Merry Christmas #1

The UK appears to be the last place in the world where people seem to still care about the music singles chart. The only time I could imagine anybody considering buying a single would be if the song were clearly a one-hit wonder. If the single comes from a good album, why would you spend £3 for it when you could have the entire album for £10? Instantly, this ensures that any talented artist has negligible singles chart success. For example, despite the fact that The Thrills and Athlete have sold albums by the bucketload this year, they have had hardly any singles dent the Top 40. People own the album, why would they want the single? The result: a chart full of bubblegum pop and novelty garbage. Furthermore, why would you spend any money on one single when it is so easy to either download it (paid or otherwise) or arrange somebody else to burn it on CD for you? Since paid downloads aren’t included on the singles chart, the sale of only a few thousand singles across the entire UK could result in a number one.

Most people are quite aware of this fact. Single sales are down by as much as 30% from the previous year. The bands charting - by and large - do not represent the taste of the British music buying public. To quote The Smiths, they certainly say nothing to me about my life. Yet British institutions such as Top of the Pops and the Radio One Countdown still stubbornly stick by the dinosaur that is the official singles chart.

Even stranger is the Christmas #1 which is the best selling single for the week leading up to Christmas. The rumours of who might get this year’s Christmas #1 have been circulating since October. I’m told it’s more of a tradition rather than actually having any meaning. Regardless, the big race begins this week to determine who will get the coveted #1. I’m personally gunning for The Darkness and their retro 70’s -sleigh bells and falsetto and all - Christmas single. This band is the one exception to the rule – by in large they have accounted for a huge surge in 7” vinyl sales (of all things!) which has translated to solid singles chart success. Since their Christmas single does not appear on their excellent album, and I don’t have the hardware to properly download it, I just might end up picking up a single after all. I can join the ranks of a few silly thousands who buy a single this season. If nothing else, I’d help ensure the Pop Idol finalists don’t take the Yuletide crown.

Onto other things:
After weeks of bureaucratic shenanigans, I finally managed to get the paperwork through at work and now have access to my new flat in Inverkeithing, a town not far from my work in Rosyth. I can’t express how happy I am to leave the confines of a hotel to something that I can call my own. Though I will now have to pay for my own pints. I’d tell you more about Inverkeithing, but there really isn’t much to say. It doesn’t even register as a blurb in my Lonely Planet guide to Britain. I think there was a battle or something nearby though – I’ll get back to you.

I also went to see the extended version of The Two Towers this weekend. If you’re a real fan of Tolkien’s books, it really is impossible to go back to the original once you’ve seen the extended version. Granted, the added scenes and lines may not be integral to the core plot per se, but it adds so much to the motivations and stories behind the characters and flushes out the history of Middle-earth without feeling like overkill. The flashback scene with Faramir and Boromir is worth it alone. I said it before, and will say it again: I am SO ready for Return of the King! 6 more days, precious.