1988 Modern Rock Year-End Chart Rankdown (finished)

[singingrulebritannia]

"Devil Inside" and "This Corrosion" are my only bottom 50 holdouts now

[Butterflies & Hurricanes]

#25:  "All That Money Wants" - Psychedelic Furs


005:  YE Rank
#01:  peak on Billboard (for 3wks)
970:  rankdown points

Another song with no tankers in the bottom third. I know the P-Furs are popular, but i didn't expect THIS song to be nearly this high on the charts or the rankdown.


5 Geometrical
10 Daryl the Beryl
19 Alex1901
23 newpower
28 Juanca
30 rowellfarm490
33 Doc Indie Party Rock
38 peacebone
39 singingrulebritannia
44 Mirago
45 American Idiot

51 campbellssoup
55 gonecountry
60 wheatsquares33
65 Butterflies & Hurricanes


spectators:
House Lannister
Verisimilitude
@humanshazam
janinho
MoD
Red
somelikeitwhen

[Butterflies & Hurricanes]

#24:  "Dominion" - Sisters Of Mercy


072:  YE Rank
#08:  peak on Hard Report
987:  rankdown points

The country of Jordan should use this video as part of their tourism marketing. It certainly makes me want to visit Petra. I'm guessing those FOUR Top 10 rankers will agree. Up next, someone clears their bottom 10.


4 Geometrical
7 Alex1901
7 rowellfarm490
9 peacebone

18 Butterflies & Hurricanes
20 Doc Indie Party Rock
22 American Idiot
33 Daryl the Beryl
46 Mirago
48 singingrulebritannia
48 wheatsquares33
51 newpower
52 campbellssoup

81 Juanca
82 gonecountry


spectators:
House Lannister
Verisimilitude
@humanshazam
janinho
MoD
Red
somelikeitwhen

[Verisimilitude]

A lot of good songs listed! Personal favorites: Only A Memory, What's The Matter Here?, Dominion and I Say Nothing.

[Butterflies & Hurricanes]

#23:  "This Corrosion" - Sisters Of Mercy


045:  YE Rank
#05:  peak on Hard Report
989:  rankdown points

To quote their song Detonation Blvd: "BANG! BANG!", as both Sisters are taken out in consecutive reveals. Gates pulled the trigger, but is rewarded with clearing his bottom 10.


6 rowellfarm490
7 American Idiot
8 Doc Indie Party Rock

15 newpower
19 Butterflies & Hurricanes
26 Mirago
29 Geometrical
30 Alex1901
31 gonecountry
35 Juanca
37 peacebone

51 Daryl the Beryl
59 wheatsquares33

76 campbellssoup
97 singingrulebritannia


spectators:
House Lannister
Verisimilitude
@humanshazam
janinho
MoD
Red
somelikeitwhen

[singingrulebritannia]

If only I had ranked "Dominion" 3 spots higher

[Verisimilitude]

So love This Corrosion. Has a chorus and vibe that takes you on a journey.

[wheatsquares33]

I love More, one of my favorite #1 hits of the 90s. But both of these Sisters of Mercy songs were so overly long and tedious...

[Butterflies & Hurricanes]

#22:  "Kiss And Tell" - Bryan Ferry


082:  YE Rank
#09:  peak on Hard Report
991:  rankdown points

The audio & video production on this sounds way ahead of it's time. Love the typewriter at the beginning! By the way, this is the last song to have less than 1,000 points.


6 Doc Indie Party Rock
6 Geometrical
9 newpower

11 gonecountry
12 Mirago
17 Butterflies & Hurricanes
25 Alex1901

40 singingrulebritannia
41 American Idiot
47 wheatsquares33
49 peacebone
56 campbellssoup
57 Juanca
61 rowellfarm490

87 Daryl the Beryl


spectators:
House Lannister
Verisimilitude
@humanshazam
janinho
MoD
Red
somelikeitwhen

[Butterflies & Hurricanes]

don't look now, but we get one last clearing of a bottom 10 & right before the Top 20...will it be you? or will you be one of the FOUR people who lose a Top 10 at such a inopportune time?

[Butterflies & Hurricanes]

#21:  "Don't Let's Start" - They Might Be Giants


110:  YE Rank (this song wouldn't have qualified for this rankdown had we known about some of the peaks of other songs earlier)
# 11:  peak on CMJ
1013:  rankdown points
28.68  standard deviation (fifth largest)

Oh boy, after what happened to their sister Ana, the 2 Johns knew this was coming eventually! The tank brigade wasn't quite as harsh here but they accomplish their goal of stopping TMBGs from reaching the land of the Top 20. ?Congrats? Mirago on clearing your bottom 10.


2 rowellfarm490
5 American Idiot
8 Alex1901
9 Daryl the Beryl

16 singingrulebritannia
16 gonecountry
16 wheatsquares33
18 peacebone
22 Butterflies & Hurricanes
39 campbellssoup

53 Geometrical
56 Doc Indie Party Rock
68 newpower
78 Juanca

96 Mirago


spectators:
House Lannister
Verisimilitude
@humanshazam
janinho
MoD
Red
somelikeitwhen

[Butterflies & Hurricanes]

that was the last "illegitimate" song remaining, but we still have two more "legitimate" SPECIAL EXTRAs to share, both peaked at #4 on the Hard Report...here's one of them:

"All I Wanted" - In Tua Nua




Gaelic for "the new tribe", this Irish band has worked with Sinead O'Connor, The Waterboys & The Pogues.  They started their career w/ a cover of "Somebody To Love" & their 3rd album was shelved by Virgin for 18 years before finally being released on iTunes in 2007.

[Butterflies & Hurricanes]

Ladies & Gents, your Top 20:

Bangles - Hazy Shade Of Winter
Church - Reptile
Church - Under The Milky Way
Cocteau Twins - Carolyn's Fingers
Edie Brickell - What I Am
Erasure - Chains Of Love
Information Society - What's On Your Mind (Pure Energy)
INXS - Devil Inside
Midnight Oil - Beds Are Burning
Mission UK - Tower Of Strength
Morrissey - Suedehead
Peter Murphy - All Night Long
Pixies - Where Is My Mind?
Primitives - Crash
Sinead O'Connor - Mandinka
Siouxsie & The Banshees - Peek-A-Boo
Sugarcubes - Birthday
Tracy Chapman - Fast Car
Tracy Chapman - Talkin Bout A Revolution
U2 - Desire

[Deleted]

Well, hopefully my intact top 3 can all make the top 10 because the rest of my top 10 got decimated in this set

[Verisimilitude]

Absolutely awesome top 20. Kiss & Tell is class and Don't Let's Start is a jam.

[Doc Indie Party Rock]

There is gonna be one serious echo in the canyon for these two travesties to make it this high. 

Tracy Chapman - Fast Car
Tracy Chapman - Talkin Bout A Revolution

[rowellfarm490]

Love everything in this top 20 but "Don't Let's Start" going out now really hurts. At least it made it this far, I guess.

SPOILER: Click to show

{(NOTHING BUT) STATS}

[Doc Indie Party Rock]

#30: "Only A Memory" - Smithereens
This got some airplay on Pirate Radio and MTV. I think it's one of their best ones. Kinda has some R.E.M melodies.

#29: "Jane Says" - Jane's Addiction
I remember hating the piss out of this song. In fact I only cared for this band once they became Porno For Pyros.

#28: "Soviet Snow" - Shona Laing
Parts of this song sounded kinda 80's that's why it makes my top 50. Her vocals were really good.

#27: "I Say Nothing" - Voice Of The Beehive
This is the style of modern rock that was making a nice transition from late 80's to 90's. It still had a lot of strong 80's qualities in the vocals and guitars.

#26: "What's The Matter Here?" - 10,000 Maniacs
This was passable. It was pleasant enough. I just never dug on her vocals.

#25: "All That Money Wants" - Psychedelic Furs
Probably one of my least favorites Psychedelic Furs' songs, but it still had Richard Butler on vocals and was a masterpiece among this list of first time listens.

#24: "Dominion" - Sisters Of Mercy
They have much better songs, but this is still good. I love the big 80's percussion and vocally it slays most of these other songs.

#23: "This Corrosion" - Sisters Of Mercy
I always loved this band's goth injection into their music. They have a stronger 80's quality in the way they play their instruments and deliver the vocals. This is a much better jam than "Dominion", but both easily scored my top 20. Both out in a row seems really suspicious?

#22: "Kiss And Tell" - Bryan Ferry
80's New Romantic/Sophistipop in my top 10. What are the chances? Spandau Ballet, ABC, Haircut 100 and many more shot up the charts thanks to Roxy Music. This style of music with the accompanying bass lines is pure bliss to me.

#21: "Don't Let's Start" - They Might Be Giants
More fun music. It does what it comes here to do.

"All I Wanted" - In Tua Nua
This was pretty cool. ooohh love that chorus. Very uplifting. Like a female lead The Hooters. Easy top 40 for me.

[janinho]

Don't Let's Start not in the top 10 🤦‍♂️

[gonecountry]

Solid top 20. Don't Let Start not making the Top 20 though.... I've got 7 of my top 10 left. Don't get the love for my #96 (Cocteau Twins). Someone clearly likes Carolyn's fingers than I did..

88's charts had some very solid groups, but some of their weaker offerings IMO (I'm looking at you Psych Furs and Echo and the Bunny Men particularly).  

I seriously underrated the Pixies upon second glance.

I'm rooting for a song that barely made a dent on the majority of charts, but man, has a killer guitar riff

[singingrulebritannia]

May 4, 2020 6:41:51 GMT -5 gonecountry said:

Don't get the love for my #96 (Cocteau Twins). Someone clearly likes Carolyn's fingers than I did..
I seriously underrated the Pixies upon second glance.

Don't tell me you submitted for an early indie rock rankdown only to put all of indie rock's most influential and remembered bands at the bottom of your list

[gonecountry]

May 4, 2020 11:18:20 GMT -5 singingrulebritannia said:

May 4, 2020 6:41:51 GMT -5 gonecountry said:

Don't get the love for my #96 (Cocteau Twins). Someone clearly likes Carolyn's fingers than I did..
I seriously underrated the Pixies upon second glance.

Don't tell me you submitted for an early indie rock rankdown only to put all of indie rock's most influential and remembered bands at the bottom of your list

Okay, I'll admit I did the Pixies dirty (should have ranked it at least in the 20's, not the 40's). But between Ana Ng and particularly the Cocteau Twins, it was like taking an icepick to my skull.

[Butterflies & Hurricanes]

#20:  "Birthday" - Sugarcubes


0004:  YE Rank
# 01:  peak on CMJ (for 4wks)
1028:  rankdown points

If this were the first single by an unknown foreign band in 2020, i doubt it would crack the Top 40 (certainly not spending a whole month at #1 like it did in '88) on Alt radio in the US. The charts were so much more adventurous back in the 80s


3 singingrulebritannia
3 rowellfarm490
4 campbellssoup
4 peacebone
8 wheatsquares33
10 Alex1901

23 Daryl the Beryl
23 Juanca
32 gonecountry
36 Geometrical

52 American Idiot
55 Butterflies & Hurricanes
63 Mirago
77 newpower

94 Doc Indie Party Rock


spectators:
House Lannister
Verisimilitude
@humanshazam
janinho
MoD
Red
somelikeitwhen

[Verisimilitude]

Birthday being absolute perfection

[Butterflies & Hurricanes]

#19:  "Tower Of Strength" - Mission UK


0044:  YE Rank
# 05:  peak on Hard Report
1035:  rankdown points

I'm still hoping for (an authentic) goth revival to sweep pop culture again someday.


3 peacebone

11 Daryl the Beryl
12 campbellssoup
14 rowellfarm490
26 newpower
28 Geometrical
30 Juanca
33 gonecountry
35 Alex1901
37 Mirago
39 Doc Indie Party Rock
43 Butterflies & Hurricanes
46 wheatsquares33
49 singingrulebritannia

(echo echo echo)

74 American Idiot


spectators:
House Lannister
Verisimilitude
@humanshazam
janinho
MoD
Red
somelikeitwhen

[wheatsquares33]

The Mission have better songs

[Verisimilitude]

Tower Of Strength is really good. I also like the pre-Personal Jesus vibes in the video.

[Butterflies & Hurricanes]

#18:  "Talkin Bout A Revolution" - Tracy Chapman


0056:  YE Rank
# 05:  peak on CMJ
1038:  rankdown points

Clearly Doc agrees w/ Jesus Jones that the revolution has already passed her by...but the rest of us know better.


8 Daryl the Beryl
8 Mirago

13 wheatsquares33
16 Alex1901
19 newpower
21 American Idiot
25 rowellfarm490
27 Juanca
30 gonecountry
33 peacebone
36 Butterflies & Hurricanes
37 singingrulebritannia

47 Geometrical
58 campbellssoup








.
.
.








99 Doc Indie Party Rock


spectators:
House Lannister
Verisimilitude
@humanshazam
janinho
MoD
Red
somelikeitwhen

[Butterflies & Hurricanes]

#17:  "All Night Long" - Peter Murphy


0007:  YE Rank
# 01:  peak on Hard Report (for 3wks)
1048:  rankdown points

This song delivers mood in spades!


3 Geometrical
4 Alex1901
6 wheatsquares33
11 rowellfarm490
12 Juanca
13 Butterflies & Hurricanes

28 peacebone
36 newpower
44 singingrulebritannia
45 campbellssoup
45 Doc Indie Party Rock
47 Daryl the Beryl
48 Mirago

56 gonecountry
71 American Idiot


spectators:
House Lannister
Verisimilitude
@humanshazam
janinho
MoD
Red
somelikeitwhen

[Verisimilitude]

Great followup. Love the storytelling in this song too like Fast Car.

All Night Long is every bit as EPIC as Cuts You Up!