Stereo Gold Predictions: BBC's Sound Of 2014 Longlist | Part 01

Every year, BBC publish a "longlist" of 15 acts that they think will be big in 2014, although they may be a little known names to you now. Sound of 2014 was a launchpad for huge artists such as Adele, Jessie J, Dizzee Rascal, AlunaGeorge - all of which experienced big success in the year following their appearance on the illustrious Sound Of... longlist.

With the longlist likely to be published, here at Stereo Gold, I decided to get in on the action before the revelation, trying to predict the 15 lucky acts to make it onto the list. Posted in 3 separate posts of 5 acts each, these are my BBC Sound Of 2014 predictions (which hopefully aren't too wildly wrong, or that'll be a bit embarassing):

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First up on my Sound of 2014 predictions, it's a man named Joel Compass.

Now, if you first listened to Compass - you'd be forgiven for thinking he was a new American RnB star, however it turns out we have our own to be proud of now. His music is in a vaguely similar vein to that of The Weeknd and Miguel - something which is rare for what's popular in the UK RnB scene. There have been plenty of British rappers in the past few years who have rocketed to success, some with the help of Sound Of support, e.g Wretch 32. But, Joel Compass looks set to bring genuine alt-RnB to the charts, and if songs like Run continue to come then he is more than welcome!

Signed to Rudimental's 'Black Butter' label and now Polydor, Compass is in good hands for a big push and with Radio 1's Zane Lowe championing him through a large number of superlatives (as you would expect from Lowe), he definitely seems like a strong contender for the BBC Sound of 2014 list. Especially as so little Brits are doing what he's doing (or at least not as effectively). The track 'Run' displays a slick and atmospheric feel with ease and is smothered in genuine soul. Pusha T also features on a version of the track, serving as further proof that Compass is already impressing the big names. His falsetto is almost comparable to Drake's and is displayed through 'Run' itself and surely there's no bigger praise than comparison to one of the world's biggest RnB stars of the moment?

Compass seems like a shoe-in for Top 5 in the 'Sound Of' list, but I'd have said Tom Odell was last year. Who knows? But here's 'Run':


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Next up and second on my list is somebody I first covered in 2012; Chloe Howl.

Her track 'No Strings' was one of the first songs I ever blogged about on this site and really caught my attention on first listen. It's taken time for Howl's music to spread but with recent Radio 1 support, most recently for the track 'Paper Heart', it seems that it could be time for Chloe Howl to become a household name. The return of Lily Allen possibly couldn't have come at a better time for Howl, who boasts a similar style of singing, the kind of 'talk-singing' with a strong accent shining through. Despite how obvious it seems, when you hear her for the first time, you will hark back to the past years of Kate Nash/Lily Allen domination - but Howl is far from a clone and despite a similar singing style, she's definitely carved out her own sound.

There are a lot more electronic influences in her music, fairly similar to Tegan & Sara's sound, which feel very current and it's plain to hear how far Chloe Howl has come since "No Strings", the first track that got people speaking about Howl. The blunt and honest lyricism is a huge selling point with this lady - not to mention, with Paper Heart, the production is sounding so full and is filled to the brim with hooks in the chorus. "I'm shrugging it off, all the shit that you do because I'm bored to death with you" says the brutally honest Howl in 'Paper Heart', and her bold sound has seen her support John Newman on tour and land her on Radio 1's In New Music We Trust list.

Howl shows such potential, I've always been a huge fan, and her songs really do sound so chart-ready, check out the summery vid for 'Paper Heart' here:


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3rd on my predictions are a pretty mysterious band, by the name of VAULTS.

Why so mysterious, you may ask? Well, a quick Google of the London band will tell you... pretty much nothing. Aside from a recurring picture of the cover for their track 'Cry No More' on Google Images, and a ton of reviews from blogs hyping them to the high heavens, you won't find too much. So, it's perhaps a good job that their tracks stand out enough to override the lack of information we have on them. Their sound is very current, with dabbles of London Grammar, CHVRCHES and Florence - such a haunting sound is bound to capture the attention of many in 2014.

Despite the comparisons above, it's hard to really pinpoint the precise sound of VAULTS, although that's almost where the beauty lies. The intro for 'Cry No More' is led by a glockenspiel, fairly reminscent of the twinkly intro to Laura Mvula's Green Garden. Yes, a glockenspiel in 2013; amazing. Their sound sounds so pure and almost childlike to begin with, but feels quite majestic and enchanting at the same time. The lyrics are expertly written, "to wear it like a crown, to kick before you drown", painting vivid and beautiful imagery in the mind. Touches of electronics thrown in amongst the glockenspiel driven track, and you've got a vague idea of VAULTS - although you really need to listen to understand the entrancing beauty of the track. The song filled the 'BBC Introducing' spot in October, and has had support from Zane Lowe also.

Although one track may make it difficult to push this band as the "next big thing", there's a shed load of potential, here's Cry No More:



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Next we have another act who we blogged about more recently; Laura Welsh.

While I've known of Laura Welsh for a while, starting back in early 2012 with the haunting "Ghosts" which really grabbed my attention with such raw emotion - it seems that only now is she getting a big push for 2014 success, following her most recent release, "Undiscovered", which was blogged about on Stereo Gold in September. Welsh has a very sophisticated style, both musically and stylistically - Undiscovered sounding like the sort of song that could've been big in 2007, and still big in 2014. There's no feel of "she sounds like the sort of thing that's in at the moment"; it's plainly a very good vocalist singing very good, yet mature music.

As with the previous, it's Laura's recent Radio 1 support (as with Chloe Howl, Welsh has found herself on the In New Music We Trust list just a few months ago). Sometimes it does pay off to have a normal sound; it's worked for Adele in the recent years. It's not risky, it's just damn good. Undiscovered is simple with a simple drum beat throughout and haunting synths layered over the top. It has also received video treatment which really does the song justice and captures its elegance so well, in a Kylie Minogue 'Slow' but done much more tastefully sort of way.

Check out the glorious Undiscovered below:



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Josh Record is the 5th act I predict to make the Sound Of list, and rounds off the first of three parts to be posted on Stereo Gold.

Record has a classic vocal that was always going to capture attention - melodic, but with enough of an edge and raspiness to set him apart from just being "another good singer". The Brixton-based vocalist is another one on this list who fits under the category of 'haunting', an adjective that will no doubt be a recurring theme throughout this whole set of predictions. But, it couldn't be more accurate - his vocal similar to that of Ben Howard or a less theatrical Tom Odell, with songs that you could imagine fitting well on a Snow Patrol album even. It's nothing overwhelmingly unique but it still feels special regardless.

'Bones' is the song of choice here and sounds like the sort of song you'd hear in the background of an advert for ITV drama for 2014. So, if that happens, then you heard it here first. The track is very easy listening, not too complex, but a chorus good enough to stick in your head. The production is quite eerie and dark but harmonious with plenty of choir-like vocals assisting Record's own. Josh has a very delicate tone to his voice, displayed through this song and the rest of the songs on the Bones EP. Record, like the previous four, has been receiving building support from Radio 1 and 6 Music over the past couple of months and helped to promote Scotland's T In The Park festival. Yet another act who we'd be shocked at missing the longlist of 15.

Check out the record by Record (sorry, the pun was too obvious to ignore), 'Bones', here:


Check out the next two parts of these predictions, which will be spread out over the course of today.