It’s that time of year again! Yesterday the BBC released their BBC Sound of 2014 long-list, as voted for by DJs, industry insiders and journalists. Generally a good indication of who you’ll be hearing more about in the coming year…sometimes…and a definite hype boost for artists who make the cut.
If the BBC Sound Of 2014 poll is the voice of the UK music industry overloads, then the Blog Sound Of 2014 is the battle cries from the trenches. More grassroots than industry projection, the Blog Sound list is designed to compliment the BBC’s results with a slightly more fan-based approach. Each blog gets to nominate three acts, not that they cynically predict with be big next year, but who are their favourites for next year and genuinely believe deserve to be big next year..
Anyhoo, the Blog Sound Of 2014 long-list is in. Compared to last year particularly, it’s a variable Rock and Folk fest (a brief glace over the list of participating UK blogs reveals a massive swing away from electronic music focused outlets compared to last year so this isn’t too surprising), with Pop, Hip-Hop and Dance Music very much in absence. Although it also has to be said that no-one other than middle-class, public school educated, white folk can even afford to make music in the UK anymore, so again the bias toward folky singer-songwriters and identikit Indie is unsurprising. Still, nice to see IYES there, and Banks, two well deserved entries.
In contrast the BBC’s list is pretty diverse this year, and features the likes of Chloe Howl, Say Lou Lou and MNEK. Admittedly most finger-on-the-pulse bloggers would probably have tipped those acts this time last year, but it’s nice to see some synths represented in the BBC’s better-late-than-never list.
No-one we voted for made the final list. If you’re wondering, our entries were Goldroom, Kate Boy and Chela. We are actually a bit surprised that Kate Boy didn’t make the grade, especially since Rob Da Bank started championing them. Ah well, such is the price of democracy, and at the end of the day it’s just exciting to see so many passionate music lovers, of whatever genre, coming together like this. Because we love it when people love music, even if it’s not the same music we love. That love is what keeps the music industry burning and exciting.
Here’s the list:
BANKS Sultry electronic music with a hint of Soul from Los Angeles, the only non-UK act on the list.
EMBERS Cinematic and vast Indie Rock from Manchester
GEORGE EZRA Singer songwriter with a Bluesy voice
HELLA BETTER DANCER Dark and fiery Indie Rock band
HOCKEYSMITH Genre hopping sister duo from Cornwall
HONEYBLOOD Raw D.I.Y. Indie Rock two piece from Glasgow
IYES Edgy sweetly melodic Pop duo from Brighton
KHUSHI Endearing East London singer who sits somewhere between Pop, Indie and Folk
LYLA FOY Previously known as Wall, creator of delicate, brooding, intimate Pop
MARIKA HACKMAN Singer songwriter with haunting Folk references
MT WOLF Dreamy sounding band combining electronic and acoustic music with near operatic vocals.
ROYAL BLOOD Brighton duo that play gritty Lo-Fi Rock with attitude
RHODES Stripped back acoustic singer songwriter
SIVU Idiosyncratic singer songwriter
SOPHIE JAMIESON Calm, atmospheric Folk musician
WOLF ALICE Edgy Rock band who take references from Grunge and Indie.
The UK music blogs that participated in The Blog Sound Of 2014 this year were:
17 Seconds, A Pocket Full Of Seeds, All Noise, Alphabet Bands, Beat Surrender, Both Bars On, Brapscallions, Breaking More Waves, Brighton Music Blog, Cat From Japan, Daisy Digital, Details Of My Life, Don’t Watch Me Dancing, Dots and Dashes, Drunken Werewolf, Eaten By Monsters, Echoes and Dust, electronic rumors, Faded Glamour, God Is In The TV, Gold Flake Paint, Hearty Vibes, I Love Pie, In Love Not Limbo, Just Music That I Like, Killing Moon, Like 1999, Little Indie Blogs, Love Music : Love Life, Music Broke My Bones, Music Liberation,Music Like Dirt, My Band’s Better Than Your Band, My Day By Day Music, Not Many Experts, Peenko, Pop Dodger, Repeat Button,Scientists Of Sound, Scottish Fiction, Skeletory, Sleep In Music, Some Of It Is True, Sound Influx, Sounds Good To Me Too, Sounds Of Now Music, Sweeping The Nation, The Blue Walrus, The Devil Has The Best Tuna, The Electricity Club, The Evening’s Empire, The Mad Mackerel,The Metaphorical Boat, The Sound Of Confusion, The Underclassed,This Must Be Pop, Thoughts On Music, Von Pip Musical Express, When The Gramophone Rings
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