Sounds of 2012: Nos. 10 to 7

Into the Top Ten we go! Everfree Radio's countdown still contains a few more surprises before we hit the most popular song of them all that year. Today, we're down to four tracks, and while I think anything that makes it this high up a chart is pretty much notable and includable by definition, just for form's sake here are my usual inclusion rules.

Rule 1: Still available in the same or (1b) similar form direct from the artist
Rule 2: Available from a third party, with reason to believe the artist is fine with this
Rule 3: So famous that it would be plain silly to leave it out
Rule 4: Being unlisted is not, on its own, grounds for exclusion

10: ponyphonic – The Moon Rises
09: MandoPony – Picture Perfect Pony
08: Archie – Love is in Bloom (Archie remix)
07: Alex S. – Party with Pinkie [VIP]

Please continue past the cut to find YouTube embeds for the four songs featured, as well as the usual little bit of waffle.

10: ponyphonic – The Moon Rises

Rule 1: uploaded to YouTube 25 Feb 2012
There have been quite a few versions of this ponyphonic classic over the years, but this is the 2012 original, with ponyphonic himself providing the vocals. Although it might seem odd to have a male vocalist singing for Luna as she makes her fateful and dramatic transformation into Nightmare Moon, it actually works fine. If you think otherwise, ponyphonic put out an updated and extended version in 2016, with Kristen Calvin's vocals. You may also want to check out the outstanding animation by Duo Cartoonist, also from 2016, and there it's EileMonty singing. All three versions are excellent in their own way – an embarrassment of riches to choose from! Download has been "temporarily disabled" for a very long time now, unfortunately.

9: MandoPony – Picture Perfect Pony

Rule 1b: available on MandoPony's Bandcamp
This MandoPony song is probably inextricably linked with its animation, produced by the brilliant JanAnimations in a style so startlingly close to the show's that it eventually caused him some serious problems. For reasons not unrelated to this, you won't find said animation on Jan's own channel any more, though it's been reuploaded in plenty of places (and were this "Animations of 2012" it would be an easy Rule 3 inclusion anyway). Far and away the best Photo Finish song ever made, vocal duties here are in the very capable hands of the excellent EileMonty. The whole thing is an absolute joy, though I really would advise watching it with the animation, as that's a joy as well – Derpy's cameo especially. If you do just want the tune itself in HQ, then head for MandoPony's Bandcamp and shove 50 cents his way.

8: Love is in Bloom (Archie remix)

Rule 1: reuploaded by Archie to his second channel in 2014
You may have heard a brief portion of this Archie song as the intro music used by Silly Filly Studios (now SFS Animations), but here's the whole thing. The original "Love is in Bloom" is my least favourite of the three songs from the S2 finale, but Archie works his magic here and it becomes a must-listen. As club tracks tend to, it does go on a bit (nearly seven minutes, though there is a cut-down version that's a couple shorter) but it's so infectious and cheerful that it's hard to object too much. You can pick up this song, plus a whole bunch of other MLP-inspired Archie numbers, on his Full Pon-ography album, which is available as a name-your-price thing on Archie's Bandcamp.

7: Alex S. – Party with Pinkie [VIP]

Rule 2: available on an official archive channel
You know what an Alex S. track sounds like, right? Right? Well, this sounds exactly like one. It's just what you'd expect, although it is slightly more polished than a few of his earlier Pony songs. The version that made the Top 100 is this VIP redo of the shorter original. Lots and lots of show samples, most of them from "Cupcakes", "Singing Telegram" and "Smile", wedded to an insistent beat that never once lets up. Throw in plenty of synthy goodness and an ear-catching, crashing finale and this is really quite something. There's a link for a 320k MP3 download in the video description.