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Into the top ten and no duplication between us on tracks yet and only one on artists – Hot Chip. A likely upcoming artist overlap is Chemical Brothers, if conversations with Roy are anything to go by. I will leave … Continue reading Top tracks of 2019 #10 – Chemical Brothers
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Richard: Firstly, huge thanks are due to Lauren Laverne for starting her 6 Music breakfast today by playing Uncertain Smile – this blog’s signature tune – … Continue reading Top tracks of 2019 #11 – The Cinematic Orchestra, Silversun Pickup and Flight Facilities
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Richard: As I may have mentioned on this blog before, I don’t play a lot of old music per se, but do tend to have one … Continue reading Top tracks of 2019 #12 – J.A.R.V.I.S., Foals & Zimpel/Ziolek
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Richard: There’s a lot to unpack with my number 13. It’s the Pet Shop Boys with ‘Social Media’. Like most Tennant lyrics with a social commentary … Continue reading Top tracks of 2019 #13 Pet Shop Boys, Carcass & Phosphorescent
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Richard: Yes, more from Hot Chip, but a different track from Roy’s number 16 choice, my own favourite from the album. Two weeks ago I saw … Continue reading Top tracks of 2019 #14 – Hot Chip, K.Flay & Fat White Family
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Richard: I haven’t really been that aware of Beirut up to now, but really like the title attack of their latest album – it has a … Continue reading Top tracks of 2019 #15 – Beirut, Pixx & The Psychedelic Porn Crumpets
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Richard: My first entry that could be described as rock music. This track – Ducter by Black Midi – has intrigued me since I first heard … Continue reading Top tracks of 2019 #16 – Black Midi, Jaguar Jonze & Hot Chip
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Richard: My number 17 is a most excellent blend of influences, variously if I hear them correctly, Sleaford Mods, Trainspotting, Grime and even Carter USM in … Continue reading Top tracks of 2019 #17 – Slowthai & Mura Masa, Sleater-Kinney & Dom Dolla
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Richard: I have a bit of a love hate relationship with Metronomy. Some of what they do I love – The Bay album for example, but … Continue reading Top tracks of 2019 #18 – Metronomy, Baker Boy & Show Me The Body
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Richard: Rather a lovely track this – starts off as pleasantly spoken word but end up with a sung chorus that you will be singing to … Continue reading Top tracks of 2019 #19 – Mik Artistiks Ego Trip, The Wants & Violent Soho
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Back for our eighth year – at least in our online incarnation – it’s our top 20 tracks of the year. For the next 20 days Roy, Ian and I will be posting one track a day as we countdown … Continue reading Top Tracks of 2020 #19 – The Comet Is Coming, Tones & I and Johnny Marr
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Richard I suspect we will only be able to make sense of the unprecedented times we are living in when they are firmly in the rear … Continue reading Top tracks of 2018 #1 – Childish Gambino, Idles & BC Camplight
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Richard I think this is the third collaboration in our top five so far, one that seemed surprising at the time but makes perfect sense. Two … Continue reading Top tracks of 2018 #2 – Underworld & Iggy Pop, First Aid Kit, Thom Yorke & Mavis Staples
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Richard My bronze medal for 2018 goes to John Grant. I was having a think about why I like the solo artists that I do and … Continue reading Top tracks of 2018 #3 – John Grant, Gorillaz, Wooden Shjips, Karen O & Michael Kiwanuka
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Richard This might be my first entry from The Orb in quite a few years, but that doesn’t mean that I haven’t been enjoying their prodigious … Continue reading Top tracks of 2018 #4 – The Orb with Hollie Cook, The Go! Team, Odesza & Interpol
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Richard So we are into the ‘all important’ top five. The renaissance of Suede has for me been one of the highlights of the last few … Continue reading Top tracks of 2018 #5 – Suede, Thom Yorke & Phil Cook
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Looking back I realise that in 2018 I have moved so much over to streaming that I bought no downloads and only actually bought one music … Continue reading Top tracks of 2018 #6 – Eels, Amy Shark, Fontaines DC & Jon Hopkins
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Never been much of a fan of the Arctic Monkeys. I liked the first album, then they seemed to lift off into mainstream rock and global … Continue reading Top tracks of 2018 #7 – Arctic Monkeys,Ruben, Gwenno & Gorillaz
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The most recent track in my countdown comes from the oldest band, with the largest gap in transmission. ‘Vote For Me’, debuted two weeks ago, marks … Continue reading Top tracks of 2018 #8 The Specials, Orbital, Pram & The Good, The Bad & The Queen
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Richard In a tweet after his Hammersmith Apollo gigs last week I described Nils Frahm live as equal parts piano virtuoso, club DJ and mad scientist … Continue reading Top tracks of 2018 #9 Nils Frahm, Tash Sultana, Eels & Neneh Cherry
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Richard I don’t know, you wait ages for an album influenced by 80s video games and analogue synth sounds and then two come along at once, … Continue reading Top tracks of 2018 #10 – Muse, Laura Marling, Marlon Williams & Little Simz
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Richard Is it me, or has the general quality of videos improved this year? This effort from Father John Misty certainly has a lot of effort … Continue reading Top tracks of 2018 #11 – Father John Misty, Hen Ogledd, Goat Girl & Franz Ferdinand
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Amongst my 2018 choices this could be seen as something of an outlier, given my current level of boredom with guitar bands, but this track from … Continue reading Top tracks of 2018 #12 – Idles, Khruangbin, Father John Misty & George Fitzgerald
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InterpolRichard Normally, when a band leaves a decade between their debut album and the follow up, you would accuse them of Stone Roses levels of indolence … Continue reading Top tracks of 2018 #13 – The Good, The Bad & The Queen, Interpol, Teleman (again) & A$AP Rocky
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Richard Following Andy’s selection of Courtney Barnett’s ‘Nameless, Faceless’ back at # 17 here’s my own favorite track from her second album and the most recent … Continue reading Top tracks of 2018 #14: Courtney Barnett, Willaris K, Gaz Coombes & Teleman
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Ólafur Arnalds is no stranger to my end of year lists. Neither is Nils Frahm, as nominated by Andy a couple of days ago. However, for … Continue reading Top tracks of 2018 #15 – Ólafur Arnalds, Shame, Slaves & The Presets
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So farewell then Pete Shelley. Just this Monday in my graphic design class we were admiring the work of Linder, who designed the Orgasm Addict image … Continue reading Farewell Pete Shelley
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Richard There is an aquaduct channel in Los Angeles that seems to be the go to place for video and film makers, perhaps most famously in … Continue reading Top tracks of 2018 #16: Moby, Running Touch, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, Hercules & Love Affair
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Richard Today’s track from me is ‘Count It Up’ by Field Music. This definitely has a Talking Heads vibe, both in the vocal delivery and the … Continue reading Top tracks of 2018 #17: Field Music, Courtney Barnett, Montaigne & Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever
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Richard In hindsight, my first three Festive Twenty choices all have really good animation/collage videos and this is probably the best of the three. It makes … Continue reading Top tracks of 2018 #18: Superorganism, Skeggs, Nils Frahm & Public Service Broadcasting
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Richard: For my second ‘Festive Twenty’ entry, let’s head North from Brighton’s Go! Team to a married couple from Lancaster – The Lovely Eggs. I am … Continue reading Top tracks of 2018 #19: The Lovely Eggs, Shame, Billie Eilish &Mason
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Richard: Hard to believe that this is the seventh annual online version of our lists of the top tracks of the year, although we go much … Continue reading Top tracks of 2018 #20 – The Go! Team, Boy Azooga, Adwaith & The Coral
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Richard: I dropped a fairly clear hint to Andy in my day 8 posting that I thought he was going to post this, but he hasn’t … Continue reading ..and finally. Covered In Glory Day 10: Thomas Dolby, The Unthanks, Little Roy, Deep Purple & Zoot
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Richard: Allowing for all the various contributions, we are about 50 cover versions into our marathon with just one day to go and I have to … Continue reading Covered in Glory Day 9: Madness, Husker Du, The Delgados, UFO & Rolf Harris
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So, only three choices left. I’ve still quite a few to choose from on my long list, even allowing for pre-emptions from others. There is one … Continue reading Covered In Glory Day 8: The The, Maria McKee, Manic Street Preachers, 801 & Cat Power
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Richard: Moving from yesterday’s 80s East German TV clip to one from Spanish TV in 2010, from the final Faithless album comes this inspired cover of … Continue reading Covered In Glory Day 7: Faithless, Associates, Blancmange, Youth Group & The Bangles
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Richard There are many fine versions of Billy Bragg songs around, Kirsty MacColl’s ‘New England’ and Dubstar’s ‘St Swithin’s Day’ to name but two. However I … Continue reading Covered In Glory Day 6: The Redskins, The Clash, The Wedding Present & Nirvana
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Richard: I came across this little gem on a wet Sunday afternoon at the French Institute in January watching an animated film called ‘Ma Vie En … Continue reading Covered In Glory Day 5: Sophie Hunger, Africa Bambaataa, George Michael, Trespassers William & Weird Al
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This theme is proving to be quite the debating point over on Facebook where I post the links daily, so at the risk of sounding like … Continue reading Covered in Glory Day 4.5 – Listener requests!
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Richard: ‘On Broadway’ is perhaps most famous for The Drifters version, but I have always adored this version which featured on Gary Numan’s Living Ornaments LP and … Continue reading Covered In Glory Day 4: Gary Numan, Chaka Khan, Manfred Mann, Ballboy & The Sex Pistols
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Two years ago I posted Lizzy’s ‘Dancing In The Moonlight’ during our celebration of songs related to summer, to some debate. It was variously claimed that … Continue reading Covered In Glory Day 3: Thin Lizzy, Sarah Blasko, XTC & Scissor Sisters
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Richard: Arguably Satisfaction by the Stones is the Mona Lisa or Michelangelo’s David of rock music. Thing is, I don’t actually like it. I’ve heard it … Continue reading Covered In Glory Day 2: Devo, The Fall, Joe Cocker & Saint Etienne
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Richard: Some of my upcoming choices in our celebration of the cover version will be obscure, other may be highly contentious, but I suspect my opening … Continue reading Covered In Glory Day 1: Johnny Cash, The Leather Nun, G n’R, Sinead O’Connor, Muse & Housemartins
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The summer challenge the Uncertain Smile is setting for its musical hive mind of bloggers is (drum roll)…. Covered In Glory: Cover versions that are … Continue reading Coming soon: Covered in Glory
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Here’s something I started in a recent cartoon course, which I have only now got around to finishing off. Clearly I needed to get it done and posted before the next series of Doctor Who starts in October… Continue reading Doctor Who and The Millennials
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The first in a strictly non-sequential series…. Continue reading A clear view of the stage….
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If one theme emerges as I look back through the choices we have all made over the last twenty days then, aside from all the wonderful … Continue reading Top Tracks of 2017 #1 – Slowdive, Algiers, Arcade Fire & Parov Stelar
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The blog has been running for over five years and this is our sixth annual ‘festive twenty’ When the blog was named The Uncertain Smile, there … Continue reading Top tracks of 2017 #2 – The The, The Belligerents, The Charlatans, James Dean Bradfield
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Richard: I loved ‘Everything Now’ after about 30 seconds and have continued to love it all year. Perhaps the album didn’t quite live up to expectations … Continue reading Top tracks of 2017 #3 – Arcade Fire, Winston Surfshirt, Fleet Foxes & more Beck
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A couple of days ago I was listening to an Ultravox track and lamenting that bands don’t seem to do ‘proper’ videos anymore. Promos tend to … Continue reading Top tracks of 2017 #4 – The Horrors, Slowdive, Elbow & Beck
