now 69

[piratemoggy.livejournal.com]

I have a horrible cold, which I am going to blame for my somehow completely breaking the original poll posted for this. Now 69, released last year at a guess, is a place of amazing heights and terrifying pits below them. H"two"O and Platnum do dance routines in school uniform and Katie Melua duets with the dead, Rihanna samples Michael Jackson and Scouting For Girls reference Elvis, Taio Cruz and Luciana break into the charts and Nickelback make a comeback. Swings and roundabouts.

[Poll #1245762]

Comments

[chezghost.livejournal.com]

this came out earlier this year obv! and it's Jay Sean not Jay Dean. and Bloc Party not Blow Party, alas (but that you knwe)

borderline non-ticks: Duffy, Kanye, Samim (the version of this that Shaggy did for Euro 2008 may be better)

[jauntyalan.livejournal.com]

GOT. (it being odd numbered). track 1s? why:

DUFFY and ADELE on each side of this 69

[piratemoggy.livejournal.com]

Whups, sorry, touch-typing hurriedly, since was re-making the poll and through a HAZE OF PHELGM.

[katstevens.livejournal.com]

Soulja Boy is still extremely awesome - I thought I would tire of it quickly but no!

Apart from Utah Saints the last third is pretty dire. I'm not even going to tick the Sugababes even though when Steph was listening to that song on the jukebox Max bought her as a wedding present and sobbing away and *I* started sobbing away but NO IT IS STILL RUB.

[sbp.livejournal.com]

Apart from Goldfrapp and Amy W you mean.

[piratemoggy.livejournal.com]

I quite like the Sugababes song, although I sort of cruise at a general 'ok yes tick if I'm in a good enough mood' regarding the whole of the last album. Apart from one song which is just horrible but I can't remember which that is.

the 9 true stand-outs

[alexmacpherson.livejournal.com]

1. heartbroken
2. what's it gonna be?
3. piece of me
4. no one
5. love is a losing game*
6. crank that (soulja boy)**
7. don't stop the music
8. work/just fine***

*for no discerniable reason I've been caning Back To Black this week - can't believe after everything it's still getting better for me. I think Hazel called one of the tracks, I forget which, "distressing" a while ago, and I think that's exactly the right adjective for the album in a number of ways
**I have a terrific DJ Godfather Ghetto Tek remix of this which makes it all banging and 4/4! Such a shame YAHHH TRICK YAHHH! flopped. And 'iDance' (sample lyric: iDance iDance iDance iDance iYoutube"). "iYoutube"!!!!
***neither version here is my chosen one, though both are fine; I prefer the original 'Work' because it's more caffeinated and jittery and interesting, I prefer Swizz Beatz' Treat 'Em Right remix of 'Just Fine' for much the same reasons plus extra summer feelgood vibes and "back on the scene with a pocketful of green" sampling.

Re: the 9 true stand-outs

[piratemoggy.livejournal.com]

I have also been hammering Back To Black recently. I think this is probably due to occasional wine-related 'OMG MUST SING ALONG TO SOMETHING' episodes, though.

The 'youreyesyourthighsyourlips make me think of things I wanna do' bit of 'What's It Gonna Be?' makes me VERY HAPPY INDEED. The whole song is just amazing and I am going to go and listen to it on repeat now.

[bengraham.livejournal.com]

An above average Now, some really good stuff on this, and not too much to irritate me. Girls Aloud obvs, but Hot Chip, Soulja Boy, Timbaland, Cascada, Robyn, Britney, Rihanna, One Night Only and Duffy all good. Adele marginal non-tick, Nickelback is the only thing I really really can't stand on here.

[freakytigger.livejournal.com]

This does a pretty excellent job of making the year in the charts seem better than it has been: all the right picks, nothing too fearful.

[piratemoggy.livejournal.com]

I *could* have ticked the whole of the first disc, although I decided presuming I liked a OneRepublic song was probably a step too far.

It is quite outstanding, though; clearly 2008 has been a far better year for pop than the Year In Pop polls suggest.

[koganbot]

Year In Pop started strong, then it hit the doldrums.

Re: HEATER!

[jauntyalan.livejournal.com]

there's another song in the charts right now with prominent accordion.

TREND OF 08!!!!11

[jel-bugle.livejournal.com]

I think h two o is the best song on here.

[piratemoggy.livejournal.com]

So do I.

[jel-bugle.livejournal.com]

I have come to quite like Scouting For Girls, maybe I'm just "cheering for the underdog" - that could be a song title for them!

[piratemoggy.livejournal.com]

This song is quite good. I enjoy the denial shtick, unfortunately nothing can really make up for 'She's So Lovely.'

[piratemoggy.livejournal.com]

I think this is the most completely indecisive best/worst vote sets I've ever seen!

Where have all the poptimists gone?

[koganbot]

"Piece Of Me" got 44 votes when it first showed up on Year Of Pop.

Re: Where have all the poptimists gone?

[piratemoggy.livejournal.com]

Summer hols from poptimist college leave only grad students & lecturers around campus.

Re: Where have all the poptimists gone?

[andthatisthat.livejournal.com]

Or people who hate their parents. :D

[weasel-seeker.livejournal.com]

There are many of these I have not heard. Not sure if it's because of the continental divide, or if I wasn't sufficiently poptimist at the time to notice them.

Be Mine! feels weird on here, even if the album just came out again.

Piece of Me has lost none of its bite and funny chicken squawk attitude, even if it hasn't heralded the return of Britney as unapologetic popstar.

Flux makes me feel wistful today, esp. since Intimacy (new Bloc Party album) is massively blah. I like Flux but it heralded an 'experimental' direction that took Kele & co. away from their pop-ier instincts. (Yes, yes. I know, guys with guitars playing boring NME indie are not pop...)

[piratemoggy.livejournal.com]

Flux makes me feel wistful today, esp. since Intimacy (new Bloc Party album) is massively blah. I like Flux but it heralded an 'experimental' direction that took Kele & co. away from their pop-ier instincts. (Yes, yes. I know, guys with guitars playing boring NME indie are not pop...)

Particularly dissatisfying because it was meant to be the sound of them "going pop," when of course it was just the sound of them getting an actual synthesiser in rather than using Russell's guitar as such. :(

Although I am actually in love with the Burial mix of 'Where Is Home' at the minute so Bloc Party can't do a lot wrong for me right now.

[andthatisthat.livejournal.com]

After all this time, it still strikes me as utterly ridiculous to be called One Night Only and have a song called 'Just For Tonight'. FFS.

[piratemoggy.livejournal.com]

Not as ridiculous as the srs bsns fite that took place on Chartblog when Fraser pointed that out. (http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/chartblog/2008/01/one_night_only_just_for_tonigh.shtml)

(Oh, how I live for Chartblog fites)

[andthatisthat.livejournal.com]

Oh, I remember that vividly. I love how apparently the fact that the lead singer is 17 is RLY RLY IMPORTANT 4 SRS SO STOP BEIN MEEN.

[piratemoggy.livejournal.com]

DRAB INDIE STREET TEEMIN IS SRS BSNS. :D

[koganbot]

Well, I thought the guy was on the OTM who called Fraser on saying that Flock Of Seagulls were manly.

Also should not have closed comments, as people commenting there would have taken time from their commenting elsewhere.

[piratemoggy.livejournal.com]

Yeah, true re: Flock Of Seagulls, it was the comments after that that caused the lulz.

The comment closure thing was cus the BBC changed their whole comment system a few months ago so anything on the old system got closed.