh, Bleeding Hearts? she asks: "When the strong is tired of dimes, and the weak is blinded by lies / All I ask is / Where do we go now?" It’s easy to discern how much fun she’s having, and the best thing about it is that she invites the listener to join in.
6| Changin’
Of Mercury
The band once known as Nathan & Mercury hopscotches effortlessly between warm and sexy and cool and reflective in the aptly named Changin’. The band members have been open about going through some personal struggles in recent months that they all no doubt channeled into their music. After dropping their first name in favor of this new one, of Mercury got to work on an album that reflects their fascination with 90s-era hip-hop and R&B. Each track will take those of a certain age back to a time of loose jeans and shiny bling, but “Out of You” especially feels like it was released by BelBivDeVoe or "Motown Philly"-era Boyz 2 Men. Play this album if you’re feeling nostalgic, or, you know, on the way to meet up with friends on a Saturday night.
7| Manila Meltdown
Paper Satellites
Paper Satellites isn’t quite a household name just yet although they’ve been releasing music since at least 2017. The band’s debut album is heavy on indie pop-rock influences—acts like We Are Scientists and Beach House come to mind—but the familiar beats are injected with decidedly local references. “Bakunawa” is an allegory for a tragic love story, and in Have Fun Tonight, vocalist Jyle Macalintal implores: "Wait for me at the back of my dorm / bring me a bottle and I want it cold / Ignore the rules and let’s have fun tonight." It’s easy to see how the band ended up at Lilystars Records, a local label run by Orange & Lemons’ Clem Castro, who famously has a knack for championing artists with distinctly indie vibes. Paper Satellites fits in nicely in his roster of talents, and Manila Meltdown is nothing but a joyous and promising start for the young upstarts.
8| Medisina
Zild
The second member of the currently-on-hiatus IV of Spades on this list has come out with his third LP in as many years, and it’s also the third that has made it to our annual best-of list. He rails against banality and the start of a new week on “Oh Lunes Na Naman,” (“Sawang-sawa na ‘kong dumilat”); sings about the intricacies and utter foolishness of young love in “15;” and, on the opening track called “CRAB,” he croons: “Ayoko nang sumabay sa agos ng iba / Sila’y lamang di ko kayang sabayan sila / Lagi na lang / Nakakailang / Ayoko nang mainggit.” It all sounds like a plaintive plea for others to quit judging his work based on the output of others and just let him be. But the profoundly prolific singer-songwriter has nothing to worry about: we doubt there’s anybody out there still questioning his abilities. If Homework Machine firmly established his cred as a solo act, and Huminga was a snapshot of where we were at the height of the pandemic, Medisina is perhaps the definitive Gen Z commentary about everything else that matters to young people today. Give it a listen if you want to know what the kids are thinking.
9| Obra
Keiko Necesario
There are only five songs in Keiko Necessario’s latest EP, but boy is it more than enough. The songs in Obra are the equivalent of a quiet, introspective talk between close friends or lovers—meaningful and packed with emotion. The instrumentation is sparse, the lyrics are weighty yet uncomplicated, and Necesario’s vocals have never sounded better, channeling the classic torch singers like Sarah Vaughan and Eva Cassidy. Languid, thoughtful, ethereal, Obra fully deserves its title.
10| BGYO
Be Us
In case there was any doubt, P-pop is here to stay, and BGYO is one of its prime ambassadors. Be Us, the group’s sophomore effort, is brash and aggressive and is arguably a huge step up from their 2021 debut. The first song “Game On” hits all the right notes, but it only gets better from here. “Magnet” is infectious, “Tumitigil ang Mundo,” is destined to become a club anthem (if it’s not already), and "PNGNP" (in spite of its annoying stylization), will stick to your consciousness like chewing gum to your hair. Be Us proves BGYO is not just riding the P-Pop wave—they’re actually making it.
11| houseplants
Cheats
In the lineup of current OPM stalwarts, Cheats is always a sure thing. Expanding 2019’s Ultramilk EP into a full-length album, the band explores multiple genres—shoegaze, indie, bits of grunge, etc.—in the sprawling, more contemplative houseplants. They deal with relationship issues in “Honey Calm Down” (“It’s hard to be romantic in a rage”) and “Milk” (“Grieving alone is easy / It’s watching you cry that’s impossible”); yearn for the world’s understanding in “Hakbang,” and even plumb the depths of existentialism in “A Little Longer.” A pleasant surprise is the appearance of acoustic troubadour Johnoy Danao in the slightly more upbeat “Morning After.” Taken together, houseplants feels like an attempt to figure things out as they make their way in this vast wasteland called life.
12| Lovescene:
James Reid
James Reid could have chosen to stick it out as an actor doing rom-coms and teleseryes, but the calling of music proved too strong. As a talent manager and producer he’s slowly carving a name for himself as the guy making the deals behind the scenes, but he hasn’t completely turned his back on performing. Lovescene:, his latest album, feels like an artist finally hitting his stride. “U & I” is a massive hit and it’s easy to see why—the snappy beats’ one and only goal is to get your body to move. In fact, the entire album is all dance music that works as well pumping in the background as it does front and center and in your face. (Don’t sleep on “Stay,” though, which sounds like a synth pop anthem in the vein of LANY and Lauv).
