The 2008 Cool List
Alice Glass from Crystal Castles is number one! And that's not in anything so dull as the singles chart--that honour this week goes to the worthy-but-dull X Factor charity single). No, Canada's high queen of blood-curdling electro-rock has come out on top in this year's NME COOL LIST.
After a year where her electrifying onstage antics forced organisers to pull the, er, electricity; tales of her rootless frenetic upbringing provoked gasps all round; her sizzling album was a favourite among pretty much everyone and--most importantly where this list is concerned--her magnetic personality out-magnetised all others.
Since 2002, the NME Cool List has been the rock 'n' roll barometer that the great and the good of indie-rock pretend not to care about, but check as soon as it's published every year, desperate to find out where they place on rock's sliding scale of amazingness.
"I'm flattered, thank you," Alice told us in response, "but back in school the people who held themselves in the same regard were also the biggest waste of skin I've ever met," she explained. "Why did I get so many votes? My pact with Satan hasn't expired yet."
Chosen after weeks of arguments between the NME staff each autumn, it's become a vital test of the pulse of the rock nation. Last year, Frank Carter from Gallows was named the coolest person in rock after a year of sensational and uncompromising shows that pushed hardcore punk back to music's forefront. The year before that, Beth Ditto from Gossip saw the title propel her band to stratospheric heights.
Before that, rock's coolest people have included Alex Turner, Pete Doherty (in a joint placing with former Libertines bandmate Carl Barat) and the chart's first-ever topper, Mr. Jack White.
This year we've added a new dimension, giving NME.com users the chance to vote for their Readers' Cool List to see how right they think we got it.
You can see the full top 50 here, but to start you off, here's the 2008 Top Ten:
1. Alice Glass, Crystal Castles (new entry)
2. Jay-Z (re-entry)
3. Andrew VanWyngarden, MGMT (new entry)
4. Alex Turner, Arctic Monkeys / The Last Shadow Puppets (last year: 6)
5. Sam Durst, Late Of The Pier (new entry)
6. Ladyhawke (new entry)
7. Caleb Followill, Kings Of Leon (last year: 21)
8. M.I.A. (last year: 11)
9. Liam Gallagher, Oasis (re-entry)
10. Caroline McKay, Glasvegas (new entry)
