Chez Wombat

I guess it helped that I never saw the advert as I was still too young, but I've always found Spaceman to be a banger all the way through, I quite like the thought that it trolled people at the time x Return of the Mack is also a bit of a classic, everything else so far has been pretty turgid. There are some of the best 90s number 1s this year but a lot of subpar, flash-in-the-pan fanbase number 1s as well.

Votes in! I was expecting your standard Pop semi vibes, but actually there were several diverse and fantastic entries here that I'll be hoping can make it through x

I was quite into that garage sound so love a bit of Babycakes (it was on the trashier end of that genre though x) I would rank Eamon's one over Frankee's crass cash-in, but both are tiresome.

Whoops no, edited x

Great choice for number 1, it's another beautiful, dramatic moment in a year where there were a lot of them at the top! The video/marketing around it is very much a gimmick so maybe it came inadvertantly, but the song itself has aged very well. Crazy in Love is a classic too, quite insane that that was over twenty years ago and yet she's still arguably producing her most interesting work, not many artists can boast that x My own top 10 for the year (I did a draft of this as I was considering ranking this year myself, I'm not personally counting runovers from previous years so no GA x) 1. Evanescence – Bring Me to Life 2. Michael Andrews feat. Gary Jules – Mad World 3. Black Eyed Peas – Where is the Love? 4. t.A.T.u – All the Things She Said 5. Beyonce feat. Jay-Z – Crazy in Love 6. Sugababes – Hole in the Head 7. Tomcraft - Loneliness 8. Christina Aguilera – Beautiful 9. Elton John – Are You Ready for Love 10. Busted – Crashed the Wedding Thanks for running, look forward to the next one x

30; Billie Eilish - Everything I Wanted 29; Post Malone - Circles 28; Haim - Now I'm In It 27; Vampire Weekend - Harmony Hall 26; Taylor Swift - Lover 25; Billie Eilish - Bad Guy 24; CamelPhat & Cristoph (feat. Jem Cooke) - Breathe 23; Lil Nas X - Old Town Road 22; Billie Eilish - Bury a Friend 21; Miley Cyrus - Mother's Daughter 20; ROSALÍA & J Balvin - Con Altura (feat. El Guincho) 19; Coldplay - Orphans 18; Roddy Ricch - The Box 17; Mark Ronson (feat. Lykke Li) - Late Night Feelings 16; Sam Fender - Hypersonic Missiles 15; Ava Max - Sweet But Psycho 14; Sadness - I Want To Be With You 13; Stormzy - Vossi Bop 12; Lana Del Rey - Doin' Time 11; Taylor Swift - Cruel Summer 10; Vampire Weekend - This Life 09; Tones and I - Dance Monkey 08; Harry Styles - Adore You 07; Dominic Fike - 3 Nights 06; Lizzo - Juice 05; Miley Cyrus - Slide Away 04; Coldplay - Champion Of The World 03; Katy Perry - Never Really Over 02; Calvin Harris & Rag'n'Bone Man - Giant 01; Sam Smith – How Do You Sleep?

Children Of Tansley School - My Mum Is One In A Million Kim Wilde - Kids In America New Order - Ceremony Yoko Ono - Walking On Thin Ice Ennio Morricone - Chi Mai (Theme From 'The Life And Times Of David Lloyd George') Public Image Ltd - Flowers Of Romance Not as big a week for classics, but a few decent discoveries, Reward, Planet Earth and D-Days were just outside. Week 8 tiebreak: Visage - Fade to Grey (painful x)

I think I'd struggle to pinpoint a turning point in culture that was brought upon by just peaceful protests, the suffragettes didn't get the right to vote by not jumping in front of horses. A lot of (mainly conservative) historical accounts of the likes of Indian independence and the Civil Rights Movement like to pretend because Gandhi and MLK were non-violent in principle, that those movements were all done by good old quiet persistence and those woke mobs of today should learn a few things, when really if you read further, that was far from the truth and there was a hell of a lot of more disruption and violence that the oppressed had to use to get their voice heard, oh for what social media would've been like then... We live in a society where the controllers of the Media dictate the narrative, whether it's supported by political figures or not, and going against that (say for Palestine or Trans rights to name a few recent examples) is always an uphill battle that is never going to be solved by just placards. You have to disrupt and make a statement, I'd never advocate violence, but I can't help bu echo Bob Vylan in that it's sometimes the only language some can understand.

Bring Me to Life would be my number 1<3 As with many rock number 1s, I'm not sure what happened that allowed that to go to number 1 as it's so different to everything else , I guess it's use in Daredevil and the peak popularity of Nu Metal helped (though I'd think of them as more of a gothic rock group). It's a beautiful song with touching lyrics and a wonderful melodrama to the whole thing, it's a shame that she experienced sexism as apparently no one would listen to a female singing a rock song without a male, but I like to think she absolutely blows away any doubts with that vocal performance (with that said, the duet before the last chorus is a great dramatic high point).

Congrats Doctor Blind! Was my ten pointer and a very worthy winner, I voted for 2nd and 3rd too and happy to see my 12 finish 5th after falling back a bit briefly, well done for being me Oh dear, I am definitely in my flop era for anonymous song contests I was actually hopeful that it wouldn't fade into the background after the positive Synctube reaction, but turns out that translated to only small points to nothing even from people that said they liked it -___ Ah well, in a theme like this I'm taking it as a sign it was too out there and thus fitting the theme the best B-) Thanks Leww for a great contest!

Antifate was a potential of mine for BJSC that I just never got round to sending so I was pleased for a theme like this so that I can finally try it. Has a wonderful atmosphere with the changes of style and abrupt changes in tone...although now I'm thinking it would've better in BJSC when the surrounding entries are less weird :') Whoever sent Christopher Chaplin did a very good job at masquerading as me, would make an amazing winner <3

Hope you all enjoy my first ever foray into hip hop/rap this month (if not, it's never happening again x), I'm separated from pretty much all of my usual crowd, but then this is a different sound for me so who knows. The brutal lyrics, Lynchian references and murky atmosphere really stood out to me. I'm familiar with Isabella Lovestory, but not this song yet, I have loved her material this year though so more good stuff from the host x

I think this ranking is about right so far (I guess that's not too surprising given I was one of just four voters oops x) - Both finales let the seasons down, as I documented in Joseph's thread, and the others, the obvious duff Space Babies aside, were all decent but missing something that made them great, Boom did have a great concept and start, but the ending was so cheesy and convoluted, I had to deduct it points. Now from the top 6, I think we're getting somewhere. Dot and Bubble is really good, I mean it is essentially Black Mirror, but it feels the most contemporary and challenging to the usual message of Doctor Who it's been in a while, there are flaws, but they seem intentional and add to the overall narrative. Lux was a really clever episode as well, even if I do wish there was more they could've done with breaking the fourth wall.

I have also grown to appreciate the Tears for Fears original of Mad World a lot more after initially being a bit confused by it knowing the stripped version better, both versions are still fantastic though and Michael Andrews' version really brings the stark, gloomy reality of the song to life, in contrast to the chaotic and enigmatic sound of the original. Most of these stripped cover versions are pointless, but this is an exception, I think it would rank 2nd for me overall (my favourite is pleasingly still to come x), and of course appreciate the contrast of the Christmas top 2, in what was sadly probably the last fully organic Christmas chart battle. Enjoy everything else in the top 10 too so far, Beautiful is a really strong moment from Christina and continued her sound maturing after Dirrty.

Oh I was sure you weren’t going to count Flo Rida as he wasn’t actually credited on the song, I would’ve gone with him otherwise, blast x

You all BETTER NOT touch Our Velocity until at least round 8 xx

Robbed of a chance to have two winning artists in a row I sent first what with Night Tapes and now James K Understandable veto, but the album is great <3

I did really like the first movie and it's quite nostalgic, even when the show itself was fading in quality not sure how I feel about one now the show's at least twenty years past it's best, would be quite the miracle if it were to match the first one x

Why can I never get this game right? :'(

Visage - Fade To Grey Phil Collins - In The Air Tonight Blondie - Rapture Ultravox - Vienna Talking Heads - Once In A Lifetime These are the only 5 here I'd give 9-10/10 to so it worked out well in that sense, but some of these are amongst my favourites of the whole decade, which feels a lot for one week! Scary Monsters... and That's Entertainment got really unlucky here.

The Legend of Ruby Sunday/Empire of Death - Most of the other problems of the next season finale are also present here, it's a shame as the first part is well done and left a great cliffhanger with a lot of tension, but the second part is a hell of a whimper. I agree pretty much with all problems stated, and I still maintain that if Russell wanted to appear clever with this twist, he should've made it so it makes sense, like how she makes it snow when she's around or the fact the God of bloody Death couldn't see that she was just ordinary (though given he was beaten by putting him on a leash, maybe he wasn't so smart). Kerblam! - One of the better ones from this season, the robots actually looked properly threatening and it was good to see the fam actually all have things to do, they really messed up with the ending though, by making Charlie commit an act of terror, you're literally making us think the corporation was in the right, it's like Jeff Bezos suddently interfered with the writing, not good x The End of Time - A very messy and over the top finale which probably was a bit below par for Tennant's last adventure given how iconic he was and still is, RTD was running out of ideas and I just don't think we needed yet another Master story so soon after the last one but the Gallifreyans were quite fun. I did still get some enjoyment out of it and Tennant carries it well, I think the resolution with Wilf is a good conclusion to his arc of him getting too arrogant, and 'I don't want to go' still gets me :'( Joy to the World - Mixed bag, the Time hotel is a good concept but not enough is done with it and the conclusion is both rushed and feels incredibly cheesy with the star and the pandemic reference. I love the sequence with Anita and think that's one of those quieter, human moments that the show really does well, and it shows how he needs that human connection after Ruby, I'm mixed on the way he treats Joy before the climax as it did seem a bit uncharateristically cruel. Ascension of the Cybermen/The Timeless Children - Another one with a decent first part before completely quashing it in the second half, the Cybermen look good but they're completely underused, Ashed is dealt with way too quickly and insultingly given how good a character he was and the final with the Time Lord cybermen looked like cosplayers and they just pressed a button and that was that, and that's not even covering the big reveal and the exposition dump that led to it. I don't mind the concept of the Doctor having past lives that weren't known to her, but it was delivered hoakily and I feel he just abandoned it after seeing the amount of backlash, it's barely mentioned in the final episode and hasn't been called back to since! One of the many reasons why I hate the toxic discourse around the show these days. The Sontaran Strategem/The Poison Sky - I think this one wasn't bad, it just suffered from being in a really high quality season, it just doesn't stick in my mind much, despite the fact it had UNIT. The Sontarans were well designed but not as well done as other classic villains. It's not often I say this, but Chibnall did it better as they were much better in Flux (and Strax under Moffat, bless him x) The Doctor's Wife - And I thought Daleks in Manhattan being so high was egregious!! I admittedly haven't revisited it in a while so I'm basing this on memory, but this is one of my favourite Smith stories and would be top 20 minimum for me. It gets both the horror aspects and the emotional aspects down brilliantly, I get chills watching Amy and Rory become more and more tormented by the uncle twisting reality and the graffiti scenes are terrifying. As for the Doctor and Idris, Suranne Jones was a great choice and I think it's really powerful seeing the Doctor finally talk to who will always be his companion. Moffat was born to write a story like this, for shame xx The Impossible Astronaut/Day of the Moon - Ooft, what have you got against the Smith era? x Again, basing this on memory, but it was a great introduction to the series and set the timey-wimy stuff up very well, it would get a bit old but it certainly caught my intrigue and managed to be a great dramatic piece as well. The End of the World - Now this is one I have revisited recently along with all of S1, and while it isn't amongst the best of that season, it's a very good first space episode that I think did well showing what the current show could do with showing space that wasn't possible in the classic era. It's a simple but effective story, though it is secondary to the chemistry between the Doctor and Rose though, they are figuring each other out and the slower pace allows them to reveal more of who they are, the final scene is great as well with Rose responding to the question with wanting chips, just showed how excellently cast they both were.

30; Let's Eat Grandma - Falling Into Me 29; Billie Eilish - When the Party's Over 28; CHVRCHES (feat. Wednesday Campanella) - Out of My Head 27; Post Malone & Swae Lee - Sunflower 26; Drake - Nice For What 25; MK - 17 24; Jade Bird - Love Has All Been Done Before 23; 1975 - Love It If We Made It 22; Mark Ronson (feat. Miley Cyrus) - Nothing Breaks Like A Heart 21; Virtual Self - Ghost Voices 20; Lady Gaga & Bradley Cooper – Shallow 19; Jax Jones (feat. Ina Wroldsen) - Breathe 18; A$AP Rocky (feat. Skepta) - Praise The Lord (Da Shine) 17; Ariana Grande - Breathin 16; Marshmello & Bastille - Happier 15; Calvin Harris & Dua Lipa - One Kiss 14; Travis Scott (feat. Drake) - SICKO MODE 13; Au/Ra & CamelPhat - Panic Room 12; Ariana Grande - Thank U, Next 11; Ariana Grande - No Tears Left To Cry 10; Panic! At The Disco - High Hopes 09; Charli XCX & Troye Sivan - 1999 08; Drake - God's Plan 07; Arctic Monkeys - Four Out of Five 06; 1975 - It's Not Living (If It's Not With You) 05; Bring Me The Horizon - MANTRA 04; Silk City & Dua Lipa - Electricity 03; George Ezra - Paradise 02; Kendrick Lamar & SZA - All The Stars 01; Cardi B, Bad Bunny & J Balvin - I Like It

1995 was a lot better for #2s than #1s for the most part, but the top here shows the best of them. Dreamer is one of the best 90s dance tracks and Some Might Say is a classic Oasis track with just about all the trademarks (big guitars, nonsensical lyrics) that made them iconic. Country House is not one of the best for Blur and I do wish one of Tender or Song 2 would've made it instead, but it's still decent and reflective of a huge cultural chart battle. Gangsta's Paradise is a hip hop classic with timely themes and a great use of a sample and the two Take That number 1s were some of their best material. I think those 3, Dreamer and Some Might Say would make up my top 5 x

Ooh, I may steal that idea for my year x I think I'm in almost total agreement with your ranks, a pretty poor list of #2s and #3s but some great highlights, Move Your Feet is an all time favourite of mine and one I still think is impossible to not feel some joy when listening to, In Da Club is also a standard setter for 00s hip hop, and the top 5 number 2s are all major deserved classics. I mean we all know Fast Food Rockers are the real best, but it's hard to mere songs to compare to that xx

Great to see a retrospective BJSC thread, mine was quite the task so I always appreciate seeing others try too, and you seem to be going for quite a bit more than I was with the winner of the contest (I don't remember some from this year lol) Had to cast my mind back to see if you ever gave me top marks, but didn't have to wait long! Great to see you still like DIA. It's one of my more unique entries in the sense I've not really sent anything like it since, I was just quite captivated by the Bulgarian Futurepop tag and the distinctive array of genres.