Sleaford Mods' rise to fame has been one of British music's more encouraging narratives this year - five years ago this sort of thing would have been lumped in with the borderline parody council estate rap of Devvo and Blackout Crew whereas the dearth of everyman social commentary in the UK music scene of 2014 has left these guys as a refreshing dose of working class vitriol. I'll admit that it took me a couple of listens to warm to this but now I can't stop playing it, kinda like when The Streets first came around - this isn't just kitchen sink realism for the sake of it, they're using the rich palette of everyday British life in the same way Yank rappers have drawn from their own culture for decades and it actually works really fucking well. 'Chubbed Up' is the singles comp that surfaced this year along with new studio LP 'Divide And Exit', they're both great but I marginally prefer this one for variety - one part Sham 69, one part Happy Mondays coupled with the journeyman wisdom of guys actually old enough to have lived through the rave era, they're in a field of their own right now.
Check out : 'Jobseeker', like Bez waking up from a twenty year coma and getting right back on it.
29. Teleman - Breakfast
If I were looking to make a quick buck in today's British music scene I'd probably get a job as a bailiff, what with the number of guitar groups formed in the lucrative indie boom of the mid-noughties who must be struggling to repay their loans now that they're virtually unemployable. Converting to electropop has become pretty much the only means to survive in most cases, although sometimes that actually works out for the best - Teleman are a case in point, reassembled from the bit parts of late noughties nobodies Pete and the Pirates to re-emerge as a savvy art pop outfit in the vein of early Roxy Music/Eno and sounding all the better for it. 'Breakfast' landed to no great fanfare earlier in the year but with hooks like these they're only going to remain undetected for so long. These lads have bypassed the early 80s bargain bin so eagerly plundered by their peers in favour of the quirky pop of the previous decade, drawing from Bowie and Talking Heads without leaving muddy footprints all over the carpet and nailing one of the year's best indie pop LPs in the process.
Check out : 'Skeleton Dance', although dip in anywhere and you'll find a potential hit.
28. Grouper - Ruins
Like Justin Broadrick and the dudes from The Men, Grouper's Liz Harris probably loses a few places on this list on account of the fact that she's in it every year. But that's what you get for maintaining this kind of strike rate - 'Ruins' is every bit as good as anything she's done before but connects on a totally different level, stripping back an already desolate arrangement to barely audible piano and vocals like she's phoning it in from a cold planet at the arse end of the galaxy. I originally chanced upon her shtick a few years back as a more likeable alternative to the media frenzy around Bon Iver and she's weathered the years with grace, exploring the landscape of plaintive melancholy with the intricate touch of a novelist and bringing those currents to life like fragile sculptures suspended in the night air. This is one to devote yourself to completely - pick yourself a slot in the wee small hours or a private moment on headphones and immerse yourself in 'Ruins' to be spellbound by the minimalist magic running through every track here. Her faultless run continues.
Check out : 'Holding' just for the video which complements the music perfectly.
27. Goat - Commune
These psychedelic Swedes finished in my top ten with their 2012 debut but following up a bombastic debut with an equally engrossing second chapter is no mean feat - sophomore platters from fellow alumni Parquet Courts and PAWS landed this year and while pleasant enough still failed to hold my attention up against everything else. So where did these folks get it right? Let's just say the web they weave takes you somewhere you're happy to stay, the combination of wacked out Nordic mysticism and echo-laden stoner rock proving too intoxicating to turn down for a second visit. 'Commune' doesn't go anywhere their stellar debut 'World Music' didn't but staggers its attack for a steadier release, reining in their wig out tendencies to focus on delivering a series of potent acid rock belters that thrill and fascinate without curbing their characteristic eccentricities. They remain an attractive live proposition and seem to have no shortage of ideas for future flights of fancy so we might be in it for the long haul with these folks as they clip clop onwards and upwards.
Check out : the promo for 'Hide From The Sun'. Anyone order a double Jodorowsky?
26. Temples - Sun Structures
We’ve become so goddam cynical towards indie rock these days that every new guitar record built around a string of catchy singles is billed as some kind of cheap shot at fame that belongs in another age. Temples had more than enough quality on this debut to be 2014’s Peace/Vaccines/Drums etc if the industry were looking for such a thing – as it stands there’s just another great indie band straddling the line between cult appeal and genuine celebrity as punters continue to flock to their cause. ‘Sun Structures’ is a record your most straight-laced pal will dig whilst simultaneously bringing out a smile from more hardcore zealots with a soft spot for classic rock tricksmanship – there’s a smidge of Tame Impala’s woozy majesty in here along with a solid dose of early 70s glam and late 60s psychedelic space rock all of which combine to thrilling effect on this all killer no filler debut. The glare of the indie media has dried out many a band issued from promising beginnings so maybe it’s a good thing that these lads have been left to concentrate on the music for now – in any case this was one of the year’s catchiest debuts.
Check out : 'The Golden Throne', although again you can pick anything here as a highlight.
25. Earth - Primitive and Deadly
Heavy stonerisms were in plentiful supply this year with Yob, Electric Wizard and newbies Pallbearer all contributing to the encroaching fuzzcloud threatening to engulf modern Metal. Earth have been speaking this language for some time already but 'Primitive and Deadly' floated into focus for long enough to hypnotise like none of their previous releases, drawing in the listener like the Death Star reeling in its latest victim to crush them with the lumpen weight of a reclining Brontosaurus. The bong rock foundations are first class here but they're not the whole story, guests appearances from the likes of Rabia Shaheen Qazi and Mark Lanegan at the helm driving things forward like the cream of monolithic doom rock and leaving a dirty great footprint once they've finished' 'Primitive and Deadly' tones down to a frequency that has always been there in Metal but only surfaces at select moments so this glimpse into the core of heavy guitar rock was one to be savoured in full over five colossal segments.
Check out : 'From The Zodiacal Light', a slow cooked gem of volcanic beauty.
24. Mac Demarco - Salad Days
I always seem to miss the promotion party for today’s up and coming stars so I can only hazard a guess at how Mac Demarco managed to go from cult favourite to indie’s new slacker Dylan in the space of twelve short months. My reading of things is that niceness is very much in vogue right now and ‘Salad Days’ is about as amiable as you can get, each track a mellow infusion of positive vibes and chilled out humour that’ll disarm even the angriest of listener – the guy even signs it off with a cheeky farewell as the record closes! Mac may be chillin’ but he’s no hippy, his smoothness never lapses into smugness and he carries each track with an instantly loveable dose of wit, warmth and campfire cool. Picking holes in all this would be downright heartless so it’s just as well there aren’t any, the ensemble standing up to the numerous spins it’s had both at home and in the bars of Paris since it landed back in February. If he can retain his laidback charm in the face of increased media glare and lucrative offers from romantic comedy soundtracks then 2015 is surely his for the taking.
Check out : August's live set on KEXP - even Evan Dando couldn't be this cool about it.
23. Bear In Heaven - Time Is Over One Day Old
Another one from the class of 2012 connecting with a stellar sequel, the Bears toned down the fluo for this one and instead flooded their palette with vibrant nighttime electronica, planting themselves in the bars and bedrooms rather than in the centre of the dancefloor. The results complement their previous gem 'I Love You, It's Cool' perfectly, showcasing their ability to transition smoothly between strobe rush and quiet time like no other electro troupe doing the rounds right now. When we chatted to them after their live show in October they freely admitted to having stopped playing their biggest hit because they were sick of it and it's just that approach that allows them to confidently crowdplease without lapsing into cheap thrills and lazy rave populism. Having surfaced in the midst of the chillwave boom circa 2009/10 they're one of the only bands still worth following and the quality on show here suggests that their future releases promise worthy additions to an impressive canon.
Check out : the promo for 'Time Between', a perfect slight of NYC nightlife.
22. Function and Vatican Shadow - Games Have Rules
Like it minimal? In such times of austerity one can hardly blame you. If you're partial to understated Techno tinkering then Function and Vatican Shadow might just be the hidden gem 2014 has in store for you - 'Games Have Rules' uncoils slowly over seven studied forays through the quieter register of electronic music but does so without releasing its grip on your brain, shifting its weight only slightly as wave upon wave of sonic stimuli drift across you to leave you numb yet invigorated once it's all over. This sort of thing can easily become a byword for unimaginative studio noodling but done well it's like a really powerful stereo on its lowest setting, technically empowered to fully blast off but holding back its force to focus on the smaller components and bring the detail to life. These guys succeed in amplifying the minutae of their electronic canon like archaeologists scrutinising ancient relics, delicate of touch and steadfastly attentive to finite intricacies. This won't get you on the floor but it might just be the perfect soundtrack for coming back to reality afterwards.
Check out : 'A Year Has Passed', a study in the beauty of transition.
21. Lockah - Yahoo Or The Highway
2014 was another cracking year for electronica, although when has that not been the case over the last decade or so? The post-rave landscape is so inscrutably vast these days that there's bound to be something out there that serves it up the way you want and Aberdeen's Lockah added his name to the list with this stonking debut. Indebted to rave's car stereo aesthetic and laced with the rough-edged clang and snarky humour of his homeland, 'Yahoo Or The Highway' stood out from the crowd with its inventive bleep tapestries and gorgeous moments of euphoric release, managing its tone perfectly yet still knowing instinctively when to knock you on your arse. There's a nod to late period Squarepusher here with shades of the latter's criminally overlooked 'Ufabulum' LP from a couple of years back along with Lone's 'Echolocations' EP and even a hint of rave era mischievists Genaside II and Shut Up And Dance in his delivery, all in all more than enough to warrant paying close attention to his next move.
Check out : 'If Loving U Is Wrong I Don't Wanna Be Wrong', both track and title summing up what he does best.
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