Dance music has had many fine, successful side projects that evolve out of performer/producers’ careers – think Jack Ü (Diplo/Skrillex), the new LSD (Labrinth/Sia/Diplo) and Duck Sauce (A-Trak/Armand Van Helden) among several. Now Canada’s Felix Cartal has teamed with fellow dance producer Johnny Jover as Glass Petals. Their new song released by Spinnin’ Deep no less is “Burner”, essentially an instrumental featuring a lot of infectious, chanting ‘na na na na’s’ that make it memorable in the same way that Duck Sauce’s “Barbra Streisand” had all those ridiculous ‘ooh ooh ooh’s’. The undercurrent rhythm wise seems to be a techno-house update which helps to make the song stand out in a set even more. Give “Burner” a place on your Progressive Techno-House playlist using the Spotify link above, and watch out for more from Glass Petals.
The story of the new chart is its five debuts, all but one being independent releases! This chart has always been a champion for independent releases as so many major label releases are tailored for radio or follow a formula. Usually only about 30% of the songs on the chart are major label releases, although some indie labels have distribution deals with them. The Top 10 stays steady but with a switch over at the top!
The Top 10
Steven and Jeroen, aka Dutch producers The Him, get their first #1 this week in collaboration with singer/songwriter Parson James for the summer ballad of 2018, “Broken Love”. I’m very happy for these super down-to-earth guys, who just played a career high at Tomorrowland this weekend. It’s also the second #1 of 2018 for the Spinnin’ label.
Brandyn Burnette’s autobiographical “Run” reaches a new peak of #4 in advance of his debut album Emanate, due next month.
Australia’s Rüfüs Du Sol definitely have their eye on the top of the chart with “No Place”, which advances 9 to 5.
Adam Foster’s “Time” also gets a new peak of #6 as his redux of Marvin Gaye’s “Too Busy Thinkin’ Bout My Baby” (without the original’s chorus) holds through the summer months!
The only new entry to the Top 10 this week is the sublime silliness in less than 3 minutes of “Back The Funk” by Estonia’s Madison Mars, which climbs 11-9. It’s one of the most fun songs of 2018 so far.
Movin’ On Up
Equally silly as “Back The Funk” and just as endearing is “Jackie Chan”, becoming a pop hit all over the world courtesy of Tiësto and Toronto’s Dzeko, with great vocal power from Preme and Post Malone. It rises 16-11.
Bobby Nourmand’s EP Subterranean slipped to #2 this week, but his latest release is wasting no time getting up the chart. With Blonde’s Adam Engle on vocals, the compelling “The Sun” climbs 23-16.
Canada’s Felix Cartal released a high quality album called Next Season recently, and one of my very favourites from it is up 21-17. “Worry” is super-catchy and sung by Victoria Zaro.
The fastest riser on the chart belongs to the superstar collaboration of Tony Moran and Jason Walker, together for a third time with “I’m In Love With You”. In its Victor Dinaire and Bissen remix, it soars 26-18. Their previous entries of “So Happy” and “Say Yes” both got to #3.
Five Debuts
Keiynan Lonsdale should now be on your radar as someone to watch over the next few years as the “Love, Simon” and “The Flash” actor develops his singing and songwriting talents. His latest single “Preach” is outstanding, an incredibly honest and joyful record which deserves to be a big hit. He’s released it independently but who knows if a major label might come knocking for it. “Preach” bows at #23.
NYC’s Squired, aka Sean Squires, delivers a compelling hip hop influenced dance record with his indie release “Peace Out”, which arrives at #24. “Peace Out” leaps out as being very different but engaging from a lot of what’s out there, and that will be its calling card, along with a really strong vocal performance.
L.A.’s Caden Jester arrives at #26 with the ultra-infectious “Vacant Love”, which features a winning vocal by singer Blake Rose.
After the #10 placing of “Sanctify”, Years & Years are back on the chart with their second entry from their second album Palo Santo, which is the pop-inflected “All For You” at #28.
The final debut is a soul ballad meant for quiet late summer evenings. Philadelphia duo NiGHTS return to the chart after last year’s #3 fun and slightly wonky “P A R T Y” with the beautiful “Eyes” at #29.
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
The new chart gets shaken up a whole lot, with a bunch of songs making large moves. There are five debuts, but somehow the two on top remain the same…
The Top 10
Mercer and Ron Carroll’s “Satisfy” (above) has enough staying power to wrap up a 3rd appearance (6th week) at #1, while The Chainsmokers’ “Everybody Hates Me” (below) matches the two appearances at #2 that “Sick Boy” had not long ago. Be prepared for changes next week, which are being instigated by the huge movement below.
Bobby Nourmand’s been a busy guy, and his Subterranean EP, featuring the dark title song (above) and the creepy and forboding “Estranged” (below), climbs 7-3, making it a contender for the top in two weeks. Bobby has a new song called “The Sun” on deck and it receives release on Friday June 29. Watch for words on this one at that time!
James Bay’s “Pink Lemonade” soars 15-4 from the Electric Light album, making it his biggest hit on the chart to date and also a #1 contender.
The one to watch though is the beautiful and timely “Broken Love” by The Him and Parson James, which is the fastest riser, up 20-5. It’s the Dutch producers’ third Top 5 hit on this chart.
“Run” by Brandyn Burnette, from his forthcoming debut album Emanate, climbs 11-7, to arrive next to his co-write with Jesse McCartney and Molly Moore, “Better With You”, hanging at #6. The third single from Emanate will be “Amen”, coming in July, while the album will arrive in August on the singer’s birthday 🙂
Troye Sivan’s third single, featuring Ariana Grande, called “Dance To This”, may be taking some attention away from “Bloom” (above), but it still climbs 12-9 on this chart, while Adam Foster’s “Time” (below) also bows in the Top 10 at #10.
Movin’ On Up
“Lonely” is a great end of school song for the romances that never were, courtesy of Norway’s Matoma and ever-energetic singer MAX. It rises 19-12.
“2012” does indeed recall songs from around that year, becoming common particularly with veteran producer DJ’s like Tiësto, Hardwell, and Afrojack, who know dance audiences are clamoring for updated tastes of that classic EDM era. So not coincidentally Afrojack shares billing with protégé Ravitez on “2012”, which rises 18-14.
Rüfüs Du Sol has announced a North American tour, which will bring the Aussies to a city near you (including my city Toronto, on November 16). Their latest single “No Place” moves up 24-18.
Madison Mars’ “Back The Funk” is one of the cleverest, non-sensical dance songs to come along in a while to make you love it to death. This new party anthem will be heard all summer long and rises 25-19.
5 Debuts
Making it four songs on the chart from his Musical Freedom imprint, Tiësto pairs up with Canadian buddy Dzeko but gets Preme and Post Malone on vocals for the incredibly infectious “Jackie Chan” which bows at #23.
French producers RetroVision liberally borrow the hook from The Shapeshifters’ “Lola’s Theme” and a sample from “It Takes Two” by Rob Base & DJ E-Z Rock to make “Get Down” memorable. The rest of the song is great house music for the summer. “Get Down” arrives at #24.
UK singer Lostchild premieres with his independent release “Blacklist” at #25. In video format, it comes with two interesting personalities, the NSFW one influenced by Madonna’s “Justify My Love” above, and the acoustic one (below) which emphasizes the singer’s excellent voice and layers of charm. He’s one to watch 🙂
Canadian producer Felix Cartal has a residency in Las Vegas happening, so watch for dates. He recently released the versatile and generous (18 songs) album Next Season, from which comes the undeniably catchy “Worry”. featuring singer Victoria Zaro, at #26.
Another independent UK singer debuts on the chart. She calls herself Jazz Mino and her song “Misunderstand” is an eloquent, upbeat way to kick the door closed on a relationship that didn’t gel. “Misunderstand” gets the #27 spot.
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
It’s just over a week now before Felix Cartal’s new album Next Season drops, and his 4th preview single from the album, “Worry” featuring the enchanting Victoria Zaro, is the best of the four, edging out the dynamic and attitude filled “Runaway”. “Worry” is a classic pop song about moving on to what’s next and leaving worries behind – with that nagging doubt still lingering in your mind as you move on. The Vancouver producer gives it a versatile mix, hardly ridden with effects yet turning what effects are used into hooks unto themselves along with the lyrics (‘going down down down’). “Worry” is also perfect for remixers wanting to spin it on its head. “Worry” is perhaps the most logical follow up to Felix’s huge Canadian hit from last year, his dance take on New Radicals’ “You Get What You Give” so I’m hoping he and his team are keeping radio in mind for it. Watch the lyric video for “Worry” above.
As a recent Canadian Juno Awards nominee, Felix Cartal had the pleasure of being the DJ during the TV telecast of the awards. Following up the intriguing, full-of-attitude “Runaway” is Felix’s latest called “Faces”. It’s a brisk, snappy house track that benefits from a nice turn by fellow Canadian vocalist Veronica, who recently scored, particularly in Europe, with the song “In The Mood”, which I wrote about earlier in the year. “Faces” should have no problem at all establishing itself at clubs with some big beats accentuated by what sounds at times like a trumpet (but may be synths), and would also sound great blasting out of car speakers late at night. “Faces” is all about kind of a paranoid escape to the point where everything in front of you is a blur, as the vocal effects that wash over the title (sounding like “fay-shus” at times) might be conveying. Add “Faces” to your Fast & Furious playlist using the Spotify playlist link above.
Vancouver’s Felix Cartal has his first release in 2018 following a spectacular 2017, which has resulted in two of Canada’s Juno Awards nominations, for Dance Single of the Year (his cover of New Radicals’ “Get What You Give”) and for Producer of the Year thanks to other glorious dance hits like “Drifting Away”. His new single “Runaway” should have no trouble following or matching the success of “Get What You Give”. It’s a sultry, saucy and edgy mid-tempo house tune enhanced immeasurably by a top notch vocal from L.A. singer REGN. Its protagonist lives ‘behind a façade’ and sings about a number of supposed pluses while being on her own, yet the final words ‘I’m a runaway, catch me’ prevail nonetheless. “Runaway” is strong on its own to make waves at radio, but some remixes might show off its versatility for clubs. Add it to your Hot and New Dance playlist using the Spotify link above.
I always get to enjoy knowing more about performers in dance music, and one that I had yet to write about was L.A.-based Tokimonsta. She pairs up just fine with fellow L.A. denizen MNDR – we last heard her vocalizing with Scissor Sisters in the summer with the charity single “SWERLK”. Master remixer and my fellow Canadian Felix Cartal throws a huge, happy sheen over “We Love” to make it into a timely anthem for clubs. Who’s love is better? Well yours of course! MNDR’s vocal is bubbly and carefree while Tokimonsta gives those deep grooves some edge that resonates right till the end. “We Love” will filter down to your feet but will first grab you around the heart, which sounds about right. Give it a hard listen at the link above.
Here at the BILLCS Music Blog, we continue to burn down discos until the morning comes…
The Top 10
Or so sing Pet Shop Boys, as “Burn” from their album Super handily continues its reign at the top. We’ll have to wait to see if any other song challenges in two weeks.
“D E E P In NY”, Bobby Nourmand’s brilliant mix of hip hop and EDM, slides up a notch to #2 to try and rival Pet Shop Boys two weeks from now.
Don’t discount Brothers by Saxity featuring Strøm, either, as this carefree song about friendship advances to #3. The duo have a collaboration on deck with American singer Nathalie Archangel too, with the same songwriters no less 🙂
“All The Way”, a fun-loving instrumental by Sweden’s Hellberg, continues to rise up 7-5.
Tony Moran & Jason Walker know how to have a blast together making songs, and “Say Yes” is the latest collaboration, moving 9-6.
Vancouver’s Felix Cartal has his first of two entries cracking the Top 10 with frequent vocal collaborator Ofelia K on “Drifting Away”, climbing 17-9.
“Light” by Dutchman San Holo continues to tread in the Billboard Top 20 Electronic Songs chart, and also continues to advance on this chart too, soaring 18-10.
Movin’ On Up
It looks like another young Dutchman, Steve Void, is about to get his first Top 10 here with No Mondays with “Chemistry”, featuring a lovely vocal by Clara Mae. It rises 13-11. Steve has been in the Top 10 with remixes last year – SNBRN’s “Beat The Sunrise” got to #5, while “False Alarm” by Matoma & Becky Hill reached #6.
L.A.’s Mahalo is on a roll with a splendid remix of ZHU’s “In The Morning” following a couple of originals, one being “Be My Love” (featuring Cat Lewis) which climbs 16-12.
The fastest riser on the chart is Phil Good’s ode to “Sleeping In”, which in a Sean Turk bedroom bass remix is more than about just that. It wastes no time rocketing up the chart 22-13.
All of the last chart’s debuts are well on their way. DNCE’s “Naked” bounds 25-19 (above), with Felix Cartal’s second entry “Keep Up” (featuring Steph Jones in a Ben Zamora remix) jumping 27-20 (below), Throttle’s pairing with Michael Buble for a remix of “My Kind Of Girl” rising 26-22, and would-be sports anthem “#Bomber!” by Italy’s BeatmartHz & DJ Mirko B climbing 29-23.
Three Debuts
There is no denying that The Chainsmokers were wise to wait till January to unleash “Paris”, now that “Closer” has hit its stride. The guys know their audience and wrote another song to which anyone can relate, capturing a snapshot and the accompanying emotion to make the song soar. Once again Drew Taggart’s vocal totally suits the song and the chorus is a positive singalong that will endure throughout 2017. It arrives at #15, giving it a good shot at the top… soon! The Chainsmokers did reach #1 here with “Closer”, as well as #2 in 2015 with “Let You Go” (featuring Great Good Fine OK), and #8 with “Don’t Let Me Down” (featuring Daya).
Debuting on the chart is Miami producer Alyx Ander with the seductive “Memories Of You” featuring an amazing vocal by Srey Davi. This one will get under your skin… it arrives at #27. It’s the first appearance by Nettwerk Records on this chart since 2011 too.
The last debut belongs to British producer KDA with “Just Say” featuring rising American vocalist Tinashe. Not much is known about KDA but he did manage to fend off One Direction and scored a UK #1 in late 2015 with “Turn The Music Louder (Rumble)” (featuring Tinie Tempah and Katy B). “Just Say” is classic American-style house with European flair, and it’s no surprise it’s already in the Top 20 of the Billboard Club Play chart.
View the full BILLCS Top 30right here, and be sure to click on the photos to hear all of the songs.
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
Listen for me on http://www.planetradio.ca live on Tuesday evenings, and with my Pick of the Week segment throughout the week 🙂 See below for details!
It would likely be over 1,000 editions had I published my chart weekly, but from January 1998 to January 2017 and we are at 500 charts 🙂 Thanks to all of you who continue to follow my personal chart, which is exactly that – personal. No mathematics, very few rules (only to keep the chart fresh with new music), these are my favourite 30 songs of the moment. This edition has a bit of post-holiday housecleaning with 5 debuts and The Weeknd & Daft Punk give way to a new #1 by some familiar faces…
The Top 10
While they would have had several chart toppers in their popularity heyday, Pet Shop Boys make it twice to grace the top of my chart with the disco-tastic “Burn”. The song is not a single, but I’m hoping it will be #4 from the album Super, following #3 “The Pop Kids” (#17 of 2016), “Twenty-Something”, and “Say It To Me”. Their other #1 on my chart was in 2013 with “Vocal” from Electric, which was also my #1 song of that year.
New to the Top 5 are “Brothers” by Saxity featuring Strøm (above), vaulting 8 to 4 and still available for free download, as well as Stefan Alexander’s compelling “Skeleton” (below) which climbs 6 to 5.
Two newcomers to the Top 10 are the Fastest Riser on the chart, “Say Yes” by Tony Moran & Jason Walker (ab0ve), which rises 16-9 and their second Top 10 following last year’s “So Happy” (#3 and #20 of 2016), followed by Victor Perry’s lovely take on Everything But The Girl’s “Missing” (below), also his second Top Tenner following last year’s “Rainbows” (#7 and #42 of 2016). It’s still available as a free download too!
Movin’ On Up
“False Alarm” by The Weeknd encroaches on the Top 10, but it’s a powerful song that’s been in the shadow of “Starboy”. We’ll see what the next single from the album will be. “False Alarm” jumps 13-11.
Big things are coming from young Dutchman Steve Void in 2017, and his pairing with No Mondays featuring vocalist Clara Mae on “Chemistry” leaps 19-13.
Right behind is Canada’s Felix Cartal with “Drifting Away” (featuring vocalist Ofelia K) as we all daydream about driving down the east or west coasts of the States in perfect warm weather. It moves up 22-17, and Felix has another song debuting on the chart below…
“Light” by The Netherlands’ San Holo is raising a lot of ears with its infectious but low key EDM, and it rises 23-18.
The last chart’s other two debuts make fine inroads, both climbing 7 notes to #19 and #20. #19 is Molly Moore’s “Imaginary Friends” (above), also in Telykast and Pluto remixes, and #20 is JPB’s “For You” (below) featuring a soulful vocal from British singer Luke Cusato.
As his remix of “Closer” by Brandyn Burnette (#7 and #51 of 2016) departs the chart, another Sean Turk remix arrives with the sexy ‘bedroom bass’ style of EDM in “Sleeping In” by Phil Good at #22. And of course the song is more about what we do when we’re ‘sleeping in’ rather than actually sleeping… it’s also a free download for now.
And keeping sex centre stage at #25 is an excellent album track by DNCE from their self-titled album called “Naked”. I saw them first perform this one in November 2015 and I’m glad it made the cut for the album because it was one of the least things we thought Joe Jonas might be singing about 😛 DNCE’s “Cake By The Ocean” reached #2 on my chart well before it was in the Top 10 nationally, and was my #15 song of 2015.
Definitely something a little different for us in 2017 comes from rising young Australian producer Throttle (aka Robbie Bergin), who has taken Michael Buble’s cover of Frank Sinatra’s “My Kind Of Girl” and juggled the jazz rhythms with some riveting house beats. While it’s not to everyone’s taste, it’s a whole lotta fun and arrives at #26. “My Kind Of Girl” was Throttle’s Christmas present to his listeners, and it’s a free download.
At #27 is the second entry from Felix Cartal, this time featuring prominent session vocalist Steph Jones on “Keep Up”, as an official remix by fellow Canadian Ben Zamora. Felix is on a roll with much more to come in 2017. This remix and others are also available as free downloads for now.
And the last debut at #29 is a real rebel-rouser, perfect for sporting events… It’s “#Bomber!” by Italy’s BeatmartHz and DJ Mirko B, a classic mix of Italohouse and techno.
View the full BILLCS Top 30right here, and be sure to click on the photos to hear all of the songs.
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
Listen for me on http://www.planetradio.ca live on Tuesday evenings, and with my Pick of the Week segment throughout the week 🙂 See below for details!
As my bi-weekly chart heads towards its 500th edition in two weeks, it looks like the top of the chart will be shaken ‘n stirred a bit. I keep the chart to a Top 30 but my new music iPod playlist is around 80 current songs 🙂 Two Canadians lead the new list!
The Top 10
The Weeknd and Daft Punk score the top spot again with “Starboy”, which will cause it to rank highly in my upcoming Top 86 of ’16 list 🙂
The big question is, which song will follow “Starboy” at #1 in two weeks? Songs 2, 3 and 4 all make big cases to succeed it. Another Canadian, Halifax’s Famba, rises 3-2 with his funky and fun “Right Here Right Now”. L.A.’s Bobby Nourmand climbs 5-3 with his EDM and hip hop mix “D E E P In NY”, featuring rappers D.O.C. and Goodmorning. Both are above. And the venerable Pet Shop Boys score their second Top 5er this year with “Burn” (below), moving 6-4.
NYC’s Stefan Alexander’s “Skeleton” busts upward 9-6 – check out the intriguing new video below.
I had a little hand in connecting lyricist to performers/producers with the song “Brothers” which evolved out of the collaboration. Germany’s Saxity brought in Norway’s Strøm for the vocal, and the rest is history as the passionately performed song climbs 16-8.
The fastest riser on the chart is a vibrant and happy instrumental by Sweden’s Hellberg called “All The Way”, and it vaults 19-9.
The last of three new entries to the Top 10 is the infectious, 90’s influenced song “The Thirst” by Eric Sharp featuring vocalist Zhao, rising 14-10.
Movin’ On Up
Victor Perry is headed for his second Top 10 song on this chart with his brilliant soft piano-led cover of Everything But The Girl’s “Missing”, which moves up 23-14. Get it for free on his Soundcloud page!
It recently went to #1 on Billboard’s Dance Club Play chart, but Tony Moran & Jason Walker’s “Say Yes” is so bright and bubbly it deserves to stick around for longer. It climbs 24-16.
Kid Cudi’s new album Passion, Pain & Demon Slayin’ should be an interesting listen if its lead single “Surfin'” (featuring Pharrell Williams) is any indication, and it jumps 25-17.
Canadian Felix Cartal is one of the most prolific dance producers/performers around in 2016. His uplifting single “Drifting Away”, featuring Ofelia K., rises 28-22.
Premieres
The Netherlands’ San Holo has offered up some often infuriatingly experimental progressive EDM of 2016, so it was intriguing to see him land near year’s end with a gorgeous chilled out pop record called “Light”, which arrives at #23. It’s also on its way up the Billboard Dance/Electronic Songs chart, where it resides in its Top 20 🙂 You can still get it for free, for now, via his Soundcloud page above. It’s also a feather-in-the-cap for new label Bitbird!
Molly Moore’s songs have a way of sticking in your head. So with recent outstanding remixes by teenager Pluto and duo-on-the-rise Telykast (both above and free downloads), “Imaginary Friends” (initially from her Now You See Me EP) began to resonate with me more. The song in all of its versions bows at #26.
Another teen debuting on the chart is Germany’s JPB, who has released a debut three song EP called For You, and the title song, featuring increasingly in-demand British vocalist Luke Cusato, debuts at #27 from the Heroic label. The song is also available for free download at the Soundcloud link above.
View the full BILLCS Top 30right here, and be sure to click on the photos to hear all of the songs.
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
Listen for me with my Pick of the Week at 2:20/6:20/10:20 AM/PM EST onhttp://www.planetradio.ca most days Monday through Sunday, and my flashbacks to a Toronto Top 10 of yesteryear Tuesdays at 9pm EST!
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