1988 Modern Rock Year-End Chart Rankdown (finished)

[Butterflies & Hurricanes]

SPOILER: Click to show

{click here to listen to  EXTRA EXTRAS}


Don't Turn Around - Aswad (no, this was not written by Ace Of Base):



Don't Walk Away - Toni Childs:



Down In The Trenches - Broadcasters:



Dream World - Midnight Oil:



Dreaming - OMD:

[Doc Indie Party Rock]

Checking out some first time listen EXTRAS:
First batch:

1969 - Pretenders (featuring Johnny Marr on guitar)
What a great way to start some extras. I don't remember this song, but I know Pretenders were played a lot on Mainstream radio too, so I'm hoping we got to rank this one on Mainstream 1988? This one has that raw sound they had on the debut album. Songs like "The Wait" or even Tattooed Love Boys". BTW I didn;'t get the Jonny Marr Smiths' vibe.

40 Years - House Of Freaks
so now we know were Oasis got their sound. Fortunately this is miles better than quite a bit of Oasis songs. Also wouldn't sound out of place on Morrissey playlist.

853-5937 - Squeeze
This is a s good a song as any Squeeze song. I know for some reason Squeeze don't fair well with the PULSE crowd, and I don't know why? This is the kind of mellow I like. Mellow, melodic and great 80's vibe. Both Tommy Tutones and Squeeze phone #s start with an 8, but for some reason 8675-309 was am easier roll of the tongue. Also message to Angela. Next time write your name on the bathroom wall if you wanna get as many calls as jenny did.

All Day & All Of The Night - Stranglers
I don't know if a really need the Stranglers to do this Kinks cover. I mean it rocks therefore I would give it a higher ranks than songs that do not rock, but it really doesn't do anything or add anything to the original. As far as the song itself. It never blew me away. I always thought this Kinks song was a faster version of The Doors "Hello I Love You" anyway.

All I Wanted - In Tua Nua
I know this artist name from somewhere. I feel these extras are better than a lot of the actual songs we are ranking. This is another modern rock song that is easy on the ears. Very NRGetic, and good female vocals help a lot, but I also hear some strings. We need more strings in today's Alt. More strings and less Hi hats.

Second batch:

Alphabet Street - Prince
I don't remember this being a great big hit for Prince. Much less getting Alternative action. It's not a bad song. Kinda simple for what Prince can do, but the video adds a lot of energy. I'm pretty sure this would end up really high if we rank it.

Always On My Mind - Pet Shop Boys
I can't believe this one didn't make the top 100. Easy Top 100 for me. I loved it what The Pet Shop Boys added more Hi- Energy aspects to their songs. You hear it in the basslines, synths and percussion. One unsung Hi-Energy aspect to these songs were the choir-like back ups. They were taken for granted but added a lot of NRG to the verses.

America - Killing Joke
I remember this band having a harder punk sound. Anyway I didn't like this at all. Sounded like one of those Cheesy songs Alice Cooper would have released. Even the MV looks like one of those. The only difference is cheesy or not Alice Cooper was awesome.

Anchorage - Michelle Shocked
I have no idea who this person was, but it looks like all her songs have been wiped from Youtube. I'm guessing her music really wouldn't have enticed me much anyway?

Apron Strings - Everything But The Girl
That was pretty boring. Girl's vocals never really sung to me. I think I might prefer "Missing" which I really didn't like either.

Third batch:

Beethoven (I Love To Listen To) - Eurythmics
I had never heard this song. Again I love the Hi-NRG aspects of this song. The spoken vocals while kinda out there actually worked. The song really doesn't do much with its melody or lyrics, but I still like it. I'm guessing this was a much bigger hit in the clubs than the charts.

Better Be Home Soon - Crowded House
This band was hit or miss for me. Aside for the fact that I never heard this one before tonight it's not really great. It's started off kinda empty. It's not a bad song quite pleasant actually, and I did like it a whole ten slots more once the percussion and organs kicked. It probably would have become a semi favorite of mine with more listens.

Beyond The Pale - Mission UK
I have to admit that I like the edit a lot more. It gets right to the guitars and vocals. This band always get high ranks from me, and could easily crash a Hair Metal playlist of mine. This is pretty vocally amazing, and has a lot of Heroes de Silencio and The Cult in it.

Big Hollow Man - Danielle Dax
I certainly like this one more than her bigger hit. Kinda like Missing Persons meets Blondie. I probably would have been one of the highest rankers for this. Also in the music video she looks like the perfect partner for Tim Curry in The Rocky Horror Picture Show. A silly thought , but it just kinda popped into my mind when I saw her eyebrows

Blind - Talking Heads
I didn't care for this one. Vocally flat, and misses the mark on those hokey, but sing along worthy lyrics that other Talking Heads song had. Its a shame because I was really getting into that Disco percussion vibe the song had.

[Butterflies & Hurricanes]

SPOILER: Click to show

{click here to listen to  TODAY's EXTRAS}


Drown In My Own Tears - Smithereens:



Dumb Things - Paul Kelly:



Electric Blue - Icehouse (two Australian artists in a row & neither are INXS or Midnight Oil):



Every Dog Has Its Day - Let's Active:



Every Door - Gene Loves Jezebel:

[Butterflies & Hurricanes]

SPOILER: Click to show

{click here to listen to  EXTRA EXTRAS}


Englishman In New York - Sting (video features the late great Quentin Crisp):



Everyday Is Like Sunday - Morrissey (this song holds new meaning these days, eh?):



Everything's Gonna Turn Out Great - Young Fresh Fellows:



Fall Down (Like The Rain) - Mighty Lemon Drops (whatever happened to this band? they were good):



Finest Worksong - REM (is it me or did "Turn You Inside Out" simply copy this sound?):

[Doc Indie Party Rock]

I skipped this batch last night. One of the best sets so far.

Baby Doll - Devo
This: "(not close to their best, but hey, it's still Devo!):" and this is mainly for those who flip for Devo to begin with. From the quirky melodies to Gerlad Casale's vocals. This is a strong example of 80's New Wave. I'm not sure how many Devo extras we will see, "Some Things Will Never Change", "Disco Dancer" and Cheap Trick were not the only ones who covered Elvis Presley "Don't Be Cruel' bop.


Baby's Got Rockets - Dancing Hoods
I echo the statement "Never heard of these guys" , but honestly I might have , and just don't remember. The song itself is quite melodic and has good vocals, but didn't really try to stand out among 50 other songs.therefore making it quite unmemorable too.

Back To The Wall - Divinyls
Still prefer the early sound of the band, but this song is still quite good. I love the mellow synth in the back round. Also this was on Nightmare on Elm Street 4 . Not one of the franchise's best, but the soundtrack was pretty good.

Beat On The Brat - Sonic Youth
This really sucked compared to The Ramones version. I know who this band is and I never cared for their vocals. I think one song the chick sings was one I thought to be pretty decent, but this is wak.

Been There, Done That - Jon Astley
You are not the only one who knew of Jon. He had really cool unique vocal tones. I also really liked "Jane's Getting Serious". Never heard this song, so it doesn't have the same impact, but I still thought it was a fine first listen. At least now you know another Jon Astley fan.


EXTRAS Second batch:

Blind Hearts - Xymox
I guess they dropped the Clan of from their band name, but they still kept that good old New Wave style. Not as dark, but that's not a bad thing because this was extremely melodic. The synth progression does take a semi dark detour. That's probably the only way I would have even guessed this to be Xymox. The song is very good. Something I would surely have ranked in my top 30.

Bone Machine - Pixies
I don't know man, This band here doesn't really sit well with me. Sometimes they sound like Nirvana way before anyone asked for Nirvana. I didn't ask for Nirvana. What helps a tad are the male /female vocals. except that the male vocals are sooooooo bad. Is he just talking in the verses? Anyway The music wasn't so bad tho, but That "your bones got a little machine" line? man is that corny.

Boom! There She Was - Scritti Politti
Now we're talking. This is Sophisti-Pop like Go West. The food chain went as follows. Darkwave devoured New Wave, New Wave electrofyed Synthpop and Synthpop drum padded Sophisti-POp to death, but I still really loved Sophisti-pop as much as the other New Wave genres. I love this guy's vocals. This is basically "A Perfect Way" in another key, but the instruments are creating such a wonderful melody. How can I not love it?

Broken Heart - Red Flag
This is good. The real question is would they have been more popular if they existed before Depeche Mode? LOL!

Broken Land - Adventures
I forgot about New Romantic. This genre also was born from New Wave ,but not in the food chain, because love conquers all. Wow this was such a gorgeous first listen. Who else heard Nik Kershaw's "Wouldn't It Be Good" in that chorus? Download? Check.

Third batch:

Bubblemen Are Coming - Bubblemen
Beavis and Butthead. That explains why I didn't dig on this at all. I never cared for those two twerps. Who likes AC/DC and not Winger?


Bubblemen Rap - Bubblemen
This was awful. Love & Rockets huh? What compelled them to make this travesty? ....and Those videos. Who was that. The Killer Bees on crack? I wouldn't be surprised if the Beastie Boys were under those costumes?

Cars And Girls - Prefab Sprout
This wasn't bad at all. Probably the best song by this band yet. has a lot of Sophisti-Pop vibes. What happened to these melodic wonders?

Cartoon - Soul Asylum
Funny how listening to this song for the first time gives me good Alternative Rock vibes, but back then I probably wouldn't have liked it at all. I've always been a stubborn cookie to crack, and I was still into the synthpop vibe even years after that sound had diminished on the charts..

Coldsweat - Sugarcubes
Guys I just don't like this band. idk which is worse vocally? Jon or Jane Sugarcube? Actually Bjork didn't sound all that awful on this song, but I still wish she would follow the song's actual melody instead of crooning her way through.

[singingrulebritannia]

wait wait....................where is The Cure - Just Like Heaven? :'(

[Butterflies & Hurricanes]

Apr 1, 2020 1:52:24 GMT -5 singingrulebritannia said:

wait wait....................where is The Cure - Just Like Heaven? :'(

in 1987

[Butterflies & Hurricanes]

SPOILER: Click to show

{click here to listen to  YESTERDAY's EXTRAS}


Flesh #1 (Beatle Dennis) - Robyn Hitchcock:



Gigantic - Pixies:



(Glad I'm) Not A Kennedy - Shona Laing:



Gorgeous - Gene Loves Jezebel:



Had A Dad - Jane's Addiction:

[Doc Indie Party Rock]

let's tackle a few more of these.

Dead Heart - Midnight Oil (i'm SHOCKED that this did not make the list of 100)
Now you all know how I felt about Warrant's "Cherry Pie" not making Active's Top 100. I also echo the statement since it is one of their best. Peter had some very unique vocals and this song was an Alternative Rock Melodic wonder. The doodoodoo's took it into my personal top 40.

Def Cone One - Pop Will Eat Itself
This was kinda silly but 80's at the same time. They had a sort of style like Information Society, but without the slick Freestyle vibe. I wouldn't have tanked this but I'm sure some members would. The "Funky Town" synth riff was nostalgic but also didn't help. Infact it took the song to Def Cone 4. 

Delicious Demons - Sugarcubes
Jeez this band was popular. This song had the same issues as their other songs. Neither Einar Örn nor Bjork cared much about following the song's melody, which makes it impossible to enjoy the music. I'm pretty sure Simon Cowell would have buzzed this band right off stage? 

Deus - Sugarcubes
It seems Bjork finally decided to follow the music in this one. I still don't find her tones easy on the ears, nor the melodies they chose particularly easy flowing, but the song could be one of their better one's. The third act of the song with her (what was she doing ? a mating call?) , and the Einar's talking was uncalled for. 

Dignity - Deacon Blue
Now here is a song I can sit back and listen to without cringing. It's not particularly great , but has a very pleasant Sophisti-Pop vibe. Even the head apparel screams Sophisti+ Pop.

Disco Dancer - Devo
Oh herer it is. It didn't make the top 100 either? I thought this one had rocketed to the top 10. Love the Duran Duran vibe. Kinda has that "Electric Barbarella" sound.

Doctorin The TARDIS - Timelords
I had no idea this was the "KFC". Didn't care this one. It basically sounded like bunch of noize to me. I'm sure there is a melody buried in there, but I'll need more than a shovel to find it.

Domino Dancing - Pet Shop Boys
Wonderful song, and yes it was influenced by Miami Freestyle. I think the new wave vocals fit the Miami Freestyle sound great. Many other Freestyle bands like Tiger Moon, Secret Society, Voice In Fashion, and Infornmation Society used the same vocal tones. This was a top 30 hit on my personal charts. and probably would have been a top 10 if we had ranked it. At list on my list it would.

Don't Let It Break You Down - Graham Parker
I still don't recall anything by Graham , but that one song "Life Gets Better". The music was o.k. He had Punk Rock vocal tones, and IMOP should have sang Punk Rock.

Don't Sniff Coke - Pato Banton
LOL! What in hell did just listen to? This was vocally awful and lyrically corny. "don't Sniff Coke" LOL! please. That's all everyone did in the 80's. 

[Butterflies & Hurricanes]

SPOILER: Click to show

{click here to listen to  YESTERDAY's EXTRAS}


Hairdresser On Fire - Morrissey:



Harley David (Son Of A Bitch) - Bollock Brothers (i was quite surprised to find out that this is a cover of a song by Serge Gainsbourg):



Have You Said Your Prayers Today? - Hood:



Headhunter - Front 242 (one of my all-time favorites - this song is MASSIVE!):



Heart - Pet Shop Boys:

[Butterflies & Hurricanes]

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{click here to listen to  TODAY's EXTRAS}


Heart Of Stone - Erasure:



Hearts And Minds - Nitzer Ebb:



Hey Cecelie - E-I-E-I-O:



Hey Little Boy - Divinyls:



High Time - Icicle Works:

[Butterflies & Hurricanes]

SPOILER: Click to show

{click here to listen to  EXTRA EXTRAS}


Hit The Hi-Tech Groove - Pop Will Eat Itself:



Hit The North - The Fall:



Hot Hot Hot - Buster Poindexter (aka David Johansen of New York Dolls):



Hot Hot Hot - The Cure (WTF is this not in the top 100? also, why is the video blocked in the USA?):



House We Used To Live In - Smithereens (can we at least rank this on the Mainstream side?):

[Butterflies & Hurricanes]

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{click here to listen to  Yesterday's EXTRAS}


I Don't Want Your Love - Duran Duran:



I Love The Things You Do To Me - Balaam & The Angel:



I Think She Likes Me - Treat Her Right (sounds much more appropriate for Mainstream than Modern, but then again, my college station played this too <shrug>):



If Love Was A Train - Michelle Shocked:


Indigo Eyes - Peter Murphy (this one deserved to make the 100):

[Butterflies & Hurricanes]

ONE-WEEK notification (part deux)  No new submissions have come in the past 8 days...please find a way to squeeze this into your priorities this week.

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A special shout out to Doc for his EXTRAS reviews!

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[rowellfarm490]

Mar 29, 2020 10:31:35 GMT -5 Red said:

Mar 28, 2020 22:42:01 GMT -5 Butterflies & Hurricanes said:

Dead Heart - Midnight Oil (i'm SHOCKED that this did not make the list of 100):

It did make the Mainstream Rock/Active top 100, though. Go figure.

Wait, I didn't realize but has the top 100 list for Active 1988 been finalized?

[Red]

Apr 4, 2020 10:22:55 GMT -5 rowellfarm490 said:

Mar 29, 2020 10:31:35 GMT -5 Red said:

It did make the Mainstream Rock/Active top 100, though. Go figure.

Wait, I didn't realize but has the top 100 list for Active 1988 been finalized?

It's not final, but...yeah, it's making the top 100.

[Butterflies & Hurricanes]

SPOILER: Click to show

{click here to listen to  Today's EXTRAS}


Jennifer She Said - Lloyd Cole:



Jerusalem - Sinead O'Connor (most of her videos seem to have different versions than the albums it seems):



Judas Kiss - Del Lords:



Just Like Paradise - David Lee Roth (I suspect most of you are surprised to see this guy got Alt/MR airplay - even my college station played it too...weird, huh?):


Kick - INXS:

[Doc Indie Party Rock]

Saturday is always pretty hectic with posting charts, downloading new music for the week, finishing up future Rank downs. let's take a break and do some reviews.

Don't Turn Around - Aswad
I'm gonna go ahead and say that Ace of Bass sounded way fiercer than this. I can't believe this charted on modern rock. It wasn't too bad honestly. Kinda melodic. Cheesy but melodic. Was not a fan of the vocals.

Don't Walk Away - Toni Childs
Slightly better in vocals. Actually strong vocals with decent music, but I didn't get any modern Rock vibe here unless I think of it as SophistiPop. I did enjoy the brass sections quite a bit.

Down In The Trenches - Broadcasters
This is more apt for the chart. Sounds like a light version of The Clash meets Bruce Springsteen. The harmonicas sounded great. love the Huey Lewis like harmonica solo.

Dream World - Midnight Oil
I didn't recall this, but I really liked it. This band had a sound of their own. Wonder why their music sounded so different in those 90's RDs we did? I like this sound for them.

Dreaming - OMD
How the hell did this miss the top 100 of 1988? This one went straight into my top 10. I always loved that dreamy (no pun intended) keyboard progression after the chorus. It would have been an easy top 10 on my list. Next you'll tell me "Brides Of Frankenstein" didn't chart.

EXTRAS part 2:

Drown In My Own Tears - Smithereens
This band had a few really good songs, but after a while it all became one big same song. This sounded like a early , but weaker version of "A Girl Like You"

Dumb Things - Paul Kelly
An interesting sounding first time listen. I swear I never heard of this artist, but his song here was uptempo enough to get me searching for bis discography on wiki. Looks like two U.S. rock chart hits. "Darling It Hurts" on Mainstream Rock, and this one on Alt. "Darling It Hurts" being my favorite of the two.

Electric Blue - Icehouse
Seriously. This missed the top 100 on modern Rock. This is such a classic. That intro and outro are epic. #4 peak on my personal charts. This and OMD's "Dreaming" would have made my top 10 look way different if we had ranked them?

Every Dog Has Its Day - Let's Active
just like our bald friend I would have also preferred some Kiss. This song has quite a few aspects I like in music, but just doesn't know how to combine those aspects to come up with a memorable song. based on guitar licks I liked it, but the rest was forgettable.

Every Door - Gene Loves Jezebel
never heard of this song. I know this band for "Desire", "Motion Of Love" and "Jealous". They had great vocals which this song doesn't showcase properly. i like their uptempo stuff.

Extras. Third Act:

Englishman In New York - Sting
I wish Sting had stayed with the Police a while longer. His solo stuff was decent, but nowhere as interesting. This song kept the melody with that back round instruments. Sax? Flute, but the Jazz vibes didn't work for me.

Everyday Is Like Sunday - Morrissey
Morrissey is another artist who's songs sounded strongly familiar to his others, but somehow it worked for him every time. I didn't really recall this one, but it somehow sounded just a as great as the ones we have already ranked.

Everything's Gonna Turn Out Great - Young Fresh Fellows
Wow. I hated this guy's vocals. The melody wasn't doing much for me either, but his tones were rough to digest. Kinda ruins the rest of the song.

Fall Down (Like The Rain) - Mighty Lemon Drops
I think I might like this one even more than the one we ranked. the bass has more conviction and the chorus goes the distance. This has some strong Peter Murphy vibes. That's what I liked about it.

Finest Worksong - REM
Similar to "Turn You Inside Out". Even the melody and way he is singing sounds like that song. I wasn't too enticed by either of the two.

i'll do one more from the fourth set, cuz I hate ending on a sour note.

Gorgeous - Gene Loves Jezebel
I figured this one would be the most reliable from the set, and I was right. This is way better than the sleepy "Every Door". The songs fits the band's vocals a lot more easier too. I also never heard this song, but clicked quickly with it for it's Pop ready melody. Love the chorus, and how it goes on into the fade out. Incidentally aside from Icehouse and OMD , which are classics this is my favorite discovery of the night.

[Doc Indie Party Rock]

just sent with no spaces just for you.  ;)    I enjoyed a little more than 50 of these songs with a good 30 of those being first time listens.  My bottom 20 are pretty bad, but my bottom 10 are those songs that are just a task to sit through.

[Doc Indie Party Rock]

Continuing with the other four songs.

Flesh #1 (Beatle Dennis) - Robyn Hitchcock:
I liked this one. Very melodic. Very Beatles-esqu. Even the way they trade off their vocals sounds like a Lennon and McCartney deal. BTW what does Beatle Dennis mean?

Gigantic - Pixies:
Since its a chick singing instead of Nirvana it gave gave me Hole vibes, but was this band just learning to play the guitar? This was a ruff melody to digest. Even the bass went off the map

(Glad I'm) Not A Kennedy - Shona Laing:
I definitely never heard this one before. I didn't care for the spoken part. Lyrically these songs made no sense, but I really liked the music and her vocals.

Had A Dad - Jane's Addiction:
Not to spoil the fun, but I only like the heavy guitar parts.


Second batch:

Hairdresser On Fire - Morrissey:
LOL at that song title, but the song was great. I love the pleasant melodic fire of Morrissey's songs. So that's how you do the Stray Cats Pomp. I've been doing it the hard way all these years. 

Harley David (Son Of A Bitch) - Bollock Brothers
OHHWEE! I love this song. Top 10 for sure on this list. Fortunately KROQ played this one just enough for it to cruise through my Heavy Metal world. You know Mötley Crüe would have done a great cover of this song. Musically 100% New Wave, and lyrically 100% fun fun fun til my daddy takes my Harley away. Also how cool is this sleeve. 


Have You Said Your Prayers Today? - Hood:
Never heard this relentlessly noizy song. A big no thankx from me.

Headhunter - Front 242
This was surely a first time listen, but had enough percussion NRG to listen all the way through. Vocals were a bit too much for me, but I can see the potential it would bring to the list.

Heart - Pet Shop Boys:
Simply amazing! One of my favorite songs off that album. This was probably my favorite Pet Shop Boys album, because of the Freestyle and Hi- NRG vibes the songs had.

and for a final third part for tonight:

Heart Of Stone - Erasure:
I didn't recall this one, but I do have this CD. Sounds a lot like Level 42 "Lessons In Love". It would have surely gotten a high rank for me.

Hearts And Minds - Nitzer Ebb:
I might have liked his vocals with some actual music. I honestly didn't know what to make of this? It reminded me of those Japanese food buffets. That one beef dish. You know it's some sort of animal, but you are not too sure , if it's land ,air ,sea, or sewer dweller so you just kinda steer clear from it. That's what I do with this song.  ;)

Hey Cecelie - E-I-E-I-O:
That is some band name. The song was alright. I liked the added brass. I wonder if this will be in the mainstream Rock RD. It would have been funnier to see them perform this at a farm.

Hey Little Boy - Divinyls:
A good Modern Pop rock banger. I still prefer early 80's Divinyls to their late 80's poppier stuff.

High Time - Icicle Works
I remember "Whisper To Scream" being played all the time on KROQ. A lot of this bands started adopting this Bruce Springsteen/ Neil Young guitar style to their music. Honestly some bands like U2 did it right, but I just don't feel it with this band. This really really didn't even sound like Ian McNabb. Listen to this instead.

[Butterflies & Hurricanes]

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{click here to listen to  Yesterday's EXTRAS}


King Of Rock N Roll - Prefab Sprout:



Kingdom Chairs - Soup Dragons (sounds quite different from "Divine Thing" & their cover of the Stones "I'm Free"):



Lazarus Heart - Sting (this album is solid from start to end):



Left To My Own Devices - Pet Shop Boys:


Liar Liar - Debbie Harry (from the Married to the Mob Soundtrack, this is a cover of a 1965 song by The Castaways):

[Butterflies & Hurricanes]

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{click here to listen to  Today's EXTRAS}


Lie Detector - Screaming Blue Messiahs:



Life Is Grand - Camper Van Beethoven:



Like The Weather - 10,000 Maniacs (this one really should've made the cut):



Living For You - Joan Armatrading:


Love In The First Degree - Bananarama (this is fine, but i prefer their pre-S.A.W. sound):

[Butterflies & Hurricanes]

SPOILER: Click to show

{click here to listen to  EXTRA EXTRAS}


Lover's Jamboree - Nick Lowe:



Lucretia My Reflection - Sisters Of Mercy:



Mind At The End Of The Tether - Tackhead:



Mountain Song - Jane's Addiction:


Mr Jones - Talking Heads

[Doc Indie Party Rock]

First batch extras:

Hit The Hi-Tech Groove - Pop Will Eat Itself:
Oh no what was that?  What label actually signed this band? I liked the "Stand and Deliver" line at the intro and that was absolutely all I liked.

Hit The North - The Fall
The biggest issue I have with this song is that the music is actually good. So why waste a good melody with dumb ass lyrics or better yet lack of lyrics. Anything would have been better than the repeated "Hit The North".

Hot Hot Hot - Buster Poindexter
I always thought this was silly, but kinda fun at the time. Sounds great for a tropical mambo jamboree. Also how do you go from Glam Rock to Calypso? 

The Cure - Hot Hot Hot!!!
Boy am I glad this wan't a Buster Poindexter cover song. I barely recall this song, but I really liked it. Parts remind me of "Love Cats" which is easily in my top 5 Cure songs of all time. The video portrays them as short people. Like hobbits or dwarfs with short legs. Maybe the U.S. found that unsettling? I found Robert's short buzz hair style even more unsettling. :o


House We Used To Live In - Smithereens
Another one I didn't recall, but I found to be one of the best songs I have heard from them. It didn't sound so rehashed as their other hits. In fact it kinda gave them a British Kinks sound. Most likely being The reason I enjoyed this song.


Second Set:

I Don't Want Your Love - Duran Duran
Any set that starts off with a Duran Duran song always brings a smile to my face. This may not be herald as one of Duran Duran's best songs, but I loved it. Simon Le Bon had that magic in his tones. Duran Duran songs always sounded ready made to be the soundtrack for Runway Model shows.


I Love The Things You Do To Me - Balaam & The Angel:
First this band looks like they raided Warrant's closet. Second this video was getting me hyped up for female vocals. In the end I really enjoyed this one. If the music and vocals had been a bit louder this could easily have turned into a song from The Cult.

I Think She Likes Me - Treat Her Right
This one had a John Lee Hooker meets Jim Morrison style to it. I definitely got the Blues Rock vibe. Not really my thing, but a pretty decent first listen.

If Love Was A Train - Michelle Shocked
Did this chick remove herself from Youtube. I couldn't find this song anywhere, but based by the title was this about a gangbang? Like putting a train on someone? why do I have a feeling her style was like Tracy Chapman?

Indigo Eyes - Peter Murphy
Probably the least interesting song I've heard from Peter Murphy. It is still melodic enough to at least sneak itself a 80-90 slot in the top 100.

third batch crown song

Just Like Paradise - David Lee Roth .
If anyone in the history of Rds would cause a high HD it would be me with this song. First: I love this song and Diamond Dave was my idol. He gave birth to The Glam Metal frontman. The kicks, the jumps, the screams. His stage persona equaled the NRG of the music. Too many of today's roick bands just stand around like robots. Even Scott  Weiland had stage NRG. Anyway, David Lee Roth  was a one man show. Second I would have jumped on this song just like you guys do when Alternative songs cruise into the Active rock lists. Does it fit Modern Rock? F U C K no!   Would I put it in my top 5? F U C K yeah! 

[Butterflies & Hurricanes]

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My Bag - Lloyd Cole:



My Obsession - Icehouse:



Never Can Say Goodbye - Communards (thought this was a Gloria Gaynor cover, but nope, the Jackson 5 did it first...i never cared much for falsettos, but Jimmy Sommerville does it very well):



Never Tear Us Apart - INXS (not too surprising this didn't make it too high on Alt because it's a ballad & Alt wasn't big on ballads back then):


New Sensation - INXS (but this one? how on earth did this miss out?):

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[Butterflies & Hurricanes]

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Pop Goes The World - Men Without Hats:



Presence Of Love - Alarm:



Pretty Boys & Pretty Girls - Book Of Love (I love how they incorporate "Tubular Bells" into this):



Prison Bound - Social Distortion (he's not typically my type, but there's something very alluring about Mike Ness):


Reach - Martini Ranch (actor Bill Paxton's band...both Devo & B-52s collaborated on the album...fyi: music doesn't start until 2:40 in the video):

[Doc Indie Party Rock]

let's complete the rest of this set.

Jennifer She Said - Lloyd Cole:
This is that melodic wonder sound I love on my Modern Rock vibe of the late 80's. I would most likely slot this song in between two Morrissey wonder songs.

Jerusalem - Sinead O'Connor
probably the least interesting song I have heard from her these last few days. it's not so much the music, but her vocals here were a bit of a tune out. Still better than her big pop snooze fest.

Judas Kiss - Del Lords
This post punk sound was pretty strong on melody. Love the female back ups, because his vocals were alright but not a strong point of the song. I feel John Cougar Mellencamp would have made this a big hit?

Kick - INXS:
I never was a big fan of this song. It had a ll the right ingredients, but somehow failed in putting them together. Not surprised it didn't make the final top 100.

this turns out to be one of my favorite sets of extras yet.

King Of Rock N Roll - Prefab Sprout
I think I loved that from the very first note. Even better than the one we are ranking. There are some major ABC/Spandau Ballet vibes throughout this song. What's this about? Where they high when they wrote it? It's like they wrote this amazingly melodic ode to Spandau Ballet and stuck in the corniest lyrics they could, and yet its all so irresistible and fun. 've changed my #1 song so many times after previewing the extras, but I think this might have been my crown song. It sounds like 1985, its a first time listen, and 80's Sophisti-Pop music style went to the top of my personal charts many times. One listen and  Download? Check, and I'm previewing the rest of this album for sure.

Kingdom Chairs - Soup Dragons
It does sound a bit different, from I'm Free, but even better. They had a bit of more raw sound to their instruments. Maybe even a hint of The Cure musically. That chorus is amazing.

Lazarus Heart - Sting
This album feels like it was a compilation of songs you needed to listen to a few times before it can settle in? Great vocals, but the songs were an acquired taste. I need my Sophiti-Pop to be much more melodic than even this song is. It is way better than that "Englishman" song we ranked.

Left To My Own Devices - Pet Shop Boys:
This song was alright. It had more of a housey vibe than the Hi-NRG or Freestyle vibe songs from "Actually" had. It still had a great sounding chorus, but the verses were a bit messy vocally.

Liar Liar - Debbie Harry
This was another song that I charted, and another one I would have ranked really high on a 1988 Modern Rock year end list. It sounds like the style of music Kim Wilde is releasing now a days.

*I'll do one more because I see the set ends with Bananarama which pretty much guarantees the night ending on a crown note.

Lie Detector - Screaming Blue Messiahs:
If I'm gonna go for some quirky vocal tones at least give me a fun song like this one.

Life Is Grand - Camper Van Beethoven
This was nice. None too special in vocals. This band's strong point is the violins except this time they didn't really use much strings in the song.

Like The Weather - 10,000 Maniacs
Much more uptempo than the one we do get to rank. I would have gladly switched the two. Also probably the highest I would rank this band's music. i'm guessing top 30-40 would make the Rank Down Gods happy?

Living For You - Joan Armatrading
I don't recall any song from her, but this sounded surprisingly good. I'm guessing this is one of her most Sophisti-Pop sounding songs? That's probably why I liked it? That last bridge to the final chorus hit the spot.

Love In The First Degree - Bananarama
I liked all their music styles, but I do have to admit loving the SAW hi-NRG sound the most. The uptempo vocals, synths and NRGetic vibes were simply mesmerizing. This was also Italo Disco's sound of the early 90's and the style that inspired Eurobeat. I'm thinking easy top 10 on my list of songs. Who else has a Banarama song in their weekly top 10. ;)

[Butterflies & Hurricanes]

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Rescue Me - Alarm:



Risky - Ryuichi Sakamoto (featuring Iggy Pop):



River - Throwing Muses:



Shake For The Shiek - Escape Club (is it just me, or does anyone else hear "Flesh For Fantasy"?):


Shark Walk - Shriekback (a poor man's "Walk Like An Egyptian"?):

ONLY TWO DAYS LEFT to get your lists in. We've had a couple more submissions arrive, but we need the rest of you to send yours in too - please let me know if you need more time.

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{Tags}Albie
Alex1901
alexcuse
American Idiot
Daryl the Beryl
House Lannister
campbellssoup
craziaskowboi
Doc Indie Party Rock
singingrulebritannia
Geometrical
gonecountry
newpower
@humanshazam
Sambalada
janinho
Leo ✔
born
Juanca
peacebone
Walking Contradiction
MoD
Red
rowellfarm490
@slipperyslope
somelikeitwhen
Mirago
walt91
wheatsquares33
willapted33

[Butterflies & Hurricanes]

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She's Got A New Spell - Billy Bragg:



She's No Lady - Lyle Lovett (the former Mr Julia Roberts himself):



Sign Your Name - Terence Trent D'Arby (fun fact, he was briefly the lead singer for INXS in the late 90s):



Simply Irresistible - Robert Palmer:


Situations - Cetu Javu (a blatant DM ripoff & blueprint for the band Cause & Effect 4 years later...but if you're gonna ripoff a band, then pick one of the best of all-time like DM):

[Butterflies & Hurricanes]

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Slow Turning - John Hiatt:



So Important - Sparks:



Soldier's Requiem - Naked Raygun (here's a band & song i know nothing about):



Somewhere In My Heart - Aztec Camera:


Stigmata - Ministry(i enjoyed this transition period but i would hate where Ministry's music would end up):