It seems easy enough to think that a song called “Feels Like Summer” might be a simple, straight-forward pop song about fun in the summer. But UK singer/songwriter Samuel Jack was raised partially in Johannesburg, South Africa, and his interest in music was sparked by Paul Simon’s Graceland. So I’m confident there is a myriad of influences brewing inside, which leads to Samuel’s rich, R&B-inspired vocal that gives “Feels Like Summer” extra depth. The song itself is reflective, looking back on a teen romance that brings back the summer setting all over again, even when it isn’t even summer. All too many of us can relate to those feelings, which is why “Feels Like Summer” is a charming winner and Samuel is a singer to watch. If you like music by Hozier and Passenger then add Samuel Jack into the mix.
It’s not an easy sell at first listen, by “Overwhelm” by L.A.-based electronic artist Bridesmen is a beautiful song that encourages us all to confront and embrace our feelings. With a slant on mental health and well-being, the song is supported by a compelling and lovely lyrical dance video for you to check out above. Bridesmen is the recording name for Kenton Chen, who some of you may know from TV’s “Sing Off” a number of years back, when he put together an impromptu acapella group that sang in the finale. Kenton’s career has been mainly focused on jazz and acapella, so Bridesmen offers another avenue for him to raise awareness about a variety of issues as well as his own barriers he has faced as a Gay Asian American. “Overwhelm” has a classic song structure that allows it to be both affecting and relateable. You can hear vocal and songwriting styles of artists like Joni Mitchell and Carole King in the story, as well both classical and modern influences in the music which perhaps reminds me of tauter songs by electronic artists such as ZHU or Odesza.
There’s lots of change afoot on the new chart. The lower rung gets cleaned out and replaced with six debuts which have loads of top-of-the-chart potential! And speaking of the top, a new #1 has taken over from a bunch of strong favourites, which will all have difficulty leaving the Top 10 any time soon.
The new #1 is also the fastest riser on the chart, something that doesn’t happen often! And it belongs to Illenium and Jon Bellion with the stunning “Good Things Fall Apart”, soaring 9 to 1. During the last week, Illenium announced a North American tour and I’m happy to be attending in Toronto on September 28 🙂
M-22, Cedric Gervais and DubVision & SYZZ all slip down as a result of “Good Things Come Apart” now ruling the chart, and only Mokita’s “Kiss And Tell” (above) and Lost Frequencies & Flynn’s “Recognise” (below) can also move up within the Top 10, advancing 6-5 and 10-9 respectively.
The progressive electronica of Mako’s “Coyote” rounds out the Top 10 moving 11-10, becoming the singer’s 4th Top 10 on this chart.
With the Top 10 pretty much locked down, songs below can only make limited movement and some will break loose of that in two weeks. That leaves three of our debuts from two weeks ago to get recognized with bigger jumps. “Don’t Leave Me Lonely” by Mark Ronson featuring American singer YEBBA (above)climbs 23-17, while Switzerland’s Eurovision entry “She Got Me” by Luca Hänni (below) leaps 25-19 , and the soulful pop of “Where Did You Go” by Nick Peters and Jamie Grey (also below) rises 27-22.
So it’s the debuts that do most of the talking this week. The highest debut at #23 belongs to the dynamic pairing of Don Diablo and CiD, who I saw dropping this song together in Miami in March, a fun grower called “Fever” (above). Next at #24 is an album track – and I like saying that because it’s from the first full album by EMAN8 (Brandyn Burnette) also called Emanate. The song is a nice mix of pop and electronica called “Time” (below) and it’s a standout from the album. It follows lead off single “Amen” onto the chart, which peaked at #15 earlier this year. At #25 is a returning pair to the chart, US producers and musicians Eric Sharp and Zhao with the catchy “Monday Blues” (also below). These guys previously charted together in 2016 with “The Thirst” (#7), and Zhao is also the vocalist on both.
I’m not done just yet! Like Don Diablo, another veteran appearing on the chart for the first time is Borgeous, who arrives with vocalist RUNAGROUND with “Better Anyway” (above) at #26. Then there’s a delicious slice of melodic deep house courtesy of Italy’s Eric Zava and DJ Mirko B at #28 with “Even In Confusion” (below) featuring the vocals of newcomer Daniel Gorash. The final debut is yet another entry from the prolific Mahalo this time with Poland’s Milkwish for some more dark deep house “Alone Again” (also below) at #30. Mahalo and MŌZ are also at #27 with “Go Ahead”, which recently peaked at #4.
View the full BILLCS Top 30right here! Click on the hyperlink on the song titles to hear the songs or watch the videos!
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LOST FREQUENCIES and ALOE BLACC, “Truth Never Lies”
Following up the more pop-oriented and anthemic “Recognize” featuring Flynn (currently #9 on my personal chart) is Belgium’s Lost Frequencies with “Truth Never Lies”. The song gets deep down and personal with a warm and urgent vocal from Aloe Blacc, who you heard recently on Avicii’s “SOS”. Because of this “Truth Never Lies” draws you in within its first 30 seconds and keeps your breath bated as the rest of the story unfolds. It’s a solid dance song too that will make you sway and clap along. But I think it’s the bluesy anchor that Lost Frequencies provides to compliment Aloe Blacc’s tones and range that makes “Truth Never Lies” instantly memorable.
“Beast” definitely has a lot of firepower for the dance floor in just under two minutes. That’s because it’s a collaboration of two well-established young producers, New Jersey’s Purari and SoCal’s MAKJ, who caught Hardwell’s ear for release on his own Revealed Recordings. “Beast” is an easy progressive house festival banger to be sure but it’s also an extremely well-crafted piece of music. Lush synths go really big then quiet, and there seems to be some techno inspiration that recalls the work of past big names such as Josh Wink. Quite simply there’s a lot that happens and the powerful chorus will truly take command of the dance floor when it plays. “Beast” goes for the big bounce and leaves you wanting even more.
It’s a bit off the path from a lot of today’s pop music, but that’s probably what makes it refreshing: “Shotgun” is new jazzy pop from Canadian band Monkey House. Canadian radio listeners will be familiar with them from the 90’s and early 2000’s with such songs as their cover of Steely Dan’s “Lazy Nina” as well as the original “Big Money” receiving regular airplay. Led by pianist, Emmy Award winner, and Juno Award nominee Don Breithaupt, Monkey House’s “Shotgun” has an 80’s vibe about it that will appeal to fans of artists of that era such as Matt Bianco. But it’s the summery chorus that you won’t get out of your head and can easily be earmarked as a great summer driving song. It comes from the forthcoming album Friday with a video to follow that will be directed by Oscar winner Miles Dale. Don’t let this one slip by – definitely one fine summer bop!
“Honest” is one of those songs that straddles the sometimes moving line between being a solid pop record while still one tailor-made for the dance floor. Deep house, future house and pop all meld together in a fine mix from Russian producer Bertello. Add to this solid and convincing vocals and synths that at times will seem like a throwback to late 90’s Chemical Brothers, and “Honest” becomes three minutes of tightly-wrapped dance music that’s an easy fit in any club DJ’s mix.
“Show Me Love” is proof positive that sometimes it just takes a solid vocal to take a song to the next level. And UK band Beware The Bear – who seem to be rather elusive in social media circles – have given the vocal showcase to Sean Smith on this particular occasion. Of course readers of this blog know Sean well for his own songs like “Magic” and his recent unique dance collaboration with Peter Wilson called “Verona”, and fans of pop music in the UK also know him from his Same Difference days. “Show Me Love” is a different setting for Sean from his recent music, and perhaps in some ways leans back to more straight-forward pop-rock of Same Difference. In any case, Sean’s voice is the right fit for this song and allows him to exercise his range and versatility. “Show Me Love” has wide appeal and is a worthwhile addition to upbeat pop-rock playlists.
As readers of this blog are aware, I am not big on cover versions and they really have to impress me to write about them. So when a singer/songwriter like Indiana’s Jon Mclaughlin decides to release a cover version – or two – then some undivided attention is a must.
Jon boldly takes on Whitney Houston’s “So Emotional” (above) as a reflective ballad, and its transformation is a brilliant success. It’s not sombre by any means, it has become a story about a past lover and the resulting feelings from that relationship. Ballads can be sped up and dance songs can be slowed down, but it has to be done right. And with his on point vocal and piano playing, “So Emotional” is given real credibility as a ballad.
Also be sure to check out Jon’s cover of Years & Years’ “Desire” (below), which is the second part of this double-A sided single release. I’m still a bit too attached to the original of four years ago but slowing down this particular dance song fleshes out the intense longing of the lyrics.
He did it his way and the results are in: Brandyn Burnette’s transformation into EMAN8 as a performer is now complete with the release of his debut album titled Emanate (Brandyn’s actual middle name). And while it is now years away from some of my favourite songs by him such as “I Wanna Be (Free)”, “Nothing At All” and of course “Thanks For Nothing”, a new and adventurous chapter is unfolding. And I’m pretty certain it’s going to be an enjoyable ride.
As I’ve already mentioned in past posts about the songs that preceded the release of Emanate – “Amen”, “Inspired”, and “Grateful” – Brandyn-as-EMAN8 is now focusing on the joyous and fun aspects of his music, while continuing to be the humble and intriguing artist we have grown to enjoy. And while “Amen” and “Grateful” to me are two of the album’s better songs, there is still a third within and it’s called “Time” (featured above). The song veers away from the blues-influenced progressive soul of most of the tracks on Emanate and into progressive electronica, not surprising considering Brandyn’s involvement in dance music over the past few years working with artists like Elephante, Two Friends, Vicetone, Win & Woo, and more. Also very successful are “Sympathy”, hip hop inflected dance music featuring Kelechi, and “Stir”, featuring more words of positivity. The only song that doesn’t work for me is “Reese’s Pieces”, which has a great rhythm track but doesn’t seem to fit in with the rest of the songs.
Be sure to check out EMAN8 if you haven’t already for some mighty fine songs within the album Emanate brought to you by a very deserving artist who is creating his own path his way.
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