There’s no denying the power of You Tube, Vine, Instagram and other social media today. I’m glad some of the performers who get noticed through these media have a good deal of humour and enthusiasm driving them, along with their music. Such is the case of Jack Johnson and Jack Gilinsky, aka Jack and Jack (with Johnson also known as Jack Jack, just to confuse things 😛 ), who not only have this slick funky piece of business lighting up called “Groove”, but they also have their own movie arriving next week. All this and they’re not Twitter verified 😛 Nonetheless, “Groove!” is highly appealing and will have your feet tapping and your butt bumping. Think less naughty Janoskians with more than a few dashes of Bruno Mars bottled up into two Jacks, and there you have them. If “Groove!” catches on then these lads will have a bright future ahead indeed and won’t vanish in a puff of social media hype. Listen below.
Toronto singer/producer/DJ Cugini (Adam Bertucci) continues to shake up the EDM and hip hop worlds with his unique style and outlook. Once again employing the fine voice of Pauly Canzio, “Converse Girl” is a compelling story about being in love with a “bad” girl that you want to treat right and for whom you want to be there. A sure enough pop song switches mode after the two minute mark with lots of hip hop attitude and subtle electronics to create a backdrop for a fascination with her Converse shoes. But the overall affect is love and respect, despite the additional obsession. While “Converse Girl” has the marks of a true original, I don’t think it would hurt to have some uptempo remixes of the song which could add some additional flavour and dimension. Give the video (above) some of your time and get to know Cugini.
My personal chart has been online since January 1998 and we’re at edition Triple-4! With a new number one no less! And there are five new entries… The full chart is listed below the blog post.
The Top 10
Jessie Ware succeeds Mikky Ekko at #1 with the should’ve-been-a-hit “Say You Love Me”, and I don’t think anything will challenge for a while yet. If you haven’t heard it yet, her sophomore album Tough Love is one of the best of the year and a great companion piece to Sam Smith’s album.
Mikky Ekko’s “Smile” got an appearance (two weeks) at #1, still one of the finest songs of 2014. Ads popping up everywhere claim Mikky’s album Time will surface on January 20. Can’t…. wait….. !
The best songs of the year rule the top of this particular chart… again! That means another few more weeks for Sam Smith’s “I’m Not The Only One”, Brandyn Burnette’s “Thanks For Nothing” (above), and the Aron Friedman remix of “I Won’t Let You Go” by Adam Tyler at #3, #4, and #5 respectively! We’ll see if songs below shake up the Top 5 in two weeks.
Looking to make that happen is “Brando” by Semi-Precious Weapons, finding a gap in the chart and charging up 13-6. No sign of another new album officially yet but I know this band will make it happen. “Brando” is such a great lead-in to a new album, and surpasses the #9 peak of “Aviation High” on the chart last year.
It’s my favourite of the four songs on his same-titled EP, largely because of one verse which strikes me deep down inside on each listen. New Yorker and former contestant on “The Voice” Jake Barker rises 12-8 with “Stage Fright”. Preview the song right here.
Jane Badler acquires her second Top Tenner on this chart with the hypnotic “Losing You”, leaping 14-9. “Yesterday’s Tomorrows” peaked out at #8 two years ago. “Losing You” is culled from Jane’s latest long-player called Opus.
I love the energy of this song, and that’s a big reason why it’s stuck around so long on the chart. “Play For Me” by UK’s Chromatone advances 11-10 🙂
Movin’ On Up
What?!? Another Bright Light Bright Light song headed into the Top 10?? That’s what’s been happening since 2010 in my world! “Arms Of Another” zips up the chart handily 16-11. It’s a featured song on the single release of BLx2’s previous #1 “An Open Heart”.
I’m pleased to say that the DJ/producer collective of Sander van Doorn, Martin Garrix and my fellow Canucks DVBBS have debuted on Billboard’s Canadian Top 100 at #57! Just as it makes a challenging move on this chart too! The wistful, anthemic, and highly danceable “Gold Skies” climbs 20-14.
Gotta love those Janoskians! The comedic Aussies get a fair amount of social media time each day, which usually involves body skin or removing pants (oh, and thank you Jai Brooks for following me on Twitter, Janoskians fans seem to dig it 🙂 ) . I’m looking for more new music from them very soon, but in the meantime the insanely catchy “That’s What She Said” continues to move up 18-16.
I’m not sure why The Script’s “Superheroes” isn’t more wickedly popular in North America after leading off their 4th album No Sound Without Silence well in advance. It got a late start on my chart but rises 22-17.
The retro flavour of Erasure’s latest album The Violet Flame has scored huge with their fans and other EDM/electronica fans too. Initial single “Elevation” just peaked out at #3 on Billboard’s Dance Club Play Chart and I’m looking for “Reason” to get to #1. It soars with no surprises 26-19. And we need a video!!
Flying very high indeed and the fastest riser on the chart is “Burn Again”, a pensive ballad by British Columbia singer Tristan Thompson. It’s taken from his debut album Here For You, is being played on well over 100 Canadian radio stations, and has entered the Billboard AC Airplay Top 40! Impressive – and don’t forget, Tristan is just 16. “Burn Again” makes short work of the lower part of the chart and moves 28-20.
Five New Entries
You’ve read all about them in detail in my blog pages, so here’s a briefer reminder of what they are and why some of them have debuted high!
Bowing at #18 is “Headphones” by Color Theory. Its 80’s electronic elements and story about a guy who just won’t take off his headphones will get stuck in your head. This bodes for a fine advance in two weeks. Color Theory (Brian Hazard) first appeared on this chart as featured singer on Amelia’s Fault’s haunting “Colder” in the summer of ’13, peaking at … #18 (note: not intentional!)! But Brian is hardly a newcomer, his website is very comprehensive and he’s been making music for about 20 years. Great to have such an infectious potential breakthrough like this! My preference is for the Matt Mancid retro crossover remix right here but listen to the original above.
Last year, a lot of you were blasting Martin Garrix’s “Animals” at your New Year’s celebrations. This year that pleasure should belong to “Goin’ Down” by DJ/producers Deniz Koyu vs Twoloud, which arrives at #21. Listen above and tell me that you weren’t sitting down after. BOOOM! Available at this time on Beatport.
Following up his earlier release of “Back To California” (which reached #10 on this chart), Chicago’s own Steve Grand reminds us once again about why he is such a great storyteller, which got many of you listening to his web hits “All American Boy” and “Stay” last year. “Time” is his latest original, and Steve’s sincerity just oozes from the words. For me not being a Country music fan it’s a happy mix of both Rock and Country – but it’s the performance and lyrics that really score. “Time” debuts at #23 in advance of his upcoming album expected early next year.
As his cover of “Hang On To Your Love” departs, Penguin Prison (Chris Glover) premieres with his new single “Calling Out” at #26. He takes us back to what got under our skin back in 2010 with songs like “The Worse It Gets”, with a simple lyric and a bright sunshiny melody as we head into winter months. Penguin Prison is another performer with a new and much-anticipated sophomore album on deck for next year!
“Hounds” sniff their way on to this chart at #30 as recorded by Canadian band Smashing Satellites from their EP A-Side (SonicAluzion). Responsible are an infectious melody and chorus that will have you singing in short order. Plus – they play in my city (Toronto) next week on Saturday, November 22, opening up for Moist with In My Coma at the Danforth Music Hall. Looking forward to being there!!
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.
02 01 SAY YOU LOVE ME Jessie Ware 01 02 SMILE Mikky Ekko 03 03 I’M NOT THE ONLY ONE Sam Smith 04 04 THANKS FOR NOTHING Brandyn Burnette 05 05 I WON’T LET YOU GO (Aron Friedman remix) Adam Tyler 13 06 BRANDO Semi-Precious Weapons 07 07 UNBREAKABLE Jamie Scott 12 08 STAGE FRIGHT Jake Barker 14 09 LOSING YOU Jane Badler 11 10 PLAY FOR ME Chromatone 16 11 ARMS OF ANOTHER Bright Light Bright Light 06 12 AFTERGLOW Harriet 15 13 RESTART Sam Smith 20 14 GOLD SKIES Sander Van Doorn, Martin Garrix & DVBBS featuring Aleesia 08 15 AMNESIA 5 Seconds Of Summer 18 16 THAT’S WHAT SHE SAID The Janoskians 22 17 SUPERHEROES The Script New 18 HEADPHONES (Matt Mancid Retro Crossover Mix) Color Theory 26 19 REASON Erasure 28 20 BURN AGAIN Tristan Thompson New 21 GOIN’ DOWN Deniz Koyu Vs Twoloud 09 22 CRIMINAL Adam Tyler New 23 TIME Steve Grand 27 24 YELLOW FLICKER BEAT Lorde 10 25 ZEPPELIN Eli Lieb New 26 CALLING OUT Penguin Prison 19 27 GET TO KNOW YOU Corey Niles featuring Ish 21 28 NO FUN The Presets 23 29 THIS COULD BE SOMETHING Anton Ewald featuring Medina New 30 HOUNDS Smashing Satellites
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I am now a radio voice on D-Moos.com Canada’s National Internet Radio Station! Every week I feature a New Music Pick of the Week, which is usually either on my chart or may soon be! Listen in amid the great variety of older music as I bring cutting edge new music to the rotation of over 20,000+ songs!!
Honestly, there haven’t been many singers who call dance clubs their second home who have endured for 20 years and score big every time. Kristine W. could be set to land her 17th #1 on Billboard’s Dance Club Play chart (which has eluded her since 2011). All of her lead artist entries have reached the Top 5. That’s just insane!! I’ve been a fan since 1994’s seminal “Feel What You Want”, one of my Top 10 favourites of that year, which introduced the former Miss Washington to us in an Annie Lennox-like gender-bending video (below) – and who could forget that fluffy white spider/boa thingy? 😛 I still play her 1996 album Land Of The Living regularly. It is an inspiration and radio should have embraced its songs more at the time. A cancer survivor in the early 2000’s, Kristine continued on with so many club classics – “Fly Again”, “The Wonder Of It All”, and “Save My Soul” among them.
Fast forward 10 years and we have “Love Come Home”. This song was actually a minor UK hit in 1994 by Our Tribe which featured Kristine on vocals, very reminiscent of “Land Of The Living” at times. What better way to connect the past with the present. Kristine’s new version is as vital as her 90’s successes. The accompanying video above is all about the love – colourful and energetic and a real showcase for Kristine, decked out majestically once again in unique fashion (remember, back in the day Lady Gaga was a child). Here’s to dance clubs never, ever letting go of Kristine W!!
In case you were wondering what Frankmusik has been up to in between his own recordings, well he’s produced “Confidence Man” by fellow Brit and actor (Doug from “Hollyoaks”) 28 year old P. J. (Patrick Joseph) Brennan. He’s got a quiet vibrato in his voice that may make you recall songs alternately by John Denver, Feargal Sharkey, and Blue Hamilton vocally. The song’s carried by a piano melody that resonates amid the lyrical emotion, where the singer seems to draw from the stronger essence of his partner to develop their relationship… perhaps instilling too much into confidence as a trait. The video, on the other hand, is so much another story. It’s got a crime of passion plot that has been filmed many times over the decades, but it’s unnerving as the lead characters seem to be coping with their deed all too well. Be sure to give it a watch below, but “Confidence Man” stands well on its own too.
Vérité is a new singer from NYC who is turning heads with her EP Echo. On “Weekend”, a comfortable marriage of pop and dance music, Vérité uses her lower register to dazzle like when we first heard Lorde, but after the minute mark her voice soars into her upper register which will draw in fans of Ariana Grande too. The video up above had me at hello, but the ending is superficial and I’ve seen other (mainly European) videos play this card to their disadvantage. But nonetheless, “Weekend” should be hitbound, it’s just beautiful all around. And it’s enhanced by Penguin Prison’s effortless remix (below) which throws it into a different soundscape without taking anything away from the song. Watch for Vérité and “Weekend”, the song is a creeper and a keeper! I would love to see Vérité play on a double bill with fellow local singer S V Ē!
Spandau Ballet have never really went away for very long, but the original quintet led by the still-stunning pipes of Tony Hadley returns with “This Is The Love”, one of a couple of new songs you can find on their new compilation “The Story”. It’s easy to say that this one’s aimed at the fans of their biggest hits, a simple, tight and effortless return. Their documentary “Soul Boys Of The Western World” received raves at the same time as the group was performing some select gigs to get back out there to the public. As is demand, they have now launched a tour of the same name, coming to a major city near you soon! It’s great to have this band back. Spandau Ballet was one of the more intriguing groups out of the post new-wave movement who continued to embrace dance music. Fans know them for their ballads so I’m hoping in these genre-specific days that Spandau Ballet can bridge both pop and EDM easily. Watch the spot-on performance from “The Jimmy Kimmel Show” last week, above.
After 6 weeks of having a lock on the chart, making it some of the best music weeks of the year thus far, the Top 3 songs have faltered and an influx of new songs is on the way, but that will probably still take another month or so, with the exception of one song which has its sights on #1. A list of the complete chart follows the blog post further down 🙂
The Top 10
“Smile” by Mikky Ekko gets an appearance at #1 after holding down the fort at #2 for six weeks. I’m looking forward to hearing the singer’s album Time when it surfaces – not sure of a release date now, and I’d be surprised if it wasn’t shoved back till the new year after he completes his tour with Alt-J. Ironically the singer’s collaboration with Chris Malinchak, “Stranger” (which peaked at #8) is #30 in this edition.
After killer performances in a four city North American tour – including Toronto, where I was fortunate to bear witness to her amazing voice and show – Jessie Ware’s “Say You Love Me” soars 6-2 to challenge “Smile” for #1 in two weeks. I don’t understand why “Say You Love Me” isn’t tearing up charts everywhere (it did reach the Top 25 in the UK), but there’s a dearth of beautiful songs on her album Tough Love too!
While Sam Smith’s “I’m Not The Only One” slips to #3, do not fear, fans, “Restart” is on its way up at #15!
He continues to post a lot of new music on his Soundcloud page, but for now “Thanks For Nothing” by Brandyn Burnette holds its own at #4.
Jamie Scott’s “Unbreakable” is slowly attracting friends at radio, and the song climbs this week 9-7, as his album My Hurricane will see release this month.
5 Seconds Of Summer’s memorable ballad “Amnesia” enters the Top 10, right behind the #7 peak of “She Looks So Perfect” at #8.
Oh look! Two Adam Tyler songs in the Top 10! No surprise that, I believe he’s done it before 🙂 So we have the Aron Friedman remix of “I Won’t Let You Go” at #5, and the Paul Hetherington 80’s retro-styled production of “Criminal” becomes yet another Top Tenner for Adam at #9!
Movin’ Up
Chromatone’s pop-rock-R&B flavoured song “Play For Me” continues to climb to a new peak, at #11 in this edition!
The last chart’s fastest riser, Jake Barker’s “Stage Fright”, moves up just outside the Top 10 at #12.
Semi-Precious Weapons look to follow “Aviation High” into the Top 10 with the unconventional love song “Brando”, moving up 17-13.
Actress and singer Jane Badler’s hypnotic and stylish “Losing You” makes a big move this week, rising 20-14!
The fastest riser on the chart this week can only be found within the new EP An Open Heart by Bright Light Bright Light. It’s “Arms Of Another” (musically inspired by Crystal Waters’ classic “Gypsy Woman (She’s Homeless)”, climbing 24-16.
It debuted inside the Top 50 this week on the UK Official Singles Chart so “Gold Skies” by the triple threat of Sander van Doorn, Martin Garrix and DVBBS (featuring Aleesia) is proving to be an international chart threat, and it rises 27-20 on my chart in this edition.
It took a while to reach the chart, but “Superheroes” by The Script is well on its way, rising 28-22, from their 4th album No Sound Without Silence.
Chart Newcomers
Erasure has been one of my favourite groups since I first saw their show in 1986 (!), and their latest album The Violet Flame is one of their finest, harkening back to their classic late 80’s period. They’ve only surfaced on my chart three times since 2003, but each time it’s with a personal Top Tenner: Their cover of “Solsbury Hill”, “I Could Fall In Love With You”, and “Then I Go Twisting”. Can “Reason” join this trio? It arrives at #26 as the group completes its recent four.
Arriving at #27 is the initial single from the intriguing-looking soundtrack to the latest edition of “The Hunger Games” called “Mockingjay” (Part 1). I wasn’t a fan of the first movie, but award-winning singer/songwriter Ella Yelich-O’Connor, aka Lorde, is the curator of the soundtrack (not bad for turning 18 years old this coming week!) and the alluring “Yellow Flicker Beat” debuts on the chart. Lorde’s “Royals” only got to #11 before I tired of it; perhaps “Yellow Flicker Beat” will do better!
Lastly at #28, is the second official single by British Columbia singer Tristan Thompson, “Burn Again”,which I wrote about recently. This 16 year old will be a contender in the next year, mark my words!
The Full Chart
Listen to the songs or watch the videos using the links on the pictures on the pretty and detailedweb edition of my chart.
02 01 SMILE Mikky Ekko 06 02 SAY YOU LOVE ME Jessie Ware 01 03 I’M NOT THE ONLY ONE Sam Smith 04 04 THANKS FOR NOTHING Brandyn Burnette 05 05 I WON’T LET YOU GO (Aron Friedman remix) Adam Tyler 03 06 AFTERGLOW Harriet 09 07 UNBREAKABLE Jamie Scott 11 08 AMNESIA 5 Seconds Of Summer 12 09 CRIMINAL Adam Tyler 10 10 ZEPPELIN Eli Lieb 13 11 PLAY FOR ME Chromatone 15 12 STAGE FRIGHT Jake Barker 17 13 BRANDO Semi-Precious Weapons 20 14 LOSING YOU Jane Badler 22 15 RESTART Sam Smith 24 16 ARMS OF ANOTHER Bright Light Bright Light 18 17 KILLER WHALES Smallpools 21 18 THAT’S WHAT SHE SAID The Janoskians 07 19 GET TO KNOW YOU Corey Niles featuring Ish 27 20 GOLD SKIES Sander Van Doorn, Martin Garrix & DVBBS featuring Aleesia 08 21 NO FUN The Presets 28 22 SUPERHEROES The Script 16 23 THIS COULD BE SOMETHING Anton Ewald featuring Medina 19 24 HANG ON TO YOUR LOVE Penguin Prison 14 25 MUSIC GODS Davis Redfield featuring Carl Man New 26 REASON Erasure New 27 YELLOW FLICKER BEAT Lorde New 28 BURN AGAIN Tristan Thompson 25 29 I BELIEVE Bright Light Bright Light 26 30 STRANGER Chris Malinchak featuring Mikky Ekko
Listen for My New Music Pick Of The Week onD-Moos.com!
As many of you are already aware, after many years away from the microphone, I am now pleased to be back as a voice onD-Moos.com Canada’s National Internet Radio Station, which mainly plays a selection of oldies, mostly from the 50’s to the 90’s, with soon to be more intrusions from the 2000’s and other new music.
Do listen in for my New Music Pick of the Week feature onD-Moos.com8 times per day starting at 2:05 AM EST on Mondays, and while the station is only live in the evenings from 9:00 pm to midnight (with my long-time musical partner in crime “The Musicman” James Rogers), you can hear my voice at other odd times, particularly if you’re an oldies loving night owl on the weekend overnights 🙂
It comes a year after the release of the EP Red, but the video for “Fame Kills” (ab0ve) is well-timed for Dangerous Muse, now a quartet led by the always intriguing Mike Furey. Dangerous Muse recently opened on a series of American tour dates for Erasure (next time, Toronto too please!) and will be playing in London, England on November 6. The video is a stylish horror show, full of stark images, great special effects, costumes and make-up. It’s a well-built foundation for a club song with such a memorable vocal and chorus.
But some changes are in store for Dangerous Muse if “Pardonnez-moi” is any indication. From the forthcoming Green EP (and there will be a Blue EP too), “Pardonnez-moi” (below) is more straight ahead pop than most Dangerous Muse songs but like always there are some strong lyrics (a guy’s trying to get through a crowd but people seem to think otherwise!) which draw you in easily. So with the Red, the Green, and the Blue, it sounds like exciting things are in store for us from Dangerous Muse.
Dangerous Muse plays The Underbelly, 11 Hoxton Square, in London, England on Thursday, November 6, as presented by our friends atEQ Music Blog!
For readers not familiar with Color Theory, this one-man band, producer and engineer (aka Brian Hazard) has over the past 20 years or so specialized in a reverent Depeche Mode style of electronic music amid many original pieces of music as well. Most recently Color Theory crept onto my personal chart as guest artist on the hypnotic “Colder” by Amelia’s Fault.
Color Theory’s most recent album is Adjustments Part 2, in which you will find “Headphones”. This song is one of those unassuming gems that surfaces every now and then and I just love it! The lyrics depict an obsessive loner who is wrapped up in the music inside his headphones. I think music fans will totally relate – there are just times when music consumes you and sometimes the best way is just to block everything else and let the sounds in the headphones take over. And while the original version above pulls you into its technological fortress, the Matt Mancid retro crossover mix (which you can hear and downloadright here) gives the song a vibrant, more 80’s kind of makeover, particularly at the beginning, with a more lilting melody and less mechanical arrangement, making it perfectly suited for the dancefloor, very reminiscent of electronic music circa 1985 (I want to point to Depeche Mode’s “Everything Counts” or Talk Talk or Pet Shop Boys). Brian himself suggests you might hear Madonna’s “Borderline” – and I do, but it’s only a small part of the melody.
Even though the subject matter is introverted, the result is fascinating and enthralling. “Headphones” in its original version or remix is one of those intriguing songs that slips inside your head and stays there for good. You can pick up the original version and the album Adjustments Part 2 on iTunes.
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