In the space of only six months, alternative pop-rock trio Beach Weather have become one of my favorite bands. Though they’d been around since late 2015, I first learned about them last summer when I heard their song “Sex, Drugs, Etc.”, which I loved at first listen. The song was originally recorded in 2016, and included on their debut EP Chit Chat, but wasn’t released as a single back then, and largely went unnoticed. After dropping a second EP What a Drag, the band went on hiatus as the three members, Nick Santino, Reeve Powers, and Sean Silverman, relocated to different cities and began working on their own solo projects. Fortunately for us, they reunited in late 2021, and began work on their forthcoming debut album Pineapple Sunrise, due for release on March 3rd. In the meantime, “Sex, Drugs, Etc.” went viral on TikTok and became a huge hit on alternative radio, going all the way to #1 on the Billboard Alternative Airplay chart. It’s also spent nearly six months on my Weekly Top 30, three of them at #1, and ended up at #3 on my 100 Best Songs of 2022 list.

Last August, they started releasing a string of new singles from Pineapple Sunrise, beginning with “Unlovable”, their first new release in five years. They followed in November with the melancholy but beautiful “Trouble With This Bed”, which takes over the top spot of my Weekly Top 30. (They’ve since dropped two more singles, “Homebody” in January, which I reviewed, and “Hard Feelings” this past Friday the 17th.) “Trouble With This Bed” touches on a romantic relationship crippled by uncertainty and unfulfilled desires, acted out by a young couple in the accompanying video, interspersed with scenes of Beach Weather performing the song, all on the same bed. I particularly love the song’s beautiful languid groove, Nick’s dreamy layered vocals, and that dominant bassline. 

I’m excited to add four marvelous new songs to my list this week: “Love From the Other Side” by rock veterans Fall Out Boy, their first new music in four years, entering at #21; “Soften” by Canadian singer-songwriter Alex Southey, whose latest EP Common Fantasies I also reviewed last month, at #28; “Eyez” by Black Keys member Dan Auerbach’s side project The Arcs, at #29; and “Weightless” by hyper-talented British singer-songwriter Arlo Parks, her first appearance on my chart, bringing up the rear at #30.

1. TROUBLE WITH THIS BED – Beach Weather (3)
2. SHADOWS IN THE DARK – The Star Crumbles (1)
3. THIS IS WHY – Paramore (2)
4. NIGHT BUS – Caitlin Lavagna (5)
5. THE LONELIEST – Måneskin (7)
6. ANTI-HERO – Taylor Swift (4)
7. BACKPATTERS AND SHOOTERS – The Zangwills (9)
8. TONIGHT – Phoenix featuring Ezra Koenig (6)
9. PAGES – White Reaper (13)
10. DANCE FOR ME – Sam Rappaport (8)
11. WILD AS THE WIND – HULLAH (11)
12. MAYFLY – Callum Pitt (12)
13. JUST BEFORE THE MORNING – Local Natives (15)
14. TRANSMITTER – Sea Power (16)
15. SAIL AWAY – lovelytheband (10)
16. KILL BILL – SZA (14)
17. YOU GOTTA DO WHAT YOU GOTTA DO – Darksoft (20)
18. SLEEPWALKING – All Time Low (22)
19. PEPPER – Death Cab for Cutie (24)
20. STICK SEASON – Noah Kahan (18)
21. LOVE FROM THE OTHER SIDE – Fall Out Boy (N)
22. I’M IN LOVE WITH YOU – The 1975 (17)
23. SEX, DRUGS, ETC. – Beach Weather (27)
24. SUREFIRE – Wilderado (28)
25. EVERGREEN – Mt. Joy (29)
26. TROPIC MORNING NEWS – The National (30)
27. LUX ÆTERNA – Metallica (19)
28. SOFTEN – Alex Southey (N)
29. EYEZ – The Arcs (N)
30. WEIGHTLESS – Arlo Parks (N)