//////////////shawty got poll poll poll poll poll poll poll (part I: 2008 TRAX)\\\\\\\\\\\\\\

I don't know, I think Cassie does this sort of wistful sweetness thing ("Not With You," "Official Girl," "Kiss Me,") just as well as she does the detached ice-queen.

has she ever shown any personality, like, at all?

tbf it's not exactly part of her job description

38 - Half Man Half Biscuit - National Shite Day
86 points, 6 votes, 1 #1 vote

Jesus, there is so much righteous anger in that vocal performance (and in the playing), awesome
― country matters

OK, after several listens, and some reflection, I've decided that the second verse of "National Shite Day" (the tale of Stringy Bob) is the best 90 seconds of music that will be released this year. The pathos. The damaged tragicomic humanity. The rest of the album's pretty fucking brilliant as well. They have this...infectious knack. Singalong. Fierce.
― Just got offed

I think she's very sweet and likeable on "Is It You?", but I guess that depends on what qualifies as personality for you. xxpost.

FUCK YES

entire poll redeemed ;)

my (country matters') quote was actually in reference to a different HMHB song, but it totally applies here too :)

weakest track yet. sorry, Louis.

I was going to say that I thought house and techno were going to be virtually unrepresented this year but I'd forgotten about Minimal. Even if the original is better than the DJ Koze version.

Dodgy live recording, Ioannis! The instruments are all wayyyy crisper and fiercer on the recorded version (or of you're actually at the gig).

Actually you can make out most of it, put it down to a lack of understanding of British culture :P

haha--that's probably very true.

"Even if the original is better than the DJ Koze version."

^^ cosign.

I'd never heard that Kelley Polar song before (or indeed anything by him) and it's excellent. Thanks ILM.

37 - Lil Wayne - Got Money (Ft. T-Pain)
90.5 points, 7 votes
120 in P&J

got money' is really underrated, sure the beat is pop-cheesy and you've got t-pain in the chorus AGAIN but weezy rides it pretty nimbly, something's constantly piquing your interest (handclaps, "i'm a great dane", umbrella riffing &c)
― lex pretend

http://img16.imageshack.us/img16/3600/07c845c9c76cxb7.gif

Ugh who the fuck put all those unwanted additional vocals over Bongo Jam? Rub.

I like and voted for the Cassie track. It's the constantly overlapping vocals that do it for me, they keep you on your toes all the way through. The guest rap is pretty rubbish, agreed - much encouraged by the suggestion that there's a Wayne-less version somewhere.

I really like Minimal. What is it, Brazilian?

Chilean.

Wayne-less O.G.:

hey re: official girl, the wayneless version is indeed far superior, and yeah the youtube is super poorly mixed-sounding and makes it sound way too cluttered. besides the great hook what i like about the song is how clean it all sounds; the production makes it super spacious and for me enhances the sentiment the song's trying to get across...it strikes me as really innocent and sincere and good-willed.

Thanks. It did occur to me that the vocal arrangement might be a way of covering up the weak singing that I'm always hearing about. It's great anyway, I can't think of another track that does so many different things with its vocals

enjoyed the screamer in the lil wayne video

36 - Ting Tings, The - That's Not My Name
91.5 points, 8 votes
28 in P&J

Don't fancy the girl at all but I think "That's Not My Name" is a really fun song - heard it at a club a few weeks ago at just the right time in my personal dance buzz and it really nailed me somehow. Just got me all skittery. I like how they marshal all this production drama as the song goes on, even though there's absolutely no content to back it up - it really works, IMO.
― Doctor Casino

haha i knew something was up when the video was for birdman's "100 million" instead of "got money"

xpost

i don't some songs on this list but i understand why people might be inclined to enjoy and vote for them. the ting tings - i just don't get it.

tings tings = transvision vamp '08

(i like that song)

I did give a couple of points to their other one, but I don't see the appeal of this at all either

i liked the dizzee rascal version

late on this but i like the dj koze version of "minimal" a LOT more than the original - and agreed that wayne's rap is the only thing i dislike about that cassie track (love the leadup to the, uh, 2nd chorus i guess? the halfway-buried "you gotta learn to love me")

i like the ting tings' song partly because of a congenital weakness for sparse beats with sing-song girl vocals. (see also "milshake," lumidee, nina sky, m.i.a. -- not that this is as good as those, by a long shot, but i just have a sort of pavlovian response to that kind of thing.) and also like dr. casino says, i like the way it builds and gets all noisy in the final minute.

35 - Rihanna - Disturbia
92 points, 9 votes
16 in P&J

i cant believe that is not lower

that song & video stopped me from completely hating rihanna last year.

bum bum deedum

song really grew on me

i can't believe it's not higher! top 5 me (i think).

yeah thats what i mean by lower

yikes

for me

xp

aha

Probably my song of the year. My only wish is that Rihanna were more appealing as a pop star. I find her so boring and soulless. A personality transplant would suit her nicely.

"Disturbia" is one of those songs that you can tell is trying so hard not to be boring, but yet....is.

the video is what really got me into this song. i still dont really 'get' rihanna and i think she's still way too distant sometimes, but whatever i love her songs

xxp musically!

truth bomb. belting out "BUM BUD DA DEE DUM" is the only fun i've been able to have with it.

xpost

it's like a first draft for 'Just Dance'. This is alright, but there's something else there in the Lady Gaga tune to elevate it

"Disturbia" is infinitely better than "Just Dance" by simple virtue of being done by Rihanna instead of Lady Gaga.

I knew the Ting Tings would be in here somewhere but thank god we got them out of the way relatively early.

yeah they suck

34 - Lil Wayne feat. Static Major - Lollipop
94 points, 8 votes
31 in P&J

lollipop completely blew away my expectations for this album...it's fucking epic.
― Preview of the Matrix 12

I really love the way Weezy's verse on Official Girl starts, by the way, it's like he just throws himself into the momentum of the track. Admittedly it loses that momentum pretty quickly but I'm glad he's on there.

(Also, Wearing My Rolex is going to finish above A Milli on this poll, I'm calling it)

"lolli lolli" >>>> "lollipop"