Friends, I listen to a fairly large amount of music. As a fan, I’m obsessed – and as a musician I am constantly in need of new creative stimulus.

I see it as my duty to share with you some of my favourite songs of 2015. With some luck you’ll discover a new record to love.

Of course I’d love to hear some of your favourites too. Drop me a line on Facebook or comment on this article, and I promise I’ll give your recommendations a listen.

1. Earl Sweatshirt – Mantra

Earl has developed considerably since the early days of Doris. I Don’t Like Shit, I Don’t Go Outside is filled with dark, dank and introspective rap. The instrumentals swirl and gurgle and grind, creating an atmosphere of foreboding that perfectly matches Earl’s free-flowing meditations on failure, anxiety and despair.

2. Joanna Newsom – Leaving The City

It’s been quite a wait for Joanna Newsom’s fourth album, but it has certainly proved worth it.

On Divers, Newsom has discarded the 20 minute epics of Ys, and the incredible length and breadth of Have One On Me in favour of a tighter, more focused release with occasional detours into new stylistic territory.

Newsom’s composition skills and virtuosic musicianship are in full bloom on Divers. Once more she has managed to produce a piece of art that is beautiful, heartbreaking and utterly unique.

3. Bell Witch – Suffocation, A Burial: I – Awoken (Breathing Teeth)

When it comes to doom, sludge and drone, I can’t help but feel like I’ve heard it all before. All the more remarkable, then, that this Seattle-based duo managed to capture my attention so completely.

This is glacial, mournful doom executed to perfection. It is miserable to be sure, but also profoundly beautiful; at once expressing the cold, emptiness of death alongside a touching longing for life.

Four Phantoms is a high-water mark for the genre that will be very difficult to exceed. (Check out my full review here)

4. Brian Campeau – Watching You

I’ve long considered Brian Campeau to be one of Australia’s most underrated artists. His virtuosic guitar playing, cerebral songwriting and angelic voice should rightfully place him alongside names like Sufjan Stevens, Bon Iver, Nick Drake and Sun Kil Moon.

5. Hope Drone – Unending Grey

Words fail me in describing the sound of Brisbane’s Hope Drone: perhaps imagine the unholy union of Neurosis and Wolves And The Throne Room, or the sound of swirling molten rock being sucked into a cold and blackened void.

Cloak Of Ash is a slab of earthy, raw blackened sludge that aptly demonstrates that Australia’s underground is often on the cusp of heavy music.

6. billy woods – Lost Blocks fear. Elucid

With billy woods one hears in his cerebral and politically-conscious rhymes a strong influence from literature; his ability to sketch deeply evocative scenes with minimalist raps make him a wholly unique talent – albeit one that at times can lack consistency.

On Today, I Wrote Nothing woods’ produces flashes of brilliance that cement him as one of the most interesting voices in modern rap. The instrumentals are ethereal and reflective; the perfect vessels for woods’ meditations on colonialism, street violence and character portraits. Given a few years, he will be a game-changer.

7. We Lost The Sea – Bogatyri

Having known these guys for many years, it’s hard to express how proud I am of them for producing such a heart-felt and meticulously-constructed album.

The adjective ‘cinematic’ is thrown around a lot these days, but We Lost The Sea are truly worthy of the label. Their instrumental compositions conjure up rich, nuanced tales of human striving and sacrifice.

In a genre often marked by soulless imitation, We Lost The Sea offer an emotional authenticity and a progressive approach to songwriting. As a musician I draw a lot of inspiration from what they have managed to achieve.

8. Hiatus Kaiyote – Breathing Underwater

I have to admit that I was a little disappointed with Hiatus Kaiyote’s much-hyped debut album Choose Your Weapon. Oddly enough, the coherency and memorability of the release seemed to be choked by an oversupply of ideas.

While their new album was a little disappointing taken as a whole, they have still produced some of the most interesting music of the year.

9. Tangled Thoughts Of Leaving – The Albanian Sleepover – Part One + Part Two

Another highpoint from Australia’s underground. When they begun, Tangled Thoughts Of Leaving produced a beautiful, progressive and piano-focused style of post-rock. With their new album, however, the band have thrust themselves into difficult territory, leaving behind safer and more popular styles to pursue a far dark vision.

Tangled Thoughts of Leaving are a group of incredibly adept and flexible musicians who create intricately layered compositions of pure terror. What makes them so effective is the incredible attention to detail given to each track; the inter-woven textures; the progressive song structuring; and the versatile use of each instrument. This is brutality in a nuanced and intelligent form.

These guys are one of the most uniquely talented bands that Australia has to offer; their latest album a perfectly formed artistic statement. The listen is not an easy one, but it is deeply rewarding for those who can stomach sonic oblivion. Under its immense weight, we must all yield to despair. (Check out my full review here)

10. Sufjan Stevens – Should Have Known Better

Perhaps introspective and melancholic folk isn’t the freshest style, but the rawness of Sufjan’s latest album, coupled with the warm, intimate production has landed this on high rotation.

11. Milo – Souvenir feat. Hemlock Ernst

Another exciting new voice in rap, boasting complex lyricism with an intellectual edge.

What were your highlights?

There were no shortage of solid album this year, but these were the songs (and the records) that I found myself returning to again and again. What about you? What music has resonated with you in this year of 2015?