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2015 is coming to an end and it is time now to look back what the year brought us when it comes to album releases. In this article, our editor Phil Blackmarquis shares with us his top 20 of the best albums of 2015! You’ll find albums you’d probably expect but there are also some bands you probably never heard of. And the top positions might surprise… And now, enjoy reading!


charnier charnierNo. 20: Charnier – Charnier
It's the debut album from this postpunk band from Brussels and it really kicks ass! Published as a tape by Wool-E Tapes, it will be released in vinyl format by Weyrd Son Records. Great for fans of JOY DIVISION, WOLFGANG PRESS, THE KVB and this kind of things...



organic emptycenturyNo. 19: Organic – Empty Century
Amazing sophomore album from ORGANIC, the band led by Raphaël Haubourdin (also in KINEX KINEX) and Joris Oster. It is more direct than their first album and includes many postpunk-wave killer tracks!




weirdcandle regenerationNo. 18: Weird Candle – Regeneration
A discovery from Vancouver, Canada, WEIRD CANDLE is a duo producing a powerful synth-postpunk music. This year, they released a superb first album: ‘Regeneration’.




drift blackdevotionNo. 17: Drift – Black Devotion
DRIFT is the solo project of Nathalia Bruno, ex-PHOSPOR and half of LEAVING THE PLANET. Nathalia has just released an EP, ‘Black Devotion’, which will seduce fans of COCTEAU TWINS and of atmospheric synth cold-wave.




novembernovelet theworldindevotionNo. 16: November Növelet – The World In Devotion
The German duo is the side project of HAUS ARAFNA. Their album, ‘The World In Devotion’, has just been released a few weeks ago and it's a true gem in the minimal synth genre.




oilthief obsolescenceandmonalityNo. 15: Oil Thief – Obsolescence and Monality
OIL THIEF is the industrial-ambient solo project of Lee Landey, bass player in WAND. ‘Obsolescence and Monality’ was released via Chondritic Sound and includes killer tracks like ‘Dirt and Humbug’.




princesscentury progressNo. 14: Princess Century – Progress
PRINCESS CENTURY is Maya Postepski, mainly known as one of the key musicians of AUSTRA. She also participated in the first album of TRUST. In 2015, she released the instrumental album ‘Progress’ on Paperbag Records. Very sexy synth wave with a groovy Italo-Disco touch!



facticefactory nadaNo. 13: Factice Factory – !Nada!
It's a band from Switzerland and France, which we've been following for quite a while now. Their second album, called ‘!Nada!’, again features an excellent cold-wave sung in French, English or German.




boan mentirasNo. 12: Boan – Mentiras
Hailing from Texas, BOAN is composed of Mariana Saldaña, ex-TENSE, ex-MEDIO MUTANTE, and José Costa aka SSLEEPERHOLD. They released a fantastic album on Holodeck Records, full of dark, haunting and hypnotic tracks.



luminance sansvisageNo. 11: Luminance – Sans Visage
This is the first full-length album of DA, a French musician based in Brussels. A fantastic album: dark, hypnotic, mystical. A jewel of psychedelic synth wave! It includes a duo with Darin C. Huss, from the legendary act PSYCHE.




tempers servicesNo. 10: Tempers – Services
TEMPERS is a duo from New-York, composed of Jasmine Golestaneh and Eddie Cooper. It's their first album, released by Aufnahme + Wiedergabe and it is brilliant Shoegaze / Wave music, evoking THE KILLS, SWANS, ...




soko mydreamsdictatemyrealityNo. 9: Soko - My Dreams Dictate My Reality
A big surprise! SOKO is Stéphanie Sokolinski, hailing from Bordeaux in France. Musician and actress, she had released an improbable hit in 2007: ‘I'll Kill Her’. Well, a few years ago, she moved to LA, met Ariel Pink and in March 2015, surprised everybody with abovementioned album, a complete UFO produced by Ross Robinson. The tracks are gems in the cold-wave-postpunk-pop style evoking THE CURE, SAVAGES and of course, ARIEL PINK.

softmoon deeperNo. 8: The Soft Moon – Deeper
No need to present this solo project of Luis Vasquez. His album ‘Deeper’ marks a very nice evolution in the direction of a more power psych Shoegaze/ Wave with some clear references to NINE INCH NAILS and vocals that are more melodic and more on the foreground.



pureground standardoflivingNo. 7: Pure Ground – Standard of Living
Our friends from PURE GROUND hit the 7th spot. Greh Holger (boss of Chondritic Sound) and Jesse Short (ex-Brotman & Short), both from California, have released ‘Standard of Living’, the album of maturity in a way, with a more powerful sound, less lo-fi.



stevenwilson handcannoteraseNo. 6: Steven Wilson – Hand. Cannot. Erase.
Steven Wilson is mainly famous as leader of the cult band PORCUPINE TREE but a few years ago, he put his band on hiatus to develop a solo career. The music genre is a crossover between prog-metal, jazz, electro and ambient, reminiscent of PORCUPINE TREE of course, but also of PINK FLOYD, NIN, RUSH and even RADIOHEAD.


iamx metanoiaNo. 5: IamX – Metanoia
No. 5 is Chris Corner, aka IAMX, who returned in 2015 after a period of depression and is now stronger than ever. The ‘Metanoia’ album is a masterpiece of dark, glamorous electro-rock and his European come-back tour was a complete success. Definitely one of the favourite acts of this webzine!



mariedavidson unautrevoyageNo. 4: Marie Davidson – Un Autre Voyage
A magical album from Marie Davidson, from Montreal in Canada: a journey that unfolds like a Lynchian dream along a string of analogue sequences and Marie's hauntingly beautiful voice-over.




agentsidegrinder alkimiaNo. 3: Agent Side Grinder – Alkimia
No.3 is another favourite band of ours: AGENT SIDE GRINDER. Earlier this year, Kristoffer, Peter, Henrik and Johan released ‘Alkimia’, an album which is once again amazing postpunk-wave, a bit more poppy than their previous albums. It includes ‘Giants Fall’, a synth-pop hit that illuminated the year.



chelseawolfe abyssNo. 2: Chelsea Wolfe – Abyss
It was difficult to make a choice between the two best albums of the year. Finally, we decided to give an advantage to the newcomers. So, No. 2 is our beloved and long-time favourite Chelsea Wolfe, with the album ‘Abyss’. Following ‘Pain is Beauty’ in 2013, which was a masterpiece, Chelsea came back this year with an album that marks a return to the sources, which are more doom-folk-post-metal oriented. A superb album from beginning to end, haunting, dark and powerful!

wand golemNo. 1: Wand – Golem
A huge flash, a true revelation, this band from California released two albums this year. This band brings brand-new crossover music between psychedelic rock, post-metal, glam and very original vocals. The band is led by a true genius: Cory Hanson, whose hyper-melodic compositions can compete with the best. Their album ‘Golem’ is the album of the year.

This BEST OF was established in cooperation with WΛVES, the radio show. Listen to the BEST OF 2015 on mixcloud HERE.

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