TASHA
Lana Del Rey – Born To Die
Citizens! – Here We Are
Alt-J – An Awesome Wave
Grizzly Bear - Shields
Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs - Trouble
Paul Weller - Sonik Kicks
Stealing Sheep - Into the Diamond Sun
Animal Collective – Centipede Hz
The Rolling Stones – Grrr!
Band of Skulls – Sweet Sour
There were so so many shortlist-ers, but I've just about reluctantly narrowed it down to these guys, and IMO, we've got ourselves an excellent little mix right here. I've started things off with lovely Lana - who very quickly became the soundtrack to my life last winter, if our memories can stretch back that far, and there was no way she wasn't hitting my top ten. A voice almost as luxurious as that pretty little face of hers, I really can't knock her, and I definitely think that Born to Die will always be one of those albums that I listen to on loop for hours. Favourite track continues to stand as Radio, mainly due to the fact that you can almost taste the lyrics, "sweet like cinnamon" - delicious Lana, just delicious. Skipping on down the list, we get to Alt-J, the legend that are. Totally deserving of their Mercury Prize, and all of their whirlwind success, I've actually only just got really into the album myself, but I'm so glad that I gave it a good chance, it's excellent. TEED, Citizens! and Stealing Sheep are new finds for me this year, all of which creating an excellent stamp on 2012 with their up-to-date vibes - if you haven't given any of them a go yet, do it - I particularly recommend True Romance by Citizens! and Shut Eye from Stealing Sheep. Finally, I know its a greatest hits, but I've just been given Grrr! as a Christmas present from my darling parents, alongside a brand new iPod, and I now feel like the cat's pyjamas getting down to my daily tasks with all the swagger of Mr. Jagger (I'm sorry, I couldn't help it). It's a brilliant compilation album, and an excellent excuse to get any of your Satan friends who don't currently love the Stones into the Stones.
AMY JAYNE
Stone Sour - House of Gold & Bones – Part 1
Marina and The Diamonds - Electra Heart
Architects - Daybreaker
Paloma Faith - Fall to Grace
Axewound - Vultures
Parkway Drive - Atlas
Bjork - Bastards
Girls Aloud - Ten
Devin Townsend Project - Epicloud
Lana Del Rey - Born To Die
Electra Heart by Marina and The Diamonds is ranked sweetly as my top female album of this year. I fail to hold myself back from mega loving Marina as this concept album plays on the vulnerable, shallow and girl power personas that a girly is very likely to attach oneself to. Laced with lyrics like, "women and men we are the same, but love will always be a game, a human vulnerability, doesn't mean that I am weak", the lyrics highlight the problem with girls (including myself) losing their self-confidence because of love and in my case Power and Control made me feel a little better about it. Unlike the other albums on my list, Bastards is a compilation of remixes of my main girl Bjork's tracks. If you are feeling like you want to experience a different angle on chilled music, then you should definitely give Bastards a listen and appreciate it's strange experinmentalness. Alike in uniqueness and complexity, Epicloud by Devin Townsend Project is fucking phenomenal. This is matched by Epicloud brandishing a triumph for metal by it soaring in to the UK's Top 40 Album Charts. The band performed their album in a psychedelic show called The Retinal Circus in London, where there was stilt walkers, a vivid art exhibition, shit loads of acting and fire breathers creating an intense experience living up to the quality production of the album. Architects move away from the usual personal angle of their previous material by taking a political approach with Daybreaker. The stunning lyrics in Even If You Win, You're Still a Rat highlight our oppressive western lifestyles, a brilliant song all-in-all if you decide to disregard the fact that cunty Oli Sykes is featured on the track. There is no surprise that Parkway Drive have released yet another incredible album and yet again I have fallen in love with their signature high octane riffs and chugging guitars. Please take the time to watch the sick video for Dark Days and look out for Winston's sweat patches, as they are truly amazing.
SOPHIE
The Maccabees - Given To The Wild
Tribes - Baby
Jack White - Blunderbuss
Sea of Bees - Orangefarben
Alt-J - An Awesome Wave
The Lumineers - The Lumineers
Band of Skulls - Sweet Sour
Alabama Shakes - Boys and Girls
No Doubt - Push and Shove
Jake Bugg - Jake Bugg
It's nice to be reminded that bands are still producing brilliant music, especially in a generation in which Justin Bieber exists. First to be mentioned has to be The Maccabees, this album will never fail to give me shivers, absolutely beautiful, a slightly more mature album than the previous two. I could never be unhappy listening to this. It also doesn't hurt, that front man Orlando Weeks is an absolute dreamboat. Sea of bees most definitely deserve a special mention. After being lucky enough to catch them in the tiny venue of The Shakespeare, I was utterly enchanted. Orangefarben is an album best experienced live. It features such beautiful tracks as, Girl and an inspired cover of John Denver's Leaving on a Jet Plane re-titled Leaving. With the return of 90's fashion, it seems only fitting that a bindi clad Gwen Stefani has returned. My favourite track from Push and Shove, is most definitely the title track. It's nice to hear the band has kept in tune with their ska roots, in fact they don't appear to have aged in any way, shape or form! Following this, Alt-J's, An Awesome Wave, has been on repeat since I bought it and still feels new. Best enjoyed whist laying in a trance after a heavy night. Alabama Shakes, Band of Skulls and the incredible Jack White pick up the tempo of my list. Dirty, heavy guitars, and vocals on breaking point never fail to do it for me. All albums mentioned really do deserve a listen, and unless you want beliebers to reign in 2013, I'd suggest you get them bought.
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