via//chicago

Slop From The Pops: UK Pop Chart 01.09.05
here we are with the second top 40 chart of the year, a few more new singles to review this week. i'll skip the commentary for tracks i've already commented on before, as will be the case as the year progresses. without further ado...

40. "my prerogative" - britney spears (last week's position: 35)
39. "just can't wait (saturday)" - 100% f. jennifer john (31)
38. "irish son" - brian mcfadden (28)
37. "just lose it" - eminem (19)
36. "ride it" - geri (25)
35. "dj/stop" - jamelia (23)
34. "misunderstood" - robbie williams (24)
33. "obsession (si es amor)" - 3rd wish (22)
32. "lose my breath" - destiny's child (16)

31. "the key the secret 2005" - urban cookie collective (new entry)
so this is a remix of a track that originally charted in 1993. hmmm, can't say i heard the original version, but this sounds about like what i would have expected back then. anyway, i wouldn't have liked it then and i certainly don't like it now. definitely leading the "stupidest name on the charts" shortlist for 2005 thus far.

30. "vertigo" - u2 (27)
29. "the weekend" - michael gray (26)

28. "curtain falls" - blue (30)
this isn't a new entry, but i didn't get to review it last week as we only got a short sample of it. after hearing the whole thing i'm wishing it had stayed that way. really crap. the Stevie Wonder sample actually made me pine for Coolio's "Gangster's Paradise" though.

27. "i got you babe" - bo selecta! (15)
26. "confessions pt. ii/my boo" - usher (21)
25. "car wash" - christina aguilera f. missy elliott (18)
24. "call on me" - eric prydz (20)
23. "pow! forward" - lethal bizzle (14)
22. "i'll stand by you" - girls aloud (12)
21. "unwritten" - natasha bedingfield (10)
20. "drop it like it's hot" - snoop dogg f. pharrell williams (13)
19. "tilt ya head back" - nelly & christina aguilera (9)

18. "evil" - interpol (new entry)
this single is anchored by yet another excellent bassline by Carlos D, quite possibly the most consistent instrumentalist in the band. i don't think this song grabs me as much on its own as "Slow Hands" did, but they could have made a worse choice for a second single. it seems a lot of Interpol haters like to bash the lyrics, but this song contains probably some of my favorite ones off the new album: "you've come to love me nightly / yeah, you've come to hold me tight / is this motion everlasting / or do shutters pass in the night?". in the end i'm just excited to see a band i love this much reaching the top 20.

17. "tom hark (we want falmer)" - seagulls ska (new entry)
apparently this is a charity single to try and raise money for a new football (read: soccer) stadium in Brighton or something, which certainly explains the craptacularness of it. it's like a third-rate ska revival beat with some horrible soccer related lyrics. but as far as novelty hits go, i've definitely heard worse. nothing i'd be inclined to buy, mind you, but miles more enjoyable than that Bo Selecta single.

16. "numb/encore" - jay-z/linkin park (17)
15. "you can do it" - ice cube f. mack 10 & ms. toi (5)
14. "if there's any justice" - lemar (8)
13. "father and son" - ronan keating & yusuf islam (4)
12. "what you waiting for" - gwen stefani (11)
11. "i believe in you" - kylie minogue (3)
10. "out of touch" - uniting nations (7)
9. "boulevard of broken dreams" - green day (6)

8. "cutt off" - kasabian (new entry)
this, the band's fourth single, this one reminds me a little of Kula Shaker although this is much better than anything that band put out (excluding the wonderful "Tattva"). i think the lyrics drag this song down a little bit, "John was a scientist / hooked on LSD" not exactly being the deepest ever, but i'm still enjoying it. i'm definitely looking forward to this album getting a stateside domestic release this year.

7. "object of my desire" - dana rayne (new entry)
this is a pretty average house track by a half-Italian New Yorker, and is only interesting in that it sounds like Ms. Rayne took a healthy hit of helium before she stepped in the vocal booth. as i stated last week this type of thing doesn't do much at all for me, but its not as awful as some of the dance songs on the chart so far this year. still, i'd much rather hear Kylie again or even that Geri track.

6. "do they know it's christmas?" - band aid 20 (2)

5. "filthy/gorgeous" - scissor sisters (new entry)
now this is what more of these pop singles need to be - sexy, decadent, danceable, and a whole hell of a lot of fun. this is the Sisters in full-on flamboyant mode, pure campiness to the max. if this song doesn't make you want to get up and shake your groove thang, then you just may be clinically dead. i'm loving the Roget Troutman synth vocals over the heavy breathing at the end of the track, as Paris would say - that's hot.

4. "breathe" - erasure (new entry)
i'm liking this a lot more than i would have expected too, given i've never really been a huge fan of Erasure and when i was it was for the more upbeat stuff. this is more downtempo, but nice enough. a pretty little pop tune, which is what Erasure is known for.

3. "the number of the beast" - iron maiden (new entry)
so this is quite a change of pace after that new Erasure single, but enjoyable nonetheless. i mean, how often in this day and age do you get to hear full-on 80's metal like this on the radio? especially one as full-on as this, complete with moster guitar solos (as in, plural) and satanic references to boot? i'm sure i'm not the first to think of this, but i really would love to hear this back-to-back with a Darkness single.

2. "against all odds" - steve brookstein (1)

1. "jailhouse rock" - elvis presley (new entry)
i guess we should prepare for this to be the year of Elvis, as someone has decided to release an Elvis #1 every week for the first couple months of 2005. since we'll be hearing a lot more of the King in weeks to come, i'm glad we started it off with one of his best. fresh from 1958, this has quite possibly one of the best intros in all of recorded rock music history. this is young Elvis at his best right here, when he still put more emphasis on the rock in rock n' roll. i'm happy with this one as number one.