In 2013, our music coverage not only went deeper than ever before, but it truly spanned scenes and genres, from the mountains of Pennsylvania to the wildest queer warehouse parties in Bushwick. We got the inside track on Chance the Rapper's acid trips, the cult following of Zomby and, as he launched the Atoms for Peace album with Dazed, Thom Yorke's quest into the realms of EDM. The best music doesn't come without a wild story behind it – check out these ten articles to see why.
Archie Marshall invited Leonie Cooper round to his Mum’s house in Honor Oak Park this summer for a spliff-fuelled afternoon in which the then-18-year-old got a haircut, posed in bright shirts his Mum made, and recounted getting recognised in Surray Quays' Tescos – and this was all before the release of his career-defining debut 6 Feet Beneath The Moon.
From New Cross to Camden, we trailed the powerful post-punk fourpiece around London as they prepared to release their ferocious debut album Silence Yourself. While their lyrics and onstage prescence can sometimes seem cold, they invited us in to tell us why Savages isn't just a band, but a movement that refuses to be silenced.
Dazed met with the quick-witted rapper to slurp neon–pink lemonade on Venice Beach, just a month after the release of his career propelling mixtape Acid Rap. Here, he spoke of his love of LSD and childhood nostalgia – before taking us to Childish Gambino's pad for a dip in his infinity pool.
Radiohead's self-confessed control-freak launched his Atoms for Peace project in the February issue of Dazed. The mythologised indie-rock icon reflected on his twenty years at the top and discussed his new passion for EDM, in an interview where he was as uncompromising as ever. What did he make of the idea of David Cameron using Radiohead in an election campaign? "I’d sue the living shit out of him."
The rawest member of Bushwick's Cunt Mafia party collective, Dai Burger is the female rapper that is a force to be reckoned with. We met the feisty firespitter on a sweltering day in her Brooklyn pad to celebrate her “rappin’ trappin’ princess shit”, and how she mixes up music, sexuality and life.
Re-igniting country music with his fusion of blues and beats, we met the 6'5" outsider hero on his home turf of rural Pennsylvania for a weekend of guns, grass and redneck raving.
Swedish duo The Knife's album Shaking The Habitual was one of the most striking of the year. In a rare interview, the brother/sister pair discussed being inspired by feminist porn, the queer community in Berlin and how far they really are willing to push the boundaries.
For our #tripping issue back in October, we to met the innovative electronic artist Glasser in NYC to discuss how her 2013 album Interiors was inspired by lust, anxiety, fear and identity. In the record she created an empowered space for herself – there's no greater trip than that.
2013 has seen Daft Punk take global reign as never before. As they launched their comeback album Random Access Memories, we met them with their ultimate synth hero Giorgio Moroder for a secret pop summit in LA. Unmasked and more candid than ever, they told us of how "excitement and madness enter the equation" when it comes to creating their euphoric disco-based tracks.
Zomby is electronic music's ultimate anon. We met the notoriously mysterious producer in NYC as he prepared to release his third album WithLove, and spoke about the transcendence of nothingness and why his music is digital prose.