Jadaver

Happy to have ended on a high for you! I've just reminded myself of the Desire... track list and wow, it's stacked. I've just remembered the existence of the deluxe as well and I also loved 'Spring Is Coming With A Strawberry In The Mouth' and 'Coma' from that in particular. I did a Chairlift deep dive and one thing that stuck with me was them having a song called 'Le Flying Saucer Hat', what a title Oh I'm thrilled to hear that 'Widow' was a good discovery for you!! 🥰 I'd highly recommend the accompanying album Fear Fear, I remember trying to put together a list of favourite albums from the year at the time and had that second only behind ROSALÍA's MOTOMAMI. Good to hear you like plenty of the honourable mentions too <3 quite a few of those have song contest connections for me: I sent 'Cry For Me' to the Pop Forum Song Contest's 'Best of the Year' type contest, where the rules are more relaxed (and got to hear it live last year as Mag Bay supported Billie Eilish on my tour date 🤩), Men I Trust's 'Lauren' was my first Nuggets entry back in the day (and a debut win, I won twice in a row and then never again since ) and finally, 'choke enough' was my first BJSC entry of last year and finished 10th, not too shabby. I really appreciated you commenting each time I posted a new section so thank you for keeping me company in here and for the kind words <3 delighted you enjoyed following so much.

Jadakissnia have voted nice and early! Thought that was a great final. It probably helps that all my SF2 votes made it but there were certainly some gems from SF1 as well.

and finally... a couple of extras!! I created a recap video with 20 second clips of every song in my countdown if you want to travel through time for 20 mins: and here's a Spotify playlist of all the songs (hopefully can be imported to other platforms too): Phew! All that's left to say is thank youuuu so much to everyone who commented along, reacted to my posts or just admired from afar - it's all so appreciated. 🥰 revisiting these songs and crafting essays about them was an enjoyable challenge, plus great escapism. It was fun interacting with you all too. I'm so chuffed I actually managed to complete this and to the timeline I set out as well. Yay for having a definitive playlist of my all-time favourites now. Hope you've enjoyed. ❤️

ALL of the top 10 lists in one place... 1960s TOP 10 RECAP #01 The Ronettes - 'Be My Baby' (1963) #02 The Beatles - 'Tomorrow Never Knows' (1966) #03 The Mamas & The Papas - 'California Dreamin’ (1965) #04 The Animals - 'The House of the Rising Sun' (1964) #05 Ben E. King - 'Stand By Me' (1961) #06 Procol Harum - 'A Whiter Shade of Pale' (1967) #07 The Rolling Stones - 'Paint It, Black' (1966) #08 The Beach Boys - 'God Only Knows' (1966) #09 The Doors - 'Light My Fire' (1967) #10 The Velvet Underground & Nico - 'Venus In Furs' (1967) 1970s TOP 10 RECAP #01 Kraftwerk - 'The Model' (1978) #02 Tubeway Army - 'Are ‘Friends’ Electric?' (1979) #03 Donna Summer - 'I Feel Love' (1977) #04 David Bowie - 'Life on Mars?' (1971) #05 Derek & The Dominos - 'Layla' (1970) #06 Kate Bush - 'Wuthering Heights' (1978) #07 Blondie - 'Heart of Glass' (1978) #08 Pink Floyd - 'Another Brick in the Wall, Pt. 2' (1979) #09 Serge Gainsbourg - 'Cargo culte' (1971) #10 Blue Öyster Cult - '(Don’t Fear) The Reaper' (1976) 1980s TOP 10 RECAP #01 Visage - 'Fade to Grey' (1980) #02 Joy Division - 'Love Will Tear Us Apart' (1980) #03 New Order - 'Blue Monday' (1983) #04 Ultravox - 'Vienna' (1980) #05 The Jam - 'Going Underground' (1980) #06 Prince and the Revolution - 'When Doves Cry' (1984) #07 Frankie Goes To Hollywood - 'Two Tribes' (1984) #08 Pet Shop Boys - 'West End Girls' (1985) #09 The Primitives - 'Crash' (1988) #10 ABBA - 'Lay All Your Love On Me' (1980) 1990s TOP 10 RECAP #01 Depeche Mode - 'Enjoy the Silence' (1990) #02 Madonna - 'Frozen' (1998) #03 Fatboy Slim - 'Right Here, Right Now' (1998) #04 Radiohead - 'No Surprises' (1997) #05 Massive Attack - 'Unfinished Sympathy' (1991) #06 White Town - 'Your Woman' (1996) #07 Oasis - 'Live Forever' (1994) #08 Spice Girls - 'Viva Forever' (1997) #09 Underworld - 'Born Slippy .NUXX' (1995) #10 Air - 'Sexy Boy' (1998) 2000s TOP 10 RECAP #01 Roger Sanchez - 'Another Chance' (2001) #02 Gorillaz - 'Feel Good Inc.' (2005) #03 All Saints - 'Pure Shores' (2000) #04 Lady Gaga - 'Bad Romance' (2009) #05 Britney Spears - 'Toxic' (2003) #06 The Bravery - 'An Honest Mistake' (2005) #07 My Chemical Romance - 'Welcome to the Black Parade' (2006) #08 Tomcraft - 'Loneliness' (2002) #09 Sigur Rós - 'Hoppípolla' (2005) #10 Alizée - 'Moi… Lolita' (2000) 2010s TOP 10 RECAP #01 Frank Ocean - 'Pyramids' (2012) #02 Bombay Bicycle Club - 'Luna' (2014) #03 Gotye - 'Somebody That I Used To Know' (feat. Kimbra) (2011) #04 Lana Del Rey - 'Ride' (2012) #05 Lorde - 'Ribs' (2013) #06 Hozier - 'Take Me To Church' (2013) #07 Vitalic feat. David Shaw and The Beat - 'Waiting For The Stars' (2016) #08 Billie Eilish - 'when the party’s over' (2018) #09 Ariana Grande - 'no tears left to cry' (2018) #10 Drab Majesty - 'Ellipsis' (2019) 2020s TOP 10 RECAP #01 Working Men's Club - 'Widow' (2022) #02 Caroline Polachek - 'Billions' (2022) #03 Wolf Alice - 'The Last Man On Earth' (2021) #04 Dua Lipa - 'Physical' (2020) #05 The Weeknd & Ariana Grande - 'Save Your Tears (Remix)' (2021) #06 Addison Rae - 'Headphones On' (2025) #07 SZA - 'Good Days' (2020) #08 FKA twigs - 'Eusexua' (2024) #09 Heartworms - 'Retributions Of An Awful Life' (2023) #10 Metric - 'Doomscroller' (2022)

2020s TOP 10 RECAP #01 Working Men's Club - 'Widow' (2022) #02 Caroline Polachek - 'Billions' (2022) #03 Wolf Alice - 'The Last Man On Earth' (2021) #04 Dua Lipa - 'Physical' (2020) #05 The Weeknd & Ariana Grande - 'Save Your Tears (Remix)' (2021) #06 Addison Rae - 'Headphones On' (2025) #07 SZA - 'Good Days' (2020) #08 FKA twigs - 'Eusexua' (2024) #09 Heartworms - 'Retributions Of An Awful Life' (2023) #10 Metric - 'Doomscroller' (2022) Honourable mentions: Taylor Swift & Bon Iver - exile, ROSALÍA - Dolerme (she feels like such a notable omission and would undoubtably smash an albums equivalent), Miley Cyrus - Midnight Sky, Måneskin - ZITTI E BUONI, Mitski - The Only Heartbreaker, Shygirl - Cleo, Little Simz - Introvert, Dave - In The Fire (another artist who would be right up there for a 2020s albums list), Peggy Gou - I Go, Gabe Gurnsey - Push, Röyksopp - Oh, Lover (feat. Susanne Sundfør), Vandal Moon - Queen of the Night, Temples - Cicada, Men I Trust - Ring of Past, Confidence Man x Daniel Avery - On & On (Again), bar italia - Nurse!, Yves Tumor - God Is A Circle, Charli xcx - Sympathy is a Knife, Chappell Roan - Good Luck, Babe!, Vampire Weekend - Capricorn, Magdalena Bay - Cry for Me, Fontaines D.C. - Starburster (another particular notable omission... this came close), The Horrors - The Silence That Remains, Everything Everything - Cold Reactor, Twin Tribes - Monolith, Ethel Cain - Nettles (the very last song I cut... a strong second favourite of 2025), Ela Minus - QQQQ, Oklou - choke enough & PinkPantheress - Stateside amongst others... <3

2020s #02 Caroline Polachek - 'Billions' (2022) #01 Working Men's Club - 'Widow' (2022) I've come a long way with my runner-up of the decade so far! 'Billions' was released as the second single from Caroline Polachek's Desire, I Want to Turn Into You album. Shockingly, this song went over my head at first. But I decided to revisit it after falling in love with a later single from the same campaign, 'Welcome to My Island'. This time, aided by the music video, it suddenly clicked and has blossomed into a song I truly adore now. I can't believe I ever felt underwhelmed by it, not sure what past me was thinking. I first discovered Caroline as part of the group Chairlift when their song 'Bruises' was used in an iPod advert. I remember them also cropping up in BJSC during my early days of competing, with 'Moth To The Flame'. Pang, the first album released under Caroline's own name, arrived in 2019 and was also represented in BJSC, via 'Ocean Of Tears'. In time, 'So Hot You're Hurting My Feelings' from that album has become one of her very best songs for me. However, follow-up record Desire, I Want to Turn Into You caught my attention even more, to the point of classing it AOTY for 2023. I might have needed a bit of time with 'Billions' but it has endured as my crème de la crème from a pretty flawless track list. 'Billions' is very much my thing on paper with its trip-hop production. I couldn't resist Danny L Harle's magic touch in the end. Caroline effectively illustrates thoughts about the "overabundance in the world" through the lens of Greco-Roman mythology. The lyrics are delightfully quirky and a thrill throughout, from "sexting sonnets under the table" to "twisted, manic, Cornucopeiac" - so her. Polachek's ever distinctive vocal delivery is also a huge selling point. I use this phrase a lot, but the shift to her lower register complete with elongated note during "...but it's dead on arrival, ohhhhh" truly scratches an itch in my brain. The choral finish is a beautiful touch too. The aforementioned music video, that helped the song properly pop for me, is a visual feast with the mystical presence of grape-crusher Polachek. Caroline is yet to achieve any top 40 hits but the accompanying album managed a #23 peak. ... Rounding off my 2020s (so far) countdown is an act who are currently #1 in my weekly personal chart with an entirely different song ('Devout') so they're clearly having a brilliant decade so far! This is Working Men's Club, who released a wonderful self-titled debut album back in 2020 ('Valleys' from it was sent to BJSC), then followed it with a sophomore record that had me in a chokehold during 2022. 'Widow' was released as the lead single from that album, Fear Fear. This song initially debuted at #9 in my weekly personal chart, but swiftly turned into a juggernaut and spent an eye-watering 11 non-consecutive weeks at #1 there. It also claimed an emphatic victory in my 2022 EOY countdown. My love for 'Widow' has evidently not waned one bit! I was attracted to this song as it sounded like a modern update on the likes of Depeche Mode or Gary Numan, a dark synth sound that is always up my street. A song with a title like 'Widow' is naturally about grief, as lead singer Syd Minsky-Sargeant was inspired to write it after a random encounter with a stranger who had lost their partner. It is also about isolation in general, which felt particularly relevant at the time, while the Covid pandemic was a not-so-distant memory. Four years have passed since the release of 'Widow' but the subject matter continues to hit nevertheless. I appreciate how dark the lyrics can be, e.g. "look into my eyes, hollow dead inside", yet the pulsating '80s synth pop backing is so upbeat, complete with infectious keyboard line. The "lust was easy, until you died, now I f*** inside my head and not outside" chorus lines particularly stick out as shockingly ingenious and ever so hooky. Syd Minsky-Sargeant has such a captivating, deadpan vocal style that feels wise beyond his years. I still can't get over that he was only about 17 on their debut album, so maybe 19 here?! Sadly this song was left off the group's Glastonbury set, when they performed in 2023, but it was still great and introduced me to Syd's quirky dance moves. 'Widow' wasn't a hit but the accompanying album did manage a #11 peak. Bring on a top 10 result for album #3 whenever that materialises! So... the gold medal hall of fame is complete. Congrats to: The Ronettes, Kraftwerk, Visage, Depeche Mode, Roger Sanchez, Frank Ocean + Working Men's Club. 🥇

Spotify has updated! 33 Fontaines D.C. & ROSALÍA - Where Is Gone? 🖤 I assume it'll be the focus track for their new album in a couple of days

Entered as answers came to mind straight away for all of these! Love a Family Fortunes round.

3/3 could not be more excited for this album <3

Favourite: the gorgeous 'i wish i hated you' <3 with 'thank u, next' a close second Least favourite: 'I Don't Care', the most forgettable track on Dangerous Woman

01 Tinashe - Popstar 02 Troye Sivan - She's the Best 03 Cyst - ᲘᲘ 04 Boy Harsher - GET MEAN 05 Dev Lemons - hunting what we already killed 06 HAAi - DIGITiSE 07 Vioflesh - Dark Bellow 08 Fat Dog - Cancel Me (I'm Tired) 09 Phoebe Bridgers - Lost Weekend 10 Gurriers - Nobody's Coming To Save You

'How Soon Is Now?' would top that last group for me too, my favourite Smiths song incredible instrumental with that oscillating riff and I've always related to the lyrics as someone who struggles a lot with social anxiety IRL. Not the biggest SAW fan in general but 'You Spin Me Round (Like A Record)' is the best thing they ever produced for me, banger alert. Coming to a Gamu round near you soon? 'Little Red Corvette' overshadowed 'Let's Get Crazy' for me in the corresponding SyncTube session, but still enjoyable and amazing that it was a U.S. #1! He had some pretty surprising chart-toppers over there like this and 'Batdance'. Killing Joke are a bit of a blind spot that I need to check out more of. Really enjoyed the gothic sound of 'Love Like Blood' 🖤

Yes well done John for the 39 score yesterday! today's game: Round 1: 27 (didn't get: Dire Straits, Deacon Blue) Round 2: 27 (didn't get: Smokie, Showaddywaddy) 3-in-10: 3 (Physical, You're The One That I Want, Xanadu)

'Where Is Gone?' has overtaken 'Marianne' as Fontaines' highest song on Apple now, up to #34

Switching to Geri now the Elvis duo has departed

I agree Dua rarely misses with her singles! Like the Addison era, it was great that Future Nostalgia also had an old-school pop rollout with lots of singles and videos, even with the challenges around Covid. That was going to be a tough project to follow and indeed Radical Optimism was a step down (although again with great singles, love that 'Training Season' is experiencing a chart revival at the moment) but I look forward to whatever her next era brings. Love that 'The Last Man On Earth' is your favourite Wolf Alice song too! I wasn't sure if that would be the case with so many great moments to choose from in their catalogue. Ooh yes I see what you mean with that Beatles comparison. Looking forward to sharing them this evening <3 so close to the finish line now 😮 I remember being more of a fan of 'Last Dance' from her debut for years (which is still great) but 'Be The One' has really endured, absolutely love it too. 'Fame is a Gun' is another great Addison single of course! I felt the production had a bit of a chiptune influence to it as well, very interesting. A distorted breakdown was added to the song when I saw her live and that was also really cool. I've warmed to 'All The Stars' more and more over the years <3 I think this year is the highest it's ever been in my ROTD votes. Thanks for sharing your belated 2000s thoughts, Brer! What a lovely thing to say about my 'Another Chance' commentary, that made me smile. I'm glad you're a fan of 'Feel Good Inc.' too despite the visuals spooking you back in the day. I grew up in a Guinness World Records household too but thankfully I think I escaped any trauma from them I'd already forgotten about that Aitch thing lol *_* but the Kidz Bop version is burnt into my brain. Happy to hear we share the same favourite All Saints song! I did think that was the case but wasn't entirely sure. Great that you approve of the #5-#9 section so much *.* my fellow 'An Honest Mistake' stan. I agree this year has been pretty pedestrian for chart toppers so would be great for someone to disrupt that flow soon. I wasn't aware that MCR's music had a recent reappraisal on RYM but that's fab to hear. Hopefully they'll stop leaving us hanging post-'The Foundations of Decay' soon! I had forgotten / didn't realise how much of a 'Loneliness' fan you were too so that's wonderful to read, indeed nails the sad banger sound. I agree a dance reworking of 'Hoppípolla' could've been a mess in the wrong hands but Chicane thankfully stuck the landing, tasteful stuff for sure. I'll take that pretty positive review of 'Moi... Lolita' considering your general reputation around French songs *.* Apologies for the lack of squirrel musings in the main countdown. I hope this GIF will somewhat fill the void:

2020s TOP 10 RECAP #01 Working Men's Club - 'Widow' (2012) #02 Caroline Polachek - 'Billions' (2022) #03 Wolf Alice - 'The Last Man On Earth' (2021) #04 Dua Lipa - 'Physical' (2020) #05 The Weeknd & Ariana Grande - 'Save Your Tears (Remix)' (2021) #06 Addison Rae - 'Headphones On' (2025) #07 SZA - 'Good Days' (2020) #08 FKA twigs - 'Eusexua' (2024) #09 Heartworms - 'Retributions Of An Awful Life' (2023) Honourable mentions: 'Do

Appreciation post for my two DNQs this year now 🥹 we adore them both even if it wasn't quite their time! the hunt for a 100th qualifier continues next month...

Well at least I am in stellar company in DNQsville with some of these heavyweights that have also been announced out! What a run, Rob. 3 points away, ooft. Well thank you dhwe, Nine, Pavel, Scene, Ansel, Brer and Mack for the support 💋 and I'm happy to hear others enjoyed it too, even if it fell short. Here's hoping to find that special 100th qualifier next month instead. Silver lining of tonight is that I didn't lose any of my votes in semi final 2 🥳 Your hosting flair has been a delight as ever blacksquare, thank you. 🖤

I don't think so, 'Marianne' got as high as #3 on Spotify for example!

Oh, that is gutting but I was prepared. The world wasn't ready for Jadakissnia's NSFW fuzzy era yet As an apology, everyone needs to stream Fontalía on their platform of choice xx Apple Music - Web PlayerWhere Is Gone? by Fontaines D.C. & ROSALÍA on Apple Music (looking forward to finding out who pointed it at least)

C’mon Olivia/Chappell! You wait decades for a top 40 hit with ‘expectation’ in the title to exist and then suddenly two potential #1s come along in the same year, following Sienna.

2020s #04 Dua Lipa - 'Physical' (2020) #03 Wolf Alice - 'The Last Man On Earth' (2021) I expected to place 'Physical' top 2 minimum, as it spent an eye-watering 12 weeks at the top of my personal chart, but #4 felt about right after revisiting everything. This position for the entire decade (so far) is still nothing to be sniffed at, of course! I was quickly drawn to Dua with early material like 'Be the One' and 'Last Dance'. The former might even be my second favourite song by her these days. That self-titled debut era spawned multiple hits, including U.K. #1 single 'New Rules', so all eyes were on Dua to stick the landing with a follow-up record too. She thankfully avoided the sophomore slump and elevated her career to the next level, with the brilliant Future Nostalgia. Lead single 'Don't Start Now' was an instant smash and peaked at #2 in my chart, much like the official one. However, I was even more fond of the next single, 'Physical'. 'Don't Start Now' demonstrated a nu-disco pivot for Dua's sound. 'Physical' promised to continue this retro feel but took it in a more power pop direction. This song feels like a love letter to the '80s with its nod to Olivia Newton-John's hit of the same name, Flashdance inspiration, throwback synth production and through some of the language choices in the lyrics. Dua even put out a Jane Fonda style workout video for the song in addition to its very colourful official visuals. 'Physical' embodies the ecstasy of a relationship during its honeymoon period. I enjoy the playfulness of the lyrics, including the 'physical' double entendre and the way she dips into retro phrasing like "diamond rich". Dua delivers the words with such a confidence, as she experiments with spoken word and belting styles, in addition to the "let's get physical" chanting. The production of 'Physical' naturally appeals to me a lot as a great lover of '80s synths. I adore the chugging bassline and flutes in particular. I mostly associate this single and era in general with the Covid pandemic as it was a real pick-me-up at the time. The thrilling, relentless energy of 'Physical' made for perfect escapism and it's still great fun now. I eventually got to watch Dua at the Future Nostalgia tour in 2022 and can confirm this song is just as electric to experience live <3 'Physical' was another U.K. top 3 success for Dua when it peaked at #3 for her. This was also the 19th best seller of the year here. ... English rock band Wolf Alice have built up a brilliant discography so far. I love their first two albums My Love Is Cool and Visions of a Life but it was third record Blue Weekend that produced my absolute favourite song from them so far, 'The Last Man On Earth'. Lead singer Ellie Rowsell was inspired to write this song, along with the rest of the band, after she had read satirical '60s novel Cat's Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut. She came away from it feeling perplexed, especially by the line: "peculiar travel suggestions are dancing lessons from god", as she wondered why everything had to mean something more. This sentiment is quickly on display in the first verse of the song, when Rowsell flips the perspective and sings: "who were you to ask for anything more? do you wait for your dancing lessons to be sent from God?" 'The Last Man On Earth' is an exploration of the ego. The lyricism is sometimes cutting and follows a self-centred protagonist, who feels disconnected from the world around them and is waiting for validation from above. There is a sad loneliness in the character's lack of tangible support. Perhaps the song is suggesting that real help is found through humility. Ellie Rowsell brings this story to life with a breath-taking, nuanced vocal performance. She begins with a restrained delivery while a gentle Bowie-esque piano can be heard backing her, in a spacious arrangement. Rowsell continues with a controlled performance and takes flight from the bridge onwards, as the instrumental similarly heightens. I adore the contrast of this cinematic second half, where the vocals develop a hymn-like quality and the hard-hitting psychedelic guitars kick in, on top of bass and drums. There are also gorgeous sweeping strings in this layered instrumental. The song has quite an existential feel to it but ends on a more hopeful note, as the light finally shines on the protagonist. What an epic moment in their high quality catalogue. This song sadly did not make the top 100 but 'How Can I Make It OK?' and 'Smile' from the same era charted at #93 and #88 respectively. A top 40 hit for Wolf Alice feels overdue! At least they have a 100% hit rate of top 2 albums, including two #1s with Blue Weekend and The Clearing.

Feeling nervous for my chances! I do think my song stands out but not sure if it'll get enough support in this bloodbath semi. We'll see! Will probably follow some of this on the sly while I'm at the hairdresser's so she may or may not be dazzled by some people's artwork x

Keeping my fingers crossed! Here's hoping for a decent Spotify debut tomorrow and an album boost over the weekend. Speaking of Fontaines... older song 'Roman Holiday' is new at #180 on Spotify today