Chez Wombat

I'm sorry this one wasn't quite for you, but don't worry, I've sent a wide variety of entries and this one I sent to the retro contest should be more up your street x

Oh ending with an 18 swap with the winner, love to see it *. Congrats Rollo! I should be kicking myself really, but I'm glad to see that song get so much recognition - it's a beautiful song that I'm sad I never heard of before, the melancholy strings, anthemic chorus and distinctive Scottish accent make for a wonderful song. I only pointed another three of the top 10 but they're all good ones, I already knew Someone Great through some scattered plays on 6Music but it's a fantastic song, and The Knife sounded like another great song from an album I should really check out. I had sacrificed my attempt at a hit with my choice, so I will take getting over 100 and avoiding the bottom 10 given I was languishing there for quite some time. Thanks to all who entertained the Panda, there were a few unexpected ones in there! Would've liked to Anathallo and Puracane a little bit higher as well. Many thanks Julian for hosting, made some excellent discoveries from this one.

So the song I passed on or a song that outperforms my own song by the same artist on the same album sent to another contest, what would make me less bitter?

This is really not needed at all. George Floyd's murder was one of many representations of systemic issues with racism in policing and was the straw that broke the camel's back. This is a tragic murder caused by an evil individual manipulating and feigning victimhood and a result of police negligence (I haven't seen the footage and don't intend to) that absolutely should be investigated, but I don't see how this is seem as a wider symptom of anti-white bias or how this can be turned back on the sikh community like certain voices seem to be doing, turning this into a culture war completely takes away from the tragedy of a young man dying.

Anathallo was a really standout pick and hooray an 18! Mid-20s here we come x

Great choice of number 1, I think that would be my favourite too and it was great to see a rare instance of rave/hardcore make number 1. The Real Thing's OK, but not one that sticks in my mind much, there were much better 90s dance songs. D:Ream is pretty cliched (I wasn't around for the first New Labour use, but did experience it's revival in the last election which...feels a long time ago now oops x), but it's quite fun and always very singalong and uplifting. Thanks for running this, I think this would be my top 10 roughly (scraping the barrel a bit after the top 5 whoops x): Baby D - Let Me Be Your Fantasy Doop - Doop East 17 - Stay Another Day Whigfield - Saturday Night D:Ream - Things Can Only Get Better Wet Wet Wet - Love is All Around Tony Di Bart - The Real Thing Take That - Everything Changes Stiltskin - Inside Prince - The Most Beautiful Girl in the World

I mean I thought changing my signature would be a bit of a giveaway but clearly not I found this by browsing the AcclaimedMusic's best of 2006 (and several of what I found was also entered here including my 18!) and it was a pretty instant standout with it's psychedelic, dreamy vibes. I don't actually know much of Animal Collective's work and should really change that x I'm under no impression this will be a vote winner with everyone so I just hope the alt bloc is kind enough to me to get a decent position x Puracane was a great choice, I had that down as potentially being Jade so wondering what else could be her 🤔The Knife would ofc. be great winners if they hold (even if I'd be a bit salty that my entry from the same album couldn't win in Club Bizarre x)

I'm just posting here so we have official proof of this and Jane McDonald being the two most popular Pop Forum threads at the moment (#susanalbumparty)

Well that was a close result, but it went in favour of the one I voted for so well done Addy! I guess it was a little bit better known than I thought, but at the same time, I hadn't heard it before myself and it was a wonderful song as Moonlight Shadow is so very pleased to see it triumph as retro songs very rarely do here! Whoops that wasn't the best end to the voting for me, I guess they do better in BJSC as remixers than the main artists, I was admittedly hoping for better than 27th with this (can it not have been 25th, what do I have to do to get that finishing position D:) but given it was only 17th in the semi, that's still an improvement and I was pleasantly surprised by how many votes it featured in despite very few double figures, Many thanks all x That's a great top 10 overall, I voted for 6/10 of them and one of them I didn't was a commiseration (and I somehow didn't even notice that that was Kane Parsons of Backrooms fame! Go see that movie everyone x) I see ANOTHER COUNTRY$$$ was not really at risk of outpeaking my one in the end so no need for me to get jealous and sideeye people Sorry I couldn't give this more points, I do really like it, but it was a very strong final and my love for them did peak months back and I hadn't gone back to them a lot since. I'm also sad to see Just Mustard finish that low, I love the original and that would've been easy points, but I can't say this remix alone adds a lot to it sadly :( Many thanks DaTilt for your efforts, impressive for first time hosting!

Culture Club - Karma Chameleon David Bowie - Modern Love Siouxsie And The Banshees - Dear Prudence Men Without Hats - The Safety Dance The Cure - The Love Cats Uptown Girl just outside x

let's 1-9 point my way up the scoreboard ayyy *.*

Don't think I'm not judging anyone that's pointed this ANOTHER COUNTRY$$$ and snubbed my entry from them, I just can't be bothered to check x (they are literally side by side on the same album!)

This is a bit more like it, thanks Iz, Pete and Roba and a few others <3 That is a fantastic top 2 indeed, one of them winning would be amazing (edit: horsegiirL would also be a good winner!).

Sensing I'm not going to be living up to these top 10/top 20 predictions going by this so far, whoops x Thanks nonetheless for the points so far., a great top 3 atm

I'm not sure how YouTubers are producing some of the best recent horror movies but here's another one! I won't say too much as I think it's best to go into this as blind as possible (I did watch the series to sort of gain an idea and it did provide some context, but it's a completely original story and you don't need to watch them to know what's going on), but it's really impressive stylistically and expands on the lore to a place that feels appropriate for a feature film adaptation yet never gets rid of the inherent fear of someone lost and alone in a never-ending maze. With how well this is done, I'd expect we are going to be hearing quite a bit more from these going forward!

Think this needs a thread as it's one of the most talked about films at the moment - Backrooms is the feature length adaptation of the director's 2022 web series (which is available to watch on YouTube) which was based initially on a viral 4chan post about a mysterious liminal space. At just 20 (!) years old, Kane Parsons (Kane Pixels on YouTube) is the youngest A24 director to date and it's already broken the record for A24 opening weekends at 38 million and is looking to debut higher than the recent Star Wars movie did!

I think that would be in my top 10 (though I think most of what is still to come are ones I enjoy too), very overplayed but deservedly so as one of the best hit songs of the year, it's strange thinking it was originally had an expletive in it as the clean version has really eclipsed it that I often forget it wasn't called Forget You originally, the X-Box-Atari line is still very cool. I did prefer Bright Lights Bigger City though and wish that could've been a hit. Club Can't Handle Me is one of the better songs from both artists, it's very of the time and I don't go back to it much, but it works well and indeed miles better than the Saturdays song it beat (another very clear memory from my early days on Buzzjack). Telephone is OK, but I think was definitely riding the video hype and Gaga's general superstardom, not sure it quite holds up that well as a song these days. Bruno Mars' songs are similar, I do think a lot of his early 2010s material hasn't aged the best compared to what came after, Just The Way You Are is still a competently sung and put together song, but it is quite typical of that sickly sweet 'you're amazing despite how you don't see yourself' acoustic singer-songwriter mega seller of which there are several more to come. Dynamite has the most brainless lyrics ever, but it's still pretty fun purely as a throwback to that mindless party sound. He had already become way too Americanised though and I can't defend what came after.

9 please x

Think I prefer this to drop dead after a few listens, the way it builds and climaxes towards the end with the repeated refrain reminds me a bit of Chappell's The Subway even though it's not quite the same stylistically, although clearly owing a few debts to some the 90s alternative sound. Great stuff.

I enjoy all your top 5 for the number 2s, although that's criminally low for the classic Streets of Philadelphia! I have a soft spot for Mmmm Mmmm..., Crazy For You and I Swear as well, cheesy as they are. Agreed that it's a much better list than the number 1s like most 90s years were. Other favourites from the rest of the top 40: Youssou N'Dour & Neneh Cherry - 7 Seconds Prodigy - No Good (Start The Dance) Blur - Boys & Girls New Order - True Faith 94 Red Hot Chili Peppers - Give It Away Pretenders - I'll Stand By You Oasis - Live Forever Cranberries - Linger + Zombie Atlantic Ocean - Waterfall (can't remember if you were in BJSC last year when I sent this?) Nightcrawlers - Push The Feeling On (to be Top 10 in '95) Strike - U Sure Do (peaked at #4 in 1995 on re-release) Dr. Dre - Nothin' But A G Thang A lot of big favourites there <3 1994 was very poorly represented by its number 1s it seems. Speaking of, Saturday Night I think is my favourite to drop since, not my usual bag but a really fun, catchy song that is still really enjoyable. I am pleased Stiltskin got to number 1 because it was the only time a grunge related song got there and that was a key 90s movement (Idk if Babylon Zoo's Spaceman counts as well x), saying that, I agree with dandy that I like it when I hear it but can never quite remember it, a shame the genre wasn't represented better at the top.

I didn't know Don't Let Me Get Me was so well liked, I find it quite boring compared to her other hits of the time, sorry x Freak Like Me is obviously a huge classic and watershed moment for girl groups, one I've grown to appreciate more and more as I've got older rather than one I have a lot of nostalgia for, I'd have liked for My Happy Ending to win, but that's still a very good performance, one of my favourite pop-punk tracks from around the time and still one of her most mature and raw moments. and I can't argue with Left Outside Alone, not really a fan of her (don't kill me Toby x) but can't deny that one, a powerhouse of a performance. These Words also has a warm, nostalgic feel so a good top 4. Thanks Jade! Hoping the next one has generally better quality than this x

Sorry I missed this reveal, but thank you all for taking me through! I was fairly confident in this one, but did worry momentarily that it wasn't a great song for the 'pop semi' with some bigger alt favourites. Excellent qualifiers and one I really thought was doomed that I could only just sneak into my votes has made it through so pleased that it may well have made that difference! I only lost my three pointer, Harmonica, a shame but it's length and sound did seem like a borderline one. Lotunia also wasn't far off, a quite interestingly structured song.

Supermode to last long please <3 Blazin' Squad can go first

Towards the end, it definitely ramps up the blood and gore but before then it's fairly light by it, a lot of the horror though comes from the tension built and the sense of real unease as things linger, as well as a few well timed jump scares, though it's great at weaving in comedy as well so accessible enough for non-horror fans, just be mindful you may be watching some of it through your fingers x

01; Kalush Orchestra - Stefania 02; Jamala - 1944 03; DARA - Bangaranga 04; Maneskin - Zitti E Buoni 05; JJ - Wasted Love 06; Loreen - Tattoo 07; Duncan Laurence - Arcade 08; Nemo - The Code 09; Netta - Toy 10; Salvador Sobral - Amar Pelos Dois So DARA the best in a while, top 5 were all amongst my favourites from the years, the other five are all competent enough at what they do but never excited me, much preferred the early 2010s for winners.