Tag Archives: electronica

#BILLCSTop30 – #469 – November 2, 2015

The Top 10 is log-jammed with fine songs and new peak positions, but some will need to give way within the next few weeks to make room for all of the newcomers on the rise.  The highest debut has undoubtedly got #1 to contend with, while the other three have enormous potential and debut a little lower than usual because of the songs with which they are currently competing.

The Top 10

  • River Tiber’s “Let You Go” has a comfortable lock on #1 – for now – despite the incredible activity below.  The song’s stellar performance and rich, soulful vibe help define it!  Other songs from the EP When The Time Is Right are also sinking in, such as “Waves”.

  • It’s been a steady pace for songs that are totally different but have been bookends these past few weeks.  Continue to dance your a** off to “Let You Go” by The Chainsmokers & Great Good Fine OK, which arrives at #2, while the beautiful and thoughtful “Pain Told Love” by Tribe Society & Kiesza moves up to #3 (ironically where Tribe Society’s predecessor band Gentlemen Hall peaked in 2013 with “Sail Into The Sun”).

  • And here’s Brooklyn’s Great Good Fine OK again in the Top 5 in a great pairing with St. Lucia on “Something To Believe In”, which climbs to #4.

  • I was very early on “The Other Boys” by NERVO featuring Kylie Minogue, Jake Shears, and Nile Rodgers.  It holds at #5 here but in better news has reached #1 on Billboard’s Dance Club Play chart.  I like it when my ears ring early on a song and this happens 🙂  Watch the new video above!

  • Brandyn Burnette’s enduring “I Wanna Be (Free)” leaves the chart after a mandatory 10 appearances (20 weeks), but until his new Made Of Dreams EP (which I will continue to preview) arrives in two weeks, the heartfelt “Life’s A Beach” will keep your attention at #9.  It’s available for free from Brandyn’s website from his mixtape called The Bright Side.

  • Can you say Food Fight? 😛 The second new entry to the top 10 is the rollicking “Cake By The Ocean” by DNCE, led by one Joe Jonas.  It soars 17-10.  Pleased to say I got a ticket to their Toronto show on November 18 🙂 “Cake” is culled from the new EP Swaay.

Movin’ on Up

  • It’s Koma Koma time!  Now a Top 10 Billboard Dance Club Play hit – I’m another early adopter on this one too! – “So F**kin’ Romantic” by Matthew Koma continues to climb up to #11.

  • And three places below, we find talented Matthew again, in a pairing with talented production duo The Knocks, with the rhythmic and dreamy “I Wish (My Taylor Swift)”.  It’s the fastest riser on the chart, charging up 24-14.

  • Toronto singer Diego Gomes has a new EP called The Beginning due this month.  Until this new music arrives, we have the chipper and winning single “Bow Tie”, which climbs 21-17.

  • New Order is definitely on a roll with new single “Plastic”, which I anticipate will arrive on international dance charts very soon.  It moves up 25-19.  The enduring band has charted four times on this chart since its inception in 1998 – “Crystal” got to #2 in 2001, followed by Get Ready album tracks “Rock The Shack” (#12) and “Turn My Way” (#16), and then “Krafty” reached #5 in 2005.

  • Marianas Trench’s latest album Astoria is now on release and “One Love” is a delightful change of pace for them, recalling the diversity of 2009’s similarly conceptual Masterpiece Theatre.  “One Love” climbs 23-20.

Those 4 Debuts

  • It should be no surprise that “Hello” by Adele is at the top of the debuts, crashing in at #15 with #1 high on its radar.  Adele’s pristine vocal leads a song that anyone can identify with and should garner her a Grammy.  This bodes extremely well for the upcoming album called 25.  This is one song that will continue to sound grand over and over again.

  • At #25 is the bitter but danceable “Over” by Chicago-based EDM performer Goldhouse, which I wrote about not long ago.  You’re guaranteed to be singing this one after one listen!  Pick up the “Over” EP on iTunes.

  • At #26, is a song that I think is a perfect companion to Adele’s “Hello”.  “The Voice” contestant Clinton Washington will make you swoon with his soaring vocal on his independent release “Hearts Beat Loud”.

  • The last debut at #27 is from an EP that I’m enjoying a whole lot.  I was fortunate to see MAX (Schneider) recently in concert, and he’s a ball of energy who is extremely well-connected with his fans, even jumping into the audience to perform in the centre of the crowd.  The title track from his EP Ms Anonymous also features a nice break by talented rapper Jared Evan.

The Full Chart

Listen to the songs or watch the videos using the links on the pictures on the pretty and detailed web edition of my chart. Go on, have a look and listen/watch 🙂

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

@Reigenmusic marches to the beat of his own drum with the equality anthem “Real New Yorker”

REIGEN, “Real New Yorker” (free download)

Versatile New York vocalist Reigen returns with an anthem that will touch you deep down inside as it does me called “Real New Yorker”.  I worked in the equity field for a number of my early years with my company so the spirit of all forms of equality is embedded inside.  “Real New Yorker” gets right in your face and between your ears, exactly what it should do to command immediate reaction with its chorus “the future is now”.  There’s a bit of charming synth work at the beginning that sounds like it might burst into “The Neverending Story” 😉 and helps to set the stage brightly for what’s to come.  Reigen’s vocal is committed and appropriately unrelenting. “Real New Yorker” is quite unlike the soulful EDM ballad “Come Back To Me” that reached #2 on my chart earlier this year.  Reigen is a powerful, honest new voice and with songs like “Real New Yorker” I can only foresee great things for him and his music in 2016.  Download “Real New Yorker” for free below #thefutureisnow 🙂

https://soundcloud.com/reigen/real-new-yorker

For #Halloween 2015: @KSHMRmusic & @Bassjackers feat. @Sirah with “Memories” and a @Snowmassbeats remix

KSHMR & BASSJACKERS featuring SIRAH, “Memories”

“Memories” is a pretty fierce dance club track lead by a powerful and urgent vocal by Sirah, who you recently heard on MAX (Schneider)’s EP Ms Anonymous, and of course is most noted for vocals on the Grammy-winning “Bangarang” by Skrillex.  American DJ/producer KSHMR and Dutch comrades Bassjackers have created a haunting and propulsive song that doesn’t let up till it’s done.  Then US futuristic dub remixer Snowmass takes the song many steps in a different direction (below) with ultra-creepy vocal effects that are just perfect for Hallowe’en or a late dark night.  Play this remix LOUD.

https://soundcloud.com/snowmass/kshmr-bassjackers-ft-sirah-memories-snowmass-remix

For your #Halloween pleasure there’s “Vampire Bites” by Bruno Alexander @yspikey

BRUNO ALEXANDER, “Vampire Bites”

Songwriter Charlie Mason definitely saved one of his best Hallowe’en treats for Spanish vocalist Bruno Alexander with “Vampire Bites” (co-written with Mark “Big” Smith).  Though Bruno has a soft, romantic-styled vocal, the song delivers a sultry ‘n steamy power with its club flavour and memorable chorus.  Plus, the video only reaffirms that if you trust a dark handsome stranger, he may in fact be a vampire 😛  In the world of entertainment lately, the vampires often win, but it adds for a little bit of Hallowe’en every day, doesn’t it?  There’s also a Ricardo Autobahn extended mix of “Vampire Bites” to take things further on the dance floor.  Give the entertaining video a watch above.

The dance floor awaits with sizzling “Shadows Of The Moon” by @Rozallab & @HouseofVirus

ROZALLA & HOUSE OF VIRUS, “Shadows Of The Moon”

If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it, just make it even better!  90’s dance floor queen Rozalla made a huge and kind of unexpectedly splashy comeback earlier this year with “If You Say It Again”, which made it seem like old times by reaching #3 on the Billboard Dance Club Play chart.  So with the same team in mind, and the addition of producer/DJ’s House Of Virus, we now have the sizzling “Shadows Of The Moon”.  This is the kind of feel good, designed-for-nightlife song that should soar its way to #1, which Rozalla experienced three times in 1992-93 with her classics “Everybody’s Free (To Feel Good)”, “Are You Ready To Fly”, and her cover of The O’Jays’ “I Love Music”.  “Shadows Of The Moon” literally leaps out of the speakers with that familiar voice and classic rhythm.  It’s beckoning you now – so watch the video above and let your feet do the talking.  Remixes are coming – again by the same folks behind those of “If You Say It Again”, so you know there will be instant variety, and they will also join the currently-charting “A Higher High” by Nathalie Archangel (read my blog post right here).

Gentle hurt gets the @BrightLightx2 treatment with “Blood Moon (I Did Give You Love)”

BRIGHT LIGHT BRIGHT LIGHT, “Blood Moon (I Did Give You Love)”

It’s hard to find the many different sides of love that make up a sometimes indecipherable, intangible object.  Rod Thomas has a knack for finding them through his own experiences and observations, as readers of this blog know very well since I first started writing about Bright Light Bright Light in early 2010.  “Blood Moon (I Did Give You Love)” is an introspective new single, on release October 30, which takes the singer off the dance floor for a bit and into a reflection on romance where he clearly wonders what went wrong and if he meant anything at all in the relationship.  It’s a hard place to find oneself and Rod’s gentle way of detailing it all makes “Blood Moon” work so well.  Think of it as an introduction to the next full Bright Light Bright Light project.  BLx2 is currently on tour in select cities with much-praised singer/songwriter John Grant.

#BILLCSTop30 #468 – October 19, 2015

Despite a bit of a busy spell which meant much less blog posts than usual since the last chart, I hope to make up for that during the next two weeks!  The chart continues to be busy with a new #1 and four debuts.  So without further adieu…

The Top 10

  • “Let You Go”, the R&B-infused single from River Tiber’s When The Time Is Right EP, garners the pole position.  It’s River Tiber’s third jaunt at #1, following 2012’s “Someday” and 2013’s “The City”.  But Tommy Paxton-Beesley is definitely on the right track with his new songs; River Tiber’s recent performance at Adelaide Hall in Toronto to me was a personal best!  Folks, be sure to check out When The Time Is Right on iTunes.

  • Zipping all the way to #6 we go for a new Top 10 entry from Brooklyn’s Great Good Fine OK, who also reside with The Chainsmokers at #3 with the other “Let You Go”.  “Something To Believe In” is the compelling duet with St. Lucia full of gorgeous vocals and instrumentation.  It’s from GGFO’s EP 2M2H.

  • Vancouver’s Tyler Shaw is on point with his current single “Dizzy” from his debut album Yesterday.  You can hear it all across Canada on the radio (all the more reason for international readers to find this out with online radio links).  “Dizzy” climbs to #7.

  • Venturing into my city for a concert with a serious of guest singers is Disclosure, who with Sam Smith glide up to #8 with “Omen”.  It’s their third Top Tenner following last year’s #1 “Latch” (with Sam) and #10 “F For You” (with Mary J. Blige).

  • Also new in the Top 10, following that infectious seductive piece of business called “Guilty As Sin” (which peaked at #3, and falls off the chart) is a soft and sinewy number called “My Religion” by Toronto’s Dan Talevski, climbing 18-9.  Canadians continue to boom in the Top 10, with River Tiber, Tyler Shaw, and Dan all aboard (Dan also co-wrote Tyler’s previous single “House of Cards”).

Movin’ On Up

  • Sugar can get stuck easily but with a little persuasion it can be moved.  After holding at #13, “Sugar” by Robin Schulz and Francesco Yates continues to advance up to #11, with its amusing slapsticky video well worth watching.

  • While Brandyn Burnette’s #1 “I Wanna Be (Free)” had a deservedly phenomenal ride on this chart for the last 20 weeks, it moves down to #2 and will depart the chart, leaving room for the heartfelt and catchy “Life’s A Beach” to continue to rise.  It leaps 22-12.  A reminder – it’s available for free from Brandyn’s website as part of The Bright Side Mixtape.

  • Dance clubs totally get it and the so song is headed for the Top 20 on Billboard’s Dance Club Play chart.  Matthew Koma’s “So F**kin’ Romantic” moves up 17-14 – more Matthew to come!

  • Can you say DNCE?? Well if you like to DNCE then you can say it 😛  Joe Jonas’ new project is well on its way with the carefree “Cake By The Ocean” climbing 25-17.  Check out the new video above, which is light years away from The Jonas Brothers.

  • Like Brandyn Burnette and Great Good Fine OK, Sam Smith has two entries in the chart, the latest being the theme from the upcoming James Bond movie “SPECTRE”, “Writing’s On The Wall”, which moves up 23-19.

  • “Bow Tie” by Diego Gomes (another Canadian!) gets far too easily stuck between your ears thanks to a snappy vocal and clever lyrics.  It rises 27-21.

Premiering

  • Leading the debuts is “I Wish (My Taylor Swift)”, a special pairing off DJ/producers The Knocks and singer Matthew Koma at #24.  Despite its title and subject matter, it’s a really clever song with a laid back, dreamy melody.  It’s the second appearance for The Knocks on this chart, following their 2013 cover of M83’s “Midnight City” with Mandy Lee (#8).

  • Arriving for the first time since 2005’s “Krafty” (#5) on this chart is enduring UK quintet New Order, one of my favourite bands of all time who have recorded many must-have’s in my book – “Blue Monday”, “The Perfect Kiss”, “Fine Time”, the list goes on and on.  Their latest album and first for Mute Records is Music Complete – their best IMO since 1989’s Technique.  “Plastic” is the second single, which bows at #25.  It’s New Order creating dance music at its best, drawing from numerous influences through the 70’s to their own music and perhaps even Bernard Sumner’s 90’s side project Electronic.  Turn it up loud and move those feet!

  • Bowing at #28 is a duet between 17 year old Swedish star Zara Larsson and new UK sensation MNEK with “Never Forget You”.  The pairing is just dynamite, and I predict great things for both song and singers.  Readers of this blog know that I’ve written about MNEK several times since 2012, when the talented singer/writer/producer – who recently co-wrote and sang on Madonna’s “Living For Love” (!) – was also just 17.  He’s since been similarly behind the scenes for UK #1’s by Oliver Heldens, Little Mix, and Duke Dumont, too.

  • Rounding out the chart at #29 is the latest single from Years & Years’ still-stunning debut album Communion.  The gorgeous ballad “Eyes Shut” debuts as long-lasting #1 “Shine” leaves the chart.  It’s the group’s fourth chart entry also following “King” (#1) and “Desire” (#7).

You can hear me online on http://www.planetradio.ca every Monday after 10:00 pm EST counting down a Toronto Top 10 chart from yesteryear!

More about @LucienDante’s album Our Of We

LUCIEN DANTE, Our Of We

Last week was one of those weeks when one song came out of nowhere and floored me, and that is “Black Water” by Chicago-based singer/songwriter Lucien Dante from his album Our Of We.  It debuted on my chart at #21 with its expressive vocal, engaging charm, and gorgeous arrangement.  While it remains my favourite from the album, Our Of We is full of other delights which will keep you thinking as you’re listening.  Lucien’s influences seem to come from all over – I hear pop, classical, folk, EDM, and R&B/soul at various times – and he doesn’t sound like anyone in particular.  Most of his songs seem to be delivered with a shy-sounding vocal that gives perspective from a viewpoint of wonder, discovery, and keen interest.  But when he breaks away from a minimalist sound and heads toward a powerful bridge or chorus, the confidence in his craft really comes out.  Most of the songs are produced by TKANG! who obviously has a good read on what the singer is trying to convey.  I’ll admit the songs aren’t really for everyone but Lucien is very persuasive.  So do yourself a favour and check out the club-worthy “Ivory Toast”, “Spark”, “Light, Love & Chaos” and the hip-hop flavoured “Love Me Lessons (Imma Be)” (nothing to do with the Black Eyed Peas 😉 ) as starting points.  This is a great start from a singer/songwriter who consistently delivers, making Our Of We a personal, sincere, and enlightening experience!  Listen to the album above (and do download “Black Water” for free on Lucien’s Soundcloud page) and pick it up on iTunes.

@Frankmusik is back with the early 90’s-sounding “I Remember”

FRANKMUSIK, “I Remember”

After a few rough years of personal turmoil, which did yield some of the best songs of his career so far, Frankmusik is back with the straight-forward 90’s dance appeal of “I Remember” from his just-released album For You, to coincide with his 30th birthday.  For most of the song the singer sits in his lower register to play off the familiar rhythm in this R&B-oriented song that features his usual intricately crafted melody.  But he always has a few surprises for us all which makes listening to every Frankmusik album a unique experience.  As with the previous single “This”, the new songs sound positive in theme and “I Remember” provides the bounce that could land Frankmusik back in dance clubs.  Watch the video above and get “I Remember” and For You on iTunes.  I look forward to delving more into the songs on the album soon!

#BILLCSTop30 #467 – October 5, 2015

It’s Fall in North America and new music is plentiful!  Old favourites exit to make room for six FAB new tunes this week!  And there’s a surprise for you at the top…

The Top 10

  • Brandyn Burnette returns to the top for a 5th non-consecutive appearance (10th week) with “I Wanna Be (Free)”.  This is the first time that a song has spent longer than one chart appearance (2 weeks) to return to the top – and after Years & Years held court for 3 appearances (6 weeks) with “Shine”.  It’s also the first time a song has held #1 for 5 appearances since Darren Hayes did it (and twice in one year!) with “How To Build A Time Machine” at the end of 2007.  Listen and watch for a different take on “I Wanna Be (Free)” featuring rapper Nevelle.  It just goes to show how diverse and open to interpretation the song is – which is a great thing for Brandyn Burnette and his songwriting!

  • Most likely to succeed “I Wanna Be (Free)” at the top now is last week’s high flying debut “Let You Go” by Toronto’s River Tiber, which soars 10-3.  Maybe we will see River Tiber (aka Tommy Paxton-Beesley) in the Top 10 national charts one day with Drake and The Weeknd too, given this week’s Canadian domination of the Billboard Top 10.  “Let You Go”, one of those strange, paradoxical love stories, is culled from River Tiber’s latest and best record to date, When The Time Is Right.

  • Right behind “Let You Go” is our other “Let You Go” – the free download by The Chainsmokers featuring hot R&B/pop band Great Good Fine OK at #4.  Wait for that Tiesto rave up to get going and then it’s non-stop party!

  • Advancing to #5 is “Pain Told Love” by Tribe Society featuring Kiesza.  If you pay close enough attention to this one, you will need a few tissues handy.  It’s a beautiful, idiosyncratic perspective on our opposite sentiments and how they sometimes need to come together to prevent us from losing grip on everything that is good about living.

  • Finally in the Billboard Dance Club Play Top 10 – NERVO/Kylie/Jake/Nile and “The Other Boys” – climbing up to #6.

  • New to the Top 10 at #10 for his first appearance on this chart is the impressive “Dizzy” by British Columbia native – and former MUCHMusic Covers winner – Tyler Shaw!

Movin’ On Up

  • Jane Badler’s dark and slinky “Dead Eyes” (Eel Eye Club Mix) from her latest album Opus is on a roll, rising 18-15.  Could it become her third Top 10 on this chart, following “Yesterday’s Tomorrows” and “Losing You”?

  • While I’m also loving Matthew Koma’s whimsical collaboration with The Knocks on “I Wish (My Taylor Swift)”, his own “So F**kin’ Romantic” continues to climb up 19-17 as we await his new solo album.

  • The remaining debuts from last week are all off to fantastic starts and they follow each other up the chart 6 places – “My Religion” by Toronto pop/soul singer Dan Talevski at #18, “Wildstar” by Giorgio Moroder featuring a vibrant Foxes vocal at #19, and at #20 Adam Lambert’s dance rave-up “The Light”, though his record company has opted to release “Another Lonely Night” as the next single from The Original High.

SIX debuts!!

  • At #22 is a song that’s been around for a while (I wrote about it in September 2014), but now also available for free as a download from Brandyn Burnette’s website as a part of The Bright Side mixtape.  Check out “Life’s A Beach” and revisit the warm-hearted video.  It will help us bide our time till new Brandyn music when his EP Made Of Dreams is released.

  • Sam Smith has managed to claim the latest James Bond movie theme all to himself – and “Writing’s On The Wall” (#23) is every bit as good as Adele’s “Skyfall”, and managed to get to #1 in the UK, which “Skyfall” did not.  Next stop:  Oscar? Grammy?  Who knows.  Sam’s been to #1 four times here with “Stay With Me”, “Money On My Mind”, “I’m Not The Only One”, and his collaboration with Disclosure on “Latch”.  And of course he is at #11 with Disclosure with “Omen”.

  • Joe Jonas is large and in charge with the vibrant “Cake By The Ocean” by his new band DNCE, so the song bows at #25.  Joe has had three previous solo entries on the chart:  “Make You Mine” (#3), “Not Right Now” (#6), and “Just In Love” (#13).

  • I’ve enjoyed every Marianas Trench album since Fix Me bowed in late 2006 for the British Columbia based band.  They’re back with album four called Astoria, also released Stateside by Cherrytree/Interscope, and the latest single from that is a softer song for them that shows off Josh Ramsay’s restraint and range, “One Love”, which arrives at #26.  Of their 9 chart appearances, he Trench’s best showing on this chart to date has been with “Masterpiece Theatre Part 1”, which reached #4 in 2009.

  • Last but by no means least is the fun-tastic “Bow Tie” by Toronto’s 18 year old Diego Gomes which lands at #27.  The winner of Canada’s The Next Star back in 2010 is well on his way with a great song like this.

You can hear me online on http://www.planetradio.ca every Monday at 10:15 pm EST counting down a Toronto Top 10 chart from yesteryear!