(no subject)

[chezghost.livejournal.com]

In my evergoing pursuit of something or other I decided to compile a list of all the singles to have entered the charts and peaked between positions 41 and 75 this year so far. I managed to track down most of them on iTunes so I could listen to an extract of each one. Observations / conclusions:

1) Most of the songs are crap.
2) If you think there's a lot of British nu-indie/rock in the top 40 there is just as much if not more bubbling under - it really does seem to be the dominant chart species now more than ever.
3) There is no real difference in quality between the stuff that makes top 20 and the stuff that languishes between 41 and 75 (this goes for ALL genres really).
4) That said, there really isn't a big sense of 'this SHOULD'VE done better' pervading the following lengthy list bar a handful of exceptions which I have marked with an asterisk (based on my personal tastes/preferences natch).

But daer poptimists I am interested in YOUR views too, so have a look down the list and mention in comments any songs YOU particularly like/think deserve more attention for some reason. I am thinking of including a bunch of these songs in a poll to go with the monthly top 40 poll (August poll next week, probably Monday).

Afi - Miss Murder    
Alex Parks - Honesty    
All-American Rejects - Move Along    
Andy Abraham - Hang Up    
Angels & Airwaves - It Hurts    
A-Studio ft. Polina - S.O.S.    
Avenged Sevenfold - Beast And The Harlot    
Be Your Own Pet - Let's Get Sandy    *
Beautiful South - Manchester    
Beenie Man ft. Akon - Girls    *
Bell X1 - Flame    
Belle & Sebastian - White Collar Boy    
Big Brovaz - Hangin' Around    
Boy Kill Boy - Civil Sin    
Boy Least Likely To - Be Gentle With Me    
Breaks Co-Op - The Otherside    
Cerys Matthews - Open Roads    
Charlatans - NYC (There's No Need To Stop)    
Chocolate Puma - Always And Forever    *
Choong Family - Memory Lane    
Clap Your Hands Say Yeah - In This Home On Ice    
Coheed & Cambria - The Suffering    
Coldcut ft. Roots Manuva - True Skool    *
Concretes - Chosen One    
Crimea - White Russian Galaxy    
Dave Gilmour - On An Island    
Dave Gilmour - Smile    
David Gray - Alibi    
Death Cab For Cutie - Crooked Teeth    
Death Cab For Cutie - I Will Follow You Into The Dark    
Dem Franchise Boyz - I Think They Like Me    
Divine Comedy - To Die A Virgin    
Dixie Chicks - Not Ready To Make Nice    
Duels - Animal    
Egg - Walking Away    
Fallout Trust - Washout    *
Ferry Corsten - Watch Out    
Field Mobb ft. Ciara - So What    
Fightstar - Hazy Eyes    
Filterfunk - SOS (Message In A Bottle)    
Flaming Lips - The Wand    
Foo Fighters - No Way Back    
Francesca Berlin - Colours Faded    
Fun*dmental '03 - Jump/Playground    *
Futureheads - Worry About It Later    
Gary Numan - In A Dark Place    
Gemma Hayes - Undercover    
Ghostface Killah ft. Ne-Yo - Back Like That    
Gomez - GirlShapedLoveDrug    
Haji & Emanuel - Take Me Away    
Harrisons - Blue Note    
Hayley Sanderson - Something In The Air    
Hundred Reasons - Kill Your Own    
iForward Russia! - Eighteen    
Imogen Heap - Goodnight And Go    *
Infadels - Can't Get Enough    
Jack Johnson - Sitting Waiting Wishing    
Jack Johnson - Upside Down    
Jamie Foxx Ft Kanye West - Extravaganza    
Jamiroquai - Space Cowboy '06    
Jim Noir - Eanie Meany    
Jim Noir - My Patch    
Joey Negro - Make A Move On Me    
John Parr Vs Tommyknockers - New Horizon    
Juelz Santana - There It Go (The Whistle Song)    *
Katie Melua - Spider's Web    
Keisha White - Don't Mistake Me    
Keyshia Cole - I Should Have Cheated    
Killing Joke - Hosannas From The Basements Of Hell    
KT Tunstall - Another Place To Fall    
Lacuna Coil - Enjoy The Silence    
Ladyfuzz - Bouncy Ball    *
Larrikin Love - Edwould    *
Less Than Jake - Overrated (Everything Is)    
Liberty X - X    *
Like - June Gloom    
Lil Kim - Whoa    
Love Bites - He's Fit    
Marcos Hernandez - If You Were Mine    
Mario Rosenstock - Jose And His Amazing Technicolour Overcoat    
Mark Morrison ft. DMX - Innocent Man    
Mark Ronson ft. Alex Greenwald - Just    
Martin Solveig - Jealousy    
Mary J Blige ft. Brook-lyn - Enough Cryin'    
Metric - Monster Hospital    * (esp. the MSTRKRFT mix)
Mew - Why Are You Looking Grave?    
Micky Modelle vs Jessy - Dancing In The Dark    
Mobb Deep - Put 'Em In Their Place    
Moby - Slipping Away    
Morning Runner - The Great Escape    
Mync Project ft. Abigail Bailey - Something On Your Mind    
Mystery Jets - You Can't Fool Me Dennis    
Natasha Thomas - Skin Deep    
New Order - Blue Monday (2006 re-press of 12")    *
Notorious BIG - Spit Your Game    
OK Go - A Million Ways    
Peaches - Downtown    
Placebo - Infra-red    
Plan B - Mama    
Porno - Music Power    
Prince - Black Sweat    *
Prince - Fury    *
Rammstein - Mann Gegen Mann    * (the Vince Clarke mix is alright)
Red Carpet - Alright    
Regina Spektor - On The Radio    *
Research - Lonely Hearts Still Beat The Same    *
Research - The Hard Times    
Ricky - We Are England    
Russell Watson - Can't Help Falling In Love    
Santana ft. Sean Paul & Joss Stone - Cry Baby Cry    
Secret Machines - Lightning Blue Eyes    
Seth Lakeman - Lady Of The Sea (Hear Her Calling)    
Shy FX & T Power ft. Top Cat - Everyday    
Signal 1 and Signal 2 - Standing Together    
Similou - All This Love    
Sleepy Jackson - God Lead Your Soul    
Sout Out Louds - Please Please Please    
Spinto Band - Did I Tell You    
Spinto Band - Oh Mandy    
Starsailor - Keep Us Together    
Stunt - Raindrops    
Sunshine Underground - Commercial Breakdown    
Sunshine Underground - I Ain't Losing Sleep    
Tatu - Friend Or Foe *   
Tiga - Far From Home    *
Trina - Here We Go    *
View - Wasted Little DJs    
Vines - Anysound    
WigWam - Wigwam    *
Wolfmother - Dimension    
Yeah Yeah Yeahs - Turn Into    
Yellowcard - Lights And Sounds    
Ying-Yang Twinz ft. Pitbull - Shake    *
    as of 19/08/06

It really makes you wonder just how poorly singles by The Knife or the stuff you see on Channel U or all that European Young Person's Dance music must be selling.

Comments

[umlauts.livejournal.com]

"Not Ready To Make Nice" should have been a Number One. The album's selling, but that single should have been massive.

[chezghost.livejournal.com]

I wasn't that into it. Very schmaltzy...so perhaps you're right! Country (even mainstream-orientated) is still not THAT big here. I much prefer Jenny Lewis tho. (slightly different but still) - I wonder where her singles peaked?

[celentari.livejournal.com]

That Divne Comedy one is good.

[celentari.livejournal.com]

Or, Divine, even.

[alexmacpherson.livejournal.com]

these ones I like a lot:

Beenie Man ft. Akon - Girls *
Dem Franchise Boyz - I Think They Like Me
Egg - Walking Away (tocadisco mix NOT david guetta abomination)
Field Mobb ft. Ciara - So What
Lil Kim - Whoa
Mary J Blige ft. Brook-lyn - Enough Cryin'
Tiga - Far From Home *
Trina - Here We Go * (i'm sure this went top 20!)
Yeah Yeah Yeahs - Turn Into
Ying-Yang Twinz ft. Pitbull - Shake *

what in the name of god is this:

Santana ft. Sean Paul & Joss Stone - Cry Baby Cry

the popularity of YPDM isn't reflected in singles sales/lack of as that is not primarily how it is consumed. god knows what happened to the Knife! I would expect them to sell in the region of the Concretes but clearly not.

[blue-russian.livejournal.com]

how is it that you like the YYYs, Lex?

[chezghost.livejournal.com]

the popularity of YPDM isn't reflected in singles sales/lack of as that is not primarily how it is consumed

well there are certain types of YPDM that do well (all the 'take hit from the 80s and bosh it up but badly quotient'). but the hip European stuff is totally alien and uninterested in charting clearly yes.

but no chance of a modern day 'LFO' breaking the top 20 - something underground, weird yet successful in crossing over. nobody seems to want this to happen or cares about it, even if it were feasible.

[chezghost.livejournal.com]

also sorry yes the Trina track did indeed end up reaching #15.

[blue-russian.livejournal.com]

I was going to submit one of these songs for the poptimismcast, actually. (If I can find an mp3 of it, 'cause I certainly wasn't going to pay money for it.)

I actually think that poorly charting singles are/should be at least as interesting a topic for discussion as the charting ones. The problem, as always, is that I haven't heard most of them.

[pink-weasel.livejournal.com]

Ladyfuzz - Bouncy Ball

From the title alone, this sounds like it should be a big hit, even if it's a big shite hit. I'm just assuming that it's rubbish, I haven't heard it.

[chezghost.livejournal.com]

it's a bit Yeah yeah Yeahs-lite. not too bad tho.

[katstevens.livejournal.com]

Jamiroquai - Space Cowboy '06

WHAT???

Is this run-down inclusive of downloads? I assume it is?

[chezghost.livejournal.com]

yes e.g. the Trina song entered outside top 40 (like many songs do now) on downloads but did ascend.

[carsmilesteve.livejournal.com]

what this looks like to me as well is an exaggeration of the old "first single goes in at 10, second single at 15, third at 20", so, to take b&s as an example, funny little frog goes in at 13, blues are still blue makes 25, and then white collar boy doesn't make the 40 at all...

[katstevens.livejournal.com]

Indeed, look at KT Tunstall there...

[wizzy-w.livejournal.com]

Belle & Sebastian - White Collar Boy
Divine Comedy - To Die A Virgin
Jim Noir - Eanie Meany
Jim Noir - My Patch
Metric - Monster Hospital
Mystery Jets - You Can't Fool Me Dennis
OK Go - A Million Ways
Spinto Band - Oh Mandy
WigWam - Wigwam
Yeah Yeah Yeahs - Turn Into

[jeff-worrell.livejournal.com]

Another vote for Dem Franchize Boyz here. (I own this plus Juelz Santana's Whistle Song and the Ying Yang Twins on a comp I bought recently.) The only other one I've heard is Peaches, which is exactly like all her other songs.

Sunshine Underground are allegedly about to "go massive" or something - could just be some hype I read. What are they like?

[chezghost.livejournal.com]

they sound like The Music, but with less distinctive vocals.

[maura.livejournal.com]

well, 'back like that' is my favorite of all of these, with 'oh mandy' a close second.

also, what is channel u? because i have access to the xm music stations this week and there is an xm station called u-pop where i heard lallen and idlewild and etc etc.

(ps you should all watch the all american rejects video for 'move along' as it appropriates the whole 'lindsay lohan/paris hilton doesn't change facial expressions' meme)

Afi - Miss Murder
All-American Rejects - Move Along
Be Your Own Pet - Let's Get Sandy *
Ghostface Killah ft. Ne-Yo - Back Like That
Juelz Santana - There It Go (The Whistle Song) *
Mew - Why Are You Looking Grave?
Prince - Black Sweat *
Red Carpet - Alright
Regina Spektor - On The Radio *
Spinto Band - Did I Tell You
Spinto Band - Oh Mandy
Yeah Yeah Yeahs - Turn Into

[maura.livejournal.com]

oh crap, wait, i didn't mean to include that red carpet song. i've never heard it! sorry.

[juror8.livejournal.com]

These are all at least 8/10 or above:

Angels & Airwaves - It Hurts
Belle & Sebastian - White Collar Boy
Dixie Chicks - Not Ready To Make Nice
Tatu - Friend Or Foe


Worth noticing that both the "Whistle Song" and the Ghostface one were A-listed by Radio 1. They just can't get rap into the charts, huh?

[dickmalone.livejournal.com]

All-American Rejects - Move Along
Belle & Sebastian - White Collar Boy
Ghostface Killah ft. Ne-Yo - Back Like That
Juelz Santana - There It Go (The Whistle Song) *
Lil Kim - Whoa
Prince - Black Sweat *
Prince - Fury *
Ying-Yang Twinz ft. Pitbull - Shake

Ones I haven't heard that I'd kinda like to:

Angels & Airwaves - It Hurts
iForward Russia! - Eighteen
Lacuna Coil - Enjoy The Silence
Ladyfuzz - Bouncy Ball *
Less Than Jake - Overrated (Everything Is)
Love Bites - He's Fit
Metric - Monster Hospital * (esp. the MSTRKRFT mix)
Mew - Why Are You Looking Grave?
Rammstein - Mann Gegen Mann * (the Vince Clarke mix is alright)
Regina Spektor - On The Radio *
Spinto Band - Oh Mandy

OK, really I just want to hear Lacuna Coil covering Enjoy the Silence.

[chezghost.livejournal.com]

why? do you have some vested interest in the band? from what i heard it's a completely predictable, uninspired cover of the song - the only motivating factor appearing to be 'what does it sound like sung by a woman?' (beyond 'we might get a minor hit out of this').

[juror8.livejournal.com]

Angels & Airwaves are kinda like the point where emo band names finally start to sound like trance act names.

[chezghost.livejournal.com]

emo-trance. did that genre exist already? like Alice Deejay?

[spittake.livejournal.com]

The only song I have heard is the Jamie Foxx one, and it is HORRIBLE.

[poptasticuk.livejournal.com]

There is so much great stuff there, it's really sad!