Top 10 Songs I Never Want To Hear Again In 2013 (But Probably Will)

10. Kelly Clarkson - Stronger
I know this is popular with a lot of people, but I've gotten to the point where I just find that chorus mind-numbing. It just doesn't do anything for me and never has, and the damn song is everywhere.

 9. Rita Ora - R.I.P.
Really just a bad song, honestly. One of the laziest melodies of the year, and I'm baffled by her success, musically.

 8. Gym Class Heroes (ft. Adam Levine) - Stereo Hearts
Adam Levine's vocals grate at the best of times, but they're particularly annoying in the hook to this hip-pop track. Catchy in the most annoying way.

7. Emeli Sande - Next To Me/Read All About It (Pt. III)
I couldn't choose between these two tracks, because I find them both really irritating. I realize Sande might be a lot of people's thing, but I find this kind of lifeless, light soul-pop really irritating.

6. Phillip Phillips - Home
This started out okay, but once it was used for every single advertisement in the world, I had to throw up my hands in defeat. Enough already! I feel like this song has been playing on repeat for my entire life.

5. Jessie J - Laser Light
Another year, another insipid Jessie J track. I haven't been a fan of anything she's done (her voice and general persona annoys me to no end), but at least this isn't her worst. That honor goes to the overplayed and uber-obnoxious Price Tag.

4. Nicki Minaj - Starships
This is the year where Minaj became really unpleasant. I find everything she does now to be needlessly attention-grabbing without anything to really back it up. It's the worst when she crosses over to pop, like in this song.

3. Alicia Keys - Girl On Fire
I am simply not a fan of Keys' dirge-like approach to writing melodies. I find her music so ugly sounding just in the composition and production of it. I've accepted that this is just me and my taste, but this track is a great example of that go-nowhere, midtempo, unmelodic songwriting. I realize I might be in the minority on this.

2. Taylor Swift - We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together
SO annoying. I refuse to believe that anyone actually likes this. The spoken bits are easily the most irritating bit of music in 2012. It's the exact reason Swift has always annoyed me. I guess it's supposed to be cute or funny or ironic or something, but what it really does is make her seem like an irritatingly self-obsessed romantic comedy lead.

1. Karmin - Brokenhearted I really don't know what it is with this song. It's probably those ridiculously vile spoken "cheerio" bits. They ring of that "aren't we so clever?" vibe that always rubs me the wrong way. Whatever the case, I think this was the nadir of pop music in 2012. Completely derivative, even as they attempted to have a "quirky" personality. It all felt very forced and patronizing.

So that's my top ten, guys. Agree? Disagree? What song do you never want to hear again in 2013?

Countdown to the Countdowns: The Worst Singles of 2011

yes, it's a matter of taste, but if I didn't have taste I wouldn't be running this blog. So before I count down the best tracks of the year, let's look at a few that I never want to hear again.

1. Pink - F**kin Perfect/Jessie J - Price Tag
With her first two albums, Pink was very high on my list of the best pop stars out there. Then she began to repeat herself and water down the music. Perfect, with it’s cutesy lyrics and plodding chorus, just turned me right off her. And if that’s not bad enough, we were forced to endure the song twice this year under two names. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, the chorus of Price Tag is exactly the same thing. As if it wasn’t mind-numbing enough the first time.

2. Christina Perri - Jar Of Hearts
Suffers similar problems as Pink’s song. It’s got those kind of Starbucks poetry, precious lyrics that just rub me the wrong way. Still, it was a hit around the world. I know people love it, but I seriously can’t listen to it again.

3. Bruno Mars - The Lazy Song
Almost Don’t Worry, Be Happy levels of irritation. It’s the kind of novelty track that sets an artist back years in my opinion. Everything else Bruno released this year was fine. This made me scream every time I heard it on the radio.

4. Anything by Taylor Swift
Sometimes it feels like I’m the only one in the world that who is totally done with Taylor Swift. I just can’t deal with the “dooby dooby doo… princess… dooby dooby doo… white horse… dooby dooby doo… ballerina…” nature of her songwriting. I know I’m not the target audience and that it’s just a matter of taste, but to me it’s like nails on a chalkboard.

5. Matt Cardle - Run For Your Life
The UK X-Factor winner lived up to his title of dullest champion yet with this unceremonious dirge. The title basically says it all.

6. Hot Chelle Rae - Tonight, Tonight
This epitomizes what irks me about the hipster mentality in pop music. It's like the soundtrack to a bad romantic comedy (in fact, it probably is). None of the little catchphrases in this track are the least bit cute or funny.

7. Coldplay - Paradise
More of a pet peeve of mine than anything. I hate songs whose chorus consists of the same word repeated over and over again. To me, it's lazy songwriting and almost always results in a plodding melody. Coldplay have done much, much better in the past. I can't believe I gave this a decent grade when it first came out.

8. Train - Marry Me
Thankfully it never became as ubiquitous as their last single, because this is the most saccharine track they've ever released.

Pop Blitz 9/8/10

Alexandra Burke - Start Without You A RedOne production, which in itself is something to be thankful for because he compliments Alexandra quite well. This wasn't on the album, but should have been. It's got a bit of novelty to it with the Caribbean feel, but it's fun late-Summer pop. B+

Cee Lo Green - FU
He's finally found another track to rival Crazy! This is great, old-school soul (though the hook's foul-mouthed lyrics are bound to get him censored). A-

Bruno Mars - Just The Way You Are
Currently the number one song on US itunes, this is a slightly trancey ballad that's actually better than I expected. The melody's nice, if a little boyband. It sounds very current, in a way that's pleasant now but completely forgettable down the road. B-

Taylor Swift - Mine
And she's regurgitated the same single over again. Each time, the music becomes less charming. This targets her audience perfectly, but it's just grating for the rest of us. C

Rihanna - Only Girl (In The World)
It's back to uptempo dance music for Rihanna. This is a good thing, and this is a great song. There's a danger of this sounding like everything else out there, but she definitely puts her own stamp on it. A promising taster from the new album. A

Selena Gomez & the Scene - A Year Without Rain
Ends her string of great bubblegum pop singles. This is her trying to be serious, which results in a snore of a song that's more mood than melody. Too bad. It's her first big misstep as far as singles go. C+

Olly Murs - Please Don't Let Me Go
He was a consummate song and dance man on X-Factor, but this dials down the showmanship in favor of a Jason Mraz sound. It's not annoying, but it's not interesting either. It's just sort of there. B-

Pop Blitz 1/22/10

Goldfrapp - Rocket
This is better than I dared hope Goldfrapp would come back with, especially after their left-turn of a folk-pop album. Bright, summery synths never sounded better. It's like they studied this blog and constructed something to appeal especially to me. A

Young Money - BedRock
I remember when the whole Cash Money brand produced some decent (if incredibly stupid and easily mocked) rap music. I like Lil' Wayne when he was a teenager, or Juvenile's dumb singles, or even the ridiculous "Hot Boys." This is garbage. They took out all of the fun. F

Taylor Swift - Today Was A Fairytale
Let the overexposure begin. How long can she write about fairytales and princes and crap like that? I don't buy that she's always the great lyricist people claim she is. This is sub-par Hallmark card material. Her last one was heaps better. C-

Orianthi - According To You
The guitar is fantastic. Unfortunately, the song's an absolute bore. And, oh my god, who approved of that video? Why the hell is there the neck of a guitar covering the screen half of the time? C

Example - Won't Go Quietly
This could definitely use a stronger chorus. The verses are definitely the best part, but all in all it's pretty forgettable. A time-passer, though I doubt I'll remember it in a few months. B-

Justin Bieber - Baby (ft. Ludacris)
How lucky is this kid? Right place, right time. Like his past singles, it's certainly catchy. I actually kind of like the chorus a lot more than I should. Guilty pleasure, for sure.B

Marianas Trench - Beside You
An emo rock worth noting, especially since I usually hate emo rock. The African elements to this are gorgeous and add an interesting texture to what could've been a boring ballad. A-

Top 50 Singles of 2009: 40-36

40. La Roux - In For The Kill



Icy and dramatic, this proved to be the introduction to one of the more interesting looking popstars of the year. Too shrill at first, but after a few months resistance was futile.

39. Muse - Uprising



The furthest the band has ever ventured into straight-up glam rock, this had a beat to die for. Couple that with a slyly memorable hook and some football chants, and you’ve got yourself an anthem.

38. Jesse McCartney - How Do You Sleep



A surprise addition to the list, this kitschy pop/hip-hop single was inescapable this spring, and the chorus was one of the best of McCartney’s career.

37. Robbie Williams - Bodies



The big comeback single that didn’t seem to be so big at first. Like all the best songs, it became more and more impressive as the weeks went on.

36. Taylor Swift - You Belong With Me



She’s verging on the point of over saturation, but before that, this simple, lovelorn pop song hearkened back to the simple radio hits of the late nineties.