Savages

On a mission to sound like "a punch in the face", all-girl group Savages were one of the break-out bands of 2012 with their frantic, aggressive take on the post-punk of Siouxsie and the Banshees, The Birthday Party and Echo and the Bunnymen. Formed in 2011 when Jehn Beth - of French indie duo John & Jehn - teamed up with touring guitarist Gemma Thompson in London, they took their name from the novel Lord of the Flies and quickly caused a stir in the music press with acclaimed early EP I Am Here. The duo were nominated for the BBC's Sound of 2013 poll and toured with British Sea Power before releasing debut album Silence Yourself through Beth's own label Pop Noir. Full of gothic aesthetics, frantic, doomed guitars and a brooding intensity, the album reached Number 19 in the UK charts and marked the band out as one of art-rock's brightest young prospects.