Tuesday, February 25, 2014

The Mercyside 100: #10 to #1

Welcome to the final part of The Mercyside 100. On Saturday at around midnight I posted the DJ show revealing the 10 songs I played more than any other in 2013.

You can listen to that DJ show here:



But if you want to see the single/album artwork, or want to skip the show to find out The Top 10, here you go!


#10: Bangarang
Artist: Skrillex (feat. Sirah)
Album: Bangarang
Released: 2012

#9: Gentleman
Artist: PSY
Album: None
Released: 2013
Most played song of April 2013

#8: We Like Them Girls
Artist: Your Favourite Martian
Album: None
Released: 2012
Most played song of January 2013

#7: Back in the Saddle
Artist: Aerosmith
Album: Rocks
Released: 1976
Most played song of February 2013

#6: Get Low
Artist: Lil Jon
Album: Kings of Crunk
Released: 2002
Most played song of March 2013

#5: Blackout
Artist: Linkin Park
Album: A Thousand Suns
Released: 2010

#4: Thrift Shop
Artist: Macklemore and Ryan Lewis
Album: The Heist
Released: 2012

#3: Linchpin
Artist: Fear Factory
Album: Digimortal
Released: 2013

#2: Speaking in Tongues
  
Artist: Eagles of Death Metal
Album: Peace Love Death Metal
Released: 2004


Okay... so... here we are... at the end. Before I reveal the most played song of 2013 in my personal media player, let's recap from #100 to #2...

  • #100: Hey, Cruel World… - Marilyn Manson (Born Villain, 2012)
  • #99: Dead City Radio and the New Gods of Supertown - Rob Zombie (Venomous Rat Regeneration Vendor, 2013)
  • #98: My Curse - Killswitch Engage (As Daylight Dies, 2006)
  • #97: Babylon - Skindred (Babylon, 2002)
  • #96: Supremacy - Muse (The 2nd Law, 2012)
  • #95: Ayo Technology - 50 Cent feat. Justin Timberlake and Timbaland (Curtis, 2007)
  • #94: 212 (feat. Lazy Jay) - Azealia Banks (1991, 2012)
  • #93: Right Now - PSY (PSYFIVE, 2010)
  • #92: YYZ - Rush (Moving Pictures, 1981)
  • #91: Free Bird - Lynyrd Skynyrd (Pronounced Leh-Nerd Skin-Nerd, 1973)
  • #90: Cities on Flame With Rock and Roll - Blue Oyster Cult (Blue Oyster Cult, 1972)
  • #89: I Put a Spell on You - Screamin' Jay Hawkins (At Home With, 1956)
  • #88: Verta Ja Lihaa - Turmion Katilot (Hoitovirhe, 2004) - Most Played Song November 2013
  • #87: Get Up! (feat. Skrillex) - KoRn (The Path of Totality, 2011)
  • #86: Low Hangin' Fruit - Tenacious D (Rize of the Fenix, 2012)
  • #85: Children of the Grave - Black Sabbath (Master of Reality, 1971)
  • #84: Holy Diver - Killswitch Engage (As Daylight Dies, 2006)
  • #83: Drivel - The Union Underground (…An Education in Rebellion, 2000)
  • #82: The Ritual - Saul Williams (The Inevitable Rise and Liberation of NiggyTardust!, 2007)
  • #81: Tarantula (feat. Fresh) - Pendulum (Hold Your Colour, 2005)
  • #80: Dracula - Basement Jaxx (2011)
  • #79: Baby Got Back - Sir Mix-a-lot (Mack Daddy, 1992)
  • #78: Sax Man (feat. Jack Black) - The Lonely Island (Incredibad, 2009)
  • #77: Bom Bom - Sam and the Womp (2012)
  • #76: Korea - PSY (2012)
  • #75: Pussy Liquor - Rob Zombie (House of 1000 Corpses Soundtrack, 2003)
  • #74: Pull Me Under - Dream Theater (Images and Words , 1992)
  • #73: Vicarious - Tool (10,000 Days, 2006)
  • #72: I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For - Disturbed (Asylum, 2010)
  • #71: House of the Rising Sun - The Animals (The Animals, 1964)
  • #70: My Wall (feat. Excision and Downlink) - KoRn (The Path of Totality, 2011)
  • #69: Closer - Nine Inch Nails (The Downward Spiral, 1994)
  • #68: I'm on a Boat (feat. T-Pain) - The Lonely Island (Incredibad, 2009)
  • #67: Bad Girls - M.I.A. (Matangi, 2012)
  • #66: Last Child - Aerosmith (Rocks, 1976)
  • #65: White Limo - Foo Fighters (Wasting Light, 2011)
  • #64: Fishfingers - The Eighties Matchbox B-Line Disaster (Horse of the Dog, 2002)
  • #63: Holy Wars... The Punishment Due - Megadeth (Rust in Peace, 1990)
  • #62: Fukken Über Death Party - Hanzel und Gretyl (2012: Zwanzig Zwölf, 2008)
  • #61: Jus' a Rascal - Dizzee Rascal (Boy in da Corner, 2004)
  • #60: Death By Diamonds and Pearls - Band of Skulls (Baby Darling Doll Face Honey, 2010)
  • #59: Slipping Away - Nine Inch Nails (Things Falling Apart, 2000)
  • #58: Fire Like This - Hardknox (Hardknox, 1997)
  • #57: Go Kindergarten (feat. Robyn) - The Lonely Island (The Wack Album, 2013)
  • #56: Crying Lightning - Arctic Monkeys (Humbug, 2009)
  • #55: Gold on the Ceiling - The Black Keys (El Camino, 2011)
  • #54: Scentless Apprentice - Nirvana (In Utero, 1993)
  • #53: People = Shit - Slipknot (Iowa, 2001)
  • #52: Redneck - Lamb of God (Sacrament, 2006)
  • #51: Sucked In - Jerk (When Pure is Defiled, 2003)
  • #50: Pass Out - Tinie Tempah (Disc-Overy, 2009)
  • #49: All Time Low - Nine Inch Nails (Hesitation Marks, 2013)
  • #48: Low (feat. T-Pain) - Flo Rida (Mail on Sunday, 2007)
  • #47: If I Had a Tail - The Queens of the Stone Age (…Like Clockwork, 2013)
  • #46: Broken out in Love - (Mark Crozer and The Rels (2012)
  • #45: Talk Dirty (feat. 2 Chainz) - Jason Derulo (Tattoos, 2013) - Most Played Song December 2013
  • #44: Wretches and Kings - Linkin Park (A Thousand Suns, 2010)
  • #43: Go Right Ahead - The Hives (Lex Hives, 2012)
  • #42: Enough Space - Foo Fighters (The Colour and the Shape, 1997)
  • #41: YOLO (feat. Adam Levine and Kendrick Lamar) - The Lonely Island (The Wack Album, 2013)
  • #40: Bodies - Drowning Pool (Sinner, 2001)
  • #39: The Great Destroyer - Nine Inch Nails (Year Zero, 2007) - Most Played Song August 2013
  • #38: Figure it Out - Serj Tankian (Harakiri, 2012)
  • #37: Elephant - Tame Impala (Lonerism, 2012)
  • #36: Given Up - Linkin Park (Minutes to Midnight, 2007)
  • #35: Salt in the Wounds - Pendulum (Immersion, 2010)
  • #34: Gangnam Style - PSY (PSY 6 (Six Rules), Part 1, 2012)
  • #33: I am the Warlock (with Jack Black) - Probot (Probot, 2004)
  • #32: Hot Monkey Hot Ass (Remix) - Black Moustache (Unmade Beds Soundtrack, 2009)
  • #31: Electric Worry - Clutch (From Beale Street to Oblivion, 2010)
  • #30: Suit and Tie (feat. Jay-Z) - Justin Timberlake (20/20 Experience, 2013)
  • #29: Radioactive - Imagine Dragons (Night Visions, 2012) - Most Played Song May 2013
  • #28: The Vulture - Pendulum (Immersion, 2010)
  • #27: Bassline Junkie - Dizzee Rascal (The Fifth, 2013)
  • #26: Niggas in Paris - Jay-Z and Kanye West (Watch the Throne, 2011)
  • #25: Structural Defect - Static-X (Machine, 2001)
  • #24: Kalopsia (with Trent Reznor) - The Queens of the Stone Age (…Like Clockwork, 2013)
  • #23: Night Street in Seoul (feat. YDG) - PSY (PSYFIVE, 2010)
  • #22: Hey Man, Nice Shot - Filter (Short Bus, 1995)
  • #21: Blurred Lines (feat. T.I., Pharrell Williams) - Robin Thicke (Blurred Lines, 2013) - Most Played Song July 2013
  • #20: Panic Station - Muse (The 2nd Law, 2012)
  • #19: Nobody to Love - Josh Homme and David Sardy (End of Watch Soundtrack, 2012)
  • #18: Black Skinhead - Kanye West (Yeezus, 2013) - Most Played Song September 2013
  • #17: Get to the Gone - Static-X (Machine, 2001)
  • #16: Carry on My Wayward Son - Kansas (Leftoverture, 1976)
  • #15: Church - T-Pain (Epiphany, 2007)
  • #14: Came Back Haunted - Nine Inch Nails (Hesitation Marks, 2013) - Most Played Song June 2013
  • #13: Smooth Sailing - The Queens of the Stone Age (…Like Clockwork, 2013)
  • #12: Do I Wanna Know? - Arctic Monkeys (AM, 2013) - Most Played Song October 2013
  • #11: Zerstoren - Rammstein (Rosenrot, 2005)
  • #10: Bangarang (feat. Sirah) - Skrillex (Bangarang, 2012)
  • #9: Gentleman - PSY (2013) - Most Played Song April 2013
  • #8: We Like Them Girls - Your Favorite Martian (2012) - Most Played Song January 2013
  • #7: Back in the Saddle - Aerosmith (Rocks, 1976) - Most Played Song February 2013
  • #6: Get Low - Lil John (Kings of Crunk, 2002) - Most Played Song March 2013
  • #5: Blackout - Linkin Park (A Thousand Suns, 2010)
  • #4: Thrift Shop - Macklemore and Ryan Lewis (The Heist, 2012)
  • #3: Linchpin - Fear Factory (Digimortal, 2001)
  • #2: Speaking in Tongues - Eagles of Death Metal (Peace Love Death Metal, 2004)

...so! The most played song on my personal media player last year was...



#1: Rock and Roll (In a Black Hole)
Artist: Rob Zombie
Album: Venomous Rat Regeneration Vendor
Released: 2013

Such a great song. It's definitely been my favourite song to come out of 2013. It wasn't a single but I loved listening to this track since the first time it hit my ears. It's just awesome. I highly recommend you listen to it if you like groove metal, or Rob Zombie in general.

So there we go! After 7 weeks I've finally finished the list! I hope you've enjoyed reading, or listening, or both reading and listening to the 100 songs that shaped 2013 for me. Hopefully you've found some new stuff you've never heard before. Let me know if you have! It'll be great to know I've got you into something new.

Here's some statistics for you, if you're interested...

31 songs were not singles.
...which obviously means that 69 songs were singles!

Albums with Multiple Entries
A Thousand Suns - Linkin Park: #5 Blackout, #49 Wretches and Kings
As Daylight Dies - Killswitch Engage: #84 Holy Diver, #98 My Curse
Hesitation Marks - Nine Inch Nails: #14 Came Back Haunted, #49 All Time Low
Immersion - Pendulum: #28 The Vulture, #35 Salt in the Wounds
Incredibad - The Lonely Island: #68 I'm on a Boat, #78 Sax Man
Machine - Static-X: #17 Get to the Gone, #25 Structural Defect
PSYFIVE - PSY: #23 Night Street in Seoul, #93 Right Now
Rocks - Aerosmith: #7 Back in the Saddle, #66 Last Child
The 2nd Law - Muse: #20 Panic Station, #96 Supremacy
The Path of Totality - KoRn: #70 My Wall, #87 Get Up!
The Wack Album - The Lonely Island: #41 YOLO, #57 Go Kindergarten
Venomous Rat Regeneration Vendor - Rob Zombie: #1 Rock and Roll (In a Black Hole), #99 Dead City Radio and the New Gods of Supertown

...all the above had two entries. One album had three entries...

...Like Clockwork - The Queens of the Stone Age: #13 Smooth Sailing, #24 Kalopsia, #47 If I Had a Tail

...and "...Like Clockwork" was my favourite album of 2013, which makes sense.

Another interesting entry above is that The Lonely Island is the only artist with two albums with multiple entries.

Most Entries - Artists
2 Entries - Aerosmith, Arctic Monkeys, Dizzee Rascal, Foo Fighters, Jack Black (1 with Probot, 1 with Tenacious D), Jay-Z (1 with Kanye West, 1 with Justin Timberlake), Justin Timberlake (1 with 50 Cent, 1 solo), Kanye West, Killswitch Engage, KoRn, Muse, Skrillex (1 with KoRn, 1 solo)
3 Entries - Linkin Park, Pendulum, The Queens of the Stone Age, Rob Zombie, T-Pain (1 with Flo Rida, 1 with The Lonely Island, 1 solo)
4 Entries - The Lonely Island
5 Entries - Josh Homme (3 with The Queens of the Stone Age, 1 with Eagles of Death Metal, 1 solo), Nine Inch Nails, PSY
6 Entries:
Trent Reznor (5 with Nine Inch Nails, 1 with The Queens of the Stone Age)
8 Entries:
Dave Grohl (3 with The Queens of the Stone Age, 2 with Foo Fighters, 1 with Tenacious D, 1 with Probot, 1 with Nirvana)

I can't believe, technically, Dave Grohl appeared 8 times in this list! Very odd!

Here's some charts showing you how often songs appeared by the year, or decade...


Didn't think there was much point putting individual years until 2000.

Considering there were only 4 years in the 2010s so far, that's a lot of recent entries.
More songs were played from 2012 than 2013, which, when you think about it, makes some sense. Songs that were released in 2012 had at least a whole year of opportunity to get played, where as, say, Talk Dirty by Jason Derulo, only had from August to December to get played.

Okay, so that's the end of the list! Next week I'll be bringing back The Rock and Metal Double Feature Show, so if you have any requests in rock or metal genres of music, let me know! The show will be up at around midnight, Saturday 1st March! Take care!

The Mercyside 100: #10 to #1: 24/2/14
Track listing:
Bangarang (feat. Sirah) - Skrillex
Gentleman - PSY
We Like Them Girls - Your Favorite Martian
Back in the Saddle - Aerosmith
Get Low - Lil John
Blackout - Linkin Park
Thrift Shop - Macklemore and Ryan Lewis
Linchpin - Fear Factory
Speaking in Tongues - Eagles of Death Metal
Rock and Roll (In a Black Hole) - Rob Zombie
Total running time: 01:10:13


See other parts of this listing!

Other entries you might want to read:
Big News Regarding My DJing - Personal Blog
The Metal Hour Show (20/1/14) - DJ Show
My Top 50 Favourite Video Game Villains - Listing


For the latest updates on my work, follow me on Facebook and Twitter here!

Monday, February 17, 2014

My Top 50 Favourite Video Game Villains: The Winner + more

Here we are. At the end. 50 days. 50 villains. I hope you've enjoyed the list!

Here's from #50, to #2, in my favourite video game villains:
  • #50 - Ogre (Tekken 3 series)
  • #49 - Tom Nook (Animal Crossing series)
  • #48 - The Tank (Left 4 Dead series)
  • #47 - Akuma (Street Fighter series)
  • #46 - Ba'Gamnan (Final Fantasy XII)
  • #45 - Mr. X (Streets of Rage series)
  • #44 - The Director (Manhunt)
  • #43 - Tiny Tiger (Crash Bandicoot series)
  • #42 - Goldman (House of the Dead series)
  • #41 - Bryan Fury (Tekken series)
  • #40 - Blue (Pokemon series)
  • #39 - The Ghosts (Pac-Man series)
  • #38 - Lisa Trevor (Resident Evil)
  • #37 - Knuckles (Sonic 3)
  • #36 - Dr Zomboss (Plants vs Zombies series)
  • #35 - Scissorman (Clock Tower series)
  • #34 - Seifer (Final Fantasy VIII)
  • #33 - Walter Sullivan (Silent Hill 4: The Room)
  • #32 - Black (Gunstar Heroes series)
  • #31 - G. Ceara (Super Monaco GP)
  • #30 - Dr Fetus (Super Meat Boy)
  • #29 - Giovanni (Pokemon series)
  • #28 - Creeper (Minecraft)
  • #27 - Nemesis (Resident Evil 3)
  • #26 - Mankar Camoran (Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion)
  • #25 - Dr Robotnik (Sonic the Hedgehog series)
  • #24 - Zachary Comstock (Bioshock Infinite)
  • #23 - Heihachi Mishima (Tekken series)
  • #22 - Dormin (Shadows of the Colossus)
  • #21 - William Birkin (Resident Evil 2)
  • #20 - Shao Kahn (Mortal Kombat series)
  • #19 - Wario (Super Mario series)
  • #18 - Krauser (Resident Evil 4)
  • #17 - Catalina (Grand Theft Auto series)
  • #16 - M. Bison (Street Fighter series)
  • #15 - Seymour (Final Fantasy X)
  • #14 - Calypso (Twisted Metal series)
  • #13 - Frank Fontaine (Bioshock)
  • #12 - Clement (The House of the Dead: Overkill)
  • #11 - Barthandelus (Final Fantasy XIII)
  • #10 - Pyramid Head (Silent Hill 2)
  • #9 - Lloyd ( The Legend of Dragoon)
  • #8 - Kuja (Final Fantasy IX)
  • #7 - Neo Cortex (Crash Bandicoot series)
  • #6 - Wheatley (Portal 2)
  • #5 - Sephiroth (Final Fantasy VII)
  • #4 - Officer Tenpenny (Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas)
  • #3 - GLaDOS (Portal series)
  • #2 - Kefka (Final Fantasy VI)
So! Who's #1? It is...







Note: There are possible spoilers in each entry so avoid them if you don't want to ruin any storylines.

#1: Albert Wesker
Other Names: None
Debut Game and Year: Resident Evil (1996)
Famous Quote?: ""Every day, humans come one step closer to self-destruction... I'm not destroying the world... I'm saving it..."
Other Appearances: Resident Evil Code Veronica, Resident Evil 4, Resident Evil 5, other spinoff titles
Yes, it may not be a surprise but my all time favourite villain is Albert Wesker. I just love everything about him. Believe it or not, I was surprised that Wesker was the main villain at the end of RE1. I never saw the plot twist coming. Sure, I was quite young when playing RE1, but still.

But the biggest surprise for me was when Wesker, out of nowhere, was in Code Veronica. That scene, on his return, solidified for me how amazing this guy was. I never read online rumours when I played Code Veronica, so had no idea about Wesker being back from the dead. It caught me by surprise and I absolutely loved it.

Then was the fight between Chris and Wesker. At the time, I was in awe of how good a fight scene it was. Looking back it sucks, but still, the feeling I had never faded away. I actually found myself wanting Wesker to win, which is funny.

Seeing Wesker in RE4 was fun. Running things in the background, making his own little piece of the cake in the game. It was just like him, the power hungry, manipulative piece of shit. But still, I loved him.

And then there was Resident Evil 5. The end of Wesker. I just can't put into words how much I love Wesker in this game. Everything he does turns to gold. His movements, his attire, his backstabbing of even his own comrades. His fighting Chris and Sheva at the same time, kicking both their asses to the ground.

But best are the quotes. Wesker is a quote machine in this game and everything he says just oozes badass. I can't put into words how much I loved Wesker in Resi 5.

But then... the end. The end of Wesker was absolutely terrible. His transformation into monster, his yelling of "CHWWISSSS" at the helicopter, being killed by the dreaded rocket launcher... just awful. It was the only flaw in, to me, the perfect video game villain.

Wesker will always be my favourite video game villain. He grew as I grew, into an adult. His character twisted and turned in ways I never expected in a video game. And the best thing Capcom can do with Wesker, is to keep him dead. Never bring him back. It'll be a big mistake. Let people remember the legacy of Wesker, as one of the finest character creations in video game history. And thank you, Capcom, for making him, into my favourite video game villain.


So Wesker, this trophy is for you!

Thank you for joining me, in my countdown of favourite video game villains. It's been a blast. Before I wrap up, I thought I'd make this interesting timeline and line chart for you...


So as you can see, from 1990 to 2011 there was at least one villainous entry in my list. 

Here's the line chart...


It's hard to see, so click it to see it properly. There were four years where there were four entries, and they were 1994, 1996, 1998 and 2001.

I was going to break down the consoles and stuff but it got a little complicated... and it's getting late!

Anyway, thank you so much for joining me for this. Comment below for your comments. Tell me who your favourite villain is on this list, or off this list! All the best and take care!


See other parts of this listing!
#50 - #41 | #40 - #31 | #30 - #21 | #20 - #11 | #10 - #2 | #1 + More

Other entries you might want to read:
Big News Regarding My DJing - Personal Blog
The Metal Hour Show (20/1/14) - DJ Show
The Transformations of William Birkin - Article


For the latest updates on my work, follow me on Facebook and Twitter here!

Saturday, February 15, 2014

The Mercyside 100: #25 to #11

Hi there. This is Part 6 of 7 of The Mercyside 100. In this penultimate show, posted on Wednesday, I played three songs including Josh Homme, two songs with Trent Reznor and two Static-X tracks. I also reveal another four "Songs of the Month", which means four of the 10 songs in the Top 10 were songs of a particular month. I cover from #25 to #11 in counting down the 100 songs I played more than any other on my personal media player.

The Top 10 will be posted on Saturday February 22nd at around 12pm midnight (Sunday morning). So look out for it then!

You can listen to this in DJ show format here:



So here is Part 6 of the Mercyside 100, from #25 to #11!


#25: Structural Defect
Artist: Static-X
Album: Machine
Released: 2001

#24: Kalopsia
Artist: The Queens of the Stone Age (with Trent Reznor)
Album: ...Like Clockwork
Released: 2013

#23: Night Street in Seoul
Artist: PSY
Album: PSYFIVE
Released: 2010

#22: Hey Man, Nice Shot
Artist: Filter
Album: Short Bus
Released: 1995

#21: Blurred Lines
Artist: Robin Thicke (feat. T.I., Pharrell Williams)
Album: Blurred Lines
Released: 2013
Most played song of July 2013

#20: Panic Station
Artist: Muse
Album: The 2nd Law
Released: 2012

#19: Nobody to Love
Artist: Josh Homme and David Sardy
Album: End of Watch Soundtrack
Released: 2012

#18: Black Skinhead
Artist: Kanye West
Album: Yeezus
Released: 2013
Most played song of September 2013

#17: Get to the Gone
 
Artist: Static-X
Album: Machine
Released: 2001

#16: Carry On My Wayward Son
Artist: Kansas
Album: Leftoverture
Released: 1976

#15: Church
Artist: T-Pain
Album: Epiphany
Released: 2007

#14: Came Back Haunted
Artist: Nine Inch Nails
Album: Hesitation Marks
Released: 2013
Most played song of June 2013

#13: Smooth Sailing

Artist: The Queens of the Stone Age
Album: ...Like Clockwork
Released: 2013

#12: Do I Wanna Know?
Artist: Arctic Monkeys
Album: AM
Released: 2013
Most played song of October 2013

#11: Zerstoren
Artist: Rammstein
Album: Rosenrot
Released: 2005

Next week, on Saturday February 22nd at midnight, I'll be posting the Top 10. A few days after I'll post the website entry, but to hear the radio show, go to www.mixcloud.com/johnnymercyside on Saturday!

The Mercyside 100: #25 to #11: 13/2/14
Track listing:
Structural Defect - Static-X
Kalopsia (with Trent Reznor) - The Queens of the Stone Age
Night Street in Seoul (feat. YDG) - PSY
Hey Man, Nice Shot - Filter
Blurred Lines (feat. T.I., Pharrell Williams) - Robin Thicke
Panic Station - Muse
Nobody to Love - Josh Homme and David Sardy
Black Skinhead - Kanye West
Get to the Gone - Static-X
Carry on My Wayward Son - Kansas
Church - T-Pain
Came Back Haunted - Nine Inch Nails
Smooth Sailing - The Queens of the Stone Age
Do I Wanna Know? - Arctic Monkeys
Zerstoren - Rammstein
Total running time: 01:17:31

See other parts of this listing!
#100 to #86 | #85 to #71 | #70 to #56 | #55 to #41 | #40 to #26 | #25 to #11 | #10 to #1

Other entries you might want to read:
Big News Regarding My DJing - Personal Blog
The Metal Hour Show (20/1/14) - DJ Show
My Top 50 Favourite Video Game Villains - Listing


For the latest updates on my work, follow me on Facebook and Twitter here!