Sexy Never Went Away: “Breakfast Can Wait” by Prince (@3rdeyegirl)

PRINCE, “Breakfast Can Wait”

Prince continues to make great music almost 35 years into his Grammy and Oscar-winning career.  While perhaps recent albums haven’t been so consistent, there are often standout songs that dazzle.  “Breakfast Can Wait” doesn’t sound like it’s bent on making pop radio waves, its groove is firmly entrenched in R&B/Urban music.  And boy has Prince got his sexy on.  He chose 18 year old Danielle Curiel to direct and star in the video alongside handsome dancer CJ Salvador, and the result is quite a treat.  The two have great chemistry together, and I believe it’s Danielle in the Prince-ly disguise too.  Although he’s used vocal effects in other songs successfully, such as “U Got The Look”, it’s the only downpoint at about the 2/3 mark in an otherwise very successful song.  The video’s choreography is slick and the result is exactly what Prince might suggest … that breakfast can indeed wait…mission accomplished! Watch and be won over.  “Breakfast Can Wait” is available on iTunes.

Rocking Foundations: “Francis Bacon” by @CarolePope

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CAROLE POPE, “Francis Bacon”

Canada’s Carole Pope is the three-time Juno Award-winning singer of 80’s band Rough Trade, which had a chart hit Stateside in 1982 with “All Touch”, but was reknown for having a succession of Top 20 hits over five gold or platinum albums in Canada starting with the provocative “High School Confidential” in 1980.  While Rough Trade has had some reunions, most recently in 2001, Carole has never been away from rocking it all out, recording solo albums in 2005 and 2011.  Rough Trade created some of the most innovative Canadian modern pop in the early 80’s, with lyrics laced with innuendo and sexual imagery.  Carole continues this tradition with “Francis Bacon” (he’s the 20th century painter), backed by a tight melody that really kicks thanks to a powerhouse rhythm section.  Although Carole is already legendary, “Francis Bacon” would fit in nicely on the radio with what you would hear from the likes of Fall Out Boy, Muse, and Pink.  I caught a live set by Carole this past summer, and it was in some ways like time hadn’t passed by much, with her risqué commentary on-point which the crowd ate up, along with several new songs that will be featured on an upcoming EP called Music For Lesbians.  Purchase “Francis Bacon” on iTunes and if you’re in Toronto on Friday (and there are still tickets left), you can check out a show by Carole at The Flying Beaver Pub.

Listen to a preview of “Francis Bacon” here:  http://www.amazon.com/Francis-Bacon/dp/B00EKHBKJE

The classic “High School Confidential”:

Still ‘Electric’: “Love Hurt Bleed” by Gary Numan (@numanofficial)

GARY NUMAN, “Love Hurt Bleed”

“Love Hurt Bleed” shows British new wave icon Gary Numan sounding better than ever.  It’s definitely not near as mechanical sounding as his early songs, and I would put this song along side of tunes by Nine Inch Nails and other 80’s/90’s performers that also broke some barriers.  Gary Numan continues to break some new ground himself.  The video is suitably creepy, think of David Cronenberg’s film “Videodrome” and watch what is going on inside the TV and outside of it.  Looks like there’s some definite psychological drama here to mess with you.  “Love Hurt Bleed” is from Gary’s new album Splinter (Songs From A Broken Mind).  He is actively touring and this single is available to buy on iTunes.

Get It For Free: Download “WWW” by @SimonCurtis … And Dance Yourself Silly!

SIMON CURTIS, WWW (mixtape)

Following Friday’s post featuring links to preview songs from WWW, the full 8 song electropop mixtape surfaced today as a free download from Simon’s good friend Bradley Stern aka MuuMuse.com.   Fans will remember that WWW features unreleased songs (which Simon announced today were written for other people) that will not appear on Simon’s upcoming official album release.  That’s not to say that they are any less than what should be on an official release.  Many times songs do not make the cut for a variety of reasons which have nothing to do with whether or not they were ‘good enough’.  Straight away, the best song hands down is the epic dance track “Do I Have To Dance”.  This is a massive club hit in the making, taking early house influences and marrying them with the Britney/Katy/GaGa pop of the day that Simon so adores.  The song features some of Simon’s best vocals and showy production, giving his lower and higher registers a major workout.  “Berlin Wall” is another battle cry that Simon’s fans love and the song just cruises along from beginning to end.  Similarly “Fight For Your Life” draws listeners in as Simon makes it a highly personal experience.  

The Swedish-pop-sounding “Heart In 2” (above) is the closest to what could be a pop hit, another fine piece of songwriting and production.  “Diamonds On The Dancefloor” (below) is solid 3 minute serendipitous pop if a little more familiar sounding as some of Simon’s other songs.  Even almost more unassuming is “Satellite”, another tidy pop song that clocks in at just over 2 minutes long.  “Meteor” was quietly unleashed online after being featured in the ABC Family show “Twisted”, but it and “Neon Lights” are to me needlessly filled with autotune that detracts from Simon’s brilliant voice.  These are the only songs on WWW which lose me.  But I’m so glad Simon chose to offer WWW to us as a free download after more than two years without new songs.  WWW finds him generally on a much more pure pop mission than in the past, thanks to input from new co-songwriters and producers, and this bodes well for what’s coming.  If there’s one song that stands out though it’s “Do I Have To Dance”, a truly monster dance song revolving around Simon hypnotically and repeatedly singing “notice me”, for which I would love to hear remixes 🙂

@SimonCurtis Previews Songs from Upcoming Mixtape “WWW”

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SIMON CURTIS previews WWW

It’s been two years since an official Simon Curtis release, and his robot army is sated at last that he’s releasing a mixtape called WWW ahead of his third album and upcoming video, for which there was recently an online fundraiser.  The new music sounds decidedly more upbeat than second album R∆, solid electropop definitely in the spirit of Katy Perry, Britney Spears, and Kesha.  But of course it sounds fiercely and definitively Simon, not really like his other records, with four songs up for preview on his Soundcloud page, “Neon Lights”, “Do I Have To Dance”, “Satellite”, and “Berlin Wall”.  “Berlin Wall” sounds like a real crowd pleaser that would fit comfortably beside “Laser Guns Up”.  There are three previews, available, do give them a listen, they will definitely whet your appetite for more!

New Video in Time for Hallowe’en: “Voices” by @InMyComa

IN MY COMA, “Voices”

From a trio that came to my attention almost two years ago, and who I always enjoy seeing in concert, Toronto-area rock band In My Coma give visuals to “Voices”, one of the songs that always sounds great played live, from their long-lasting debut album Magnets And Miracles.  Clips of the trio – singer/guitarist Jasper James, bassist LauraDoll, and drummer Mike Paterson – are interspersed with a gritty and somewhat creepy setting at a fair that’s as mysterious as “Twin Peaks”.  You’re going to watch it a few times for some interesting imagery.  The video is very well shot, just in time for Hallowe’en (and a handy companion to an earlier video for “Believe Me”), and makes a memorable showcase for In My Coma.  The band is currently recording songs for its followup to Magnets And Miracles.

BILLCS Top 30 #415 – October 7/13

The new chart has an unexpected double whammy from a talented young Italian artist who knows how to seamlessly and successfully bridge emotional pop with dance music.  But first…

In the Top 10:

The Top 3 is solid with a reason.  “Black Light” by Kaden is #1 for a 4th appearance (8th week), but the top could be taken in two weeks by “As Long As You Love Me” by Ryan Adamés or Toronto’s Neverest with “Rewind”.  And Lady GaGa’s “Applause” slides into 4th place as we ready for the onslaught of ARTPOP promos a month in advance of the album’s release.  So the next #1 is fair game!  Travis Garland’s “Homewrecker”, from his self-titled debut album, rises to a new high of #6, as does Justin Timberlake, from the newly released 20/20 Experience Part II, with “Take Back The Night” at #7.

Fastest Risers:

  • No indeed, “We Can’t Stop Summertime Sadness”.  DATABOY’s brillo mashup is a perfect end of summer song that contains some of the Austin lads’ (Cameron and Adam) best vocals.  It climbs 25-18.
  • “Adorn” by Miguel featuring Jessie Ware moves 13-8, and ya never know, it could have its eyes on the top of the chart, too.
  • It’s great to see UK indie singer Sam Dickinson jump into the Top 10 with “Learn To Wait”, as he prepares a video for a softer, emotional song “Lift Your Head”, from his album The Stories That Occurred. 
  • Betty Who’s “Somebody Loves You” jumps out of my stereo and iPod Touch whenever I play it, and gains momentum on the chart, soaring to #10.
  • It appears that Pet Shop Boys ditched “Love Is A Bourgeois Construct” as a follow-up single to “Vocal” in favour of “Thursday”, featuring UK dance artist Example.  That won’t stop the song from edging its way to the Top 10, as it lands at #12 this week.

New to the Chart:

  • Yes, that Italian singer I mentioned at the top along with his new video for the poignant “I Have A Name” is indeed Osvaldo Supino.  While he has a penchant for the naughty and double entendre, he is at his best either having great fun with his boombox in the video for “Ma Radio” (which advances to #17) or being ultra-sincere with “I Have A Name”.  The video captures those moments in time… some you don’t want to relive, and some you do.  It’s from Osvaldo’s latest album Exposed (as is Ma Radio), and is also part of the amazing dance compilation that is This Beat Is…Poptronik Volume 2.  The song arrives at #21.
  • In a few weeks, “Juliet” by Lawson will take over the UK charts when their Chapman Square Chapter II album will also be released.  What’s in store for North America will likely centre around “Learn To Love Again” (#5 here earlier in the year) and a variation of the new album.  Can’t wait!  “Juliet” debuts at #26.
  • It takes a lot of a song to stick with me amid so much other great new music.  I don’t often draw from the Disney channel cadre of artists, but I was truly impressed when I saw Zendaya perform in concert this past summer.   “Replay” has become a modest pop hit already from her debut self-titled album, and still stuck in my head, premieres at #27. 
  • Lastly, Anton Ewald’s A EP has been the Europop winner this year that is normally held by the likes of Eric Saade.  With Eric’s album focusing more on softer, lyrical songs, Anton’s already grabbed a big win with “Begging”, still on the chart after peaking at #2.  “Can’t Hold Back” is simply energetic Europop at its best and bows at #28.  You can also pick up Anton’s A Acoustic EP online.

Listen to the songs or watch the videos using the links on the pictures on the pretty and details web edition of my chart.

Here’s the full basic BILLCS Top 30 :)

01 01 BLACK LIGHT (Stormby remix) Kaden
02 02 AS LONG AS YOU LOVE ME Ryan Adamés
03 03 REWIND Neverest
06 04 APPLAUSE Lady GaGa
04 05 SKIRT Kylie Minogue
08 06 HOMEWRECKER Travis Garland
09 07 TAKE BACK THE NIGHT Justin Timberlake
13 08 ADORN Miguel featuring Jessie Ware
11 09 LEARN TO WAIT Sam Dickinson
16 10 SOMEBODY LOVES YOU Betty Who
12 11 ROYALS Lorde
17 12 LOVE IS A BOURGEOIS CONSTRUCT Pet Shop Boys
05 13 VOCAL Pet Shop Boys
15 14 PROBLEM (Kat Krazy remix) Natalia Kills
20 15 HEADHUNTER Parralox 
21 16 I REMEMBER Nick Pes
22 17 MA RADIO Osvaldo Supino
25 18 WE CAN’T STOP SUMMERTIME SADNESS Databoy
07 19 DIRTY FLOORS Andy Suzuki & The Method
24 20 HYMN FrankMusik
New 21 I HAVE A NAME Osvaldo Supino
10 22 BEGGING Anton Ewald
14 23 BROKENHEARTED Lawson featuring B.o.B.
29 24 IMPOSSIBLE Ryan Star
19 25 LIFE (IS MY REVENGE) FrankMusik
New 26 JULIET Lawson 
New 27 REPLAY Zendaya
New 28 CAN’T HOLD BACK Anton Ewald
26 29 WINNING GROUND Eric Saade
28 30 HEARTS Dan Black featuring Kelis

Retro Alt.Rock from @JakeBugg’s Sophomore Album, “What Doesn’t Kill You”

JAKE BUGG, “What Doesn’t Kill You”

It seems like 19 year old Nottingham, England-born Jake Bugg’s self-titled album was only just released, with the top of 2013 all abuzz about the baby-faced folk-rock singer with gritty, street-wise lyrics.  The album went to #1 in the UK and sold out concert dates everywhere followed.  Jake’s new album Shangri-La is already due for release in November, and ahead of that we’ve got “What Doesn’t Kill You” to tweak our interest.  The song would have comfortably fit into the British post-punk era of rock, and certainly stands out as unique in today’s alt.rock.  I don’t think there are pop radio designs on this song but perhaps others will follow.  If you liked Matthew Koma’s “1998” from his EP earlier this year, that might help give some context, though Matthew skews more pop than Jake.  “What Doesn’t Kill You” is available worldwide on iTunes.

New Album by @iamJmsn Previewed by “Walk Away”

JMSN, “Walk Away”

The sophomore album by L.A.-based singer JMSN (aka Christian Berishaj) is on deck for November 5.  It’s called †Pllajë†, similarly looking to last year’s  †Priscilla†, but this time it appears the title is a variation of the French word for beach, ‘plage’.  In advance of the album we have “Walk Away”, another haunting foray until JMSN’s stories which may have real-life aspects about them.  This one’s about a guy who can’t leave a relationship despite the other person bent on self-destruction.  I saw JMSN in June in Toronto and his songs and multi-octave voice translate very well to a club setting – and so many people in the audience knew the words to the songs he played from  †Priscilla†.  Look for more new songs from JMSN soon and in the meantime pick up “Walk Away” on iTunes.

New video: “Keep Me Running” by NYC’s Andy Suzuki @AndTheMethod

ANDY SUZUKI & THE METHOD “Keep Me Running”

In support of the Spring release of their fine, fine album Born Out Of Mischief, New York City trio Andy Suzuki & The Method offer the video take on their lead single “Keep Me Running”.  Like some of the songs within the album, the video perfectly illustrates the seamier side of life that is often right in front of our noses.  It’s a day in the life of Lucy – and it’s not much of a life to be honest – as she is clearly on a downward spiral and isn’t about to stop it.  Along the way, she has fun with our boys – Andy, Jason, and Kozza – a high point in a meager existence.  Born Out Of Mischief contains many interesting slice-of-life stories and you should do yourself a huge favour and pick it up on iTunes.  Andy Suzuki & The Method have recently been touring, and there will be more tour dates – tonight (October 5) you can catch them at the Mercury Lounge in NYC.