#machine girl made another banger fr

[myatcom]

this song is living rent free in my head and i always picture Willow absolutely losing her mind to it

[johannesviii]

Top 10 Personal Favorite Hit Songs from 2011

22 to 23 years old. Was working in Paris and all the hours of train were exhausting. Listened to a LOT of music for that reason. It was an average year, but the songs that were good were excellent. Anything from this top 5 could have topped a list for a more mediocre year.

Disclaimers:

Keep in mind I’m using both the year-end top 100 lists from the US and from France while making these top 10 things. There’s songs in English that charted in my country way higher than they did in their home countries, or even earlier or later, so that might get surprising at times.

Of course there will be stuff in French. We suck. I know. It’s my list. Deal with it.

My musical tastes have always been terrible and I’m not a critic, just a listener and an idiot.

I have sound to color synesthesia which justifies nothing but might explain why I have trouble describing some songs in other terms than visual ones.

Finished my job training in June and worked full time. I kinda miss the campus. It was in the middle of nowhere and we had to steal wifi but we had some great parties there. Made friends, lost friends. And when I wasn’t there, I had my own appartment! My s.o and I put posters everywhere immediately, haha. We also had our first car which was basically a wreck but it lasted way longer than it had any right to.

Some fantastic albums dropped that year, like Ceremonials (Florence & The Machine), Modern Ruin (Covenant), All Things Bright And Beautiful (Owl City) and Imaginaerum (Nightwish). But the album that ruled the entire year for me was Mylo Xyloto (Coldplay). It’s my favorite Coldplay album. Hurts Like Heaven? Charlie Brown? Don’t Let It Break Your Heart? And especially Every Teardrop Is a Waterfall, which, no joke, is one of my favorite songs of all time? Incredible. Excellent. Amazing. The fact that the mediocre Paradise and the good but not great Princess of China were the biggest hits from it continues to baffle me. Really guys? But yeah. Album of the year to me.

So... some more unelligible songs, now. There’s the unexpectedly very, very good Lonely Lisa by Mylène Farmer, which would have ended somewhere in the middle of the list, but, way more tragic, there’s Alligator Sky by Owl City ft Shawn Chrystopher which has to be one of the most underrated songs of the 2010s. The key change is so visually fantastic that, no joke, it made me cry the first time I heard it. Chills every single time. Why wasn’t this a bigger hit. What happened. It’s so unfair. I’m not even sure it would have been my #1, but easily top 3.

As usual, here’s some honorable mentions.

Party Rock Anthem (LMFAO) - Badly written but still catchy.

You Make Me Feel (Cobra Starship) - Nice but not as good as Good Girls Go Bad.

Nightcall (Kavinsky) - This is the only song I kinda disliked on Kavinsky’s album, so of course it was a single. Of f█cking course.

Mr Saxobeat (Alexandra Stan) - A bit too repetitive, but nice.

S&M (Rihanna) - Clearly in the “so bad it’s good” category.

F█ck You (CeeLo Green) - Really fun but kinda killed by the overplay.

Black & Yellow (Wiz Khalifa) - Kept getting stuck in my head.

What the Hell (Avril Lavigne) - This felt like a brief return to form and it was pretty good.

Dynamite (Taio Cruz) - Who else misses this guy? Because I kinda do.

Judas (Lady Gaga) - I’d like to introduce you to this wonderful mashup. You’ll thank me later.

Last Friday Night (Katy Perry) - This has no rights being this catchy.

Paradise (Coldplay) - The very last cut from the list. It baffles me that this was the biggest hit out of Mylo Xyloto even though it might just be the worst song on it. Still nice to hear it from time to time, though.

Here comes the actual list.

10 - Jeanne (Laurent Voulzy)

US: Not on the list / FR: #99

Well that’s a mildly embarrassing pick on top of being barely elligible. This is a song about a guy falling in love with Joan of Arc after he sees her in a dream, centuries after her death. Some sentences are really strangely written, in an old fashioned way, and it gives the general impression of a young 19th century nerd falling in love with a picture in a History book even though it’s a 21st century song sung by a 60 y-o dude so this feels really damn weird to say the least, but it’s so pleasant to listen to it’s hard to say anything too negative or mean about it.

9 - More (Usher)

US: #61 / FR: #91

I know I sound like a broken record or an old idiot but where has fun music gone. Bring this kind of stuff back, please. We know things are terrible in the world, music doesn’t need to make us feel even more miserable. Please. We need more stuff like More.

8 - Rolling In The Deep (Adele)

US: #1 / FR: #2

Is there anything I could say at this point that hasn’t been said by everyone already? Uh. Well, maybe I can say that the only reason it wasn’t #1 in France was because the #1 spot was another Adele song, hahaha.

What else? Uh, well usually I don’t like slow emotional music which is why I never listened to a lot of Adele, but Rolling in the Deep has energy and anger, and that’s everything I want from sad songs, so I’ll take it.

7 - Somebody That I Used To Know (Gotye ft Kimbra)

US: Not on the list (obviously, it was #1 the next year) / FR: #4

That song took nearly an entire year to grow on me, but I’m glad it did. Like the previous one, I don’t think there’s anything new I could say about that one.

6 - Pumped Up Kicks (Foster the People)

US: #13 / FR: #44

This should be more offensive and disturbing than it actually is, even in a country with extremely strict regulations on firearms where school shootings are basically unheard of. I think it’s because the song sounds pleasant and mellow instead of threatening? I guess? Maybe? I don’t know. I’m kinda glad it didn’t come out when I was 15, though.

5 - Levels (Avicii)

US: Not on the list / FR: #63

Let us take a moment to appreciate all the bangers and absolutely wonderful songs Avicii created or contributed to create in his way too brief stay on Earth, and deeply regret his untimely departure. We already miss you dude.

4 - All Of The Lights (Kanye West ft Rihanna)

US: #59 / FR: Not on the list

Behold, the only Kanye West song I ever loved or even liked. But what a song. And what a fitting title. This song is full of flashes of light and that music video is extremely fitting and a joy to watch because it kinda looks like the song itself, down to its very colors. Just fantastic. What is that guy even doing nowadays instead of making more stuff like this. Why.

3 - We Found Love (Rihanna)

US: #69 / FR: #9

So many fantastic songs with fantastic beats and/or dance/electronic tracks at the top of this list. Rihanna is good in nearly every genre she has tried to fit in so far but obviously, as someone who kept putting eurodance track after eurodance track at the top of my 90s lists, you guessed it, my favorite songs from her are the ones where she’s basically a dance diva ala Corona project. Just great stuff all around. This is still on my mp3 player to this day.

2 - Edge of Glory (Lady Gaga)

US: #29 / FR: Not on the list

There it is, my favorite Lady Gaga song, in all its glory (HA). A joy to sing along to, a joy to headbang to, a joy to listen to it while walking, driving, painting. Makes you want to dance even if you don’t know how to dance. Not sure why this wasn’t the first single of the album, but who cares.

I put this at the top of the list at first, and then I was like oh wait, I need to check the French charts first to make sure that- OHMYGODOHMYGOD

1 - Elle Me Dit (Mika)

US: Not on the list / FR: #7

The guy I called the “new king of pop” back when I made my 2007 top ten list finally claims a top spot on one of my lists, and that feels so good.

So... Mika made a song in French. A few of them, in fact. And at first I was like “why would you do this. Your songs in English are so great, dude.” But then I heard that one when it dropped in July 2011 and I was like NEVERMIND. FORGET I SAID ANYTHING. THIS SOUNDS FANTASTIC. CARRY ON.

But it gets better. See, the song is about (and I’m quoting him there) “all the horrific things a mother can say to her son to get him to get out of her house”. Now is a good time to remind you that when it dropped, I had been out of my parents' appartment for good (and basically out of the range of my mother’s verbal abuse) for just about a year, and that entire song sounded like a double middle finger specifically targeting my mother, and, no joke, I burst out laughing the first time I heard the song.

Elle me dit (She tells me) Ne t'enfermes pas dans ta chambre (Don’t stay locked in your room) Vas-y, secoue-toi et danse (Go, get up and dance) Dis-moi c'est quoi ton problème (Tell me what is your problem) Elle me dit (She tells me) Qu'est-ce que t'as pas l'air coincé? (Why do you look so depraved?) T'es défoncé ou t'es gay (Are you high or are you gay) Tu finiras comme ton frère (You’ll end up like your brother) (...) Elle me dit (She tells me) Pourquoi tu te plains tout le temps? (Why are you always complaining?) On dirait que t'as 8 ans (It’s like you’re 8 years old) C'est pas comme ça que tu vas plaire (Nobody’s gonna love you if you’re like that) Elle me dit (She tells me) Un jour je ne serai plus là (One day I won’t be here anymore) Mais c'est quand elle me dit ça (But that’s when she tells me that) Qu'elle me dit un truc que j'aime (That she says something I like)

Catharsis is delicious, especially when it’s sung by someone as lovely as Mika. Most useful song of 2011 to me, I swear. Way too relatable.

Next up: the first of THREE top 12s in a row because Quality(tm)

[johannesviii]

Top 10 Personal Favorite Hit Songs from 2006

17 to 18 years old. First to second university year, studying History. Another slightly chaotic year, to be honest.

It’s yet another great year for hits, even if 2005 and 2007 are both even better.

Disclaimers:

Keep in mind I’m using both the year-end top 100 lists from the US and from France while making these top 10 things. There’s songs in English that charted in my country way higher than they did in their home countries, or even earlier or later, so that might get surprising at times.

Of course there will be stuff in French. We suck. I know. It’s my list. Deal with it.

My musical tastes have always been terrible and I’m not a critic, just a listener and an idiot.

I have sound to color synesthesia which justifies nothing but might explain why I have trouble describing some songs in other terms than visual ones.

At this point it was beginning to be clear that my mother wanted me out of the appartment as quickly as possible so staying at home was becoming more and more unpleasant. I basically spent most of my day outside or at the library when I wasn’t in class, then ate dinner and slept at home. I had a few friends at university but was very unpopular (by the start of the second year, my nickname was “the hobo”, mostly because I was always wearing the same old black coat and bad jeans, but also because I liked to fish for coins under vending machines cause I had next to no money). I also had a brief but extremely bad relationship that year, which ended with me punching the dude back after he punched me between two classes near the end of the year.

While making these lists I found a tape labelled “spring 2006″ and nothing else. I think it’s one of the last tapes I ever made.

After listening to it, it contained:

Mr Brightside (The Killers) (who’s surprised?)

Crazy, by Seal, but sung by a woman. No idea who that is. (Edit: Alanis Morissette! thank you purplecyborgnewt)

Alice & June (Indochine)

You And Me (Lifehouse)

A couple of seconds of Precious, Depeche Mode

Oui (Zazie)

Precious (Depeche Mode) again. A radio host states it’s the n°15 favorite song on Europe 2 that week, whichever week that was.

City of Blinding Lights (U2)

Nolwenn Ohwo (Nolwenn Leroy)

Fragment of Song to Say Goodbye (Placebo), then the entire song.

The ending of Talk (Coldplay), followed by another fragment of Talk

Juste Après (Fredericks, Goldman & Jones)

Talk (Coldplay), this time in its entirety (I can still smell the frustration more than 13 years away)

Broken (Seether)

Enjoy the Silence 2004 (Depeche Mode)

Fragment of Missing (Evanescence), followed by nearly the entire song

Jeune et Con (Saez)

A bit of a radio show I found funny

An obscure remix of Sans Contrefaçon (Mylène Farmer).

So yeah, I stopped making tapes around that time. I also only bought two cd singles that year.

Just like the previous year, some of my favorite albums from that year have exactly zero singles elligible for this list. They are Alice & June by Indochine, and Meds by Placebo. The worst part? One of the best songs on Indochine’s album is a goddamn duet with Brian Molko from Placebo. It’s called Pink Water and it’s great. Please listen to it if you don’t know it yet. What can I say, I’m a weak and simple person, I hear a duet between two singers I adore, and I die instantly.

Anyway. Meds is kind of underrated as far as Placebo’s discography goes and I’m especially fond of Infrared, which was one of the songs of the year for me. Indochine’s Alice & June, meanwhile, is a concept double album about two girls making a suicide pact. It’s a bit of a mess and it’s not as tight as Paradize was but it’s still really, really good for the most part. The first eponymous single should have been elligible. But it isn’t. I’m sad.

On to the honorable mentions!

So Sick (Ne-Yo) - Usually this kind of music just sounds bland to me, but that one was really pleasant.

Miracle (Cascada) - Not as good as Everytime we touch. Still a lot of fun.

Smack That (Akon) - This shouldn’t be this catchy.

Pump It (Black Eyed Peas) - Same here.

Living On Video (Pakito) - I only just now realised this was a cover. What the hell.

SOS (Rihanna) - Not her best song. Still good.

L’Amour N’est Rien (Mylène Farmer) - Really funny lyrics, meh song.

World Hold On (Bob Sinclar) - Stay tuned for more.

Hips Don’t Lie (Shakira) - Song of the summer, whether you liked it or not. Fortunately, I liked it a lot.

Chasing Cars (Snow Patrol) - Very pleasant.

SexyBack (Justin Timberlake) - That beat is just incredible.

Call Me When You’re Sober (Evanescence) - I remember Rock Mag finishing their KarmaCode (Lacuna Coil) review with “We hope Evanescence’s next album will be fantastic, because this is their most serious rival yet.” And nope, Evanescence’s album wasn’t nearly as good as KarmaCode. But this song still made the year-end list, while nothing from Lacuna Coil ever crossed over. Our Truth SHOULD have been a huge hit. It had a ton of crossover appeal. One of the biggest musical tragedies of the year right there. Oh well, the Evanescence single is still good though.

Say It Right (Nelly Furtado & Timbaland) - The last cut from the list, and when you’ll see what replaced it, you are going to hate me.

And now, the top ten.

10 - Everytime We Touch (Cascada)

US: #31 / FR: #5

This kicked Nelly Furtado off the list.

I am not sorry, just so you know.

9 - Ridin’ (Chamillionaire)

US: #8 / FR: Not on the list

This is a song about respecting the law and driving at a reasonable speed and cops being mad because they can’t do anything against you. He’s a gangster, just... not doing anything illegal at the moment. I absolutely adore that concept. This is the best.

8 - Crazy (Gnarls Barkley)

US: #7 / FR: #29

I’ve never met someone who disliked this song, and for that reason I have nothing to say about it. It’s just one of these tunes, like Hey Ya, which are too perfect to argue or say anything constructive about them.

7 - Temperature (Sean Paul)

US: #2 / FR: #48

Half of this top ten 10 is made of absolute bangers with untouchable beats and you know what, I really miss that time, mostly because the current charts are morose and depressed (for good reasons, but still). This is no Get Busy, but come on, who can say we need less Sean Paul in our lives? Not me that’s for sure.

By the way, one of the very first videos I saw on (the very new at the time) youtube was a misheard lyrics version of this song. I think you all know which one it is, the original has been deleted but it was reuploaded several times since then.

6 - Rock This Party (Bob Sinclar & Cutee B)

US: Not on the list / FR: #19

You really can’t go wrong with this “Everybody dance now” sample, and this is one seriously kickass song, and yet another banger on a list already full of them. Also, this was possibly the best music video of the entire year, featuring three kids trying to imitate music videos from just about every popular genre. Check it out if you’ve never seen it, it will make your day.

5 - Marly-Gomont (Kamini)

US: Not on the list / FR: #1

Possibly the most unexpected hit song of the decade in my country. Basically, this guy made a rap song about the tiny rural village he was living in, and a funny music video shot on a 100€ budget to show to his friends and family. And it was well written. And it was hilarious, while still being insightful. And it became a viral sensation. And it charted! And suddenly it became the biggest hit of the year.

If you’ve never heard it, here it is. There was no translation available for it on lyricstranslate, so I made an account just to translate it myself. You’re welcome. Please give it a try. It’s great. It was a hit for a good reason, and I promise you the music video is funny even if you don’t speak the language.

4 - Slipping Away/Crier la Vie (Mylène Farmer & Moby)

US: Not on the list / FR: #15

So, uh, earlier in this post I said “What can I say, I’m a weak and simple person, I hear a duet between two singers I adore, and I die instantly.”

This is a duet between Mylène Farmer and Moby, based on a song from Hotel, which, if you recall, I listened to on a loop the previous year.

My poor heart didn’t need this. What did I do to deserve this. What a blessing.

3 - Over My Head (Cablecar) (The Fray)

US: #13 / FR: Not on the list

This was my #1 at some point. Then I realised the version I kept listening to was a punk rock version by A Day To Remember from Punk Goes Pop, and that I had nearly forgotten what the original sounded like. So I listened to it, and it’s still very, very nice, but it’s not quite the same.

I still bought the album, though.

2 - Nolwenn Ohwo (Nolwenn Leroy)

US: Not on the list / FR: #43

I had completely (and I do mean completely) forgotten about this song until I started to check the French year-end top 100 to make this list. Erased from my mind entirely by some sort of MiB neuralyser. And I was like “hang on, wasn’t this a good song? This rings a bell. I used to love it, didn’t I?” (and sure enough, it’s on that 2006 tape I found). So I wrote it down for the honorable mentions, just in case.

Before making the definitive list, I put the song on, and I felt like the critic in Ratatouille having a flashback.

Holy. Shit.

I remembered ALL the lyrics. While listening to it, in under three minutes I successively put it in the 6th spot, then the 4th, and when it ended, it was #2 on the list. I downloaded it and put it back on my mp3 player and on my playlists. I’ve listened to it about 30 times in the past week. It’s so great. How did I ever forget this song existed. I feel so alive.

I never cared about this singer, but this is written by Laurent Voulzy, who’s music I actually love, and he’s firing on all cylinders here. Just listen to it. Please.

It could have easily topped the list if it wasn’t for the most useful and helpful song in the entire year.

1 - Pas le Temps (Faf Larage)

US: Not on the list / FR: #2

I never watched a single episode of Prison Break. This was the French version of the opening song. I don’t even know what happens in the series. I don’t really care.

I. Adore. This song. It’s yet another #1 that helped me a lot.

The beat is untouchable and this rap is actual poetry. Not even remotely kidding. Here’s a part of one of the verses.

Aussi loin que la lumière semble s'éteindre (As far as the light seems to flicker) Seule une étincelle au fond de moi peut l'atteindre (Only the spark hidden inside of me can reach it) (...) Les dés sont jetés, rien n'est joué (the dice is tossed, the game is set) Même le sort retient son souffle piégé dans ce sablier (even fate holds its breath, trapped in this hourglass) J'ai décidé de ne pas être prisonnier (I decided I wouldn’t be a prisoner) J'n'ai que ma vie à offrir si jamais j'échouais (I only have my life to offer if I ever fail) Pas le choix faut y'aller (No choice, let’s go)

The line “pas le choix, faut y aller” (no choice, let’s go) keeps being repeated in the entire song and it’s so, SO motivational. As I said before, 2006 was not as bad as 2003 but it was still a difficult year - at the end of it, I was an adult with no money, very little hope for the future, no diploma yet apart from the highschool one, still trying to NOT become a ball of anger because of a couple of assholes in class, all of this with dysphoria and a mother who wanted to kick me out as soon as possible. And I wanted to win, and punch the world, and say here I come, I’m alive, I survived, better watch out.

Si je dois exceller, tout donner, prendre c'que j'peux (If I need to be the best, give everything, take whatever I can) Si le monde m'appartient restez pas au milieu (If the world is mine, don’t stay in my way) Et si le sort est contre moi c'est tant pis (And if fate is against me, too bad) On fait des plans pour s'en sortir, écoute (We’re making plans to survive, listen) Pas le choix faut y'aller (No choice, let’s go)

This song defined the entire year for me. This was my fight song. Everytime I wanted to give up, it was there to give me a very simple reminder.

No choice. Let’s go.

Next up: here it is, at last, the absolute best hit song of the decade