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awardsWith 2015 just around the corner it’s finally time to cast your eyes over what we deem to be the very best in new music from 2014.

It’s been another vintage year for rock and metal in all of its various guises. And once again we’ve been spoilt for choice in picking our top 20.

Read on to see which band grabbed the coveted Record Of The Year title – and check out whether your favourite made the cut. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

518b+DLk3BL._AA160_1. Rival Sons – Great Western Valkyrie (Earache)

We said: If Great Western Valkyrie isn’t the album to finally persuade the masses that Rival Sons are their new favourite band we’ll eat our transparent red gatefold vinyl.

And here’s the thing: bands like this, soaked in 70s classic rock and respectful of the genre’s glorious past, were surely born to forge their reputation on physical ‘records’. It’s virtually impossible to capture Great Western Valkyrie’s mood, ambition, stunning soundscape and awe-inspiring gravitas via a download or – woe betide – through a stream.

One twirl on the decks and this modern masterpiece is swiftly elevated to the status of treasured classic. Its 10 tracks mark a unique moment in time, a justification of the hype and a testament to the incredible craftsmanship of four supremely talented individuals guided by the naturally gifted Dave Cobb.

vintagerock.com said: A slip of the tongue, a tip of the hat, a ride into a psychedelic sunset — after umpteen spins, you have to accept Great Western Valkyrie as a token of what “Classic Rock” has become in the second decade of the 21st century. Someday it might even gain enough traction to be called Vintage Rock.

 

2. Tesla – Simplicity (Frontiers)

3. Exodus – Blood In, Blood Out (Nuclear Blast)

4. Crazy Lixx – Crazy Lixx (Frontiers)

5. Roto’s Magic Act – Into The Unknown (Volumnia Records)

6. Blackwolf – The Hunt (Self Released)

7. Blues Pills – Blues Pills (Nuclear Blast)

8. Jon Allen – Deep River (Monologue Records)

9. Royal Blood – Royal Blood (Warner Bros.)

10. Free Spirit – All The Shades Of Darkened Light (Self Released)

11. Hirax – Immortal Legacy (Steamhammer/SPV)

12. The Oath – The Oath (Rise Above)

13. Lionize – Jetpack Soundtrack (Weathermaker)

14. The Vintage Caravan – Voyage (Nuclear Blast)

15. Behemoth – The Satanist (Nuclear Blast)

16. Magnum – Escape From The Shadow Garden (Steamhammer/SPV)

17. Jackson Firebird – Cock Rockin’ (Napalm)

18. Mastodon – Once More Round The Sun (Reprise)

19. h.e.a.t – Tearing Down The Walls (earMUSIC)

20. American Fangs – American Fangs (In De Goot Recordings)