The Hall Of The Not So Famous

Channel 4 are currently on doing their Music Hall Of Fame and seem to think it's 'definitive' just because they're using factual evidence like record sales to base it on. Well, fuck them all. Indie Girl and Pop Boy are making our own Hall Of Fame, based purely on opinion. OUR opinion. Because we are betterer and smarterer than everybody else. Ever. So there.

Our Hall Of Fame doesn't contain unlistenable, over-rated dross like Eminem or Radiohead, or old men who used to be moderately cool and rebellious like Rolling Stones and The Beatles and Bob Marley who would all be far too predictable and boring. It certainly does not contain U2, Robbie Williams or Oasis, because they were never good or particularly relevant to any kind of music culture we want to be part of.

Inductee Number 1 - Richard X

Richard X hasn't been around for very long, only first making people take notice of his bootleg records in 2001 under the name of Girls On Top. But in 2002 he became the mighty X as we know him, and we know him as one of the greatest record producers and general music geniuses of our time, who also every now and then decides to write some of the greatest pop songs of the past few years. One look at his resume of collaborators and remixes is evidence, X has worked with New Order, M.I.A., Depeche Mode, Kelis and Jarvis Cocker to name just a few.

What's more, he's been assigned as Lieutenant X of British Pop, fighting right on the front line to do his best to make pop music brilliant again, providing Javine with what is easily the best song of her 'career' ('You Used To'), saving Rachel Stevens' career with 'Some Girls' (something he may later do again if 'Crazy Boys' gets a release) and being the genius behind two of Annie's best songs, 'Chewing Gum' and 'Me Plus One'. Under the pseudonym of Girls On Top he released 'mash ups' of TLC Vs Human League 'Being Scrubbed' and Adina Howard Vs Tubeway Army 'We Don't Give A Damn About Our Friends'. The latter went on to inspire/influence/be reworked into X's first 'hit', 'Freak Like Me', which he'd scored Vs the (then) new look Sugababes, and seemed to also relaunch their career after depressing chartings for 'Soul Sound' and 'Run For Cover' with 'Freak Like Me' going straight to number one.

None of X's work can be taken on face value as straight forward. For instance, X's 2003 album 'Richard X Presents His X Factor vol. 1' is a luscious, layered masterpiece laden with track after track of top-knotch guest appearances and 80's samples. In short, 'X Factor vol. 1' acts not only as a brilliantly refreshing and consistent debut album but also as a pastiche of the 80's new romantics and electro musical movements (sampling Jam & Lewis, Spandau Ballet, Human League and Gary Numan). Released in 2003, X's album also came reasonably near the beginning of the recent electro revival, and is as fitting an introduction as Goldfrapp's 'Supernature' is a conclusion and remains one of the greatest forgotten pop gems of all time. But, with his inclusion into our hall of fame, I'd like to think that his album will be granted just a little bit of the immortality it deserves.

Download a smidgen of immorality for free, then buy the whole album at full price:
Richard X ft. Tiga - You (Better Let Me Love You x4) Tonight