Pete's Favourite Music Of 2017

I’m not going to do a typical ‘top 10’, as most of the list would be taken up by two artists. Instead I’ll do a small round up of the best artists I’ve discovered over the last twelve months, and a small description of my favourite releases by them… (click on 'read more' to see the rest of this post)

Dominic Robertson – Boubouroche / Big Thyme / The UnreleasedErgo Phizmiz Volume One

The biggest and most influential discovery I made this year was the music of Dominic Robertson (formerly Ergo Phizmiz). The first album I heard by Mister Robertson was the murky underground disco cum brilliant pop masterpiece that is Boubouroche, and it hooked me instantly. He also released the (her)ballistically brilliant, stripped down, recorded in one day ‘Big Thyme’, and a collection of outtakes from 2007 – 2015, which I loved so much that I decided to cover the entire thing.

Ergo Phizmiz PLC – NIBIRU!

Following a rebirth and baptism, Dominic Roberston is now Ergo Phizmiz PLC, and just before the end of the year he dropped an apocalyptic monster of an album, called NIBIRU! So far ahead of its time that the masses will only get it long after Planet X has buggered them all to buggery. 

Zach Phillips – How To Slip Away / Imp / Headlight

Another important discovery for me this year was the music of Zach Phillips. I discovered his label OSR Tapes through some random online article, and totally fell for the music he creates. I covered the entirety of his New Cartoons album a few months ago. His 2017 releases are all incredibly beautiful works of art.
‘How To Slip Away’ has the deep badass funk, but also perfectly showcases Zach’s ability to fit brilliant pop melodies over incredibly complex chord patterns.
He snuck in a release called ‘Imp’ right before the end of the year, and it gets all the big wows from me!

Clio Em – Gravity Wing

I met Clio through the FAWM songwriting challenge. Amazing musician. Gravity Wing caught me straight away, and within a couple of days I knew it was an album that would stay with me. There is a companion novel, also called Gravity Wing. Sweet melodies, deep story, powerful music.

Alessi’s Ark – Love Is The Currency

I discovered Alessi due to the fact that we’d both recorded an album at Bryn Derwen studio in Wales, with an engineer called David Wrench (although I recorded my album back in 2001, and Alessi recorded hers in, I think, 2011). I went to see her perform an intimate show at a small café in Birmingham, and her warmth and kindness radiated from the stage. I saw her again later in the year, this time with a full band. Her latest album is pop bliss. ‘Wives’ is one of the greatest songs of the year. Beautiful music, beautiful person.