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Jade's EOY ● 2023, 100-1 complete! full list: page 5

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Jade View member profile	30th December 2023, 07:03 PM Post #1
Alone and wounded Pronouns: She/her Joined: 18 January 2011 Posts: 60,191 User: 12,810	Okay sure let's do one of these again... Graphic design may not be my passion but listening to an awful lot of music is This year will just be a presentation of my top 100 songs so I have the best chance of finishing this in a timely manner and not in June. Who would do that... I'd say the banner above is a good representation of some of my very favourite albums this year, from L-R: Caroline Polachek, Lana Del Rey, Yves Tumor, Mitski, Overmono and Temples <3 I still need to actually finish number crunching as I'm using a points based system again, should hopefully be ready to go in a few days. God bless time off work at the moment. Looking forward to sharing my highlights of the year with you all and endeavour to catch up on everybody else's threads ASAP.


JosephBoone View member profile	30th December 2023, 09:34 PM Post #2
you never forget your first time... Pronouns: he/him Joined: 19 April 2011 Posts: 121,806 User: 13,530	Excited to follow this . baby we don't stop and we don't quit for #1 x


Jade View member profile	31st December 2023, 12:02 AM Post #3
Alone and wounded Pronouns: She/her Joined: 18 January 2011 Posts: 60,191 User: 12,810	QUOTE(JosephCarey @ Dec 30 2023, 09:34 PM) Excited to follow this . baby we don't stop and we don't quit for #1 x may have outsold 'Manjobee' thank you for commenting, Joseph excited to get started soon!


Brer View member profile	31st December 2023, 03:49 PM Post #4
is my brain across your walls? Joined: 14 February 2009 Posts: 115,094 User: 8,300	Hiipe x Actually not quite sure off the top of my head what will be #1 this year unlike last year's There'll be more songs here than last year that I've not heard yet so I will try and aim to listen to any I've not heard as they are posted ~


PeteFromLeeds View member profile	1st January 2024, 06:44 PM Post #5
Buy yourself a car, and a house in Devon Joined: 6 May 2016 Posts: 23,896 User: 23,247	Interested to see what'll pop up here! Not listened to your personal chart too much (although I have watched the video in your signature a couple of times, very handy) so hoping to make a few discoveries here.


Jade View member profile	2nd January 2024, 07:14 PM Post #6
Alone and wounded Pronouns: She/her Joined: 18 January 2011 Posts: 60,191 User: 12,810	QUOTE(Brer @ Dec 31 2023, 03:49 PM) Hiipe x Actually not quite sure off the top of my head what will be #1 this year unlike last year's There'll be more songs here than last year that I've not heard yet so I will try and aim to listen to any I've not heard as they are posted ~ Before number crunching I had two songs in mind that would likely take the crown but something else entirely is within the actual top 2, so it was a bit unpredictable for me as a compiler too Thank you for the hype and willingness to check unheard music out, hope you find some good discoveries QUOTE(PeteFromLeeds @ Jan 1 2024, 06:44 PM) Interested to see what'll pop up here! Not listened to your personal chart too much (although I have watched the video in your signature a couple of times, very handy) so hoping to make a few discoveries here. Oh that's cool that you've checked out a couple of my recap videos! I'm really surprised that I've managed to keep them up for nearly 2 years now but I do love making them! I did notice a few artists in your EOY so far that I've charted (Peggy, Temples, Tom Odell, The Killers etc.) so would be great if there was a good discovery or two for you here away from those thanks for the comment!


Jade View member profile	3rd January 2024, 04:01 PM Post #7
Alone and wounded Pronouns: She/her Joined: 18 January 2011 Posts: 60,191 User: 12,810	TOP 100 SONGS: 100-91 ZegtK54DC4c 100. Chelsea Wolfe - Dusk \| 147 points 99. THUS LOVE - Repetitioner \| 149 points 98. The Beatles - Now And Then \| 152 points 97. Björk & ROSALÍA - Oral \| 154 points (peak: #10) 96. TETRICA - Brujería \| 154 points (peak: #6) 95. Yves Tumor - Lovely Sewer \| 155 points 94. Jasper Tygner - Limes \| 158 points (peak: #10) 93. Vitesse X - Right Now \| 158 points (peak: #8) 92. Caroline Polachek - Butterfly Net \| 158 points (peak: #3) 91. Lana Del Rey - The Grants \| 160 points Chelsea Wolfe received my latest set of top points in the BuzzJack Song Contest. I was not familiar with her prior to 'Dusk' so I am eternally grateful to Jim and his nation Bronzil for introducing her to me. I recall being instantly enamoured with this song at the relevant listening session on SyncTube and it is still riding high in my personal chart now, sitting pretty at #10. 'Dusk' opens with lyrics depicting the fall of an empire and soon more explicitly develops into an intense love story, with lyrics such as "I would go through fire to get to you". Chelsea's vocals and the slow-burn start to the production are both very sensual and instantly hooked me into this mythical, passionate world. The explosion of distorted, shredding guitars from around the three-minute mark make for an extremely satisfying climax. THUS LOVE are a band who also came into my life in 2023. I discovered 'Repetitioner' thanks to the 6Music playlist and instantly fell for its 80s style indie-rock charms. The song is about recognising the patterns that form your life, both good and bad. It consists of three vocal sections, courtesy of lead singer Echo Mars who has a captivating voice. These portions are exactly the same as each other which only feels appropriate for a song called 'Repetitioner'. There is also a wonderful instrumental break that gives the listener extra time to absorb the beautiful riffs and drum work on this one. I really ought to get around to more of their discography. The Beatles have been my favourite group for a little over a decade now so the announcement of old-but-new music was incredibly exciting to hear. 'Now And Then' originally existed as a John Lennon demo back in the 1970s and was later given to the group by his widow Yoko Ono to work on in the 1990s. Unfortunately the standard of the demo was not up to scratch so this particular release was canned for a while. Film director Peter Jackson, who assisted the group with their Get Back documentary on Disney+ a few years ago, opened up possibilities for the 'Now And Then' project with the technology he had used for this other collaboration. Therefore, a new Beatles release was finally ready in 2023 with a little help from AI. I think the finished product is a very impressive clean-up job. A documentary was released before the song was heard in full and it was a goosebump-inducing moment when the world listened to those isolated Lennon vocals for the first time. I think the song is very heartfelt and sweet... and I'm a sucker for an orchestra on a Beatles song. Their impact remains strong as 'Now And Then' gave the group a brand new U.K. #1 hit over 50 years since their last - the first in my lifetime. I wasn't sure what to expect from a Björk and ROSALÍA collaboration in aid of a legal case against farm fishing in Iceland, but I couldn't wait for whatever it would sound like! 'Oral' was originally concocted about 25 years ago by Björk and underwent a reworking all of these years later, alongside Spanish singer ROSALÍA on vocals and Sega Bodega for production help. I'd say all three of these names are quite off-the-wall yet the final product is actually mid-tempo and melodic! I think these two fabulous women work really well together and the production is lovely and complimentary. I just adore the strings in particular. 'Oral' is about the confusion when you think you might have budding romantic feelings for someone but aren't totally sure. The chorus containing: "is that the right thing to do? Oh I just don't know" represents the dilemma of making these feelings known, or just keeping them as a fantasy. The "there's a line there, I can't cross it" resolution in the outro is probably the catchiest element of the song. My only negative is that the visuals are very uncanny valley ROSALÍA performed extremely well in my EOY countdowns last year thanks to the MOTOMAMI era and continues to make quite a few appearances this year despite not releasing a follow-up album yet. TETRICA's song 'Brujería' received the same amount of points as 'Oral' but places higher here by virtue of tie-break victory, as 'Brujería' peaked four places higher in my weekly chart, at #6. This is one of many entries unleashed by my BuzzJack Song Contest nation, Jadakissnia, in 2023 that will make the countdown. I very much employed a "Halloween all year round" attitude to the contest so it was no big deal that a song that translates to "Witchcraft" was sent closer to Easter than October. TETRICA have an electric post-punk, gothic sound which became even more appealing to me when coupled with the Spanish language. The lead singer also has a commanding presence in the video with her Bratz doll-esque styling. Unfortunately this entry did not set the contest alight as it was my first bottom 5 finish in the final ever (settling for 40th place) but at least it qualified! Yves Tumor has been a revelation for me over the past couple of years. Their latest album Praise a Lord Who Chews but Which Does Not Consume; (Or Simply, Hot Between Worlds) is easily within my top three of 2023. I may be a bit late to the party but I am here to stay now. 'Lovely Sewer' is an album track also featuring the uncredited vocal talents of Kida. The song appears to explore a fractured friendship where not all hope is totally lost, potentially explaining the juxtaposition of the title. I was instantly hooked by the bassline, the two vocals contrasting against each other and that unexpectedly tender outro music. Jasper Tygner was a name I'd seen floating around the forum by some other electronic music aficionados on here. However, it had taken me a while to get into anything of his, until 'Limes' came along that is! This song takes soothing layers of looped vocals and couples them with equally laidback beats. The vibes here are immaculate. Elsewhere in the electronic world, I discovered Vitesse X a couple of years ago, after awarding Kath's BJSC entry 'Us Ephemeral' my bronze medal in the contest. The following year 'Right Now' was a bit of a slow burner but eventually impacted the top 10 of my personal chart. This song personifies living in the moment which Vitesse X takes to the extreme in the video - diving into that cold ocean with not a whole lot to cover her. I love her breakbeat influences, those bleeps and really pretty lyrics that make for perfect electronic escapism. Caroline Polachek's latest album Desire, I Want to Turn Into You was released as early as Valentine's Day 2023 and has kept its Album of the Year status for me right until the end. 'Butterfly Net' is a breathtakingly beautiful album track from it. This song is about loss and Caroline has explained that the "butterfly net" she references is her "foolish attempts to hold onto something intangible". Her vocals express these feelings as incredibly as ever and even morph into a choral style for a bit during the latter half of the song. Danny L Harle, who is also taking the reigns on our next Eurovision entry for Olly Alexander, is here on production duties and gives this a sixties feel in the process. That organ reminds me of the stellar 'A Whiter Shade of Pale' by Procol Harum and the percussion elsewhere also drives the song along perfectly. Lana Del Rey continues to be a prolific artist as she was already on to her ninth studio album in 2023, named Did You Know That There's a Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd. I was a fan of the title track and especially 'A&W' so couldn't wait to hear even more from this era. She once again knocked it out of the park with 'The Grants'. This promo single is about family and the memories we make and will carry with us forever. The bridge is particularly emotional when Lana makes direct references to her own family members, such as "My sister's first-born child" and "My grandmother's last smile". It's a beautiful, haunting reminder to cherish precious memories with your loved ones. This gospel-influenced opening track begins with a false-start from singers Melodye Perry and Pattie Howard, who had previously been backing singers for Whitney Houston. Lana liked the imperfection of this and wanted to keep it in. They follow this up by tackling the lyric properly - singing "mine" now instead of "mind". Lana then takes over and provides stunning vocals throughout. ~~~ - I incorrectly posted Paramore - 'Figure 8' as #100 at first when they should've been #101, however, so the writing for them didn't totally go to waste... I was eagerly anticipating Paramore's sixth studio album This Is Why after the title track and follow-up 'The News' both reached the top spot in my chart last year. Thankfully it did not disappoint and soon became my favourite record of theirs since Brand New Eyes, released way back in 2009. 'Figure 8' is merely an album track but one that made a big impression on me from the word go. The song is about lead singer Hayley Williams' experience of being in a toxic relationship and the turmoil that comes with it. She displays an impressive range throughout and really lets go for the soaring chorus. Elsewhere, fellow band member Zac Farrow goes to town with the drumming. I am so excited to see them live for the first time supporting Taylor Swift in the summer!


Brer View member profile	4th January 2024, 01:54 AM Post #8
is my brain across your walls? Joined: 14 February 2009 Posts: 115,094 User: 8,300	I have to stan the heavily post-punk / adjacent vibe of this so far of course . 'Repetitioner' was my favourite of the songs here I had already heard (that ear candy riff <3) but 'Lovely Sewer' was an excellent first listen and may be a contender to be my fave of these 10 with more listems, also finally hearing 'Oral' after being a flop fan and procrastinating on it, I was slightly taken aback by ROSALÍA singing mostly in English but her accent when singing in English meshes really well with Björk's so a great choice of collaboration. Hooray for Björk picking this song out of the vault at last! (and appropriate then that it's in the same section as 'Now And Then', hooray for that just about doing enough to make an appearance here). Loved Paramore leaning into a post-punky vibe for 'This Is Why' and 'Figure 8' was one of my immediate standout album tracks too. I thought most of your BJSC entries of the year were a bit underrated but especially 'Brujería', no way that deserved to be your lowest final finish to date </3 I think I would actually have it in my top 3 2023 Jadakissnia entries! I had heard enough of 'The Grants' via reaction content on YouTube to have a good idea that I was a fan of it but also one I had not yet got around to sitting down and listening to on its own, it is a really gorgeous tune, she picked the singles/promo singles from this album brilliantly. 'Right Now' is a very good earwormy electronic pick too (even also kind of fitting in with the post-punk vibe a little bit when listening to it amongst these other songs). Unfortunately as much as I loved Caroline's album overall I have never managed to get into 'Butterfly Net', her vocals sound great on it as they do on the rest of the songs but nothing else about the song really grabs me, was the clear weak link of the album for me oops!


Jade View member profile	4th January 2024, 10:50 AM Post #9
Alone and wounded Pronouns: She/her Joined: 18 January 2011 Posts: 60,191 User: 12,810	QUOTE(Brer @ Jan 4 2024, 01:54 AM) I have to stan the heavily post-punk / adjacent vibe of this so far of course . 'Repetitioner' was my favourite of the songs here I had already heard (that ear candy riff <3) but 'Lovely Sewer' was an excellent first listen and may be a contender to be my fave of these 10 with more listems, also finally hearing 'Oral' after being a flop fan and procrastinating on it, I was slightly taken aback by ROSALÍA singing mostly in English but her accent when singing in English meshes really well with Björk's so a great choice of collaboration. Hooray for Björk picking this song out of the vault at last! (and appropriate then that it's in the same section as 'Now And Then', hooray for that just about doing enough to make an appearance here). Loved Paramore leaning into a post-punky vibe for 'This Is Why' and 'Figure 8' was one of my immediate standout album tracks too. I thought most of your BJSC entries of the year were a bit underrated but especially 'Brujería', no way that deserved to be your lowest final finish to date </3 I think I would actually have it in my top 3 2023 Jadakissnia entries! I had heard enough of 'The Grants' via reaction content on YouTube to have a good idea that I was a fan of it but also one I had not yet got around to sitting down and listening to on its own, it is a really gorgeous tune, she picked the singles/promo singles from this album brilliantly. 'Right Now' is a very good earwormy electronic pick too (even also kind of fitting in with the post-punk vibe a little bit when listening to it amongst these other songs). Unfortunately as much as I loved Caroline's album overall I have never managed to get into 'Butterfly Net', her vocals sound great on it as they do on the rest of the songs but nothing else about the song really grabs me, was the clear weak link of the allbum for me oops! . I had forgotten that you wouldn't have heard 'Lovely Sewer' yet so I'm thrilled that you're instantly a fan! Yay for positive feedback for Björk/ROSALÍA too, that one does seem to have garnered a lot of praise on the forum in the relevant thread. You should be familiar with the remaining ROSALÍA songs now! Oh yes, when number crunching I was happy that 'Now And Then' managed to cling on with just two months worth of a chart run. The direction for This Is Why was a bit more alt-leaning than I expected in its influences but no complaints whatsoever here either . ooh, I feel like I'm not too clued up on what your thoughts regarding my BJSC entries would be this year, although I do remember you giving 'Kill Tone' an 18. Well then, I'm glad 'Brujería' did have a small handful of big fans! I seem to remember Michael posting in my national thread that he would've voted for it if he'd been in the contest that month I didn't realise that you wouldn't have heard 'The Grants' yet either! I totally agree, all three of those pre-album singles made my top 10 my expectations for the album were sky high based on this trio and I remember feeling a little disappointed on first listen but in time I did grow to appreciate the album a lot. Yay, there are lots of electronic picks to come . BJSC, 6Music and Electronic Track of the Week have been instrumental in helping me love that type of music even more. Nooooooo 'Butterfly Net' is not the weak link of Caroline's album, I refuse to believe this take </3 awww, well, there's more Caroline to come so hopefully more positive words regarding her next appearance thank you for commenting!! <3


danG View member profile	4th January 2024, 11:11 AM Post #10
🔥🚀🔥 Joined: 30 August 2010 Posts: 74,596 User: 11,746	Now and Then is naturally my fave of that first section, even with me not being so hugely invested in The Beatles as an act it felt like a big moment of the year in music. Brujeria I quite liked the vibe of although I don't think it ended up getting my points. will have to give the electronica tracks here a proper listen too.


Jade View member profile	4th January 2024, 11:39 AM Post #11
Alone and wounded Pronouns: She/her Joined: 18 January 2011 Posts: 60,191 User: 12,810	QUOTE(Dappy New Year @ Jan 4 2024, 11:11 AM) Now and Then is naturally my fave of that first section, even with me not being so hugely invested in The Beatles as an act it felt like a big moment of the year in music. Brujeria I quite liked the vibe of although I don't think it ended up getting my points. will have to give the electronica tracks here a proper listen too. Glad you took to 'Now And Then', Dan! It certainly did feel like a magical 'Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God)'-esque moment, in the sense that a legendary act got a new moment to shine at the top of the chart. Hope you may find a good electronic discovery or two here, thanks for commenting!


Sergej View member profile	4th January 2024, 01:31 PM Post #12
BuzzJack Platinum Member Joined: 7 September 2017 Posts: 11,851 User: 39,723	Hi there Jade! I'm very excited for this one! Really like seeing "Now and Then" from your list so far. Great so far! Really need to continue my Year-End list, a reminder.


Jade View member profile	4th January 2024, 01:39 PM Post #13
Alone and wounded Pronouns: She/her Joined: 18 January 2011 Posts: 60,191 User: 12,810	QUOTE(Sergej @ Jan 4 2024, 01:31 PM) Hi there Jade! I'm very excited for this one! Really like seeing "Now and Then" from your list so far. Great so far! Really need to continue my Year-End list, a reminder. Hey Sergej! Yay, pleased that you will be following along Great to see quite a bit of love for ‘Now And Then’ so far ❤️ can exclusively reveal that it will not be the only #1 single to appear. Thank you for commenting 💖


k👠th View member profile	4th January 2024, 01:51 PM Post #14
baddest of them all Joined: 2 August 2008 Posts: 21,776 User: 6,764	Jade Fab start! Butterfly Net is a big fave of mine from Caroline's album and great to see Jasper Tygner and Vitesse X here I expect both their stars to rise this year! Vitesse X apparently has 2 albums (1 electronic and 1 alt) on the way . The gorgeous Right Now is one her best. I love the combination of the chopped vocals and shoegaze riffs. It should be pretty high in my incoming countdown


Jade View member profile	4th January 2024, 01:58 PM Post #15
Alone and wounded Pronouns: She/her Joined: 18 January 2011 Posts: 60,191 User: 12,810	QUOTE(k👠th @ Jan 4 2024, 01:51 PM) Jade Fab start! Butterfly Net is a big fave of mine from Caroline's album and great to see Jasper Tygner and Vitesse X here I expect both their stars to rise this year! Vitesse X apparently has 2 albums (1 electronic and 1 alt) on the way . The gorgeous Right Now is one her best. I love the combination of the chopped vocals and shoegaze riffs. It should be pretty high in my incoming countdown Kath! Why thank you . glad to find another ‘Butterfly Net’ fan in the thread 🦋❤️ so happy you’re following along as I can rely on you to stan some of the alt electronic stuff too <3 thanks again for introducing Vitesse X to me! Very excited for new releases this year . Oh yes I was supposed to highlight the chopped vocals as well but must have got lost in another train of thought what a tune! Very pleased to hear that you’ll be doing a countdown again this year as well 🤩 will absolutely be following along thank youuuuuu for commenting 💗


Jade View member profile	4th January 2024, 05:01 PM Post #16
Alone and wounded Pronouns: She/her Joined: 18 January 2011 Posts: 60,191 User: 12,810	TOP 100 SONGS: 90-81 GU_-JCKv86s 90. Snow Strippers - Just A Hint \| 162 points 89. Overmono - Arla Fearn \| 166 points (peak: #15) 88. Depeche Mode - My Cosmos Is Mine \| 166 points (peak: #10) 87. Radost Moja - Pej Solntse \| 169 points 86. Villager - Never Gonna Be \| 170 points (peak: #9) 85. Lana Del Rey - Peppers (feat. Tommy Genesis) \| 170 points (peak: #7) 84. 1tbsp - Best of Me \| 171 points 83. The Smile - Bending Hectic \| 172 points 82. The Kills - 103 \| 173 points 81. VTSS - Make You Scream (yunè pinku Remix) \| 176 points (peak: #5) Snow Strippers are another act that I discovered via Kath's nation in BJSC. It was a banner year for them as EOY champions and this included sending winning entry 'Under Your Spell'. I took to this one in a big way, awarding it 10 points, then made sure to keep a look out for more. The Detroit-based duo soon delivered further essential electronic music as part of their Night Killaz Vol.1 EP, released just a month ago. 'Just A Hint' is likely one of the shortest tracks in my top 100 as it clocks in at just 2:14. However, it packs in a lot to get excited about in that runtime. The production boasts in-your-face, witchy bass and the muffled, chopped vocals complete the package to present a solid Crystal Castles type effect. The random wolf-whistle in the song and DIY video help to inject more of a carefree edge to it. Overall, it's a fleeting banger. Overmono have been another electronic duo committed to delivering the goods. Their debut album Good Lies was one of my favourites of the year and even saw a bit of commercial success, charting at #11. 'Arla Fearn' is an album track that only peaked at #15 in my chart but had a healthy, slow-burn type of run as it continued to become more of a standout on the album upon further listens. The bassline here is phenomenal and I can definitely hear Burial influences throughout. Overmono decide to crank up the BPM a bit for the final minute of this one which makes for an exciting finish. Expect quite a few more from these two elsewhere in the countdown! Depeche Mode released their 15th studio album Memento Mori last year and their first without keyboardist Andy Fletcher, who sadly passed away in 2022. I am a big fan of the Violator album and several other Depeche Mode singles elsewhere, so was definitely looking forward to a new project from them. 'Ghosts Again' was a good start but I was even more taken in by 'My Cosmos Is Mine'. I found the dark, foreboding synths and equally intense vocals pretty irresistible. The song was written shortly after the Russian invasion of Ukraine and therefore explores powerlessness in the face of that and the reactions that come with it. Dave Gahan begins the song with Martin Gore joining him for the more chanty "no war, no war, no war..." bridge. It pleases me greatly that a band who formed over 40 years ago are still producing material that I enjoy enough to place within the top 10 of my weekly chart. 'Pej Solntse' by Radost Moja dates back to 2014 but was relevant to my chart in 2023 as I decided to send it to the BuzzJack Song Contest last year. My nation had once often unleashed witch house entries to the competition but those had been thin on the ground in recent years, so it was time to bring it back. This song is a particularly noisy, aggressive example of the sub-genre that I hoped would make as good an instant impression on others as it had for me. It ended up finishing in 13th place so not bad at all! Unfortunately this song is not available on streaming platforms so instead I was represented only by cursed fanmade visuals in the contest that feel inspired by The Ring. This electronic-heavy section continues with producer Alex Young aka Villager. I seem to recall 'Never Gonna Be' taking its time to hit me but it eventually made its way up to #9 in my chart! The vocal sample in this song appears to discuss insecurities in a relationship. This material is transformed with infectious 2-step garage production, further bouncy synths and some percussive elements. 'Never Gonna Be' was apparently born out of Villager trying to hunt down the sample from Overmono's 'So U Know' and instead ending up on the source material for this song. It's no wonder I'm a fan if he cites Overmono as an inspiration. Lana Del Rey is the first artist to make a double appearance this year and there is still more to come from her later. 'Peppers' is the penultimate track on her latest studio album and credits rapper Tommy Genesis due to sampling her song 'Angelina'. The subject matter in question is none other than Angelina Jolie in her Lara Croft role, hence the mentioning of her braiding. I think the hook on this song is one of the most fun moments on the album and the biggest earworm. It certainly felt like a bit of a swerve when I reached that point of the record. I also love the production and a more sassy, carefree side of Lana lyrically, she even states "throw caution to the wind" in this song, which perfectly encapsulates this more free-spirited point of the album. I am pretty sure that 1tbsp was an artist I discovered through the Electronic Track of the Week polls on this forum and subsequently popped up in my Release Radar playlist on Spotify thanks to that initial exposure. His real name is Maxwell Byrne and I was instantly hooked on the groovy indie-house flavours of 'Best of Me'. The laidback, textured production really reminds me of something MJ Cole would do - in a similar universe to something like 'Sincere'. The looped vocal samples are effortlessly warm alongside this. He deserves more attention! The Smile are a Radiohead side project, a band I really need to explore more of outside of the genius OK Computer album. As for this project, I really liked 'Waving A White Flag' from their last album but hadn't yet checked it out in full. I must listen to their next one as 'Bending Hectic' could be my new favourite to date. It begins with dissonant, sparse guitars and the unmistakable haunting beauty of Thom Yorke's vocals. This song appears to use vehicle imagery which I also remember being present throughout OK Computer. Here, the subject seems to be in a car and is forcing himself to turn around to escape death. Sonically, this song is a wild ride as the aforementioned strings swell and suddenly every element becomes more intense for the final couple of minutes. The experience is haunting and worth all 8 minutes of that run-time. The Kills are not to be confused with a certain 'Mr. Brightside' band. Instead they are a duo with a female vocalist, Alison Mosshart. I binge-watched all of Peaky Blinders in the summer which familiarised me with some of their older music. Now they have released their first studio album in 7 years and '103' is a fantastic cut from it! The title represents the temperature in Fahrenheit as the band tackle themes of increasing inhabitability while also discussing a warped love story. Mosshart's vocals are powerful here and the guitar work from fellow member Jamie Hince is also sounding massive. Bonus points for a cool video shot in a custom-built 3D studio. VTSS and yunè pinku are two female DJs who are killing it at the moment. I have particularly been following the latter so was intrigued when she popped up in my Release Radar playlist as part of a remix. I liked this on first listen and it subsequently scraped into my chart. However, it turned out to be an almighty grower and eventually ended up peaking at #5. The unsettling lyrics such as "Imma make you scream, make your head disappear" mesh perfectly well with the haunting 90s-style beats. I ended up putting this one straight on my Halloween playlist for some added electronic representation there. Definitely expect more to come from yunè pinku!


PeteFromLeeds View member profile	4th January 2024, 08:29 PM Post #17
Buy yourself a car, and a house in Devon Joined: 6 May 2016 Posts: 23,896 User: 23,247	Just giving Grants a listen now - a very reflective song, which goes well with the vocals and piano! Nice to see Now and Then make it in as well - grew on me a lot as I listened to it and great to see them get a number 1 after so many years!


Jade View member profile	4th January 2024, 10:11 PM Post #18
Alone and wounded Pronouns: She/her Joined: 18 January 2011 Posts: 60,191 User: 12,810	QUOTE(PeteFromLeeds @ Jan 4 2024, 08:29 PM) Just giving Grants a listen now - a very reflective song, which goes well with the vocals and piano! Nice to see Now and Then make it in as well - grew on me a lot as I listened to it and great to see them get a number 1 after so many years! Ooh I'm happy you chose 'The Grants' to listen to, did think it could potentially be your cup of tea with its gospel influences. 'Now And Then' kept hitting me more on further listens too once "omg a new Beatles song exists" thoughts were out the way and I could digest it more the #1 moment was incredible! thank you for commenting .


Ansel View member profile	4th January 2024, 10:42 PM Post #19
BuzzJack Gold Member Pronouns: he/him Joined: 22 May 2020 Posts: 2,812 User: 106,739	Hey Jade loving the Paramore/Yves Tumor/Caroline Polachek appearances so far! Hoping to see more from all 3 later on too. Also great to see Oral here, I got way more into it than Björk's last album and Rosalía is a great addition to it. While I couldn't really get into The Grants, Peppers is a definite Ocean Blvd highlight for me!


Jade View member profile	4th January 2024, 10:51 PM Post #20
Alone and wounded Pronouns: She/her Joined: 18 January 2011 Posts: 60,191 User: 12,810	QUOTE(Ansel @ Jan 4 2024, 10:42 PM) Hey Jade loving the Paramore/Yves Tumor/Caroline Polachek appearances so far! Hoping to see more from all 3 later on too. Also great to see Oral here, I got way more into it than Björk's last album and Rosalía is a great addition to it. While I couldn't really get into The Grants, Peppers is a definite Ocean Blvd highlight for me! Hey Ansel Yay, I knew you were also a fan of Caroline and Paramore but had forgotten about the Yves appreciation too, the taste . I think I charted at least one song from Björk's latest album but agreed that it was easier to get into 'Oral' than anything I heard from it! ROSALÍA can pretty much do no wrong tbh x Shame that 'The Grants' wasn't really your thing but I'm so here for the 'Peppers' appreciation, love that she snuck a bop in there before the album was over x thank you for commenting!!