4. Marina + The Diamonds & Greg Kurstin
A left field choice perhaps but there's no denying that Greg Kurstin is a prolific and prominent producer of pop. He produced Lily Allen's entire second (and best) album and have produced songs for the likes of Tegan and Sara, Kelly Clarkson, Sia, Foster The People and Pink (he probably helped bring about her and Allen's great collab on 'True Love'). Enter Marina and the Diamonds, a little-known pop singer whose skill at crafting songs was a boon to her craft, but when she wanted to eschew her indie leanings for satirical album
Electra Heart, Kurstin was the man to turn to. His production on the album is among his best - club stomper 'Power & Control' is a dominance ode that demanded more success than it actually got while 'Living Dead' was the dark pop classic Britney never recorded. Kurstin seems pleased to be creating something interesting, both sonically and lyrically - 'Sex Yeah' is a feminist anthem about desensitisation and female sexuality. When the chorus of Marina's operatic-pop vocals of 'Sex yeah!' kicks in, you're singing along to something that's challenging enough to be alternative and a hit enough to be mainstream. That's a hell of an achievement.