My name’s Izzy Hayden and I’ve been a huge music fan my whole life. Not just to the normal level but to the extreme. If I go a whole day without listening to any music, I feel like somethings wrong and I find it hard to sleep. Its hard for anybody to pick their favourite bands but I love loads so its especially difficult. Despite that, I’ve managed to decide on my top 10 bands/artists of all time…
Covering so many genres and moods, its impossible to put The 1975 into a category. Some of my favourite songs of all time are their guitar riff heavy tracks like ‘Sex’, ‘Robbers’, ‘Milk’ and ‘Lostmyhead.’ Passion and intensity leak from these songs with lyrics depicting relationships, growing up, drugs, family issues and so much more. The band creates everything from upbeat, dancefloor, indie classics like ‘Chocolate’ and ‘The Sound’ to downbeat, emotional tracks including ‘Me’ and ‘Be My Mistake.’
Furthermore, the 1975 are incredible live performers. The audience is always entertained with big lights and moving backdrops at older shows but more recently an entire house set up on stage for the band to perform in and on top of. There’s also been the second smaller stage in the middle of the audience where the band appear for a couple of songs giving everyone a perfect view.
The groups second album ‘I Like It When You Sleep For You Are So Beautiful Yet So Unaware Of It’ is easily my favourite. With sincere, raw tracks ‘Paris’ and ‘A Change Of Heart’ but also catchy, sing-along tunes ‘She’s American’ and ‘The Sound,’ I could listen to this album no matter what mood I’m in.
Top 5 songs: Robbers, Milk, Paris, You, Fallingforyou
Wunderhorse have been on repeat constantly, their music is so addictive I find myself thinking about them every time I open Spotify. Pure power and emotion can be felt in the songs, especially in lead singer Jacob Slater’s vocals. Underneath his potent singing is intense, fiery guitar riffs and enthusiastic drumming. Lyrics on Wunderhorse tracks detail themes of relationships, growing up, drugs and mental health, topics which are meaningful to so many fans. When they perform live, the band finish pumping sweat and out of breath from the intense energy they put into their performances. It’s obvious how much their tracks mean to Slater, especially ‘Teal,’ always sang with extreme passion.
Top 5 songs: Teal, Midas, Purple, Atlantis, 17
I’ve grown up with Declan Mckenna, becoming a fan when I was 14, I’ve been watching his album drops and attended every UK tour since. More than anything, I adore McKenna’s lyricism. It’s unbelievable that he wrote ‘Brazil,’ his most popular song and a political masterpiece, in school for his GCSE’s. The track focuses on the poverty in Brazil that is ignored when big events like world cups happen there. McKenna has a pure talent for songwriting with a whole list of songs with other important, political themes.
McKenna’s gigs are great for letting go and feeling free with mosh pits, lots of dancing and always stimulated crowds. Mckenna himself also has a thrilling stage presence, running around, jumping and twirling and always smiling. It also can’t not be mentioned that he just seems like the nicest, funniest guy who is really down to earth.
Top 5 songs: Eventually Darling, Humongous, Listen to your friends, Isombard, Paracetamol
My mates always tell me I have a ‘dad music taste’ mainly because of my love for 90’s Britpop bands. Pulp is 100% my favourite band from this category. There is something so entrancing about the quirky way Jarvis Cocker sings and performs. I could sit and stare at live videos of him for hours. From reading his book I love what Cocker stands for, after feeling like he didn’t fit in at school he decided why force yourself to fit in when you can do something new.
‘Common People’ is one of the most well-known British songs. It’s not only an absolute dance banger that everyone from age 10 to 90 seems to know but it also carries an important message about the poverty in the area Cocker grew up. It speaks for itself that even after not releasing any music in over 10 years, Pulp performed at Finsbury Park for about 50,000 people in 2023.
Top 5 songs: Disco 2000, Common People, Mis-shapes, Bar Italia, Underwear
In my head The Wombats correlate with summer, my favourite time of the year. Growing up some of my best memories are standing in fields with dark fruits then getting crushed in mosh pits while watching The Wombats. The bands music is feel-good, sing-along and nostalgic. They can never disappoint live, bringing people in big Wombat costumes on stage and telling small funny stories about the song lyrics.
Top 5 songs: Turn, Greek Tragedy, Give me a try, kill the director, Tokyo (vampires & wolves)
One band I liked as a young teenager that’s really stuck with me through everything is My Chemical Romance. The angsty lyricism is some of the best I know and focuses on so many emotional topics, making their songs surprisingly comforting. Despite this, their music is also great to scream along to when you’ve had a rough day and need to let off some steam. Laced with intensity and heat, My Chemical Romance continue to be known as one of the biggest ‘emo bands’ even when they haven’t released music in years.
Top 5 songs: Famous last words, I Don’t Love You, The Ghost Of You, The Kids From Yesterday, Disenchanted
I adore what Crawlers stand for; LGBTQ+ rights, trans rights, women’s rights and the idea of accepting yourself for who you are. The groups music is fuelled by strong guitar and lead singer Holly Minto’s stunning vocals. Crawlers began gaining recognition after their track ‘Come Over (Again)’ blew up on TikTok and since then they haven’t stopped releasing influential EP’s and albums. The band have super fun gigs where they can easily keep a crowd excited and entertained.
Top 5 songs: I Can’t Drive, Come Over (Again), Kiss Me, Placebo, Fuck Me (I Didn’t Know How To Say)
The U2 dad with Inhaler daughter stereotype is definitely one that applies to me. Inhaler’s guitar hooks draw you in and Elijah Hewson’s irresistible vocals keep you listening. Another band who are live perfectionists, Inhaler have one of the most dedicated fanbases I’ve seen recently. With songs getting their crowds making massive mosh pits and screaming along to lyrics, I would recommend Inhaler as a must-see band!
Top 5 songs: Now You Got Me, My Honest Face, Dublin In Ecstasy, When It Breaks, Totally
Soul-stirring guitar riffs that give you the chills are something Swim School are masters at. On top of that lead singer Alice Johnsons vocals usually feel much softer than the music but always sound flawless. Often describing love or the ending of relationships, some of the bands songs are heavy and intense like ‘Over Now’ whereas a few tracks such as ‘Kill You’ are much more calm and comforting.
Top 5 songs: Over Now, Kill You, How It Should Be, Seeing It Now, Don’t Leave Me Behind
The Royston Club’s music is filled with charisma from lead singer Tom Faithfull’s captivating vocals to the light but lively guitar and drumming. The Royston Club are another band to listen to when you are happy and want to dance around your room. At both festivals and their own gigs, the band are one of the best I’ve ever seen live. You can tell how happy they are to be performing and that defiantly rubs off on the crowd.
Top 5 songs: Believe It Or Not, Missed The Boat (Jumped In The Sea), Mariana, Cold Sweats, Cherophobe
