FKA Twigs
“Two Weeks”
LP1 (out 08.12 on Young Turks)

The incredible, shape-shifting Tahliah “FKA Twigs” Barnett makes a strong claim for both song and video of the year with the gelatinous, alluring lead single from her full-length debut. Barnett’s spellbinding, EP2, announced her as one of the most fascinating, talented young artists in music. From the sound of this, it may have just been scratching the surface.

There is a clutch of interesting stuff going on here, but the variety of vocal melodies is especially impressive. Very few people can fit multiple memorable melodies into a pop song without it feeling disjointed (MJ and The-Dream spring to mind), but Barnett does it with ease here, moving gracefully with the amorphous, gauzy arrangement. She’s just a huge, huge talent.

Ramona Lisa
“Dominic”
Arcadia (out now on Terrible)

Caroline Polachek’s daring solo LP is one of the most underrated of discs of the year. Crafted entirely on a laptop, the Chairlift frontwoman weaves her mellifluous, athletic vocals over swirling collages of MIDI synths and drum loops, creating a compelling clash between the natural and the digital. The disc’s third single — the gorgeous break-up ballad, “Dominic” — gets a similarly handsome treatment, as the Brooklyn resident rows a lonely boat through what looks like the Louisiana swamps. It may seem a strange setting for her pristine, pastoral sound, but as someone who has spent time in those very swamps, I can say that the isolated environment makes a lot of sense for a rumination on the “perfect disaster” that is falling in love.