This album opens with one of my most played songs of the year and closes with one of my favourite duets of the year. Floating in at number 13 is Sydney-based Tonight Alive with their latest album Underworld.

Unfortunately there hasn't been as much Rock music in my library this year and I'm still not completely sure as to why. However, quality over quantity and in this case, quality's definitely won out. I've had some back and forth with Tonight Alive over the past 6 years as both a fan and a critic, but this album has firmly cemented my love for them.  

I remember listening to their single "Disappear (feat. Lynn Gunn)" for the first time on BBC Radio 1, in the car somewhere and I can't tell you how my face lit up as the opening riffs rang out. After being disappointed with their last record Limitless, hearing this single made me so hopeful for the Tonight Alive that I absolutely adored back in 2013. Another top play for me this year, hearing Lynn and Jenna duet together kicked goals that I didn't even know I was holding onto. This is easily one of my favourite moments on the album and this comes alongside so many others. "Book Of Love", "The Other", "Just For Now" and "Waiting For The End" stand out the most to me right now but with every listen something new jumps out that makes me smile.

I have to tip my hat to Dave Petrovic of course. After his work producing The Other Side in 2013, and now putting his hand to Underworld; I'd say that it's no coincidence that I love this album just as much. Jenna's found a way to tug at my heartstrings at least once on every album they've released and this one is no different. Lyrically they are able to articulate simple young adult sadness in the most relatable ways. Although there's a weight to this album, every time I listen through and belt it out I know I'll be smiling inside and out.

Have a look at the album that took the lucky number 13 spot last year here.

After listening to their lead single "Heaven" I was pretty much settled on this being top five - easy. To be honest I would have even thought top three given how excited I was. Well they managed to PVRIS managed to make it into my top five with All We Know Of Heaven, All We Need Of Hell but ohnly just. Don't let that negate how good the album actually is, I just didn't expect there to be so much other amazing music out this year! But let's get into it...

Following on from 2013's pretty stellar White Noise, PVRIS are back with another brilliant album concept staying true to their nature. Practically made to be heard live, and with Lynn's unique vocals, as strong and as enchanting as ever.

My biggest criticism of this album is that they released too many of the songs as singles. By the time it dropped I'd already heard most of the tracks and to be honest a lot of the strongest ones. The visuals were amazing but I reckon if they wanted to get the most out of such a strong concept I would've liked to see them do an enire visual album all released at once instead. I just feel like that would've had more of an impact.

Regardless, my favourite tracks at the moment are "Anyone Else", "Walk Alone", "Same Soul", "Heaven", and "Half". I haven't even gone a week since the album was released without listening to at least one of these songs. "Anyone Else" probably has the least lyrics on any track in this whole record but resonates the most to me. I had that rolling over in my head for weeks and weeks after first listening and I'm sure I'll be listening to this and the rest of the record on repeat until album three drops.

Have a read of my thoughts on last year's very different number five pick here.

My heart. I can't really explain how good it feels to have new PVRIS music in my life honestly. The last time I tuned into a radio station specifically to hear a song debut was when Paramore released "Now" in 2013, I remember it so clearly. I doubt I'll be forgetting the first time I heard this song either. As always, Lynn's giving us those beautiful, strong and gritty vocals over a beat that forces you to move. As much as I enjoyed their debut record, the amount that they've improved as a band is pretty clear.


As big as the track sounded initially, this video brings so much substance to it making it easier to isolate each detail in such an encomspassing sound. People often associate good music with colour and even in black and white PVRIS have managed to paint a bold picture here. The scenes of death and reawakening did remind me of Slipknot's "The Devil In I" concept but as gruesome as it seemed in that video, here PVRIS have managed to make it seem almost beautiful. The album drops on the 4th of August and is available for pre-order right now. PVRIS are playing a couple of small shows this week in London (Shepherd's Bush Empire) and a few more across Europe. I don't doubt that there'll be a few surprises at those shows and I have high hopes for the new album, so if you can get along to see them at some point, most definitely do.

I'd been meaning to properly listen to Circa Survive for the longest time now and if it wasn't for the fact that I hadn't been to a show in so long and PVRIS were supporting; I probably wouldn't have made the clever decision to get a ticket.

After seeing PVRIS in Birmingham earlier this year here and now here in Melbourne, they've cemented their place as one of my favourite live bands this year. Whether they play a full set or just a couple songs, you're guaranteed a good time. Time and time again, they prove to me that they're one of the most exciting things in music of late. As always, singles "White Noise", "St Patrick" and "My House" stirred a huge crowd reaction. I don't know why I hadn't anticipated it but "Holy" got a reaction that was on par if not even more raucous  - great jam, but now I think I appreciate it even more. To top off the incredibly fun set, a crowd fan gifted the band with an adorable penguin teddy, Spencer. 

Now Circa Survive. For a band so reluctant to call it a "show", they sure knew how to put one on! Starting off the festivities with "Child of the Desert" is not what I expected after taking a crash course in Circa Survive before the gig. Either way, it perfectly set the tone.The crowd really moved as the band did - swayed when they had to sway, jumped when they had to jump - it was such a huge collective experience. As frontman Anthony appropriately stated, it was a "shared hallucination". Anthony all together was one of the most theatrical frontmen I've ever seen on stage. Super erratic but captivating to say the least. "Schema" was probably my favourite track of the night. When they came back on for their encore, the band switched instruments, starting off with an improv track called "Sex Dungeon" with some hilarious lyrics which Anthony swore PVRIS wrote. Then after the impromptu laughs, they ended perfectly with "Get Out" - what a strong setlist! The perfect way to start off my list of live shows in Melbourne!

Overall Rating - 7.5/10


Here are some pictures from the night...

On the 18th of April I went to O2 Academy 3 in Birmingham to catch PVRIS' sold out headline show. I wrote about them as a new discovery a couple of years ago here and now they're finally and deservedly blowing up.

First up on the bill was Twin Wild. I'd not heard of this band before the night but I've remembered the name every day since. They really caught my attention. The lead singer's vocals were great and their sons were very catchy. Although I did feel at the time that their set had been the perfect length for them, I would love to see them again live at their own headline show.

Next, Light You Up. I've been keeping up with this band for just over a year now and in that time their fame has just gone from zero to one hundred, just like PVRIS to be honest. I didn't really know what to expect in terms of their live stage presence, all I had to go by was their behaviour in the "All We've Ever Known" video. They absolutely killed it though! Tom is just pure energy! Even from before the set started, Tom was getting juiced up during sound-check. The perfect set to get the crowd ready for the main event.When Tom jumped into the crowd and started singing with and talking to the fans, I'm sure that they gained some new fans in that moment.

Finally, after some unexpected but enjoyable tunes during the interval, PVRIS. That electricity you feel when a band that you love steps on stage. That will never get old. But I swear, that electricity was x100 when Lynn came on - she has a crazy amount of presence. Playing such a small venue off the back of their debut album, I was hoping that they'd play the album in it's entirety. When they started off with "Smoke" followed by "St. Patrick", I must admit that I was hopeful. Even though they didn't play "Let Them In" I was far too caught up in the euphoria to even let it phase me. Everything just sounded so much better live than I'd imagined. The crowd's voices covering the sound of the band even at times! Especially during the album singles - "My House" was frenetic. Everybody knew it was coming but nobody was ready. That is such a huge hit!! As musicians each of them are very multi-talented, well as expected I suppose - it's hard for a three piece band to make such a huge sound, but they did it! And did it very well. Everyone was buzzing after the show - Lynn even tweeting "Birmingham! We all just unanimously agreed that tonight may have been our favorite show ever. Thank you so much!!!" Big show, if you haven't already checked PVRIS out, don't waste any more time.

Overall Rating - 7.5/10


Here are some pictures from the night... 

So we've reached the top three and this is where it gets really unexpected for me. Each of the top three albums this year I never would have pegged to make it this far.

My third favourite album of the year is PVRIS' spectacular debut White Noise. It wasn't until late last year here that I really discovered PVRIS and got into them. I wasn't even thinking about them releasing a debut to be honest, I was just enjoying their one song "The Heartless". It wasn't until I heard their first single - "St. Patrick" - from the record, that I actually started paying full attention. What an entrance?! After this release, every single rock magazine worldwide seemed to take notice. I could hardly flick through Twitter without seeing somebody mention them. This band are contagious! I listened to "St. Patrick" for weeks on end and could still happily listen to it every day until the end of the year. This trio are brilliant song crafters.

Then their second single "My House" dropped and it was even better! Once I found out the album release date; the 4th of November was etched in my memory. I had to get my hands on it. After a few listens to their singles, I couldn't help but draw comparisons to VERSA (Emerge). Then, I found out that Blake Harnage was actually responsible for producing their record! Everything made sense after that. And even though I didn't think it'd be possible, I was even more excited to hear the finished product. I'm still a little sad that VersaEmerge aren't around anymore but PVRIS have managed to take the genre to whole new levels! Frontwoman Lyndsey Gunnulfsen brings so much power to each song with her candid lyrics and fantastic tone, whilst Brian and Alex make sure that even their softer tracks sound so musically huge and full. The record as a whole just immerses you. 2015 is going to be a ridiculously big year for these three and I'm excited to keep up with them through it.

My favourite songs on the record right now aside from the singles are "Holy", "Fire", "Smoke" and "Mirrors". The whole thing just flows so perfectly - absolutely brilliant debut! 2015, year of PVRIS.

Ahead of the release of their debut album White Noise on the 4th of November, PVRIS have just provided the interwebs with this gem of a title track...

PVRIS - White Noise