Loved by some, missed by many – here’s a list of our favorite Mainland albums from 2014. Buoyed by a growing number of livehouses popping up across second and third-tier cities, the rise of online music services like Douban and Xiami, and a new generation that - gasp - is actually paying for music, this year has been an epic year for releases. Last year, we made note of some of 2013's Notable Albums, but this year we're taking the plunge and listing our Top 25. Feel free to send all love and/or complaints to arts@urbanatomy.com (preferably love), or better yet, comment below about what albums you think we missed. For the rest of the list, click here.

15. Carsick Cars: 3

晕车的车: 3 

(Maybe Mars) 

Buy the album at Taobao, Bandcamp or iTunes.
Follow Carsick Cars on Douban and Facebook.

It was a triumphant return to the scene for the pioneering Beijing indie band that garnered international attention back in 2007 when their heroes Sonic Youth handpicked them to open for them across Europe. Recorded in New York with Spacemen 3 member/MGMT producer Sonic Boom and The Clean’s Hamish Kilgour, 3 is the first release from the group’s newest incarnation. Guitarist/frontman Zhang Shouwang sounds buoyed by the youthful rhythm section of bassist He Fan and drummer Sun Heting, indulging in classic rock-esque guitar freakouts on songs like ‘Midnight Driver,’ while retaining his gift for hooks on the power-poppy ‘15 Minutes Older.’ The record’s release was accompanied by a months long American tour and the group’s inclusion in an indie showcase at Beijing’s Worker’s Gymnasium - an impossible dream when the group started out in 2005. For more, check out our feature on Carsick Cars.

14. Hedgehog: Phantom Pop Star

刺猬: 幻象波普星 

(Modern Sky) 

Buy the album at Modern Sky, Taobao or Bandcamp.
Follow Hedgehog on Douban and Facebook.

Since busting out the gates with the sugary-blasts of early standout albums like Blue Daydreaming, Hedgehog has cemented themselves as staples on the Mainland rock festival circuit. As they approach their 30s, they slow things down on their sixth album filtering their spiky-sweet guitar rock through a psychedelic haze. Cellist YangZai guests on wistful dream-pop tracks like ‘Star Shine,’ while propulsive tracks like the title song and standout ‘DDDDDreaMMMMM’ crescendo into a glorious mess of Zo’s distortion drenched guitars, Atom’s propulsive drumming and sweet vocals, with bassist Fun keeping the groove locked in. For more on Hedgehog who played the inaugural Modern Day Festival in Central Park, check out our feature on Modern Sky.

13. Fifi Rong: Next Pursuit

(self-released) 

Buy the album at Bandcamp or iTunes.
Follow Fifi Rong on Facebook and her official website.

The Beijing-born chanteuse moved to London as a teen, where she’s crafted a reputation for captivating live shows and her bluesy take on post-trip hip hop. She’s already been name checked by tastemakers like Fader and BBC 1, with genre pioneer Tricky recruiting her for a pair of songs on his 2013 disc False Idols. On her latest EP Next Pursuit, she continues to finetune her enchanting sound that mixes dub, garage, jazz, soul and post dubstep into a dreamy soundscapes highlighting her otherworldly vocals. While she remains more known abroad than at her birth country, that’s changing after teaming alongside AM444 and their frontwoman/kindred spirit ChaCha as part of the national DingDong Festival tour. For more on Fifi Rong, check out our feature on forward-thinking Chinese musicians.

12. Supermarket: Blackeclipse

超级市场: 墨蚀 

(Modern Sky) 

Buy the album at Modern Sky or Taobao.
Follow Supermarket on Douban.

No VPN? Listen on Xiami.

Frequently billed as the Mainland’s first electronic group, Supermarket has crafted magnetic soundscapes that veer from warm atmospherics to cold beats since 1997. As one of the first acts signed to Modern Sky, they’ve played some of the biggest stages across the country and opened for Portishead at Trans Musicalles Festival in France. The duo of  Beijing rock vets Yu San and Xiao Nan (one of the co-founders of China’s first all-female rock group, Cobra), have crafted the hypnotic Blackeclipse, which demands to be listened to a single piece. The ten tracks, titled simply with an M in front of the track number, expertly shifts moods and styles from elegiac opener M1 to the mournful metallic groove of M4. The album’s release was accompanied by an impressive national tour, furthering the band’s reputation as one of China’s top live acts. If you're in Shanghai, catch their New Year's Eve show at Minsheng Art Museum.

11. Xiban: Peace & Prosperity/Powder of Five Minerals

戏班: 太平有象/五石散 

(After Three) 

Buy the album at Taobao.
Follow Xiban on Douban.

No VPN? Listen to Peace and Prosperity on Xiami and Powder of Five Minerals on Xiami.

Shanghai is the unlikely home to the Mainland’s most adventurous musical traditionalists. Raised on a aural diet of Shaanxi opera, dagu drum storytelling and the eight model operas, Xinjiang-born Zhuma has spent the past two years refining two discs dedicated to warping and updating Chinese music traditions in his image. He leads an ace group of musicians in flirting with disparate genres from jazz to rock to electro with such traditional instruments like the sanxian (three strng lute), bamboo sax, suona, throatsinging, djembe and digeridoo. The former house band at much missed Anar now perform at prestigious state institutions like the Power Station of Art. Released simultaneously, Peace and Prosperity is a rocking collection distilling the musical journey the band has embarked on, while Powder of Five Minerals is a free-flowing celebration of its current incarnation, carefreely exploring the parameters of their otherworldly sound.

For the rest of the list, click here.