“Greetings, my name’s Skrillex! You might recognise me from the Young Person’s Music, where my asymmetric hairdo and NHS Specs are getting plenty of ‘wub’! Anyway, the charming lot behind Freaky Trigger have asked me to introduce the first part of this year’s Readers’ Poll – these tracks have certainly made a splash with you all, or a ‘drop’, as we call it here in Dubstep Land. Do check them out!”
Thanks Skrillex. I was going to have a Top 40 list but there were two tracks with equal scores at #40 so technically we have 41. Onwards!
=40. Nicki Minaj – Stupid Hoe (Youtube)
The first half of Roman Reloaded is full of this sort of ridiculous (i.e. awesome) nonsense – incredibly radio-unfriendly diss/brag tracks made up of bits of string and frogs and plastic daleks Nicki has found in her coat pocket after a pub crawl, careering all over the place just like Nicki’s attention span.
=40. Angel Haze – New York (Vimeo)
Angel does a great job of turning handclaps and Computer-Says-No error noises into a super-menacing backdrop for her super-impressive rapping. Utterly convincing as a crime overlord of NY.
39. Taylor Swift – Begin Again (Youtube)
You almost certainly know already if you’re going to like this or not (clue: it is not a banger). Taylor’s had approximately a grillion different songs nominated this year, so be warned there’s more where this came from.
38. Tame Impala – Elephant (Youtube)
Not a cover of the Alexandra Burke pachyderm ‘classic’ but in fact a heffalump fuzz-stomper that wouldn’t be out of place in an episode of TOTP 1973. Or a wildlife documentary narrated by David Attenborough.
37. Le1f – Wut (Youtube)
Pokémon fan Le1f raps like he’s starring in a Strepsils advert as the ‘before’. Highly recommended.
36. Frank Ocean – Thinkin Bout You (Youtube)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F15IjgyHd60
Out of all the Emo’n’B dudes putting out records this year, Frank may have the silliest falsetto voice. But that is apparently totally fine by you lot!
35. Blur – Under The Westway (Youtube)
As any fool know, the only things under the actual Westway are a great big climbing wall and a lot of empty Coke cans. I sincerely doubt it sounds like Procul Harum down there but what do I know?
=33. Dev – Take Her From You (Youtube)
Remember that lass from Like A G6? Well she’s done a whole album of reasonably good stuff this year. This tracks sounds weirdly late-90s post-Britpop indie to me though.
=33. Alunageorge – You Know You Like It (Youtube)
When I say she sounds like a microgoth Ellie Goulding I mean that in a GOOD way.
32. Grimes – Genesis (Youtube)
‘Oblivion’ got a couple of votes but incomprehensible electro-bibbler Grimes’ tribute to Peter Gabriel was the eventual reader favourite. I don’t think Peter Gabriel ever had a sword fight in the desert while wearing an outfit made of leftover bits of spaceship.
31. Dawn Richard – Pretty Wicked Things (Youtube)
One third of Diddy Dirty Money, Dawn now has her picture in the dictionary next to the entry for ‘SRS BSNS’. Despite that, this song has some ‘dub’ ‘step’ in it! WUBBBB.
30-21 coming up soon!
Apols for lack of Youtube embeds – will try and get this sorted out…
EDIT: Fixed! Thanks Admins :)
I didn’t vote for any of these, but I almost certainly WOULD have voted for “Pretty Wicked Things” if I’d heard it before I sent the ballot in – I think I voted for “Black Lipstick” and this is better, a fantastic pile-up of the many good ideas on her album, condensed to a song’s length.
Know and like the Grimes, Nicki, Angel Haze and Le1f but (Le1f aside whose full-length I haven’t heard) there’s better by each of them this year.
Know and am lukewarm about Frank and Blur but I will give them one more chance thanks to yr good offices, o readers.
The rest are new to me – I never feel like listening to a whole Taylor Swift album, sorry Taylor Squad.
Yay! This has started. And what an excellent 11 to begin with.
Like Tom, “Pretty Wicked Things” passed me by otherwise would definitely have voted for it. Perhaps the embarrassment of riches that was Armour On counted against Dawn Richard as I was spoilt for choice, and ended up plumping for “Faith”. Nevertheless very glad she made an appearance.
Kat – don’t these things usually start with a rundown of all the nommed songs that got at least 2 votes?
Something I voted for made it! Which means either Dave or Chuck or both also voted! I had not heard “Pretty Wicked Things”! It’s even better than some of the stuff on the her EP! It’s not better than other stuff on her EP! Let the record show that Danity Kane’s Welcome To The Dollhouse was my top album of 2008! Let the record also show that I didn’t vote for any Danity Kane single in the Poptimists poll that year! What was wrong with me?! Well, twenty-six songs I liked more than “Bad Girl” were what, apparently! “Bad Girl” is certainly more of a lark, or whippoorwill, or hummingbird, than “Automatic” is, “Automatic” being the Dawn Richard song I would have voted for if I had voted for a Dawn Richard song! Speaking of songs I actually did vote for, I have trouble parsing the lyrics to “Take Her From You”! Who the “you” is seems to change, therefore confusing me as to who is being taken from whom, and where she’s being taken!
#3 – Dawn did suffer a bit from vote-splitting, yes. Will do a longer list when all the results have been posted up, including songs that got a single top-ranked vote but no others (if someone liked it that much, it must be worth a listen, right?).
Argh how did I forget Stupid Hoe in my ballot? It’s probably my favourite video of the year too.
Hadn’t heard the Dawn Richard one either but love this – would definitely have voted if I’d known about before.
“Computer-Says-No error noises”
You have an awesome computer, or possibly need better headphones.
Also I would not necessarily rule Genesis-era Peter Gabriel out of spaceship-suit desert swordfights.
Also thanks for this public service, Kat!