L.A.-based singer/songwriter Cobi continues to release affecting and personal songs such as his latest, “You’re Mine”. This one documents the struggle to find a relationship’s middle ground, when the singer’s own struggles prevent it from moving on to the next level, and put the relationship at risk. “You’re Mine” is about wanting someone so much, and not knowing what to do about it. Cobi’s powerful vocal resonates from deep within, but what could be a morose song is boosted by a fervid, sometimes bluesy rock arrangement that keeps you captivated instead of pushing you away. I can’t wait to hear what Cobi’s songs will sound like when he has the opportunity to play them in a live concert. And so above is a live clip that will give you a taste, with the studio version below.
A few years back, a series of well-received singles led to the progressive electronic album release Regrowth by Florida-based producer/remixer Kauf (aka Ron Kaufman). Kauf continues his dreamy, deep synth soundscapes with “Time Pass”, one of several singles which I note that he has released this year. This one is soothing for the electronic soul in all of us, almost a theme from another time in music (the 1970’s perhaps?) when whiling away the time seemed like a great idea. In today’s world, we take it for granted, and time slips just slips away because we’re too busy to enjoy it. So find yourself a quiet place, put your headphones on, close your eyes, and go deep into Kauf’s “Time Pass”.
Finding a happy, edgy ground somewhere between Lana Del Rey and Billie Eilish isn’t easy, but L.A.-based indie singer/songwriter KING MALA (aka Areli Castro) seems to have achieved it in “If I Try To Find You”. It’s a follow up to her complex single “sugarblind”, which I wrote about in the Summer. The song pulls open wounds from a long-ago relationship, when given thought about where that person might be now, with the realization that the enduring pain from it was much deeper. The song truly comes alive with an in-your-face chorus that might prove to be a trademark of KING MALA’s “king bad bitch” persona. “If I Try To Find You” is aggressive and not always an easy listen, but your time in getting to know the music of KING MALA will be very well spent.
In 10/10, I write about 10 hot and fresh songs in no particular order, for your kind consideration and attention.
I continue to write individual blog posts about certain songs. That does not mean that songs in the 10/10 lists are any less than those featured individually, and they are not listed in any particular order.
Writing 10/10 posts means I can cover more songs in one shot. So you get to learn about more new music that I hear but don’t always get a chance to write about.
TAFARI ANTHONY, “No Good”
“No Good” is Tafari Anthony’s most recent follow up to the beautifully cutting “Centerfold”, which peaked at #10 on my personal chart. His first name is pronounced ‘Ta-far-eye’, and “No Good” seethes with emotion as the singer recounts being resigned to say goodbye to someone, albeit with some reluctance. Like with “Centerfold”, “No Good” minces no words, and Tafari’s vocal is a passionate mix of contemporary and older school styles and influences that makes his music an easy fit onto any pop or R&B playlist. So brace yourself for a heart-felt story and enjoy those moments when Tafari’s voice really soars.
grandson, “Dirty”
Canadian-American singer/songwriter grandson has already encountered a modicum of domestic fame which garnered a Juno Awards nomination and a US major label record deal. His distinct, edgy and often witty vocal style sets him apart from others, and he scored brilliantly singing on Whethan’s single from earlier this year called “All In My Head”, a #1 on my personal chart. Like that song, “Dirty” is a playful, danceable slice of alt.rock that should be added immediately to modern rock and college radio station playlists. Check out its energetic, provocative video above. “Dirty” is from his upcoming debut album called Death Of An Optimist, due in December.
MOTEZ, “Give Your Heart Away”
Australian producer Motez is hardly a newcomer to the dance music scene, but he has set his foundation in his home country – receiving a gold single award for “The Future” – but while receiving support elsewhere by stars as diverse as Idris Elba. Dance music fans who saw him play in Las Vegas may already be familiar with “Give Your Heart Away”, whose release has been a long time coming. It’s essentially an instrumental that melds European deep house flavours with feel-good 90’s vibes around what sound like powerhouse vocal samples, which instantly make it a festival-worthy banger. Club DJ’s could eventually play this alongside of ODESZA’s “Loyal” and classics like “Show Me Love” or “Love Sensation” and the dance floor would stay packed. So continue to stay tuned to what Motez has in store for you.
ZEN THOMAS, “What Can I Say”
There’s not much information available online about L.A.-based singer Zen Thomas (yup, his real name is Zen), but be prepared to be blown away by “What Can I Say”, his most recent single. He’s been releasing songs for about two years, including an EP called Songs About No One earlier this year. “What Can I Say” is classic current pop music – if you like Charlie Puth and Maroon 5, then the songs of Zen Thomas are not far removed. Not only is “What Can I Say” a feverishly passionate song, but Zen’s buttery voice and scorching high notes will completely turn you into a puddle. So now is definitely a good time to discover the music of Zen Thomas.
SMALLTOWN DJ’s and BOOTSY COLLINS, “Good Thang”
Canadian electronic dance producers Smalltown DJ’s have a fun and funky treat for you in the form of “Good Thang”. The guys have created a fantastic rhythm track for the song, which has enticed collaboration from none other than one of the 70’s great funk-masters, Bootsy Collins. Bootsy adds his kingsize personality to “Good Thang” and so, through electronic dance, P-funk fans of the 70’s get one of the closest things yet to that old school funk.
TONYB., “You Knew What This Was”
Nashville pop/R&B singer/songwriter TONYB. shows a lot of promise with his new single “You Knew What This Was”. Sporting a gorgeous tenor voice that will have you thinking Seal, D’Angelo and Usher, “You Knew What This Was” is a moody but captivating song that is highly reminiscent of Seal’s own “Crazy”. In it, he graciously calls out a former lover after their love was no longer to be forever. With bright songwriting and vocal like these, we’ll certainly be hearing more from TONYB.
STEVE JAMES, “Us” (Joey Parki remix)
Earlier this year, Grammy-nominated songwriter Steve James released his first major label EP called +One, featuring a beautiful single “fall for you”. He then made an usual move – he started up his own indie label, Butter Beats, and released a couple of singles, one of which is “Us”. The need for fluid creativity often works in strange ways. Far less lush and polished-sounding than some of his previous work, Steve then had a remix contest for “Us”, kind of an atypical alt.dance track anyway. The best one of the bunch to me is Joey Parki’s progressive house remix, which adds more dimension to the original without totally reworking it. Its deliberate pacing pairs well with Steve’s own vocal (which sings one verse repeated) making it an inspired and memorable remix.
GEORGIA BLACK, “Invisible Enemy”
“Invisible Enemy” is top notch creative songwriting which uses the pandemic as the basis for its obvious theme, though it can be interpreted otherwise as well. It’s brought to you by British singer Georgia Black, whose unique vocal fits the musical styles of singers like Amy Winehouse, Joss Stone, Peggy Lee, and Diana Krall. It’s a pleasing, intimate hybrid of pop, R&B, jazz and blues that would sound best in a small club setting. You’d never know from this song that Georgia spent time fronting Agent Provocateur’s Dirty Stop Out with The Clash’s Mick Jones, but undoubtedly that experience has made her solo work sound that much better!
SEOLO and JOSEPH FEINSTEIN, “Fake Love”
“Fake Love” is a European-flavoured pop-friendly dance bop that will make you want to bounce. Seolo is relative newcomer Bálint Csenke, a producer/remixer who hails from Hungary, and who has already scored over 2 million streams with his single “Just Like A Ghost”. He’s collaborated here with German singer/songwriter Joseph Feinstein, who has quickly acquired more than 10 million streams for his songs over the past few years. The result is effortless-sounding ear candy for anyone, with Joseph’s immensely appealing and gentle vocal offsetting Seolo’s majestic synth sounds.
MIKE VALLAS, “Train”
I’m not sure from where singer/songwriter Mike Vallas hails – I would guess Germany or Austria. During his time releasing music over the last three years, he has become a well-known presence on Tik Tok. And while my first taste of his music a few years ago was very hip hop flavoured, his new song “Train” is a more laid back indie singer/songwriter effort about loneliness after leaving a party without any company. Anyone will relate to Mike’s lyrics, and his down-to-earth vocal against a modest electronic backdrop goes down easily.
It doesn’t happen often, but three out of four debuts on the new chart are by my fellow Canadians, who have all charted multiple times. I often wonder when the great divide between having success in Canada and elsewhere will end. Though we have more artists who are international successes than ever, Canadian artists still have to go through needless traditional hoops within our own country to get major label deals which release their music outside of Canada. Change is needed to introduce more great new music to the world.
At #1 once again, it’s the glorious banger “Undo My Heart” by British artists Karen Harding and Digital Farm Animals. Watch for her new song “Let’s Get Together” in collaboration with producers Illyus and Barrientos, on Friday October 30!
With eyes on #1 in two weeks is Mr. Stan Sax, the creator of the wondrous and riveting instrumental “House Is Happiness”. Sure to put some extra enthusiastic zip in your step, “House” climbs 3-2.
She’s a regular in my Top 10, so it’s no surprise that the title track of Jessie Ware’s album What’s Your Pleasure glides 10-6. In fact, I saw her hypnotic performance in concert six years ago to this very day at The Great Hall in Toronto.
Leading the three new arrivals in the Top 10 is Troye Sivan, who keeps his streak intact, now with 8 songs that have reached my Top 10 (including two #1’s) with the title song from his EP In A Dream, which moves up 12-8.
L.A.-based indie alt.pop trio Fames zips into the Top 10 with their earworm “scared of the dark”, jumping 13-9.
One of the most infectious deep house songs out there right now is “Type Like That” by Sweden’s Pawl & Discrete, and it flies up the chart 16-10.
Three of last week’s debuts land in the Top 20. The first of these is The Blue Nile redux, “Tinseltown In The Rain” by German producer Matt Mancid with vocals by American producer Color Theory. Its “Big Rhythm remix” makes waves, climbing 21-14.
Then there’s “Fantasy” (above) by German producers Saxity featuring NYC-based vocalists Victor Perry and Robbie Rosen, which rises 23-16. One half of Saxity is Mr. Stan Sax, whose “House Is Happiness” now sits at #2. Victor Perry’s “What I Deserve”, from his EP Rewind, will exit the chart after reaching #2 and the maximum 10 appearances (20 weeks), sitting now at #20. Check out Victor’s latest release which dives deeper into electronic dance music called “On The Low” (below) with new production duo Dubio.
Last but not least, there’s the Fastest Riser on the chart, which soars 25-17, and it’s “Diamonds” by Sam Smith, from his upcoming album Love Goes.
I also can’t go without mentioning that Illenium has already followed up “Nightlight” (26-21, above) with “Paper Thin” (below) which features vocals by Tom De Longe, ex-Blink 182 and Angels & Airwaves. It’s an interesting mix of talents which may grow on you.
I only wrote about the Highest Debut last week, but I am so keen on it and the new music forthcoming by Toronto-based singer/songwriter Justin Nozuka. He teamed up with British singer/songwriter Mahalia for the romantic R&B of “No One But You”, which bows at #24. It’s Justin’s first indie release, and first appearance on this chart since 2010. His debut single “After Tonight” got to #1 in 2008, and I’ve seen his excellent work several times in performance.
As “Bad Decisions” departs after peaking at #5, so arrives “Late Night Love” (#25), the ribald and exciting latest release from Toronto’s Francesco Yates.
British Columbia-based singer/songwriter Tyler Shaw, in partnership with fellow artist FeFe Dobson, was responsible for the top notch recording of “Lean On Me” by an assembly of Canadian performers billed as ArtistsCAN, which was released back in the Spring. Tyler’s latest release is the percolating pop dance of “Remember” (above), which debuts at #26 and is his third chart entry. You can also check out its version française below featuring 18 year old French Canadian singer Lili-Ann De Francesco.
The fourth debut at #27 is the second recent entry for Austin duo Tritonal with “Electric Kids”. It follows the enchanting and mystical “Shivohum”, which reached #1 back at the top of the year. “Electric Kids” features the vocals of L.A.-based singer and co-writer Linney, who also appeared on the chart earlier this year singing “Yesterday” by Gareth Emery, which climbed to #3.
A reminder that the music from my chart and blog are featured regularly on the new online radio station Radio GTA. You can hear their Big 20 on Wednesday evenings with ‘The Musicman’ James Rogers and listen for songs from the chart too 🙂 Scroll down the station’s main page to listen to lots of variety from across the decades! I’m the new music consultant for the station so you can expect even more in 2021 🙂 You can start by joining Radio GTA’s new interactiveFacebook group too!!
View the full BILLCS Top 30right here! Click on the hyperlink on the song titles to hear the songs or watch the videos!
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
Want to see what I’ve been listening to and charting for the past 22 years? Rummage through theBILLCS Top 30 Archive (where you can click on the link within) when you have a chance!!
I’ve noticed in the past several months, there has been a real absence of romantic songs, probably in keeping somewhat with the current ongoing situation. So bravo to Toronto’s Justin Nozuka for releasing his first new music in over two years in the form of an R&B-pop ballad with UK singer Mahalia that recalls his cover of Sade’s “By My Side” called “No One Like You”. In years past, this would be called a ‘quiet storm’ track, and could easily be played next to classics of that sub-genre. It’s a lusciously simple song about anyone’s special someone, and it’s complimented by its video above, which reminds us of all of the gentle, sensual, romantic, and often basic aspects of a relationship that take place. “No One Like You” is pop music soul food. This collaboration with Mahalia is certainly one-of-a-kind. She has had her own major label album release to show off her Erykah Badu-meets-Lauryn Hill style, and has recorded with Jacob Collier, Ty Dolla $ign, Kranium, Ella-Mai, and more. I’m so glad to hear new music from Justin, who is always unpredictable but creates from the heart. Listen for more coming soon.
Their work together on the recent faithful cover of Modern Talking’s “You’re My Heart, You’re My Soul” went so smoothly that Sweden’s B3NTE and New York-based singer/songwriter Victor Perry are back with an original follow up this time, called “Wicked Games” (not to be confused with The Weeknd track of the same name). It’s a buoyant progressive electronic dance track this time too carried by Victor’s convincingly-sung story of betrayal. Its catchy, big synth work stands out but does not overpower the prolific Victor’s effortless vocal. “Wicked Games” is another winner – keep ’em coming, guys!
Mokita is a prolific singer/songwriter from Nashville who has been coming into his own with his releases over the last few years. It culminated in a collaboration with R3HAB called “All Into Nothing”, which has acquired over $25 million streams. His originals “London” and “Inside Out” were two of my faves last year, and several singles have been released since his EP 4201. “Ready Yet” is the latest, which might remind listeners a lot of songs by Lauv, though the two have quite different styles. This one’s about not being ready for a relationship, something we don’t hear about often in songs. It’s solid, breezy pop that goes down easy.
After writing about his recent singles “Who’s Gotcha” and “Worth It”, and indicating that I wanted to hear more from Buffalo NY native HVNNIBVL, I didn’t realize there was an EP on its way. Now on release, Reasonably, Relative is the title, and among its six songs you will find those two previous singles. Digging into the EP, another highlight is “Something Special”, and it’s for different reasons than the others. While the main focus is on spreading happy vibes, I found “Something Special” reminding me at times of Bruno Mars’ “Treasure”. It’s probably because the song has HVNNIBVL’s best vocal thus far, and the story about wanting to do “Something Special” with your lover or friend is one that’s needed in the world today. And based on what I heard in Reasonably, Relative, if you sat down HVNNIBVL in a room with some established producers, he would have the great songs ready for them, and all they would have to do is add the spit and polish.
NIKI DARLING, “Take You There” (original and Black Silence remix)
The last four years have created nothing but once in a lifetime opportunities for American R&B singer Niki Darling. Although you’re likely to hear Tina Turner-meets-Lady Gaga with a dash of Prince (obviously, that name…) in her voice and style, I would also add the diversity of Chaka Khan, Sia, and Kelly Rowland into the mix. Her talents have taken her from leading NYC hip hop group Pants Velour to numerous destinations around the world, including Morocco, Beijing, and Ibiza, working in a full-time career in music. In fact, she was in London when the pandemic struck, and, as was documented by the BBC at the time, she was unable to return to the US for several weeks.
Her new single and video (up top) for “Take You There” document her journey as a message that shows you can overcome struggle and achieve your passion through commitment and lots of hard work – an old ethic, but it works. Her powerful tones resonate throughout “Take You There” and are totally suited for the percolating 90’s flavours that British remixer Black Silence adds to the song to make it highly club-worthy (link below). The well-edited video gives you a sense of something I firmly believe in – when one door closes, another opens. And another door for Niki Darling is set to open when a full album arrives in 2021.
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