Top 10 albums of 2015

1 CHURCHES "EVERY OPEN EYE"

Topping this list of the best albums of 2015 (which is WAY overdue) is the sophomore output from the greatest synthpop collaboration of today, Scottish trifecta Chvrches. Like their first album, "Every Open Eye" opens strong and stays that way for the most part, with one catchy, dancetastic euphoria tune after the other, the standout example being the album's centrepiece "Clearest Blue."  

2 JOHN CARPENTER "LOST THEMES"

In the album's liner notes, filmmaking legend and movie composer J. Carpenter asks us to "make up our own movie" in our minds while listening to his moody collection of instrumental music. The thing is, I already do that anyway, with all music. But that is the point of "John Carpenter's Lost Themes," it is a soundtrack to a movie that doesn't exist, and anyone who has paid attention to the music in his films (most famously "Escape from New York" and of course "Halloween," but also in particular "Assault on Precinct 13" and "Prince of Darkness") knows what to expect. Nine ghostly and atmospheric sound escapades, mixing rock guitars with ambient synthesizers and pulsating drum beats.   

3 COIL "BACKWARDS"

Both core members of seminal electroindustrial weirdos Coil, John Balance and Peter Christopherson, have been resting in peace now for twelve and six years respectively, so any new material is impossible. So when this newly mixed collection of previously unreleased tracks, recorded at the same time as their legendary "Love's Secret Domain" in the 1990's was announced, it was a real treat for us fans. More brooding and ambient than their other work, but still containing their classic taste for noisy techno, "Backwards" was recorded in New Orleans, and the environment is very present in the music, particularly in the sometimes almost deafening noise of background crickets.   

4 TAME IMPALA "CURRENTS"

Australian neo-psychedelic project Tame Impala's third effort is an award-winning album with more dance-oriented music than previously, and just simply too cool for school. In particular, the track "The Less I Know the Better," absolutely the best song of the year and one of the greatest songs about unrequited love ever recorded. I only recently realized that, although Tame Impala is a three-piece band when performing live, "Currents," like the previous two records, is the sole work of one man, Kevin Parker, who performs and records and mixes most if it by himself. 

5 GRIMES "ART ANGELS"

Canadian singer-songwriter Claire Boucher, aka Grimes, has always been artsy and kind of an outsider on the pop scene. Grimes' fourth album "Art Angels" has rightly been hailed by music critics as the greatest album of the year, and I certainly agree. In fact, on my first hearing it, I underwent a total reappraisal of her previous work, which I originally found interesting but nowhere near as genial as this, her most listener-friendly output yet. As I said, "Art Angels" is more accessible, with more emphasis on pop and less on art, like on my favorite track "California."  

6 PEACHES "RUB"

Peaches' fifth album kind of goes back to her roots a little, returning to more minimalistic electro-rap that reminds me of her cult debut "The Teaches of Peaches," only more refined in sound and sophisticated in content. At the same time, as rebellious and naughty as ever, and overall, a consistently cool and inventive album. Standout for me was "Pickles."

7 THE PRODIGY "THE DAY IS MY ENEMY"

The Prodigy have been on a steady course since their reunion in 2009 with "Invaders Must Die," this being their first original material since then. "The Day Is My Enemy" will hardly go down in history as a particularly remarkable milestone in electronic dance music, but it certainly delivers if you were requesting a throbbing dance inferno. Standouts include the very Prodigyesque collaboration with Sleaford Mods called "Ibiza" and "Nasty," suitably accompanied by a very cool animated music video.  

8 MEMBRANES "DARK MATTER/DARK ENERGY"

The Membranes is one of the originals, a now legendary punk band formed in 1977. So it was a true pleasure to discover that they were still in excellent form, and still true to their style with their first album in 25 years. "Dark Matter/Dark Energy" is a concept-heavy, noisy and highly praised collection of underground punk tracks revolving around astrophysics and Higgs Boson in particular. So, not just a cracking listening experience, but quite an intellectual one to boot. Also, you gotta love an album that has John Henry Fuseli's classic painting "The Nightmare" on the cover.

9 THIGHPAULSANDRA "THE GOLDEN COMMUNION"

Thighpaulsandra is the pseudonym of Welsh musical experimentalist Tim Lewis, who often collaborates with similarly weird Cyclobe, Wire and Coil. Ten years in the making, "The Golden Communion" is a challenging record that covers a lot of ground, being almost two hours and very complex. If you can sit through fifteen minutes or so of random noise every once in a while, you will find this a rewarding listening experience, but if you're not in the right mindset for it, you're better off skipping this one.

10 PASSION PIT "KINDRED"

One-man band Passion Pit blew me away with his debut "Manners" in 2009. This, Passion Pit's third album, has moved away from the original sound to a much more radio-friendly and slightly blander sound, but it still manages to make me happy with every turn. Michael Angelakos has always been open about his emotional issues and mental health, and it still amazes me that someone that depressed can create something so uplifting. But maybe that's exactly why.