Southsea Tunes: BBC Sound of 2012
Yesterday the BBC released their ‘Sounds of 2012’ site and have featured a list of fifteen acts who they feel are going to be big in 2012. It’s an interesting list which features a wide range of talent and spans a number of genres.
The end game of the BBC’s annual ‘Sound of…’ selection is to choose one act which they feel are the ones to watch during the year to come. Past winners include such diverse acts as 50 Cent (2003), Corinne Bailey Rae (2006), Adele (2008) and last year’s winner, Jessie J. All of these artists went on to achieve international acclaim and are now household names. Perhaps none more than Adele whose first album, 19, released in 2008, sold 2.2 million copies worldwide by July of the following year, whilst her more recent album, 21, has sold over 3.4 million copies in the UK alone, becoming the biggest selling album of the twenty-first century so far. So, it is clear then that the BBC’s ‘Sound of…’ predictions are definitely worth putting store by.
Conversely, this year’s list features relatively unknown artists in terms of mainstream music but they are an exciting collective, nonetheless. The name which automatically stands out to me is Michael Kiwanuka whose name I’ve mentioned on here before now. I saw him perform on the seminal British music show, Later with Jools Holland, and his chilled out and soulful voice made an instant impact, holding his own alongside far more accomplished acts, Red Hot Chili Peppers and Bjork. His recent Tell Me A Tale EP features three extremely consummate songs and regardless of the outcome of the BBC’s competition, I would highly recommend keeping an eye on him in the year to come.
Michael Kiwanuka – I’m Getting Ready (live on Later with Jools Holland)
The results of the competition are staggered over the first week of January and today’s announcement is that it is a Swedish electro-pop duo, Niki and the Dove, an act that I have previously not heard of. However, listening to the videos that the BBC have published on their website, the song, Mother Protect, has quite a unique sound with female vocals being accompanied by an odd mix of Asiatic-sounding rhythms and 80s-esque beats. The combination is an interesting one which does not dominate a space but rather, can easily be seen as potentially complimentary to a number of social situations. It is immediately obvious that I could happily listen to an entire album of their music.
Niki and the Dove – Mother Protect
Other acts include 20-year old Rapper, Azealia Banks whose chilled out, un-aggressive rap puts me in mind of Missy Elliot; the delicate sound of Dry The River who sound like a meatier Bon Iver; Stooshe, whose urban take on the girl band will give this year’s UK X Factor winner’s, Little Mix, a run for their money; the fairly unique Lianne La Havas whose folk/soul hybrid is quite unlike anything else around at the moment and again, is another act whose album I feel confident I could happily listen to; as well as the rather exciting Jamie N Commons whose songs the BBC say “sound like they were uncovered in an attic where they’d been lying there since 1959 waiting for Johnny Cash or Nick Cave to cover them.”
Jamie N Commons – The Preacher
All in all, it is an exciting mix of acts that have been nominated and the key word is most definitely ‘diversity.’ There is something for everyone there and whilst I feel most familiar with the work of Michael Kiwanuka, it is clear that he is in excellent company and therefore, stiff competition.
Keep up to date with the finalists as they are announced daily on the BBC website, with the winner being announced on the 6th January.
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