It was probably the “looking into windows” bit that sold the judges…
One of the best pop music websites on the internet, Popjustice, has made a name for themselves for their taste for amazing pop music (specializing in British…the best kind) and cleverly written reviews and stories. In response to the prestigious and usually bullshit Mercury Prize, which awards the winner £20,000, Popjustice created the annual 20 Quid Music Prize, which one would hopefully gather, awards the winner £20.
The winners since the prize started in 2003 are as follows:
2003 - Girls Aloud: No Good Advice
2004 - Rachel Stevens: Some Girls
2005 - Girls Aloud: Wake Me Up
2006 - Girls Aloud: Biology
2007 - Amy Winehouse: Rehab
2008 - Girls Aloud: Call the Shots
Now one might stop me and call out the obvious bias I may or may not have for Popjustice and where their tastes and loyalties lie, but to those people I will simply point out that it just happens that Popjustice and I both know a certified hit when we hear it.
So for the 2009 award, the shortlist that the judges had to work with included the following:
JLS - Beat Again
Frankmusik - Better Off as Two
Calvin Harris - I’m Not Alone
La Roux - In for the Kill
Pet Shop Boys - Love Etc.
Saint Etienne - Method of MOdern Love
Little Boots - New in Town
Tinchy Stryder - Take Me Back
Girls Aloud - The Promise
The Saturdays - Up
Alesha Dixon - The Boy Does Nothing
Lily Allen - The Fear
The standouts for me were The Fear, The Boy Does Nothing, Up, and The Promise. Had Bulletproof been chosen for La Roux and Remedy chosen for Little Boots (as they were far superior singles), the competition would have been much stiffer in my humble opinion. My obvious choice for the win was The Promise as it was not only the best single, but it best represented everything I love about pop music and the way it continues to move forward (by essentially moving backwards to a 60s-style sound, naturally). But to further beat an already dead horse, it also includes some amazing bits - my favorite being Nadine’s entrance into the song with the following line:
“I’ve given up just looking into windows - had enough of wishing I found you, baby don’t you know”
If you weren’t already aware, this is just a fraction of the song and it already exudes pop perfection…even if you don’t even know the melody. The judging panel put together their own list of positives and negatives about the song when making the final decision. It look a little something (aka exactly) like this:
The judging panel met last night in a “pub” as they’re called over the Atlantic, and the list was narrowed down to The Promise and I’m Not Alone with the obvious winner being Girls Aloud for the 5th time.
Nicola Roberts, pale as ever with crazy hair for days, made a surprise appearance and accepted the award while also nominating another Girls Aloud single, The Loving Kind, for worst single of the year. That honor ended up going to Sugababes’ Girls. The loser, naturally, gets a bill for £20 to cover the cost of the illustrious prize.
Well done, Girls Aloud - enjoy all that the £20 has to offer.
