Bleep’s Top Albums of 2014

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Aphex Twin made his 2014 return to Warp with the album Syro. Richard D. James has been releasing music since the beginning of the ‘90s. His first full-length album, Selected Ambient Works 85-92, came out in 1992 through R&S Records. The first Aphex Twin release on Warp would be 1993’s On EP, which was followed by four studio albums for the label, as well as numerous other EPs. Syro will be the first new Aphex Twin album since 2001’s Drukqs.

Easily the most highly anticipated LP of 2014, the announcement of Aphex Twin’s latest LP Syro since the seminal Drukqs LP in 2001 promoted mass hysteria and excitement in equal measure. What followed was 12 pieces of lush, detailed electronic music that could only be attributed to Richard D. James; for instance the pensive melodic interplay on ‘XMAS_EVET10 (thanaton3 mix)’ or the brittle micro detailing on ‘CIRCLONT14 (shrymoming mix)’. Whilst some may argue Syro doesn’t advance the Aphex Twin sound in any particular direction, when one has already revolutionized electronic music the way Richard D. James has, did it really have to? It’s still an astounding collection of beautiful, intricate material that’ll live on long after the dust settles and a poignant reminder of the relevance of one of the most important artists of our time.

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Dan Snaith returned with his fourth album under the Caribou name. More soulful than any of his previous releases and incorporating a wide range of influences from garage and hip hop to pop music and dubstep, this is something very special. First track to emerge 'Can't Do Without You' - also the album's opening track - is a promising taster: a dazzling electronic exultation that might surpass anything he's done before, endless ecstasy rippling through its swelling layers of dreamy noise. Title track "Our Love" starts with a classic Caribou sound and evolves into an old-school rave-anthem touching on his previous Daphni project.

The year of 2014 saw Canadian artist Dan Snaith follow up his incredible 2010 Caribou LP Swim with Our Love, bridging a four year gap with another spellbinding collection of richly texturised electronic music. Such gap however was far from a period of inactivity, with the producer spending increased time operating under his more dance-orientated alias Daphni, an influence that permeates through Our Love, most evidently on the flute-rich, polyrhythmic ‘Mars’, the euphoric title cut or dramatic closer ‘Your Love Can Set You Free’. Away from the dance floor, the album bears its soul with more feeling-rich cuts such as the Jessy Lanza featuring ‘Second Chance’ or the dewy-eyed, melancholic piece ‘Dive’, where soaring synth lines grow to a tender emotional release.

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After a string of self-released 12-inches and contributions to the catalogues of Hessle Audio and Leisure System and on Bleep's own Green Series, Objekt’s Berlin-bred techno tropes have now been crafted in to a full-length for left field powerhouse PAN. Having worked as an instrument programmer, the meticulous minimalism of tracks like First Witness and One Fell Swoop are the sound of a producer who painstakingly arranges every single detail into a cohesive body of work. Angular but refreshingly accessible, Flatland is testament to a producer who has made a case for only releasing material when it is - in every sense - complete.

Whether through the impeccable constructions on his own self-titled while label series or the influential Hessle Audio (not to mention our own Bleep imprint), Objekt’s material always manages to find the right balance between rigorous sound design and hulking dance floor appeal. With this in mind, its clear the extended LP format is the perfect stage for Objekt to fully exercise his technical talents and with the backing of Bill Kouligas’ PAN records, Flatland is an incredibly well accomplished debut LP that is a aesthetically experimental yet never sounds overdone. The opening cosmic abyss of ‘Agnes Revenge’ could easily work as a film score, setting us up perfectly for the automated electro scurry of ‘One Fell Swoop’ and ‘Ratchet’. ‘Agnes Apparatus’ is the perfect ambient cleanser, with its huge sweeping synth motifs blowing between sparse bass pulses and clinical details whereas ‘Interlude (Whodunnit?)’ is a surgically engineered slice of computer funk. In all, Flatland is a testament to TJ Hertz’s technical ability yet it's a release that despite all its production wizardry remains grounded for all fans of electronic music.

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It’s hard to believe that Reality Testing is the sixth album from Manchester-based producer Lone, but his has been a quiet and steady ascent. Following on from the continued success of his relationship with R&S Records, this year he dropped Reality Testing - its title referring to the process of distinguishing the internal world of emotions and thoughts from the world outside.

Appropriately, it’s a hazy, languid affair, one in which Lone moves between the US house of Detroit and Chicago and the dusty grooves of west-coast hip-hop and beat music. Nestled in the middle of this new material are the two sides of last year’s marvellous Airglow Fires release, both the frantically upbeat title track and the jazzier swing of ‘Begin To Begin’. Similar in approach, 'Restless City' is a gorgeous take on buzzing house music, keys and percussion meeting spoken word samples that speak of what's really real. 'Meeker Warmer Energy' is a shimmering hip-hop jam, one that calls to mind hazy sunshine resting on still waters, while 'Aurora Northern Quarter' is that track's late-night equivalent, all balmy darkness and lusty dances in its retro piano stabs. 'Coincidences' shuffles along like a meeting between the lush organ sounds of Floating Points and the percussive expression of Four Tet, and the weariness of 'Jaded' is a down-tempo antidote to any rave-induced injuries. It's very easy to shoot and miss when it comes to sonic variety, but Reality Testing is a slam-dunk of both style and substance for Lone.

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Slackk has become something of a figurehead for a new wave of instrumental grime producers, largely operating out of London and centring on the capital's Boxed club night, which Slackk runs alongside Mr. Mitch, Logos and the Oil Gang label. Him and others who share a similar aesthetic delight in twisting instrumental grime into far-out and visionary shapes - among them Rabit, Visionist, Novelist, Moleskin - are arguably making some of the most thrilling club music around right now. If you haven't already, now is the time to take notice. This context makes Slackk's album all the more exciting. He has released a slew of mixtapes over the years, as well as some killer EPs, and his radio shows are always essential listening. The brilliantly titled Palm Tree Fire sees him expanding his atmospheric take on grime beyond the confines of the club, weaving sparse magic on tracks like 'Burnt Ends', elastic melancholy on 'Crafty Tiger', dreamy mysticism on 'Three Kingdoms', building scorched landscapes on 'Hope You Got A', and taking things into more energised territory on the springy 'Ancient Dolphin'. It's a great album, and one of the strongest statements so far from this fertile scene.

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As one of contemporary alternative music’s most elusive figures, Dean Blunt returns on Black Metal and delivers his most assured and ambitious record to date for Rough Trade. An album of two halves; the crestfallen baritone on Blow is juxtaposed by the inner-city sermonising of Grade, just as the melancholic strumming of 50 Cent gets rattled by the unrelenting stagger of Mersh. With ominous narratives of hunger and loneliness rumbling underneath the gloomy surface, Black Metal is a moonlit cruise through Blunt’s cloudy metropolis. There’s no telling where he’ll go next, but this is one of his finest trips to date.

Dean Blunt’s follow up to The Redeemer (2013) leaves us none the wiser as to the specifics surrounding this ever-intriguing artist. Black Metal offers a wider emotional spectrum than its predecessor, such as the soft contemplative touches on ‘MOLLY & AQUAFINA’ or similarly pensive tones on the extended centerpiece ‘FOREVER’. However, the wild abrasive sonic blast of ‘Country’ or stark, searing post punk undertones of closing piece ‘GRACE’ confirm the fact that it’ll take a little more time to understand this artist but one thing is for sure, it’ll be worth the effort.

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As the ever-impressive Hyperdub label celebrates its 10th anniversary, it shows no sign of slack or complacency. Asiatisch, the debut album from globally inspired Fatima Al Qadiri, shows the label’s continuing insistence on depth and quality. After a series of stellar EPs for UNO and Fade To Mind, Al Qadiri set her sights on the album format. Opting to explore an imagined China, Al Qadiri crafted Asiatisch (from the German word for Asian), building on her ghostly palette of sounds and adding in a series of synthetic eastern arrangements and tropes.

It's an album that confounds the listener right from the word go. ‘Shanzhai (For Shanzhai Biennial)’ opens the release, an unsettlingly cover of Sinead O'Connor's 'Nothing Compares 2 U' sung in an imaginary version of Mandarin that features the vocals of Hong Kong rock star Helen Feng. MIDI vocals and tubular synth patches abound, as do robotic voices that speak in corrupted tongue (‘Wudang’, ‘Loading Beijing’) and remind listeners of Disney’s questionable racial inclusions (‘Dragon Tattoo’). ‘Szechuan’ and 'Shanghai Freeway' see Al Qadiri at her most familiar, those shimmering xylophone-esque arpeggios and bombastic horn-like basslines reminiscent of tracks like ‘Oil Well’ and ‘Hip-Hop Spa’. Each track falls down a rabbit hole of reverb and eastern promise, as crashing gongs lend portent and excitement. Concept albums can often lack energy and excitement, but with Asiatisch Fatima Al Qadiri has managed to provide listeners with a fascinating journey into an imagined reality while providing irresistible grooves and thrilling electronic pulses.

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Arca lands on Mute with the mesmerizing 'Xen' having produced the stand out tracks on Kanye's Yeezus and FKA Twigs 'LP1' Arca delivers a full throttle LP for Mute, from the psychedelic slide n shuffle beats and half heard vox of 'Slit Thru' to the bass heavy 'Thievery' which could almost be a hip-hop answer to some of the more beat focused side roads of 'Untrue'. This album is jam packed with future-facing electronic trax aplenty, from introspective moments like the piano led 'Held Apart' to the zig-zag synth flex of 'Bullet Chained' there is a wealth of production here that feels like it could have been made by someone with many years of experience, Arca has created a stunning debut with one eye firmly focused on the clubs but with an experimental pop sensibility that shines throughout, come hear why 'Arca' is such an in-demand producer and a name on everybody's lips.

Venezuelan-born producer Alejandro Ghersi AKA Acra’s dazzling ascent which saw him earn production credits with FKA Twigs and on Kanye West’s Yeezus culminates to a debut solo LP on the legendary Mute Records. Now rubbing shoulders with some of the most influential electronic musicians of our time, Arca’s unflustered, assured experimental pop sound draws its inspiration from the past but releases it as a blueprint for the future. Despite Ghersi’s young 24 years of age, Xen carries the confidence of an artist who understands his sound and looks set to be a pivotal moment not only in his own career but in digital music as a whole. Expect big things going into 2015.