The state of modern music

You're probably wondering why I've decided not to overlook the 2020's on this site (for now at least) suffice to say that I've been very unhappy with the way the music industry has turned out over the last few years for a myriad of reasons that I'll go over in this essay of mine. That and when I initially tried it on my older sites (which no longer exists and for the best) I found I had to keep updating what I had to say with each entry given how unpredictable this decade has been so far (to give an example, Lizzo's public persona has changed since I last attempted to talk about her 2020's output.)

The first thing I want to bring up is the lack of Australian representation on the ARIA charts as of late, now obviously we've had some representation over the last few years from the likes of Tones and I and Kid Laroi, however both of them were indie artists who managed to have massive success worldwide thanks to Triple J heavily promoting their music to an international market since the station went global throughout the 2010's. Even with reality TV such as the Voice, X Factor and the recent return of Australian Idol, we haven't had any successful songs from an Australian artist this decade so far that was on a major label, suggesting that we Aussies have officially given up on supporting local artists in favour of whatever's popular worldwide (particularly on streaming services which is mostly made up for American artists.)

Music veterans have coined the term "cultural cringe" to identify the issue with us Aussies ignoring our local talent in favour of international artists, a term that I feel is appropriate as there's certainly not a lack of local talent in our music industry to become the next big thing, and yet we're pushing that all aside for songs that in some cases are decades old at this point. While there have been talks about how to rectify this situation, I'm not sure there's anything that can be done as promotion for local artists is as strong as ever (not to mention the music being miles better than its international competition.) Even previously well-established Aussie artists such as 5SOS and Dean Lewis are struggling to find success here despite being in the prime of their careers.

A possible reason for this conundrum is the second issue I have with the modern music scene, that being how streaming has completely made ARIA and by extension the popularity of music down under completely redundant. Gone are the days that there was intrigue in what would become popular as we now live in an environment where the most popular songs here are more or less the same as what they are everywhere else in the world. This is because streaming takes up the majority of what goes into the data to calculate the charts not just here but throughout the world given how the pandemic prevented music lovers from buying the music they love (be it digitally or physically) in favour of streaming what Spotify and other services determined to be the popular music of the moment. This is even worse now that YouTube data has been included into our charts, meaning that a popular meme from the website can now have as much mileage here as it has since the data was incorporated into the Billboard charts in 2013.

This has an easier fix to the problem, namely, to not only buy the music you love (within reason of course) but also to look past those curated lists and explore new music that you love. Streaming was only included onto chart data to track the music those out of touch with the mainstream were listening to, meaning that artists that would've otherwise never had a chance to appear in the mainstream are now some of the biggest hits of all time worldwide thanks to Spotify's inability to rotate these songs off their playlists in favour of other artists that could use the exposure. This practice has led to many people (me included) accusing the company of engaging in payola as they cater to the biggest names in music in a similar fashion to how radio stations played music from the same artists over and over again in lieu of diversifying the music industry.

One thing that I found soul crushing when constructing my lists for the 2020's is how monotonous my commentary came off, I couldn't even get angry with the choices as it was just the same five or six artists appearing on the lists over and over again with very little variety of what I can say for each of their entries. Here's a list of artists and how many entries I would've featured with their albums (this includes repeat entries on each list):

Taylor Swift: 7

Billie Eilish: 5

Luke Combs: 5

Ed Sheeran: 5

Harry Styles: 4

The Weeknd: 4

Dua Lipa: 3

Elton John: 3

Eminem: 2

Pop Smoke: 2

Soundtrack: 2

Olivia Rodrigo: 2

Adele: 2

Doja Cat: 2

AC/DC: 1

Post Malone: 1

Juice Wrld: 1

BTS: 1

Lewis Capaldi: 1

Tame Impala: 1

Kid Laroi: 1

Justin Bieber: 1

Abba: 1

Drake: 1

Maroon 5: 1

Fleetwood Mac: 1

Now call me crazy, but that doesn't seem like a particularly interesting list of people to talk about, let alone multiple times with so few variation on each list to begin with for each of the entries. Admittedly this was an issue with the 2010's where there was so few variation with what was popular that decade that I really dragged myself in finally constructing my album list for the decade, however I was able to come up with enough to say for all of the notable entries to make it worthwhile. A big problem is that the mere announcement from a popular artist will send all of their catalogue flying up the charts in luei of rising stars in the music industry (in particular, Taylor Swift and her "Taylor's versions" of her back catalogue.) This also means that albums that were released years ago have still yet to drop off the charts even once, again coming from the names I brought up earlier.

This has no easy solution to its problem either as the only way to fix this this issue is to make these albums ineligible to chart which would be outright illegal to do. All we can hope for is that the fan bases of these artists eventually expand their music taste to restore diversity to what it once was in the music industry. The NZ charts has created a separate chart to curb this problem by making any entry older than eighteen months (78 weeks) ineligible for the main charts. This has been criticised by the kiwis due to preventing older songs that might gain a second chance in the spotlight from doing so, basically only giving them one chance to make an impression on them before missing out forever. We Aussies have a new music chart which only tracks songs released within four months of each chart which has faced similar criticism, although these charts are just the main charts but with only the most recent songs so it's not like they were designed to be reputable. 

Both of these solutions are only skin deep anyway as they simply disqualify what is eligible to become popular in both countries rather than affecting the listening habits of those from the southern hemisphere, its similar to how music labels used to pull singles from shelves in order to encourage album sales, except of course they at least aren't currently denying anyone their right to own/stream the music they love like they used to. Again, the only real solution is to deincentivise fans to mass consume music from their favourite artists, which would be impossible to do without taking away their human rights as that's a form of censorship which I'm against (regardless if its towards artists I dislike such as Taylor Swift or Morgan Wallen.) I guess one solution is to only count streaming data from official releases, that is, a song or album is only counted if it is streamed from the artists official account on YouTube or Spotify rather than a playlist and/or video compilation from the former.

I also need to bring up what type of music is becoming popular nowadays, while I do like my fair share of pop music, I'm a rock fan at heart which makes the lack of rock music becoming popular in recent years disheartening to me (don't even get me started on what now qualifies for rock music in the mainstream.) There are a ton of other genres I love of course, none of which has been fairly represented in the mainstream this decade as it's been mainly trap and country music, the latter of which is among my least favourite genres in music (for arbitrary reasons.) Obviously this complaint of mine is more subjective as every era of music is going to have genres one isn't a fan of, however the fact these two genres is what's making it big of tik tok does make it worth complaining about as the website is limited in what music it popularises in the music scene as of late.

Speaking of tik tok, I think we can all agree that the social media platform has become a bad influence in what becomes popular this decade so far. Some of the most poorly received music and artists have made it big on the site that otherwise would've only found a niche audience at best that definitely wouldn't have been big enough to have any impact on the mainstream. This has been a problem since 2017 where artists such as Lil Pump and 6ix9ine found massive success thanks to their virality on the site which counted towards streaming data back in the day, with this trend only getting worse in recent years as these types of artists don't have to try as hard to find viral success through shock value.

Another problem I'll quickly touch on is how everything has become politicised, specifically out of touch political commentators reacting to tracks such as "Wap" and "Montero" that likely would've flopped were it not for the commentators fear mongerong their audience for views. This is a problem with all media as of late, but I'm growing tired of these people giving out free hits to artists for their political clout over stuff that no one cares about in this day and age. It's bad enough that everything has become politicised in the mainstream media, but the fact that having a political bias in your music seems to guarantee success in this day and age (even if it varies depending on what the topic is) is frankly tiresome to even think about. It's why I refuse to allow political commentary on my site unless it's relevant to an entry in question.

In both of these cases, music should be about art first and foremost. It can certainly be politically charged and/or have a gimmick to it that might be dated in a few years, but the fact that so many songs have become popular in recent years purely through social media (particularly twitter) is just plain ridiculous. Again I'm not saying they should be ineligible for the charts, rather people need to value their time better by ignoring these songs in favour something that is going to stick with them for more than a month. People also need to let artists be who they want to be, I guarantee you that the likes of Lil nas X and cardi b wouldn't have been as popular with those controversial songs if people had of just let them be who they wanted to be as they wouldn't of felt the need to be so provocative with those tracks and especially the music videos.

This next part has more to do with fan bases of popular artists, I think we can all agree that these campaigns led by these fandoms (particularly the swifties and k-pop fans) have gotten out of hand as they relentlessly campaign for these artists to have never-ending  success to the point where they bully and harass anyone who isn't a fan of them. In particular, many people have blamed these fandoms (especially the swifties who in my opinion, are generally insufferable to deal with) for why music in general has stagnated in recent years as few if anyone else is able to compete with their favourite artists in the mainstream which results in their labels not bothering to promote their music any more than the bare minimum that is required (that is, announcements on social media and having radios play their music.) It's gotten to the point where other artists (most notably azalea banks) have called out these fanbases and the music industry at large for this practice, leading to resentment towards the artists in question they didn't deserve.

This is where the solution I have is less empathetic as if you couldn't tell, I've personally dealt with some of these people online as I'm sure anyone reading this has. These people need to be called out for their awful behaviour, its one thing to show your support for your favourite artist, but it's another thing to shame anyone who isn't a fan online to the point where they're afraid to voice their honest opinion for an artist they don't particularly care for. The fact that this is written with the swifties in mind makes this particularly egregious given how her target demographic is and has always been teenage girls, particularly those who don't have many real world problems as her lyrical content consists of her love life (and how she's notoriously bad with it) as well as coping with the fact that people don't like her or her music. All I'll say is that you must have had a rather sheltered life if your top priority is defending a woman who has yet to deviate from these topics in her music.

This isn't to say that people should no longer be fans of hers (regardless of my issues with her, and believe me I have many) in fact I encourage people to continue to enjoy her music if it brings them joy in their lives. Rather they need to realise that isn't the case for everyone else and them thinking otherwise is extremely selfish on their part and a bad look on her given this is the audience she's cultivated over the years. This goes double for k-pop fans as while they aren't as plentiful as the swifties, they more than make up for that with how much more militant they are (don't even get me started on the barbz or the beyhive.) This also goes for other fandoms (particularly rock elitists) as too many times I've been put off from an artist due to how toxic their fanbase has been. People have their opinions, no opinion is fact, and the sooner people realise that the better.

I think that's everything I have to cover here, who knows how the music scene will pan out moving forward. I don't have much hope but it's possible things will turn around. Take care and I'll see you around.

Elton John albums ranked

Having just recently gone through all of Elton John's back catalogue on a more casual level (given how much I was impressed with his deep cuts whilst researching his albums for my site) I've decided to rank all of his biggest albums on this list including his early albums that haven't yet appeared on this site due to charting before David Kent began tracking music here in Australia. This list will go over all of his biggest albums (I couldn't be bothered digging up his less well-known albums) and will be ranked by yours truly. As a final note, I should stress that I enjoy all of the albums on this list to an extent as even his biggest blunders have plenty of redeeming qualities to them.

Each commentary on this list comes from reviews I wrote on Rateyourmusic as this is naturally a more subjective list of mine compared to most other lists on this site.

While even I can admit that this album has problems (all of which can be attributed to a certain substance Elton was using at the time) I have to admit that I do have a soft spot for this album even if it goes in some strange directions during its runtime.

The biggest problem is the production on the upbeat tracks, I never had an issue with the production on his previous efforts, however it's clear that he wanted to trade in his melodies that he would compose for his previous albums in favour of sounding like his contemporaries. Although he does have the occasional ballad on here that he clearly composed for himself (the big hit "Nikita" being an obvious example) the album is mostly a product of its time which is why it isn't very fondly remembered nowadays.

I get the feeling the only reason why I like this album is because I'm a huge sucker for the 80's when it comes to music, were it not for that, I would likely rate this more negatively as it doesn't seem to have as much of Elton's charm as his previous efforts do.

Hit singles

Act of war

Nikita

Wrap her up

While I can see this being Elton John's least favourite album in his catalogue, I have to say that in some ways, this is an improvement on his previous album Ice on fire if only because the production isn't as dated here as it is on that album. It's 80's fluff sure, but it's still leagues better than most of the songs from the time that's long been forgotten by even diehard 80's afficionados.

For me, the biggest problem with this album is that it seems like a rehash of all of his earlier work, the production stemming from his (then) most recent albums whilst the lyrics and melodies coming from his earlier works which makes this feel more like an album made out of obligation than anything else. It's essentially Elton on autopilot which while isn't the worst thing in the world, is certainly a bit of a disappointment which is why most of his fans consider this to be his worst work.

Much like his last album, I'd agree that this is his worst work were it not for the fact that I'm a huge sucker for 80's music in general, and like I said, the mixing on this album is much better than on Ice on fire which I feel makes it a better album overall even if Elton himself would disagree.

Hit singles

Heartache all over the world

Slow rivers

This album feels like a weak follow up to Captain fantastic much like how many feel that Caribou was a weak follow up to Goodbye yellow brick road, this is mainly due to this album feeling far less personal than his previous effort as well as the lyrical quality overall slipping on this album compared to his previous efforts.

That said, apart from having a questionable lead single (even for its time) this is still an above average album as Elton decides to incorporate funk onto this album likely to remain hip with the times, this makes it less timeless compared to his earlier work, however it's still far ahead of the competition.

Hit singles

Island girl

Grow some funk of your own

Much like the other albums he made without Bernie Taupin, this is more dated compared to the rest of Elton's catalogue as he is clearly going for that soft rock crowd with this release. While this does mean that this has a more niche audience compared to the rest of his catalogue, I have to say that this is still a top-notch release from Elton considering he was coming off a terrible disco album from the previous year. It's far from his best sure, but still worthy of your time.

Hit singles

Little Jeannie

This is the second double album to come from Elton John, the first being the flawless Goodbye yellow brick road from several years prior. While that album didn't feel as long as it was, the same can't be said for this album as I feel the first half of the album kind of drags as opposed to the second half which is where Elton and Bernie truly shine on this release.

This is the duo's final collaboration together until their 1983 effort Too low for zero, here they decide to incorporate prog elements which results in several instrumentals on the album. This isn't new territory for them as their last album opened up with a medley akin to a prog track, although they definitely hit the nail on the head with this release given how much better the sound works on the album.

It's another worthy entry into Elton's catalogue, not quite as strong as his previous efforts, but far better than what's to come after.

Hit singles

Sorry seems to be the hardest word

Although the magic of Bernie Taupin is lacking on this album, I have to say that Elton John did manage to make a decent album without him on this release due to finding a decent replacement with Gary Osborne who wrote him some adequate lyrics for him to sing along with his still stellar melodies. It's also a bit obvious it was recorded in the late 70's which does make it more dated than his earlier work, however it has its charm and thus more than worthy of your time.

Hit singles

Part time love

Song for guy

While I do enjoy this album overall from Elton John, I may be a bit kind in giving this a 4/5 as it does contain by far his worst song "Passengers." I'm sorry but this song is annoying and is a perfect summary of all of Elton's worst traits as an artist from its repetitive and meaningless lyrics to its Jamaican influence.

Fortunately, the rest of the album is solid enough, although like his previous two efforts, I doubt people who feel the 80's is overrated is going to enjoy this as you can tell it was made in that decade. It's admittedly a bit of a step back from Too low for zero, however not enough that it's worse than Jump up even with that blunder of a second single. The ballads are heartfelt whilst the upbeat tracks are fun and catchy.

Hit singles

Sad songs

Passengers

Who wears these shoes

The Lion King is one of the first films I remember seeing in my lifetime, so naturally, this soundtrack is always going to have a special place in my heart regardless of its technical quality. Fortunately, the soundtrack holds up on a technical level thanks to arguably one of the best scores of all time from Hans Zimmer as well as catchy songs from the cast written by Tim Rice and the one and only Elton John.

As for the songs performed by the rock legend, I feel like these were originally meant for his (then) most recent album The one but cut for this project when Disney hired him to compose the melodies for the soundtrack due to how well these songs would otherwise work on that album. Of course, this isn't an airtight theory since the lyrics didn't come from Bernie Taupin however the fact that one of these tracks won him an Oscar does bring some validity to my theory.

It's an above average soundtrack to a flawless movie that still holds up to this day even with the film receiving accusations of it being a rip-off of Kimbra the white lion and it being made by fundamentally one of the worst companies in Hollywood even at the time. Check this out if you're a fan of Elton John, 2d animation or if you want to relive your childhood.

Hit singles

Can you feel the love tonight

Circle of life

While I'll admit that the 80's production on this album in particular does make this more dated than most of his work even throughout this decade, I have to admit that I'm a huge sucker for synthesisers which is why I find myself enjoying this album even if it has more issues with it than most of his work.

I guess the biggest issue I have is that while the more upbeat tracks are a ton of fun, the ballads do suffer somewhat due to the production making them less personal than what they would've been had they been recorded throughout the 70's. I'll also say that the lyrics aren't quite as good on here as his back catalogue, although they're still far from the worst that the early 80's have to offer.

I say give this album a go provided you're a fan of 80's music, it's not on the same level as his 70's output, but it's far better than most of what's to come.

Hit singles

Blue eyes

Empty garden

You'd think that by this point Elton John would be past his prime, this album suggests otherwise as he continued to impress audiences with how well he was able to adapt with the times. Much like his previous two albums, this feels like something he could've released in the 70's but gave it slick production akin to the late 80's and early 90's to have it be a contemporary of albums released around this time.

If you've read my other reviews throughout his discography, you'll know that I've struggled to come up with new ways to heap my praise on his music, the melodies are as strong as always on here as are Elton's vocals and Bernie's lyrics. It's one more great album from a career of highlights even if it would all be downhill from here without a recovery point (save for the Lion king soundtrack of course.)

Hit singles

The one

The last song

This was a bit of a return to form of sorts given how there was much more emphasis on Elton's vocals and Bernie lyrics on this album compared to the previous two albums which were both drenched in 80's production that only an 80's afficionado like myself could enjoy. This honestly feels like an album that could've been made in the 70's when it comes to the melodies and the songwriting but is still distinctly 80's with its production given how there's still plenty of emphasis on synthesisers and drum machines.

While his true comeback wouldn't come until his next album Sleeping with the past, this was still a step in the right direction as I can see more people enjoying this nowadays compared to his previous two albums which definitely have a nice market for modern audiences.

Hit singles

I don't want to go on with you like that

While this wasn't the first album that Elton John released, it was the first album of his where he found any sort of success and rightfully so because it has to be one of the most sentimental albums to come out during the first half of the decade. This is mainly because of how heartfelt the lyrics are which compliment his vocals extremely well whilst set to some wonderous baroque pop instrumentation to help sell the sentiment.

While his later material would be even better (due to better lyricism from Bernie Taupin) I have to say that this is a strong first impression to a career that does have its ups and down but overall has given us at this point fifty years' worth of classics. Check it out if you haven't already.

Hit singles

Your song

While his previous album stated that he was back bigger than ever, this was the album that signified the return of Elton John given that it was a massive commercial success for him. I have to say that apart from the lyrics being sharper and it being clearly influenced by blues music, there's not much difference between this and Elton's previous album which makes me wonder why this was so much more successful than his previous effort back in the day (or more specifically, why that album wasn't even bigger like this was.)

Much like Reg strikes back, this feels like something Elton could've made a decade prior but was given some slicker production to help it stand out from his 70's work. This is impressive given how this was made after he had his polyps removed which prevented him from singing like he did earlier in his career, proving that although he had to change his vocal style, he was still just as impressive a vocalist at this point in his career as he was from when he first broke through.

It's far from his best, however most artists can only dream of releasing something this good. I highly recommend checking this out if you haven't already.

Hit singles

Healing hands

Sacrifice

Club at the end of the street

This is another great album to come from Elton John's peak period, it has much more personal lyrics compared to his previous efforts (culminating with its single "Someone saved my life tonight") which help give his audience an insight into his personal life at the time (or at least as much insight as he was comfortable with sharing.)

The melodies are as strong as ever as are his vocals, two elements that would begin to deteriorate as the decade went on due to burnout from making a string of classic albums. That would obviously come later as for now, this is another masterpiece from one of the greatest musicians of all time.

Hit singles

Someone saved my life tonight

While I can see how people feel this is a step back from Goodbye yellow brick road, I have to say that this is still a solid entry into Elton John's early career even if it does feel more dated to the 70's than his other work. Here he experiments more with his sound by incorporating country elements on some of the tracks in addition to the glam and prog that he toyed with on his previous album which I feel yields excellent results.

It's an underrated album mainly because many people feel it doesn't live up to the standards set up by his previous work, while that's technically true, Elton having an off day during this period is infinitely better than what most would put out these days (and admittedly what he would put out during his true low points in his career.)

Hit singles

Don't let the sun go down on me

The bitch is back

While his self-titled album was what rightfully put him on the map, this was the album where Elton John and his partner in crime Bernie Taupin perfected their formula in having the former beautifully sing the lyrics of the latter over melodies that have aged like fine wine in the decades since this albums release.

Their breakthrough was excellent, however like most breakthrough albums, there was room for improvement, this isn't the case here and with their subsequent albums, making this the perfect introduction to their work if you're looking for an entry point into their vast catalogue.

Hit singles

Country comfort

This is another perfect album from Elton John and Bernie Taupin from the first half of the 70's, it was very underrated for its time but has rightfully become one of their staples over the years thanks to the popularity of its opening track and only single in pop culture. I wish I could say something about this album that hasn't been said a thousand times before, but everything from the melodies to the lyrics to Elton's comforting vocals has been brought up when praising this album and indeed his 70's catalogue, so it would be redundant for me to highlight that on here.

Hit singles

Tiny dancer (retrospectively)

While his self-titled breakthrough album was an impressive first impression to audiences, it remains a bit rough around the edges if only due to both Elton and Bernie testing out what they have to offer in the world of music on that album. Starting with this album, their partnership would be flawless as they combine their talents to craft a timeless record that only continues to inspire listeners even after all of these years since its initial release.

The true strength of this album is once again the lyrics which are a bit more fun than their previous material in addition to being more poignant on the ballads, sure some of them can be taken the wrong way (particularly on the third track) however these songs are far better written than most that are released these days.

Hit singles

Rocket man

Honky cat

We have another masterpiece from Elton John's catalogue, this being his first million selling album thanks to the singles connecting well with audiences better than anything he had released prior. While the sentimental tracks remain as poignant as ever, this album really shines with the fun tracks (particularly the lead single) which helped him and Bernie establish themselves as a fun pop duo that can cater to both the masses and the music snobs of their era.

There's not much I can say about this album that hasn't already been said, it's a fantastic album from easily my favourite artist from the pre disco era.

Hit singles

Crocodile rock

Daniel

While I can see this being a turnoff for those who think the 80's are completely overrated thanks to its production being indicative of the times, I have to say that the production holds up extremely well on this album (certainly better than most albums of this era) and manages to highlight the strengths of these songs as opposed to hinder them like it did on Elton's previous album.

That said, the real triumph on here is the return of Bernie Taupin as the main lyricist, not only that, but he appears to have written them with a theme of coming back stronger than ever, making this album a comeback of sorts despite Elton doing just fine commercially without the team up. Like I said, this album takes the formula from Jump up and perfects it with having slick production paired with Elton's warm vocals and strong lyrics to make both the ballads and upbeat tracks be emotional and fun at the same time.

Hit singles

I'm still standing

I guess that's why they call it the blues

Crystal

Kiss the bride

This is hands down Elton John's best album bar none, the writing is at its best on this album as are the melodies which is impressive considering this is the first album where Elton and Bernie experiment with their sound as they toy around with glam, prog and even reggae at one point (said track is naturally the weakest on the album.)

Whether it's his tribute to Marilyn Monroe, him sharing his nostalgia for the Wizard of oz or writing an anthem for a bar brawl, there's plenty Bernie has to offer us in the lyrics department which Elton expertly delivers with his warm vocals and his timeless compositions on the album. This is to be expected given that it's a double album, however it's one of those albums that's over before you know it unlike most other double albums.

Check it out if you haven't already, it's the perfect gateway into both Elton's music and Bernie's songwriting if you're looking for an entry point into their vast catalogue.

Hit singles

Saturday night's alright for fighting

Goodbye yellow brick road

Candle in the wind

Bennie and the jets

More hits on the digital charts 00's

Well, I guess it's fitting that I would make this expansion to my list of the biggest digital hits of the 00's given how there's was obviously more than 200 songs that got big off the format that decade, although not much hence why I'm doing things a bit differently here. I'll start off with the songs that barely missed the cut and then will feature six songs that likely would've made the cut had the digital charts existed during the first three months of 2006. I round out this post by making quick commentary of songs that were big hits on our physical charts and why they weren't as such on our digital charts.

Well, I did mention that there were two versions of this song floating around on our digital chart back in the day, this entry is for the less popular version (which I can't find album art for) which goes to show just how inescapable this ballad was back in the day with us Aussies as this far out charted many other songs of the day.

not eligible for physical list

This was equally as popular on our digital storefront as it was as a physical single, I guess this makes sense given how it fits both as a club banger as well as an alternative rock track much like La roux's entry from the main list. It's a shame these guys remain a one hit wonder to this day despite massive attempts at escaping the one hit wonder bin.

#205 on physical list

This was another near miss for the main list that proved to be equally as successful as both a digital release and as a physical release here in Australia, again this is further proof that pop divas were equally as welcome with the cool kids as they were with the more mainstream audience throughout the decade.

#209 on physical list

I told you this only barely missed the cut for appearing on the main list, in fact it's technically more popular than "This love" on the digital format but only because it charted much higher on those charts. It of course didn't chart nearly as long which is why it places much lower on this list than that does.

#267 on physical list

For whatever reason, we Aussies became more receptive to victory singles as the decade was coming to an end when it came to digital sales, I guess this was a sign that even the more mundane audiences of the day finally gravitated towards digital downloads with ballads such as this.

#147 on physical list

Although nostalgia was what gave these girls a massive hit with their debut single as a group (and indeed fuelled the success of their entire catalogue) that success was largely from audiences that weren't using the digital storefront given how much less successful this was as a digital track.

#23 on physical list

Much like the previous entry, this was a hit fuelled by our collective nostalgia of the original, although I guess Natalie was also on a roll around this time thanks to her involvement with the Rogue traders as Shannon's absence on these lists of mine has been noticeable.

#46 on physical list

You'd think this would've been a shoe in for the main list, however even as a digital single, this took forever in a day to climb up our charts even after it placed high on the 2007-year end list for Triple J. At least it being a rock track meant that it was able to have more presence on the digital charts than it did on our physical charts which is a luxury it wouldn't have had even a year later.

not eligible for physical list

I did point out on the main list that T.I saw considerably less success on our digital charts than he did with his physical sales, although at least all three of his big hits he had here did make somewhat of an impact on our digital storefront back in the day which is more than I can say for most rappers of the day.

#252 on physical list

We have another hip hop track that saw sound success on our digital charts back in the day, this time it's the breakthrough hit from the Hilltop hoods who were able to match the success they had on our physical charts on the format, or at least achieve moderate success as we're quickly running out of genuine hits during the 00's in this regard on this list.

#233 on physical list

There were two versions of this ballad floating around back in the day, this was obviously the single version as it charted prior to the release of Vanessa's comeback album. It appears the album version did take away enough of this version's success that it really struggled to make it on this bonus list of mine despite how inescapable it was on our airwaves.

#84 on physical list

I guess this is proof that the digital charts wouldn't have done much to recoup Avril's losses from her first two albums given how this feels like a track that belongs on those albums, at least it did decently well hence its appearance on this list, but we clearly were more interested in her bratty new direction at this point.

#96 on physical list

This is the final song to make this list that had multiple versions of it, of course this is the uncensored version as I don't recall anyone talking about the radio version which replaces the infamous "oh shit!'s" with "oh snap!'s" in the song. In this regard, it's difficult to say if this was the weakest song from Fergie on the format overall, but it's certainly far from the strongest.

#143 on physical list

This is my final entry that appeared as a bonus entry on one of my official lists, here it's the fourth single from JT's second album which naturally was a victim of high album sales on the physical charts that resulted in its placement as a bonus entry.

not eligible for physical list

I honestly would've thought this would be a shoe in for the main list, although I guess this does come from a former cast member of Neighbours even though this feels like something the Veronicas would've released at the time. I guess this conflicted with hipper audiences who liked the song but not the fact it was a Neighbour’s property.

#116 on physical list

To think this nearly didn't make the cut for this extended list of mine, although this does feel out of step with the rest of the girls catalogue, so perhaps the audience this appealed to wasn't among their main audience who likely felt alienated by these otherwise promiscuous women standing up for themselves on this track.

#176 on physical list

This is the last entry on this list that was a hit on the digital charts throughout the decade, that's right, there were only seventeen songs that failed to make the official list with this bratty single from Avril's third album being one of them. It goes to show how exclusive the format was given how many other songs failed to make the cut from around this time.

#237 on physical list

This next section covers songs that I'm sure would've made the cut had the digital charts launched just a little while sooner than it did.

I did mention that this was pulled from shelves here in Australia back in the day, well it appears that digital sales were so strong going into 2006 that this managed to crack the digital top twenty upon its initial week proving how well loved this collaboration with Kanye West and Jamie Foxx was here in Australia.

not eligible for physical list

This is the song that lasted the longest on the digital charts in this section, suggesting that it was an easy hit on that format given how it was released two months prior to when the charts were launched here in Australia. It's easy to see why this connected with the hipsters given that it has whistling throughout the track which was a common trend in alternative music at the time.

#45 on physical list

While it's not the oldest song on this list (that would of course be Kanye's entry from before) the fact this managed to still be in the top twenty for a while once the digital charts launched should tell you how much the hipsters loved James Blunt back in the day. Who knows how high this would be on the main charts if they launched during the peak of its popularity.

not eligible for physical list

I guess this was released quite early in the year which would explain why it only lasted a few weeks on the digital charts when they first launched, this suggests that the second single from Nickelback's magnum opus All the right reasons was indeed quite popular on the format and thus, popular with those more in touch with the hip crowd.

#194 on physical list

This had a high peak on the digital charts when they launched (making it have the highest peak position in this section) however it dropped fairly quickly soon after which suggests that the format launched right when this song was coming out of vogue in our music scene. It makes sense given how it had been out for two months once the format launched and that it came from a highly successful album.

#182 on physical list

This may have quickly fallen off the digital charts once they initially launched, however it too was released several months prior to their launch which easily suggests that it was simply going out of vogue in our music scene rather than it being rejected by the digital crowd. Quite impressive given how Ashlee disgraced herself two years prior with her infamous SNL performance in the eyes of the music scene.

#228 on physical list

Finally, these are the songs that didn't make the cut for any part of this list that would apply to my physical list

Even though they were no longer in teen pop, Westlife did begin their career as a boy band which likely rubbed our digital storefront the wrong way.

#48 on physical list

I guess Chris Brown needed to earn his way into becoming a superstar as far as our digital storefront was concerned as there’s no evidence this was a hit at all if that format launched during the height of its popularity.

#122 on physical list

Wasn't much of a hit on our digital charts at all, likely due to its popularity coming strictly through its video.

#126 on physical list

Akon was very unpopular on our digital format for some reason.

#133 on physical list

While not a teen pop track, it likely felt too much like her earlier material which was teen pop to our digital storefront.

#146 on physical list

Victory singles generally didn't do so well on our digital charts like they did as physical media.

#152 on physical list

I actually don't know why this was more of a hit on our physical charts than it was on our digital charts.

#155 on physical list

The success of this track is the inverse of what "Shut up and drive" achieved here in Australia.

#159 on physical list

Again, Akon seemed particularly unwelcomed on our digital storefront.

#160 on physical list

50 cent was particularly not well received on our digital storefront even with the presence of JT on this track.

#170 on physical list

 Likely due to it coming off too much as a victory single from a reality series which our digital storefront wasn't a fan of in the 00's.

#173 on physical list

Likely due to the appeal of this track coming from its music video on YouTube.

#179 on physical list

Another victory single that wasn't even that popular as a physical release.

#192 on physical list

Likely due to her being more of an early social media star than a singer, similar to how Paris Hilton didn't make the cut on this list.

#195 on physical list

Same reason that that applies to "Run it.")

#196 on physical list

Same reason that applies to Westlife's entry.

#199 on physical list