Triple J Hottest 100 2019 list: Ocean Alley is the number one winner - The Sydney Morning Herald

Ocean Alley won the top spot in Triple J's 2018 Hottest 100 with their funky, slow groove Confidence and also claimed 10th spot with Knees dropping into the business end of the countdown.

And if that wasn't enough to celebrate, the six-piece from Sydney - that began as a group of friends before becoming a band - provided a perfect bookend to the count by placing 100th with Happy Sad.

Oceam Alley's Confidence took top spot in the Hottest 100 for 2018.Credit:Louise Kennerley

Confidence was one of six Australian songs to finish inside the top 10 with California's Fisher coming in second place with Losing It and Texan rapper Travis Scott's Sicko Mode (featuring Drake) coming third. Amy Shark's I Said Hi came fifth behind Childish Gambino's This Is America in fourth spot.

Ocean Alley's Like a Version cover of Baby Come Back, originally by Californian band Player in 1977, also earned the group from Sydney's northern beaches 16th place in the count - that's four songs in total including the coveted top spot.

Amy Shark is no stranger to the Hottest 100 with her smash hit Adore claiming second spot in the 2016 count. As well as another top five finish, she also landed in 36th spot with All Loved Up.

After another huge year for the Gold Coast singer, songwriter and producer, winning Album of the Year for Love Monster, Best Pop Release and Best Female at the recent ARIA awards, Shark's I Said Hi finished ahead of Dean Lewis' Be Alright in sixth spot, Mallrat's Groceries in seventh, Billie Eilish in eighth spot with When the Party's Over, Ruby Fields' Dinosaur in ninth and Ocean Alley's Knees rounding out the top 10.

Late last week Ocean Alley's keyboardist Lach Galbraith said the band would be listening into the countdown around a friend's pool, the same place where they also spent last year's Hottest 100 when their song The Comedown came in 48th.

"I'm not a betting man, we make music because we love it and what we've been seeing online ... the anticipation is great but we all like a bit of a surprise as well," he said. No doubt they were surprised when three of their own songs (all from last year's Chiaroscuro album) plus a cover landed in the Hottest 100, which was first held in 1989.

"Our writing is free flowing," Galbraith said. "If it comes from somewhere we think is a good place then we'll chase it ... we didn't realise how much of an impact it (Confidence) would make, people started to really get behind it."

This is the second year the Hottest 100 has been held on January 27 after host broadcaster Triple J moved the count from Australia Day last year. It was a shift that was criticised by some listeners and politicians at the time but was overwhelmingly supported by those who voted.

There were 65 Australian songs in the list of 100 and 21 artists appeared for the first time. Eight of the artists appearing this year scored a hat-trick by making the list three years in a row and five songs that made it onto the list were uploaded to Triple J's Unearthed in 2018.

Rapper and producer Kendrick Lamar from Compton in California, who finished in top spot of the 2017 Hottest 100 with Humble, placed 28th this year with the track All the Stars featuring SZA.

A record number of votes were cast in this year's count with more than 2.7 million - up 15 per cent or 370,000 votes on the previous year. A higher percentage of woman than men voted and just over 60 per cent of voters were aged 24 and under. New South Wales led the votes with 29 per cent followed by Victoria (23 per cent), Queensland (19 per cent), Western Australia (10 per cent), South Australia (eight percent), ACT and Tasmania (three per cent) and Northern Territory (one per cent). Five per cent of votes were lodged from overseas.

Melbourne's Vance Joy, whose Nation of Two album was released in February last year, was among two artists who had back-to-back songs in Sunday's count with We're Going Home landing in 53rd spot and Saturday Sun in 54th spot. Sydney's Rufus Du Sol came in 21st and 22nd with Underwater and Treat You Better respectively.

Hip-hop artist and dancer Danzal Baker, from Arnhem Land in the Northern Territory, performs and records as Baker Boy and was named Young Australian of the Year on the eve of Australia Day. Fans voted Baker Boy's track Mr La Di Da Di in 51st place.

Sydney's DMA's will embark on a headline tour of the UK in April but for now can celebrate three of their songs landing in the Hottest 100 with In the Air claiming 41st spot, The End coming in 60th and Do I Need You Now? landing in 97th place. It was DMA's fifth consecutive year in the countdown. It was also the fifth year in a row for Peking Duk, who came in 55th spot with Wasted.

Florence and the Machine, who performed at The Domain in Sydney on Saturday and Melbourne's Sidney Myer Music Bowl last week as part of their national tour, came in 82nd spot with Hunger.

Rocking duo Hockey Dad from Wollongong are huge Triple J favourites and scored a triple header with Join the Club coming 18th, I Wanna Be Everybody in 61st and Sweet Release dropping into 73rd spot. All three songs are from the band's second album Blend Inn, which also contains the track Homely Feeling which got 54th spot in last year's count.

Canadian rapper and producer Drake, who also counts acting among his many other roles, released his double album Scorpion last year and scored two Hottest 100 spots with Nice For What in 40th spot and God's Plan coming in 43rd.

Kanye West's Ghost Town from his Ye album came in 98th spot just ahead of Yungblud's Polygraph Eyes in 99th.

Triple J's music director Nick Findlay said Ocean Alley's Confidence had ''a level of sun-drenched soul'' that made it hugely popular around the country. ''It's a song that led the votes from day one of polling and never stopped its huge trajectory to success,'' he said.

2019 TRIPLE J HOTTEST 100

1) Ocean Alley – Confidence
2) FISHER – Losing It
3) Travis Scott – SICKO MODE (ft. Drake)
4) Childish Gambino – This Is America
5) Amy Shark – I Said Hi
6) Dean Lewis – Be Alright
7) Mallrat – Groceries
8) Billie Eilish – When The Party’s Over
9) Ruby Fields – Dinosaurs
10) Ocean Alley – Knees
11) Skegss – Up In The Clouds
12) The Wombats – Turn
13) A$AP Rocky – Praise The Lord (Da Shine) (ft. Skepta)
14) Wafia – I’m Good
15) Hayden James – Just Friends (ft. Boy Matthews)
16) Ocean Alley – Baby Come Back (Triple J Like A Version 2018)
17) Billie Eilish – Lovely (ft. Khalid)
18) Hockey Dad – Join The Club
19) Broods – Peach
20) KIAN – Waiting
21) The Rubens – Never (ft. Sarah Aarons)
22) RÜFÜS DU SOL – Underwater
23) RÜFÜS DU SOL – Treat You Better
24) Hilltop Hoods – Leave Me Lonely
25) Thundamentals – I Miss You
26) Vera Blue – All The Pretty Girls
27) Post Malone & Swae Lee – Sunflower
28) Kendrick Lamar & SZA – All The Stars
29) Peking Duk – Fire
30) Cub Sport – Sometimes
31) Alison Wonderland – Church
32) The Rubens – God Forgot
33) Post Malone – Better Now
34) King Princess – 1950
35) Mac Miller – Ladders
36) Amy Shark – All Loved Up
37) Ziggy Alberts – Love Me Now
38) G Flip – About You
39) Ball Park Music – The Perfect Life Does Not Exist
40) Drake – Nice For What
41) DMA’s – In The Air
42) Ziggy Alberts – Laps Around The Sun
43) Drake – God’s Plan
44) Hilltop Hoods – Clark Griswold (ft. Adrian Eagle)
45) Bring Me The Horizon – MANTRA
46) Billie Eilish – You Should See Me In A Crown
47) DZ Deathrays – Like People
48) San Cisco – When I Dream
49) Angie McMahon – Missing Me
50) RÜFÜS DU SOL – No Place
51) Baker Boy – Mr La Di Da Di
52) Khalid – Better
53) Vance Joy – We’re Going Home
54) Vance Joy – Saturday Sun
55) Peking Duk – Wasted
56) Halsey – Without Me
57) The Presets – Martini
58) BENE – Soaked
59) Meg Mac – Give Me My Name Back
60) DMA’s – The End
61) Hockey Dad – I Wanna Be Everybody
62) G Flip – Killing My Time
63) BROCKHAMPTON – BOOGIE
64) Middle Kids – Mistake
65) Methyl Ethel – Scream Whole
66) Flight Facilities – Need You (ft. NÏKA)
67) Anderson .Paak – Tints (ft. Kendrick Lamar)
68) benny blanco – Eastside (ft. Halsey, Khalid)
69) The Wombats – Cheetah Tongue
70) Mallrat – UFO (ft. Allday)
71) Skegss – Smogged Out
72) Nothing But Thieves – What Can I Do If The Fire Goes Out (Triple J Like a Version 2018)
73) Hockey Dad – Sweet Release
74) King Princess – Pussy Is God
75) Kira Puru – Molotov
76) Polish Club – Clarity
77) CHVRCHES – Miracle
78) Hayden James – Better Together (ft. Running Touch)
79) Thelma Plum – Clumsy Love
80) Mark Ronson – Nothing Breaks Like A Heart (ft. Miley Cyrus)
81) Jack River – Ballroom
82) Florence + The Machine – Hunger
83) BROCKHAMPTON – 1999 WILDFIRE
84) Tash Sultana – Cigarettes
85) Anderson .Paak – Bubblin’
86) Lime Cordiale – Dirt Cheap
87) Ruel – Younger
88) WAAX – Labrador
89) Ruel – Dazed & Confused
90) Post Malone – Psycho (ft. Ty Dolla $ign)
91) A$AP Rocky – Sundress
92) Thundamentals – Everybody But You
93) Trophy Eyes – You Can Count On Me
94) The Amity Affliction – Ivy (Doomsday)
95) Arctic Monkeys – Four Out Of Five
96) Odette – Take It To The Heart
97) DMA’s – Do I Need You Now?
98) Kanye West – Ghost Town
99) YUNGBLUD – Polygraph Eyes
100) Ocean Alley – Happy Sad