07 Fontaines D.C. - A Lucid Dream

Personal Chart Run: 32-22-20-16-10-06-05-02-01-01-02-04* (12 weeks)

 

 

Following up last years Dogrel, comfortably my favourite album of the year, so quickly wasn't something I'd anticipated, and from first listen of A Hero's Death this was easily the most instant and standout song, probably the most I've enjoyed frontman Grain's vocal.

 

Previous End of Year History:

Too Real - #58, 2019

Boys In The Better Land - #3, 2019

Televised Mind - #68, 2020

A Hero's Death - #40, 2020

Liberty Belle - #21, 2020

06 Arlo Parks - Black Dog

Personal Chart Run: 28-19-08-01-01-01-01-01-02-02-03-03-04-05-09-13-20-26-34-40 (20 weeks)

 

 

I'd begun to enjoy Arlo's tracks more with each release, from Sophie to Sangria with Easy Life and then Eugene, but none of those compared to the sheer beauty of Black Dog, it was immediately captivating with its lyrical content

 

Previous End of Year History:

Hurt - #85, 2020

Great to see Jon Hopkins/Kelly Lee Owens, Bicep (“Atlas”) and Arlo Parks in the Top 20!

 

I must admit, that Fontaines D.C. track was a bit clunky and one of my least favourites from the album unfortunately; “Televised Mind” on the other hand is a tune - one of my favourites from them. I also wasn't too keen on that Avalanches /Jamie xx collaboration sadly, and many of the singles from the new Avalanches album however “Music Makes Me High” and the new MGMT and Johnny Marr collaboration “The Divine Chord” made me check the album out and I'm glad I did as there is a lot more stuff on here than the disappointing singles.

'A Lucid Dream' is my 2nd favourite song from the Fontaines album - sounds very different to my other standout tracks but I think it manages to pull off the overly wordy hook without sounding clunky, the chorus almost sounds like it could be from an Arctic Monkeys song.

 

I'm hoping that I will be more into Arlo Parks in 2021, so far most of her singles have been in one ear and out the other for me but 'Caroline' is the first song from her that I am actually enjoying.

 

I discovered The Mysterines via Jade's personal chart and I think she in turn discovered them from your chart :lol: they've had a couple of solid tunes, 'I Win Every Time' made my top 40 as well. Kind of surprised you never sent anything by them to BJSC (yet?)

^ Haha yes, it was during January last year when new releases were dead so I was looking to charts for inspiration and the RFC chart lead me to 'Who's Ur Girl' - both that and 'I Win Every Time' are great *.* my absolute favourites so far:

 

98 Beyoncé - Black Parade *4* (Telephone (feat. Lady Gaga) - #1, 2010)

93 Lykke Li - BRON *4* (I'm Good, I'm Gone - #88, 2008)

88 Arctic Lake - Let You Down *1*

87 SAULT - Wildfires *1*

83 The Weeknd - In Your Eyes *1*

82 James Blake - Are You Even Real? *8* (Radio Silence - #12, 2016)

81 Bonobo - Heartbreak (feat. Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs) *1*/*3* (Body Move - #54, 2018)

76 Real Lies - Boss Trick *5* (The Checks - #4, 2018)

75 Amtrac - Radical (feat. Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs) *1*/*4* (Body Move - #54, 2018)

70 Jessie Ware - Save a Kiss *11* (Imagine It Was Us - #8, 2013)

67 Gorillaz - Aries (feat. Peter Hook and Georgia) *6*/*1*/*2* (Feel Good Inc. - #11, 2005), (About Work The Dancefloor - #31, 2019)

60 Bicep - Apricots *2*

55 James Blake - You're Too Precious *9* (Radio Silence - #12, 2016)

54 The Avalanches - Take Care In Your Dreaming (feat. Denzel Curry, Tricky & Sampa The Great) *1*/*1*/*1*/*2* (Final Form - #20, 2019)

53 The Weeknd - Blinding Lights *2*

52 SG Lewis - Impact (feat. Robyn & Channel Tres) *1*/*17*/*1* (With Every Heartbeat - #1, 2007)

51 Grimes - 4Æm *6* (Kill v. Maim - #31, 2016)

49 Mystery Jets - Pretty Drone *6* (Young Love - #5, 2008)

48 Doves - Carousels *8* (There Goes The Fear - #1, 2002)

47 JUTRØ - Substancja *1*

45 TSHA - Sister *1*

44 Gorillaz - Momentary Bliss (feat. Slowthai and Slaves) *7*/*2*/*8* (Feel Good Inc. - #11, 2005), (Chokehold - #11, 2018)

42 Jorja Smith - Rose Rouge *2* (Loose Ends - #6, 2019)

41 Purity Ring - Stardew *7* (25 Bucks - #2, 2014)

38 DMA's - Life is a Game of Changing *7* (For Now - #1, 2018)

24 London Grammar - Baby It's You *8* (Rooting For You - #10, 2017)

23 Christine and the Queens - I Disappear In Your Arms *4* (Jonathan - #14, 2015)

20 The Avalanches - Wherever You Go (feat. Jamie xx, Neneh Cherry & CLYPSO) *1*/*6*/*1*/*1* (Loud Places - #01, 2015)

17 Bicep - Saku (feat. Clara La San) *3*/*1*

16 DMA's - The Glow *8* (For Now - #1, 2018)

15 Páula, Povoa & Jerge - Primavera *1*

13 Jon Hopkins - Luminous Spaces (feat. Kelly Lee Owens) *4*/*1* (Breathe This Air (feat. Purity Ring) - #4, 2013)

12 Bicep - Atlas *4*

10 The Mysterines - I Win Every Time

07 Fontaines D.C. - A Lucid Dream

06 Arlo Parks - Black Dog

 

Oops what a wall of text :lol: but there's so much goodness here - looking forward to the top 5 ^_^

05 Lianne La Havas - Weird Fishes

Personal Chart Run: 27-14-06-02-02-02-03-04-05-07-09-10* (12 weeks)

 

 

I wasn't at all familiar with any of Lianne's work until this year, I think I'd seen her perform live a couple of times when she first emerged and decided her music wasn't really my thing, which at the time was probably fair. I thought I'd check out the single she was promoting after I'd enjoyed her vocals on Twenty Second Century with Paul Epworth, Weird Fishes.

 

I've never been much into Radiohead so had no idea it was cover (I've listened a few times now and I'd definitely rank it towards the top of what I know of theirs), and I begun listening to Lianne's version with huge regularity as it kept growing on me and it stormed up my chart quicker than most songs, and I've not listened to anyone as much over the last few weeks as I've begun to check out more of her work. The live recording in the video is even better, and it's a great cover version in that it's different from, and adds something new to the original version - the breakdown and pick up in pace toward the end is stunning, and her voice is incredible on it.

 

04 Working Men's Club - Valleys

Personal Chart Run: 34-27-20-17-12-07-05-02-01-02-02-03-05-07-10-19-25-32-39 (19 weeks)

 

 

Completing 4/4 2020 releases making this chart, Working Men's Club are easily my favourite new act that I've known about since close to the beginning in quite some time. Teeth was a good warm-up single last year but they kept improving on that peaking with Valleys, 6 1/2 minutes of synths that only ever seems like three.

 

Previous End of Year History:

A.A.A.A - #84, 2020

John Cooper Clarke - #43, 2020

White Rooms and People - #25, 2020

03 Phoebe Bridgers - Kyoto

Personal Chart Run: 37-31-24-17-13-13-11-05-02-02-02-04-04-07-10-14-19-23-30-35-40 (21 weeks)

 

 

I was very late to the Phoebe Bridgers party, can't say I'd heard about her until the stories of her and Ryan Adams last year which made me listen to Motion Sickness, the song she'd written about their relationship. Enjoying it had made me check out new releases this year, the second of which was Kyoto. It took a while to fully grow and required the album Punisher before I really begun to appreciate it, by far the most catchiest and most commercial song on it, but that doesn't take away any of its quality, the strings on it are just divine and it

of it are equally great. Unfortunately, didn't reach chart #1 stuck behind Black Dog for three weeks in the summer.

 

Previous End of Year History:

Miracle of Life (feat. Bright Eyes) - #89, 2020

ICU - #62, 2020

Nice to see Ten Girls in your Top 10, even better to see Skin & Bone in your Top 40 as that was by far my favourite of your BJSC entries this year and will be appearing somewhere in my EOY as well.

 

Giving Weird Fishes a listen, I have to say I don't know how to describe it really! It's experimental but on the good side of experimental, the last two minutes of the song are my favourite with the guitar taking the lead.

Lianne La Havas' Radiohead cover is amazing (Weird Fishes/Arpeggi), but the whole album, which is oddly self-titled for a 3rd release, is really strong - it describes the rather tumultuous spell in her personal life during the 5 year gap between studio albums and compares the natural life-cycle of nature to that through which a relationship develops..

Obviously I think “Valleys” is fantastic - reminds me of New Order and even has the electronic breakdown and structure I would associate with early 1990s rave tracks - very interesting track and a great band too from giving their debut LP a listen. I think it will be great hopefully seeing them live later this year and supporting New Order too, match made in heaven.

“Kyoto” was my favourite of the Phoebe Bridgers singles out this year too but I loved all 3, think that the album will go down to be a classic of the decade.

02 Taylor Swift - Exile (feat. Bon Iver)

Personal Chart Run: 13-02-01-01-01-01-01-03-06-08-10-14-20-26-31-35-39-40 (16 weeks)

 

 

Being a huge fan of Bon Iver's early work, but being able to get into very little of their more electronic recent material, the news of a collaboration with Taylor Swift, produced by Aaron Dessner and on a folk inspired album, made me anticipate this hugely, it's rare I seek out songs immediately when they come out, but I made an exception for this even being on holiday, and it didn't disappoint. I spent a couple of months being utterly obsessed by what is a perfect song, the two vocalists complement each other so well and lyrically it's stunning. Taylor went on to be one of my most listened to acts of the year, and I'd be quite content disliking everything Bon Iver going to put out after they've given me this. There haven't been many years where I'd have ranked my top song as highly as I do Exile, probably 3 of the previous decade, so unlucky really to only end up at #2.

 

Previous End of Year History (Bon Iver):

Blood Bank - #46, 2009

Calgary - #48, 2011

Holocene - #1, 2011

Friends (feat. Francis and the Lights) - #14, 2016

Take Me To The Light (feat. Francis and The Lights & Kanye West) - #91, 2019

01 Phoebe Bridgers - I Know The End

Personal Chart Run - 32-18-10-03-01-01-01-01-01-01-02-03-05-07-07* (15 weeks)

 

 

Phoebe Bridgers doesn't quite join The Libertines in 2003 and Animal Collective in 2009 in getting 1-2's, but does join them in becoming only the third act to have 2 songs in the same year end top 5, as I Know The End tops it. Early on it was quite easily an album highlight and an album track I was listening to more than I often would, but its release as a single and great video made me appreciate it so much more as my obsession continued to develop. It's a song so easy to get lost in, again she sings it beautifully and it's backed up by a huge band and backing vocalists, it begins as stunning ballad before gradually building up into an incredible crescendo outro, included as Punisher's closing song it'd be impossible to follow.

 

Previous End of Year History:

Miracle of Life (feat. Bright Eyes) - #89, 2020

ICU - #62, 2020

Kyoto - #3, 2020

Full List:

100 Temples - Paraphernalia

99 Brittany Howard - Georgia

98 Beyoncé - Black Parade

97 Liela Moss - Atoms at Me

96 I Break Horses - Neon Lights

95 Dua Saleh - Umbrellar

94 The Naked and Famous - Death

93 Lykke Li - BRON

92 Egoism - You You

91 Dream Wife - Hasta La Vista

 

90 POLIÇA - Forget Me Now

89 Bright Eyes - Miracle of Life (feat. Phoebe Bridgers)

88 Arctic Lake - Let You Down

87 SAULT - Wildfires

86 Sarah Carton - Beaches On The Thames

85 Arlo Parks - Hurt

84 Working Men's Club - A.A.A.A.

83 Weeknd - In Your Eyes

82 James Blake - Are You Even Real?

81 Bonobo - Heartbreak (feat. Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs)

 

80 Maverick Sabre - Signs

79 Haarm - Take Me Away

78 Blaze - Somewhere (feat. Octavian)

77 Hurtsfall - 12 Long Years

76 Real Lies - Boss Trick

75 Amtrac - Radical (feat. Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs)

74 Porridge Radio - Sweet

73 Another Sky - Fell In Love With The City

72 HAIM - Don't Wanna

71 For Those I Love - I Have a Love

 

70 Jessie Ware - Save a Kiss

69 clipping. - 96 Neve Campbell (feat. Cam & China)

68 Fontaines D.C. - Televised Mind

67 Gorillaz - Aries (feat. Peter Hook and Georgia)

66 Dream Wife - Sports!

65 Charli XCX - I Finally Understand

64 Miss June - Orchid

63 Mallrat - Charlie

62 Phoebe Bridgers - ICU

61 Dizzy - Roman Candles

 

60 Bicep - Apricots

59 Cub Sport - Break Me Down (feat. Mallrat)

58 EOB - Olympik

57 Marika Hackman - Blow (Rosa Let's Eat Grandma Re-Work)

56 Islet - Geese

55 James Blake - You're Too Precious

54 The Avalanches - Take Care In Your Dreaming (feat. Denzel Curry, Tricky & Sampa The Great)

53 The Weeknd - Blinding Lights

52 SG Lewis - Impact (feat. Robyn & Channel Tres)

51 Grimes - 4Æm

 

50 Bronson - Dawn (feat. Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs)

49 Mystery Jets - Pretty Drone

48 Doves - Carousels

47 JUTRØ - Substancja

46 Mura Masa - Teenage Headache Dreams (feat. Ellie Rowsell)

45 TSHA - Sister

44 Gorillaz - Momentary Bliss (feat. Slowthai and Slaves)

43 Working Men's Club - John Cooper Clarke

42 Jorja Smith - Rose Rouge

41 Purity Ring - Stardew

 

40 Fontaines D.C. - A Hero's Death

39 Angels & Airwaves - All That's Left Is Love

38 DMA's - Life is a Game of Changing

37 Psychic Markers - Clouds

36 Berwyn - Glory

35 Little Simz - Might Bang, Might Not

34 Aly & Fila - Somebody Loves You (feat. Plumb)

33 Julien Baker - Faith Healer

32 Dizzy - Beatrice

31 Ellis - Shame

 

30 Coach Party - Breakdown

29 Poppy Ajudha - Watermelon Man (Under The Sun)

28 I Break Horses - Death Engine

27 Caribou - Never Come Back

26 Zuzu - What You Want

25 Working Men's Club - White Rooms and People

24 London Grammar - Baby It's You

23 Christine and the Queens - I Disappear In Your Arms

22 Zuzu - Skin and Bone

21 Fontaines D.C. - Liberty Belle

 

20 The Avalanches - Wherever You Go (feat. Jamie xx, Neneh Cherry & CLYPSO)

19 The Big Moon - Take a Piece

18 Courteeners - Hanging Off Your Cloud

17 Bicep - Saku (feat. Clara La San)

16 DMA's - The Glow

15 Páula, Povoa & Jerge - Primavera

14 Eve Owen - She Says

13 Jon Hopkins - Luminous Spaces (feat. Kelly Lee Owens)

12 Bicep - Atlas

11 The Orielles - Space Samba (Disco Volador Theme)

 

10 The Mysterines - I Win Every Time

09 Circe - Ten Girls

08 The Mysterines - Love's Not Enough

07 Fontaines D.C. - A Lucid Dream

06 Arlo Parks - Black Dog

05 Lianne La Havas - Weird Fishes

04 Working Men's Club - Valleys

03 Phoebe Bridgers - Kyoto

02 Taylor Swift - Exile (feat. Bon Iver)

01 Phoebe Bridgers - I Know The End

 

And just because I recorded some form of rankings for all songs, these were the songs between 200-101, not ordered but the 15 songs with * were the closest to top 100:

The 1975 - If You're Too Shy (Let Me Know)

Actress - Walking Flames (feat. Sampha)

The Airborne Toxic Event - Hollywood Park

The Airborne Toxic Event - Come On Out

Alice Glass - NIGHTMARES

Arlo Parks - Caroline

Arlo Parks - Eugene

Arxx - Call Me Crazy

Baths - Tropic Laurel

bdrmm - Gush

Be Charlotte - Set Somebody Free

Beabadoobee - Worth It

The Big Moon - Your Light (Fern Ford Remix)

The Big Moon - Why

Billy Nomates - Hippy Elite

The Blinders - Mule Track

Blood Red Shoes - Back From The Dead (feat. JLX)

Blood Red Shoes - Eye To Eye - Alt Version

Blossoms - The Less I Know the Better - In Isolation (feat. Miles Kane)

Bombay Bicycle Club - Is It Real

Bronson - Heart Attack (feat. lau.ra)

Buzzard Buzzard Buzzard - John Lennon Is My Jesus Christ (feat. Lia Metcalfe)

Charli XCX - Forever

Circe - Dancer

clipping. - Chapter 319

*clipping. - Say The Name

Coach Party - Space

Courteeners - Better Man

Diiv - The Spark

Dizzy - The Magician

DMA's - Criminals

Doves - Prisoners

Dua Lipa - Hallucinate

*Easy Life - Dead Celebrities

*Ejeca - Ekstac

Ellis - Saturn Return (Dizzy Remix)

Everything Everything - Violent Sun

Four Tet - Baby

Fred Again… - Marnie (Wish I Had You)

Fred Again… - Julia (Deep Diving)

Frida Sundemo - Anything

*Georgia - 24 Hours

Georgie - Company

*Gerry Cinnamon - Where We're Going

*The Go! Team - Cookie Scene

Hayley Ross - Come Back (N-Joi Remix)

*HEALTH - Delicious Ape (feat. Xiu Xiu)

IDLES - Mr. Motivator

IDLES - Model Village

*IDLES - A Hymn

James Blake - Before

Jamie xx - Idontknow

*The Japanese House - Dionne (feat. Justin Vernon)

Jessie Ware - Spotlight

Jim-E Stack - Note to Self (feat. Empress Of)

Jonsi - Salt Licorice (feat. Robyn)

Jordan Rakei - Wind Parade

Jorja Smith - Come Over (feat. Popcaan)

Khruangbin - Pelota

*Khruangbin - Time (You & I)

Kölsch - Pause (feat. Beacon)

LA Priest - Beginning (Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs Remix)

Lane 8 - Road (feat. Arctic Lake)

*Lauran Hibberd - Old Nudes

Lawrence Rothman - SkindeepSkyhighHeartwide (feat. Pale Waves)

*Liz Lawrence - Hope (Or Something Like It)

London Grammar - Californian Soil

Loyle Carner - Yesterday

Lucy Rose - White Car

Luke Sital-Singh - Almost Home

MarthaGunn - It's Over

Michael Kiwanuka - Light

Minuit Machine - Don't Run From The Fire

Mystery Jets - A Billion Heartbeats

Never Not Nothing - Ritual Destruction

Nocturnal Sunshine - Gravity (feat. Ry X)

The Orielles - Bobbi's Second World (Confidence Man Remix)

*OTHERLiiNE - One Line

Paul Epworth - Twenty Second Century (feat. Lianne La Havas)

Páula, Povoa & Jerge - Sua Boca

Porridge Radio - Good For You (feat. Lala Lala)

Powfu - Death Bed (Coffee For Your Head) (feat. Beabadoobee)

Prospa - The Thrill

Purity Ring - Peacefall

Real Lies - Birds

Rebecca & Fiona - Fet House Mode

Rett Smith - Better Day

*Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever - Cars In Space

Romy - Lifetime

SAULT - Free

Shygirl - Freak

The Streets - Call My Phone Thinking I'm Doing Nothing Better (feat. Tame Impala)

Sufjan Stevens - Sugar

Sufjan Stevens - Video Game

Tame Impala - Lost In Yesterday

Tame Impala - Is It True

Taylor Swift - Cardigan

Temno - What You Left Behind

TRAAMS - The Greyhound

TSHA - Change (feat. Gabrielle Alpin)

 

Great to see Jon Hopkins/Kelly Lee Owens, Bicep (“Atlas”) and Arlo Parks in the Top 20!

 

I must admit, that Fontaines D.C. track was a bit clunky and one of my least favourites from the album unfortunately; “Televised Mind” on the other hand is a tune - one of my favourites from them. I also wasn't too keen on that Avalanches /Jamie xx collaboration sadly, and many of the singles from the new Avalanches album however “Music Makes Me High” and the new MGMT and Johnny Marr collaboration “The Divine Chord” made me check the album out and I'm glad I did as there is a lot more stuff on here than the disappointing singles.

 

Lianne La Havas' Radiohead cover is amazing (Weird Fishes/Arpeggi), but the whole album, which is oddly self-titled for a 3rd release, is really strong - it describes the rather tumultuous spell in her personal life during the 5 year gap between studio albums and compares the natural life-cycle of nature to that through which a relationship develops..

Obviously I think “Valleys” is fantastic - reminds me of New Order and even has the electronic breakdown and structure I would associate with early 1990s rave tracks - very interesting track and a great band too from giving their debut LP a listen. I think it will be great hopefully seeing them live later this year and supporting New Order too, match made in heaven.

“Kyoto” was my favourite of the Phoebe Bridgers singles out this year too but I loved all 3, think that the album will go down to be a classic of the decade.

 

 

Thanks Dr B. Those are two of the Avalanches songs I've heard from this that I don't mind, and The Divine Chord is currently on my playlist of new songs. Lianne's album is great, I gave it a couple of listens and thought it was great, then was tempted in by the pretty mint green vinyl to buy it, which if I remember from the vinyl thread you have too - I have begun to listen to some of her older stuff too, though mainly been the singles.

 

Yeah agree on all that with WMC, can definitely tell they've been heavily influenced by a lot of music from that era. The album works so well as a whole, remains interesting and varied throughout.

Nice to see Ten Girls in your Top 10, even better to see Skin & Bone in your Top 40 as that was by far my favourite of your BJSC entries this year and will be appearing somewhere in my EOY as well.

 

Giving Weird Fishes a listen, I have to say I don't know how to describe it really! It's experimental but on the good side of experimental, the last two minutes of the song are my favourite with the guitar taking the lead.

Thanks Pete. It's been good to have you voting for a few of my tracks this year, always good to introduce people to little known music and I love both of those tracks, was pleasantly surprised at how well Zuzu did but was thinking Ten Girls may have been better received.

 

Yeah I love the last two minutes of Weird Fishes when it ramps up some more, definitely gets better as it continues.

'A Lucid Dream' is my 2nd favourite song from the Fontaines album - sounds very different to my other standout tracks but I think it manages to pull off the overly wordy hook without sounding clunky, the chorus almost sounds like it could be from an Arctic Monkeys song.

 

I'm hoping that I will be more into Arlo Parks in 2021, so far most of her singles have been in one ear and out the other for me but 'Caroline' is the first song from her that I am actually enjoying.

 

I discovered The Mysterines via Jade's personal chart and I think she in turn discovered them from your chart :lol: they've had a couple of solid tunes, 'I Win Every Time' made my top 40 as well. Kind of surprised you never sent anything by them to BJSC (yet?)

 

Caroline is growing on me, but I'm probably the opposite and rank it 4th of the 5 I've heard from it. I had considered The Mysterines and Take Control has been in the back of my mind to send to something if I've not get anything recent which I don't seem to get out of the habit of sending something new that I'm currently loving. If there had been less of a gap between 125 & 126 I might have sent I Win Every Time, but I genuinely thought Clouds had a chance of doing well which I got quite wrong!

 

^ Haha yes, it was during January last year when new releases were dead so I was looking to charts for inspiration and the RFC chart lead me to 'Who's Ur Girl' - both that and 'I Win Every Time' are great *.* my absolute favourites so far:

 

Thanks Jade, glad you like so many. ^_^ Pleasing to know that I've been able to introduce the Mysterines even without sending them anywhere, I do like Who's Ur Girl? but never clicked with me quite as much as the songs that follow. I do sometimes look at other people's personal charts for inspiration, I'm fairly sure I got the Machinedrum & Sub Focus from yours relatively recently.