Countdown Preview: The Stats

On Monday, the official Alienhits countdowns will begin! I've gotta say, as a whole 2012 just didn't seem like a very strong year in pop music, which caused me to search out older stuff to get obsessed with. That led to my dual infatuations this year: Dutch 70's/80's pop-disco and K-Pop. Both provided me with much joy, but that doesn't mean that there wasn't some current stuff that appealed to me, too. In addition to some great EPs on the list, I've got quite an eclectic top five. Here are all the stats before we get the countdown started next week.

A couple observations first:
* I guess I really preferred male singers over female ones this year. The stats became very lopsided.
* The fourth quarter of the year still seems to be the time to release the best albums
* This marks the most international list I've ever had, with nine different countries represented
* Sweden continues its downward slide on my countdown, with only 5%. I need a Swedish resurgence! Meanwhile, the UK seems to be the winner this year, but not by much.

This year's albums:

Groups - 60% (up from last year)
Solo Artists - 40% (down from last year)

Debut Albums - 15% (way down)
Second Albums - 30% (up)
Fourth Album (or higher!) - 25% (down)

Male Singers - 80% (way up)
Female Singers - 10% (way down)
Male & Female Singers - 10% (even)

American Acts - 15% (down)
UK Acts - 25% (way down)
Swedish Acts - 5% (way down)
Australian Acts - 10% (even)
Danish Acts - 5% (even)
Norwegian Acts - 5% (n/a)
Korean Acts - 20% (n/a)
Canadian Acts - 10% (n/a)
Irish Acts - 5% (n/a)

Albums that saw a full U.S. release - 40% (up)
Albums with any substantial success in the U.S. - 25% (up)

Released in the 1st Quarter (including Dec. '10) - 20% (up)
Released in the 2nd Quarter - 10% (down)
Released in the 3rd Quarter - 20% (even)
Released in the 4th Quarter - 50% (up)