Tigercub: After breaking through into the music industry's consciousness in 2014 thanks to a support tour with Royal Blood, Tigercub have had a brilliant 2015. The release of their EP Repressed Semantics has buoyed them out of the confines of being predominantly a support band and a ‘Brighton band’. Last month they set out on a full UK tour and sold out the Barfly in Camden. Hopefully 2016 will also see the release of their debut album that’ll be the start of even bigger things - we certain think so.
Cold Ocean Lies: It’s very early days for this Birmingham four-piece and they haven’t publicly revealed too much about the industry support they’ve got so based on the sound alone, which has brilliant balance of catchy choruses and heavy guitar - it’s easy to tell that Cold Ocean Lies will be a much more prominent name next year.
Broken Hands: There's no one quite like these guys at the moment. Their single 'Meteor’ is catchy and 'real' enough to make Noel Gallagher approve the songwriting, but feral enough to capture the imagination of even the hardest rock fans.
Shvpes: You may have seen them on the road with the likes of Fightstar or 35 Crazyfists, but next year is when Shvpes step up to dominate huge stages and the airwaves on their own terms. This is just good metal done proper - with an infectious groove, epic soundscapes and one hell of a scream, it's just a matter of time until they're rivalling Enter Shikari and Bring Me The Horizon in the arena realm.
Dead!: After a year of heavy touring and destroying any festival they step foot in, Dead!'s blend of emo poetry, heartfelt sincerity and arena-ready choruses mean that they can't really fail. They've a sound of their own, but here's hoping they can fill that My Chemical Romance-shaped hole.
Black Foxxes: For fans of Biffy Clyro and Arcane Roots, Black Foxxes are a band who play like they feel every single chord. A cliche-free journey of cliche-free hard-rock driven ever-skyward by melodramatic and dynamic vocals, expect their next releases to find them a fame that matches their much-deserved critical acclaim.
Desert Mountain Tribe: This blistering London based psych-rock three piece have what it takes to crack the biggest stages. Their intense and addictive single 'Runway' was released last week and gives a taste of what this band, who have just signed an album deal with Membran Entertainment group (Europe) and Metropolis Records (America), are capable of. Ones to Watch for sure.
Cold Ocean Lies: It's very early days for this Birmingham four-piece and they haven’t publicly revealed too much about the industry support they’ve got so based on the sound alone, which has brilliant balance of catchy choruses and heavy guitar - it’s easy to tell that Cold Ocean Lies will be a much more prominent name next year.
Riddles: Proto-rockers Riddles are fairly well known for having one of the best guitar players on the circuit in Jimi Riddle. Live, they're brutally loud and brilliant. Riddles end an amazing year as main support for Fat White Family at the Bussey Building in London on 10 December and hopefully start 2016 with a debut album.
No Sugar: No Sugar are one of the best live bands we saw in 2015. Their debut EP, Hard Up, was produced by legendary producer Mark Waterman (Ride, Elastica, Peter Perret) at Blue Studios in Dalston and it gives you an idea of how fun their AC/DC-esque live experience can be.
Bright Young People: Having supported The Offspring at Brixton Academy, Bright Young People have already proved they can hack it at the top stages. They released their first proper singles this year through Gary Powell of The Libertines’ label 25 Hour Convenience Store. If you like your rock to be pure, hard and heavy, then get yourself some Bright Young People.
Slutface: A break-neck riot-grrrrl force of sheer punk abandon with absolutely no fucks given. Live, they're one hell of a rush, but lyrically they're a socially conscious attack on hipsterism, fakery and dickheads. They're about having a good time, all the time. Here are a band you can believe in.
Myrkur: There's no doubt that black metal is largely a male-dominated genre, but this one-woman force of nature brings enough apocalyptic, Scandinavian darkness and intensity to make her heaviness outweigh all others. She released her debut album M earlier this year, but expect to seize the hard rock throne in 2016. You must catch her live at all costs.
Lacey: They've already a cult online following off the back of some heavy touring and their astounding debut album, Under The Brightest Lights, but having dropped the phenomenally massive 'Hoax' from upcoming I Don't Owe The World A Thing EP ahead of a massive tour with Bowling For Soup, now is the time that Notthingham post-emo rockers Lacey hit the big time.
PVRIS: True, the electro-rock trio are pretty massive already having been around for a few years, but they've only really scratched the surface outside of the US. Their genre-defying debut album White Noise has landed them a pretty awesome global following as well as support slots with the likes of Bring Me The Horizon and Fall Out Boy, but now they're finally coming into their own - with a massive UK headline tour and the hint of new material coming in 2016. If there's any justice, they'll become an absolute phenomenon.
Emma Blackery: This young Essex sensation found fame by becoming a Youtube star - dabbling in comedy, reading and vlogging as well as amazing music. She's pretty awesome, having risen to a star on her own terms. Now, expect her to take 2016 with more new music too - totally by surprise.
Dolomite Minor: They may be a hard-rocking two-piece and destined for greatness, but to compare this duo to Royal Blood does them one hell of a disservice. They're much more of a filthy affair - like grungey-blues from the sludgiest of swamps.
Brawlers: Fast and furious pop-driven punk from a band with a love of hardcore and their tongues firmly in their cheeks. That's not to say this isn't to be taken seriously, mind - while singing about 'all things rad', this is a sound that immediately grabs by the throat. Check out their invigorating 2015 album Romantic Errors Of Our Youth, before they continue to blow up in 2016 and own another festival season