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2014: Best new musicians to watch

Menace Beach

Menace Beach release their new EP, Lowtalker, on January 13th, and it’s going to be a cracker. The chilled-out vocals and aggressive distortion on old track ‘Tastes Like Medicine’ are just what the doctor ordered, whereas B-side ‘Where I Come From’ is sure to please fans of fellow psych-rockers Splashh. But it’s really all about recent single ‘Fortune Teller’; Menace Beach aim to stun with a hazy, veering guitar riff and some serious shoegaze influences. Think My Bloody Valentine crossed with Marilyn Manson and add some serious punk energy. This is the new shit, and it’s scarily good.

Luke Barratt

Banks

Jillian Banks is an LA based artist whose output to date could be called electronic soul; think warm bass, snappy beats and a generally heady atmosphere. This music’s raison d’être is intimacy, both physical and emotional, and Banks has enough skill as a lyricist and singer to do the music justice. Her quiet confessions are delivered as much through vocal nuances as the words themselves, and when the mood takes her she can drip enough desire from each syllable to send shivers down your spine. Having already toured with R&B heavyweight The Weeknd, she looks set to impress in 2014.

Adam Piascik

SOHN

4AD is the place to be at the moment. With the perfect combination of alternative heavyweights like Bon Iver and The National and brilliant newer artists like Grimes and Ariel Pink, it’s the record label all the cool kids are signing to. SOHN is the latest name to be added to their roster, and with his heavier brand of James Blake-esque atmospheric electronic pop, it must be a good move. A masterful recent remix of Disclosure’s ‘Help Me Lose My Mind’ is a studied move sure to expand a burgeoning fan base. Originally from London, he currently resides in Vienna. No UK tour has been announced yet, but we all want to be the first to welcome back our prodigal SOHN.

Luke Barratt

FKA twigs

With her experimental R&B, Tahliah Barnett, aka FKA Twigs, pulls some of the focus on the genre over to the UK. This is ethereal, sometimes haunting music that hooks you in, providing a perfect backdrop for whispered vocals and allusive lyrics. In a year flooded with excellent releases in the genre, Barnett released one of the best R&B tracks of 2013, the mesmerising ‘Water Me’, and while she may be a bit too weird for commercial success, any release in 2014 is bound to be worth your time.

Adam Piascik

Rhosyn

Rhosyn is a 5-piece band led by former Oxford art grad Rose Dagul, who play minutely crafted indie chamber music. Dagul first formulated her project while wandering the island of Anglesey. Last year’s debut EP finally pushed all her talk of landscape into stunningly fashioned soundscape. Standout track “Glass” perfectly captures all of Dagul’s swooning vocals and infectious knack for catchy composition. Rhosyn has established itself as a major force within Oxford’s hideously talented ‘Blessing Force’ collective of musicians. Be sure to catch one of her many gigs in the new year.

Lu Xun

Real Lies

If you’re stuck desperately searching for some 1990s dance music combined with faux-dramatic, vaguely camp vocals and some proper house beats (and why wouldn’t you be?), then look no further. London trio Real Lies managed one of the tracks of last year with ‘World Peace’, and one can’t imagine them slowing down any time soon. The band members insist on being known only by their initials. Mystery is the name of the game these days, in a post-Wu Lyf world, and they’ve got that covered. With last month’s session at the BBC’s Maida Vale Studios under their belt, these guys are sure to start turning some heads soon.

Luke Barratt

 

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