Triple J’s Hottest 100

1	Muse – Knights of Cydonia
2	Silverchair – Straight Lines
3	Kings Of Leon – On Call
4	John Butler Trio – Better Than
5	Faker – This Heart Attack
6	Foo Fighters – The Pretender
7	Daft Punk – Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger (live)
8	Cold War Kids – Hang Me Up To Dry
9	Soko – I’ll Kill Her
10	The Panics – Don’t Fight It
11	Bluejuice – Vitriol
12	The Wombats – Let’s Dance To Joy Division
13	Kaiser Chiefs – Ruby
14	Muscles – Ice Cream
15	Powderfinger – Lost And Running
16	Gyroscope – Snakeskin
17	M.I.A – Paper Planes
18	The Presets – The My People
19	Architecture In Helsinki – Heart It Races
20	Kanye West – Stronger
21	Chemical Brothers – The Salmon Dance
22	John Butler Trio – Used To Get High
23	White Stripes – Icky Thump
24	Bloc Party – Hunting For Witches
25	Urthboy – We Get Around
26	Hilltop Hoods – Recapturing The Vibe (Restrung)
27	Operator Please – Just A Song About Ping Pong
28	Silversun Pickups – Lazy Eye
29	Regina Spektor – Real Love (Like A Version)
30	Silverchair – If You Keep Losing Sleep
31	Angus & Julia Stone – Wasted
32	Kisschasy – Opinions Won’t Keep You Warm At Night
33	Kings Of Leon – Fans
34	Feist – 1234
35	Justice – D.A.N.C.E
36	Architecture In Helsinki – Hold Music
37	Cold War Kids – Hospital Beds
38	Beautiful Girls – I Thought About You
39	Cut Copy – Hearts On Fire
40	Bloc Party – I Still Remember
41	Modest Mouse – Dashboard
42	Tegan And Sara – Back In Your Head
43	Lupe Fiasco (Feat. Matthew Santos) – Superstar
44	My Chemical Romance – Teenagers
45	Angus & Julia Stone – The Beast
46	British India – Tie Up My Hands
47	Cog – What If
48	Bloc Party – Flux
49	Arctic Monkeys – Fluorescent Adolescent
50	Cat Empire – So Many Nights
51	Missy Higgins – Peachy
52	Kisschasy – Spray On Pants
53	Missy Higgins – Steer
54	Klaxons – Golden Skans
55	John Butler Trio – Good Excuse
56	Xavier Rudd – Better People
57	Midnight Juggernauts – Into The Galaxy
58	Muse – Invincible
59	Fratellis – Chelsea Dagger
60	Kings Of Leon – Charmer
61	Birds Of Tokyo – Wayside
62	Cat Empire – No Longer There
63	Karnivool – The Only Way
64	The Shins – Australia
65	Editors – Smokers Outside The Hospital Doors
66	Powderfinger – I Don’t Remember
67	Amy Winehouse – Rehab (feat. Jay-Z)
68	Ben Kweller – Penny On The Train Track
69	Digitalism – Pogo
70	Tegan And Sara – The Con
71	Butterfly Effect – Reach
72	Jose Gonzalez – Down The Line
73	Grinspoon – Black Tattoo
74	British India – Run The Red Light
75	Kasabian – Shoot the Runner
76	Muscles – Sweaty
77	Operator Please – Get What You Want
78	Arctic Monkeys – Brianstorm
79	Josh Pyke – Lines On Palms
80	Silverchair – Reflections Of A Sound
81	Arcade Fire -No Cars Go
82	Foo Fighters – Long Road To Ruin
83	Wolfmother – Pleased To Meet You
84	Chemical Brothers – Do It Again
85	Yeah Yeah Yeahs – Down Boy
86	Midnight Juggernauts – Tombstone
87	Jackson Jackson – Eliza
88	The Cops – Message
89	Queens Of The Stone Age – Sick, Sick, Sick
90	Clare Bowditch & The Feeding Set – When The Lights Went Down
91	Josh Pyke – Sew My Name
92	The Waifs – Sun Dirt Water
93	Bumblebeez – Dr Love
94	Radiohead – Jigsaw Falling Into Place
95	Regina Spektor – Samson
96	Ben Lee – Love Me Like The World Is Ending
97	Josh Pyke – Forever Song
98	Interpol – The Heinrich Maneuver
99	The Hives – Tick Tick Boom
100	Pnau – Wild Strawberries

It’s basically an Australian tradition, a relatively new one, I grant you, but if an Australia Day passed that I, at least, wasn’t sitting next to the radio (or had one blaring loudly so that I could hear it in my beer drinking position), I would feel somewhat dirty!

A little explanation behind the whole principle… Triple J, Australias government funded “youth” radio station, each year holds an election of sort, for the top 100 songs released in the previous year. This is thoughtfully names the “Hottest 100”. Each January 26th, we sit down and intently listen from about 10am to about 6pm as Triple J plays the songs one by one, starting at #100 and slowly working their way to #1

Whether you are working (unfortunate for you being a public holiday and all), driving, eating, playing Yahtzee, jelly wresting in an inflatable pool down at the local beach, plying boule whilst someone supplies you with beverages and cooks a BBQ… it’s somewhat blasphemous (in my eyes) not to have the radio tuned in.

I must admit, that this year, having recently started a new job and not being able to have the radio blaring all day every day, I have fallen behind when it comes to new music. So i was a little lost, in fact many of the songs that made it up there this year, i had never heard before.

Now, if you’ll kindly cast your eyes to the left, you’ll see the final list and because I’m biased, I have highlighted the Australian artists in bold.

It’s quite interesting to actually look at what makes it in each year, because basically, it’s the favourite songs of a large proportion of Australia’s “youth”. For instance, but looking at the list, you see that more than half of the songs are by Australian artists. This is frankly, quite awesome to see. But at the same time reflects the fact that Triple J does a great job of promoting local artists.

Focusing on the top 10. I guess you could say that the songs were pretty much all expected to be up there.

The Panics – winners of a JJJ award for their album “Cruel Guards” another of the volumous brilliant bands that come out of Perth (my theory is because there’s not a great deal else to do there)…. *ahem*

Daft Punk have had a massive come back this year just passed (not that they really ever completely went away). I too agree that they’re quite awesome in the realms of electronica, but another case of “i like your old stuff better than your new stuff” exists in my heart for these guys.

Faker – well… i‘ve said all I need to say about Faker. but i admit, appealing to the vast masses by giving them that standard brand of rock that is by no means, bad…. just boring.

Both Silverchair and the John Butler Trio made several appearances throughout the day. And deservadly so.

The only similarities between these two bands is that they are based in Australia, pump out some crazily catchy tunes and have singers who could well be mistaken for hippies. Although I must say that anyone who grows up in the Australian coastal city of Newcastle, as is the case for young Daniel Johns (and myself) and doesn’t turn out as a surfy wanker, it’s thumbs up from me. It was easier for me being a hater of sun, sand and also being female.

I can’t say i’m a big John Butler Trio fan, but talentless they are not. Their songs are well constructed and meaningful.

In the case of Silverchairs‘ ‘Straight lines’, more than one person had picked this as being the number 1 song for the day. I was inclined to agree. In my opinion, there were not obvious stand out songs of 2006.

So when i came time to huddling round the radio, beer in hand, to find out what that number one song was, we were all in quite a state of confusion. What other bands had released albums in 2007?

No idea.

And I must say, the fact that Muse came in at #1 was a huge surprise. Considering that their latest album, Black Holes and revalations, was relased in 2006.

Oh well…. another year over.
You can listen to it here, if you so desire.

So remember, no matter where you are in the world you are this coming December, voting is open to everyone! So start writing down the names of those catchy songs now.

Have a good one! Sal
p.s. you ca listen to JJJ online… just pop in here.