Tag Archives: Of Monsters And Men

THE SOUND OF 2019

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So 2019 is now over and we are almost in 2020.

Seeing as everybody is doing End Of Year Reviews, I thought i’d join the party, albeit a bit belatedly.

So here is my Top 50 Songs Of 2019. There’s no scientific formula to this list. I just went through 2019s Friday Fives and decided to spend an hour and rank the songs in order of favouriteness.

In a change from previous years, it’s only a Top 50 as it would probably take me until 2021 to do a Top 100.

1. Vampire Weekend – Harmony Hill
2. Sigrid – Mine Right Now
3. Taylor Swift ft Brendon Urie – Me
4. Dermot Kennedy – Outnumbered
5. Catfish and the Bottlemen – Longshot
6. Liam Gallagher – Shockwave
7. Sam Fender – Hypersonic Missiles
8. Two Door Cinema Club – Talk
9. Freya Ridings – Castles
10. Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds – Wandering Star
11. Tom Walker – Just You and I
12. Billie Eilish – Bury A Friend
13. Pet Shop Boys ft Olly Alexander – Dreamland
14. Of Monsters And Men – Alligator
15. Chvrches and the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra – Miracle
16. Kygo ft Whitney Houston – Higher Love
17. Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds – Black Star Dancing
18. Bastille – Joy
19. Coldplay – Orphans
20. Liam Gallagher – Now That I’ve Found You
21. Sam Fender – Will We Talk
22. Gang Of Youths – What Can I Do If The Fire Goes Out?
23. Editors – Black Gold
24. Bastille – Can’t Fight This Feeling
25. Bloxx – Go Out With You
26. Katy Perry – Never Really Over
27. Blossoms – Your Girlfriend
28. Muse – Hungry Like The Wolf
29. The Courteeners – Heavy Jacket
30. Billie Eilish – Bad Guy
31. Chemical Brothers – MAH
32. Jade Bird – Lottery
33. Haim – Now I’m In It
34. Crystal – Just Can’t Get Enough
35. Rick Astley – Every One Of Us
36. Chvrches – Death Stranding
37. OMD – Don’t Go
38. The Divine Comedy – Infernal Machines
39. Vic and Bob – Bono’s Cooking Some Pork
40. Miles Kane – That’s Life
41. Liam Gallagher – The River
42. The Divine Comedy – Queuejumper
43. Weezer ft Tears For Fears – Everybody Wants To Rule The World
44. The Vaccines – All My Friends Are Falling In Love
45. Dua Lipa – Don’t Start Now
46. Shakespear’s Sister – All The Queen’s Horses
47. Lizzo – Juice
48. Rose Elinor Dougall – First Sign
49. Miley Cyrus – Nothing Breaks Like A Heart
50. Dea Matrona – Let’s Go Crazy

Congratulations to Vampire Weekend. There’s no physical prize, but they can just boast about it everywhere they go. Ideally, they’d be doing so in Belfast before a concert. Hint hint.

If you care, here’s the list of previous winners (NOTE: The 2006-2008 Countdowns were on Bebo, and have now been wiped from internet history)

2018 Lovelytheband – Broken
2017 Liam Gallagher – For What It’s Worth
2016 The Strumbellas – Spirits
2015 Blossoms – Charlemagne
2014 Jamie T – Zombie
2013 Haim – The Wire
2012 Taylor Swift – We Are Never Getting Back Together
2011 Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds – AKA …… What A Life
2010 Marina and the Diamons – Shampain
2009 Little Boots – New In Town
2008 Sons and Daughters – Darling
2007 Feist – 1, 2, 3, 4
2006 Kasabian – Empire

THE FRIDAY FIVE – 28.6.2019

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1. Blossoms – Your Girlfriend
2. Liam Gallagher – The River
3. Sam Fender – Hypersonic Missiles
4. Kaiser Chiefs – People Know How To Love One Another
5. Of Monsters And Men – Alligator

Liam Gallagher’s tour in November doesn’t include Belfast. I really hope it’s not because he’s being lined up for Belsonic 2020. Flip sake.

THE FRIDAY FIVE – 8.6.2018

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1. The Kooks – No Pressure
2. Johnny Marr – Hi Hello
3. Courtney Barrett – Nameless Faceless
4. Christine and the Queens – Girlfriend
5. Aurora – Queendom

And now, the first of many apologies.

Apologies for not having a Friday Five last week, I was too busy doing blogs from Biggest Weekend.

The last time I did a Friday Five, I totally forgot that it was Her Majesty Kylie Minogue’s 50th birthday.

Belatedly, he’s a chart to celebrate Kylie’s half century on earth.

FIVE SONGS BY KYLIE MINOGUE

1. I Believe In You
2. Better Than Today
3. I Should Be So Lucky
4. 2 Hearts
5. Some Kind Of Bliss

I’m not sure if you’ve noticed, but the World Cup starts. So here, is a series of musical charts based on the groups. You may notice that some acts are appearing under FIFA’s nationality rules.

SONGS BY ARTISTS FROM COUNTRIES IN GROUPS A-B

1. Tatu – All The Things She Said
2. Enrique Iglesias – Do You Know?
3. Nelly Furtado – Maneater
4. Tatu – All About Us
5. Baccara – Yes Sir, I Can Boogie

SONGS BY ARTISTS FROM COUNTRIES IN GROUPS C-D

1. Alphabeat – Boyfriend
2. Of Monsters And Men – Little Talks
3. Desireless – Voyage Voyage
4. Steffan Dennis – Don’t It Make You Feel Good
5. Daft Punk – Robot Rock

SONGS BY ARTISTS FROM COUNTRIES IN GROUPS E-F

1. Yello – Oh Yeah
2. Ace Of Base – The Sign
3. Freiheit – Keeping The Dream Alive
4. Modern Talking – Brother Louie
5. Emilia – Big Big World

SONGS BY ARTISTS FROM COUNTRIES IN GROUPS G-H

1. Glenn and Chris – Diamond Lights
2. Gotye – Somebody That I Used To Know
3. FR David – Words
4. The 5678s – Woo Hoo
5. Shakira – Underneath Your Clothes

THE FRIDAY FIVE – 10.6.2016 (A EURO 2016 SPECIAL)

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1. Tame Impala – The Less I Know The Better
2. Birdy – Keeping You Head Up
3. Tom Odell – Magnetised
4. Biffy Clyro – Wolves Of Winter
5. Johnny Lloyd – Pilgrims

Today is the start of Euro 2016. Sounds like a good excuse for a chart, or a series of charts.

SONGS BY ACTS FROM COUNTRIES IN GROUP A

1. Yello – Oh Yeah
2. Desireless – Voyage Voyage
3. Phoenix – Entertainment
4. Air – Sexy Boy
5. Alexandra Stan – Lemonade

SONGS BY ACTS FROM COUNTRIES IN GROUP B

1. Tatu – All The Things She Said
2. Mansun – Wind Open Space
3. Stereophonics – Dakota
4. Manic Street Preachers – Motorcycle Emptiness
5. The Cure – Close To Me

SONGS BY ACTS FROM COUNTRIES IN GROUP C

1. Wonder Villains – TV
2. Nena – 99 Red Balloons
3. Harold Faltermeyer – Axel F
4. Baltimora – Tarzan Boy
5. Ruslana – Wild Dance

SONGS BY ACTS FROM COUNTRIES IN GROUP D

1. Enrique Iglesias – Do You Know?
2. Can Bonomo – Love Me Back
3. Jan Hammer – Crockett’s Theme
4. Karel Fialka – Hey Matthew
5. Baccara – Yes Sir I Can Boogie

SONGS BY ACTS FROM COUNTRIES IN GROUP E

1. Gala – Freed From Desire
2. Phil Lynott – Yellow Pearl
3. Roxette – Joyride
4. Spagna – Call Me
5. Ace Of Base – The Sign

SONGS BY ACTS FROM COUNTRIES IN GROUP F

1. Falco – Rock Me Amadeus
2. Of Monsters and Men – Little Talks
3. Bjork – Play Dead
4. Christina Strumer – Fieber
5. Bjork – It’s Oh So Quiet

THE FRIDAY FIVE – 26.6.2015

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1. Beck – Dreams
2. Oh Wonder – Livewire
3. Of Monsters And Men – Empire
4. Duran Duran – Pressure Off
5. Oasis – Don’t Look Back In Anger

This week, it was announced that New Order will be releasing new material and touring later this year. I used to think that the day would never come (Sorry!)

Hopefully, there’ll be a Belfast gig, and it won’t be like their Titanic Slipways one in 2012 that got cancelled joining Razorlight in Moira in 2011 as great Northern Ireland cancelled gigs.

Anyway, here’s a New Order Top Five

FIVE SONGS BY NEW ORDER

1. True Faith
2. Blue Monday
3. Temptation
4. Regret
5. Crystal

THE SOUND OF 2012 : 26-50

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26. Newton Faulkner – Clouds
27. The Family Rain – Trust Me, I’m A Genius
28. Madness – My Girl II
29. Pink – Try
30. Green Day – Kill The DJ
31. Cheryl Cole – Under The Sun
32. Of Monsters And Men – Little Talks
33. Bruno Mars – Locked Out Of Heaven
34. Thea Gilmore – London
35. Fun – Some Nights
36. Kylie Minogue – Flower
37. Adele – Skyfall
38. Coldplay – Hurts Like Heaven
39. The Vaccines – I Always Knew
40. Alicia Keys – Girl On Fire
41. Paloma Faith – Never Tear Us Apart
42. Black Keys – Lonely Boy
43. Lloyd – Dedication To Me Ex
44. Elbow – First Steps
45. Blur – Under The Westway
46. Underworld – Caliban’s Dream
47. Justice – New Lands
48. Green Day – Oh Love
49. Pure Love – Riot Song
50. Labrinth ft Emeli Sane – Beneath You’re Beautiful

THE FRIDAY FIVE – 28.9.2012

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1. Wonder Villains – TV
2. Paloma Faith – Never Tear Us Apart
3. Madness – My Girl II
4. Of Monsters And Men – Little Talks
5. Ellie Goulding – Anything Could Happen

On Tuesday, is the 17th anniversary of the release of (What’s The Story) Morning Glory? by Oasis. Having commemorated Oasis 1st and 3rd albums, it’s only fair to do a Top Five of this.

FIVE SONGS FROM (WHAT’S THE STORY) MORNING GLORY?

1. Cast No Shadow
2. Hey You
3. Champagne Supernova
4. Don’t Look Back In Anger
5. Some Might Say

This Tuesday is also Phil Oakey’s birthday (He’ll be 57, since you ask)

The only reason I remember this is because it is mentioned in the mini biography of Human League at the start of their entry in the 1999 edition of the Guinness Book Of British Hit Singles, a book I have read many times over.

For some reason, that little statistic has just lodged in my brain ever since.

So, in celebration of this, here’s a Phil Oakey Top Five

FIVE SONGS BY PHIL OAKEY

1. Giorgio Moroder ft Phil Oakey – Together In Electric Dreams
2. Human League – Don’t You Want Me
3. Human League – Tell Me When
4. Human League – Mirror Man
5. Human League – Human