So, after taking a good look at the last 12 months and having read up on the top lists piled up by the likes of Paste Magazine, Pitchfork, Stereogum, Disco Naivete or Going Solo, here go 10 or so albums that felt somewhat overlooked but really made a wave in 2016 here at Poule d’Or headquarters.
In no particular order and alongside shiny Spotify links.
Wangel – Freedom | 11 tracks, 47 mins | Copenhagen, Denmark | Grandiose pop soundscapes, powerful vocals, delicate production. | Spotify
Liima – ii | Finland/Denmark | 10 tracks, 41 mins | The team of Efterklang and Tatu Rönkkö produced a grand perfect indie electronic pop album | Spotify
Palace Winter – Waiting For The World To Turn | 9 tracks, 42 mins | Copenhagen, Denmark | Stellar driving riffs, precise keys, banging beats, a pop sensation really | Spotify
Antoine Diligent – Futurism | 11 tracks, 42 mins | Los Angeles, California | Psych pop, ranging from vast electronic soundscapes to dense pop gems. A dreamy collection of sunny riffs and positive vibes, Reasons attached below. | Spotify
FEWS – Means | 10 tracks, 36 mins | Sweden/USA | Mad driving riffs and drums alongside a distinct sense for melodies, beautifully produced. | Spotify
Yumi Zouma – Yoncalla | 10 tracks, 34 mins | New Zealand | Melodic dreamy indie pop with an honest and forward feel to it | Spotify
Barbott – Curves | 12 tracks, 46 mins | Barcelona, Spain | Lovely warm indie rock like it used to be but with a 2010s balearic feel to it, just great from first to last. Hear Cream attached below. | Spotify
Blood Orange – Freetown Sound | 17 tracks, 58 mins | Brooklyn, New York | Really liked the Blood Orange album. Always a constant progression in his works, sick album this. | Spotify
Gundelach – Gundelach | 6 tracks, 21 mins | Oslo, Norway | Banging electronic indie pop, banging drums and a dark pulsing vibe, super good. | Spotify
Sports – People Can’t Stop Chillin | Tulsa, Oklahoma | 7 tracks, 20 mins | Feel good sax’ed up indie pop that gets your out of bed in the morning | Spotify
Tourist Dollars – Tourist Dollars | 4 tracks, 15 mins | Melbourne, Australia | Hardly an album at 15 mins run time but packed with 4 stellar jingling indie pop tracks, perfect tempo and rhythm, really wonderfully produced. | Spotify
That said, the one album that shines over all of them, can only be David Bowie’s genius Blackstar.
