top 50 of 2022 | 30-21

30. Miles Arnell - "You Had Me At Goodbye"

Okay, yeah, it's obvious he came up with this title and then wrote a song around it, but it's a good song. I love the vocal melody!

29. Mezhdunami - "Drive"

Killer synthwave with a really cool sax line that sounds like a riff on modern club music vocals.

28. The 1-800 - "This Might Be It"

How great is this band name?! It would have been such a shame if they wasted a good band name and made crappy music. Thankfully, they make very cute music, including this wonderful little new wave pop rock track!

27. Louis La Roche - "Some Way"

I discovered Louis a few years ago when he collabed with my beloved Mylo on what may be the best club song of the previous decade. This is apparently the first single from his fifth album! How prolific!

26. Low Island - "Kid Gloves"

The combination of the lead synth voice and the singer's vocal melody on this is just synthpop perfection.

25. Rosalía - "Bizcochito"

This is one of those songs that starts and you know immediately that you're about to hear something amazing. Which is fitting, because it's basically a song about how she's the shit. And I don't disagree. Check out the metric fuckton of sass with which she performs this live!

24. Sandor Gavin ft. Eileen Jaime - "City That Never Sleeps"

Sandor Gavin is a name I hadn't heard in many many years; I first (and last) heard of him in the mid 2000s when he released a cover of the Bananarama song "Cruel Summer" (which has apparently vanished from the internet). The real star of this track, though, is the absolutely gorgeous vocal performance by Eileen Jaime, who perfectly sells this synthwave.

23. Fuse - "Propeller"

A video that leans fully into synthwave aesthetics, but isn't a synthwave song -- rather it recalls some of Daft Punk's best nu-disco work.

22. Ellur - "Close To You"

A track that builds so gently and subtly that it pretty much sneaks up on you. Really great stuff!

21. Ekkstacy - "I Walk This Earth All By Myself"

Absolutely gorgeous new wave track that leans heavily into the synthpop side of the genre, and takes a turn toward the end that really sticks with you.