16. Lilit Hovhanissyan - Armenian Girl

17. Jessie J/Ariana Grande/Nicki Minaj - Bang Bang

18. Marina & The Diamonds - Froot

19. Neon Jungle - Braveheart

20. The Common Linnets - Calm After The Storm

 

Two songs immediately stand out from this section and they really couldn't be further apart. As discussed previously, The Common Linnets this time nine months ago had been written off as another one in a long line of admirable eurovision flops that do their three minutes on stage and are never heard from again. And yet on the back of a song and performance so subtle yet powerful they were suddenly propelled to second place, #9 in the UK charts and international critical praise and recognition.

 

On the other hand, Armenian Girl. I have long since exhausted myself on why you're all wrong and that song is brilliant to the point that any adittional ramblings here are completely unneccesary.

 

Also here is the better of 2014's two songs essentially about pop stars doing some lesbianism, a taste of what promises to be the album of 2015 - FROOT *.* and a song featuring a rap about salad ingredients. Woo 2014!

11. Sanna Nielsen - Undo

12. Alesso feat. Tove Lo - Heroes

13. Kiesza - No Enemiesz

14. Cher Lloyd - Sirens

15. Ace Wilder - Busy Doin' Nothing

 

11-15 is the "surprises" section. When I first got wind of many of these songs, my thoughts were generally along the lines of 'meh' or 'that'll never catch on' and by and large they all subverted those expectations. Busy Doin Nothing turned out to be an anthem of a generation, Sirens was a gorgeous ballad rich with emotions, No Enemiesz was a JAYUM and Heroes was nowhere near as derivative as it could have turned out to be.

 

Notable exception to this rule, of course, is the track narrowly missing out on the top 10 - the eternally angelic Sanna Nielsen with "Undo" (the UK Top 40 smash lest we forget)

 

So yeah, top 10 starts tomorrow! We are finally approaching the end of this EOY only three or four people care about.

A big fat massive YES to both 'Undo' and 'Busy Doin' Nothin' *.*

10. La Roux - Sexotheque

 

 

Pretty much everything I said about 'Trouble In Paradise' applies to this song in a big way. What works most about it is the juxtaposition of chirpy 2007-esque indie pop riffs over the dark subject matter of someone having it off in a darkroom. Tragically there was no video made for this but we can all dream can't we?

9. Ariana Grande - One Last Time

 

 

Let's talk about Ariana Grande shall we? This time last year the only vague sense of her I had was that of another run of the mill kids TV star being groomed into making derrivative run of the mill music. But to my surprise, she's proven me wrong. She's almost become the muse for producers like David Guetta and Zedd which has lead to the creation of some of the best quasi Gay Anthems of the decade so far. This one in particular is what, in Lex's perfect orld, dance music should sound like. Brava!

 

8. Charli XCX - Boom Clap

 

 

And now an opportunity for me to talk shit about books. The Fault In Our Stars is so powerful in it's emotional register that it makes even an ice queen like me start sobbing. So admittedly this song is this high up partially because of when it starts playing over those credits but even on its own and outside of those contexts it's a thoroughly good pop song. And who'd have thought it, Charli XCX getting two actual hits to her own name in 2014. There's hope for all you burgeoning blogpop faves (even you Florrie).

DOUBLE POST COMIN ATCHA

 

7. Katy B - Crying For No Reason

 

 

'Crying at the discotheque' is a trope of forum fave music that has been often attempted but seldom fully realised, Katy B's career peak is one of those fully realised cases, especially in the video (seriously with that video and stage show setup you can tell she has eurovision in her DNA). Excellent

 

6. Taylor Swift - Shake It Off

 

 

Undoubtedly one of the most overplayed songs of 2014 but if you step back from everything surrounding it, there's one thing especially apparent here. Taylor Swift (or her writers) know how to write a hook, to the point where the whole song is essentially a hook that lasts for three and a half minutes

Top 5 comin atcha in full momentarily

5. Ella Henderson - Ghost

4. Iggy Azaelia ft Charli XCX - Fancy

3. G.R.L - Ugly Heart

 

(IDK if it's politically correct to say you like an Igloo Australia song but I cannot deny that hook!)

 

 

 

 

so guys, it's SIA versus CLEAN BANDIT for the crown...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2. Sia - Chandelier

1. Clean Bandit ft Jess Glynne - Rather Be

 

Appologies for both the seadily decreasing effort levels and mainstream overloading at the top of this list but f*** it I just want this finished. Full list coming soon (after I've done a copy and paste job).

a great top 2~ glad to also see Sexotheque in the top 10, and the likes of No Enemiesz, Busy Doin' Nothin' & Calm After The Storm top 20

 

Hiya Lex,

 

Great stuff here! Good start to the top 10 with 'Sexotechque' which was only introduced to me recently through TOTP! Epic number one, definitely one of my favourites of the year too!