We wondered what would a top 25 albums of 2009 chart look like, if all the UK critics charts were compiled. So, here's the first draft, which takes its information from the best of 2009 album charts by the NME, MusicOMH, Drowned In Sound, Uncut, The Guardian, The Quietus, God Is In The TV and Gigwise. More will be added soon.
How it works is easy - if an album is at the top of a publications chart, it gets 50 points, if it is in second it gets 49 points and so on. At the moment, on quite a large Excel spreadsheet, there are 191 albums. Probably loads of vaguely interesting stats to be pulled from this. The first is that the current winner only topped one of the best of charts listed above. Ooh fancy.
So here it is so far, the 2009 UK Critics Chart Of Charts;
1. Wild Beasts "Two Dancers" (374)
2. Animal Collective "Merriweather Post Pavilion" (362)
3. The XX "The XX" (323)
4. Fever Ray "Fever Ray" (301)
5. The Horrors "Primary Colours" (300)
6. Grizzly Bear "Veckatimest" (288)
7. Dirty Projectors "Bitte Orca" (272)
8. Yeah Yeah Yeahs "It's Blitz!" (270)
9. Manic Street Preachers "Journal For Plague Lovers" (269)
10. Fuck Buttons "Tarot Sport" (265)
11. The Flaming Lips "Embryonic" (183)
12. Florence And The Machine "Lungs" (173)
13. Arctic Monkeys "Humbug" (171)
14. Phoenix "Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix" (168)
15. Mumford And Sons "Sign No More" (148)
16. Future Of The Left "Travels With Myself And Another" (142)
17. Micachu & The Shapes "Jewellery" (136)
18. Noah And The Whale "The First Days Of Spring" (133)
19. Bat For Lashes "Two Suns" (129)
20. The Maccabees "Wall Of Arms" (126)
21. Health "Get Color" (120)
22. The Big Pink "A Brief History Of Love" (115)
23. PJ Harvey And John Parish "A Woman A Man Walked By" (114)
24. Jamie T "Kings & Queens" (113)
And lastly, currently on the same amount of points;
25. La Roux "La Roux" (98)
25. Lady Gaga "The Fame Monster" (98)
Wednesday, 23 December 2009
Monday, 21 December 2009
KCAT featured on Arjan Writes
"Inspired by artists like Blondie, Queen, Donna Summer, Pink and Gwen Stefani, up and coming London singer KCAT is planning to conquer the dance floor with her instantly infectious disco-pop stomper "Boys & Girls."
You may remember KCAT from her vocals Delinquent's "My Destiny" and "I Got U" that garnered over 4 million views on YouTube.
Her solo debut "Boys & Girls" is nothing lofty or serious. It's sassy, sparkly and totally fun. Just the stuff that dance floor gems are made of. The song will be released in the U.K. early 2010. Preview the song in the player below."
Click here to see the feature on Arjan Writes
The Dirty Disco featured on Arjan Writes!
"The Dirty Disco's cover of Florence & The Machine's "Rabbit Heart" demonstrates how these London newcomers strike a perfect balance between emo-fueled pop rock and '80s inspired synth pop with a theatrical twist. Their music is a bit like Shiny Toy Guns meets David Bowie meets Dead Or Alive. Combine this sound with "more-than-slightly subversive live shows" and what you have is potent package of both style and substance.
The Dirty Disco are Adam K (vocals), Kyle Mackenzie (keyboard), Olly Dexter (bass) Andrew Ignatius (guitar) and Kyle Langley (drums). The London-based group is currently working on their debut LP together with mixer Dylan Dresdow who mostly recently engineered Black Eyed Peas' GRAMMY-nominated "The E.N.D." The Dirty Disco's debut single, titled "Sista!," will drop in the U.K. early 2010."
Click here to see the feature on Arjan Writes, click here to download the track
ElectroQueer Interview Example
Last week I got to have a chat with rising pop sensation Example (real name Elliot) on the back of his tour bus with Lily Allen. To be honest, his debut single "Watch The Sun Come Up" was a bit of a slow grower for me in terms of the song, but the video itself was pretty phenomenal in all it's "I'm In London, look now I'm in Ibiza" animated glory. It wasn't until I heard his new electro-pop song "Won't Go Quietly" that I really "clicked" with his music and I'm really looking forward to his new album coming out in 2010.
In this EQ interview with Example, you get to read all about touring life with Lily Allen, the making of "Watch The Sun Come Up", the real meaning behind "Won't Go Quietly" and why his music is described as "dysfunctional electro-pop" - enjoy!
If you haven't discovered Example yet - make sure you check out his MySpace.
EQ: Well hello Elliot - how are you today?
Example: Alright dude!
Congratulations on your success with "Watch The Sun Come Up". Are you happy with how well the single was received?
Yeah yeah definitely - it was certainly got attention in all the right places. I've been waiting for that attention for about four or five years now so yeah, it's as good as it gets!
So tell me what was the inspiration for the video? I love the whole live action/animation feel to it - it's very a-ha.
Yeah a lot of people have said that. We weren't actually going for that. To be honest, I think that the animation was black and white is what tied it to a-ha. For it's time that a-ha video was amazing and everybody remembers that video. People will always compare my video to it, but I think my video has a different scope and story behind it.
How long did it take to concept and make that video?
Well the guy who directed it is a good mate of mine. We basically met up (he's done about five videos for me before) and discussed all the ideas. I told him all the things I wanted - there needed to be a beautiful girl in it and we wanted to shot it in Ibiza or Majorca. It took about a month to plan and two days shooting in Ibiza, one day in London and then a week of post-production - there was a lot going on for that video!
It certainly turned out pretty well - so congrats on that! So how did you come up with the name Example anyways?
Well it's my initials - EG. It says so on Wikipedia as well...I don't know if you read a lot of stuff on Wikipedia, but on there is a lot of fake stuff...
Well you know, wikipedia doesn't have a good reputation, so I try to avoid it when possible...
Fair enough, fair enough [laughs]
Continue reading the full interview on Electroqueer by clicking here
In this EQ interview with Example, you get to read all about touring life with Lily Allen, the making of "Watch The Sun Come Up", the real meaning behind "Won't Go Quietly" and why his music is described as "dysfunctional electro-pop" - enjoy!
If you haven't discovered Example yet - make sure you check out his MySpace.
EQ: Well hello Elliot - how are you today?
Example: Alright dude!
Congratulations on your success with "Watch The Sun Come Up". Are you happy with how well the single was received?
Yeah yeah definitely - it was certainly got attention in all the right places. I've been waiting for that attention for about four or five years now so yeah, it's as good as it gets!
So tell me what was the inspiration for the video? I love the whole live action/animation feel to it - it's very a-ha.
Yeah a lot of people have said that. We weren't actually going for that. To be honest, I think that the animation was black and white is what tied it to a-ha. For it's time that a-ha video was amazing and everybody remembers that video. People will always compare my video to it, but I think my video has a different scope and story behind it.
How long did it take to concept and make that video?
Well the guy who directed it is a good mate of mine. We basically met up (he's done about five videos for me before) and discussed all the ideas. I told him all the things I wanted - there needed to be a beautiful girl in it and we wanted to shot it in Ibiza or Majorca. It took about a month to plan and two days shooting in Ibiza, one day in London and then a week of post-production - there was a lot going on for that video!
It certainly turned out pretty well - so congrats on that! So how did you come up with the name Example anyways?
Well it's my initials - EG. It says so on Wikipedia as well...I don't know if you read a lot of stuff on Wikipedia, but on there is a lot of fake stuff...
Well you know, wikipedia doesn't have a good reputation, so I try to avoid it when possible...
Fair enough, fair enough [laughs]
Continue reading the full interview on Electroqueer by clicking here
Tuesday, 15 December 2009
Bertie Blackman Featured on My Chemical Toilet
"Bertie Blackman's brain is like mush
Hey, she said it. But to be fair to her, Bertie was a tad tired at the time. BUT NOT TOO TIRED TO CHAT TO JANE BRADLEY FOR THIS HERE BLOGAZINESITE.
Yes, since I asked “Who is this Bertie Blackman person, then?” a couple of months back after encountering her splendid single “Thump”, Jane went along to have a mouthwag and find out ‘first-hand’.
They talked about Bertie’s ARIA-winning album Secrets and Lies (which is vay good), crushes on Fronch pop stars and, um, “nanimals”. BEHOLDIFY:
I became a bit smitten with Bertie Blackman while I was interviewing her. Not only is she infuriatingly talented, she’s also disarmingly charming; whimsical but self-assured, and a pleasure to natter to. By the time we meet, jetlag, exhaustion and a gruelling schedule of interviews and photoshoots have taken their toll, and I’m gobsmacked she’s still able string a slurred sentence together.
“My brain is like mush,” she explains. “This feels like it’s all a dream.” Guessing that I best take advantage of her whilst she’s still awake, and better still, amiable and articulate, we press on in all haste.
In swotting up about her before the interview, I read about an art exhibition she’s having in her native Australia comprising weird and wonderful large-scale ink illustrations of deformed woodland animals. Thinking this is a suitably abstract opening gambit, I ask her for an explanation:
“The exhibition came about unintentionally, after I designed the stage set for the Australian Secrets and Lies tour. I’d been drawing these ‘nanimals,’ which is my word for creatures that are not quite animals. And then I painted them onto plywood and made them into a giant mobile hung from fishing wire around the stage."
Continue reading the interview on My Chemical Toilet here
Hey, she said it. But to be fair to her, Bertie was a tad tired at the time. BUT NOT TOO TIRED TO CHAT TO JANE BRADLEY FOR THIS HERE BLOGAZINESITE.
Yes, since I asked “Who is this Bertie Blackman person, then?” a couple of months back after encountering her splendid single “Thump”, Jane went along to have a mouthwag and find out ‘first-hand’.
They talked about Bertie’s ARIA-winning album Secrets and Lies (which is vay good), crushes on Fronch pop stars and, um, “nanimals”. BEHOLDIFY:
I became a bit smitten with Bertie Blackman while I was interviewing her. Not only is she infuriatingly talented, she’s also disarmingly charming; whimsical but self-assured, and a pleasure to natter to. By the time we meet, jetlag, exhaustion and a gruelling schedule of interviews and photoshoots have taken their toll, and I’m gobsmacked she’s still able string a slurred sentence together.
“My brain is like mush,” she explains. “This feels like it’s all a dream.” Guessing that I best take advantage of her whilst she’s still awake, and better still, amiable and articulate, we press on in all haste.
In swotting up about her before the interview, I read about an art exhibition she’s having in her native Australia comprising weird and wonderful large-scale ink illustrations of deformed woodland animals. Thinking this is a suitably abstract opening gambit, I ask her for an explanation:
“The exhibition came about unintentionally, after I designed the stage set for the Australian Secrets and Lies tour. I’d been drawing these ‘nanimals,’ which is my word for creatures that are not quite animals. And then I painted them onto plywood and made them into a giant mobile hung from fishing wire around the stage."
Continue reading the interview on My Chemical Toilet here
Monday, 14 December 2009
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