By The ICM Awards have returned once more after another game-changing year of incredible Indie music. Here at ICM, we absolutely love seeing artists produce their finished LPs. It’s a sense of achievement for any band and that’s why we are keen to champion the best. This category is always a tough one to pick as there is so many to choose from but we’ve whittled it down to our top five. Now that we come close to the end of 2018, it’s time for you guys to let us know the Album of the Year.
SLAVES – ACTS OF FEAR AND LOVE
Voted 8 out of 10 by us and 8.5 by you, Kent natives Slaves broadened their horizons with their third album ‘Acts of Fear and Love‘. The duo takes a slight move away from high-octane rock to something that is less angry. The variation between the new sound and the old creates an album which has a proper dynamic and multiple layers – with the old drawing fans back in but the new exploring new avenues and only adding a greater depth to their sound. This album has highlighted a development in Slaves’ sound and attitude as a band. They have drawn on the strengths from their previous albums whilst adding something new and it has paid off.
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SHAME – SONGS OF PRAISE
Picked as our 2018 Ones To Watch, Shame has literally come out of nowhere and all of a sudden they released their debut album at the beginning of the year and hit the road across the world. A band like this only comes once in a blue moon but it’s fair to say that ‘Songs of Praise‘ took the music world by storm. Shame are a band at the forefront of the punk revolution. The band are absolutely killing everything – thrashing around like proper old school rockstars and really interactive with the audience. They are one of the best live acts out there by far.
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THE VACCINES – COMBAT SPORTS
Oh The Vaccines returned this year, a band that has been at the heart of most 90s kids teenage years including mine, so when they released their first single off the LP ‘I Can’t Quit’ I was instantly hooked. ‘Combat Sports‘ as a whole sees the band at the peak of their career. The nostalgic vibes of the band’s typical young angst is a style like no other. Its progressiveness comes through with tracks like ‘Surfing in the Sky’ where it feels like The Vaccines older material that’s gone a step further and been improved vastly. ‘Combat Sports’ will stick in the hearts and minds of fans forever. Something changed. Fights in the band, changing of lineup, time away, and even writing music for other projects have allowed The Vaccines to come back on absolutely top form.
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TOM GRENNAN – LIGHTNING LATCHES
Bedfordshire’s finest, Tom Grennan, has completely taken 2018 by storm with numerous festival appearances and an autumn album tour has rounded off his year quite spectacularly. ‘Lightning Matches‘ includes hit singles ‘Royal Highness’ and ‘Found What I’ve Been Looking For’ embodies all things Tom Grennan into a track with high energy, huge choruses. To sum up ‘Lighting Matches’ in three words: confident, energetic and genuine. Grennan has gone from strength to strength and has produced something truly marvellous.
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DMA’S – FOR NOW
Australian trio DMA’s are well-known for their love of England and the Brit-Pop era which clearly shows in their music. Indie as a genre has seen a huge increase in popularity with the likes of Tasha Sultana, Holy Holy, Stella Donnelly and of course DMA’s spreading their love of the genre. DMA’s took to Kentish Town Forum in May this year to what was a brilliant night. The shit hairdos of London on their Lambrettas are turning up in the masses and supporting a band that genuinely deserve the appraisal. One thing to be said, they’ve done their homework. You can tell that these guys have aspired to follow the path of the greats in their genre.
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ICM AWARDS 2018
As 2018 draws to a close, IndieCentralMusic looks back at the greatest new guitar bands, right through some of the best live performances and even the most jaw-dropping films! With an array of categories, we want to hear from you. What has stood out to you this year? Cast your votes throughout this week for all of our awards; Greatest Discovery, Best International Act, ICM Film of the Year, Best Live Performance, Album of the Year, and the highly-anticipated, Track of the Year.
Find us on Facebook and Twitter to keep up to date on when voting opens and closes, and more importantly, the winner announcements!
[…] had a global breakthrough on their previous two albums, DMA’s are destined for great things and this album will secure the trio’s place as […]