808s & Formulae

Grammy Award Nominations 2014: My Predictions

2013-10-29T19:22:00.000+00:00

The end of the year is fast approaching, which means one thing; It's nearly awards season! The Grammy Awards are a guilty pleasure of mine. As much as I know the selection process is wonky and the awards themselves can be a tiring slog I can't help but spend months predicting which artists will be rewarded year after year. As always, I'll be tackling the main 4 categories first, moving onto the genre awards soon after. 2012/2013 has seen some massive hit singles so which ones do I predict will make it onto the voter's ballots for the 2014 show? (Red marks my prediction for the winner, Blue is my personal choice).

Album Of The Year

Bruno Mars - Unorthodox Jukebox
Daft Punk - Random Access Memories

Justin Timberlake - The 20/20 Experience (The Complete Experience)

Macklemore & Ryan Lewis - The Heist

Taylor Swift - Red

Alternatives: David Bowie - The Next Day, Jason Aldean - Night Train, The Civil Wars - The Civil Wars

There are 4 albums that are already guaranteed a nomination for Album Of The Year. One of the albums from Bruno, Justin, Taylor or Daft Punk will win, that's for certain. An 'event album' like Random Access Memories is the sort of thing that Grammys voters love, and with the biggest album of 2013 coming from an act like Justin Timberlake he will be right alongside the robots. The 5^th spot is up for grabs from any number of contenders. I went for Macklemore & Ran Lewis over David Bowie or Jason Aldean after seeing how many nominations Fun garnered last year. The Civil Wars are the most likely to replace him in my list, though I wouldn't rule out Kanye's Yeezus or even the Les Mis OST as the 5^th nominee. As for a winner I think it's between Bruno Mars and Taylor Swift. After missing out on a nomination for Speak Now I think the worldwide success of Red will put Swift in a good spot to collect the trophy. That said, if the change of direction away from country and into pop puts off some of the Grammy voters, Bruno could emerge as both the safest, and in my opinion the most deserving choice for the prize.

Best New Artist

Ed Sheeran

Emeli Sandé

Florida Georgia Line

Kendrick Lamar

Macklemore & Ryan Lewis

Alternatives: Kacey Musgraves, Lorde, Phillip Phillips

Anyone who read last year's predictions article will notice that I had Ed Sheeran as one of my alternative choices. This will be the second time he has been submitted for Best New Artist, the same being true for his fellow Brit Emeli Sandé. I think both are early favourites for a nomination or a win. Kendrick Lamar is my personal pick, his debut album topping critic lists across the world last year. I'd love to see a nomination for him, but wouldn't be surprised to see Lorde there instead. Florida Georgia Line will probably be in the mix too, thanks to their monster crossover hit Cruise. I think this will be the duo's only appearance in the big four, unlike the other duo in my picks. This is the award that Macklemore & Ryan Lewis have in the bag, far and away the hot favourites for Best New Artist.

Song Of The Year

Adele - Skyfall
Bruno Mars - Locked Out Of Heaven

Lorde - Royals

Macklemore & Ryan Lewis - Same Love (Feat. Mary Lambert)

Rihanna- Stay (Feat. Mikky Ekko)

Alternatives: Ed Sheeran - Lego House, Miranda Lambert - Mama's Broken Heart, P!nk - Just Give Me A Reason (Feat. Nate Ruess)

After Call Me Maybe saw itself among the nominees of Song Of The Year last year I think my days of predicting this category correctly are behind me. Even so, I do think that the two biggest singles of the 2013 won't be appearing here (Blurred Lines and Get Lucky). Instead we'll see Bruno make another appearance with Locked Out Of Heaven. I'm glad they've chosen to push that song for the big awards, rather than splitting votes with When I Was Your Man, Locked has a strong chance here. I think Stay could be a good choice too, though it could easily be replaced by the other duet above, Just Give Me A Reason. Royals will be fresh in voter's minds, the idea of awarding a 16 year old the Song Of The Year must be appealing too. I think Same Love is the safest choice for a winner, positive acceptance message and all, though I doubt anyone will agree it's a better 'Song' than some of the others I've mentioned. This leaves one more spot and who better to nominate for a Grammy than queen of the Grammys Adele? I think Skyfall will have a better shot in the other categories, but I wouldn't put it past her to walk home with yet another Song Of The Year trophy.

Record Of The Year

Adele – Skyfall

Bruno Mars - Locked Out Of Heaven

Daft Punk - Get Lucky (feat. Pharrell Williams)

Imagine Dragons - Radioactive

Macklemore & Ryan Lewis - Thrift Shop

Robin Thicke - Blurred Lines (Feat. T.I. & Pharrell Williams)

Alternatives: Avicii - Wake Me Up (Feat. Aloe Blacc), Florida Georgia Line - Cruise , Taylor Swift - I Knew You Were Trouble

The Record Of The Year category is much easier to predict than Song, but picking a winner is even more difficult. Of course Thrift Shop, Get Lucky and Blurred Lines will be in there, the early favourites for sure. I think Adele and Bruno will be in the mix again too, Skyfall probably having a strong chance of scooping this award too. The last spot could go to quite a few records, the fact that Record Of The Year has 6 spots open means Taylor Swift could sneak in with I Knew You Were Trouble, or Cruise could instead. I opted for Imagine Dragons instead, I think there’s a lack of Alternative/Rock in the nominees I've talked about, so I could see voters pushing this as a viable alternative to the pop hits. As far as a winner goes, I really wouldn't mind any of the main 5 tracks getting it. I'd say Get Lucky is probably the most deserving of the lot, with Skyfall in close second.

So there's my predictions for the Big Four awards. Be sure to keep an eye out for my genre award predictions in the coming weeks and hopefully I'll be posting quite a lot more on here before the year is up.

Top 10 Robbie Williams Singles

2013-06-20T19:02:00.001+01:00

As I sit here listening to the Take That star's singles collection on repeat before heading to Manchester for his Take The Crown stadium tour, I thought I'd put together my personal Top 10 songs of Robbie Williams' lengthy career.

10) Millennium - I've Been Expecting You - 1998 - #1

Kicking things off is one of the biggest hits on the list the James Bond sampling Millennium. A typical Robbie record, the sweeping strings and massive chorus makes it one of his first brilliant singles. To think I was about to turn 7 years old when this song first came out!

9) Let Me Entertain You - Life Thru A Lens - 1998 - #3

Not the biggest hit from his debut album, that would be Angels, but Let Me Entertain You has become the quintessential Robbie Williams anthem. The moment during the Take That Progress tour when he exploded onto stage with this defined every reason why this song is so brilliant. The opening for every Robbie concert since release, this isn't the sound of someone kindly asking you if you want to see a Robbie show, this is a statement of intention, and he rarely disappoints.

8) Strong - I've Been Expecting You - 1999 - #4

You'll notice a particular trend in my picks from now on, I do prefer the mid-tempo guitar/piano led Robbie tracks more than the poppier numbers. Strong is another stadium anthem with an inescapable chorus, something that both Take That and Robbie himself do incredibly well.

7) She's The One - I've Been Expecting You - 1999 - #1

The fan favourite ballad nowadays, probably even more adored than Angels, She's The One is one of just a few Robbie singles that's actually a cover. With the original version laid to rest in the forgotten history of pop this song, along with its Torvil and Dean inspired ice-skating video is definitely one of my favourite tracks of his career. Subtle and nuanced, it forgoes the usual epic approach of most Robbie tracks.

6) Supreme - Sing When You're Winning - 2000 - #4

Robbie seems to always have a song like Supreme on his albums, part of the reason why so many of them are appearing on this list. Much like Millennium before it, the crux of Supreme lies on that string sample, this time nicked from I Will Survive, morphing it into a song fit to be a Bond theme. It makes the disco classic sound classier than ever before, a brilliant touch on an already stellar song,

5) Eternity - Greatest Hits - 2001 - #1

Released as a double A-side for the final single from Sing When You're Winning, Eternity didn't appear on a Robbie album until Greatest Hits in 2004. Because of this it's easy to forget about Eternity, one of Robbies best ballads and unlike anything he's ever released since. It's anthemic without resorting to an overabundance of stomping drums, it's just a a brilliantly written track that's the first track to make my top 5.

4) Kids (With Kylie) - Sing When You're Winning/Light Years - 2000 - #2

The combination of Robbie and Kylie must have looked strange on paper back in 2000, but in the end they fit perfectly together. Both have that throwback camp kind of style, Robbie was singing It Only Takes a Minute at the same time Kylie was singing What Do I Have To Do, and Kids somehow retains some of this 90s charm. It remains one of my favourite Robbie or Kylie records to this day, a staple at both of their concerts year in year out.

3) Come Undone - Escapology - 2003 - #4

Though the controversial video may have been the final straw in the separation of Robbie and longtime writing partner Guy Chambers, Come Undone is still one of the best records either of them has written. The chorus is begging to be shouted out in a packed stadium. It's probably the closest look into Robbie's real personality we get in his singles collection, definitely one of my favourite hits on this list.

2) No Regrets - I've Been Expecting You - 1998 - #4

The song that is probably atop most people's personal list, No Regrets is one of the best UK pop records of the last 20 years. Perfectly defining the years that proceeded its release, Robbie's time in Take That and his troubled relationship with band mate Gary Barlow, No Regrets is just about as perfect as a Robbie record can get. It still isn't my favourite song though...

1) Feel - Escapology- 2002 - #4

Feel is a surprisingly safe choice for me, I'm usually one to put an unexpected obscure track as my number 1 pick on these sort of lists. Feel is one of his most iconic singles, with a near perfect chorus and everything else I've mentioned that goes into making a Robbie song sound like a Robbie song. It's the song I'll always be most excited to hear live, the pinnacle of a stellar singles career.

Top 10 Eurovision Entries of My Lifetime

2013-05-15T00:22:00.000+01:00

Eurovision is here! It's a well known fact that I adore the yearly song contest, the most hilarious, ridiculous and downright fun night in the musical calendar. Some of the biggest artists in the world made their name on Eurovision, Celine Dion, Cliff Richard, Lulu and of course the legends of Eurovision ABBA are just a few of the hundreds of well known acts to emerge. The late 00s may have seen the emergence of block voting and European politics rather than being a true song contest, but the last few years have seen some major European hits emerging once again.

Here's the 10 songs/performances I remember the most fondly from the last 21 years of Eurovision. Be sure to follow me on twitter at @Atkins_Sam during this year's show to hear what I think.

10) Be My Guest - Gaitana - Ukraine - 2012 - 15th - 65 Points

Kicking things off is one of the best entries from last year's contest. This one sticks out for me not for the song, which has the usual Eurovision feel good vibes, but for the performance of singer Gaitana on the night. Unlike most of the female performers who play up the sex appeal, she's just having a big load of fun on stage, and it's truly infectious. The way she delivers the vocals with a laugh rather than a smirk is refreshing too.

9) Satellite - Lena - Germany - 2010 - 1st - 246 Points

Winning the competition for Germany back in 2010 Lena went against the current standard for a Eurovision winner. It wasn't a dramatic power ballad, or an eastern influenced dance track. Satellite is just a cute pop song from a cute young singer, one catchy enough to stand up outside of Eurovision. This crossover appeal has become the norm for the competition now. This was also the song that proved that one of the Big Four could win Eurovision after all. Germany have a strong chance for another win in 2013 too.

8) Ooh Ahh... Just A Little Bit - Gina G - United Kingdom - 1996 - 8th - 77 Points

The song you can thank (blame) for my Eurovision obsession is this, a ridiculously camp and infectious song that sounds just as amazing nearly 17 years on. I was hooked on this song as a kid, we are talking my pre-Take That days too, and it probably explains a lot about how I ended up this way 17 years later. I mean look at that performance, who wouldn't develop a lifelong connection with Eurovision when Gina G is representing your country with that!

7) Cvet Z Juga - Alenka Gotar - Slovenia - 2007 - 15th - 77 Points

The only completely non-English entry on my list, this track from 2007 became an early favourite for me and my brother. The song is amazing in itself, the opera vocal over that rolling dance beat is brilliant, but it's all about Alenka Gotar's performance on the night. That moment where she reveals her light up hand is Eurovision magic, something I've remembered ever since. It's moments like that when a great song becomes a great Eurovision song. Also be sure to check out the studio version here, the note she hits at the end is more ridiculous than your could ever expect.

6) Work Your Magic - Koldun - Belarus - 2007 - 6th - 145 Points

There's something horribly creepy about the way singer Koldun performs Work Your Magic, but it only makes me love this song more. It's just naff enough to make it a perfect Eurovision track, near painful lyrics throughout the verses being so cringy it's even harder to hate. The dancers in the performance made it even more memorable for me too, the choreography being as overwrought as Koldun's dramatic faces to the camera. A modern Eurovision classic.

5) Je Ne Sais Quoi - Hera Björk - Iceland - 2010 - 19th - 41 Points

Now this is Eurovision, europop in it's purest form Je Ne Sais Quoi is exactly what I want to hear when I tune in every year. It's so easy to enjoy this song, the opening smashes of synth to that epic key change at the end. Hera Björk is one of my favourite performers on this list too, shes so content in just standing there and belting out a huge dance track. The look she gives the camera on her first line is both hilarious and endearing, definitely one of my favourite Eurovision entries.

4) Shady Lady - Ani Lorak - Ukraine - 2008 - 2nd - 230 Points

I'm pretty sure Shady Lady would appear on any list of Eurovision entries from the last decade. Robbed of a victory from that awful ice skating number from Dima Bilan of Russia, this was supposed to be Ukraine's second win. It's the Nicole Scherzinger debut solo single that never was, just camp enough to stop it from becoming too sexy for Eurovision. From the very start as those boxes light up to reveal the dancers lurking within you know this is much more than a typical female solo entry, Shady Lady is definitely one of the best 2nd place entries in recent memory.

3) This Is My Life - Euroband - Iceland - 2008 - 14th - 64 Points

If you notice a similarity to their entry from 2010, it's obvious to see that Iceland recycled this incredible track from 2008 for the competition 2 years later. This Is My Life screams Eurovision. With a chorus that includes the lyric 'All through the years, blood sweat and tears, hopes and my fears' you really can't get much cheesier and much more Eurovision. The duo performing it is what has it so high on my list though. These guys perform it with everything they have. The way the guy pumps the air during his opening verse, the amazing moment as the girl appears from nowhere to start singing, the slide towards each other with an 'Oh!'. The best moment for me is that turn into the camera after the middle 8 for a final explosion of synth, they are loving every second of being on the stage, something many Eurovision entrants could learn from. Imagine if this had been a UK entry, from H & Claire. The thought alone is a bit much for me.

2) Euphoria - Loreen - Sweden - 2012 - 1st - 372 Points

What can I say about Euphoria that I haven't already said here, here or here? In my lifetime I can't remember a Eurovision song making such an impact in the UK, in fact not even the 1997 winner Love Shine A Light could go higher in the UK charts than Euphoria did. The last year I have heard it on just about every night out I've been on, a song that has left a lasting impression so long after that initial performance. What a performance too, vocals as crazy as her dancing, there hasn't been and never will be a winner like it again. Loreen is properly brilliant, by Eurovision or any standards. So what could have beaten such an incredible song?

1) Wild Dances - Ruslana - Ukraine - 2004 - 1st - 280

Though I said earlier that you can blame Gina G for getting me into Eurovision, this winner from 2004 is probably the true culprit. I own this song on CD...I really do. I remember buying it in HMV with my pocket money just after Ruslana won the contest, can you imagine them stocking something like this now? Wild Dances is a tune and a half. The chants of 'Hey!' throughout against the tribal drums is like a call to arms for Euro fans. It doesn't matter that I have no clue what she's going on about, much like a great Shakira song, you are missing the point if you care about the lyrics. 9 years on I'm still in love with Ruslana and Wild Dances, or Xena as she would be referred to for most of those years. It's the winner I have remembered the most fondly since being a Eurovision fan, the performance never failing to make me smile.

How To: Make The 20/20 Experience a Listenable Experience

2013-03-27T12:43:00.000+00:00

'How To' is my guide to improving disappointing albums with some simple tweaks to the tracklist. You can listen to the new version of the album at the bottom of the page or see my full description here.

The inspiration for starting this series in the first place is Justin Timberlake's new album The 20/20 Experience. Aside from having some of the worst album artwork in the last decade The 20/20 Experience is an 80 minute epic that's tiring for nearly half of that. The pressure for JT to deliver following his 'break' from music for the last 6 years was obviouusly too high, and obviously there was no way 20/20 would better the incredible FutureSex/LoveSounds, but I've seen very little love for the album as we head towards release week.

The Problem

The biggest issue with The 20/20 Experience is the length. With only 12 tracks including those on the deluxe, you'd think this is your typical 40 minute deal. You'd be wrong, of the main 10 songs only 2 of them are less than 6 minutes long. Most of the tracks here last far too long, especially the weaker tracks that make you suffer through 8 minutes, yes 8 minutes, of average RnB falsetto.

The Good News
There's a great 50-60 minute album hiding inside this overwrought album, one that capitalises on what made the Timbaland/Timberlake dream team such a hit in the first place. With Timbaland producing every song here it also makes for a cohesive listen once you snip away some of the excess, even if there's still nothing on here as good as My Love or What Goes Around... from FS/LS. I'll take each track seperately and see if we can edit The 20/20 Experience into something worth listening to.

1) Pusher Love Girl

This is the song that has been stuck in my head for the last week. That chorus is so damn catchy and the middle 8 captures the soulful sound I was expecting from the album perfectly. The main portion of the song is great, ending just about when you want it to, the sweeping strings blending straight into the Timbo Remix (Which just about every song contains). This section half lasts way longer than it needs to, there was no need to include two extra verses here and it would be much more effective as a 'break' if it was about a 60 seconds long. Chopping the last 2 minutes off would make this a brilliant opening for the album.

2) Suit & Tie (Feat. Jay-Z)

I was totally disappointed by Suit & Tie on my first listen. 40 plays on though, I think I finally get it. Obviously cutting the lead single from the album would be an awful thing to have to do, so thankfully it remains as one of the strongest and most consistent tracks on the album.

3) Don't Hold The Wall

One of my personal favourite songs from the album, a grinding tribal anthem that has Justin harmonising with himself alongside his iconic ooh's and the best beats Timbaland has produced in years. The bridge is magnificent too, the hand claps recall those songs from the turn of the millennium like I'm A Slave 4 U. Songs like Don't Hold The Wall are the reason I bothered to try and salvage the amazing parts of The 20/20 Experience as they far outweigh the poor moments. It could probably do with being about a minute shorter, the breakdown section seems to end just after you want it to, but it's definitely one of the reasons to give the album a listen.

4) Strawberry Bubblegum

I cut Strawberry Bubblegum from my 20/20 Experience playlist after just 2 listens. It's totally out of place on this album of throwback brassy numbers and dirty club beats, the chirpy lyrics about being so sweet like bubblegum becoming annoying roughly 20 seconds into the verse. At 8 minutes long too, this is the first song I would cut completely, possibly one of the worst songs Justin has appeared on.

5) Tunnel Vision

Tunnel Vision is the perfect Timberlake song. Consistently brilliant with each new layer of production it features everything that I loved about the songs from FutureSex/LoveSounds. The hip-hop leaning repeated sample should become boring, but it swoops in and out without you noticing against the sudden bursts of throbbing bass and strings as contrast. It's a well known fact that the best JT songs contain lots of beatboxing, and it's great to add Tunnel Vision to that list.

6) Spaceship Coupe

Part of me wanted to like Spaceship Coupe. Perhaps it's the fact it's basically Justin recreating Ciara's best song (the magnificent Promise) albeit with lesser success. I love the guitar solo halfway through, though in the context of the whole album it makes little sense. The space references grate, whilst the song becomes a plodding dirge minutes in, by the time the awkward sex noises begin permeating the production you will have switched off. I think if the song was about 4 minutes shorter and JT had enlisted his Love Sex Magic cohort for a guest verse I would have included it in my final playlist, but as it is I simply can't.

7) That Girl

One of the tracks that Timberlake in his recent preview shows, this is another soulful throwback style affair, albeit one that launches itself into a beatbox sound much more quickly than Suit & Tie or Pusher Love Girl. It's a nice song, even if it doesn't really go anywhere, but at least it lasts less than 5 minutes, the shortest track on the standard edition.

8) Let The Groove Get In

Let The Groove Get In has the potential to be the highlight of The 20/20 Experience, the frenetic mix of classy brass and trademark Timbaland beats makes for some incredible moments. The bridge is most definitely my favourite moment of the album, taking things way back to N Sync era harmonies, it feels familiar in a way that the rest of the record doesn't. Sadly the song takes ideas just a little too far, you'll want the rest of the song to be as memorable as the bridge. Cutting the section between the 3 minute and 5 minute mark. would make Let The Groove Get In JT's best song in years.

9) Mirrors

There's little I can say about Mirrors that I haven't already talked about in depth on Twitter, but it's safe to say the 20/20 Experience couldn't exist without Mirrors. It's my favourite single of the year, the only to last 3 weeks at the top spot too, making it the modern JT classic he deserved to release. You could probably trim a few seconds off here and there, but unlike every other 8 minute track here, Mirrors doesn't feel that long it sitting beside songs like What Goes Around.../...Comes Around and Lovestoned/I Think She Knows perfectly in my hits playlist.

10) Blue Ocean Floor

Possibly the most mediocre track on the album, Blue Ocean Floor isn't quite as bad as Strawberry Bubblegum or Spaceship Coupe to warrant being cut completely. It doesn't really go anywhere past the initial pulsing production and ethereal vocals. As a closer for the album it does the trick though closing things with a tease for more rather than a bang. It ends up being the only 'ballad' to make the final cut, none of those on The 20/20 Experience coming close to tracks like Until The End Of Time or Losing My Way from FutureSex/LoveSounds

11) Dress On

The first of two extra tracks on the Deluxe Edition, Dress On is a mid tempo track that recalls What Goes Around.../...Comes Around, the strings blending with Justin's surprisingly sultry vocals extremely well. It makes for a great transition track between Tunnel Vision and That Girl, the centre of the album dipping into Mid Tempo right before things pick up again. It's a great album track, especially as it manages to contain itself within 5 minutes.

12) Body Count

It's crazy to think that Body Count didn't make it onto the Standard Edition of the album, it's a brash crazy jam of a song and would have been a great candidate for the third single. Timbaland doesn't leave much to the imagination here, throwing just about everything he can into the production, the whole thing sounds like a sequel to his own track featuring JT Carry Out. It works extremely well when placed next to Let The Groove Get In, both songs taking the pace to a new high right before the album peaks with Mirrors.

The Solution

Of course most people are terrified by the idea of cutting sections out from songs and mixing them so the timing still holds up, and I must admit I can't be bothered to edit individual tracks. Instead I've made a new tracklist that I think emphasises the strengths of the record, whilst removing the 2 least interesting tracks in the process. The final result is in this Spotify Playlist:

How To: An Introduction

2013-03-17T23:09:00.000+00:00

If you have ever been victim to my angry tweets surrounding a disappointing album release from one of my favourite artists (see Beyonce's 4, Nicki Minaj's Roman Reloaded, Kanye & Co Cruel Summer) then you have my condolences. Though I credit myself on having an open mind when it comes to most genres of music, the level of criticism that artists fall victim to runs in correlation with how much I like them; backwards I know.

When an artist I adore releases a subpar album, or makes poor single choices post release I can't help but get angry. I'm much more frustrated when I know an artist has it in them to deliver a brilliant song or a consistently amazing album than I am with artists I either don't know or have never really enjoyed before. I've gotten comments on Twitter about my disdain with Beyonce's 4 album campaign for instance, as a 'huge fan' how could I complain so much about the tracklist. In fact, just about the only thing wrong with 4 is the tracklist, which I've mentioned before here, so I took it upon myself to reorder the tracks in an attempt to make the most of a disappointing album. The album was improved to no end, throwing in bonus track 'Schoolin' Life' and not making the awful decision of ending with 'Run The World (Girls)' made for an album Bey deserves to be releasing, even if she would never get to see it.

I've also had people question why tracklists matter to me so much. I know that most people are perfectly happy skipping songs they don't like, or listening on shuffle, but often this makes the whole album feel disjointed and messy. The flow of a record is so important, evident in many of my favourite albums (see any of Kanye's solo records), where a 60 minute album can fly by as you get lost in the tracks. Some albums only need a few tweaks here and there, Madonna's MDNA is instantly better with the incredible 'Best Friend' taking the place of 'Some Girls' and 'Superstar'. Albums that need far too much work? I'd use Christina Aguilera's Bionic as one of the most obvious examples. An album full of great songs, most of which are hidden beneath a bunch of middling to downright painful tracks like 'Vanity' and 'Sex For Breakfast'. The deluxe version of Bionic features 22 songs, of which I include 10 on my 'final cut' of the album. Having to cut 12 songs from an album to make it listenable isn't the best feeling. Of course the worst offender is Nicki's Roman Reloaded, the extended Re-Up version containing over nearly 30 songs with an incredible 10 track album hidden in there.

As I spend so much time reordering albums I thought it was time for me to make it a semi-regular segment on here. I may go back and go into detail on some of the albums I mentioned above, but hopefully as time goes on this can become my new way of 'reviewing' those albums that I think maybe needed a few extra weeks in the editing suite to get them ready for general consumption. As usual, expect each post to devolve into a rant of sorts, but I'll try and keep to some sort of structure each time. I'll include a Spotify playlist (if available) in each post, so make sure to let me know what you think of my new cuts of these previously disappointing records.

Is Play Count Watching A Step Too Far?: 3 years on

2013-02-17T20:32:00.000+00:00

3 Years ago this week, I made a post (here) about how I was obsessed with watching my play counts on iTunes. My top 25 Most Played at the time look like this:

A year following this, I wrote another post (here), where things were looking like this:

There was no post in 2012, but luckily I took a screenshot of what my play counts looked like at some point in 2012 (I can't quite remember when I took this)

Now in the second month of 2013, it is time to have a look at what is happening over on my current Top 25 Most Played:

Things have changed a considerable amount in the last 3 years, though the high play counts of certain songs have meant the list has become quite samey in recent years. The last entries into the top 25 all come from 2011, nothing from 2012 or 13 has made an impact quite yet, in fact the only song from a 2012 album to make it into my top 100 is Comeback Kid by Sleigh Bells with 97 plays. I think last year marked a turning point for my listening habits, the days of me rinsing a song for all it's worth may be ending.

That said, there is one song that made a massive jump onto the list in 2012/2013. Run The World is most definitely not my favourite Beyonce track, in fact it's probably not even in my top 20, but for some reason that song became part of my daily routine for much of 2011 and 2012. The top end of the chart hasn't changed much in the last year, and given how much I'll be listening to her before seeing her in July, it's looking likely that Rihanna will stay on top for the foreseeable future. Alejandro is the interesting change, the fact I only found out I was seeing her in 2012 the day before goes a long way to understanding why iTunes says I've only listened to the song 4 times in a year.

It's becoming obvious that the Top 25 Most Played is becoming a redundant view of my current listening habits, I'm listening to lots of different music these days, rather than any specific artists or tracks. Using Last.fm is a good way of seeing where my current music taste is, my listening habits of the last 12 months though innacurate, still paint a decent picture of what has been playing on my iPod.

Brokenhearted is sure to become the next top 100 ranked song, but given my playlists have adjusted for the new year, it could take some of the other tracks on that list a bit longer.

Most people don't really care, but 3 years on from when I initially asked the question it is obvious that while play count watching may be a step too far, I took that step a very long time ago.

Best of 2012: Best Music Gig

2013-01-08T00:13:00.000+00:00

5) Lady GaGa - Born This Way Ball - Twickenham Stadium (London)

I saw the 2012 Lady GaGa tour and she only makes it to number 5 in my list? It may seem strange but 2012 was a damn good year for me and gigs and our fair Lady was bettered by 4 other concerts. The Born The Way Ball was just as ridiculous as ever though, the birthing section during Born The Way possibly outdoing the fish creature from the Monster Ball back in 2010. Every song had an accompanying outfit/contraption for GaGa to attempt to dance in all the more ridiculous with her screams of 'Dance you motherfuckers' every few seconds. Being at a GaGa gig is like being in some sort of weird cult, you aren't quite sure why you are there or what is going on but you are having a damn good time singing along. She'd be higher if she hadn't arrived on stage late and had to cut Americano and my two fave tracks of hers Alejandro and Poker Face. She cut Poker Face!

Song of the show: You & I - The section where she took to her Piano for a few songs was the best bit of the show for me. Being in a stadium turned You & I from a catchy country stamper into a stadium ballad worthy of Queen. Epic to say the least.

4) Madonna - MDNA Tour - NIA (Birmingham)

The queen of pop just about beats her closest rival to the number 4 spot on my list. Some say she's past it, some say her songs aren't any good, some say she's a granny. The people saying this obviously didn't see the MDNA tour, an hour and a half of the Queen of Pop being just that and nothing more. As a 'new age' Madge fan, I'm all for songs like Revolver, Candy Shop and most of the excellent MDNA album making up the setlist. That said she did just enough classics as well. Papa Don't Preach, Vogue, Hung Up, Open Your Heart and Express Yourself made sure you remembered just why she got that title. Everything was euphoric and exciting, far from the tired ageing woman that she had supposedly turned into. Madonna knows how to put on an amazing show, and I loved every second of the MDNA Tour.

Song of the show: Like A Prayer - I really wanted to go for Human Nature or Express Yourself here, both of which were incredible for very different reasons. I had to go for the ultimate song though, a performance that was simple, predictable and yet better in a live setting than I could have anticipated. Seeing my brother's face light up as his favourite artist sang his favourite song made the whole moment even more special.

3) Plan B - Mercury Prize Live - LSO St Lukes (London)

Plan B has appeared on every list this year, and it's his impeccable iLL Manors album that's done it. I very nearly wasn't able to go to the gig, I hadn't been able to speak due to illness for the last two days. I made it in the end, and we ended up literally at the front. The gig was being filmed for TV, so I wasn't expecting to see many songs, but he played nearly everything from iLL Manors as well as Chase & Status collab Pieces and Stay To Long to close. Hearing my album of the year just about in full, and more importantly in order was incredible. Seeing him rap those lyrics about 3 feet away from me was surreal too, especially those moments where I could tell he had spotted that I knew all of the lyrics. It may not have been technically as good as a full arena Plan B gig, but for me it was an intensely personal gig where I got to enjoy one of my all time favourite albums.

Song of the show: Deepest Shame - Of course it had to be Deepest Shame the song that ended up at number 3 on my singles list. The rap section was even more heartbreaking in person and I'm pretty sure I was singing along ridiculously loud throughout. I lost myself in one of my favourite songs a moment I'll never be able to replicate.

2) Coldplay - Mylo Xyloto Tour - Etihad Stadium (Manchester)

If Madonna was the ultimate music gig for my brother, then seeing Coldplay with my Mum was the same thing for her. Outside of Take That, Coldplay are probably the most played artist in our house and they have the same effect on us. Hearing songs like Clocks, Paradise and Viva La Vida sung by the 60000 people in the stadium was incredible, every single one of Coldplay's records coming alive in the live setting. They are unmatched when it comes to live performance, they bring this unique energy to the stage, and the songs are written in a way that capitalises on this. The moment in Fix You where the guitar kicks in right before that final chant of 'Tears stream down your face' managed to surpass even my lofty expectations, while the similar moment in Every Teardrop is a Waterfall ended the gig on a spectacular high. I don't think I was prepared for just how good Coldplay were going to be. I knew they were a brilliant group, with plenty of songs I adored, but in the end it was like an education in how to pull off the perfect Stadium show. With Robyn as support, it couldn't get much better for me, and yet Coldplay find themselves at number 2 on this list.

Song of the Show: Charlie Brown - Those moments mentioned above were spectacular, but Charlie Brown is like one huge 3 minute 'moment' in itself. It was a song where I was stood in awe of the light show the Xylobands were providing us with, an audible 'Wow' from me as the track kicked off. Hearing the song now takes me right back to that incredible moment, making it one of my favourite Coldplay tracks.

1) Jay-Z & Kanye West - Watch The Throne Tour - LG Arena (Birmingham)

The Throne had to be on top, a gig that includes hits like Empire State Of Mind, Gold Digger and Ni**as in Paris is unmatched in my book. You can judge how much I enjoyed a gig by how little voice I have left the day after. I literally couldn't speak after this, my brother telling me that my rapping was 'the most hilarious thing he had ever seen'. I was one of the few people around us that knew every lyric to every song, going wild when Jay-Z album track U Don't Know started and noticing the moment when Kanye transitioned into verses from the Power remix before anyone else. Jay-Z performed as well as he always does, but I saw him exactly 2 years previous on the Blueprint 3 Tour so I already knew the effect that my favourite songs of his would have on me, yet again Dirt Off Your Shoulder and Empire were incredible. It was all about Kanye in 2012, and the best way to describe it is to cut to my Song, or should I say Songs of the show.

Song of the Show: Can't Tell Me Nothing/Flashing Lights: I'd already had my 'holy shit that's Kanye West walking towards me' moment during opener H.A.M. and seen a bunch of Jay-Z and Throne cuts including songs as big as Otis, but nothing prepared me for that first Kanye solo track. Can't Tell Me Nothing isn't my favourite Kanye song, I can think of at least 10 tracks I prefer, but with that opening chant of 'La la la la, wait till I get my money right...' I was gone. I can't quite describe what 'gone' means, but I had lost myself. If you had been stood next to me at that moment, you would have seen me literally screaming the lyrics at the stage. The steady bounce of Can't Tell Me Nothing was the perfect way for Kanye to start, I think the fact it was one of his pure Hip-Hop records made it really hit me that I was finally seeing this artist I had adored for so many years. It was only the beginning though and seeing him go straight into Flashing Lights, by far my favourite Kanye song literally destroyed me. Both songs from Graduation, the first Kanye album I ever heard and the reason I was at that gig in the first place, it was a moment that defined everything I had ever wanted from a gig. The Watch The Throne tour was 2 and a half hours featuring my favourite songs from the last 10 years, I doubt anything will ever come close to it again.

Best of 2012: Best Game

2013-01-03T01:21:00.000+00:00

I've been putting off my games list to the last minute as I thought I would have the time/money to play through some of the big games of 2012. Compared to last year where my list was full of AAA releases, I have barely played any this year, so games like ACIII, Dishonored, Journey and Far Cry 3 won't make an appearance. That said, here are 10 games I will remember fondly from the year just gone.

10) Final Fantasy XIII-2 - PS3/360

The fact I have had to include Final Fantasy XIII-2 in my end of year list stresses the point I made above. XIII-2 isn't a bad game in the slightest, in fact it's the best FF game released since the PS2 era, but does it really deserve to be here alongside such classics? With main heroine Lightning taking a backseat, it's her sister Serah and new character Noel that drive the narrative forward here. The time travel concept makes for an interesting journey meeting up with familiar faces and locations for those who made it through the first game. XIII-2 fixed most of the issues I had with the original game, which is why it finds itself kicking off my list.

9) Virtue's Last Reward - Vita/3DS

You'll notice a trend of Vita games appearing on my list, and while Virtue's Last Reward has a lot of problems it's one of the games I'll remember from 2012. One of the most bonkers concepts I've ever heard of, this is a point and click adventure game where your decisions rely on how much you trust the other characters. It's a unique and enjoyable experience and one I will remember from my first set of Vita games. (Full Review)

8) Gravity Rush - Vita

I am yet to complete what most regard as the essential Vita launch game, but I have enjoyed everything I have played so far. With a likable heroine and an intriguing narrative, Gravity Rush is a much more complete experience that I expected it to be. The gravity bending gameplay holds everything together extremely well, making it one of the most interesting and inventive launch titles ever seen on a handheld.

7) Papo & Yo - PSN

A title that is sure to be overlooked in end of year lists, Papo & Yo tells a heartbreaking tale of abuse and how a person you love can become a monster so quickly. It may not have the same high production values of some other indie games from 2012, but Papo & Yo sets out to tell an emotional story and succeeds where so many fail. A memorable moment in games in 2012. (Full Review)

6) Need For Speed: Most Wanted - PS3/360/PC

The latest game to make it onto this list, I have a love/hate relationship with the latest Need For Speed. In some respects it is my favourite racing game since Race Driver: GRID, the incredible technical achievement in graphics and sound accompanying what should be a flawless driving experience. Sadly the cops that make an appearance in most events go from troublesome to plain frustrating within seconds, making you feel like control over how well you drive has been taken from you. Most Wanted should be much higher on this list, but unfortunately I can't shake the problems it has.

5) Borderlands 2 - PS3/360/PC

I'll admit, I don't play Borderlands 2 properly. I have played through both games completely alone, rather than play with co-op partners online. I know this is missing the whole point of the experience, but that's exactly the point, it's my experience. No one has mastered the perfect mix of shooting and RPG stats as well as Gearbox have with Borderlands 2 (Not even a certain other RPG still to come) and it was definitely one of 2012's essential games.

4) Uncharted: Golden Abyss - Vita

I suppose there were people who expected Nathan Drake's first handheld adventure to be on top of my list. It's obvious that I'm a little bit obsessed with the Uncharted series, and Golden Abyss was certainly the main reason I wanted a Playstation Vita. The game didn't disappoint. This is a fully fledged Uncharted game, and while the set piece moments are smaller in scale, it's another rollorcoaster of drama and action that puts it just ahead of the first game in the series in my books. Having Drake with me on the go was brilliant, showing that the Vita can match up to its home console counterparts.

3) SSX - PS3/360

This game is the reason it has taken me so long to finally put this list together. I have played no other game as much in 2012, and nothing else on any of these lists has provided the highs that SSX has. Storming down Serenity stringing together a ridiculous trick combo is the gaming equivalent to hearing that bit in We Found Love right before everything goes off in a club where people around you start going mental jumping up and down. It's possibly the greatest piece of gaming I experienced in 2012, but as I mentioned in my review of the game on release, the deadly descents spoil what would have been a otherwise perfect game. In so many ways it's my favourite game on PS3, better than SSX3 and my defining game of the generation. It's broken though and these frustrations prevent it from being my game of 2012, even if I know it's the one I'll be playing well into 2013 and possibly even 2014.

2) Mass Effect 3 - PS3/360/PC

Let's ignore the elephant in the room, as most people will remember Mass Effect 3 for those closing few minutes. I choose to focus on the 30 hours of incredible space RPG that came before, featuring some of the most dramatic, exciting and emotional moments I played in 2012. Characters you have grown to love through the trilogy, as well as the consequences of choices made in the earlier games make for an incredible final chapter. Your Shepard has some difficult decisions to make here, some of which are sure to bring a tear to the eye of even the most hardened of gamers. My personal journey across the galaxy came to an end in 2012, and the most memorable moments took place in the final game. Bioware may not have gotten that ending right, but taken as a whole Mass Effect 3 is an epic experience that rounds off one of the industry's most revered franchises in tremendous style.

1) The Walking Dead - PSN/XBLA/PC/iOS

Part of me really wanted to award SSX top honours for the sheer joy and huge amount of hours I've sunk into that game. Another part of me knows that Mass Effect 3 is a technically astonishing achievement and one I'm sure to return to for years to come. But when it came down to it, no game affected me, or has done in a few years, as much as The Walking Dead. Avoiding every problem that I have with the otherwise brilliant TV show, The Walking Dead keeps things honest, simple and brutal throughout its 5 episodes. Each section has its own peaks and troughs, the excellent pacing within the separate sections giving the game a unique and innovative philosophy of how you play it. It works much more effectively taken over a series of days, much like the TV itself, with the instant connection to these emotive characters turning even the smallest of choices into major internal battles. Choosing whether to give food to a starving child, or the selfish guy in order to build a bridge with his daughter is the sort of decision that can cause major repercussions down the road. Dealing with these consequences is part of the experience, seen no greater than in the innocent eyes of your companion Clementine. Nothing was more heartbreaking in 2012 than seeing her look up at you with a disapproving, slightly terrified look reminding you that she will remember your actions. In gaming there are few finer examples of character design than Clem, forced to grow up to survive in a changed world, it's her innocence that will eventually save her, as well as break your heart. No game has made me cry like The Walking Dead did, which given how many have actually brought me to tears is saying something. Because it was my journey and my decisions with these characters, it made the connection impossibly strong, something no other medium can even come close to achieving. The Walking Dead is a journey, a story and a game I will never forget and so is my choice for the Best Game of 2012.

Best of 2012: Best TV Show

2012-12-27T10:00:00.000+00:00

I was planning on saving this list to last to allow me to finish watching Homeland before the year's end, but this hasn't worked out as planned. Given how much I'm enjoying Season 1, expect that it would make the cut here, but for now these were the 10 shows I enjoyed the most in 2012. (Minor Spoilers ahead, though I've tried to avoid specifics where I can)

10) Fairly Legal - Season 2

In prep for writing this article I was gutted to find out that The USA Network has cancelled this lovable legal drama. Sarah Shahi is a likeable lead as Kate Reed, always attempting to do the 'right' thing, even if it means disappointing her ex husband and assistant district attorney Justin Patrick (played by Michael Trucco aka Sam from BSG). It's an easy show to enjoy, never crossing the line into serious legal drama, and never going to full out comedy. I expected to be seeing Fairly Legal again next year, but sadly it joins some of my other favourites in the forgotten history of TV.

9) Game of Thrones - Season 2

I had put off watching Game of Thrones despite hearing brilliant things about it, thinking that what is essentially Lord of The Rings the TV Show wouldn't be for me. Throughout Season 1 I didn't really get what the fuss was about, in fact it wasn't until the dramatic closing episodes that I genuinely enjoyed the show. Season 2 was better in just about every respect. The fight scenes were abundant, the final battle episode being the closest thing to LOTR's Helms Deep I've seen on television, while the seedier aspects of these characters was ramped up too. There's plenty to love on Game Of Thrones, most definitely the most expensive looking show on TV.

8) Community - Season 3

There's lots of 'new' entries on my list this year, I was busy playing catch up with a lot of classics.Community is one of these, I ended up watching all 3 seasons in a matter of days. I fell in love with the cast and constant references to pop culture. The format allows it to never feels like its repeating itself. The episodes that aired in 2012 may not have been the best of the bunch, few match classic episodes like Remedial Chaos Theory or the Season 2 Paintball double parter A Fistful of Paintballs, but they were still pretty great. Highlights included Civil War documentary parody Pillows and Blankets and the episode which saw all the characters find themselves inside an 8-bit style videogame.

7) The Walking Dead - Season 2/Season 3

It finds itself lower on my list than last year, but The Walking Dead in 2012 was a thousand times better than it was in 2011. The second half of Season 2 saw Shane fly so far off the rails he met his match with Rick one last time, whilst the Prison setting for Season 3 has taken the series even darker than ever before. Considering we still have half a season to go, so much has happened already. The death of some major characters, in addition to The Governor slowly becoming the best villain the show has seen made 2012 a landmark year for The Walking Dead. Oh and there were actually some Zombies involved this time too, a lot of Zombies.

6) Modern Family - Season 3/Season 4

Modern Family found itself at number 1 last year and despite the drop this year my opinion of the comedy show is still very high. Now 4 seasons in, the show is yet to lose steam like so many comedies do by this point. These are characters that I've spent the last 3 years with and 2012 saw some big changes in the Dunphy/Mitchell households. Probably the most emotional the show has been, seeing Cam and Mitch's new baby adoption fall through was a sad end to Season 3. The moment of the year for me though was in Schooled, which saw Hayley leaving home for college. I did shed a few tears at the moment when she phoned her parents after finding it hard to settle in, Phil and Claire breaking my heart with their own tears as they drove home, the Phil'sosophy summing up all the reasons why I fell in love with this Modern Family in the first place.

5) American Horror Story: Asylum

The newest addition to my list, I literally watched this last week, American Horror Story takes a unique approach to its seasons. Each year sees a completely new story, with most of the cast remaining but in new roles. This should allow for a more rounded television experience, though as the disappointing finale to season 1 showed this may not always be the case. Asylum was an even slower burn, the scares were more horror than the tension seen in Murder House, but a few episodes in everything blew up into a frenzy of madness, mutilation and murder. Jessica Lange as Sister Jude is even better than she was last year, the centrepiece of one of the best ensemble casts in TV. With 4 episodes still to come in January things there's still plenty that can happen, but so far Asylum has been one hell of a ride.

4) Happy Endings - Season 2/ Season 3

I went into watching Happy Endings for the first time with no preconceptions of what the show was. I had heard good things and gave it a try on a whim. 3 days and 2 seasons later I had a new favourite comedy show. It's not 'technically' as brilliant as Modern Family, but the blend of everything I loved from Will & Grace and the reason Friends works so well makes for the show that keeps me laughing longer and harder than anything else. Penny, Max, Alex, Jane, Brad and Dave have become my new friends, every single one of them essential to the overall dynamic. 2012 has been a brilliant year too, standout episodes including one where all the characters share sex dreams about Dave, which was followed by one where the Kerkovitch sisters hatch an elaborate cover up when Alex realises she actually has. Boys II Menorah was another personal favourite, the title alone summing up the humour that I enjoy perfectly. Some of my fondest 2012 TV memories were with Happy Endings.

3) Breaking Bad - Season 5

There have only been 3 shows on this list that I watched before 2012, and Breaking Bad is by far the best that I hadn't. Going through the first 4 seasons of 'The Best Show On TV' in such a short period of time was exhausting, it's just a bit dramatic. One of the things I loved watching this way was how seamless everything is, there's literally seconds between each season, gaps in time never being longer than a week or two. It means that the last 5 years of TV have taken place in a matter of months which gives every plot turn this driving force forward. Season 5 has taken Walter and Jesse to the darkest depths of their morality, Walter in particular going even further past the line he crossed in the Season 4 finale. The supporting characters have excelled in 2012, Anna Gunn in particular amazing me with her mostly silent depiction of Skylar this year. If Breaking Bad is a show about doing just that, we are edging closer and closer to the day when 'breaking' doesn't even describe how far Walt has gone. With the final 8 episodes in 2013, if they can retain the standard seen this year, I will have no qualms in calling Breaking Bad the best TV show I have ever had the privilege of watching.

2) Dexter - Season 7

The fact I have placed Dexter above Breaking Bad in this list makes me so happy, as going into Season 7 I thought it was an impossible task. It has been my favourite show since I first saw it and despite enjoying Season 5 and 6, they felt like they were helped greatly by coming off the back of the incredible Trinity Killer in Season 4. That was 3 years ago now though, so the show had to evolve again or in Season 7's case go back even further in time to kick off a 2 year conclusion for our Serial Killer. The emphasis for Dex this year wasn't on killing, but conversation. We've only ever seen Dexter this candid about his 'extra curricular activities' when faced with a body on his table, never face to face with the people closest to him. These scenes of dialogue were held together by the best performances we've seen from Michael C Hall and Jennifer Carpenter yet. For a huge fan of the show, the scene where the blood slides are discovered and the conversation that followed was a monumental moment, I've been waiting 7 seasons for the inevitable events seen here. Dexter was back to his best in 2012, setting everything up for an incredible final season.

1) Mad Men - Season 5

I said before that Breaking Bad was my favourite 'new' show of the year, but Mad Men is definitely a close second. It find itself on top of my 2012 list for putting together its strongest season yet, with episode after episode of daring, provocative and thrilling television. There's an air of class to everything that the Mad Men creators do, no matter how seedy or comedic it may be. They are the experts at creating a time and a place, setting the mood right perfectly to allow these now familiar characters unravel in front of you. Season 5 had too many incredible moments to name, Megan's rendition of 'Zou Bisou Bisou' in the opening showing that this season was set to be the most unexpected yet. It's the acting performances that made Mad Men for me this year though, Jared Harris' tragic portrayal of Lane Pryce being especially gut wrenching. The moment and performance that sticks out for me though is the trio of Hamm, Moss and Hendricks in The Other Woman, by far my favourite episode of TV in 2012. It's an episode that affected me like I could never have imagined, tugging on my feelings about sexism, acceptance and independence especially with it's bait and switch twist. Don's slogan of 'Jaguar: At last, something beautiful you can truly own.' captures the essence of what Mad Men is set out to achieve. You are meant to feel saddened by the way to get ahead in the world of advertising, the show knows this, its glimpses towards a brighter future, especially prevalent in Peggy leaving traces in each of the characters and your own thoughts. In 2012 there was nothing quite like Mad Men, but I have a feeling there never will be.

Best of 2012: Best Single 10-1

2012-12-26T16:33:00.000+00:00

10) Nicki Minaj - Beez In The Trap (Feat. 2 Chainz)

My most impassioned relationship of 2012 was with Ms Minaj, an artist who should be my favourite of the era but does everything in her power not to be. Beez in The Trap is a reason for the former those drip drops in the production fills up to produce her most infectious hip hop song yet. That chorus is so Nicki, calling out those other female rappers who really shouldn't bother to mess with her, even if I still to this day have no clue what 'The Trap' is, or how you can 'Beez' in it. The fact that I love this song despite the appearance of 2 Chainz, officially the worst music act of 2012 goes a long way to show how obsessed I was with that hook. With the same vibe as my favourite Nicki track Did It On Em, this is the sort of song I would go crazy to in a club. Shame everyone decided to buy Starships instead.

9) Kanye West - Clique (Feat. Big Sean & Jay-Z)

Most definitely the hip-hop track of 2012, Clique saw Big Sean join in on the best track from The Throne not make it onto last year's collab album. The pulsating bassline lets it stand next to the dubstep infused dance records this year, but Clique builds into something much more dramatic very quickly. It's closest relation is H.A.M. which makes me imagine this was originally meant for Watch The Throne like that Jay and Kanye hit, the choir and clattering drum section that appears every minute or so achieves the monumental sound Kanye chose to dial down. All three rappers deliver incredible verses, but it's Jay-Z who takes things to another level, showing the younger men how to do it. I was sold on Clique from those opening bars of bass, and it's been an absolute tune ever since.

8) Swedish House Mafia - Greyhound

Of all the Swedish House Mafia songs that could make the cut in 2012, Greyhound has left the biggest mark on me. At nearly 7 minutes long it's the longest track in my top 10, but unlike other lengthy tracks it feels like Greyhound is over as soon as it's began. One epic build up after another, Greyhound never lets up thrusting another ridiculous layer of pounding synth and dub bass into view every minute. It never slows down either, each time you think you are nearing the end they throw another instrument into the mix. By far my favourite of the trio's work to date, I think it's the lack of vocals that pushes Greyhound over the edge, never has an instrumental track captured my attention like this before. 4 minutes into this marathon of euphoria part of you is telling you it's time for the end, but those 3 minutes push it even more. It's an exhausting experience, but most definitely one of my biggest tunes of 2012.

7) Plan B - Playing With Fire (Feat. Labrinth)

Plan B makes another appearance with the song that made me know iLL Manors was my album of 2012. Playing With Fire is soulful, emotional and dramatic, defining the album as a whole in one fell swoop. The blend of genres is effortless, the hints towards a dancier dubstep record never quite working out as the song takes a darker route for first of the song's two hooks. The distant vocals from Labrinth give it this distinctly eerie edge, especially when heard next to the clearer vocals from Drew. There's a section of about 20 seconds that includes the end of Plan B's second verse and the start of Labrinth's that amazes me each and every time I hear it. Following such a powerful verse, it's that scratch of guitar right before everything 'goes off' that made Playing With Fire one of my most memorable records of the year.

6) Rihanna - Where Have You Been

I gave Rihanna a pretty rough time on this list last year, I placed We Found Love at #40 which on reflection was a huge mistake. It's technically the best song on Talk That Talk, but on a personal basis Where Have You Been is leagues ahead. Where the bigger hit is restrained and simple, Where Have You Been is ridiculously over the top and crazy, Rihanna's vocal in particular barely holding together on those big notes. It's as full of character as the artist herself, which makes it so much more believable as a record. It pushes that bit more in the closing moments too, the 'yeah, yeah's that emerge over the final 'wooaaah' living up to the slow build up throughout the second half. A banging dance anthem that completes the Calvin Harris domination on this countdown.

5) Rudimental - Feel The Love (Feat. John Newman)

The top 10 is all club tracks isn't it! Feel The Love came from nowhere to end up as my favourite dance record of 2012. It's brilliantly constructed, a simple yet unique vocal line with the best drum and bass production of the year the song expands at every moment your ear wants it to. That entry of trumpet is faultless, a glorious unexpected moment in the sort of record the chart is already full of. It isn't the same in your face madness of tracks like Where Have You Been and Greyhound, where you can hear the effort the creators have put in. Feel The Love is a track you imagine just happened, an effortless flow of music rather than a forced attempt to make a club banger. Rudimental may have just perfected Drum and Bass with Feel The Love.

4) Usher - Climax

With his Raymond Vs Raymond album, Usher had a slew of massive club hits with songs like OMG and DJ Got Us Falling In Love blowing up on the charts. I expected his next album to follow suit, but instead he unveiled the lead single the Diplo produced jam Climax. Who would have guessed Usher would release a song as expansive as this, it's majesty coming from the juxtaposition of the lyrics and the production. Climax is the sexiest song not about sex ever made, everything other than the tease of a title avoiding the subject. The fact that Diplo never ever lets the production reach said climax makes this the ultimate tease of a record. It hits you deep as it builds up and then suddenly drops out. With a song this good, I'll let Usher off for destroying my voice this year. Trying to hit those ridiculous falsetto notes in the chorus has proven to be an impossible task for me.

3) Plan B - Deepest Shame

The final entry for Mr Drew, Deepest Shame is the pinnacle of his singles career so far. The most straightforward pop song on iLL Manors, Deepest Shame sees Plan B return to the same emotive vocals seen on songs like She Said and Prayin'. No other song affected me emotionally like this did, not since Dancing On My Own has a song nearly brought me to tears. The rap verse lodged in the middle is lyrically flawless, it's heartbreaking in its depiction of central character Michelle who is so lost in her life that there's no way back. 'With only herself to blame she lives this hell but there's a millions other girls just like Michelle, out in the streets with nothing else to sell to these desperate males other than themselves' it's lyrics like that so simple in their brilliance that make Deepest Shame for me. It's the best track on my album of the year, so there's no surprise it's made it so high on this list.

2) Sleigh Bells - Comeback Kid

Comeback Kid spent most of 2012 atop my ongoing playlist of the year, I kept on waiting for a song to better it. Eventually one did, but the impact Comeback Kid left on me has never diminished. It's the definitive example of what Sleigh Bells have attempted to achieve with their albums. This is like a replication and perfection of their debut Treats condensed into exactly 3 minutes. It's nowhere near as deep or lyrically compelling as any of the other tracks in the top 10, but this is loud and ferocious whilst remaining tuneful throughout. It's an incredible pop song with the bass portion of the vocals removed and replaced by screeching guitar riffs. Alexis is this distant vocal, the juxtaposition of this ethereal angelic tone with the crash of cymbals making for a track that was unlike any other in 2012. Comeback Kid will probably be the defining track of Sleigh Bells career, and what a massive track it is.

1) Karmin - Brokenhearted

For the last 2 years my favourite artists Kanye and Robyn have occupied the top 2 positions on my singles list. in 2012 however I have relatively new male/female duos switching things up dramatically. You could say that Comeback Kid and Brokenhearted are the antithesis of each other, but hearing them back to back while writing this post I've started to see the connection between the two.The female pop vocal on both make them immediate hits whilst the massive sound of each record comes courtesy of the male in the group. Brokenhearted just edges past Comeback Kid for its simplicity and effortless blend of love and heartbreak. It's not a sad song in the slightest, despite the name, it's hopeful and empowering. A Dancing On My Own comparison isn't out of the question, lead singer Amy may be waiting all, but she's not letting that stop her from 'poppin bottles by the phone'. She's demanding that should be no heartbreak in her life right now, even if it means overselling herself slightly, 'Anything you wanna do, I be on it too'. As new artists, Karmin give it everything they've got on their debut hit, something missing with so many of the pop hits in 2012. Amy's trademark rapping is used to great effect, never crossing the fine line between quirky and annoying, the same happening with that mindlessly catchy hook which avoids being unnecessarily long. Brokenhearted was a song I never expected to take the top spot. It does so without attempting to push boundaries and without a gimmick to make it a hit. It's simply a damn good pop song, and in 2012 that was thing I was craving the most.

Best of 2012: Best Single 20-11

2012-12-22T17:41:00.003+00:00

20) Coldplay - Charlie Brown

Coldplay were a big hit on my 2011 list, their Mylo Xyloto album is most definitely my favourite of their efforts so far, and Every Teardrop was the song that really hooked me on the group. Charlie Brown was the sound of 2012 in my house though. In the lead up to seeing Coldplay on tour it was always the first song to really get us excited. It appears here solely for the moment they performed it, everyone's Xylobands literally glowing in the dark becoming one of my moments of 2012. Charlie Brown is the sort of euphoric, energetic stadium anthem that make Coldplay the biggest band in the world.

19) David Guetta - Titanium (Feat. Sia)

Yes I know technically Titanium was released in 2011, but it didn't become a single until the start of this year, and in the process became the biggest dance record of 2012. Though I do find it hard to respect David Guetta for his system of seemingly releasing every bit of rubbish he makes to see what sticks as a hit, every now and again he produces a song as good as Titanium. Sia brings a rawness and emotion rarely seen in such a grandiose dance record, and while there's still bits where 'it all goes off' this is Guetta at his most restrained. Probably the best song Guetta will ever lend his talents to.

18) Taylor Swift - I Knew You Were Trouble

I Knew You Were Trouble was the first song where I actually understood the appeal of Taylor Swift. Of course it's about one of her seemingly endless supply of breakup stories, of course Taylor won't go down without a fight and of course the chorus is stupidly catchy. The magic of this is in the amazing blend of genres that happens around this typical Taylor record. It's a dubstep song that manages to avoid including any actual dubstep, which in 2012 was a genius move. As a pop record this is an inescapable joy to hear, even if country's sweetheart seems to have left her roots behind for good.

17) Kanye West - Cold (Feat. DJ Khaled)

'Tell PETA my mink is draggin' on the floor' has to be my lyric of 2012. Cold is the most 'Kanye' record he's released since Can't Tell Me Nothing. It's ballsy, full to the brim with egotistical nonsense and features more 'Huh's than ever before. It helps that the production was done by the same guy who did last year's Ni**as in Paris, it gives Cold the same running pace and hectic sound seen in that massive hit. Cold is Kanye just being Kanye and in 2012 that was exactly the sort of thing I wanted to hear.

16) Cheryl Cole - Call My Name

The opening 20 seconds of Call My Name may well be the crowning achievement of Calvin Harris' career so far. No song in 2012 opened in such explosive fashion, reinvigorating Cheryl's career right when it needed it. It's ridiculous that he doesn't get a featured credit here when he did on We Found Love, this is just as good if not better than Rihanna's massive record. It's one of those production hooks that you feel the need to sing along to, even more so than the lyrics of the song itself. Of course the song needed an artist worthy of pulling it off and for all her flaws Cheryl delivers in every way. The 'oh oh oh...say my name baby' bit near the end is one of my favourite moments on a Chezza song, and Call My Name is most definitely her defining hit.

15) Plan B - ill Manors

Ben Drew makes his first appearance on my singles list with the title track of my album of the year. ill Manors is a standalone track, more a political statement than a narrative fuelled song. It sounds like London, the way the chorus opens with an 'Oi!' and the D&B drum pattern against the strings sample makes the whole thing sound like it's rioting against itself. Lines like 'There's no such thing as broken Britain, we're just bloody broke in Britain' come thick and fast with Plan B delivering the whole thing like some crazed party political broadcast. ill Manors is unique in 2012, a song that delivers a message whilst still being a massive tune.

14) Kelly Clarkson - What Doesn't Kill You (Stronger)

I've seen plenty of pop bloggers awarding Kelly's now signature hit their top honours in 2012 and I had to include her here myself. It seems a bit silly to discuss exactly what makes Stronger such a tune, I honestly can't imagine someone not enjoying such an epic pop anthem. Unlike so many similar 'empowering' hits over the last few years, Firework, Beautiful, Born This Way, it never feels like Kelly is telling you to be strong. She's singing this song for one person and one person alone, herself, which is exactly the point of the record. When you have some popstar telling you to be yourself and not give up, it's hard to not feel like you are being told what to do. Kelly is being strong herself, in the catchiest and best power anthem of her career.

13) Gotye - Somebody That I Used To Know (Feat. Kimbra)

I imagine that as we close 2012 most people will be sick and tired of that opening section of Somebody That I Used To Know. The beach Boys sounding guitar riff, against the clack of a wood block and Gotye's monotonous opening verse. A minute and a half in though, the chorus kicks in and all shed of boredom is instantly gone while you start wailing along to the high notes. That's where the genius of Somebody That I Used To Know lies, it's a slow burn towards that incredible chorus where you get instant gratification. By the same the song closes you wonder why you were ever sick of it in the first place, maybe part of the reason it's by far the biggest selling song of the year.

12) Carly Rae Jepsen - Call My Maybe

Completing the trifecta of debut hits in 2012 with Fun. and Gotye, Call Me Maybe was and still is the catchiest song of the year. People will dismiss it a silly song for kids, but outside of Gangnam Style there was no song in 2012 that left an impact like Carl Rae's hit. As a pop record it's near on perfect, those strings, the ridiculous lyrics in the verses, Jepsen's unique way of coming across young and cute whilst never sounding like a silly whining girl. Call Me Maybe is an amazing song, and fully deserves it's spot in my top 20.

11) Azealia Banks - 212 (Feat. Lazy Jay)

Another song technically released in 2011, I just had to find a way to include 212 on my list this year. Can you name another successful chart hit that's hook revolves around the lyric 'I guess that c**t gettin eaten'? Obviously you can't, and the commercial success of 212 baffled me this year. The song deserves it, introducing Azealia to the world at the perfect time, just when Nicki was beginning to ditch rapping. Banks is a force on nature when she strings a verse together, near on impossible to hear every word she is saying and it's this ferocity that makes 212 such a brilliant track. Literally shouting on that second hook, this is the sound of an underground act being dragged kicking and screaming into the mainstream. Hopefully 2013 will see her continue to be as raucous.

PSM3

2012-12-22T15:37:00.004+00:00

I've spent the last few days starting to look back on 2012, back on the year and writing about the things that have mattered to me in those 12 months. How about sitting down to write a piece on the last 12 years of your life, picking out just a handful of memorable moments that meant something to you. I don't know how PSM3 editor Dan Dawkins managed to do it, but in his 5 page feature in the final ever issue of the mag he looks to the past present and future of both the magazine, and his personal achievements. As we look on to the first year without a new issue, I wanted to pay homage to a magazine that has impacted my life in so many ways. I'm expecting this to be a long winded rambling mess, which I think is in keeping with the brilliant podcast the team would put out every month, so apologies from the off.

The first issue of PSM2 I bought was issue 40, the October 2003 edition which would have been the same year we first had a PS2 in our house. As I sit here writing this, the very same issue sat next to me, I can't quite believe that was over 9 years ago. Obviously the mag had been running for a few years before I became a reader, but 11 year old Sam was new to PSM2. The team at the time consisted of the three Dan's as well as long standing member of staff Milf, him and Dan D outlasting everyone else to the bitter end. The big featured review was for Jak 2 Renegade, also the cover game. I wasn't new to games Mags, I had a subscription to PlayStation Max as a younger kid and was still buying Official PS Mag well into the PS2 life cycle. I suppose it was by chance I stumbled on PSM, as knowing what I was like back then I would probably have read the news, reviews and preview sections and skipped over any features not about games I liked.

9 years on though, I can still see the same work ethic and random sense of humour as I do in issues from this year. PSM2's Countdown To Christmas feature opens with a full page picture of Richard Whiteley with a picture of Carol Vorderman selecting the letters to go in the name of each game in the list on the following pages. This sort of random comedic edge, with the staff never taking themselves too seriously is what made me grow to love the mag. I'm tempted to start looking through my stack of magazines for some more examples of features like this, I have over 90 issues of PSM2/PSM3 stacked up in my room, but I will surely be there all night.

I think it was around the time of the transition from PSM2 to PSM3 that I truly started becoming immersed in the magazine as a whole. I was a full time subscriber at this point despite not owning a PS3 for another year, but I was beginning to see journalism as a possible career path for me. It must have been around the GCSE time for me and it was literally a new year's resolution, through a family friend suggesting I give writing a go, that made me first sit down and write a review. I was writing reviews of old games, I'm sure you can still find those articles somewhere, and despite most of them being very rough around the edges I was doing a decent enough job to build my confidence.

I remember writing a letter to PSM3 at the time with a bunch of these reviews included asking for feedback or just some tips on what I should focus on. It obviously didn't make it into the mag, but one day I was flicking through issue 88 in June 2007 and right there in the reader review section is my name alongside an excerpt from my Fahrenheit review. Looking back on that now I wonder why I was so excited about such a small thing, but it really was a turning point for me.

2 months later I had become a frequent user of the PSM Forums, and I created a thread on a whim. 'Any budding videogame journalists?' which can still be found here started off as a simple question to both the PSM3 staff as well as other readers. I was spurred on by seeing my name in print for the first time to be proactive and find out what the next step should be. Somehow the thread takes off after a shout out on the podcast and next thing I know I have another near full page review in PSM3 and I'm writing reviews for a website. I've told this 'story' before so I'll stick to the PSM related stuff, but without that first fraction of motivation that someone at the mag I had read for so long had actually read my work I don't think the next 5 years of hard work would have begun.

I suppose now it's time to talk about my fondest memory of PSM3, my week of work experience in early 2010. I was in my final year of sixth form, and I wanted to get some sort of experience under my belt before leaving for uni. Twitter was the main reason I ended up heading to the office in the first place, I had been chatting with Ex PSM writer Nathan Irvine who was giving me some advice on making a portfolio of short articles to showcase my writing. I sent a few emails to Future, but with no reply. I post a tweet saying I still haven't heard back and thanks to current staff member Kim Richards within 30 minutes I'm emailing Dep-ed Andy Hartup confirming the timing for the week. It all happened very fast, and next thing I knew I was on my way to Bath, the first time I had gone away from home by myself.

I'd love to say that I used the week to the fullest but I suppose 18 year old Sam was still not quite ready for the prospect of working at the magazine he had grown up with. Meeting the team for the first time was genuinely surreal at first. I felt like I already knew the long standing writers, Andy K, Milf, Rich and editor Dan, which made things slightly lob sided at first. Before going to uni I was even more awkward than I am now, so I was a little taken aback and out of my depth chatting with the people who had inspired me to write in the first place. Of course I was there to learn as much as I could about the magazine process, and even if I didn't know it at the time I was absorbing just about every bit of info I could. I knew I'd be writing, and the feedback I received from writing some small sections in issue 125 of the mag as well as a review of Way Of The Samurai 3 was extremely useful. What I didn't expect was the other aspects of the magazine process, where I've since learnt that my talents lie. The time spent learning how a page is put together with Production Editor Owen Hill may have only been a taster of page design and editing, but since working on two pages a week for our uni paper I've found I'm still using some of the advice I picked up that afternoon.

It was the small things that I remember the most. Being in the 'Game cage' getting screen shots and gameplay footage for Just Cause 2 casually chatting to various writers and editors from other mags as they played their own games inches away from the huge TV screens. Everyone in the office receiving their early copies of Heavy Rain and Andy K giving me his after he had already reviewed the game. Being there when they recorded both the Podcast and the DVD footage, watching Owen successfully review Peggle in just 34 seconds was a personal highlight of this. The hush hush nature of the cover game, only a few people in the office were allowed to talk about Vanquish at that point.

Going to buy lunch with Dan and Nathan and talking about what I wanted to achieve in the future. They advised me to go to uni and do Maths even if I still wanted to go down the Journo route. I think this was early on, I was still in 'bloody hell that's Dan Dawkins' mode at this point. I remember some of the advice Dan gave me on my last day, the one that sticks out for me was along the lines of 'If you can get rid of something, get rid of it'. It seems a bit trivial, but it's an idea that I've tried to uphold with everything I've written (except for this blog perhaps...) and more importantly edited, as anyone who has written articles for me can attest to my ruthless editing process.

Like I said before, I wish I had really gone for it a bit more while in the office, the timid side of me coming through far too often. It was still one of the best things I've ever done, and thinking about the closure of the mag makes me glad I got the opportunity when I did. The team were some of the most genuine and lovely people I've had the chance to meet, and being able to spend a week chatting about games with them is something I will remember for years to come. I had hoped to return at some point, but sadly any chance of that has disappeared.

Deary me I really have gone off topic haven't I. This was intended to be some sort of dedication to PSM3, but I've turned it into my life story haven't I. Those come hand in hand though, as my experience with the mag went from simply a reader to a personal one. It's always been about the games, and I've grown up with the games that PSM has evolved with. It's no coincidence that Metal Gear means as much to me as it does the mag, each cover story being more prominent than the last. My personal highlight was the first play of MGS4, where Dan somehow explained his thoughts on the entire game without spoiling a single thing for when I finally played through it. The same goes for SSX. I wouldn't have heard of SSX without PSM, which for anyone who has seen my Best Game list knows is a very big deal. With PSM3 it was always about the games first and foremost. Debating whether such and such is art, the merits of 'wasting time' playing online or technical intricacies, none of that mattered. It was all about the experience of gaming and for me no other mag truly understood that the way PSM did.

All I know is that for the past 9 years, I've been reading and loving PSM3. For better or worse, it has shaped the gamer, the journalist and the person I have become in so many ways. I have a lot to thank the mag for and while obviously I still haven't quite mastered making my point concise, I hope the team behind it and the readers know how much it has meant to me. It's time to say goodbye to PSM, but I will continue to play Longer, Harder, Faster.

Best of 2012: Best Single 30-21

2012-12-21T20:09:00.001+00:00

30) Little Mix - Wings

From that opening smash of brass I was sold on Wings, the sound of Little Mix marching to claim the girl group crown for their own. In this one song they transition between their inspirational, sassy and all around badass personas at lightning speed, the production creating the catchiest marching tune ever made. In one song, Little Mix achieved more than The Saturdays did in 3 albums, and became the first worthy successor to Sugababes we've seen.

29) The XX - Angels

It's hard to think of a song as pretty as Angels was in 2012. Given their reputation for oddly monotone melancholy singing and constant bass guitar accompaniment, Angels was a revelation. Singer Romy delivers a perfectly restrained vocal holding your attention, even over the emptiness of the accompaniment. It's a unique song on this list, but was definitely one of my highlights of the year.

28) Fun. - We Are Young (Feat. Janelle Monae)

I'll admit it was that feature that first got me interested in We Are Young, but once I gave the song a listen I knew that it would become a massive hit. It has that quality of being the sort of record you can listen to alone in your room, as well as in a club with drunken people singing along. If you break it down, the whole thing is like a boyband song torn to shreds and pieced together at half speed. A Na Na section, talk of being young, a stripped back ending, it;s a formula that made for one of 2012's iconic songs.

27) Drake - Crew Love (Feat. The Weeknd)

Drake has to be up there as my most listened artist of the year, the singles from Take Care constantly on repeat. Crew Love was one of the few actually released this year and is every bit as amazing as those from 2011. One of my favourite raps from Drake, the 'and really I think who I'm becoming' defines everything that he was going for with Take Care. The Weeknd provides an incredible vocal as well as some of the most intense production heard all year to make Crew Love a simple joy to hear.

26) Kanye West - Mercy (Feat. Big Sean, Pusha T & 2 Chainz)

If you paid attention to my album list, the most obvious ommision was Kanye's label record Cruel Summer. It didn't make the cut due to the lack of decent songs outside of the main singles, desite said singles being the Hip-Hop jams of 2012. Most of Mercy belongs to Big Sean and his 'Swerve', ryhming ass with ass so often in his amazing opening verse you'd think Nicki was about to turn up. Just when you think you know what Mercy is all about, Kanye turns up, switches up the production completely and delivers one of the best verses of the year. Much like the Kanye songs yet to appear, Mercy is god damn tune, and one with the craziest hook of the year.

25) Rihanna - Diamonds

Rihanna finally released the Umbrella sequel fans like me were waiting for, and Diamonds was worth the 5 year wait. Leading an album campaign with a mid-tempo was risky given We Found Love was the equivelent last album, but the song held its own. Getting Sia on board was an obvious move, but Diamonds still sounds like a Rihanna record. The 'shine bright' chorus may feel light a retread of Umbrella, the fact these diamonds are in the sky like raindrops making it even more so, but in my book sounding like Umbrella is the biggest compliment a song can recieve.

24) Adele - Skyfall

You thought she was gone but Adele makes a second appearance on one of my lists. Adele was preoccupied with illness and later her baby in 2012, meaning she hardly did any promotion for 21 or her only single Skyfall. She has the power to still be the biggest artist of the year without lifting a finger, quoted as recording Skyfall in just 10 minutes. In those minutes she recorded the best Bond theme since the Shirley days, with sweeping strings and deep vocals that rise to an epic final chorus worthy of the Bassey comparison.

23) Jay-Z & Kanye West - No Church In The Wild (Feat. Frank Ocean)

As the opening track to Watch The Throne, No Church In The Wild is probably as dramatic as Adele's song. Jay and Kanye both expertly deliver verses full of brilliant moments, and having Frank Ocean on vocals was a brilliant decision by the pair. The star of No Church In The Wild is that rolling guitar sample heard throughout. It's threatening, dramatic and cinematic in the way it sweeps in and out of focus at key moments. In terms of production, No Church In The Wild is like a movie with Jay and Kanye as the stars.

22) Frank Ocean - Pyramids

The crowing centrepiece of Channel Orange, Pyramids is ridiculous in scale. There's influences from just about every genre in this 10 minute epic, from the classic RnB vocals to the stab of Eurodance that catches you off guard a minute or so in. It's one of the best moments in music of the year and made me change my whole outlook on Ocean the first time I heard it. The song devolves into another halfway through, the closest any artist has come to achieving the switch ups seen on The-Dream's albums. It's a journey from Egypt to the strip club, one that 2012 wouldn't have been the same without.

21) Florence & The Machine - Spectrum (Say My Name) (Calvin Harris Remix)

The other hook up between Flo and Calvin narrowly misses out on my top 20. Harris adds some extra oomph to an already dramatic song, but Florence remains the main attraction. The biggest chorus of her career, screaming along to 'Say my naaaaaammmmee' is something just about every person in the country has done in 2012. The way she pronounces 'illumiates' is another favourite of mine, it's a dance record that stays classy throughout, something not many artists could attest to in 2012.

Best of 2012: Best Single 40-31

2012-12-21T19:49:00.003+00:00

40) Calvin Harris - Sweet Nothing (Feat. Florence Welch)

2012's dream team kicks off my singles list with Sweet Nothing, a club banger in every sense of the word. Florence's vocal is ridiculous as usual, whilst Harris provides just enough of his signature drum build up to make this an absolute tune. What an explosive way to begin this list.

39) Cher Lloyd - Want U Back

The most unexpected overseas success of the year was for the third single from Cher Lloyd's debut. Want U Back is the song that sums up everything I loved about Cher back when she was X Factor. Full of attitude, snarky lyrics and a hook comprised of Lloyd's 'grunts' makes for a brilliant slice of pop and one of the best efforts from an X Factor contestant in years.

38) The Band Perry - Better Dig Two

I really loved the dark ballad that was The Band Perry's breakout hit If I Die Young, but Better Dig Two takes things in a completely different direction. A stomping country anthem with lyrics that come across just threatening enough to match the production. There were a few country songs vying for a spot in my top 40, but Better Dig Two was the one that left the greatest impact with me in 2012.

37) Robbie Williams - Candy

The catchiest chorus he's had in years, Candy saw a welcome return from the cheeky side of Robbie. It was a joy to have a song that was okay being an obvious hit, following the Take That tour last year, Williams regained the confidence to let loose and have a blast in his music again. Though Gary gets a writing credit here, this is a Robbie hit through and through.

36) Frank Ocean - Thinkin Bout You

After scoring a top 10 placement on my albums list, it was obvious that Frank Ocean would make it on this list. Thinkin Bout You is one of the year's RnB slow jamz, being careful to remain romantic without getting too sexual. It's the feeling of that first love channelled into 3 minutes of beautiful falsetto. More honest and emotive than any other track in 2012.

35) Swedish House Mafia - Don't You Worry Child (Feat. John Martin)

Don't You Worry Child was the most obvious dance hit of 2012. A relatable, hopeful chorus followed by throbbing synth that builds to a huge climax over and over again. The acoustic guitar hidden beneath makes it that bit more special, the sort of dance record you could strip back completely and there's still an incredible song in there.

34) Lana Del Rey - Blue Jeans

It was a tough decision choosing which of Lana's songs would make the cut, Born To Die and Ride came very close to making my 40. Hearing Blue Jeans was the moment I 'got' what Lana Del Rey was all about. Her slightly off key vocals in the verse; the constant distant sample played against that guitar twang; the awkward way she pronounces 'time'; the driving force behind the incredible middle 8, it's a brilliant song.

33) Loreen - Euphoria

I thought Euphoria might end up a bit higher on my list, but it had to be here. Possibly the best Eurovision winner since Wild Dances (Xena will always hold a special place in my heart), Euphoria lives up the name. It helps that Loreen sounds slightly unhinged throughout the song, it makes those huge vocals seem like she's literally singing for her life. An epic tour de force of euro dance that never fails to make me go mad on a night out.

32) Katy Perry - Wide Awake

2 years into an album campaign artists should not be releasing songs as good as Wide Awake, my favourite Katy song since Firework. She consistently proves herself to be the ultimate pop star. You hear her voice and you know it's a Katy record, this most definitely being her best Vocal performance yet. An expansive record that gave Perry yet another incredible chorus to add to her repertoire.

31) Beyoncé - End of Time

Some may have expected to see Beyoncé a bit higher on my list, but given that Love On Top was technically released last year, End of Time was the only song of hers eligible. It's still as epic as songs could get in 2012, full of just about everything that I want from a Bey song. A chorus that's restrained enough to allow Beyoncé to remain the star at all times, End Of Time was a highlight on 4 and became one of my TUNES of 2012.

Best of 2012: Best Music Video

2012-12-19T20:17:00.000+00:00

10) Jay-Z & Kanye West - No Church In The Wild (Feat. Frank Ocean)

Kicking off this list of music videos is No Church In The Wild, less music video, and more an accompanying set of images. It's powerful hearing that massive guitar riff alongside these images of people rioting, it makes the whole song even grander in scale, something i didn't think was possible.

9) Carly Rae Jepsen - Call Me Maybe

It may seem like an unlikely choice next to some of the expensive, dramatic videos on this list, but few Pop videos achieved the simple joys that Call Me Maybe did. The simple narrative of Carly Rae vying for the affections of her neighbour features a cute twist at the end. The fact that this guy turning out to be gay was a non-issue in 2012, dealt with in a very matter of fact way marked the divide between the two generations. Young audiences simply don't care, never seen as clear as in Carly's cheeky expression once she finds out the 'truth'. A brilliant pop video.

8) Ciara - Got Me Good

It's a music video list, so of course my personal obsession means Ciara has to make an appearance. She always brings it on up tempo jams like Got Me Good, the dancing is on point for all 4 minutes here. I feel like I don't have to explain what makes this an amazing video, I mean she's going sick with those dance moves, in the desert too. Ciara is hard at work here, as always.
7) Rihanna - Where Have You Been

Unlike Ciara, Rihanna isn't known for killer dance routines, but she proved me wrong with Where Have You Been. This is a choreography fuelled clip, the incredible moments coming fierce and fast. The 'eye' moment in particular is rather spectacular, while I've been known to break into main dance routine one too many times when this song comes on. It's another amazing Rihanna video, of which there are seemingly thousands now.

6) Katy Perry - Part Of Me

Katy Perry has released 8 incredible music videos from her Teenage Dream album, yes 8 videos, and Part Of Me was the best of 2012. Seeing Katy take on military training is inspiring, the way the video is edited makes you believe she's truly being pushed to the limits. It came at the perfect time, with just enough relevance to her recent break up and the same high quality we've come to expect from the Perry production team.

5) Bjork - Mutual Core

Not technically released as a single in 2012, I'm extremely happy that Mutual Core received a video treatment. As bombastic as the track itself, the video sees Bjork at the centre of a a variety of incredible special effects. It's a true spectacle to behold, bringing the already cray Biophilla art design to life like no one could have anticipated.

4) Calvin Harris - Sweet Nothing (Feat. Florence Welch)

Calvin Harris has been releasing extremely intriguing videos for the singles on 18 Months, singular stories with the production values of a short movie, Sweet Nothing was the peak of these efforts. Calvin and Florence are acting throughout this video, we get to see a completely different side to these relatively reserved personalities. The moment Florence lets her hair down as the final hook begins is spectacular, making this one of my favourite videos of the year.

3) Lana Del Rey - Ride

2012 saw plenty of artists going for a spoken intro to their music video, but no one was as ambitious or as ridiculous as Lana Del Rey. The opening section is longer than the song itself, with Lana even more in character than usual, talking through her experiences on the road with her biker gang. It makes GaGa's biker video of last year (Judas) seem a bit lacklustre in comparison, Lana has jumped into this world with both feet. It's a beautifully shot video too, expertly paced and the future blueprint for 8 minute epics.

2) M.I.A. - Bad Girls

M.I.A. had the commercial hit of her career ready to take off with Bad Girls, and while it never did quite achieve the chart love it deserved, the video will go down as her best yet. That one shot of her driving a car sideways on two wheels through the desert is enough reason for this to appear here, other artists wish they had the guts to be as bad ass as M.I.A. is in the Bad Girls video.

1) P!nk - Try

It may have been slightly eclipsed by the performance of Try that P!nk did at the American Music Awards, but this is a career defining video for an artist who's already made plenty of those. It's a dance video, one that remains personal, emotional and beautiful without allowing the dance itself to suffer. It was a risky move from such a high profile artist, especially one not known for choreography in her videos, but it paid off to no end. Try is the defining video of P!nk's long career so far, and my favourite video of 2012.

Best of 2012: Best Album 10-1

2012-12-18T22:53:00.000+00:00

10) Bruno Mars - Unorthodox Jukebox

Plagued by a December release, I doubt Bruno Mars' second album will appear on many critic's end of year lists. It deserves to though, refining the elements of his debut and perfecting his throwback style. Gorilla is a massive worldwide hit waiting to happen, possibly even more dramatic than Grenade, whilst Locked Out Of Heaven sounds just enough like The Police to make it a killer lead single. Jeff Bhasker and Diplo bring unique sounds to the production, I wasn't prepared to be so taken aback by the sound of such a radio friendly artist's album. That's the magic of Unorthodox Jukebox, at once sonically relevant and daring it's an album that lives up to the early promise seen on Bruno's breakout hit Just The Way You Are. A brilliant way to kick off the top 10.

9) Sleigh Bells - Reign Of Terror

When I tell people to listen to Sleigh Bells, I always find it difficult to explain what they are. A duo comprised of producer/guitarist Derek Miller and singer Alexis Krauss, noise-pop is often a worthy description of the sound they create. Here there's still plenty of the former, clattering drums and ear splitting guitar riffs are common themes across all 11 tracks, but the latter is what makes Reign of Terror a brilliant album. Alexis sounds like she could be in a girlband on songs like End of The Line and You Lost Me, the most lyrical songs the duo has produced yet. Then she's back to screaming her way through album standout Demons, though still with expertly crafted hooks along for the ride. It's not as immediately jarring as their debut release, but this is a stronger album, especially given it includes possibly the best song the group will ever produce, the near perfect Comeback Kid.

8) Kendrick Lamar - Good Kid M.A.A.D. City

Last year we had Drake's Take Care, the year before was Kanye's masterpiece Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, but the Hip-Hop opus of 2012 is Kendrick Lamar's Good Kid M.A.A.D. City. It's an honest record, the narrative believable whilst Kendrick's unique delivery takes you deep into his home of Compton. The narrative is so evident throughout this is like The Wire the album, high praise from me indeed. Swimming Pools (Drank) isn't just made for the clubs, it's one of the many points where the production genuinely astounds, the album is full of those big production moments I love so much. It isn't a problem that it isn't a hit heavy record like the ones mentioned above, it's the sort of album you simply couldn't listen to in any other way than intended. Good Kid M.A.A.D. City continues the trend of introspective hip-hop, a theme continued in our next entry.

7) Frank Ocean - Channel Orange

It was obviously going to appear on my list, much like it has on just about every reputable music critic's list of 2012. Channel Orange is an 'album', a complete listening experience where Frank Ocean delves deep into his own emotions, whilst delivering incredible double take moments that you can't help but be impressed by. Opening with the most personal song on the album, Thinkin Bout You showcases Ocean's expert use of simple lyrics to explain the sort of things it takes less talented writers minutes to convey. The early tracks continue this, the opening line of Sweet Life being my personal favourite on Channel Orange, 'The best song wasn't the single, and you weren't either.' That lyric is so clever yet so simple in both execution and Ocean's delivery. But Channel Orange develops into so much more, soon you are 4 minutes deep into the epic Pyramids which seemingly transitions between 5 different songs, the central masterpiece in the most promising RnB debut in recent memory. Channel Orange is a journey of sound, grand in scale, yet introspective and emotive throughout.

6) Scissor Sisters - Magic Hour

I wasn't expecting much from Magic Hour, I have always enjoyed Scissor Sisters' singles but other than their debut I never really got the fuss with their albums. The brilliance of Magic Hour is in its simplicity, this is the Scissor Sisters doing what they do best with spectacular results. Baby Come Home is as catchy as I Don't Feel Like Dancin and Only the Horses hands production duties to Calvin Harris with brilliant results. Shady Love and Let's Have A Kiki are ridiculously fun but the best moments feature when things are less frantic. Inevitable is one of those mid tempo production heavy album tracks I love so much, whilst the throbbing dance beats that hide beneath Somewhere build to an incredibly euphoric finale. Magic Hour is one of 2012's great pop albums, and takes a group that many had dismissed as old news to new heights.

5) Lana Del Rey - Born To Die

I wasn't on board with Lana Del Rey during the hype surrounding her in late 2011, I never really gave Video Games a chance to grow on me, and she seemed a bit too indie for me. How wrong I was! I gave Born To Die a listen and was dumb founded by the album it actually was. Who was this weird red head, and how could she produce a pop record as refreshingly downbeat from seemingly nowhere. She's such an instantly iconic star, both in terms of her classic look, and her unique vocal. I often explain to people that the main thing I love about Lana Del Rey is that she can't really sing. This is a compliment mind, as the way she sing speaks her way through tracks like National Anthem and the incredible Blue Jeans turns these great songs into iconic moments in Pop. The Hip-Hop elements of the production thanks to Jeff Bhasker are striking against Lana's voice, the same sounds echoing across the whole of Born To Die to make it sonically consistent. This is an album that lived up to its own hype, defining Lana as one of the most exciting female acts in recent memory.

4) Ellie Goulding - Halcyon

2 years ago, Ellie Goulding found herself at the number 4 spot on my albums list with her debut Lights, interestingly alongside Sleigh Bells and another artist yet to appear. She equals that achievement with follow up Halcyon, which matures her sound even further away from her singer songwriter roots. The drama levels are increased from the get go, album opener Don't Say A Word full of stomping drums and frantic vocals. Figure 8 feels like it's about to explode into Skrillex dubstep any second and that infectious 'Ooh, ooh, ooh' hook in Anything Can Happen is simple yet tremendously effective. In contrast, I Know You Care strips back the sound to just Ellie and a piano; Halcyon is consistently full of surprises. Two incredible albums in a row, Ellie Goulding has fast become my favourite UK Female Artist.

3) The Weeknd - Trilogy

I know this is technically cheating, Trilogy is a compilation of the three mix tapes The Weeknd (Abel Tesfaye) released in 2011, but I didn't include any of those on last year's list so now is time for credit to be given. Yet another introspective Hip-Hop/RnB artist, fast becoming my artist genre of choice it seems, but The Weeknd is in another league to the rest. Opening mixtape House Of Balloons may as well be described as perfect. A 9 track masterclass in pacing, it teases you with brief moments of intensity before exploding into a grinding slow jam or a hook nicked from elsewhere. Comparisons with Kanye, Drake and The-Dream are obvious on paper, but when listening to Trilogy The Weeknd is an artist all alone. His vocal is soulful and emotive without forcing itself to the front of the sound when it isn't the main attraction. Fully in control of his own sound, The Weeknd creates music rather than just a collection of songs. He warns you in the opening track that 'You wanna be high for this' and if you aren't wen you start, you most definitely will be once that closing track comes around.

2) Loreen - Heal

If you had told me that the winner of Eurovision 2012 would release the Pop album of the year I would have laughed in your face, but the impossible has happened. Euphoria went on to become the pop dance anthem of the summer, but Heal is so much more than a replication of this. My Heart Is Refusing Me is an even more dramatic dance anthem, just as euphoric (pardon the pun) as the lead single. Sidewalk and Everytime strip everything back, with Loreen remaining as striking in vocal delivery over a mid tempo as she over throbbing synth. The Robyn comparisons are obvious, both in the way that Loreen mispronounces certain words in a similar way to her fellow Swedish female and high quality dance music on offer throughout Heal. As anyone who follows my blog will know, sounding similar to Robyn can only be good, this surely being the strongest Pop album since 2010's Body Talk trilogy. I'm a sucker for excellently produced Scandi-Pop, and Heal is as good as it gets.

1) Plan B- iLL Manors

I knew the moment I finished listening to iLL Manors that I would be honouring it with the top spot on my list. It's a brutal, disgusting, heart wrenching, honest depiction of a time, a place and 2012 in London. It's as relevant today as it will ever be, which may be to its detriment in years when albums of the decade are decided. 'We got an Eco-friendly government, they preserve our natural habitat. Built an entire Olympic village around where we live without pulling down any flats' heard in the opening title track defines this mentality, as well as mention of David Cameron throughout the rest of the album. Outside of this intro, each of the tracks focuses on a character from Ben Drew's film of the same name, though given that much of iLL Manors was recorded after the film had been released it's a much more polished product. Drew knows how to tell a story more eloquently and effectively than anyone one else currently recording. His raps have a consistent flow to them, his harsh language and unflinching attitude towards the dark side of life make it often an uncomfortable listen, which is exactly the point. You should feel horrible listening to graphic depictions of rape, you should want to switch the CD off when you hear the an iPhone video sound start as you hear a character being beaten up in one of the excerpts from the film. The album is constructed to channel these feelings whilst retaining the strong soulful/hip-hop vibes that made Plan B's last album such a success. Deepest Shame and Playing With Fire are some of the best songs to come out of the UK in the last decade, the former being one of the few songs that made me cry in 2012. They mark the high points in an album full of incredible moments, a record where John Cooper Clarke can open a song with a poem and then be followed by the sound of a teenager throwing up after being forced to 'take care' of one of his mates. It's not for the faint hearted, but iLL Manors is an album that makes you feel something in an era where business nearly always comes first to spreading a message. For me, 2012 will forever be known as the year of iLL Manors.

Best of 2012: Best Album 18-11

2012-12-18T09:32:00.000+00:00

18) Rihanna - Unapologetic

Some may balk at my including Rihanna's 7th album alongside some of the albums here, but I must admit Unapologetic has really grown on me since release. It's her grungiest album yet, with the ballads and hip hop leaning tracks outpacing the pop for the first time. As ballads go, this is the most comfortable she has sounded, Love Without Tragedy/Mother Mary sounding good enough to feature on the magnificent Rated R. Numb is a personal favourite of mine too, the Kanye sample making it the sort of song I would lose myself to in a club. It's as good, if not better than last year's Talk That Talk, which given it's her fourth album in so many years isn't too bad.

17) Ne-Yo - R.E.D.

Another album called Red this time from an artist I've always been a huge fan of. Ne-Yo is still my favourite of the male RnB/Dance artists, and following the huge hit Let Me Love You my hopes were high that this would be a return to form. It sure was, featuring the same clever writing that made Year of The Gentleman one of my all time favourite albums. Don't Make Em Like You echoes the Miss Independent vibe, while Miss Right has Ne-Yo back in Sexy Love mode. Save for the intriguing foray into country on Tim McGraw duet She Is, this is a predictable Ne-Yo album and all the better for it.

16) Madonna - MDNA

This album was top 5 for much of the first half of the year, and whilst it may find itself much lower on the list now I will still remember 2012 as the year the Queen of Pop returned. The horrendous promotion for MDNA may have made it a comparative commercial flop, but there's no denying that Madonna is still delivering brilliant pop 30 years into her career. Masterpiece is her best ballad in years, whilst Gang Bang is as hilariously ridiculous as the title suggests. I'm Addicted features one of the best moments of the year for me too, the 'I need to dance' right before all hell breaks loose is as euphoric as Pop music gets.

15) Cheryl Cole - A Million Lights

Probably the most surprising album placement on my list this year, I never thought Cheryl would sustain a top 15 place, but A Million Lights has consistently found a home on my iPod. It's a brilliantly crafted piece of UK Urban leaning Pop, the furthest thing from a Girls Aloud album. Following two decent but inconsistent records Cheryl finally sounds at home here. Trading verses with Wretch 32 on the brilliant Screw You one second and delivering some of her best vocals on Taio Cruz mid tempo Mechanics of The Heart the next, it's the best album an act like Cheryl could ever hope to make.

14) Jason Aldean - Night Train

2012 was the year Country truly took a hold of my iTunes library. I discovered artists like Miranda Lambert, Carrie Underwood and the guy who makes it as high as 14 on my list, Jason Aldean. Following 2010's massively successful My Kinda Party, Night Train sees Jason Aldean delivering exactly what you'd expect. Talk of firing up the truck, offering to buy you a drink and lying on the hood of his car are as predictable as country music gets, but Aldean's delivery is familiar in a welcoming way. Lead single Take A Little Ride defines this mentality perfectly, at once overwrought and slightly ridiculous, it's instantly catchy and somehow forced Jason Aldean into my life in 2012. An unexpected choice here.

13) Little Mix - DNA

When Little Mix were announced as the winners of X Factor last year, Pop bloggers across the country were instantly debating what sort of record the girlband should make. Summer 2012 soon arrived and with it the stormer of a debut single Wings, one of the best songs the show has ever produced, tossing out all comparisons to other girl groups. The magnificent thing about DNA isn't the quality of the pop on offer, which is ridiculously high, it's that it sounds like a Little Mix album from start to finish. This isn't a poor man's Girls Aloud (The Saturdays) or a group confused over their identity (Sugababes), DNA is truly unique and might well be the best record X Factor has ever produced.

12) Nicki Minaj - Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded

(This could take a while...) Oh Nicki...Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded is by far my most played album of 2012, well the first 7 tracks are anyway. I've found it incredibly difficult to weigh up PF:RR against the other albums here for this reason. When I listen to Nicki's latest I have a playlist that includes the first 7 tracks of the album followed by Stupid Hoe and Promo single Roman In Moscow. If this was the 'official' version then Nicki would find herself at number 2 on this list, it's seriously one of the best Hip Hop records of the last 5 years. Obviously this version doesn't include Starships or Pound The Alarm, the two major hits of the album so can I really credit Nicki. The standard edition of PF: RR is a hefty 19 tracks long, which means I have cut more tracks than I've included. I've decided to split the difference in my final placement, though I've tried to reward Nicki for the good aspects of Roman Reloaded rather than punish her for tracks like the god awful Sex In The Lounge. No other album has provided me with more laughs, more enjoyment or more internal debate over how much of a mess it is as an album in 2012. For all of its flaws, 2012 would have been so boring without Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded in my life.

11) Ke$ha - Warrior

One of the newest albums on the list, Ke$ha just misses out on making it into my end of year top 10 for the second time. Ke$ha is definitely one of my favourite 'popstars' currently in action, her whole drunken state never failing to bring a smile to my face. She brings the same attitude here, as well as 12 killer hooks on an album that never gives you a chance to take a breath. Dr Luke has produced all but 2 tracks here, which gives Warrior a consistent pace throughout, peaking at the right times, usually following some brilliantly ridiculous lyric from Ms Sebert. Indie kids can say she's talking nonsense, but hooks as god damn catchy as the ones heard on dubstep tune Supernatural and the infectious C'Mon don't appear from nowhere. Warrior is the sound of an artist pushing their sound forward, whilst remaining true to reason she has fans in the first place. Ke$ha remains the queen of drunk pop.

Best of 2012: Best Album 25-19

2012-12-18T09:30:00.000+00:00

25) Usher - Looking 4 Myself

His last album make a huge impact on my 2010 list and while Looking 4 Myself doesn't do the same there's a reason I've included it here. Yes, Usher is still in his OMG phase of europop for most of this, the inescapable Scream being backed up by a number of other pop dance stompers here. This aside, it's the collaborations with Swedish House Mafia and Diplo that push this album above being just another generic slice of R&B. Climax is especialling thrilling with Usher delivering the falsetto of the year.

24) Christina Aguilera - Lotus

One of 2012's most anticipated comebacks, headlines were full of people both supporting and dismissing Lotus, and Xtina's career in general. All of that aside though, the album stands strong, holding onto the things that made Aguilera one of the last decade's biggest stars whilst still striving to push her sound. Some songs are blatant attempts to stay relevant, the ridiculously over the top generic dance track Let There Be Love in particular, but this is otherwise a strong collection of pop tracks. The duets with her fellow The Voice coaches Cee-Lo and Blake are standouts too.

23) Taylor Swift - Red

Taylor Swift on an end of year list? What madness is this! Next you'll see Jessie J topping my singles list, or Twlight making an appearance anywhere near my blog. But here we are, and Red has made it into my top 25. I decided to give her a chance in 2012 and after enjoying nearly every track on this Country/Pop crossover I have to admit I was wrong. Perhaps I'm starting to appreciate country a bit more, and she comes along for the ride, all I know is that I Knew You Were Trouble and Red are both absolute Pop gems.

22) Nelly Furtado - The Spirit Indestructible

Another comeback record and this one comes from one of my favourite artists. A lot has happened since Nelly Furtado's last English album, the 2006 smash Loose, the Timbaland movement is over in favour of most dance oriented beats so everything feels slightly dated here. That said, everything that made me fall in love with Nelly in the first place is here. The earthy sounds heard in Enemy and the striking changes of style throughout Waiting For The Night make The Spirit Indestructible a worthy return for one of the most interesting 'popstars' in recent memory.

21) The XX - Coexist

The XX are difficult to listen to. Not in the painful sense of something like Gangnam Style, but they require a certain level focus from the listener to 'gain entry' into the world of the album so to speak. With Coexist they strip back what little sound there was on their debut album and are left with an even more intense record. Angels is the prettiest they've ever sounded, whilst the closing tracks take them towards a, dare I say it, dancier sound. Coexist is as brilliant as I expected it to be, so it's a worthy entry here.

20) Carly Rae Jepsen - Kiss

She may have shot herself in the foot by releasing the most infuriatingly catchy songs of the decade, the impossibly perfect Call Me Maybe, but on Kiss Carly Rae proves that she's much more than a one hit wonder. It's so refreshing to see an artist that appeals to a young demographic not attempt to go edgy on their full album, instead creating a record of obsessive hooks just as catchy as her signature hit. It may not be cool to love Carly Rae, but it sure is fun to.

19) Calvin Harris - 18 Months

It kind of feels like cheating allowing what is essentially a greatest hits of the last year and half onto my albums list, but I love me some Calvin. No fewer than 6 top 2 singles are present here, including monster hit We Found Love and his second hook up with Florence the brilliant Sweet Nothing. It doesn't rest on its prior hits though, with new songs like Thinkin About You and Ellie Goulding collaboration I Need Your Love providing more of Calvin's trademark floor filling beats. As an album, it works incredibly well, even if I am starting to miss Calvin Harris the 'artist' these days.

Best of 2012

2012-12-18T09:00:00.000+00:00

Here we go, my favourite kind of articles to write be prepared for an onslaught of lists over the coming weeks. I will put links to every list down below, so be sure to keep checking back as more are added.

Music

Best Album 25-19
Best Album 18-11
Best Album 10-1
Best Single 40-31
Best Single 30-21
Best Single 20-11
Best Single 10-1
Best Music Video

TV

Games

Other

Grammys 2013: My Predictions (R&B/Rap/Dance)

2012-11-29T22:40:00.002+00:00

Here we go with the final few genre awards. There are some hot favourites in this next set of awards so there's lots of opportunities for some surprises along the way.

Best R&B Performance
Girl On Fire - Alicia Keys
Love On Top - Beyoncé
Thinkin Bout You - Frank Ocean
Celebrate - Jordin Sparks & Whitney Housten
Climax - Usher

Alternatives: Put It Down (Feat. Chris Brown) - Brandy, Lazy Love - Ne-Yo

Best R&B Song

Girl On Fire - Alicia Keys
Love On Top - Beyoncé
Thinkin Bout You - Frank Ocean
Adorn - Miguel
Climax - Usher

Alternatives: Chris Brown - Don't Judge Me

Best Urban Contemporary Album

Fortune - Chris Brown
channel ORANGE - Frank Ocean
The MF Life - Melanie Fiona
Chapter V - Trey Songz
Looking 4 Myself - Usher

Alternatives: Kaleidoscope Dream - Miguel

First up in the second half of awards is R&B, an interesting genre at the grammys where last year's winner of Best R&B Album barely contained any R&B on it at all. The name change to Urban Contemporary makes it much easier for those artists that crossover into Dance and Pop music, such as Usher and Chris Brown. The album award is Frank Ocean's no matter what though and I'm expected a clean sweep from him in the category. The tracks from Usher, Beyoncé and Alicia Keys will definitely make the cut, but I don't think any of them will best Thinkin Of You on the night.

Rap

Best Rap Performance

212 (Feat. Lazy Jay) - Azealia Banks
HYFR (Hell Ya F***in Right) (Feat. Lil Wayne) - Drake
Ni**as in Paris - Jay-Z & Kanye West
Mercy (Feat. Big Sean, Pusha T & 2 Chainz) - Kanye West
Beez In The Trap (Feat. 2 Chainz) - Nicki Minaj

Alternatives: No Church In The Wild (Feat. Frank Ocean - Jay-Z & Kanye West, No Lie (Feat. Drake) - 2 Chainz

Best Rap Song

The Motto (Feat. Lil Wayne) - Drake
Ni**as in Paris - Jay-Z & Kanye West
Mercy (Feat. Big Sean, Pusha T & 2 Chainz) - Kanye West
Swimming Pools (Drank) - Kendrick Lamar
Bad Girls - M.I.A.

Alternatives: Rack City - Tyga, Clique (Feat. Big Sean & Jay-Z) - Kanye West

Best Rap/Sung Collaboration

Girl On Fire (Feat. Nicki Minaj) - Alicia Keys
Crew Love (Feat. The Weeknd) - Drake
No Church In The Wild (Feat. Frank Ocean) - Jay-Z & Kanye West
Payphone (Feat. Wiz Khalifa) - Maroon 5
Talk That Talk (Feat. Jay-Z) - Rihanna

Alternatives: As Long As You Love Me (Feat. Big Sean) - Justin Beiber, Both of Us (Feat. Taylor Swift) - B.O.B.

Best Rap Album

Take Care - Drake
Life Is Good - Nas
Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded - Nicki Minaj
God Forgives, I Don't - Rick Ross
Cruel Summer - Various Artists

Alternatives: Based On A T.R.U. Story - 2 Chainz, Careless World: Rise Of The Last King - Tyga

Expect Kanye and Jay-Z to score as many nominations here as usual, last year Kanye deservedly won every single Rap award, and with Mercy, Ni**as in Paris and No Church In The Wild they have a strong chance in every category here. Nicki is sure to make an appearance sure to pick up at least two nominations. I'd love to see some other female rappers make the cut in 2013, both M.I.A. and Azealia Banks having brilliant hits this past year. Drake is the one to beat here though, and the Best Rap Album may well be his first Grammy win to date. He's lucky Watch The Throne was in last year's list, as there's not much else that could beat Take Care to the award this year.

Dance/Electronic

Best Dance Recording

Silhouettes - Avicii
Let's Go (Feat. Ne-Yo) - Calvin Harris
She Wolf (Falling To Pieces) (Feat. Sia) - David Guetta
Bangarang (Feat. Sirah) - Skrillex
Greyhound - Swedish House Mafia

Alternatives: Feel The Love (Feat. John Newman) - Rudimental

Best Dance/Electronic Album

Bangarang - Skrillex
....

As you can see from the above categories, Best Dance/Electronic Album was surprisingly the hardest category for me to pick nominees in. With last year's rule change, we can't even have the likes of Madonna, Rihanna and Flo Rida submitting nominations in the Dance category. Albums from Calvin Harris and Swedish House just missed out on the eligibility period too, so without delving into the depths of electronic music from the last 12 months I found it difficult to name anyone but Skrillex. Given his clean sweep last year I think it's pretty obvious Skrillex will win yet again for Bangarang. With no indication of who has submitted for these awards, I'm literally clutching at straws here so we'll have to see next week who makes the cut.

I know that a lot of people aren't as interested in awards shows, and specifically the grammys as I am, but I have really enjoyed taking an educated guess at the nominations. The GRAMMY Nominations Concert Live! will take place next Wednesday, and as I'll probably be staying up for it make sure to see my instant reactions by following me on twitter at @Atkins_Sam

Grammys 2013: My Predictions (Pop/Rock/Alternative/Country)

2012-11-29T15:16:00.000+00:00

I've been through the big 4 awards at this year's Grammys, but with over 70 awards to give out, there's plenty more oppotunities to get a nomination. Obviously there are some genres I'm not too familiar with, (Best Spoken World Album anyone?), so I will be focusing on ones I can make fair predictions in. I'll do my list for each category and round up all the awards in each genre at the end. First up is Pop, Rock Alternative and Country.

Pop

Best Pop Solo Performance

Set Fire To The Rain (Live) - Adele
It Will Rain - Bruno Mars
I Won't Give Up - Jason Mraz
Stronger (What Doesn't Kill You) - Kelly Clarkson
Blow Me (One Last Kiss) - P!nk

Alternatives: We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together - Taylor Swift, Video Games - Lana Del Rey

Best Pop Duo/Group Performance

Princess of China (Feat. Rihanna) - Coldplay
Shake It Out - Florence + The Machine
We Are Young (Feat. Janelle Monae) - Fun.
Somebody That I Used To Know (Feat. Kimbra) - Gotye
Drive By - Train

Alternatives: Payphone (Feat. Wiz Khalifa) - Maroon 5, Beauty and a Beat (Feat. Nicki Minaj) - Justin Beiber

Best Pop Vocal Album

Ceremonials - Florence & The Machine
Love is a Four Letter Word - Jason Mraz
Stronger - Kelly Clarkson
Born To Die - Lana Del Rey
Talk That Talk - Rihanna

Alternatives: The Truth About Love - P!nk, Overexposed - Maroon 5

The Pop category is obviously the one I feel most confident selecting nominees for, but given that it's where most artists submit their records into, the decisions weren't easy. There's a lot of crossover into the big 4, with a lot of my alternatives having a strong chance of a nomination here. For performance it's hard not to think Kelly Clarkson has it in the bag, bombastic is an understatement considering her vocal on Stronger. Florence + The Machine should do well all round too, garnering some nominations following their Best New Artist nod 2 years ago. I'm hoping Lana picks up an award here, as I don't think she will be in the running elsewhere. P!nk usually scores some nominations, and Gotye is sure to win anything he's up for. It should be an interesting battle between the girls of pop and Jason Mraz.

Rock

Best Rock Performance

We Take Care Of Our Own - Bruce Springsteen
Hurts Like Heaven - Coldplay
Runaways - The Killers
I Will Wait - Mumford & Sons
Survival - Muse

Alternatives: Lonely Boy - The Black Keys

Best Rock Song

We Take Care Of Our Own - Bruce Springsteen
Lonely Boy - The Black Keys
Sixteen Saltines - Jack White
Runaways - The Killers
I Will Wait - Mumford & Sons

Alternatives: Guardian - Alanis Morissette

Best Rock Album

Havoc and Bright Lights - Alanis Morissette
Wrecking Ball - Bruce Springsteen
El Camino - The Black Keys
Mylo Xyloto - Coldplay
Blunderbuss - Jack White

Alternatives: Battle Born - The Killers, Born and Raised - John Mayer

Given how few alternatives I've given, you can tell I was struggling in a genre I'm not too familiar with. Mumford & Sons have submitted I Will Wait for both song awards so expect to see them alongside The Boss in all the categories. Coldplay are a Grammys favourite too, though Hurts Like Heaven is a weird choice of submission when they had Charlie Brown instead. The Black Keys are another hot favourite, especially given they beat eventual Album of The Year Arcade Fire's The Suburbs in the Best Alternative Album category in 2011. (They may have submitted there again this year, I'm not sure.). I included Alanis because some of the Pop/Rock voters might push her, and it's nice to see the category no longer dominated by male acts.

Best Alternative Album

Biophilla - Bjork
Making Mirrors - Gotye
The Lumineers - The Lumineers
Coexist - The XX

A category that stands alone at the Grammys, Gotye has this one in the bag. If The Black Keys are in the mix too things could be different, but it's hard to imagine him losing this. Bjork and The XX should make an appearance too, though I'm not sure how much of an impact the latter has had over in the US.

Country

Best Country Solo Performance

Blown Away - Carrie Underwood
Take A Little Ride - Jason Aldean
Drunk On You - Luke Bryan
Over You - Miranda Lambert
Ours - Taylor Swift

Alternatives: Drink On It - Blake Shelton, Springsteen - Eric Church

Best Country Duo/Group Performance

Easy (Feat. Willie Nelson) - Lionel Richie
Safe and Sound (Feat. The Civil Wars) - Taylor Swift
Pontoon - Little Big Town
Banjo - Rascal Flatts
The Wind - Zac Brown Band

Best Country Song

Good Girl - Carrie Underwood
Springsteen - Eric Church
Pontoon - Little Big Town
Over You - Miranda Lambert
Safe & Sound (Feat, The Civil Wars) - Taylor Swift

Alternatives: Blown Away - Carrie Underwood, Take A Little Ride - Jason Aldean

Best Country Album

Blown Away - Carrie Underwood
Tuskegee - Lionel Richie
Four The Record - Miranda Lambert
Changed - Rascal Flatts
Uncaged - Zac Brown Band

Back to a genre I know at least a little about, it's always interesting to see what side of country the voters go for. The country award shows usually go for the big hits, the pop/country hits about drinking and riding around on your truck, but the Grammys prefer the softer side of the genre. Miranda Lambert may well do a clean sweep here, especially the two song awards. I think Carrie has the edge in the album stakes, though Lionel Richie might pull a surprising win out of the bag. Jason Aldean may have missed out on his own clean sweep given his brilliant Night Train just missed the eligibility period, as did Taylor's Red. With no Lady Antebellum, this is an open field and could go any way.

Grammys 2013: My Nomination Predictions

2012-11-27T12:55:00.000+00:00

To those people who have been reading posts on my blog since I began, you'll know that I have a certain obsession with the biggest awards show in music. I've written a ridiculous amount of articles about the 2011 and 2012 Grammys, and with the nominations for the 2013 show announced next week it's time to get back into the award season mode.

Last year saw an obvious clean sweep from Adele, both deserved and expected, with Bon Iver and Skrillex winning multiple awards too, a stark contrast that showed the diversity of those nominated. With no one as obvious as Adele to contend with, we could see some big surprises in the nominations this year. The eligibility period ran from 1st October 2011 to 30th September 2012, so albums like Taylor Swift's massive selling Red and songs like Rihanna's We Found Love just missed the cut for this year's nominations. Here are my predictions along with a few words explaining each of my choices. Red marks my predicted winner, Blue my personal choice.

Album of the Year

Mylo Xyloto - Coldplay
Take Care - Drake
channel Orange - Frank Ocean
Babel - Mumford & Sons
Wrecking Ball - Bruce Springsteen

Alternatives: Born To Die - Lana Del Rey, El Camino - The Black Keys, Blown Away - Carrie Underwood

I've gone for an all male lineup, which may make my prediction incorrect given the female dominance at last year's show. The front runners are Frank Ocean and Mumford & Sons, a pair of albums that have achieved huge critical and commercial success respectively. I think Marcus Mumford and friends are the more likely choice, given their nominations for Song and Record last year and Babel is a much stronger record than Sigh No More too. Coldplay and Drake are my personal favourites, both Grammy favourites. Take Care would become the first Rap album to win the award in 9 years, the same amount of nominations Drake has received without a single win. I included Bruce because Grammy voters do love rewarding a golden oldie for releasing a successful new album, but I wouldn't be surprised if The Black Keys made the cut instead.

Best New Artist

Ellie Goulding
Frank Ocean
Fun.
Gotye
Lana Del Rey

Alternatives: One Direction, Ed Sheeran, Phillip Phillips

The bottom four choices here must make the cut in 2013? Gotye and Fun. have had two of the biggest songs of the year and even though the former is on his third album already, he is eligible here. Lana's unique style is sure to split voters, but the pop crowd will push her here. Frank Ocean is the hot favourite though, especially given that this category usually goes to the artists critics have backed the most. He would be a well deserving winner too, making a musical and cultural impact this past year. I've included Ellie mainly because the thought of One Direction getting themselves a Grammy nomination makes me feel nearly as sick as the fact SuBo has already got herself two. One of the three Brits I've mentioned is sure to make the cut though.

Song of the Year

Thinkin Bout You - (Frank Ocean) Christopher Francis Ocean, N. Cobey
We Are Young - (Fun.) Nate Ruess, Andrew Dost, Jack Antonoff, and Jeffrey Bhasker
I Won't Give Up - (Jason Mraz) Jason Mraz, Michael Natter
Over You - (Miranda Lambert) Miranda Lambert, Blake Shelton
I Will Wait - (Mumford & Sons) Marcus Mumford

Alternatives: Take Care - Drake, Wide Awake - Katy Perry, Stronger (What Doesn't Kill You) - Kelly Clarkson

Usually the category I'm worst at predicting, Song of the Year is awarded to the writers of song rather than the artist themselves. With two of the front runners for Record of the Year not eligible here, we will see them after this, I've been able to widen the choices here. It was hard getting rid of Take Care from my final list, I needed to put the never ending hit I Won't Give Up in there and it seemed like the least likely choice. That and We Are Young represent the commercial hits that hold up lyrically, while Over You is the most obvious country choice written by the big couple in Country music. I Will Wait will most likely appear too, the same voters who got The Cave in there this time last year are sure to be voting for them here. That leaves us with Thinkin Bout You, both my prediction and personal pick. Irrespective of the 'story' behind Frank Ocean, the song holds up on it's own merits, a strory driven song that feels intensely personal from the very start; it's the front runner here.

Record of the Year

Set Fire To The Rain (Live) - Adele
Take Care (Feat. Rihanna) - Drake
We Are Young (Feat. Janelle Monae) - Fun.
Somebody That I Used To Know (Feat, Kimbra) - Gotye
Ni**as in Paris - Jay-Z & Kanye West

Alternatives: Call My Maybe - Carly Rae Jepsen, Where Have You Been - Rihanna, I Will Wait - Mumford & Sons

Gotye has this award on lock, when the biggest selling song of the year is an Alternative collaboration from two unknown Aussies what more could you expect. Somebody That I Used To Know is way ahead of the rest of the pack here, perhaps only Adele who has submitted a live version of Set Fire To The Rain has a chance. If she does it will be a hilarious turn of events, Adele literally doesn't even need to release anything to win awards these days. Take Care and We Are Young appear again, the former having a strong chance for a nomination in Record because Rihanna's contribution will be included. My personal choice is a song I'm not even sure it's eligible or not. Included on Watch The Throne which was nominated for Rap Album last year, the song wasn't 'released' for a few months after the album. Grammy rules state that if an album doesn't win it's Grammy, songs from it can be nominated for Record the Year later. If so, Ni**as in Paris is well deserving of the award, other than Empire State of Mind, it's hard to think of a Rap song as impactful on culture as this. Neither artist has won one of the Big 4 either, so this would be a big deal for them. If it's not eligible, place Carly Rae Jepsen's unavoidable hit Call Me Maybe in there instead. Can you name a record as annoying catchy as that this past year?

There we have it, the Big 4. I predict it to be a battled between Frank Ocean and Mumford & Sons, though there are plenty of other songs and albums that have a chance. I have looked at the rest of the awards in two other posts. Check out my predictions for the awards for Pop/Rock/Alternative/Country and R&B/Rap/Dance at the respective links.

Album Review: Calvin Harris - 18 Months

2012-11-04T01:36:00.000+00:00

18 months, 6 massive hits and worldwide success later, this is not the same timid Scot who gave us Ready For The Weekend. Only appearing for vocal duties on two tracks here, this is a compilation of Calvin Harris productions. The Rihanna, Ne-Yo and Kelis tracks have been knocking around for over a year now, and the Tinie Tempah track is little more than mindless rave pop. There’s hit after hit on here though with Thinking About You and Dizzee hook-up Here 2 China as the obvious standouts. I Need Your Love might be the best song of Ellie Goulding’s career too, and Sweet Nothing sees the Florence/Calvin dream team reunite with spectacular results. It may not push the envelope, but the world would be a very boring place without a few of Calvin’s signature build ups on 18 Months.

Essential Track: Sweet Nothing (Feat. Florence Welch)

Album Review: Loreen - Heal

2012-11-04T00:54:00.000+00:00

Saying that the opening 5 tracks of Heal is a Tour De Force feels like an understatement. No album in 2012 has opened this strong, with 4 massive eurodance stompers, including Eurovision winner Euphoria, and the subtle brilliance of Everytime between. There’s a continuous driving force here and while she loses steam near the end, Loreen keeps the listener guessing with darker tracks like Sidewalk and Sober. The production is vast, thundering synth and drum machines mixing with Loreen’s striking vocals to great effect. Heal is a dark, inventive take on Eurodance that forces Loreen into view, I’m hardly complaining.

Essential Track: My Heart Is Refusing Me

Country Music: Can us Brits really appreciate it?

2012-10-30T00:26:00.001+00:00

I've been meaning to write something about Country Music for a while now especially as it's probably the newest genre addition to my iTunes in a while. If you look back to my 2011 Grammy articles you'll notice that I was writing about albums I hadn't heard yet. Eventual Album Of The Year winner Arcade Fire's The Suburbs may have stolen my heart for the weeks following the show but there was something else that has stuck with me ever since.

I may not have been sold on their album Need You Now after my first listen, I mentioned at the time that every song sounded the same as each other but soon I was obsessed with the title track. I was nearly 2 years behind the curve it seemed as the song was well on its way to becoming the biggest selling country song in digital history. There was something so unique about the way I enjoyed Need You Now, it's a pretty simple song and the country twang that would usually put me off soon became familiar and warm. I wouldn't say my whole musical world was blown open or anything, but I was certainly intrigued to go a bit deeper into the genre. It seems like the rest of the UK were open to it as well, as following that painful rendition of the song by Gary and Cheryl at the Queen's Jubilee it seemed to stick around the top 20 for most of the year. It reached it's peak position of 15 a few weeks after the performance, a mere 3 years after its original release.

Lady Antebellum were probably the best entry point for someone like me, they are totally accessible from a pop standpoint, and they keep the country stereotypes I was wary of to a minimum. I suppose it's because of where I'm from. The genre is so focused towards the American audience that founded it that the tropes we may find corny or awkward on a record never seem to go away. Talk of 'firing up the truck' or 'downing my drink' does grate on me but only in the same way that songs about 'the club' do in the dance pop genre. It's a 'lifestyle' and those songs that reflect the south and how people live there simply don't have the same traction over here.

Looking at those few Country artists that have been able to crossover the Atlantic, Dolly Parton, Shania Twain, Taylor Swift they all share a similar strategy for pitching their music over here. Each has had success with big Pop hits, or pop remixes of their country hits. Last week Taylor Swift claimed the top spot on the UK album chart with her new album, which in spite of the fact that it's a brilliant album did surprise me. Not since Shania in the late 90s has a Country artist bothered the top of the UK charts, but Ms Swift has done so by steering her career in a distinctly pop sounding direction.

We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together may as well be a Katy Perry song the Max Martin influence is so strong, which is exactly why she's been able to crossover in a big way this year. Follow up single I Knew You Were Trouble is an incredible slice of Dub infused Pop and just about the last thing most would have expected from country's sweetheart. Is this considered cheating? Absolutely not. One listen to the big international hits from Shania's Come On Over proves that there's no shame in releasing big pop hits to find an audience on these shores. That album in particular went on to sell 3.3 million copies in the UK alone, the sort of numbers even Adele would be proud of.

It's about sewing that seed in the public's consciousness that there is this otherworldly genre to be discovered just over the Atlantic. Much like those Shania fans who may have discovered Tim McGraw, Garth Brooks or the Dixie Chicks through her big pop hits, I've personally found myself enjoying a genre I never thought I would all because of Lady Antebellum's big crossover hit. Now I have Jason Aldean, Carrie Underwood and Blake Shelton sitting alongside my usual albums in my iTunes library. It's interesting how things have turned out.

Are Britain ready for country? I certainly think we have been for a long time, especially given that the sounds of UK artists like Laura Marling and Mumford & Sons have so much country running through them. I'm not sure we will ever see a song called Truck Yeah topping the charts over here (honestly that is the name of a Tim McGraw song from earlier this year) but there are enough interested people for some quality music to make it onto UK radio. Country music is here, and somehow Cheryl Cole is partly to thank.