20. Clean Bandit ft. Zara Larsson - Symphony
Track length: 3:32
UK release date: 17th March 2017
UK chart position: 1
Last decade's chart: N/A
Listens as at 8th October: 18
Gigs this decade: 1
Didn't discover this track for nearly a year after release. I'd heard it on the album, which didn't click with me on first listen, and I'd probably heard it in passing, but it wasn't until channel surfing on music channels that I paid attention to it. It's a fantastic combination of two artists who, this time last year, I didn't care deeply for until two live sets changed my mind. Clean Bandit were the main support act for Kylie at Brighton Pride this year and having collaborated with a lot of female singers I like (and Demi Lovato) I was in a receptive mood for them - and they delivered more than expected! A dive into their back catalogue over the next week made me glad I gave them a second chance. This is still my pick of the bunch, a stirring track that climbs and climbs, with Zara's vocals complementing the strings perfectly.
(Also try: I Miss You featuring Julia Michaels, who has a wonderful knack of clever lyrics and has written some great songs by artists I love but unfortunately none of them are in this chart, and Baby ft Marina and Luis Fonsi)
(Also try: I Miss You featuring Julia Michaels, who has a wonderful knack of clever lyrics and has written some great songs by artists I love but unfortunately none of them are in this chart, and Baby ft Marina and Luis Fonsi)
19. Wiz Khalifa & Charlie Puth - See You Again
Track length: 3:49
UK release date: 10th March 2015
UK chart position: 1
Last decade's chart: N/A
Listens as at 8th October: 7
Gigs this decade: 0
Oof, this is an emotional opening to this section. I was fairly certain, when Dana and I got tickets for Batman vs Superman, that it would launch our fandom of a film franchise. What I didn't expect was that said franchise would end up be Fast and Furious, due to wanting to see more of the wonderful Gal Gadot, and Dana's insistence that we can't start watching a film series at the fourth entry. By the time Giselle's story arc had ended at the sixth (for now...) we were in too deep with the family, and ended up attending the European premiere of the eighth movie. This track soundtracked the seventh film, specifically the last goodbye of the late Paul Walker's character, and tugs on the heartstrings in just the right way. A fitting send-off.
18. The Killers - Just Another Girl
Track length: 4:22
UK release date: 11th November 2013
UK chart position: 83
Last decade's chart: N/A
Listens as at 8th October: 5
Gigs this decade: 0
Phew, a positive song! Hopefully the rest of the songs from here will be a bit more upbeat, or at the very least number seventeen isn't a song about bereavement and depression!
Anyway, you might be assuming that this song is only on here for the appearance of an androgynously styled Dianna Agron in the video. And while that's the main reason I watched it in the first place, it's a strong enough song to justify this position.
Anyway, you might be assuming that this song is only on here for the appearance of an androgynously styled Dianna Agron in the video. And while that's the main reason I watched it in the first place, it's a strong enough song to justify this position.
17. Of Monsters And Men - Little Talks
Track length: 4:26
UK release date: 20th December 2011
UK chart position: 12
Last decade's chart: N/A
Listens as at 8th October: 65
Gigs this decade: 0
I've no idea how I discovered this song. All I know is that for a period of a year or so it was a regular mainstay in playlists, despite hopping between streaming platforms and playback methods. I built the song up so much in my mind that I didn't want to try anything else by the band, worried that it wouldn't live up to how highly I thought of this song. It's another cheerful, jolly song that is incredibly bleak when you pay the slightest bit of attention to the lyrics.
Having a long weekend in Iceland over the summer, I picked up a copy of the English language local newspaper. In it was an article about Of Monsters And Men, promoting their latest album (as well as giving me the interesting trivia that they, not Bjork or Sigur Ros, are Iceland's most streamed artist). I downloaded it for the flight home and enjoyed it so much in my sleep deprived delirium that it's been one I've returned to regularly.
(Also try their newest album, Fever Dream)
Having a long weekend in Iceland over the summer, I picked up a copy of the English language local newspaper. In it was an article about Of Monsters And Men, promoting their latest album (as well as giving me the interesting trivia that they, not Bjork or Sigur Ros, are Iceland's most streamed artist). I downloaded it for the flight home and enjoyed it so much in my sleep deprived delirium that it's been one I've returned to regularly.
(Also try their newest album, Fever Dream)
16. Dua Lipa - Be The One
Track length: 3:22
UK release date: 30th October 2015
UK chart position: 9
Last decade's chart: N/A
Listens as at 8th October: 21
Gigs this decade: 2
After a set at Brighton Pride that did enough to pique my interest in her, I've followed Dua's career path since, at arm's length. She's released several singles that have climbed the charts, but none are as good as this cracker. It wasn't until it came on a Spotify playlist earlier today that I was able to put my finger on why this is head and shoulders above the rest of her discography - you actually feel like she believes in what she's singing with this song! Rather than her usual indifferent monotone she gives it her all, with her voice cracking from the emotion heading into the final chorus. The video linked above emphasises the difference, showing a playful, yearning side to her that seems to have been sanded down subsequently. Ironically, this is the only single on her debut album in which she didn't have a songwriting credit!
(Also try New Rules, the best counting song since How To Be A Heartbreaker)
(Also try New Rules, the best counting song since How To Be A Heartbreaker)
15. Tove Lo - Talking Body
Track length: 3:58
UK release date: 13th January 2015
UK chart position: 17
Last decade's chart: N/A
Listens as at 8th October: 38
Gigs this decade: 4
When (and if) I get round to doing my Albums of the 2010s post, Tove's debut will feature prominently. A concept album (catnip to me) based around the three pillars of pop music being sex, love and heartbreak (also catnip) from a Swede (more musical catnip), it's no surprise I loved it from the first time I heard it. This is the highlight of the first third, and Tove's subsequent releases from both this and later albums really demonstrate the difference in having a songwriter who is sexually confident to most mainstream pop music. Tove knows what she wants and if you can't provide it, she'll find someone who will rather than settling for less.
(Also try Moments, also from Queen Of The Clouds and probably also NSFW; True Disaster, from the follow up Lady Wood; and Glad He's Gone, featuring one of the best music videos of 2019)
(Also try Moments, also from Queen Of The Clouds and probably also NSFW; True Disaster, from the follow up Lady Wood; and Glad He's Gone, featuring one of the best music videos of 2019)
14. Selena Gomez - Back To You
Track length: 3:27
UK release date: 10th May 2018
UK chart position: 13
Last decade's chart: N/A
Listens as at 8th October: 46
Gigs this decade: 1
There are things about this track that I have problems with (it's probably about Justin Bieber, it's the soundtrack to a Netflix show that glamourises suicide), but the song is strong enough to overcome those issues. It's been a busy decade for Selena, rising from the Disney stronghold and leaving the Scene behind to forge a solo career. Stars Dance was a good enough first album to convince us to see her live in London (which also featured a cover of Lorde's Royals) and she built on that with Revival, one of my favourite pop albums of the decade. Unfortunately medical issues have stopped her putting together a run of form (but haven't seemed to hinder her career - at one point, two years out from her last album, she was the most followed person on Instagram) but she's continued to release odd singles and pop bangers - such as this light, acousticy electro-country ballad that never slips into being maudlin.
(Also: Bad Liar, a Julia Michaels penned track featuring Selena pulling quadruple duty in the video; Hands To Myself, the third single from Revival about the closeness of touch; Good For You - basically, give Revival a listen)
(Also: Bad Liar, a Julia Michaels penned track featuring Selena pulling quadruple duty in the video; Hands To Myself, the third single from Revival about the closeness of touch; Good For You - basically, give Revival a listen)
13. Harry Styles - Sign Of The Times
Track length: 5:40
UK release date: 7th April 2017
UK chart position: 1
Last decade's chart: N/A
Listens as at 8th October: 18
Gigs this decade: 0
Another artist on whom my views changed over the course of the decade. Previously written off as a Gen Z Gary Barlow, his SNL performance of this track turned my views around. The rest of the album held up to the lofty standards set by this opening single, and what I've heard of the second album (leave me alone Mina, I've been busy) is a continuation of his maturity. Plus, he seems like a nice, affable bloke too!
(Also: Watermelon Sugar, which may or may not be about oral sex but is a pleasant tune; and Adore You, a lovely song about a man's relationship with fish.)
(Also: Watermelon Sugar, which may or may not be about oral sex but is a pleasant tune; and Adore You, a lovely song about a man's relationship with fish.)
12. Zara Larsson - All The Time
Track length: 3:48
UK release date: 26th June 2019 (Joint newest track!)
UK chart position: 70
Last decade's chart: N/A
Listens as at 8th October: 25
Gigs this decade: 1
Zara is an artist who I didn't take seriously until very recently. Her stuff was mostly pleasant to listen to, but I got more out of liking her ironically as a way of teasing my wife than fully appreciating her oeuvre. That was until this spring. She announced a small gig in London, and I was gently encouraged to go by Dana (who was, admittedly, expecting another Dua Lipa experience where the lack of stage presence would put an end to it). I duly went, and was impressed - despite it being a significantly smaller venue than she usually plays, and which struggled to sell out, Zara didn't phone it in at all! It was the sort of high energy, total fun gig that makes me see an artist in a new light - and midway through the set she threw out this banger, which has sadly gone underappreciated relative to the quality of the song. It's so good, even by Swedish pop standards!
11. Sigrid - Plot Twist
Track length: 3:25
UK release date: 14th July 2017
UK chart position: N/A
Last decade's chart: N/A
Listens as at 8th October: 34
Gigs this decade: 1
One good thing to come out of my gym membership while working in Brighton - apart from the general "keeping fit" aspect of things - was discovering this track on the treadmill. Looking like the offspring of Emily Browning and Lauren from Chvrches, I was intrigued enough to listen to the song properly (i.e. without the soundtrack of me struggling to keep pace while running) and from there, the rest of her EP, eagerly awaiting her album. When we finally got to see her live at Brixton Academy last autumn I was so enthralled I very nearly wet myself to avoid missing a single second (only the fortuitous timing of an encore break prevented me from having to reason that "my jeans needed washing anyway") and I was so impressed I was unable to speak for a good ten minutes after the set finished. While her album has been underappreciated (a running theme with my artists, it seems I love an underdog) her output has been high enough for me to keep following her as much as possible!
Next time...we enter the top ten! Featuring:
- The obvious choice, but lower than you might expect, and not with one of the singles;
- The other obvious choice, but not with the song everyone knows;
- The surprise choice, unless you've been paying attention since the very first post in this chart;
- That Swedish choice, because the song is a certifiable banger, despite the weedy cover version by that bloke a few years ago;
- The ponytailed choice, with a song that features the correct capitalisation;
- The singer-as-a-side-career choice, also related to capitalisation;
- The European choice, who you haven't thought of in ages;
- The Cuban choice, from Florida;
- The Antipodean choice, from her critically acclaimed but low selling second album; and
- The tea-drinking local choice.
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