More music to munch on from David Kowalski, who has some tasty tracks worth sharing and an idea worth hearing if you didn't rate this year's Triple J Hottest 100 winner.
THIS YEAR the Triple J Hottest 100 has given us another divisive winner in the form of 'Say Nothing' by electronic music auteur Flume (featuring May-A).
Those in favour of the win appear to have been drowned out by those who weren’t — so say many on social media and people within my networks.
'SAY NOTHING' IF YOU'RE NOT A FAN OF FLUME
What’s my view on it? I get a bit tired of arguing over what should and should not be on a countdown that has over two million votes cast in it. It’s too hard to pick the winner these days.
Is it my favourite song of the year? Hardly. But does my opinion count for much when I'm not the target audience of Triple J (the national youth broadcaster for young Australians)? Not really.
It is a democracy, after all. More people clearly picked the Flume track than anything else.
Congratulations to the winners, one of the biggest being Spacey Jane, who placed six songs on the list and three in the top ten. It was also a big year for First Nations artists with King Stingray and Thelma Plum making multiple appearances.
IF YOU 'DON'T LIKE IT', TRY 4ZZZ FM'S HOT 100
For those unhappy with this Triple J Hottest 100 win, perhaps next year also take your ears to Brisbane radio station 4ZZZ FM’s Hot 100 which plays out every year on New Year’s Day. The mix of music voted by listeners is very different and extremely interesting.
The latest winner is Brizzy punk band Square Tugs (featuring Polly Cooke) with 'I Don’t Like It'.
If I had to choose my favourite song of 2022, it has to be the epic single 'Fractured' from Newcastle NSW band Well? Just shy of seven minutes in length, it is a musical tour de force.
India Jazz’s vocal performance had my jaw dropping in awe at her skills. How she sings that rapid-fire chorus seemingly without taking a breath baffles and inspires me.
At one point in the mix of this song, there are in excess of 140 concurrent layers of sound. I could talk about how awesome and incredible this song is all day, but the proof is in the listening.
GONE TO THAT GREAT GIG IN THE SKY
Sadly, four musical greats worthy of mention passed away quite recently.
To remember bold Australian soul supremo Renée Geyer, click here. For more about controversial personality and heavenly vocalist David Crosby, click here. And to recall the immense talent of singular guitarist Jeff Beck of The Yardbirds, click here.
American punk guitarist Tom Verlaine also unplugged from this earth recently. Tom was the guitarist for New York punk band Television, as part of the regulars who trod the boards at the legendary CBGB club with Blondie, Ramones, Talking Heads and Patti Smith.
Tom was a songwriter and guitarist unlike any other. Television's debut album Marquee Moon has had an incalculable influence on musicians all over the world.
STILL HERE IN LONDON WITH THE WAIFS
The Waifs, fortunately for us, are still here and making great music. For all the bluster and debate of the Hottest 100 of 2022, the reprise of the Hottest 100 of 20 years ago reminds me of so much great music from that time.
The Waifs were robbed that year. 'London Still' was easily the best song on the countdown, even though it was voted in at number 3.
Hearing it again recently, I still get the same emotions as I did when I first listened to it.
I’m not crying... you are.
David Kowalski is a writer, musician, educator, sound engineer and podcaster. His podcasts 'The Sound and the Fury Podcast' and 'Audio Cumulus' can be heard exclusively here. You can follow David on Twitter @sound_fury_pod.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Australia License
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