Around this time last year, I looked at the BBC Sound Of 2010 longlist, and didn’t find too much joy on there. Of those listed, only really The Drums, Ellie Goulding, Marina & The Diamonds (ooh Marina), Stornoway and Two Door Cinema Club have achieved anything near to sustainable success (if you think that Owl City song is anything but a one off, you might as well wrap your head with bacon and stick it in the oven with the turkey). But for the year of our Lord 2011, I’m slightly more optimistic. Maybe it’s the Christmas cheer, maybe it’s that I’ve just had my Weetabix, maybe it’s that I’ve still got the sugar from last night’s Quality Street pounding through my veins, but I feel that we’ve got a lot more to get excited about for the coming year. (last year’s winner),

BBC Sound Of 2011 Longlist

• James Blake
• Anna Calvi
• Daley
• Esben & the Witch
• Jessie J
• Clare Maguire
• Mona
• The Naked & Famous
• Nero
• Jai Paul
• The Vaccines
• Warpaint
• Jamie Woon
• Wretch 32
• Yuck

Anna Calvi


I’ve heard before on 6music; her track “Jezebel” is unique enough to stay in the memory. For some reason it reminds me of “Conquest” by The White Stripes. “Joan Of Arc” sounds like something Jeff Buckley would play on guitar, and her atmospheric tango-inducing style is certainly interesting.


Clare Maguire


She's already won Q’s Next Big Thing award, and has already met Jay Z and Rick Rubin and had songs offered to her by Jarvis Cocker and Plan B. But she built herself up by the good old fashioned way of utilising Myspace and lastfm, and has spent two years working on her album. But is she any good? I don’t see the fuss over her voice to be honest, and “Ain’t Nobody” isn’t going to set the world alight. However, the Breakage remix of the same song could well do what the Skream remix of La Roux’s “In For The Kill” did for her.


Daley


Has already featured on the Gorillaz single “Doncamatic”, which is strange because I thought that singer was female. But he’s definitely a he, no female would ever try and pull off that hairdo. Bernard Butler has already agreed to produce his album, so Daley has made some important allies. His voice is certainly distinctive, and his slow ballad “Rainy Day” is a very decent song.

Esben & The Witch


This year’s Florence & The Machine, although to be fair they sound more like Siouxsie and The Banshees. Hailing from Brighton and named after a Danish fairytale, they are purveyors of (and I quote) Nightmare Pop, which is a very apt definition, and they have already supported Foals and The xx. “Marching Song” and “Lucia, At The Precipice” are certainly dark affairs with an uneasy feeling, but stunningly performed.

Jai Paul


Already been signed to XL, which can only be a good thing. “BTSTU” features an impossibly sweet falsetto where Jai sings “don’t fuck with me.” Just to wobble your senses. It’s got a bit of everything in there, and somehow it works really well, and is unlike anything else you will hear all year. Very promising.


James Blake


He is is going to be massive (literally: He’s 6 ft 5 and probably still growing!) Musically, he’s got a soulful minimalist vibe going on (comparisons with The xx have already begun), but his past EPs have also featured some pretty swish dubstep, so Burial fans might find some joy here.  Check out “Limit To Your Love” and “CMYK.”

Jamie Woon


Can be lumped in with James Blake as a post dubstep act, and the difference between them is minimal. The video for “Night Air” just looks like a bad version of Twilight; Jamie does have a good voice though, which could be his saving grace.

Jessie J


Brit School? Check. West End stage performances? Check. Song writing credits for Chris Brown, Christina Aguilera, Miley Cyrus and Justin Timberlake (who he hailed as the best singer in the world right now)? Checkity-check. The credentials say it all for Jessie J, real name Jessie Cornish, and could there ever be such introductory lyrics as “Stomp stomp, I’ve arrived” on “Do It Like A Dude”? She’s going to be huge, and we have no say in the matter, despite the fact that she will soon grow tiresome as her early Pink shtick runs dry. 
 

Mona


Try to encapsulate the spirit of the commercial Kings Of Leon sound in a 50s throwback way. Which may sound terrible, but it’s not that bad. “Listen To Your Love” is actually full of promise, with a video that is extremely well produced. The only obstacle in Mona’s way may be themselves. Quote from Q: “We’re standing for rock ‘n’ roll, because we believe in the power of it... and we haven’t lost a bar fight yet.” Try saying that after a night out in Stepney.

Nero


Anything that features Japanese anime instantly gets favour with me. Nero have done just that with the video (it has a panther that fires lasers out of its mouth!) to “Innocence”, which is a trance/dubstep mash up which is nothing short of exhilarating. Nero have already remixed The Streets, NERD, Daft Punk and Beyonce, but now they are set for their own fame and fortune. Long may it continue.

The Naked & Famous


Have won my heart already. Having recently discovered “Young Blood”, I now curse myself that I didn’t discover them sooner and have it in my list for best songs of the year. It’s like MGMT at their most glorious, on extra happy pills. Hailing from New Zealand, you can also download “Crazy Yes Dumb No” for free from their Facebook page. And bloody good it is too. Their music is joyful, and spirited. I think I love them.

The Vaccines


Everybody’s big tip for 2011, and it looks like they have the tunes to back it up. “If You Wanna” is a monster of a tune, and “Wrecking Bar (Ra Ra Ra)” is straight out of The Ramones’ playbook. Frontman Justin Young was formerly known as Jay Jay Pistolet on the folk scene, and they can count among their many fans Alex Kapranos and Kaiser Chief Nick Hodgson, who actually got turned away from one of their gigs as they were sold out. This lot should do well.

Warpaint


Made their name at SXSW back in March, and covered Bowie’s Ashes To Ashes for the War Child album in September. They have had help along the way from John Frusciante and Siouxsie Sioux (not mention an NME cover-Ed), and according to the Telegraph they should have been in last year’s list. “Undertow” and “Elephants” are worth checking out, but I can’t see them taking off further than they already have.

Wretch 32


Ah, the token grime entry... come on down. After grime has made some significant breakthrough to the mainstream with the likes of Tinie Tempah (who the BBC somehow missed out on last year, though I myself have been talking him up for years, ahem), we will undoubtedly see more artists stepping up to the plate. Wretch 32 aka Jermaine Sinclair won Best Hip Hop at the first  Official Mixtape Awards, and he’s already got his own clothing line. Not bad work. “Traktor” could very well crossover, it’s got the addictive beat, and with lyrics like “My lifestyle’s terribly wild, but you’ll never catch me on the Jeremy Kyle show,” scenesters will jump on the bandwagon as well.

Yuck


Feelgood indie fans of Phoenix and The Shins should take great interest here, as “Georgia” is begging to be bopped to through your oversize headphones. Two of the band members were formerly in the indie darlings Cajun Dance Party, and by the sounds of it Yuck should be able to garner further success. However, searching for their videos on YouTube isn’t without its problems...

So there you have it. Good luck to all the bands listed (who I approve of) for making it to the shortlist, although who will win is anyone's guess. You, you're anyone, why don't you have a guess?

Posted In Features, Dec 17 2010. Words - Paul