Tony's Top 50 Hits / Albums 2016 (#COMPLETE!)

[blondini]

HITS

10 Band Of Skulls - In Love By Default

Standout track from fantastic album. Never liked them that much before but this is so much more expansive in sound than their usual riff-rock.

DEEZER STREAM



ALBUMS

10 School Of Seven Bells - SVIIB DEEZER

Born out of alt-rockers Secret Machines, the trio slimmed to a duo's leader Benjamin Curtis tragically died before this album was finished. It was left to vocalist Alejandra Deheza to use parts he had recorded and release their final album of dreampop / shoegaze.

[blondini]

HITS

9 Lisa Mitchell - The Boys

Stunning laid-back dreamy synth from UK-born Aus poplet. Sadly her album was disappointing.



ALBUMS

9 Anohni - Hopelessness DEEZER

Antony Hegarty (of "and The Johnsons") finally made his/her female name known and released this hard-hitting set of synth music provided by Hudson Mohawke and Oneohtrix Point Never. Railing at the powers that be for ruining the world or failing to live up to promises (there's a track called Obama).

[blondini]

HITS

8 Rihanna - Kiss It Better

This was an astounding surprise! Not since the days of Umbrella and Shut Up and Drive have i loved a Rihanna song. This takes inspiration from Prince's sexy guitar grooves and the vid is indecently hot . Big hit among music forum fans but the streaming masses prefer the likes of Needed Me (good but hardly essential) and the bloody awful Work :roll: . Her album Anti i charted but it's way below my 50.



ALBUMS

8 Pixie Geldof - I'm Yours DEEZER

Already said it. This also includes alt-country vibes.

[blondini]

HITS

7 White Lies - Hold Back Your Love

A great synth track - there was a (too) short radio / video edit later but i prefer the full length grat single version. This is very eighties (it sounds a bit Radio Ga Ga!) and it's horrendous how only Radio 2 and XFM still support them.



ALBUMS

7 Anoushka Shankar - Land Of Gold DEEZER

Daughter of Ravi, sister of Norah Jones, this was a major landmark album for her. A concept album reflecting on the refugee crisis in the world now. Largely instrumental but very powerful. Features a great title song that missed my 50 and a track with MIA that is not on stream but it's also the only weak track.

[blondini]

HITS

6 Charli XCX - Secret (Shh) / Trophy / Vroom Vroom / Paradise (with Hannah Diamond) (Vroom Vroom EP) DEEZER EP STREAM

I like the title track - the only one to get a video - and the pop ditty with Hannah but it's Trophy (which samples Uma Thurman from Pulp Fiction) and the dark, twisted grooves of Secret that made this release a chart-topper and her highest YE Hits position yet. Produced in collab with the PC Music gang and released on her own Vroom Vroom label imprint, this is an indication of some of the sound of her next album. She says it's half this and half pure pop but she's dumped entire albums before so don't take that as gospel! :lol:



ALBUMS

6 Broods - Conscious DEEZER

New Zealand pop duo who i thought were more like an inferior Banks prior to a certain song being entered into the UKMix Forum Song Contest. :wink: They were that to an extent but now they're very much pop - the dark, emotional side.



TOP FIVE REVEALED TOMORROW

[blondini]

HITS

5 Against The Current - Outsiders

A huge anthem that they inexplicably left off the album, this could be Katy Perry or Kelly Clarkson.



ALBUMS

5 Sasha - Late Night Tales presents Sasha: Scene Delete DEEZER

You may know Sasha from his trance work but this album takes inspiration from chillout acts like Boards Of Canada and is quite remarkable. Major surprise of the year. Not least because the Late Night Tales brand doesn't usually create all new concept albums.

[blondini]

b]HITS

4 Broods - Free

This was the incredibly charged pop anthem :wink: that was a big fave on the UKMix Forum Song Contest this year scoring top of the month easily. If you like Ellie Goulding or Marina or La Roux...



ALBUMS

4 Angela Perley and The Howlin' Moons - Homemade Vision DEEZER

I already said it! :lol:




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[blondini]

HITS

3 Flock Of Dimes - Semaphore

This one is also an anthem but a slow-growing one! :lol: Jenn Wasner is half of Wye Oak, this song is more overtly pop than they are and really should have found a place on radio. Think Feist meets Christine and The Queens. Suzanne Vega if she did synthpop.



ALBUMS

3 Band Of Skulls - By Default DEEZER

I already said it! :lol:

[blondini]

HITS

2 School Of Seven Bells - Ablaze

An astonishing slice of dreampop / shoegaze / electronic rock. Written in tribute to Benjamin Curtis and featuring saved clips of his guitar work recorded before he died. :cry: M83 / Curve / Garbage...



ALBUMS

2 Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds - Skeleton Tree DEEZER

I said most of it. It's by far his most popular set commercially and will win awards so most of you will know it eventually...

[blondini]

HITS

1 Against The Current - Wasteland

By some distance my fave on both songs and albums, this track took a cue from Taylor Swift's synth classic Style and married that feel with their pop-gothic blues. The video was somewhat ordinary and disappointing, though, i have to say but despite the 500 million plus YouTube views they're not minted. Radio programmers need to die. :evil: For more on them see my "popular" thread in the Rock / Alternative UKMix Forum but be assured they are as much pop as they are rock, if not more on...



ALBUMS

1 Against The Current - In Our Bones DEEZER

Band Of Skulls, Skeleton Tree, In Our Bones. :lol: How weird is that?? :lol: Top 30 UK album, bigger than anywhere else in the world, including their US homeland. Covers of rock magazines, billions of YouTube views and still they seem to be unknown on these music forums. How does that work? :cry: This is great commercial pop and rock and Chrissy Costanza is an icon.