As winter began to set in, some time towards the end of August, the minds of the staff on the electronic music floor at National Towers began to vibrate in unison with a single question: in a year of copious great music, was there some way we could assemble what to our knowledge would be the world’s first extremely subjective list feature of what some randomly selected people thought were the year’s best tracks, albums and labels?

We duly reached out to friends in Scotland and far beyond with this dangerously radical idea, and, undeterred by the odd naysayer asking us what the real value of such lists is and how we got this phone number, we eventually managed to assemble what we think are some pretty interesting end-of-year musings from a galaxy of electronic music stars. Spoiler alert: the big winners are Huerco S and Rihanna. And we're almost sure that sentence really is a world-first.

David Barbarossa (Loosen Up, Glasgow)

Track: Voilaaa

Le Disco Des Capitales French Afro Disco dancefloor action, the most asked-about record that I’ve played this year

Album: Dices & AEM Rhythm Cascade - Thoughtstream

Scottish Galereux guzzlers release oddball electronics and weirdo house from St Petersburg after meeting in the comments section on Discogs. A modern love story

Label: Music From Memory

Beautiful reissues of forgotten and undiscovered gems from the Redlight Records gang and Jamie Tiller. From track selection to packaging, everything is just perfect

Man Power (Correspondant/ESP Institute)

The National:

Track: Lizards – Tanni

The one record I wish I’d made myself. A complete anthem and the one track I never tired of playing all year

Album: Radiohead – A Moon Shaped Pool

It came out long enough ago now for me to feel confident in saying this is their finest album ever

Label: ESP Institute

This year they turned the corner from being a curio label to a hit factory, but without losing their unique identity

Richard Chater (Numbers/Rub a Dub, Glasgow)

The National:

Track: Abra – Cry Baby

Abra hitting the sweet spot by rebooting the sledgehammer beats and heartbreak of 80s freestyle for 2016

Album: Equiknoxx – Bird Sound Power

Stunning record made by two of Jamaica’s most interesting producers and released via the Mancunian fam – Demdike Stare and Jon K. Jordan from Equiknoxx told me he made weird dancehall and that pretty much sums this record up

Label: Proibito

Gotta give it up to Anthony Naples and his Fairview crew. Operating out of Queens, NYC, the mighty PRB catered for the true freaks with records from the world’s first “deep reggaeton artist” DJ Python, Bell Ley Roy and Larry Leaba, HJ & AN and of course there was Huerco S’s ambient tour de force For Those Of You Who Have Never (And Also Those Who Have). Also have to shout out Apron Records, Berceuse Heroique, Music From Memory, Future Times and Mood Hut. Too many good records this year

Kornel Kovacs (Studio Barnhus, Stockholm)

The National:

Track: Rihanna – Work

Album: Huerco S – For Those Of You Who Have Never (And Also Those Who Have)

Label: Born Free

Blisi Bako (Interval/Captain Midnight, Cluj-Napoca)

The National:

Track: Traumprinz – 2 The Sky (Metatron's What If There's No End And No Beginning Mix)

As simple as this may sound, this track got under my skin and I've listened to it many, many times throughout the year. I'm sure beautiful music like this can't become a cliche no matter how many people resonate with it. Maybe that's the whole idea

Album: Dorisburg – Irrbloss

This stands out as the best collection of exceptional music for me this year. Dorisburg is a modern mystical man, I can't understand how he can make super-effective club tracks and then an absolute listening gem such as this. It's not just dark or hypnotic or deep, it's extremely immersive, introspective music written by a producer who is seriously skilled in sound design

Label: Dekmantel

This year has been full of excellent releases for Thomas, Casper and their crew. Their very particular, very open-minded selections – Robert Hood, Matrixxman, Palms Trax, Call Super, Motor City Drum Ensemble and Young Marco all released with them in 2016 – are representative of the best kind of eclecticism out there

Sad City (Emotional Response/Meda Fury)

The National:

Track: Avalon Emerson – 2000 Species of Cacti

Totally addictive piece of music. Expansive and perfectly arranged. Beautiful

Album: FP Oner – 6

Warm, cold, fizzy, spacey, repetitive depth that I keep coming back to. Endless love for Fred P

Label: Sublime Frequencies

Been an avid fan of this label since my teens. The Indian Talking Machine collection that they put out this year is among their best

Nic Tasker (Whities, London)

The National:

Track: Sensational & Kruton – You in the Right Spot (Bintus reconstruction)

Album: Huerco S – For Those Of You Who Have Never (And Also Those Who Have)

Label: DDS

Becky Marshall (So Low, Glasgow)

The National:

Album: Tomorrow The Rain Will Fall – Wreck His Days

In a year defined by a frightening growth in right-wing sentiments across the democratic world, this politically driven debut LP felt ever more vital. Laced with subtle tributes to heroes of the left, the album captures both a sense of loss and an enduring hope for a better future

Track: Asusu – Hallucinator / Sendak

This was a really tough one but I’ve gone for this 2-sider because I think it’s been somewhat overlooked. Hallucinator is my pick of the two - perfectly formed hard but emotionally driven techno

Label: 1080p

Diverse and prolific, the Vancouver-based 1080p has had a pretty exceptional year. From the nostalgic synths of Betonkust & Palmbomen II’s Center Parcs EP to Ex-Terrestrials ambient techno, Minimal Violence’s uncompromising excursions and Jayda G’s celebratory house, I can’t think of a label that has put out such an amazing range. Also, if anyone tells you women are less interested in making electronic music than men, take a look at 1080p’s artist roster

James F Throne (Throne of Blood Recordings, New York City)

The National:

Track: Roy of the Ravers – Emotinium

An almost timeless bit of old school acid that could easily have been on a label like Rephlex fifteen years ago if it hadn't been discovered and pressed to vinyl by Emotional Response

Album: Playgroup – Previously Unreleased

This was an amazing reminder of the immense impact and influence Trevor Jackson has had on me. Working with him for his DJ Kicks mix while I was at !K7 introduced me to a load of music I wasn't up on and the relationship we cultivated altered the course of my life. A year later I was helping him launch Output Recordings in the US and his incredible taste and prickly nonconformism have been an inspiration for so many of my musical endeavours in the decade since we stopped working together, be it my label Throne of Blood or DJing

Label: Invisible City Editions

Total quality over quantity situation with this reissue juggernaut from Toronto. Unreal Caribbean disco and African digs. Mashisa is a near-perfect jam

Scott Fraser (Crimes of the Future/Body Hammer)

The National:

Track: Karen Gwyer – Prophase Metaphase Anaphase Telophase

I’ve been hammering this most of the year. Put simply, it’s a beautifully emotional record with added klarting percussion for the club. Karen Gwyer has been on fire this year and this track exemplifies, in a nutshell, why she has been so good. The label DBA has just gone from strength to strength in 2016

Album: Tom Boogizm ‎– Posh People Make Me Ill

From back in April on a fairly limited run, the sound of Detroit is emanating from Moss Side right here. Urban Tribe meets Drexciya with some UK Bass and dancehall lobbed in there too. Deliriously tripped out music sounding just as good at home as it does in the club

Label: Brokntoys

I’ve been into this label with a heavy leaning towards electro for a few years now but this year has been something else. Recent EPs from Versalife and Komarken Electronics complete with a banging Delta Funktionen remix sit along marvellously with Dan White’s beautiful Digital Physics EP from earlier in the year. Add to that a couple of brilliant various artists 12s you have the label I’ve probably played out the most this year. They have not put a foot wrong for me in 2016

Matt Karmil (PNN/Idle Hands)

The National:

Track: Sassafras Gesundheit – Tarquin Manek

OK, it’s from 2015, but December… and I listened to this constantly throughout 2016, an absolute classic

Album: Nina Kraviz – Fabric 91

Maybe cheating to have a compilation / dj mix – but this is amazing, and puts nearly everyone else to shame – serious emergent properties. Someone at the top of their game making a supreme effort, while making it sound effortless

Label: Giegling

Almost a crafty way of choosing two best albums (Prince of Denmark), but everything they release is of the utmost quality. I’ve never seen an advert from them and their webshop more often than not has nothing for sale – kind tells you all you need to know

Nightwave (Heka Trax/Nightrave)

The National:

Track: Rihanna – Work (Murlo Remix)

I think Work got played everywhere from Campus to Berghain this year, no one can deny it’s an absolute belter. Murlo made it even better

Album: Jubilee – After Hours

This is a masterpiece – a meticulously constructed album with flawless production but full of soul, fun and essence of who Jubilee is. I love it

Label: Local Action

One of my favourite labels really got the shine it deserved this year. This year it pushed the experimental into charts RnB by signing Dawn Richard and I think this will be a very interesting development in 2017

Ewan Chambers (Healthy, Woodlands)

The National:

Track: Zarate Fix/DJ Sotofett – Planetary Involvement

A perfect mix of trippy, weird and the future

Album: Andras – House of Dad

Andras’s tribute to his plumber dad features track titles like Stereo Dunnies and real-life toilet-flush field recordings

Label: 10 Pills Mate

Only bought one record off this label but it has the best name ever

Alin Stunned (KUNE, Copenhagen)

The National:

Track: Loquace – Back From Space

This one stands right by its name, sending you on an emotional, introspective journey within the confines of your mind

Album: Lawrence – Yoyogi Park

This has got to be one of my all-time favourite albums, simply perfect for home listening or for those early mornings in a club

Label: International Sun-Earth Explorer

With four releases out in its first year, this one touches hard on my dub/minimal techno softspot. Besides the overall excellent quality in music production, I love the choice of cover art. The perfect mix of melancholy and optimism

Auntie Flo (Highlife, Glasgow)

The National:

Track: Black Motion X Amampondo – Far Lands

Album: Jay Daniel – Broken Knows

Label: Rhythm Section

A Spotify playlist of some of the music chosen here, plus tracks from the artists and labels who contributed to this feature, can be found at http://spoti.fi/2iEsPQc