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Friday 13 December 2013

2013

2013 has been a ridiculously great year for music, from established artists scaling new heights with modern classics to stunning debuts and the odd surprisingly-brilliant comeback. In fact, compiling my own annual top 10 proved so difficult this year that I've expanded it to 20, and could have kept going.

On a personal note, 2013 has been a great year for me musically, with my first Glastonbury added to my five previous Reading Festival experiences, with the highlights of a truly awesome weekend being Portishead, Savages, The Staves, Haim, Johnny Marr, Vampire Weekend, Nick Cave, The xx, and obviously The Rolling Stones. Add to these brilliant gigs by Laura Marling, Poliça, Sigur Ros, Wild Nothing, Tegan and Sara, Summer Camp, and the three times I've seen Daughter (obsessed) and this has been another great year for live music.

I have also seen my music writing reach a wider audience this year through my reviews for Australia's Blunt Magazine, and locally for Counteract Magazine.

So, without further ado, here are my top 20 albums from 2013.

  1. Daughter - If You Leave
  2. Laura Marling - Once I Was An Eagle
  3. The National - Trouble Will Find Me
  4. Arcade Fire - Reflektor
  5. Savages - Silence Yourself
  6. Local Natives - Hummingbird
  7. Chvrches - The Bones of What You Believe
  8. Vampire Weekend - Modern Vampires of the City
  9. London Grammar - If You Wait
  10. Summer Camp - Summer Camp
  11. Haim - Days Are Gone
  12. Sigur Ros - Kveikur
  13. James Blake - Overgrown
  14. Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds - Push The Sky Away
  15. David Bowie - The Next Day
  16. Anna Calvi - One Breath
  17. Poliça - Shulamith
  18. Parquet Courts - Light Up Gold
  19. My Bloody Valentine - mbv
  20. Veronica Falls - Waiting For Something To Happen

And here is a playlist of some tunes I've listened to a lot this year, in no particular order.