Lately I'd been feeling a bit cynical about the state of mainstream pop music. Shame on me for being so negative, I just needed to look at popjustices top 104 singles of the year.

http://popjustice.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=3307&Itemid=9

Yes, of course about 3/4 of it is muck, but 90% of everything is rubbish so that's a pretty good quality ratio. Just look at some of the genius singles released this year.

The Ting Tings - 'That's Not My Name'
Sebastien Tellier - 'Divine'
Little Boots - 'Stuck On Repeat'
Annie - 'I Know Your Girlfriend Hates Me'
MGMT - 'Kids'
La Roux - 'Quicksand'
Alphabeat 'Fascination'
MIA - 'Paper Planes'
Tilly & The Wall - 'Beat Control'
Cut Copy - 'Lights & Music'
Hot Chip - 'Ready for the Floor'
Ladyhawke - 'Paris Is Burning'
Santogold - 'LES Artistses'
Lykke Li - 'I'm Good I'm Gone'
Christian Falk feat Robyn - 'Dream On'

I mean for one year, that's a decent number of great good straight up pop singles. It's just a shame that there isn't a "pop" context for this sort of stuff to exist in any more with the singles charts no longer having the relevance it once had and top of the pops no longer existing.

pop music is great these days, and it's nice to hear someone else saying it. who cares if the charts don't matter anymore. it just means that music's entering a new phase. the way i look at it. good music was made before the charts existed and will be after it's gone.

I'm so sick of hearing people saying "Music will never be as good as it was in the early 90's/80's/70's (pick whichever decade you were a teenager)". Music's better now than it has been for a long time

Agreed. This is Alphabeat was the best pop album I'd heard in ages. And dare I say that The Promise by Girls Aloud was great too?

And yes, that nostalgia thing is pretty lame. Next time someone harps on about the 70s bring up Wings, The Wombles, the Osmonds or disco.

Posted By chon on 16 Jan 2009 10:54 AM
And dare I say that The Promise by Girls Aloud was great too?

Those girls have plenty of cracking singles. And lots of the best 2008 albums were very pop - Vampire Weekend, MGMT, Santogold... It's the pop attitude of making music for fun and dancing, not to ponder on current affairs or existential angst.

The Promise by Girls Aloud was great too?

Not really convinced by this one I'm afraid. Kinda ironic title as the intro promises so much, then it goes to the bridge and loses all energy at the chorus just when it should really be blowing you away like the Motown/Spektor stuff it's trying to emulate. The Pipettes are the only band I can think of that has pulled off this retro 50s girl group thing entirely successfully in recent times. They've released some genius singles no doubt, I just don't think this is one of them.