If this is your first time reading my blog, and you're all "Triple wha?" here's the lowdown:
It's one of the world's largest public music polls started in 1989. Each person is limited to 10 votes & on Australia Day, they spend the whole day counting down the top 100 songs as voted by the people. Most of the top 10 songs on the poll subsequently become huge in the US the next year. I'm sure you've heard of a little known track called Somebody That I Used To Know by this guy Gotye? Yeah, #1 in the 2011 Hottest 100 (you can see my recap of that here).
Votes are also determined by songs that have come out in Australia, so a song I might LOVE just might not be eligible. Like the Husky song History's Door took so long to cross the oceans between Australia and the US, that even though I just discovered it, it actually came out there last year. Or one of my favorite bands Ramona Falls isn't well enough known in Australia to get on the voting list.
You can listen to the eligible songs here through spotify (might take a few days, but oh! what days they'll be)
Once you've heard enough, you can submit your own vote here
But HURRY, voting closes in 12 DAYS!
If you need some help on where to start to find some good artists or songs, here are my votes
(the graphic is giving me trouble but you can listen to my 10 songs here)
My 10 Votes:
Voting factors I took into account was wanting exposure for particularly lesser-known artists and recognition for plain old good tracks regardless of artist infamy, I also wanted my vote to make a difference so rather than write-in a few favorites I stuck with songs I thought had a chance to get at least at the top 100.
Alt-J: Taro
My favorite song of theirs, although it really was hard to single it out over the rest, something about this one just gets me, i think it's the Bollywood beat that drops with each chorus. It's also really epic if you open two windows on YouTube to the same songs of their and start it 5 seconds apart. Done right, it will blow your mind.
Angus Stone: Monsters
The banjo and trumpet inevitably won this song a spot in my top 10. If you doubt my love of banjos, just go here, I judge people based on their banjo appreciation level. PLus the wonderful imagery of the lyrics gets me: "In the dark, there's monsters that cry alone"
Gossling: Wild Love
A track I think is US-Radio friendly that evokes frontiers and wide-open spaces with a unique voice that balances out what could be just another country/pop song. Hopefully I'll hear it on the US-airwaves soon!
Grimes: Genesis
Between her lisp, whispy-high voice, and atmospheric vocal loops, Grimes is the Canadian poptastic alternative punky girl version of Bon Iver. It was really tough choosing between Oblivion and Genesis but in the end the vocal layering and range of the smooth Genesis won out over the more danceable Oblivion (and Oblivion was the first of her songs I heard but that was back in 2011, so it's more fitting to vote for the song I first heard in 2012)
Japandroids: The House That Heaven Built
Oh.oh.oh.Oh.oh.oh.oh.oh.... 'Nuff Said
Julia Stone: Let's Forget All The Things That We Say
The Stone Siblings are one of my most favorite duos in current music, alas they spent 2011 nad 2012 pursuing solo-projects. Julia pursued a more ballady-pop sound while Angus stayed with his guitar-strumming indie sound. While the Frenglish version is my favorite, this original deserves recognition
Kimbra feat. Mark Foster and A-Trak: Warrior
A gross oversight in my top songs of 2012, this track is FANTASTIC and helped me with Bar prep this summer (I've blocked so much of the summer out no wonder I couldn't remember it.
Macklemore & Ryan Lewis: Can't Hold Us
As much as I think Thrift Shop will beat this one out in just about any music poll, THIS is my favorite Macklemore & Ryan Lewis song. I spent 2 weeks driving to and from work learning this whole rap. It helped get me through my last semester of law school.
Matt Corby: Lonely Boy (Like A Version)
Such a different, deeper, heart-wrenching version compared with the original. I don't think I'll ever get over this song.
Miike Snow: Devil's Work
This one snuck in just over Sigur Ros and Metric, really just because I heard it a lot sooner and it had enough time to really get stuck in my brain. Plus Miike Snow is always fantastic.Honorable Mentions:
Icona Pop: I Love It
Metric: Breathing Underwater
Mumford And Sons: Below My Feet
Sigur Ros: Varou
