Your mum’s favourite pop star Sam Smith just won the Golden Globe for his original performance of The Writing’s On The Wall, the theme song for the latest James Bond film, Spectre.

On Christmas Day, the world was blessed with Radiohead‘s own version of Spectre, which, although it didn’t make the final cut for the film, is brilliant, and has hopefully  heralded in a brand new album for the legendary five-piece.

Following the Golden Globes, Variety posted a video to Facebook of Smith speaking at a press conference. Specifically, one journalist asked Smith if he was surprised that Radiohead’s frontman Thom Yorke had released the alternate version. The results are some of the most awfully cringe-worthy moments we’ve seen in a long, long time.

It’s clear as hell that Smith was immediately dumbfounded by the question. He had to turn to his co-writer Jimmy Napes, asking, “Thom Yorke?” to which Napes obviously replied, “Radiohead.” Smith then fumbles around, mumbling about how he was a little surprised, sure, before snapping back into it and admitting that he hadn’t heard the song. Why?

“I haven’t listened to it personally, because I did the Spectre theme song.”

Get ready to bury your head in your hands:

https://www.facebook.com/Variety/videos/10153320033002197/?permPage=1

 

This isn’t even a case of musical pomposity, where us Radiohead fans simply expect and assume that any self-respecting musician or music fan knows and loves Yorke and co. (although to be fair, we feel that way too.) This is just outright being a total bratty prick.

Listen to Radiohead’s version here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zv-w0zPSsTs

 

It’s the song that’s taken the world and the internet by storm, producing so many memes and parodies it virtually warrants a subculture of its own. But now, totally out of left field, Sufjan Stevens has taken a crack at Drake’s infamous Hotline Bling. Joining the ranks of fellow artists Art of Sleeping, Justin Bieber, Erykah Badu and Sam Smith with Disclosure, Stevens performs a cover that would make Drizzy proud. 

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tMMJXmHzWjM&w=560&h=315]

Featuring Gallant, the video was for a Halloween concert shot at Loew’s Jersey Theatre. The R&B tinged sounds oddly discordant mixed in with Sufjan Steven ethereal, lightweight vocals. Laughter can be heard in the background, as delighted and slightly bemused punters watch on from the audience. The two manage to imitate Drake’s now legendarily dorky dance moves perfectly.

The song has spawned countless memes of Drake and his ridiculous dance moves being re-appropriated into Drake making pizzas, Drake in a lightsaber fight, Drake playing tennis and Drake the Pokémaster.

Would Drizzy approve of this latest cover? We certainly can’t see him approving of this cringeworthy Mike Tyson one…

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ErhaAxzujqo&w=560&h=315]

But this Mr. G one should be made a part of the National Archives its so good. It was even released by Chris Lilley himself.

//

Mr G’s Hotline BlingMr G’s Hotline Blingby fixmeinforty5 Tumblr

Posted by Chris Lilley on Saturday, October 24, 2015

However, Sam Smith and Disclosure collab veterans performed a sublime version on BBC’s Radio 1 Live Lounge.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qDCcC_psV24&w=560&h=315]

But perhaps the best is the justice Erykah Badu’s does to the song.

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/226458560″ params=”color=ff5500″ width=”100%” height=”166″ iframe=”true” /]

Back to more Sufjan Stevens related news…

He’s on tour in Australia next year. Check out the dates below:

Sufjan Stevens 2016 Australian Tour

Monday 22nd February – State Theatre, Sydney NSW – Tickets

Friday 26th February 2016 – Hamer Hall, Melbourne VIC – SOLD OUT

Saturday 27th February 2016 – Hamer Hall, Melbourne VIC – Tickets

Wednesday 2nd March 2016 – Red Hill Auditorium, Perth WA – Tickets

Friday 4th March 2016 – QPAC Concert Hall, Brisbane, QLD – Tickets

From the creators of Latch and Omen, Sam Smith and Disclosure have joined forces once again to deliver us a cover of Drake‘s Hotline Bling.

The trio made an appearance BBC Radio Lounge 1’s Live Lounge, and as is custom for the radio show, performed the cover – it’s essentially the BBC take on triple j’s Like A Version. While the track, when sung by its creator, is a hip-hop ode to booty calls, Smith and Disclosure have twisted it into something else entirely – that recognisable, much-loved, distinctly Disclosure sound. When played by the trio, it is a late night deep house jam – something that would fit perfectly on Disclosure’s upcoming LP Caracal.

“Drake and Kendrick [Lamar] are just absolutely killing it at the moment,” Disclosure’s Guy Lawrence said of the song, “They’re like mine and Howard’s faves at the moment in that world, and it made sense to choose this song.”

Say what you will about Sam Smith, but his vanilla-sweet vocals slip perfectly into Disclosure’s production. Check out the velvety smooth cover here – skip ahead to 2:15 for Omen, and 8:55 for Hotline Bling.

Drake last visited Australia for the final ever Future Music Festival earlier this year. Disclosure, no stranger to our shores, last visited Australia for Stereosonic 2014, and will be here over the New Years period for Falls Festival. Smith will also be touring Australia in November and December, so who knows – maybe the brotherly duo will keep Smith around as a New Years surprise.

A couple of days ago, one of Britain’s most boring pop music exports, Sam Smith, posted a cryptic photo to his social media accounts hinting that he was set to be the voice behind the next theme song for the James Bond franchise. What followed were countless blog posts unpicking the message of the photo, which depicted Smith’s hand with a ring emblazoned with the Spectre symbol. The question they all asked some form of the same question: was he teasing or was the Stay With Me Singer actually going to be singing the next theme for Spectre? My question: Why does everyone seem to care so much? It’s not as though Sam Smith is particularly exciting.

Honestly, none of the acts rumoured to be viable options for the song were too desirable (they included Lorde, Ed Sheeran and Ellie Goulding), but Sam Smith was perhaps the least appealing of the bunch. Over a career that has been astonishingly decorated with awards and accolades that have included four Grammy awards and two BRIT awards, Smith has been praised beyond measure for being consistently banal.

First gaining popularity as the voice behind Disclosure’s Latch, this ‘pop-soul’ singer had promise. When the brother-duo behind Disclosure, Howard and Guy Lawrence, first heard a recording of Smith singing, they mistook his voice for that of a woman. Lending his vocals to the track once deemed “too weird” for radio, Smith added honeyed, full-bodied and emotive layers to the song. It was no doubt in part due to Smith’s voice that Latch become such a fantastic sleeper hit it. Relatively unnoticed or cared for upon initial release, it blew up as across commercial and alternative radio alike. A true (and perhaps surprising) crossover hit the video for Latch, to date, has racked up well over 150 million views on YouTube.

Sadly, what followed was far less inspired: for both the parts of Disclosure and Sam Smith. The electro duo had one of the most anticipated albums of 2013, but aside from a few standout tracks, Settle fell short of the mark. Smith followed with an album of his own in early 2014, but for all its praise and hype, In the Lonely Hour is a boring compilation of songs that rely on Smith’s (somewhat confusing) status as a soulful pop singer without actually injecting any sense of soul into the music and ignoring the significant cultural history of soul music which is embodied throughout the music.

For all the praise Smith’s music receives for being honest and truthful about love and hook-up culture, it is not soul music. But perhaps even more disappointing, it isn’t even good pop music. As Sam Smith’s singles were released, they proved increasingly lacklustre. For all his vocal prowess, Sam Smith doesn’t use the tools available to him. For all his discontent with the lack of romance and class in popular music, he is missing something perhaps much more important: vigour. Listening to Sam Smith is tiring and irritating. Romantic, classy pop music, which is what Smith yearns for, does not need to be brash or fervent, but its so disappointing to realise that the only other option presented to us is for it to be pedestrian and plain. Perhaps if we keep lapping up the mundane pop music forced upon us, then we don’t really deserve more interesting pop stars, but it would be nice if some more diversity was offered throughout the charts.

Sam Smith is not an electro artist and while that is easy enough to respect, what is unfathomable is the lack of depth to the music Smith and his contemporaries (Ed Sheeran in particular is equally plain) offer. The lyrics are vapid, middle-of-the-road at best though they’re often received as though they’re something more. The music is formulaic and safe and this is only one of many points where comparing him to soul musicians, past and present, is offensive. Sam Smith is not interesting; for all intents and purposes he is a fan of Frank Sinatra who falls so incredibly short of making music with depth and dimension. Comparing him to the crooners of the 50s and 60s he so admires, is also not a respectable option though people continue to do so.  His long list of awards only reinforces the notion that the powers in music continue to play things safe.

This leads us back to the most recent bit of Sam Smith related news. He has overnight confirmed that he will be singing the theme-song for the new James Bond film. The track is called Writing’s On The Wall and despite Smith denying any involvement in the project just last week, the song was recorded in January. It’s the first Bond song recorded by a British male solo artist since Tom Jones’ Thunderball in 1965. Disclosure have added to speculation about the track, tweeting they they have been involved in additional production of the song since. Smith joins a list of artists ranging from Dame Shirley Bassey to Adele (another singer to whom Smith is consistently compared) upon whom the supposed honour has been disposed. With a few exceptions, most Bond theme songs are forgettable. Sam Smith is a fitting (but boring) and safe choice for a formulaic franchise.  Still, where Sam Smith is paraded around as being much more than he is musically, the Bond films at the very least never pretend to be something other than exactly what they are.

The question of why we should care about Sam Smith and his involvement with the Bond franchise remains unanswered: perhaps because everyone knows that we shouldn’t.

Sam Smith? “See you later, alligator. Mamase mamasa mamakusa.”

Everyone has an opinion about pop music. Former Smiths frontman Morrissey shared his, calling out Ed Sheeran and Sam Smith in an interview with Boulder Weekly. When Morrissey was questioned about the success of current pop stars, his response caused quite a stir.

First, he recognised an obvious fact – “There are no bands or singers who become successful without overwhelming marketing.”

“There are no surprise success stories. Everything is stringently controlled, obvious and predictable and has exactly the same content,” he added.

Then he slammed the current state of the pop music industry. “So, we are now in the era of marketed pop stars, which means that the labels fully control the charts, and consequently the public has lost interest. It’s very rare that a record label does something for the good of music.”

Normally in a situation like this, names wouldn’t be used. Morrissey, ignoring the basic rules of etiquette, used the names of two of the biggest stars on the radio to prove his point. “Thus we are force-fed such as Ed Sheeran and Sam Smith, which at least means that things can’t possibly get any worse. It is sad, though. There’s no spontaneity now, and it all seems to be unsalvageable.”

When Sheeran heard about this, he was quick to respond. He responsed to an article on the interview via Twitter, saying it is “absolute bollocks” and Smith “was the least predictable success story of the last year.”

Smith, who is about to be featured on Disclosure’s upcoming album, is staying out of this argument for now. Good idea, Sam.

Morrissey, your move.

Once again featuring the man who brought you the hit which brought them both to mainstream attention, Disclosure have just announced the second single from their forthcoming album Caracal, to be called Omen and featuring Sam Smith.

Following on from first single Holding On, featuring jazz singer Gregory Porter, Disclosure broke the news via twitter, also choosing to ‘disclose’ the artwork of the single as well (pun intended).

They subsequently tweeted this:

We are sooo excited for you to hear the track. UK, you can pre-order now http://t.co/7xNV1LoPGZ More news next week!x pic.twitter.com/AzhkSBMvJw

— Disclosure (@disclosure) July 9, 2015

Smith, who featured on Disclosure’s breakout hit Latch, also tweeted in reaction to the news.

Latch, lead single from their debut album Settle, earned both Smith and Disclosure worldwide recognition after it climbed to Number 11 on the UK’s Official Singles Chart in late 2012, and then managed to reach to Number 7 in the US over 18 months later.

The release of the Omen, which was written with Jimmy Napes, impending arrival into the world even managed to bump to No. 2 on the Billboard + Twitter Trending 140. Recently the duo also managed to reach No. 1 on the same chart with Holding On.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3mmTMSZkXQY&w=560&h=315]

Their sophomore album is set for a September 25 release and will also feature the likes of Lion Babe, Kwabs and Nao. Another heavy-hitter confirmed for the album is non-other than Kiwi Lorde herself.

Pre-order the album here on iTunes.

Members of the Rihanna Navy can satiate their appetite for all things Barbadian… for now.

The Bajan beauty has just released two new songs on the soundtrack for the animated kids film Home: Dancing in the Dark and As Real As You And Me.

Home is BadGalRiri’s first foray into voice-acting, playing the part of a young girl who strikes up an unlikely friendship with a hapless alien, voiced by The Big Bang Theory’s Jim Parsons. Also featuring on the soundtrack is pop heavyweight and the age-defying Jennifer Lopez, Charli XCX and Kiesza.

While still no exact confirmation on the release date for her 8th studio (rumoured to be called R8) the FourFiveSeconds singer has released a cryptic tweet with the hashtag #R8, featuring what some are speculating could be the cover art for the upcoming LP.

Kanye West, who Rihanna collaborated with on FourFiveSeconds with Sir Paul McCartney, will serve as an executive producer of R8, as well as potentially featuring on other tracks too.

As well as speculation into what the album is called, also rumoured to be making a appearance on Rih’s new album are Sam Smith, Nicki Minaj, Drake, and perhaps most excitingly, JLo herself.

Speaking to E! News last week, Lopez stated she would love to work with the Grammy award winner, saying, “Absolutely! Who wouldn’t?!”

It’s hard to believe Rihanna released her last album Unapologetic in 2012, almost two-and-a-half years ago. With no release date confirmed yet, fans will have to wait a little while longer. 

Have a listen to two her new offerings below, or better yet check her film ‘Home’, in cinemas now.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gu5FZQIIR3c]

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wo-EQe1hvyc]

The usual suspects. A few wildcards, but nothing unexpected. The announcement was made on CBS This Morning early Friday by pop heavyweights Pharrell Williams and Ed Sheeran (a sign of things to come perhaps?), who revealed four major categories of nominations.

As usual, most of the nominees are artists who have dominated the charts over the past year. But could we expect to see some more surprise wins like Arcade Fire’s 2011 album The Suburbs? Wins are usually a mix of the critically acclaimed or the commercially successful, but sometimes even an unheard of underdog takes home the bacon. Below is a breakdown of some of the biggest categories of who could be winning big at next year’s 57th Grammys.

ALBUM OF THE YEAR

Beck, Morning Phase
Beyoncé, Beyoncé
Ed Sheeran, X
Sam Smith, In the Lonely Hour
Pharrell Williams, Girl

Look, let’s be honest. We all knew who the winner of this category would be the moment her album came out, and it goes without saying that Beyoncé will clean up big this year. No one else on this list even comes close in terms of musical prowess, star power and commercial success of her self-titled visual album. She didn’t even need to promote the album, she just dropped it on iTunes, lay back and watched the Internet go into overdrive. Such was the frenzied chaos of eager fans rushing to buy her album that they literally crashed iTunes.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OSAOsm1u-OE]

What other artist can boast that, in an age where just actually buying an album is a feat in itself? Not only is it a financial success (it sold a total of 430 000 digital copies within 24 hours), but it debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 – Beyoncé’s fifth album to do so. It’s also the most critically acclaimed album on the list, with a Metacritic score of 85. The only other competitor that comes close would be Ed Sheeran’s X (pronounced ‘Multiply’) or Sam Smith’s In the Lonely Hour. They are both musical powerhouses in themselves, but it’s a pity that they go grouped together with Queen Bey.

BEST NEW ARTIST

Bastille
Iggy Azalea
Brandy Clark
Haim
Sam Smith

This category is a little trickier because we have a few big contenders here all vying for the top prize. Personally, I think Iggy Azalea has the biggest chance at winning. She has dominated this year with her debut album The New Classic and the colossal success of Fancy, as well as making history by having two Top 100 songs at number one and two at the same time – the first person to do so since the Beatles in 1964. She’s collaborated with all the big names in the music biz, from JLo, Ariana Grande to Rita Ora. Although her album didn’t receive a standing ovation from the music community (especially the rap community), her star is certainly one that’s rising, and will continue to rise for the foreseeable future. However, I feel that this is a category in which actual newcomers might have a chance. For the past few years, unforeseen chart toppers like Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, Fun and Bon Iver have taken home the gold. Another interesting trend to note is that the most recent winners in this category are all Americans. There have been a few sporadic non-American wins such as Amy Winehouse and Adele in the past, so perhaps it’s the year of the Brit this time round? Maybe the so-called ‘male Adele’ Sam Smith or Bastille might secure another victory for the Motherland. Only time will tell.

RECORD OF THE YEAR
Fancy, Iggy Azalea ft. Charli XCX
Chandelier, Sia
Stay With Me (Darkchild Version), Sam Smith
Shake It Off, Taylor Swift
All about that Bass, Meghan Trainor

Again, this one is tricky. The real contenders here are Taylor Swift, Iggy Azalea and Sia. It would be hard not peg Azalea as this year’s winner considering the enormous success and seemingly unending reign of her hit single Fancy. The song was on the Billboard Hot 100 charts for seven weeks and catapulted the Aussie MC and Charli XCX to superstardom.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O-zpOMYRi0w]

In saying that, she is going up against Billboard’s Woman of the Year, country crooner Taylor Swift. Such is the magnitude of Swift’s success that her album 1989 sold 1.287 million in its first week of release, a feat that hasn’t been equalled since 2002 by Eminem’s The Eminem Show, when people actually bought records. However, we could also see a surprise win from the publicity-shy Sia. Despite her reluctance to appear publicly for any of the accolades so generously bestown upon her, Sia’s Chandelier was everywhere as she continues to ride on a wave of successful hits, with little to no promotion.

BEST RAP ALBUM

The New Classic, Iggy Azalea
Because the Internet, Childish Gambino
Nobody’s Smiling, Common
The Marshall Mathers LP2, Eminem
Oxymoron, ScHoolboy Q
Blacc Hollywood, Wiz Khalifa

It would be easy to say speculate that this year’s best rap album would go straight to Eminem. However, the usually untouchable star’s latest album has come under fire for featuring extremely offensive lyrics about both Lana Del Rey and Iggy Azalea. Eminem is no stranger to misogyny, but the reaction to these jibes were much louder this time than to his previous diatribes, and it could potentially cost him the accolade. Oxymoron by ScHoolboy Q and Nobody’s Smiling by Common are the most critically acclaimed on the list, both tying in with scores of 78 on Metacritic. But could it be Iggy Azalea’s The New Classic which takes home the top gong? If crowned the winner, Azalea would not only the first woman to win a grammy in this category, but the first Australian as well. The only other non-American to win Best Rap Album was Drake back in 2013. This could potentially stir up a great ol’ big shitstorm seeing as Azalea is constantly under fire for allegedly appropriating black culture. Personally, I’d want to see Childish Gambino win. His sophomore album Because the Internet brings way more to the table in terms of originality than anything else.

BEST POP VOCAL ALBUM

Ghost Stories, Coldplay
Bangerz, Miley Cyrus
My Everything, Ariana Grande
Prism, Katy Perry
X, Ed Sheeran
In the Lonely Hour, Sam Smith

God forbid if Bangerz wins this one. I just don’t think the world can handle any more of Miley’s brainless trash pop excrement. Same goes for Prism. Katy, you and your barely disguised sexual euphemisms have had their time in the sun. Let’s be honest here: Ghost Stories isn’t going to win. It got absolutely trashed by the critics and Coldplay fans alike and scored a measly 61 on the Metacritic scale. You know you aren’t doing well when even your most loyal fans won’t flog your shit. I’d say this one is going to pop powerhouse Ariana Grande. No one can get enough of the baby prostitute Mariah 2.0 act. Hopefully Ariana won’t have to deal with deadly onslaught of tanned limbs and sharp wings like the last time she performed:

2014 Victoria's Secret Fashion Show - Runway

“Don’t rain on my parade, bitch.”

BEST DANCE/ELECTRONIC ALBUM 

Aphex Twin: Syro
Deadmau5: While (1<2)
Little Dragon: Nabuma Rubberband
Rôyksopp & Robyn: Do It Again
Mat Zo: Damage Control

(NB: Lauren wrote this bit)
This was an unbelievably impressive year for dance music, and the nominations are a clear showing of that. Each of these albums not only showcase completely different styles of electronic music, but in their own right, each absolutely shines. Aphex Twin‘s nomination is interesting – the sheer amount of reverance that the dance music community overshadows the pure strangeness and utter obscurity of so much of his music. In a nutshell, it wouldn’t be easy for a newcomer to release an album like this, and receive the same praise. (Same would go for FlyLo.) Little Dragon’s album was a surprise nomination but absolutely deserving; it is truly special and I highly recommend a listen. While I don’t think he’ll actually win, though, my personal vote goes to Deadmau5. I fucking love this album, despite the two hour running time. I love the extended instrumentals, the musical breakdowns that have probably freaked the shit out of techno-heads and the fact that it’s essentially a Nine Inch Nails tribute album. (Some people wrote that as an insult. I see it as a compliment). As for who might actually win, it will probably go to Aphex Twin of Royksopp & Robyn, though I’m hoping for Mau5 or Little Dragon.

 

Since its inception in 1974, Triple J’s crown jewel has easily been the annual Hottest 100 Countdown. The largest music poll in the world, establishing what was truly the best song of the year. That’s not to say the poll is always accurate, with some victors wining in questionable circumstances, however as 2014 draws to a close, its now time to count your votes, and establish who will take out this years crown. In light of this, Howls & Echoes has listed its top picks for the 2014 Countdown. (In no particular order)

Peking Duk: High feat. Nicole Millar

Possibly the only good thing to come out of Canberra since Kevin Rudd’s ‘Sorry’ speech, Peking Duk have had an incredible year. The release of High saw the duo solidify their standings in the shit-fight that is the Australian dance scene. This release resulted in incredible performances at both Splendour in The Grass and Groovin The Moo, and most recently saw the two tear Sterosonic’s main stage a new one. Considering how far these boys have come, and the incredible rotation High has had across the airwaves, we will be very surprised if this doesn’t make top 5, let alone grab pole position.

Chet Faker: Talk Is Cheap

That said, it’s not like there isn’t any strong competition. Chet Faker’s ‘Built on Glass’ saw the Melbournite go from a well kept secret, to Australia’s favourite son. Talk Is Cheap has amassed an impressive 7 million views on YouTube and his debut album reaching Gold status, accompanied with a number one spot. It’s going to be an incredibly close race, however our boy Chet is in with a seriously good shot.

Future Islands: Waiting On You

The fact that Future Islands have been kicking around since 2006 will never cease to surprise us, however its extremely fortunate that their single Waiting On You broke them into the global music scene this year. After their incredible performance at Splendour In The Grass, it would come as no surprise if the American Outfit claimed the number one spot. Accompanied by their incredible performance on Letterman, 2014 has definitely been the year of Future Islands.

The War On Drugs: Red Eyes

Similar to Future Islands, The War On Drugs’ past two albums were not only extremely underrated, but one of the best-kept secrets we had. However in the immortal words of Nelly Furtado, ‘All Good Things (Must Come To An End)’. The War On Drugs’ Red Eyes divided listeners, either deeming it incredible, or incredibly boring. At Howl & Echoes however, we back the Philadelphian outfit and know that the group will feature heavily in this years countdown.

Sam Smith: Stay With Me

Rolling Stone slotted UK tear-jerker, Sam Smith, into their top 15 tracks of 2014 with his heartfelt ballad Stay With Me. Having wowed crowds at Splendour In The Grass, and his debut album, Stay With Me is definitely a change of pace form the upbeat nature of the countdown, but rest assured that it will be in there.

Flight Facilities: Two Bodies feat. Emma Louise

We had Chet Faker, we had The Smith Street Band, however its so profoundly obvious that Flight Facilities album ‘Down To Earth’ was the single most anticipated Australian album of the year. The duo have been kicking around for years, however in 2014 the finally release their hugely awaited debut album. From this album stemmed Two Bodies, featuring Emma Louise. Spearheading the electronic vibe which has taken over Australia, ‘Two Bodies’ has been received with nothing but love.

DMAs: Delete

Before they had released a song, performed a gig, or given the public anything to show – Australia was already talking about Sydney’s DMAs. With several tours and soon to be two groundbreaking EPs under their belt, its no surprise. The unique formula of an Australian spin on that Brit-Pop sound we’d all forgotten has resulted in them being loved the world over. Having just finishing up supporting The Courteeners in the UK to rave reviews, their ballad Delete is a definite feature on this years Hottest 100

DZ Deathrays: Gina Works at Hearts

Having recently taken out the ARIA Award for Best Hard Rock/Heavy Metal Album, the DZ lads are hardly slowing down. The release of Gina Works at Hearts saw a cross-over between their signature hard hitting riffs and a accessible lyrics, accumulating in some serious loving for the song. Here’s hoping that this cross over, which did them justice at the ARIAs, rewards them even further with a top 10 spot come January 26th.

ILLY: Tightrope

ILLY has been kicking around for years, however the release of Tightrope from his album Cinematic, hit a sweet spot with both Triple J and voters alike scoring Platinum status. Having headlined this years One Night Stand, it really has been a jam-packed year for the Victorian rapper, and he is in serious contention to cap it off with taking that number one spot.

Jungle: Busy Earning

The boys from Jungle came out of nowhere, and their self titled debut release took the world by storm. The British outfit have spent the entire year touring, capitalising on what is one of the better albums of this year. Their feel-good downbeat vibes will be making an appearance in this years countdown, the question is where?

Wild Card: Taylor Swift – Blank Space

I honestly don’t care what you say, Taylor Swift’s 1989 was one of the best albums of the year. Yeah it’s pop, but it was genuinely one of the most honest albums we’ve seen in a long time. Unfortunately I doubt that Blank Space will be considered for a nomination, but it should be. Taylor is love, Taylor is life.