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December 4th, 2009
katstevens
 | 12:15 pm - Best Song of 2004: Heat #1 I got 294 nominations but Michelle McManus ain't one! Welcome to 2004 everybody - coming up this year we have at least three songs/artists that have inspired lj names of poptimist members, debuts from Kanye, Estelle, TashBed and McFly, plus plenty of mumpop, teenpop, hiphop and blip-bop (that's quite enough of that - Ed).
Without further ado, let's crack open the Brandy and get Bubblin'! (sorry) It's heat #1!
( Rules reminder - SIX TICKS only. )
( I messed my pants, when we flew over France )
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jeff_worrell
 | 11:12 am - Poptimists Advent Calendar - December 4th - a very BOB Christmas We were going to save this one for a bit, but impatient Mr rechabite posted it in a comments thread yesterday (Watch out Lena: he probably knows in which wardrobe you've stashed his Christmas presents too!). So here is Bob "Bobby" Dylan's brilliant version of 'Must be Santa'.
This sure beats Tommy Steele's version (although I do have a soft spot for that one, kids' chorus notwithstanding). Listen out particularly for the bit where Bob lists the names of Santa's reindeer!
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December 3rd, 2009
credoimprobus
 | 06:11 pm - Also known as campaigning With the year-end ballots being practically around the corner now, I should probably take the opportunity to post some things I've failed to rep enough/at all for while the taking's still good:
Single of the freaking year, for me. A post-breakup, failing to move on lament: delicate, sweeping and haunted, all ice crystals and windswept tundra. And the weeping cello(?) in the middle eight, jesus. (Posted before in comments here, but I don't know how many people saw it.)
Best song off an amazing album, and probably Clark's most pop moment to date: kind of like Rex the Dog doing Warp. Vivid, catchy and warm.
Ne-Yo's best kick-him-to-the-curb anthem since Irreplaceable, brilliant in its simplicity. That chorus is pretty much impossible not to holler along to. How this has not been a single is MORE THAN I CAN FATHOM.
Also: Few Nolder's El Snig & Moderat's Rusty Nails I've posted before, but deserve a second mention now that I've concluded they're among my top 10 tracks of the year. Check them if you haven't!
If anyone else wants to get some last minute reps in, feel free to use the comments section of this post! This can be the official pre-polls campaigning thread, or something.
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ms_bracken
 | 04:07 pm - Poptimists Advent Calendar - December 3rd ...and our advent calendar takes a turn for the mawkish! Thanks Jessica and Ashlee.
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December 2nd, 2009
awesomewells
 | 02:34 pm - Come back Simon Reynolds all is forgiven Come the 21st century, however, and the mainstream began to congeal into a certain beige perma-blandness, neither soulful or soulless, semi-tasteful, efficient pop fare made by capable, acceptable sorts, a music rich in everything but inspiration.
Oh good grief...
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December 1st, 2009
jel_bugle
 | 05:21 pm - Poptimists Advent Calendar - December 1st R2 D2 We Wish You A Merry Christmas - featuring one of Jon Bon Jovi's first vocal performances!!
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katstevens
 | 01:17 pm - This is an announcement!

Please refrain from not attending Poptimism this Friday!
It's an end-of-decade special, so we'll be playing all the best tunes from 2000-2009.
Horse Bar by Lambeth North tube, free entry, things kick off around 7ish. See you there! Current Music: Scooter - The Question Is What Is The Question?
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November 30th, 2009
skyecaptain
 | 05:21 pm - Adam Lambert: Poptimist of the Year? Not really. But yeah, new Adam Lambert strikes me as a rare instance of a mainstream US artist taking on what I can only think of as "Eurovision style," a hodgepodge of hyper-glam, synth-pop, torch songs, and soarin' male falsetto. Somewhere between BWO and the Ark, or something?
Anyway, dramaqueenage abounds and the whole album is worth a listen -- as girlboymusic put it, "simultaneously mediocre and fabulous." Its mediocrity scans to me as workmanlike, but it's a different sort of work than I'm used to from American artists.
Do any other major American artists from the past few years sound anything at all like this? All I'm coming up with is Scissor Sisters -- but anyway they're way more popular in Europe.
Obvious echoes of Lady GaGa, who probably deserves some mention in this convo, in fuh-fuh-fuh-"Fever":
Synth-struttin':
No-that's-not-The-Feeling pop in "Pick U Up":
Etc. So what the heck is going on? Current Music: Adam Lambert -
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katstevens
 | 01:08 pm - Yet Another Year In Pop: 48 Peter Kay and chums climb up to the number one spot; double entry for Su-Bo; absent-minded moderator finally remembers to include ancient re-entry in poll three weeks late.
Poll #1492336 Yet Another Year In Pop: 48
Open to: All, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 24Which of this week's new entries are any good at all?
Nominations for the 2004 poll close at 5pm on Thursday. Please comment with your nominations on the original post, not this one!
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November 27th, 2009
katstevens
 | 12:14 pm - Best Song Of 2004: NOMINATIONS My nominations thread brings all the poptimists to the yard!
( Rules are the same as 2002/2003. )
( What's been nominated already? )
In the words of Gwen: what you waiting for?
COMMENCE.
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November 25th, 2009
katstevens
 | 01:16 pm - Featuring Quick poll for your Wednesday lunchtime:
Poll #1490184 featuring
Open to: All, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 37Which of the following would you rather have doing a guest verse on your single?
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November 24th, 2009
katstevens
 | 12:18 pm - Best Song of 2003: Finalists 2003 is done and dusted! Thanks to a last minute vote, Dandy Warhols beat Dido to join this year's qualifiers:
( Top 40 of 2003 )
Nominations for 2004 begin on Friday.
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November 23rd, 2009
katstevens
 | 12:11 pm - Yet Another Year In Pop: 47 The X Factor Finalists tug at the nation's heartstrings (double-whammy of i) sick children ii) recently-ish dead popstar) for some ultra-guaranteed #1 action.
Poll #1489232 Yet Another Year In Pop: 47
Open to: All, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 24Which of this week's new entries are any good at all? This time last year I asked you what the worst charity single ever was. What is the BEST charity single ever?
Heat #8 reminder: tomorrow lunchtime is the deadline for voting in the last poll of 2003. With only one clear leader, the other 4 places are pretty much up for grabs so go and vote for MES and his The Falls!
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November 20th, 2009
katstevens
 | 12:39 pm - Best Song of 2003: Heat #8 The girls emerge victorious from heat #7 - Mis-teeq, Rachel, Jamelia, and Kylie are joined by a dark horse in the form of The Postal Service.
On to our final heat of 2003, which has its fair share of (sharp intake of breath) indie. Don't say I didn't warn you!
( Rules reminder - SIX TICKS only. )
( Your great-great-great granddaughter looks pretty fine )
Extra ticks for this heat go to me, weasel_seeker, credoimprobus, justfanoe, koganbot and jeff_worrell
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November 19th, 2009
katstevens
 | 11:55 am - I could use someBOSHy
(♥♥♥ Ultrabeat - tho Mike is getting exponentially wider as the years progress)
Though obviously the real point of this post is your 24-hour reminder to go and vote in heat #7 of 2003! Can Justin, Goldfrapp or The Magic Key catch up the Postal Service for 5th place?
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November 18th, 2009
katstevens
 | 01:36 pm - Shout out to... In the canteen just now the Miley song was on (and the Miley song was on, and the Miley song was oooooon etc), and it got me thinking...
...Do pop songs intentionally name drop other artists anymore? Did this use to be more of a common occurrence? Obviously this is a big thing in hiphop where shout-outs to your mates (especially dead ones) or ruthless disses are very common. Also, tediously-long lists of dudes who have influenced the artist seem to be mostly confined to dance music (Daft Punk, LCD Soundsystem, Soulwax, er Scooter), though feel free to correct me on that. Does the same thing happen in country or rock at all?
Off the top of my head I can think of the following pop tracks that reference other artists not directly involved in the making of the track:
Miley Cyrus - Party In The USA (Jay-Z and Britney) Robbie Williams - She's Madonna Wheatus - Teenage Dirtbag (Iron Maiden) CSS - Meeting Paris Hilton (who is technically a pop star I guess)
There must be more! Who would you say is name-dropped the most? Does it tend to be in the context of Artist 1 actually in the act of listening to Artist 2, like Miley is doing? Or swooning over them, like Robbie?
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November 17th, 2009
katstevens
 | 04:44 pm - Quickfire Quiz! Poll #1486764 Geri
Open to: All, detailed results viewable to: None, participants: 47WITHOUT LOOKING, how many UK #1 singles do you think Geri Halliwell has had? No cheating!
EDIT: Solo singles, not with the Spices.
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