The 14 Best Pop EPs Released In 2014

4. SZA, Z Released: April 8 Along with BANKS, FKA Twigs and Jhene Aiko, SZA came along with 2014’s wave of alt-R&B ladies. But she proved she was not just a trending topic with her third EP, Z, which comprised 10 tracks of airy vocals and trance-like production strong enough to stand against some of the the year’s mainstream full-lengths.

Z spans across various decades of sound yet has a thread of hazy passion that makes it all SZA. “Julia” is a danceable groove that subtly pays homage to ’80s-era Madonna, “Babylon” is a wobbly head-bobber spiked with a feature from Kendrick Lamar and “Sweet November” has a jazzy blues flair thanks to a sampled deep cut from Marvin Gaye. The New Jersey native is currently signed to Top Dawg Entertainment (also home to K. Dot), so let’s hope that word of a debut album will drop next year. — BIANCA GRACIE

3. Duke Dumont, EP1 Released: September 16 “Need U (100%)” helped usher in the current UK house music frenzy, and the single got an added cred boost when it nabbed a Grammy nomination last year. British producer Duke Dumont wasted no time following that floor-filler up with further singles “I Got U,” which just scored the producer his second Grammy nomination, and “Won’t Look Back.”

Throw a remix of the former in and stir with hypnotic house treat “The Giver” and you have this compact four-track collection, aimed mainly at a US audience not yet accustomed to Dumont’s standing as an overseas hit-maker. — ROBBIE DAW

2. Ferras, Ferras EP Released: June 17 How’s this for a fairy tale? A small-town boy lands a record deal with Capitol and meets a kindred spirit while recording his debut album. There’s an unexpected twist when our hero gets dropped (despite said LP being awesome) but his BFF, who turns out to be the savior of pop, ultimately saves the day. That’s kind of what happened when Katy Perry signed Ferras to Metamorphosis Music earlier this year.

The comeback kid’s career might have taken a little detour, but his self-titled EP proves that the pop world is a much better place with Ferras in it. He sums up every stupid mistake you’ve ever made on the revelatory “King Of Sabotage” and brings sexy back on “Speak In Tongues.” The highlight is his epic duet with Katy, “Legends Never Die,” which would have been the best single of 2014, if they had bothered to release it. — MIKE WASS

1. Röyksopp & Robyn, Do It Again Released: May 23 The press materials announcing Do It Again described the Robyn-Röyksopp project not as an EP, but as a mini-album, and with two of the five tracks nearing the 10-minute mark, this release unequivocally has the scope of a long player. The trio crafted immaculate Scandi-pop, as expected, on the title track, but that gem is surrounded by curveballs and contemplative ballads, with the overall project focusing on atmosphere and ambition much like a concept album that forgoes easy singles.

But whether it’s the placid “Monument” and its adult contempo sax, the rabid throb of “Sayit,” or the instrumental intermission of “Inside The Idle Hour Club,” the girl and the robots nailed a sense of lush Nordic sprawl that’s anything but “mini.” Do It Again is a double-album’s worth of concepts packed into 3/4 of an album, yet it never sounds unfocused or crammed together. — CARL WILLIOTT