Yes, believe it or not it's nearly the end of another year! And with every man (and woman) and their dog posting 'Best of 2014' selections, we thought it only right that we get in on the act too...
Read more2014 has been an amazing year for exciting new artists, and there's been lots of great 'heritage' artists making a welcome return too, with the likes of Aphex Twin (signalled by drones over London), David Bowie and Prince.
After much deliberation, we've just about managed to select our favourite albums from the past 12 months...
Pete's Choice:
Slow Club - 'Complete Surrender' (Caroline Music International)
"So many great albums to choose from... I loved Gruff Rhys, Jamie T, Conor Oberst, Owl John and many others but I'm going with Slow Club. I would never of thought at the beginning of the year that this would be my favourite album, I've always liked them but never been a particularly massive fan, until I heard this record! It's got such a big almost Motown soul sound to it, you can tell they had been listening to a lot of Phil Spector's records thats for sure. I saw them play an album launch show at the Village Underground in May, they had a full band playing tracks from the album and this one in particularly stood out, it's just a beautiful song."
Matt's Choice:
Jamie T - 'Carry On The Grudge' (Virgin/EMI)
"If I'm perfectly honest, I haven't listened to too many full-length albums this year (I've been one of those people John names below) but one that I bought into the intrigue of was Jamie T's first album after five years away, 'Carry On The Grudge'. Jamie T will always remind me of some of my first nights out at Snobs, a legendary indie club in Birmingham and I love his past offerings. However, when he announced this album, I didn't know whether his style would quite 'fit' anymore - I am happily to admit that is far from the case. Perfectly-formed, catchy indie singalongs, alongside a deeper, darker and more melachonic Jamie T, that we've only caught a glimpse of before. I think there's something for everyone on this album and definitely one to check out over Christmas if you haven't already."
Karen's Choice:
Fatima - 'Yellow Memories' (Eglo Records)
"Two albums I've listened to all year are Beck’s ‘Morning Phase’ and Fatima’s ‘Yellow Memories’. But it really is Fatima's year! Amazing videos too, I love the new one for ‘Biggest Joke Of All’ with Fatima playing a pizza delivery girl, classic! Eglo Records have had a great year, def one of my fave labels, big shout to Alex Nut for all of his energy!”
Sandie's Choice:
Neil Diamond - 'Melody Road' (Capitol Records)
"This is Neil's 32nd album and it's absolutely brilliant. I went to see him a while ago and he's still got it! Without doubt my favourite album to be released this year!"
John's Choice:
Kate Tempest - 'Everybody Down' (Big Dada)
"Concept albums usually fail miserably, but this one is a triumph. It got obvious comparisons to the 2nd album from The Streets, but I think it is much smarter and more poetic than anything Mike Skinner did. In an age where listeners would rather pick and choose tracks, rather than listen to an album in its entirety, it was really refreshing to hear an LP from a young artist which has such a strong narrative - you really have to listen to the album all the way though several times to get the most out of it. Just like you would with any classic album. It REALLY should have won the Mercury prize."
Jim's Choice:
Fhloston Paradigm - 'The Phoenix' (Hyperdub)
"Favourites for me this year were Nat Birchall's 'Live in Larissa', Vashti Bunyan's 'Heartleap' and Meshell Ndegeocello's 'Comet Come To Me'. But my winner by a nose is Fhloston Paradigm. Not the easiest one to spell, it's a pseudonym of legendary Philly producer King Britt, who I've been a fan of since the late 90s. In 2012 Hyperdub put out the killer 3 track 'Chasing Rainbows' EP.... Carl Craig meets Blade Runner with a touch of 4 Hero. And then earlier this year the album 'The Phoenix' dropped... and I've been playing it ever since. Deep modern techno music. Criminally underrated too, I don't think I've seen one bit of press about it. So make sure you check it out."
Micky's Choice
Damien Rice - 'My Favourite Faded Fantasy' (Warner Bros)
"OK, my choice isn’t going to be the coolest, trendiest or hippest… but this really is an incredible album and it’s been wonderful to hear this artist back with new work. Don’t expect anything ground-breaking with this release… just more of the same brilliance that makes a perfect song and performance. My absolute highlight on the album is 'Colour Me In'… if it doesn’t bring a little tear to your eye there’s something wrong with you."
Lucy's Choice
Todd Terje - 'It's Album Time' (Olsen Records)
"A full two years after I witnessed a dancefloor go crazy to 'Inspector Norse' for the first time, Terje Olsen finally got round to releasing his debut album. And totally worth the wait it was too - it's such a fun, intelligent record and I love every moment of it, from the perky Latin vibes of 'Svensk Sås', to the aforementioned singalong track of the decade 'Inspector Norse', to the unexpectedly powerful version of 'Johnny and Mary', featuring Bryan Ferry. I won't be tiring of this album for a while yet."
