I am riddled with shame. Life has thrown so much at me in the last few weeks that I have neglected to update my blog at a critical time. There are six other artists I think will make it big during 2012 and I have not had the time to write about them. I’m having to compromise. So, here are numbers six to two.
6. Patterns
Angular yet melodic, intimate yet reaching-for-the stars, Manchester’s Patterns are everything you’d want intelligent boys with guitars and keyboards to sound like.
5. Alt-J
The Leeds band are named after the Mac shortcut for the theta sign (try it) and make big jagged tunes you can dance to. Well, you can dance to them; I am too old to dance.
4. Friends
Brooklyn-based cool pop kittens making a sound like the 1982 version of Madonnna. Which is a very good thing. ‘I’m His Girl’ was my favourite single of 2011.
3. The Heartbreaks
Skyscraping melodies rammed into a Mary Chain-cum-Spector wall of sound from Morecambe’s finest ever band. A debut album is imminent – and it sounds lavishly great.
2. Niki And The Dove
The Swedish duo are where popular music should be heading in 2012. Singer Malin Dahlström is extraordinary, like Bjork, Kate Bush and Madge (again) rolled into one. Their recent EP The Drummer was the sound of a band revving up to take over the world.
John Freeman's blog about music 