Lorna Irvine counts down her favourites from the year.
10. Warpaint- Warpaint (Rough Trade): This, the second eponymously titled album saw the foursome on a more experimental tip. The capricious nature caught people off-guard; those who had written them off as one-hit wonders had to reassess them. Track Disco/Very had a series of yelps like an incantation. There's post-punk, funk and grunge put through a sonic mixer and no telling where they'll go next.
9. FKA Twigs-LP1 (XL Recordings): Tahliah Barnett's anti-R & B falls somewhere between Leila and Grimes, at once delicate and disturbing. Twisting pop into beautiful shapes, she is unabashed, lyrically and musically.
8. Amazing Snakeheads--Amphetamine Ballads (Domino): This Glaswegian trio are a snarling beast, influenced by American proto-punk like The Stooges but classically Scottish, with thick 'square-go' accents. 'I'm A Vampire' and 'Stud' are the aural equivalent of Begbie from 'Trainspotting' screaming in your face in a relentless nightmare, until you awaken and realise you're alone in a dank, dark dungeon.
7. Sabina- Toujours (Bar/None): A gorgeous cocktail of world music, chanson and pop, Brazilian Girl Sabina's solo debut is charming, cheeky and brings the sun out--immediately modern and utterly retro.
6. Andy Bell- Torsten the Bareback Saint (Cherry Red /Strike Force): The album we knew he was capable of. The Erasure singer's song cycle is a sublime foray into a surrealist broken Britain of decaying fairgrounds, Bingo halls and saunas where he is cabaret singer, saint and sinner. Beautiful, ominous and sad.
5. Deerhoof La Isla Bonita (ATP): Always the outsiders, nobody else sounds quite like Deerhoof. Vocals so frail like they're on the brink of collapse, songs like ‘Doom’ which were seemingly written in crayon and played by aliens. Ariel Pink thinks he's eccentric, but Deerhoof are the real deal.
4. St Vincent- St Vincent (Loma Vista/ Caroline): Theatrical and soulful, Annie Clark's time has come. Digital Witness may be a pop nugget, full of brass and swagger, but Birth In Reverse is fuzzy and discomfitting. Clark, with her juddering automaton movement and platinum frizzy hair is Gaga for thinking people.
3. Honeyblood- Honeyblood (FatCat): What a debut! Two women making a hell of a noise, like girl group sweetness filtered through punk.
Bud is tangy, but Choker is disturbing, inspired by the gory adult fairytales of Angela Carter. Effortlessly catchy.
2. Tuneyards- Nikki Nack (4AD): The third album from Merrill Garbus' outfit is filled with African percussion, clapping songs and hip hop production values. Nothing else sounds quite like her. In the bland indie landfill landscape and X Factor mainstream, she flies over it like a superhero.
1. Perfume Genius- Too Bright (Turnstile Recordings): Mike Hadreas (pictured) is Perfume Genius, and this album is the most richly layered album this year, no contest. Taking in issues of family, fear, sexuality and body image, it is almost like one man's masochism. My Body goes off in terrifying places, Queen sashays. Unafraid to be vulnerable. Defiant. Furious. Hadreas' voice is exceptional-and unique.
RSS