Top ten albums to gift this Christmas

This year will go down in the history of British music as the one when everyone listened to Jamie XX’s solo debut album, The Libertines pulled off an unlikely comeback and Kanye West made it to the main stage of Glastonbury – just a few months after collaborating with Paul McCartney and Rihanna in the studio. It has certainly been an entertaining year. With some upcoming album releases still left ahead, here is a list of gift suggestions to rock 2015 away.

1. Coldplay – A Head Full of Dreams

With collaborations from Beyoncé, Blue Ivy, Noel Gallagher, Gwyneth Paltrow and even U.S. President, Barack Obama, Chris Martin and company’s seventh studio production promises to be a colourful and uplifting one, suited to the season’s spirit of happiness and unity.

A Head Full of Dreams is released on 4^th December 2015.

2. Adele – 25

A record-breaking album that has already destroyed the charts and been claimed the saviour of the record industry, 25 still has plenty of copies left to be given as a gift. It will surely be appreciated for its suddenly acquired iconic status, as much as for its pop excellence.

3. Grimes – Art Angels

Delightfully weird, deliberately girly and sonically brilliant, Art Angels redefines Claire Boucher’s Grimes vision. Released just in time to make the cut in any “Best Of” album list, this LP deserves a space under any Christmas tree.

Art Angels is released on 11^th December 2015.

 

4. Cassie Ramone – Christmas in Reno

An honest, original and dark take on the typical Holiday album, this former Vivian Girl succeeds in conveying the commonly overlooked glum aspects of the season, while maintaining a melancholic cheerfulness.

Christmas in Reno is released on 11^th December 2015.

5. JennyLee – Right On!

Recently released single Never, the Warpaint bassist’s solo debut, proves to keep the atmospheric and nostalgic notes of her previous work. Collaborations with Block, Dan Elkan and bandmate Stella Mozgawa certainly add to the EP’s growing hype.

Right On! is released on  11^th December 2015.

6. Kylie Minogue – Kylie Christmas

An eclectic blend of new material, Christmas classics, and duets with Iggy Pop and Frank Sinatra, the mixed reviews this album has received in the UK certainly don’t lessen the responsibility of Kylie fans around the world to add it to their collections.

7. Cage The Elephant – Tell Me I’m Pretty

Dan Auerbach producing the senior record of the Kentucky band might make them sound a more bluesy, as its first two singles have already shown. Less of an emulation and more of a subscription to the David Bowie philosophy of constant reinvention, it feels like a mature affirmation of creative freedom.

Tell me I’m Pretty is released on 18^th December 2015.

8. Sharon Stone and the Dap Kings – It’s a Holiday Soul Party

As a follow-up to the Grammy-Award winner Give the People What They Want, this successful New York soul band brings an 11 track set of playful melodies, funky horns, girl-group harmonies and cheerful grooves to the Holiday season. It is musical, Christmas fun as it should always be!

9. Various Artists – Parallelogram

Minimalist yet grand label Three Lobbed Recordings have released only 950 box sets of their musical pairings. A five LP collection with duos such as Kurt Vile with Steve Gunn and Yo La Tengo with Bardo Pond, it is a rare musical jewel, not only in terms of availability but also its high musical quality.

10. Bob Dylan – The Cutting Edge 1965-1966: The Bootleg Series Vol. 12

A six CD Deluxe edition featuring early takes of his greatest classics, including Just Like a Woman and Like a Rolling Stone, this album provides the chance to take a closer look at the moment of that famous electric conversion that unarguably changed the history of music. Any Dylan fan’s dream.

 

Alejandra Arrieta