TOP 2O SIDE PROJECTS
SOME EXTRA-CURRICULAR MUSICAL ACTIVITIES WERE JUST FLEETING DALLIANCES AWAY FROM THE MOTHERSHIP, WHILE OTHERS MADE A LASTING IMPACT
JON O’BRIEN
Whether they’re borne out of creativity, curiosity or just plain boredom, the side project has been an intriguing staple of the music scene ever since the days of Plastic Ono Band. Some can end up rivalling, or even surpassing, the success of its members’ main endeavours. Others are blatantly little more than a self-indulgent way to pass some downtime. Most, however, sit somewhere in-between. But from enduring hip-hop collectives to one-off synth-pop collabs, this countdown is all about those Classic Pop-friendly acts that didn’t necessarily need to return to the day job.
20 NEW BUILD ESSENTIAL ALBUM: YESTERDAY WAS LIVED AND LOST (2012)
•From Alexis Taylor’s About Group to Joe Goddard’s The 2 Bears, London’s chicest-sounding geeks Hot Chip have essentially become their own cottage industry. Joined by composer Tom Hopkins, guitarist Al Doyle and drummer Felix Martin continued the band’s run of stellar side projects with 2012’s Yesterday Was Lived And Lost, a typically eclectic mix of jittery new wave, hands-in-the-air house and beautifully melancholic balladry recorded as New Build.
19 TIRED PONY ESSENTIAL ALBUM: THE GHOST OF THE MOUNTAIN (2013)
•Gary Lightbody had previously assembled a who’s who of Scottish indie-rock for his first supergroup The Reindeer Section. But the dominance of mid-00s tracks like Chasing Cars then allowed him to rope in an all-time musical hero for his second. Playing everything from the glockenspiel to the mandolin, R.E.M’s Peter Buck helped Lightbody lean into his love of all things Americana on two widescreen LPs tailor-made for journeys across deserted highways.
18 PHILIP OAKEY & GIORGIO MORODER ESSENTIAL ALBUM: PHILIP OAKEY & GIORGIO MORODER (1985)
•Undoubtedly the shortest-lived side project on this list, Philip Oakey and Giorgio Moroder recorded their one-off LP in just a matter of days. They didn’t exactly strike while the iron was hot, though. This 1985 self-titled effort – which combined The Human League frontman’s arch melodies with the Godfather Of Dance’s gleaming electro-disco – arrived nearly a full year after Together In Electric Dreams and the forgettable sci-fi rom-com it was taken from.