Hello!

 

Over the past few months when I've been bored I've been creating a spreadsheet to work out who has been the most successful on my chart, with points being awarded on a sliding scale, 50 points for a number 1, 48 for 2, down to 32 for a number 10 peak, then 30-1 for positions 11-40, as well as adding a point for each week spent on the chart.

 

I've decided to count this down on here as after 7 whole years of my Personal Chart existing (a third of my life!) I'm not sure it will last the year in its current guise, although I hope it does. I've added points for featuring credits and remixes to both artists in question, but I have not combined entries where the same person (or people) feature in two acts. As an example, Pete Doherty's solo efforts are counted seperately to those he had with The Libertines or Babyshambles, and none have been combined.

 

In the past 7 years 924 different acts have had an entry on my personal chart, the least successful being Future of the Left and Maria Haukass Storeng, who both charted at #40 for one solitary week.

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40. M.I.A. (298 points)

 

 

'Bucky Done Gun' - #30

'Jimmy' - #05

'Paper Planes' - #01

'O...Saya' (ft. A.R. Rahman) - #01

'Sound of Kuduro' (ft. Buraka Som Sistema) - #09

'XXXO' - #21

'It Takes a Muscle' - #11

 

Weeks on Chart - 61

 

One of a few acts whose 2010 output has moved them into the top 40, thanks to recent hits 'XXXO' and 'It Takes a Muscle'. When she first released her debut in 2005, she didn't really make that much of an impact on me, although I did rather like 'Sunshowers' but that was about it. However her second album 'Kala' was my favourite album of 2007, as she grew on me massively, her 2010 albums wasn't nearly as good but it still had its moments/

http://clubnotes.pmpblogs.com/files/2009/04/the-killers1.jpg

 

39. The Killers (298 points)

 

 

'Mr. Brightside' - #01

'All These Things That I've Done' - #01

'Somebody Told Me' - #01

'Read My Mind' - #23

'For Reasons Unknown' - #34

'Human' - #10

'Spaceman' - #33

 

Weeks on Chart - 83

 

For a band whose first three singles were all personal chart number ones, it just goes to show how disappointed I've been in their subsequent material. In 2004 I was pretty much Killers obsessed although by the end of the year I'd realised 'Hot Fuss' did have its weak points, and there were a few. But I was expecting their second album to be better than it was; I don't think I've ever been as disappointed in a song as when I heard 'When We Were Young' (although I don't mind it as much now) and then after that 'Bones' was terrible, I'd gone off them so much that even the rather fabulous 'Read My Mind' could only make #23, and I'm quite happy to ignore everything off their previous album bar 'Human'.

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38. The Long Blondes (299 points)

 

 

'Weekend Without Makeup' - #04

'Once and Never Again' - #07

'Giddy Stratospheres' - #06

'Century' - #02

'Guilt' - #15

'The Couples' - #06

 

Weeks On Chart - 63

 

The Long Blondes 2006 debut album 'Someone To Drive You Home' was pretty impressive, it fitted in well with the indie around at the time but a female singer was quite the novelty for the mainstream so they were reasonably different. 12 punchy pop songs about lust and relationships were decent enough but I wouldn't have wanted another album of it. Luckilly, they changed their sound for 2008 follow-up 'Couples', it was far more poppy and used more synths, a great change which made for a better album. Unfortunately they split up later that year when guitarist Dorian Cox had a stroke and left him unable to play any instruments. :(

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37. Sugababes (302 points)

 

 

'Too Lost In You' - #06

'In the Middle' - #03

'Caught in a Moment' - #11

'Push the Button' - #06

'Ugly' - #23

'Red Dress' - #08

'About You Now' - #15

 

Weeks on Chart - 66

 

Coming in 43 places ahead of Girls Aloud are Sugababes, who've always been one of the better pop acts of the last decade. Well until 2007 they were anyway. Since then they've become a hideous mess who've not released anything that comes remotely close to being worth listening to. It started so well though and they're older material is still quite good, even if some of it sounds a little dated. I loved 'In the Middle', listening to it now it's not that great at all.

http://blog.podbop.org/archives/upload/2006/07/the-go-team.jpg

 

36. The Go! Team (305 points)

 

 

'Bottle Rocket' - #02

'Ladyflash' -#03

'Grip Like a Vice' - #04

'Doing it Right' - #05

'The Wrath of Marcie' - #03

'Buy Nothing Day' - #23

 

Weeks on Chart - 59

 

Sneaking into the top 40 with the final chart of 2010, after The Go! Team released current single 'Buy Nothing Day', an entry at #23 pushed the band into my top 40 of all time. Often their songs are wonderful, lively instrumentals but they usually release their songs with Ninja's vocals as singles. 'Bottle Rocket' first grabbed my attention in 2005 and I grew to love it, placing it in my top 10 of the year, something which its parent album 'Thunder, Lightning, Strike' also achieved. Their second album 'Proof of Youth' was good but not as good, it still managed to produce three excellent top 5 singles. 'Buy Nothing Day' has got me excited for their 2011 third album.

http://mixing.dj/wp-content/uploads/2010/07/Pendulum.jpg

 

35. Pendulum (305 points)

 

 

'Tarantula' - #29

'Slam' - #03

'Voodoo People' (remix of The Prodigy) - #02

'Hold Your Colour' - #03

'Blood Sugar' - #08

'Granite' - #28

'Propane Nightmares' - #01

'Showdown' - #37

 

Weeks on Chart - 58

 

Pendulum have managed to go from one of my favourite bands to one which I couldn't really care less about. Their first album was excellent, if a little long, but as they put more vocals into their songs and moved away from their drum and bass sound, they got progressively worse and the brilliant 'Propane Nightmares' aside, have become awful. Still, their early singles are still fantastic and they managed to turn one of The Prodigy's best songs into something even better.

Great start and all solid acts. You've also reminded me just how much I miss the Long Blondes. They were great

http://soundcheck.ocregister.com/files/2008/11/hold_steady.jpg

 

34. The Hold Steady (306 points)

 

 

'Stuck Between Stations' - #01

'Chips Ahoy!' - #05

'Massive Nights' - #02

'Sequestered in Memphis' - #01

'Stay Positive' - #23

'Hurricane J' - #08

 

Weeks on Chart - 62

 

First introduced to me in 2007, The Hold Steady have gone on to become one of my favourite bands. Often described as bar-rock and with singer Craig Finn's very Springsteen-esque vocals, these aren't the type of band I'd usually enjoy that much, but each album they make comes with a few more anthems which never fail to please me.

http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_NTXgb1LzesI/SgIWL1FPnEI/AAAAAAAAA98/QsIJ65HeQEY/s400/little%20boots.jpg

 

33. Little Boots (308 points)

 

 

'Meddle' - #01

'Stuck on Repeat' - #04

'New in Town' (Fred Falke Remix) - #01

'Remedy' - #01

'Earthquake' - #01

 

Weeks on Chart - 64

 

POOR BRAVE BOOTS![/generic BuzzJack] I heard 'Meddle' and I bloody loved it, I downloaded everything else I could find by her and they were all even better, within 6 months she was announced as the Sound of 2009 and I'd become more than a little bit obsessed, she was surely going to be a massive success! Unfortunately that's when it all started to go wrong. Introductory single 'New in Town' was nice but dull, and was saved by the brilliant Fred Falke remix, and people seemed to have stopped caring by the time the utterly joyous 'Remedy' came out. Then it was time for her album, and unfortunately everything worth listening to was either 'Remedy' or had already been 'out there' for well in excess of 6 months and it became a pretty big flop. A new album is set to be released this year but I'm not sure I hold out much hope fot it. Still, she's responsible for 5 of the decade's most perfect pop songs so I can't complain too much. One of only two acts that have made the top 40 with as little as five singles.

http://gaygamer.net/images/scissor_sisters_join_in_some_g/scissorsistersgh3y.jpg

 

32. Scissor Sisters (311 points)

 

 

'Comfortably Numb' - #14

'Take Your Mama' - #07

'Laura' - #03

'Mary' - #13

'Filthy/Gorgeous' - #01

'I Don't Feel Like Dancing' - #01

'Kiss You Off' - #29

 

Weeks on Chart - 60

 

Another act who've gone from one I once thought were great to one I don't really care about much. Poppy, flamboyant and different, Scissor Sisters were much welcomed in 2004, but one album and one single was more than enough, thank you. Especially when utterly dull rubbish like 'Land of a Thousand Words' followed.

http://www.thefader.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/03/painsofbeing2.jpg

 

31. The Pains of Being Pure at Heart (313 points)

 

 

'Young Adult Friction' - #01

'Come Saturday' - #04

'Higher Than The Stars' - #02

'Say No to Love' - #01

'Heart In Your Heartbreak' - #04

 

Weeks on Chart - 77

 

Of all bands I've been introduced to in the last two years, I'm not sure I've become as excited about anyone as I have about the Pains of Being Pure at Heart. Hailing from New York, their sound was quite fresh when they emerged with the wonderful 'Young Adult Friction' in 2009, very twee and very shoegaze, they wouldn't have sounded out of place a couple of decades earlier. Fantastic melodies, catchy summery songs and two gorgeous voices from Kip Berman and Peggy Wang, their two standalone singles from last year have made 'Belong' my most anticipated album of the year.

 

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30. LCD Soundsystem (316 points)

 

 

'Daft Punk Is Playing At My House' - #11

'Disco Infiltrator' - #27

'Tribulations' - #36

'North American Scum' - #01

'All My Friends' - #03

'Someone Great' - #01

'Drunk Girls' - #27

'I Can Change' - #04

 

Weeks on Chart - 63

 

I first heard LCD Soundsystem on Zane Lowe's show on 2005 with his single 'Daft Punk Is Playing At My House', it was a good song that stuck in my head for a while but I never really paid any more attention to him until 'North American Scum' was released a couple of years later. In retrospect it wasn't number one worthy but it was the song that started my love affair with him as I dowloaded its parent album and he's now released two of my favourite albums of the past 5 years.

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29. Röyksopp (322 points)

 

 

'Only This Moment' - #02

'49 Percent' - #27

'What Else Is There?' - #01

'Beautiful Day Without You' - #29

'Happy Up Here' - #05

'The Girl & The Robot' - #01

'This Must Be It' - #13

 

Weeks on Chart - 78

 

I'd liked the singles from their 2001 debut 'Melody AM' so it was no surprise that their second album contained a couple of great singles, 'Only This Moment' seemed perfect for that summer and featuring the vocals of The Knife's Karin Dreijer Andersson, 'What Else Is There?' became their first number one and went on to stay on the chart for a week shy of half a year, only four songs have spent longer on the chart. Their 2009 return was also successful, spawning another long running number one in the form of 'The Girl and The Robot' as they and Robyn became the second and third acts to achieve two singles that stayed on my chart for in excess of 20 weeks, weirdly coming one week after Animal Collective became the first.

http://klap4music.com/images/foals.jpg

 

28. Foals (328 points)

 

 

'Mathletics' - #03

'Balloons' - #10

'Cassius' - #05

'Spanish Sahara' - #02

'This Orient' - #05

'Miami' - #31

'Blue Blood' - #04

 

Weeks on Chart - 64

 

Oxford's Foals are up next, as the singles from 2010's 'Total Life Forever' put them well into the top 40. It started out with 'Mathletics' in summer 2007 after 'Hummer' I'd unfortunately not discovered, their next singles were both good but not as good and after reading poor reviews for the album I decided not to bother with it. It proved to be a poor choice though as I bought it a year later and it turned out rather good, I'd have then known of the existence of both 'Red Socks Pugie' and 'Olympic Airways' which both would've been top 20 hits at least. Their 2010 output turned out to be much better though, with 'Spanish Sahara' just missing out on a number one spot it probably deserved.

http://www.musicomh.com/microsites/razorlight/razorlight.jpg

 

27. Razorlight (328 points)

 

 

'Stumble and Fall' - #26

'Golden Touch' - #02

'Vice' - #02

'Rip it Up' - #02

'Somewhere Else' - #05

'In the Morning' - #14

'America' - #18

'Before I Fall To Pieces' - #33

 

Razorlight, or Razor$h!te as they're sometimes called by some, were one of my favourite acts in 2004 who'd produced an excellent debut album. Three fantastic singles which all just fell short of the top 5 and another top 5 worthy single for the albums re-release. Then came their second album, Johnny Borrell had become more of an arrogant f***wit and their material only did so well for me because I tried to like it. It didn't take long for me to realise 'In the Morning' was rather average and that 'America' was actually utter rubbish. I couldn't care less about them now, but I do still enjoy listening to their debut album on occasion.

40. M.I.A. (Yes, before 2010)

39. The Killers (Meh)

38. The Long Blondes (Miss them)

37. Sugababes (Yes, before 2004)

36. The Go! Team (Meh)

35. Pendulum (No thank you)

34. The Hold Steady (No thank you)

33. Little Boots (Meh)

32. The Pains of Being Pure at Heart (YES)

31. LCD Soundsystem (YES)

30. Razorlight (No thank you)

 

Definitely some good choices so far!

http://news.bbc.co.uk/media/images/42054000/jpg/_42054688_mercury_guillemots_getty.jpg

 

26. Guillemots (339 points)

 

 

'We're Here' - #20

'Made Up Love Song #43' - #02

'Trains to Brazil' - #01

'Annie, Let's Not Wait' - #01

'Get Over It' - #03

'Falling Out of Reach' - #23

'Kriss Kross' - #03

 

Weeks on Chart - 60

 

I adored this band in 2005 and 2006, 'Made Up Love Song' and 'Trains to Brazil' being two of my favourite songs from that period, although both did better in my chart on their re-releases. Their second album was a decent effort but not as good, it had its excellent moments but there was a lot more filler than on their debut, I'd still definitely be interested in a third album though, it surely can't be as dull as Fyfe's solo effort was?

http://www.virginmedia.com/images/the-zutons-gal-vfest08.jpg

 

25. The Zutons (341 points)

 

 

'Pressure Point' - #04

'You Will, You Won't' - #06

'Remember Me' - #13

'Confusion' - #11

'Don't Ever Think Too Much' - #02

'Why Won't You Give Me Your Love' - #05

'Valerie' - #03

'Oh Stacey (Look What You've Done)' - #33

 

Weeks on Chart - 57

 

My reaction to The Zutons being number 25 on this can easily be summarised in one similey: :mellow:

 

NUMBER TWENTY-FIVE?! DEAR GOD. I don't even like them, I ddin't realise I ever had that much. No other act in my top 40 has spent as little time on my chart which I guess shows they made decent songs that I liked for a short time and then soon forgot about. Their biggest and longest running hit is 'Don't Ever Think Too Much'? I CAN'T EVEN REMEMBER HOW IT GOES! A quick search on my last.fm account taking account of the 56,833* songs I've listened to in the last 3 1/2 years shows that they're not in my top 500 listened to acts, I've not even listened to them a dozen times! MY HEAD IS HUNG IN SUITABLE SHAME!

 

*Correct at the time of writing.

http://blogs.dallasobserver.com/dc9/alg_los-campesinos.jpg

 

24. Los Campesinos! (342 points)

 

 

'You Throw Parties, We Throw Knives' - #04

'You! Me! Dancing! - #04

'The Interntaional Tweexcore Underground' - #01

'Death to Los Campesinos!' - #03

'My Year in Lists' - #02

'There Are Listed Buildings' - #21

'Romance is Boring' - #11

 

Weeks on Chart - 60

 

Ahh, that's a bit better, an act I actually like! I first discovered these at the beginning of 2007 and 'You! Me! Dancing!' became a quick favourite although I massively overplayed it when I first got it, they didn't disappoint afterwards with their albums either, their jangly, noisy pop songs making for throroughbly enjoyable listens. I gave their 2010 album another listen again recently, and it is better than I gave it credit, but the two singles released from it were very Los Campesinos!-by-numbers.