Hot on the trail of my little brother's list, here's my top albums of 2014.
1. Timber Timbre - 'Hot Dreams' (A fantastic genre-splitting treat. This album just shines)
2. Eels - 'Cautionary Tales of Mark Oliver Everett' (Never a wrong note in this instant classic)
3. Esben and the Witch - 'A New Nature' (A coming-of-age album showing great maturity)
4. Orenda Fink - 'Blue Dream' (Beautiful alt-country/indie)
5. Alvvays - 'Alvvays (Perfect indie-guitar pop. Just listen to 'Marry Me Archie' for proof)
And in no particular order here re my runners up:
Allo Darlin' - 'We Come From the Same Place (jangly indie-pop is in good hands with bands like this)
Avi Buffalo - 'At Best Cuckold' (very accomplished album, shows great maturity)
Beck - - 'Morning Phase' (In my opinion his best yet)
C.A.R. - 'My Friend' (electro-pop with lots of attitude)
Fear Of Men - 'Loom' (Fey, delicate, folky)
Goat - 'Commune' (Like eating trifle with your fingers - this album is messy but lots of fun)
Happyness - 'Weird Little Birthday' (sort of like a slightly more conventional sounding Art Brut. The lyrics are so sharp they cut)
JJ - 'V' (my favourite Swedish dream-pop band back with a great album. They've vocoded slightly her appalling singing voice but it's still pretty bad in a good way)
Lamb - 'Backspace Unwind' (A great return for a much-missed band, they've always bubbled under without breaking big and I'm glad to say this album is in that vein)
Lewis - 'L'Amour' (80s crooner records album gets forgotten for 20 years then re-released. This is exquisite, sounds like John Martyn singing soppy love songs)
Mac DeMarco - 'Salad Days' (Indie singer who does 'almost' disco tracks. An album to put a smile on your face and get your foot tapping)
Painted Palms - 'Forever' (Do you like Hot Chip? Passion Pit? Then you'll like these guys a lot)
Saint Saviour - 'In The Seams' (Sexy, vulnerable, intimate - if Inigo Calderon [sexy Brighton player] ever invited you back to his for a 'coffee' this is the album he'd put on for you)
Terror Bird - 'Clubs' (Canadian lo-fi 80s electro with what sounds like one of those classic Casio synthesizers. Her cover of Eyes Without A Face surpasses the original. No, really it's that good)
Woman's Hour - 'Conversations' (St Etienne fan, fear not, Woman's Hour is there to fill that hole in your life)
Here's 'Run From Me' from the Timber Timbre album at number one:
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