3. Hollie Cook – Twice
We’ve been spreading the gospel of Hollie Cook since 2011, when we named her self-titled debut album our Album of the Year. The London-bred singer took several steps forward in 2014, most notably with the release of her second album, Twice, which we premiered here back in June. Filling out her highly-personal lovers rock sound with string arrangements and a sonic aesthetic befitting the album’s Tiki/B-movie inspired art (thanks to producer Prince Fatty and contributors including Dennis Bovell), Twice is a seductive and enveloping listen that plays strongly from start to finish. It’s no wonder that, after years of rave reviews in Europe, U.S. audiences are finally catching on to Hollie. She just wrapped her highly successful debut US tour, and is already headed back for more in 2015, a year that promises to bring nothing but big things for this star in the making. —Jesse Serwer