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1985 B-Sides SEMI FINALS!
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— 27 April 2023 Tom

Democracy hasn’t had a great run of it in recent years but it can still deliver a result like this – a pair of B-Sides semi finals which give voters a window seat at the birth of Detroit Techno, Chicago House and Dancehall.

These will be the last set of Peoples Pop Polls before we move to the new site – there’s still the Final to come but I’ll run that on Twitter as I don’t want polls to be ongoing when the actual move starts.

There will be an exciting new destination (and URL) for People’s Pop and Freaky Trigger will go back to hosting everything I/we do that isn’t polls or Number 1 song reviews (yes, those will be back again).

Thanks for taking part – I’ve already learned plenty about how the new poll plug-in works and I’m looking forward to seeing you on the new, specially designed for polls, site next week for the opening matches of our charity pop poll.

OK, let’s do some polling…

[ays_poll id=29][ays_poll id=30]

Latest comments (of 3)

healingandy   19 months ago

*headbutts mic* Is this thing on?

mondosalvo   19 months ago

Test comment with twitter login

Stabilimentum   19 months ago

I've voted every time against Model 500. I'm not stopping now!

1985 B-Side QUARTER FINALS
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— 26 April 2023 Tom

We’re down to the last 8 competitors in the A-Sides (on Twitter) and the B-Sides (here!). The winners in these matches enter PollHalla, the pop poll hall of fame, and you have less than a day to make the choices.

I’ve not re-ordered the YT playlist but these tracks are all there, and linked in the matches. And Tenor Saw is starting us off anyway…

…in an all-reggae clash with Sophia George!

Our second Quarter-Final puts our last remaining song from the Global bracket, Youssou N’Dour, up against Detroit’s Model 500.

Chicago house in QF 3 – it’s Mr Fingers vs Lone Justice

And finally back to dancehall as Wayne “Sleng Teng” Smith goes up against Squirrel “Every subsequent post-rock band” Bait!

[ays_poll id=25][ays_poll id=26][ays_poll id=27][ays_poll id=28]

Latest comments (of 2)

koganbot   19 months ago

As was one of the tracks in Quarter-Final 4. So it might (also?) be the absence of vote splitting, or different vote splitting; and it might include people changing their minds, as in the Not In […]

Tom   19 months ago

Match 1 is interesting cos it's some indicator of how the off-Twitter vote might differ from the Twitter vote (the two tracks were in a Qualifier together)

1985 B-Sides – THE FINAL GROUPS
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— 24 April 2023 Tom

We’re down to our last 16 B-Side tracks in the World Cup Of 1985 – a parade of the underground, the influential, and the unjustly forgotten.

They’ve been split into four final groups. The Top 2 in each will advance. But in a bit of EXPERIMENTAL POLLING, you can vote for your preferred two in each group. I’m interested to see what difference (if any!) that makes.

Polls end on Wednesday morning UK time and we’ll have our quarter-finals that afternoon. Here’s the YouTube playlist:

Now for the actual polls:

First group:

Second group:

Third group:

Fourth group:

Vote in them all! Tomorrow it’s the A-Side Octofinals over on Twitter too.

[ays_poll id=21][ays_poll id=22][ays_poll id=23][ays_poll id=24]

Latest comments (of 6)

Tom   19 months ago

It feels like we are heading towards some kind of 'clash' of Jamaican 'sounds'.

James BC   19 months ago

This is good - the more of these songs I can vote for, the better. Crossing everything for Girlie Girlie - my nominations hardly ever get anywhere and I couldn't be more pleased and surprised if […]

koganbot   19 months ago

Got the instruction but like Al I didn't think two was enough for the third group.* Finally went w/ Wayne and Sugar, the tie-breaker between Sugar and Schoolly being that "Jammin'" kept its variety […]

TheRealBreadco   19 months ago

I missed that instruction too! Bummer!

1985! B-Sides Round 2 Matches 12-16
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— 21 April 2023 Tom

Here are the final four B-Sides Round 2 matches in THE WORLD CUP OF 1985, which is also continuing over on Twitter at the peoples_pop account (assuming Elon keeps polls intact).

Here’s the YouTube playlist for these:

Matches today include Sophia George, Newcleus, Robert Wyatt (again!), Squirrel Bait, Sugar Minott, Amina, Lone Justice and The Triffids…

Sophia’s reggae-pop bounce and Newcleus’ electro-rap form our first pairing.

That’s followed by a second Robert Wyatt selection – this time it’s “The Age Of Self”, up against uncanny 90s-inventors Squirrel Bait.

Next it’s the full-length dub version of Sugar Minott playing Amina’s French-Tunisian disco-funk

And bringing our B-Sides Round 2 matches to a close it’s Lone Justice head-to-head with this glowering epic from The Triffids.

All these matches except the Minott/Amina one are also on Spotify!

At the weekend Twitter will host the A-Side final groups then come back here on Monday for their B-Side equivalents…

[ays_poll id=17][ays_poll id=18][ays_poll id=19][ays_poll id=20]

A single comment

Cloglover69   20 months ago

Squirrel bait is one of the best things I’ve ever heard in A PPP, crazy what those guys went on to do.

THE WORLD CUP OF 1985! B-Sides Round 2 Matches 9-12
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— 20 April 2023 Tom

 

Back back BACK with four more matches from the 1985 World Cup, underground polls for the more discerning people’s pop palate. Or something like that.

YouTube playlist:

And onto the polls themselves:

Our first match is an absolute cracker – house music from Mr Fingers v freestyle from Brenda K Starr

[ays_poll id=13]

Then we’ve got the first of two Robert Wyatt tunes in the B-Sides, this time it’s “Gharbzadegi” up against The Damned.

[ays_poll id=14]

Proto-gangsta rap vs chic French pop as Schoolly D and Etienne Daho face off in match number three.

[ays_poll id=15]

And finally it’s the arsequake v punkabilly showdown you probably failed to demand as the Butthole Surfers take on the Redskins

[ays_poll id=16]

The Spotify playlist actually has all these tracks – here it is:

Latest comments (of 4)

Tom   19 months ago

I'm glad my remaining nom (PSK) is alive here, but sad because I've, er, fallen for Etienne Daho's track and its wonderful slapstick pratfall synth riff.

Tom   20 months ago

#2 I think at this point they were kind of leaning into their goofiness a bit - they definitely come over as panto goths here and on "Eloise". They were the one punk-era remnant who seemed really […]

Vinnycrackers   20 months ago

So I always think of the Damned as kind of a ludicrous band. Like I don't take them seriously at all. Is it just me?

Tom   20 months ago

Curse the Butthole Surfers for making me vote with the band with the grossest name in the tournament (their opponents)

THE WORLD CUP OF 1985! B-Sides Round 2 Matches 5-8
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— 19 April 2023 Tom

Four more matches of lesser-known or lower-voted tracks from 1985.

This time we’ve got a YouTube playlist set up, starting with Youssou N’Dour

And matches involving Youssou, Indochine, John Cale, The Woodentops, Wayne Smith, Zazou Bikaye, The Dead Milkmen and The Chameleons.

First up it’s a spicy Senegal v France clash – Youssou N’Dour v Indochine.

[ays_poll id=9]

Then John Cale’s stentorian balladry faces the indie-skiffle of The Woodentops

[ays_poll id=10]

Match 7 sees Wayne Smith’s iconic riddim up against French-Congolese pop from Zazou Bikaye

[ays_poll id=11]

And finally, the not wholly serious Dead Milkmen battle the really very serious indeed Chameleons.

[ays_poll id=12]

There’s also a Spotify playlist which has lots of missing tracks (those B-Sides are obscure!) but has everything in match order.

Latest comments (of 2)

Tom   20 months ago

The Cale/Woodentops match is level again! Big John looking down in bafflement at the array of twitching puppets snapping at his ankles.

Tom   20 months ago

I removed the sleeves cos they looked like butt. (I had done something stupid w/the formatting)

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