Best albums of 2014
The Guardian's top albums of 2014, as voted for by its music writers
The best classical CDs of 2014
Andrew Clements selects his 10 favourite recordings of the year
The best albums of 2014 – readers' picks
Hundreds of votes but just one top pick: the readers’s choice albums of 2014
The best albums of 2014: how our writers voted
You’ve seen our end of year list ... now it’s time to look behind the scenes at what each Guardian music critic voted for
The best track of 2014: Seasons (Waiting on You) by Future Islands
Lacking the protective sheen of recent pop hits, Seasons (Waiting on You) gave us the soulful sound of a man laying himself on the line
Best albums of 2014: No 1 - St Vincent by St Vincent
St Vincent’s fourth album had a certain swagger about it, and rightly so – it seemed to have come from a more intriguing world than most rock music in 2014
Best albums of 2014: No 2 – Lost in the Dream by the War on Drugs
Following tour burnout and a bad breakup, Adam Granduciel transformed his wounded headspace into a wonderfully cathartic rock record full of depth and emotion
Best albums of 2014: No 3 - LP1 by FKA twigs
FKA twigs was the year’s most promising pop star, and her debut album was a modern mess of interesting sounds and ideas
Best albums of 2014: No 4 – Syro by Aphex Twin
If Syro wasn’t about Aphex the innovator, then we got something just as good – Aphex the virtuoso
Best albums of 2014: No 5 - Our Love by Caribou
Our Love ran far deeper than most dance records, exploring the complexities of adult relationships: new fatherhood, friends’ divorces and even death
Best albums of 2014: No 6 – Trouble in Paradise by La Roux
While much pop music this year felt drearily uniform, Trouble in Paradise stood out as a classy affair that allowed its songs time and space to breathe
Best albums of 2014: No 7 – Run the Jewels 2 by Run the Jewels
Frustrated by the lack of lyricism in hip-hop, El-P and Killer Mike returned – ahead of schedule – with an album that was as brutal as it was inventive
Best albums of 2014: No 8 – Morning Phase by Beck
Beck had seemed in danger of becoming creatively bankrupt, yet his twelfth album is a thoughtful and considered record that stands out amidst the year’s digital dystopia
Best albums of 2014: No 9 - You're Dead! by Flying Lotus
Steven Ellison’s fifth album saw him finally embrace his aunt Alice Coltrane’s passion for jazz, but with a twist that explored the genre’s intersection with hip-hop
Best albums of 2014: No 10 - Divide and Exit by Sleaford Mods
Why did the vituperative lyrics of Sleaford Mods suddenly start to resonate in 2014? Maybe because their dark comedy taps into a rising anger within us all
The best albums of 2014
Here’s the Guardian music critics’ favourite albums of 2014, topped by St Vincent and her dazzling fourth album