Monthly Archives: October 2016

#BILLCSTop 30 #494 – October 17/16

It’s another jam-packed chart full of activity, all of which I won’t be able to write about.  And there’s a new #1 too!!

The Top 10

  • It waited until “Closer” by The Chainsmokers and Halsey ran its course, but the new #1 song is “Native Son Prequel” by Gramatik featuring Leo Napier in a Jenaux remix.  Everything about this song is so cool, from the lyrics and vocals through to the remix.  The craziest and funkiest song to reach the summit here in a long time 🙂
  • Right behind “Native Son Prequel” is “Balance” by The Him (3-2), who are currently having a blast opening for The Chainsmokers on their European tour.  The guys have some potent new material on the way too.  Can “Balance” get to #1 in two weeks?  You’ll have to wait on that one!
  • Rounding out such an impressive Top 3 is the Two Friends remix of “Lights Down Low” by MAX (Schneider) moving 5-3.  A new version of “Lights Down Low” arrived the other day featuring the red-hot Gnash!
  • “We Don’t Talk Anymore” lands in the Top 5 for Charlie Puth and Selena Gomez.  If he’s well enough after a bout of illness that has seen him cancel some tour dates, I will be checking out Charlie Puth’s show on Tuesday October 18 evening.  Looking forward to hearing what he offers in concert!  Meanwhile give a listen to the DROELOE remix above.
  • New arrivals to the Top 10:  The bouncy europop bliss of “High” by Jesper Jenset in a Young Bombs remix (above) climbing 15-8; a powerhouse crowd-pleaser “Born Ready” by The Disco Fries featuring Hope Murphy, up 11-9; and eclectic EDM ballad “Stay” by Toronto’s Chet Porter featuring Chelsea Cutler, rising 14-10 (below).

Movin’ On Up

  • On the way to the Top 10, Steve James and RKCB have a surprisingly enduring EDM track with “In My Head”, still climbing 16-11.
  • The fastest riser on the chart belongs to Elephante featuring Brandyn Burnette for the beautifully thoughtful “Plans”, from the EP I Am The Elephante, which will follow Elephante’s “Closer” into the Top 10 as it rises 23-13!

  • The ever-ear-catching “Luminary” by NYC trio Liquid Diet continues to climb, moving 20-17.  Watch the tantalizing video above!

  • I suppose The Weeknd is bound to have his detractors now, but I’m looking forward to hearing his album Starboy when it is released at the end of the month.  Follow up single “False Alarm” should land on this chart soon, but “Starboy”, featuring Daft Punk, is off to a great start, leaping 24-18.

https://soundcloud.com/stan_sax/vague

  • The unassuming but real earworm that is the sax-y instrumental “Vague” by Austria’s Fabian Luttenberger, in a Stan Sax remix, rises 28-21.
  • NYC duo Anden have a winning remix great for a late night drive with L.A. group Satchmode’s “Undertow”, which moves up 27-23.

A Pair of Debuts

  • L.A. producer/DJ Cole Plante lands on the chart for the first time with a cover of one of my favourite songs of all-time, Womack & Womack’s “Teardrops” at #27.  It’s no longer a duet, edited lyrically to be a club jam with a rousing, soulful vocal by Bobi.  It’s also become another Billboard Club Play Top 20 hit thus far for Cole, following his #1 from a few years back called “Lie To Me” when he was only 17!
  • NYC singer/songwriter Stefan Alexander has the other debut with “Skeleton” at #28.  Stefan marries a unique blend of progressive soul with dance music and a powerful vocal that may not strike you until a few listens later – it’s a real grower!   

View the full BILLCS Top 30 right here, and be sure to click on the photos to hear all of the songs.

Listen to the BILLCS Top 30 Songs on Spotify!  Click on this link to take you there, and follow me on Spotify:  BILLCS Top 30 Songs

Listen for me with my Pick of the Week at 2:20/6:20/10:20 AM/PM EST on http://www.planetradio.ca most days Monday through Sunday, and my flashbacks to a Toronto Top 10 of yesteryear Tuesday at 9pm EST! :)

“D E E P in NY” is an amazing hip hop EDM rework by @BobbyNourmand featuring #DOC and #Goodmorning

BOBBY NOURMAND featuring D.O.C. and Goodmorning, “D E E P in NY” (free DL)

There’s no doubt in my mind that L.A.-based producer/DJ Bobby Nourmand is one of EDM’s most inventive talents who should break more ground with tracks like “D E E P in NY”.  It’s based on his previous release “D E E P”, which I wrote about a while back, a fan favourite which now receives this amazing transformation into a compelling mix of hip hop and EDM, featuring vocalists D.O.C. and Goodmorning.  While it retains mid-80’s house elements of the original, which also skew some British house flavour, this redux is highly cutting edge and will draw in fans of Drake, Bryson Tiller, Anderson.Paak and more – this is often an entirely different and younger audience, and they’ll just love it.  And aside from clubs embracing it – which should be easy 🙂 – it could make for interesting late night radio fare too.  “D E E P in NY” is Bobby Nourmand at his creative best.  Download it for free above and you’ll be all smiles 😀

“Starboy” leaves the original @TheWeeknd #DaftPunk arrangement behind in fine cover by @officialKoni featuring @JohannesWebertv

KONI featuring JOHANNES WEBER, “Starboy” (free DL)

It takes a lot for me to write about a cover of a current favourite song of mine, I’m pretty selective, and solid variations of “Starboy” by The Weeknd featuring Daft Punk are hard to come by.  As with a number of his recent remixes and covers, Koni (who is one half of the duo Saxity – the other being Stan Sax) opts to pretty much leave the original arrangement of “Starboy” behind in favour of his own.  While some of the edge and depth of the original is missing, what makes this one a winner is the vocal by Johannes Weber.  He doesn’t try at all to be The Weeknd, and creates his own connection to the song, retaining some of the grittiness with his phrasing.  The production adds its own atmosphere and successfully creates an alternate version of “Starboy” that stands up on its own, and with almost 500K listens on Soundcloud, it’s obvious that fans of both The Weeknd and EDM feel the same.  Download it for free above and surprise your friends 🙂

Zesty electronic pop zinger “So Good” by @BasicTape featuring @DannyShah

BASIC TAPE featuring DANNY SHAH, “So Good”

Danceable electronic pop can all sound so much the same, and then the odd song comes along that makes it refreshing all over again.  Such is the case with “So Good”, an energetic, zesty tune from French duo Basic Tape co-written with Glasgow-born singer Danny Shah.  “So Good” succeeds where other danceable pop songs don’t, and in quite obvious places throughout the song.  The melody concentrates on moving forward and matching the energy in the vocals instead of trying to overwhelm.  And at about the 1:30 mark Danny’s voice hits one of those key notes that make you stop and listen more.  As a result “So Good” is a top notch, playful tune, with almost a textbook 60’s or 70’s pop song structure at just 2:47.  Get to know “So Good” by starting with a solid listen at the link above.

Diverse collective: @TastyTreatmusic x @KidLizardmusic featuring @Madimakesmusica and @_MalcolmAnthony with “U And Me”

TASTYTREAT x KID LIZARD featuring MADI and MALCOLM ANTHONY, “U And Me”

There’s hardly a more diverse song out there both vocally and musically than this easy-going EDM love song simply called “U And Me”.  It features a bevy of relatively recent talent too.  I’ve already written about L.A.-based duo TastyTreat this past summer with “Sideways” (featuring Marco Foster) as well as highly recognizable vocalist Madi from KSHMR and Felix Snow’s “Touch” (Brevis remix).  Newcomer Kid Lizard co-creates the soundscapes while hip hop vocalist Malcolm Anthony offers contrast and connection (I would prefer less autotune though).  So with a feast of sounds and voices to your ears, you have a romantic mid-tempo dance song that is quite prepared to leave summer behind in favour of autumn.  Be sure to give a listen at the link above.

Cool sounds and story in “Under The Covers” by @Wolfenchill featuring @Emma_Sameth

WOLFE featuring EMMA SAMETH, “Under The Covers”

If you like a balance of really cool futuristic trap sounds balanced by lyrics with a different perspective about relationships then “Under The Covers” is for you.  It’s brought to you by new producer/remixer Wolfe and sultry L.A. singer Emma Sameth.  Yes, there’s a guy using sex as a controlling weapon while cheating on her, and the singer is about to ditch him big time, then along comes all of these wild sounds to represent what’s new and amazing around the corner if she does.  “Under The Covers” is where the relationship ends – taut and interesting, and Wolfe’s fine production really transforms the song, until it comes to this weird unfinished stop.  No matter, there’s much hear to enjoy so be sure to listen at the above link.

Tricky futuristic thriller: “Wanchu Back” by @AeroChord

AERO CHORD, “Wanchu Back”

After revisiting “The 90’s” for us a little while back, Aero Chord continues with an even more diverse zinger called “Wanchu Back”.  While desperately wanting his special one back, Aero Chord turns what is essentially an instrumental into a dramatic and stylish reunion by the end.  Along the way though, what seems like it might be a brisk, futuristic bass-laden house track segues into dubstep and trap behind door #1 and then some really inspired and melodic pop moments behind door #2.  Aero Chord really delivers the goods with “Wanchu Back” which is sure to leave club denizens pumped and wanting more.  Check it out at the link above.

Surprise!! The @Stranger_Things theme receives a slick drum & bass remix from @Korbian1 #KyleDixon #MichaelStein

KYLE DIXON & MICHAEL STEIN, “Stranger Things” (Korbian remix) (free DL)

“Stranger Things” fans do not fear!  UK remixer Korbian has clearly taken the joy that he has for what turned out to be a favourite show for a lot of us this past summer, and channeled it into his own take on it for the dance floor.  While staying mainly reverent to the sinewy synth line that pervades the theme music, Korbian does break away into some unexpected drum and bass and dubsteppy rhythms that work quite well.  With the show set in 1983 and incorporating some great 80’s music into its soundtrack, Korbian has – knowingly or not – tapped into a lot of change that happened in music back then, particularly with influences that inspired the new wave genre of the time.  So making the “Stranger Things” theme club-worthy seems as right as when Tiësto transformed the “Pirates Of The Caribbean” theme into “He’s A Pirate” in the early 2000’s.  Download this fun remix at the link above.

Shake your groove thang: “Fixed On You” by @HotelGaruda featuring @VioletDaysband

HOTEL GARUDA featuring VIOLET DAYS, “Fixed On You”

Like the best songs this year that leave their groove all over the dance floor, rising duo Hotel Garuda are out to slay with “Fixed On You”.  Featuring a vocal by Violet Days that also leaves no prisoners, “Fixed On You” is all about that burbling bass synth undercurrent which will empower even the loftiest of dancers to strike a pose or two.  In some ways this one reminds me musically of Madonna’s “Into The Groove” – for inspiration 😛  It’s no wonder that Hotel Garuda – consisting of Manila Killa and Candleweather – are getting rave reviews from audiences and peers alike.  Listen above to “Fixed On You”, it’s a hard one to resist, so you best click that mouse on over to your favourite digital store to get it.

Snazzy jazzy future bass rhythms carry “Halo” by @SMLEmusic featuring @HelenTessmusic

SMLE featuring HELEN TESS, “Halo”

“Halo” is a flirty, playful track that takes different sidesteps into hip hop-tinged jazzy future bass rhythms for an ear-catching experience.  It’s brought to you by new Miami duo SMLE, who like to ensure that you have a feast for your ears happening, and fellow Floridian Helen Tess provides a sometimes sassy pop vocal that totally suits the song.  This means that it’s easy to get wrapped up in “Halo” and the song flows by so quickly you’ll just want to hear it more than a few more times.  Check out “Halo” above and pick it up on any digital platform.