Strippers, condoms, Grimes and narcotic haze – the music pieces you clicked on most this year
Wild Nothing 'Nocturne' Album Premiere
Dream-pop maven Wild Nothing (aka Jack Tatum) exclusively shared his second album 'Nocturne' with Dazed readers in August, the much-anticipated follow-up to 2010's 'Gemini'. The album is a narcotic listen, with all Tatum's trademark luxe layers, but with a more refined melodic focus on the 80s phaser-pop of 'Paradise' and the irresistible 'Shadow'. "The theme for the album is a kind of drowsy, delirious-type feeling," Tatum explained in the accompanying interview. A few months on, it still feels pretty good.
Brooke Candy - 'Das Me' Video Premiere
"Treat my pussy like a meal," proposed rapper Brooke Candy in her debut single, though how you get to it around the gold-plated armour is anyone's guess. Candy also hooked up with Count Mack and Grimes in 2012, but it was the provocative performer's 'Das Me' video premiere in October which really got people talking. Love her or hate her, the stats spoke for themselves, and 'Das Me' was Dazed's fourth most-viewed music article of the year.
Grimes: 21st Century Girl
For the first press appearance around her brilliant album 'Visions', Hedi Slimane shot Grimes in Givenchy couture for our April cover, styled by Robbie Spencer. Subsequently came the iconic videos for 'Oblivion' and 'Genesis', live appearances worldwide, and a cavalcade of public and critical acclaim. For our feature, Ruth Saxelby visited Vancouver to hang out with Claire Boucher (aka Grimes), who told her: "If there's anything that would mean something to me as an artist, I would want to be part of the cultural dialogue. That would be my dream." 2012 was the year she achieved this.
Soulwax – DAVE (film premiere)
Soulwax – the pair of Belgian DJs who whose 2ManyDJs mixes soundtracked a thousand first-year house parties in the dawning years of the naughties – dropped in in October with the latest in their longrunning Radio Soulwax project. An hourlong, slyly affectionate take on the style and musc of David Robert Jones, it features model Hannelore Knuts and more Bowie covers than your mum's teenage wall. Let's dance!
Azealia Banks Blows Up
"Azealia Banks gets reactions," we wrote as we launched our September issue with the image of the mermaid-haired rap princess blowing up a pink condom. But we didn't have any idea of the real fuss it would cause, as the cover made global headlines and went on to be banned in seven countries. For the feature, our regular New York correspondent Karley Sciortino spent the day with Banks, where the rapper was as frank with her views on sexuality and other MCs as she was forthright about her opinions on the shoot's food, clothes and make-up. Azealia's cover wasn't just the most-viewed music article of the site, but the most popular piece across all of Dazed Digital in 2012. And in October, Banks proved why she was the most talked-about rapper this year when she brought the Mermaid Ball to London, delivering voguing, dipping and fire-spitting, all in a 30-inch raspberry weave and light-up bra.
