30. Nadine Shah – Holiday Destination (1965 Records)

Sunderland soloist Nadine Shah has always been a shamefully under-recognised talent, but on Holiday Destination it seems she is finally getting the recognition she deserves. The record, her third, is a brilliant blend of politically-pointed post-punk and pop; tackling Islamophobia, xenophobia and a society falling apart at the seams, Holiday Destination is as raw as music gets. The world around Nadine Shah may be tainted, but her third record is anything but. (JT) (LISTEN)

29. SZA – Ctrl (Top Dawg / RCA)

After a three year break from music, Solána Imani Rowe re-emerged in 2017 with her first full-length, official album release, Ctrl. Following the continual diversion of attention to her labelmate, Kendrick Lamar, this album arrived with a refusal to fade into the shadows of TDE. The songstress transformed both her tomboyish image and playful lyrical themes to create 49 minutes of introspective, genre-bending anthems of self-love. In doing so, SZA provided a basis for her listeners to discuss their struggles with self-worth, intimacy and sexuality. The energetic delivery of such difficult lyrical themes has won over the hearts of many, leading to five nominations at the 60^th Annual Grammy Awards. (Benita Barden) (LISTEN)

28. Kelela – Take Me Apart (Warp)

2017 saw Washington-born Kelela Mizanekristos finally bring out a full-length record, feeding the hungry after teasing the R&B scene with her well-received EP Hallucinogen. Take Me Apart mulled over the various highs and lows of a relationship while sounding heady and sensual, employing futuristic-sounding vintage synths (like on the track ‘Jupiter’) and Kelela’s crystal clear vocals. Featuring a handful of collaborations with renowned beat-makers of today like Bok Bok and, most notably, Arca, in Take Me Apart, Kelela turns vulnerability into a strength and solidifies her earthy yet ethereal sound in this highly personal release. (AS) (LISTEN)

27. Shabazz Palaces – Quazarz: Born On A Gangster Star (Sub Pop)

Always at the cutting edge of abstract, experimental hip-hop, lyricist Ishmael Butler and multi-instrumentalist Tendai Maraire used their latest Shabazz Palaces project to focus on the madnesses of the modern world. Posing as sentient extra-terrestrials from an alternative dimension resembling earth, it was a glorious melange of rap, jazz, gospel and beatific soft rock. Released simultaneously with a twin album, Quazarz vs. The Jealous Machines, this was possibly the most left-of-field release of 2017, and found a small but highly devoted audience who absolutely adored it. (EB) (LISTEN)

26. Hurray For The Riff Raff – The Navigator (ATO)

Telling the story of a Nuyorican girl on the run from her city-roots only to discover that in doing so she has lost everything, The Navigator was a powerful story built around the vocal of frontwoman Alynda Segarra. Built around folk, the record added elements of Americana (‘Life To Save’), Latin-infused sounds during the title-track, and jaw-dropping minimalism (‘Pa’lante’), leaving us in awe of the varied world we enter. If you like your music high on concept and diversity, then allow Hurray For The Riff Raff to navigate you through their intense world. (JT) (LISTEN)

25. Perfume Genius – No Shape (Matador)

Having broken through with his third album Too Bright back in 2014, Mike Hadreas spent a great deal of thought and time on his next artistic statement as Perfume Genius. Given the introverted lo-fi pop origins of the project, No Shape was the most melodic and supremely confident collection that Hadreas has delivered, but still aimed at fighting the more insidious aspects of homophobia in Western society. Prefaced by the wide-eyed, florid pop of single ‘Slip Away’, it was a compelling mixture of beauty interrupted by moments of ugliness and violence. (EB) (LISTEN)

24. The Horrors – V (Wolf Tone / Caroline)

Still sporting the title of triumphant indie survivors, The Horrors’ fifth album proved there could still be a place in the world for unashamed guitar pop. The best part of a decade on from the startling reinvention of 2009’s Primary Colours, it’s hard to name any other bands equating The Horrors’ unfailing reliability as an indie outfit. Despite the ‘pushing boundaries’ factor usually being hailed as the sure tick for merit within the music community, business as usual is equally praiseworthy for a band showing no signs of succumbing to guitar music’s recent unfashionability. (Ollie Rankine) (LISTEN)

23. Björk – Utopia (One Little Indian)

25 years and nine albums in, Björk’s lengthy golden age shows no signs of ending any time soon. Hooking up with hot-property producer Arca once again, Utopia works as a thematic sequel to the naked heartbreak of 2015’s Vulnicura, with the singer famously describing it as her “Tinder album”. Characterised by open spaces and beautiful, airy flutes and lush string arrangements, it sees Björk on a long journey to rediscovering love, and is as resolutely avant-garde as everything else in her recent output. (EB) (LISTEN)

22. Four Tet – New Energy (Text Records)

Having explored so many sub-genres of electronica in his two-decade-long career, Kieran Hebden seemed to go back to basics with his ninth Four Tet album New Energy. Trailed by the sumptuous glissando of single ‘Two Thousand And Seventeen’, precisely the kind of sublimely chilled beauty in which he has specialised for so long, it covered house, glitch-tronica and dubstep-influenced sounds, all tackled in his distinctively new-age approach. It all added up to Hebden’s most accessible work since 2010’s There Is Love In You and serves as a terrific introduction to his discography. (EB) (LISTEN)

21. Laura Marling – Semper Femina (More Alarming Records)

On her newest release, Laura Marling explored the nature of women with a level of intimacy and honesty which only the best songwriters can reach. Semper Femina, which means “always woman” or “woman is always fickle and changeable”, was an album on which Marling not only looked at women through a solely feminine perspective, but also subtly reinvented herself as a musician altogether. The final result was haunting and unapologetic, marked gracefully with folk melodies and eloquent lyricism, by one of music’s most capable and experienced writers in 2017. (Alicja Rutkowska) (LISTEN)

20. Jlin – Black Origami (Planet Mu)

Indiana-based bedroom artist Jerrilynn Patton made a gigantic creative leap forwards with her sophomore effort Black Origami. Having travelled the world and fused her fidgety, restless texture-based music with that of various musicians she encountered, this process took her art to a higher plane entirely. Polyrhythms and beat chains were stretched to snapping point on the likes of the steamy ‘Kyanite’ and the thrillingly volatile ‘Hatshepsut’, and showed how uniquely rare it is to make music this mechanical and precise sound so unmistakably human. (EB) (LISTEN)

19. King Krule – The OOZ (True Panther Sounds / XL)

After his long-waiting return after his debut 6 Feet Beneath The Moon in 2013, Archy Marshall did not disappoint as The OOZ was a sprawling artistic masterpiece reflecting the beauty and sadness of isolation and loneliness. He tightly intertwined a myriad of musical influences around his trademark harsh, raw voice, coming across like a futuristic and experimental Johnny Rotten, complimenting the jazzy brass instrumentation and minimalist ambience and synths, as heard on his 2015 side project A New Place 2 Drown. This original post-apocalyptic sound is almost something alien as it takes you into space and isolates you in your own existential thoughts. (Sandie Garland) (LISTEN)

18. Protomartyr – Relatives In Descent (Domino)

Has there been a better rock album in 2017 than Protomartyr’s Relatives In Descent? Built around the meandering, unhinged musings of Joe Casey, the record was a quick burst of post-punk that floored you from the off. Opening track ‘A Private Understanding’ merged the sounds of Parquet Courts and Merchandise to brilliant effect, while tracks like ‘Here Is The Thing’ and ‘Don’t Go To Anacita’ were superb for their off-the cuff slacker style in the vocal, while maintaining the intensity that made Relatives In Descent a scintillating listen. (JT) (LISTEN)

17. Father John Misty – Pure Comedy (Bella Union / Sub Pop)

In an age of social irony and political satire, Josh Tillman continues to lead the charge in making our dystopian future an unsettling reality. On his third album Pure Comedy, Tillman comically gestures to the potholes of human nature by taking crooning sincerity and observational ridicule to areas too close for comfort. Even packing Kanye-esque levels of audience baiting, not even Taylor Swift was safe from Father John Misty’s own apocalyptic prophecy in 2017. (OR) (LISTEN)

16. Wolf Alice – Visions Of A Life (Dirty Hit)

Wolf Alice’s sophomore record proved that the band’s enormous success from two years ago with My Love Is Cool wasn’t a lucky strike – Visions Of A Life turned out to be another eclectic yet very cohesive record showcasing their versatility and innate talent, retaining that mixtape feel of endless musical possibilities from their much-loved debut. Ubiquitously considered one of the best alternative-rock albums of the year, Visions Of A Life was a treat for anyone who’s looking for a captivating, but also electrifying listen. Ellie Rowsell and her bandmates have raised the stakes even higher for themselves, however, it seems that the band has all the weapons necessary to be considered one of Britain’s most exciting rock acts. (AR) (LISTEN)

15. Loyle Carner – Yesterday’s Gone (Virgin EMI)

With his confessional debut, Yesterday’s Gone, Benjamin Coyle-Larner lived up to the substantial hype that has surrounded his rise to prominence, and proved that he is one of the best wordsmiths around, his creative metaphors and exhaustive storytelling brings his work to life. Yesterday’s Gone was beautifully intimate: clips of conversations with his family and friends were woven in between jazz and soul influenced hip-hop beats, layered with lyrics sharing the relatable hardships of everyday life, debt, alcohol abuse, loneliness, alongside his undying love for his family and music. That the result turned out to be so uplifting and soul-nourishing was testament to Loyle Carner’s talent. (SG) (LISTEN)

14. Mac DeMarco – This Old Dog (Captured Tracks)

Beneath his meme-like exterior, Mac DeMarco has always been very up-close and personal with his fans, even giving them his real address and inviting them round on his last EP. This time around, on This Old Dog, he took that genuine connection even further as he invites his fans into his confusion over his relationship with his father who abandoned him at a young age. The mellow yet extremely emotional album was more minimalistic and synth-heavy compared to some of his other works, but his trademark breezy laidback fingerpicking that we all love so much isn’t lost at all. This Old Dog contained some of most heart-rending and powerful work to date. (SG) (LISTEN)

13. The National – Sleep Well Beast (4AD)

Despite being released after two of what have felt like the most garbage years in recent memory, something that would seem to be perfect lyrical sustenance for their traditional themes of loneliness and despair, what The National gave us in Sleep Well Beast was a livened-up version of their usual aesthetic, brimming with low-key energy straight out of their emotionally juxtapositional live performances. The doom and gloom is still there, but for the first time there’s additions of heavier synthesized beats, electronics, and straight-up rock guitar (there’s even a solo at one point!). And despite these new sonic additions, Sleep Well Beast sees a well-drilled and extremely familiar band sounding tighter than ever. (EW) (LISTEN)

12. Dirty Projectors – Dirty Projectors (Domino)

2017 saw experimental indie-folk outfit Dirty Projectors release the cultural successor to 808s & Heartbreak. And while the guy known for writing interestingly arranged indie songs being inspired by genres like rap, R&B and electronica can seem a bit iffy at first, the band’s (read: Dave Longstreth’s) new self-titled effort is an infinitely layered and captivating, if at times unapologetically bitter, break-up album. Songs like ‘Keep Your Name’ and ‘Up In Hudson’ being exemplary showcases of sampling and excellent songwriting. Longtime fans might have been slightly put off by the sudden shift in tone, but Dirty Projectors really is yet another reaffirmation of Longstreth’s knack for tasteful experimentation. (EW) (LISTEN)

11. Slowdive – Slowdive (Dead Oceans)

It’s hard not to be a little bit sceptical when approaching a comeback album from a reunited ‘90s act, but shoegaze underdogs Slowdive made it worth being optimistic with their latest self-titled album – and their first in a staggering 22 years. The Reading-based quintet sounded like they had little interest in cleaving to modern trends, while also not staying too heavily shackled to their past exploits, and overall conceived one of the most ethereal and beautiful albums in progressive guitar music in 2017. (WD) (LISTEN)