
The Rate
The late 00s and early 10s saw the debut of a range of artists who toed the line between singer-songwriter and pop-star, combining the unique perspective and idiosyncrasies of the former and the big, full pop songs and strong visual element of the latter, in a type of music that was, at least at the time, often labeled as "quirky pop". Many of these artists continue to be forum favourites to this day, and this rate will serve both as a celebration of the starting points of their careers and also as an introduction for those less familiar with them.
The Artists
Despite the rate's theme, there's actually quite a wide variety of sounds in the rate. You have all the artists most commonly associated with "quirky pop", such as
The Songs
Six songs were picked to represent each of the sixteen albums in the rate. These songs were selected in collaboration with forum users who will also be preparing write-ups for each of the albums, and the aim was for them to provide a good representation of their parent album. Of course nearly all of the "big" singles are present, but certain ones that just wouldn't fit the rate were omitted, and we made sure to always include at least one deep cut in each selection, as there's more to these albums than just the singles.
The Rules
Rate the songs from 0 to 10, including one 11, and PM me your ballot. Feel free to use as many decimals and write as much commentary as you want. And please be sensible with your scores. Even if you're not a fan of one or more of these artists/albums, I don't want to see ballots completely tanking some of the sections.
Also: for each of the albums, make sure to list your favourite song not in the rate in your ballot! If there are any albums you haven't previously listened to in full, Why not take the time and do it? There are tons of great songs that didn't make the cut, and there's still plenty of time until the deadline. And on that note...
The Deadline
May 23 23:59 BST
May 23 23:59 BST
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