Pet Shop Boys – Page 4 – BILLCSMUSIC BLOG

BILLCS Top 30 #408, July 1/13

It’s fitting that the two full months of summer in the western world get started with a blast of dance, plus five new entries on the chart to keep things busy…

You can never be sure with my chart, but last week’s #4 debut has yielded the first number one on my personal chart these last 15 years for Pet Shop Boys with the stunning “Vocal” (ab0ve) from their upcoming album Electric, due in two weeks. Of course PSB would have likely had a gaggle of #1’s on my chart had it existed in their classic heyday. As I’ve mentioned, “Vocal” is their best song in 20 years and paves the way for a PSB (and disco) renaissance!
“Get Lucky” by Daft Punk featuring Nile Rodgers and Pharrell Williams remains at #2, still one of my favourites of the year, as the year end list will likely reflect 🙂
Travis Garland’s “Blue Electric Roses” slides almost prematurely to #3 after a month at the top, but watch for at least another song from the Fashionably Late Part II EP to land on the chart sometime soon.
Eli Escobar and Jessica 6 singer Nomi Ruiz continue to climb to #4 with the club raveup “Somebody To Love Me”.
“Begging” by Sweden’s Anton Ewald (below) has its eyes on the top of the chart as it vaults 15-5, in a tie for the fastest riser on the chart.

“This Is What It Feels Like” by Armin Van Buuren featuring ex-soulDecision singer Trevor Guthrie gets caught between a lot of movement and holds at #6, so we’ll have to see if it rides into the Top 5 in two weeks.
The recent cover of freestyle classic “Silent Morning” (intriguing new official video below) continues to turn heads as Parralox featuring Ryan Adamés climb to #8. And if you like Ryan’s vocal on this song, watch for more from him to catch your immediate attention very soon – I’m sure I will have something to say about it when it’s time! 😀
If competition on the chart wasn’t so fierce, two gems, “9 2 5” by Jarell Perry and “Too Young” (Penguin Prison remix) by Ghost Beach would be higher, but they are only now reaching the Top 10 and hope to stay there in two weeks.

You can view the full Top 30 using the link under ***BILL’S PERSONAL CHART*** to the right, or you can click right here. You can hear all of the songs on the chart or watch their videos by clicking on the pics on the chart page. Any free downloads that are identified are sanctioned by the performer. There’s always a tiny place at the bottom of the blog post with tags and the statement “Leave A Comment” – please feel free to do so

Some big moves lead the next 20 songs:

Montreal’s Victor Bongiovanni and pal Kwik Fiks know how to make chilled out deep house music proud, taking rapper Dwele’s “I Think I Love You” and fashioning it accordingly. The song (above) soars 20-12.
The song that’s in a tie for the fastest riser on the chart is “Hearts”, that rhythmic dance feast from Dan Black and Kelis. Definitely headed for the Top 5, it climbs 23-13.
“Dirty Floors” is one of the most earthy and true-to-life songs amid those in Born Out Of Mischief, the full length album by NYC’s Andy Suzuki & The Method. It jumps 26-17.

Our five debuts are led, a little belatedly, by the #1 song in the world, “Blurred Lines” (above) by Robin Thicke featuring T.I. and Pharrell Williams. Robin Thicke, son of my fellow Canadian, actor Alan Thicke, is no stranger to my chart. “Blurred Lines” in fact is his 9th chart entry since 2002, but first since 2009. His biggest feats have been “Wanna Love U Girl” (also featuring Pharrell, #4) and “Lost Without U” (#5), both from 2005/06. T.I. has had three appearances himself, with Justin Timberlake (“My Love”, “Dead and Gone”) and Rihanna (“Live My Life”) respectively. And Pharrell has seen #1 with his project N.E.R.D. back in 2003 with “Rock Star”, and has been featured on other songs by Mika (“Celebrate”) and Snoop Dogg (“Beautiful”). It will be no surprise if “Blurred Lines” doesn’t make even a bigger presence on the chart in two weeks 🙂
Next up is an album track from Between, the third release from FrankMusik. “Life (Is My Revenge)” is possibly the fiercest song on the album several listens later, it is an anthem about moving forward with life, definitely the best kind of way to say ‘I told you so’! It bows at #24.

I’ve written about the next three independent releases already, and am so glad that they are making quick headway on to the chart 🙂 :

“Remix My Love” by Killian Wells and Kristinia DeBarge (above) is possibly the sunniest sounding song of summer to arrive recently, with a gloriously colourful and fun video. It debuts at #26.
Completely the opposite, “Colder” (below) by Amelia’s Fault featuring a supurb vocal by singer Color Theory is definitely chilly electro to keep you calm and collected (and maybe a tad frosty) during the hot months to come. And if it doesn’t, well then you can just blame Amelia. “Colder” arrives at #27.
Lastly, from the dynamic album Nova comes the thoughtful and energetic “Shooting Star” which takes cabaret pop into electropop courtesy of the very talented Kim David Smith at #28.

BILLCS Top 30 #407 – June 17/13

Travis Garland’s sweet and sexxy “Blue Electric Roses” holds on to #1 on my personal chart for a second appearance with ease, but that could change in two weeks!

Will it be Daft Punk’s huge hit featuring Pharrell Williams and Nile Rodgers, “Get Lucky”, that gets to the top? The song advances 4-2. But another song is brewing below.
Will it be the spectacularly high debut for “Vocal” by Pet Shop Boys at #4 (above)? I still call it their best song in about 20 years, when you consider their classic heyday with songs like “It’s A Sin”, “What Have I Done To Deserve This”, “West End Girls”, their mashup “Where The Streets Have No Name/Can’t Take My Eyes Off Of You”, “Can You Forgive Her”, “Heart” and lesser known gems like “Love Comes Quickly”. “Vocal”, however, is this year’s anthem for music lovers (particularly EDM/dance/disco/electronica).
Will it be the enticing “Somebody To Love Me” by Eli Escobar featuring Nomi Ruiz, which climbs 8-5? Only “Outta My Mind” by young Dutchman Matt Blue seems to have peaked at #3.

And here’s where some rising songs get stuck and others start to fall because of the incredible competition in the Top 5.

“This Is How It Feels Like” by Armin Van Buuren featuring Trevor Guthrie (above) inches up to #6 but should still get to the Top 5. It was a homecoming for Canadian Guthrie, performing at Canada’s Much Music Video Awards this past weekend.
“Your Touch” by Blake Lewis and “Pompeii” by Bastille are much played on my iPod Touch but tumble a few notches in the face of (gasp) stronger songs.
“One Night” by Matthew Koma from his upcoming album Arcadia slides into the Top 10 at #10. Watch Matthew perform Zedd’s “Clarity” below 🙂

They move up 2 + 2 + 2 and closer to the Top 10, all very unique songs: “Too Young” (Penguin Prison remix) by Ghost Beach, Parralox & Ryan Adames with “Silent Morning”, and “On My Way” by Charlie Brown – 12, 13, and 14 respectively.
The fastest riser on the chart is rising megatalent from Sweden, Anton Ewald with the insanely catchy “Begging”, bounding 27-15 (below).
Right behind are JT’s “Let The Groove Get In” at #16, FrankMusik’s beautifully vocalized “Chasing Shadows” at #17, and “Fade Into The Light” by Adam Tyler at #18.
Continue to climb are Bongiovanni’s bass thumping deep house song “I Think I Love You” at #20, soulful Slow Knights with “Shame” at #21, and “Brokenhearted” by Lawson and B.o.B. at #22.

Aside from “Vocal” by Pet Shop Boys crashing the chart way up at #4, there are two other fine debuts:

He’s back!! Musical alchemist Dan Black teams with Kelis for “Hearts” at #23 (ab0ve). Mr. Black took over my chart back in 2009/10 with two #1’s, “Symphonies” and “Alone”, #2 “Pump My Pumps”, and #7 “U + Me”, all from his debut album UN, and then guested on Bag Raiders’ “Sunlight” (#7, 2011). Kelis is no stranger to the chart either, particularly with her 2010 #3 “Acapella”, which gives great voice to all us single folks.
I just raved about their album Born Out of Mischief, so it shouldn’t be much of a surprise to see my favourite song from that album bowing on the chart. NYC’s Andy Suzuki & The Method arrive with the impressive rocker “Dirty Floors” at #26 (below).

Shiny New Pop II: Pet Shop Boys, FrankMusik, Eleven Past One, Anton Ewald, and Pierre Lewis

PET SHOP BOYS, “Vocal”

I don’t think I’ve been so excited to hear a Pet Shop Boys album in recent years than with their upcoming album Electric (due July 15). “Axis” was a tantalizing mainly instrumental teaser, but “Vocal” is the real deal, the best PSB single since their Christmas 2009 cover/mashup of “Viva La Vida/Domino Dancing”, and I think we have to go back to sometime in the early 90’s to find a finer single by them (I know some of you perhaps would argue this). Neil and Chris haven’t sound so inspired, and the truly heartfelt urgency of the lyrics (“this is my kind of music / they play it all night long / the feeling of the warmth around us is so strong”) sounds suspiciously like classic disco-era music lovers’ sentiments. The younger generation of disco/dance/EDM will embrace this. BRAVO. “Vocal” is now available on iTunes.

FRANKMUSIK, “Walking On A Dream”

As FrankMusik writes his Facebook diary of his road trip experiences touring the USA, it’s obviously inspiring him to record music along the way. Vince just doesn’t stop and we are the beneficiaries of his labours. So he’s shared this impromptu recording of a cover of the Empire Of The Sun hit from a few years back overlooking a mountain scenery in Georgia – he didn’t even know the song before he recorded it. Not only that but he brings it to a different and more simplified level that actually enhances the lyrics. I’m very jealous of all you Americans who get to check out his show and hear his voice in such fine form as in this song.

ELEVEN PAST ONE, “The World Is Ours”

Finally! A domestic (Canadian) release that actually takes its flavour from European pop! Eleven Past One is a Canadian quintet, partially from Ontario and partially from New Brunswick. Think of these lads as a variation of The Wanted playing their own instruments, but with flourishes of Swedish pop and good ol’ Canadian rock. Lead singer Daniel Richter has a fantastic voice, and the song itself has more than enough crunch and bounce to make you want more. Good on Warner Music Canada for signing this talented group. Eleven Past One will be touring to support R5 and Zendaya this summer.

ANTON EWALD, “Can’t Hold Back”

Now that “Begging” has me hooked, I’ll probably be bringing you more songs from his new release, A. “Can’t Hold Back” is the best kind of summer cotton candy out there, and it actually makes a good mix with the Eleven Past One song above. This one brings it down midway though in an extremely sexy, soulful break. The lyric video above features enough playful mugging that should help get word out about Anton Ewald around the world. The potential here is truly immense.

PIERRE LEWIS, “Empty”

To coincide with the release of his new album Consciousness yesterday, UK singer Pierre posted “Empty”. Based on the preview to the album which I posted last week, I wasn’t entirely sure of what to expect, and I must admit being a little taken aback by this raw and solemn sounding song. The comparison that came to mind instantly, at least based on atmosphere and effect, was to the equally stark “Darkness” by Darren Hayes. The feelings of hurt and solitude ring loud and clear through Pierre’s versatile voice, and it’s when those high notes hit that the song hits more than one nerve. You can purchase Consciousness on iTunes.

Dance Into Spring, Spring Into Dance?: Mika & Ariana Grande, Pet Shop Boys, The Wanted, and Boris Dlugosch & Róisín Murphy

I swear the clubs and dance floors are gonna be hot this summer, given the music that keeps arriving to make our feet aflutter 🙂

MIKA featuring ARIANA GRANDE “Popular Song”

I know that zeroing in on a song from Mika’s The Origin Of Love album since last Fall may have been difficult, especially with the multiple videos which didn’t seem to help promote the album very well. First, “Make You Happy”, then “Celebrate”, and more recently “Underwater”, whose video was spell-binding, until the end which left a rather poor aftertaste. Nevertheless seeing Mika for the first time in concert a few weeks ago was a real treat, he is an amazing showman, and it was still so surprising to hear how many fans knew all the lyrics to his songs from Life In Cartoon Motion six years later. The focal song for me from The Origin Of Love has always been “Popular Song”, with its playful inclusion of the chorus of “Popular” from the play “Wicked”, so much that I’ve already charted the song twice, in its original album version and then with this Ariana Grande version, which has now surfaced as a video. If there’s a song to reignite interest in the album, it’s “Popular Song”, and this immensely fun and Tim Burton-inspired video (with its bullying theme undercurrent, note!), full of style and delightful ghastly humour.

PET SHOP BOYS “Axis”

Now that PSB have finally left Parlophone after their 25 years with them, Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe return to the classic PSB sound of 20+ years ago with “Axis” from their upcoming album Electric, released on their own X2 label. While “Axis” might be an official single, to me this is just PSB whetting our appetite for what are likely to be much, much different songs than on their last (and IMO weakest) album Elysium. “Axis” is the buoyant, layered stuff that paved the way for current EDM/electronica, and it’s primarily an instrumental, which reminds me of many a PSB B-side. Look for a second single to bring the Boys back in true style along with the album release. Then there’s a tour which appears to be taking them everywhere, including my city (Toronto) on September 25. Absolutely can’t wait.

THE WANTED “Walks Like Rihanna”

Say what you will about The Wanted, I think they’ve got a lot of strong vocal talent which is also blessed with songs from very good songwriters indeed. “Walks Like Rihanna” may seem obvious but quite truly you will neither be able to escape this song in the coming summer nor will you be able to get it out of your heads. And that’s what is setting the quintet apart from other current boy bands. Not out for sale until June 23 unless that’s bumped up.

BORIS DLUGOSCH featuring ROISIN MURPHY “Look Around You”

“Look Around You” neatly joins songs about which I’ve been writing lately that might bring disco music back to its heyday. Note: You will get sick of me saying this in upcoming blog posts, so be warned 🙂 Taking its cues from turn of the century house music – not surprising since German producer Boris last teamed with the essential Róisín around that time with “Never Enough” – “Look Around You” beckons you to move with a sultry and polished Róisín vocal. More like this, please! For sale on May 17.

Ellie Goulding’s New Smash, and Songs from ZACPOOR, Pet Shop Boys, The Presets, Bim, and a K-Pop hit from Psy

Ellie Goulding “Anything Could Happen”

Clearly, the song of the week, and possibly for the next several months, until the arrival of her new album Halcyon, is Ellie Goulding’s “Anything Could Happen”. Right from its first bar, it bridges the gap nicely between alt.pop fans of Kate Bush and the massively successful sound for those who enjoy Adele. Its tidy, sparse sound will resonate from stereos and radios and draw people in instantly. I enjoyed Ellie’s last record, preferring songs like “Starry Eyed” and her free download of The Weeknd’s “High For This” over the growing radio success of “Lights”. “Anything Could Happen” also to me contains her best vocal – especially at the soulful acapella part. It will be absolutely everywhere in the Fall, so be prepared!

ZACPOOR “Skyscraper” and “Lego House”

Now you must know that I won’t bring you a cover version (or two) unless I think it’s special. L.A. singer ZACPOOR first came to my attention a couple of years ago with a fine mid-tempo ballad called “She’ll Be Breaking Hearts”. Since then, all kinds of good has happened to him, connecting with hot producer MDL. As advance notice of ZACPOOR’s upcoming full release, we have a taste of the collaboration with covers of Demi Lovato’s “Skyscraper” and Ed Sheeran’s “Lego House”. Yes, I know covers of both songs have been viral in volume since their releases. But it’s ZACPOOR’s voice, which has progressed so much since I first heard him, that makes both cover versions much bigger than life. “Skyscraper” (a free download, no less!), in fact, blows Demi’s original right out of the water, it’s such a goddamn hard song to sing anyway, and ZACPOOR completely nails it. His version of “Lego House” has a strong element of class about it that isn’t present in the original. Both songs are for those who truly appreciate interpretations of songs that turn out so unique. Absolutely can’t wait till ZACPOOR’s album is upon us! Listen to both below.

Pet Shop Boys “A Certain Je Ne Sais Quoi”

Unlike the much-too-low key “Winner”, ” A Certain Je Ne Sais Quoi”, from the EP of “Winner”, which is due in Canada on August 28, is classic PSB, in good company with their equally charming songs such as “What Have I Done To Deserve This?”, “Love, Etc.”, and “I Wouldn’t Normally Do This Kind Of Thing”, with a Neil Tennant vocal at its finest and a great rhythm and melody for summer driving. Listen (and of course dance to it) below.

The Presets “Ghosts”

While I’m still digging the initial release of “Youth In Trouble” from their upcoming album Pacifica, Aussie duo The Presets have released the official first single, “Ghosts”. As with “Youth” and many of their most popular songs like “My People”, “Ghosts” has incredible atmosphere with Julian’s commanding and anthemic vocal – why do I envision him on a pirate ship? 😉 Sure to fill the dance floors everywhere, look for Pacifica to be The Presets’ best and most successful effort yet. The three years between albums will be well worth the wait.

Bim “Lights Out”

Following the very different sounding but entertaining “Scream” from this past Spring, UK male/female duo Bim are back with “Lights Out”, available to you as a free download in anticipation of their next full album following 2010’s gorgeous Scatterheart. “Lights Out”, like “Scream”, is a lot more forceful and urgent than the songs on the downside of love which we heard from Bim on Scatterheart. Bigger choruses, and more alternating vocals between the singers, go hand in hand with their talent of making songs with stunning climactic moments. Listen closely and revel in this one – more great songs coming from this talented pair. Watch the video below.

Psy “Gangnam Style”

K-Pop looks to finally break out huge worldwide thanks to Psy’s “Gangnam Style”, and in particular its very flashy and fun video. I’m not much of a fan of the song, which is an updated knockoff of Technotronic’s “Pump Up The Jam”, among others. But the good time delivery by singer as well as its knockout video – especially the choreography in the last minute or so – will mean that you will be hearing it at weddings and other similar events for years to come.

Joyous “Rain” is #1: Tuned-On! Top 30 #320 – Feb 15/10

He finally did it! After reaching #3 with “We Are Golden”, then #2 with “Blame It On The Girls”, British vocalist Mika goes all the way with the joyous “Rain”. It should easily stay atop the chart into March while other songs make headway.

“Rain” knocks Simon Curtis’ “Delusional” to #2 after 4 charts (8 weeks) at the top. Once Simon’s mixtape 8Bit Heart is released though when he gets to 8,000 followers on Twitter – he’s now over 7,500 – watch for an influx of new Simon songs on the chart! The free download of “Delusional” is still available right here (as well as in a link in my chart).

Lifehouse’s “Halfway Gone” moves up to #3, while Pet Shop Boys have their biggest hit on this chart in its 11 1/2 year history – of course the chart would have been generously filled with PSB songs in the 80’s and 90’s – with their cover of “Viva La Vida” mixed with dashes of “Domino Dancing” at #4. Lady GaGa’s set to have her biggest hit on this chart with “Speechless” moving from 10-5, as “Bad Romance” tumbles to #7. Nelson Clemente’s slick and mysterious “90 Days” and Crystal Method/Emily Haines’ “Come Back Clean” each enter the Top 10 for the first time.

Despite mixed public reaction to the Fixin’ To Thrill CD, the blogverse is steadily promoting the CD as Canadian band Dragonette’s latest single “Pick Up The Phone” is picking up believers. The song is the Fastest Riser on the chart this week, up 23-15. Other songs bowing in the last few weeks are no slouches either, such as those by Lady GaGa (check out the bottom heavy King5kat remix of “Teeth”), Blake Lewis (check out the LA Riots radio edit of “Heartbreak on Vinyl”), Justin Timberlake/Matt Morris/Charlie Sexton, John Mayer (oh despite the self-induced bad publicity, his songs will get him through), and Jason Derulo.

I’m not going to re-blog about the many pleasures of Dan Black’s Weird Science mixtape – “Pass That Head Noize” charts at #23 – or Evan Taubenfeld’s “Starbucks Girl” (debuting at #25). After a six year absence from my chart, it’s great to have producer/songwriter extraordinaire BT back on the scene. After a few years of critical acclaim with more experimental offerings such as This Binary Universe, BT is back in 2010 in more accessible dance territory with songs from his latest CD These Hopeful Machines. His first single, including vocals by The Bleach Works singer Christian Burns (also ex-BBMak – you heard Christian a few years back on Tiesto’s “In The Dark”), is “Suddenly”. As much as we like to get caught up in fun, lightweight dance music of the moment, the immaculately detailed layers in BT’s production and the vibrancy of the melody make “Suddenly” more than worthy of your attention.

View the full chart using the link under ***BILL’S PERSONAL CHART*** to the right, or click right here.

Tuned-On! Top 30 #318 – January 18/10

January is usually a quite month for music, basically a time to play catch-up on stuff that I’ve heard during the last six weeks while keeping up with newer songs as well.

The release date for Simon Curtis’ ‘mixtape’ 8Bit Heart is getting closer and believe me Simon has some interesting songs in store for you. For now it will have to suffice that “Delusional” (available for a free download right here) maintains its grip on #1 for a third consecutive pair of weeks. It’s hard to get this song out of my head with its very happy home on my iTouch but a new challenger has arisen these past few weeks.

With the gift of Mika’s The Boy Who Knew Too Much over the holidays, I blogged this week about the massive appeal of “Rain”, which debuted two weeks ago on the chart. It outdoes previous singles “We Are Golden” and “Blame It On The Girls” (still at #5!) by bounding right into the Top 5, moving 19-3 as the Fastest Riser on the chart. It will be a close call in two weeks for the top spot!

All of this activity leaves Lady GaGa’s “Bad Romance” stranded at #4, and has stalled the movement of “Halfway Gone” by Lifehouse, “Black & Blue” by Miike Snow, and Mitchell Hunter’s “Someone Else’s”. Pet Shop Boys however make really good on their redux of Coldplay’s “Viva La Vida” as that song in a medley with a few lines from PSB’s “Domino Dancing” lands at #8. Michael Buble’s dramatic cover of “Cry Me A River” ascends into the Top 10.

The biggest moves outside of the Top 10 come from two of last week’s debuts. The Crystal Method’s track with Metric’s Emily Haines, “Come Back Clean” climbs 27-19 to match the peak of 1998’s “Comin’ Back”. And I am one of many fans of The Fame Monster going GaGa for “Speechless”. That song is quite a change of pace for her away from the upbeat territory of “Bad Romance” and “Just Dance”, so we’ll see if it gets promoted to pop radio. Nonetheless, “Speechless” climbs 21-13.

The four new entries on the chart belong to Nelson Clemente’s “90 Days”, internationally known Canadian dance/rock band Dragonette with “Pick Up The Phone”, the title track from John Mayer’s “Heartbreak Warfare”, and more GaGa, this time with “Teeth” – try to check out the King Skat remix if you can.

View the full chart using the link under ***BILL’S PERSONAL CHART*** to the right or click right here.

Tuned-On! Top 30 #317 – Jan 4/10

We return now to our usual blogging, after all of the Best of 2009 and Decade lists, to find that Simon Curtis’ “Delusional” continues to have a tight grip on my bi-weekly list of favourites. It’s one of five songs available on my chart for free download, and you can download “Delusional” right here.

I was given bothMika’s “The Boy Who Knew Too Much” and Lady GaGa’s “The Fame Monster” as gifts during the holidays, and they are both truly splendid records. So while both artists have songs in my Top 5, they both also debut with outstanding tracks that could bound closer to the top of the chart in a few weeks. Mika’s glorious “Rain” debuts at #19 while GaGa’s sensational “Speechless” bows at #21.

Fast risers on the chart include Pet Shop Boys’ “Viva La Vida/Domino Dancing” moving up the most, followed by great songs by Miike Snow, Michael Buble, Timbaland and Friends, and Joshua Radin.

Also new to the chart we find British theatre singer with a rocked up version of the song she sang on Broadway and in London. Kerry Ellis’ “Defying Gravity”, from “Wicked” and produced by Queen’s Brian May arrives at #25, while The Crystal Method indeed come back after an over 11 year absence from my chart. Having Metric singer Emily Haines in tow for “Come Back Clean (Kaskade radio edit)” is a huge plus – her own effort “Doctor Blind” was one of my favourites of the last decade and was on this chart exactly 3 years ago, where it eventually rose to the summit. The Crystal Method’s last song to appear was “Comin’ Back” (featuring vocalist Kirsty Thirsk) (peak #19).

You can view the full chart at the link on the right side bar under ***BILL’S PERSONAL CHART*** or right here. I’d appreciate any comments you have to share! 🙂

Tuned-On! Best of 2009, Part 1 (50-26)

To me, 2009 was the year that pop music exploded online. Sure music has been available for many years online, and iTunes legitimized online sale of music downloads near the beginning of the decade. But never in all these years has music been so close to listeners that they can practically taste it (and maybe that’s next!).

It has recently become a reasonable business strategy to make music available for free as a promotional tool, to attract listeners and fans to various websites and of course to iTunes, Amazon, CD Baby, or their local music store to download or buy CD’s. And is it just me, or is the world even that much closer now? Never have I been in contact with more people around the world than just through this 40 year old hobby of mine, which I transformed from website and message board to a blog this past Fall. I’m absolutely loving it.

Music for me in 2009 stayed on the pop-rock-dance tip, with only a handful of modern-alt.rock tunes sustaining my interest. Literally fantastic singers are now everywhere, waiting to be heard, and I’m so glad I found some of them. For every enjoyable favourite who returned with new music, such as Chris Isaak, Duncan Sheik, or Pet Shop Boys, there were new stars glimmering like the UK’s LaRoux, Sam Taylor, Florence & The Machine, Gary Go, and Dan Black; Ireland’s The Script; Australia’s Presets and Nelson Clemente; Sweden’s Darin, Mans Zelmerlow, and Agnes Carlsson; Canada’s Colin Munroe and Noah; and the USA’s Evan Taubenfeld, Val Emmich, Matt & Kim, and Keri Hilson. Dig deep enough online and you’ll find free downloads for Dan Black’s “Symphonies”, Matt & Kim’s “Daylight”, Munroe’s “Will I Stay”, Clemente’s “You Want Me Don’t You (Spekr Freks mix)”, 100 Akres & Roz Bell’s “Pink Cadillac”, and Newton White’s “Breathless” that are all artist-approved. And online remixes even made it to national radio, witness the frenetic redux of The Fray’s “You Found Me” by Lenny B – a song I didn’t like in its original version instantly became one of my favourites of the year!!

So in this blog filled with lists I will add another list of favourites that will hopefully stand the test of time in some ways. I’ll start with the first half, from 50-26, the rest will appear tomorrow with additional thoughts about some of the songs.

You can view the full list right here.

“Delusional” by Simon Curtis is #1 on the Tuned-On! Top 30 #316 – Dec 21/09

I’m so impressed with Simon Curtis’ “Delusional” that it arrives at the top from outside of the Top 10, the first time this has happened in two years. Darren Hayes’ “How To Build A Time Machine” debuted at #1 in December 2007, but prior to that the last time a song reached #1 from outside of the Top 10 was again with Darren Hayes’ “Step Into The Light”, which shot from 12-1 in June 2007. Those are great footsteps in which to follow for sure. I’m looking forward to Simon’s “pop mixtape” 8Bit Heart in the new year! Simon’s gradually rolling out songs from 8Bit through his Twitter fan base – apparently the next one is called “Fell In Love With an Android” (yup Simon’s a sci-fi fan).

Simon’s #1 leaves Mika’s “Blame It On The Girls” stranded at #2 and Dan Black’s “Pump My Pumps” at #3. Jay-Z & Alicia Keys’ “Empire State of Mind” charges into the Top 5 with Lady GaGa’s “Bad Romance” itching to follow in two weeks, right behind at #6. Canadian east coast singer Mitchell Hunter’s wistful pop candy “Someone Else’s” lands at #10.

The fastest riser on the chart though belongs to US-Sweden dance meisters Miike Snow with “Black & Blue” soaring 27-14. Pet Shop Boys also make a decent move with the increasingly catchy “Viva La Vida/Domino Dancing” at #18. PSB are particularly great at taking songs that you wouldn’t expect them to cover and making them their own.

The pickings this week for debuts on the chart were mighty slim, though it’s nice to see one of these songs being remixed for radio, and that’s Joshua Radin’s delicate “I’d Rather Be With You” (see video below).

The Year End Top 50 is in the works as is my Top 300 of the 2000’s – it will be a busy two weeks. Happy holidays!

View the complete chart right here or use the link under **BILL’S PERSONAL CHART** to the right!