Today I have mostly been listening to

[jauntyalan.livejournal.com]

LastFM's "poptimism tag" radio (only works if you have the lastFM player).

This works as a better way of picking out a poptimist playlist more so than "poptimists" own actual playlists - as in reality they all listen to indie rub:

Top Artists – Week of May 21 to May 28, 2006
Pet Shop Boys
Half Man Half Biscuit
New Order
Stereolab
Pavement
David Bowie
The Smiths
Manic Street Preachers
The Beatles
Belle and Sebastian
Saint Etienne
The Go-Betweens
The Futureheads
Ladytron

then finally...

The Human League
Girls Aloud
Nelly Furtado

However there is not much tagged up as yet, so it's a short listen. Thanks to whoever started, but I shall be tagging up a load more in future

Comments

[chezghost.livejournal.com]

Change Poptimism to Indiemism now. I don't think any of us can really keep up the pretence any longer.

[blue-russian.livejournal.com]

I think I may have actually started the tag, and done so in fact by combining all my "richard x" and "xenomania" tagged songs (plus a few things that popjustice drummed into my head, e.g., Steps and some of the better bits of the Alexander Bard empire). I haven't added much since then.

At least we got The Fall off the chart this week!

[blue-russian.livejournal.com]

BTW, I suggest tagging specific songs rather than artists as a whole.

The Manics!!!

[freakytigger.livejournal.com]

o noes

Re: The Manics!!!

[jel-bugle.livejournal.com]

I'm still waiting for the Manics canon.

[alexmacpherson.livejournal.com]

The thing is, it must only be that horribly skewed because I'm not on last.fm - if I was it would be lots more pop (and there might be eg black people on it too! fie on you Mya-forgetters)

[blue-russian.livejournal.com]

Skewed horribly, Lex, but you couldn't right things by yr lonesome. The charts count number of listeners, so no matter how many times you played Mya, you couldn't counteract all the Beatlefans out there. (Who actually listens to the Beatles?!)

[alexmacpherson.livejournal.com]

Bad and wrong people. Bad, bad, wrong, wrong, bad and wrong and BAD people listen to The Beatles.

They're not as bad as the ones who still listen to the Manics (!!!!!) though.

And who the fuck ARE the Go-Betweens?!

[jel-bugle.livejournal.com]

They're a beat combo from Australia.

[freakytigger.livejournal.com]

Australian band, one of whom died a week or two ago which explains the listening spike. I have been listening to them myself! NOT THE MANICS THOUGH NO SIR NOT ME.

I have possibly listened to the Beatles this week, I couldn't say.

[jel-bugle.livejournal.com]

I've not listened to any of these groups. I've been listening to Coheed and Cambria mostly.

[chezghost.livejournal.com]

what do they sound like?

[jel-bugle.livejournal.com]

Conceptual science fiction euphoric prog metal with hooks!!

[blue-russian.livejournal.com]

One of the "tricks" here is that one song by a particular artist will get them on the group chart.

If you listen on to mp3s on shuffle, then their "popularity" will be roughly proportionate to how much of a particular artist's music you have on your hard drive/iPod. Conversely, if you're like me an have only two Kelis songs, it would take a pretty concerted effort to hear her (or get her on your personal chart).

(This is me trying to explain away the fact that Manics chart high for me.)