I never tire of hearing the buoyant “Murder on the Dancefloor ”, by Australian duo Royel Otis, and it remains my favorite song for a third week. In fact, all the other top five songs – “Too Sweet” by Hozier, “Overcompensate” by twenty one pilots, “Dilemma” by Green Day, and “Don’t Forget Me” by Maggie Rogers – remain in place for a second week. Entering the top 10 are “Burial Ground” by The Decemberists and James Mercer, the biggest upward mover this week, leaping 14 spots to #9, and the melancholy and beautiful “Take It Or Leave It” by British alt-rock band Dead Slow Hoot, at #10.

For the third week in a row, three songs make their debut on my chart. I actually had seven songs I wanted to add but that would have required dropping seven off, which I just couldn’t do. So, I had to settle for just three, leaving some of the others to be added next week. The first debut, at #28, is “Wreckage” by Pearl Jam, a pleasing downtempo track that essentially replaces their hard-hitting previous single “Dark Matter”. Both tracks are from their latest album Dark Matter, which dropped April 19th. Entering at #29 is “End of Beginning”, a lovely and poignant song by American indie rock artist Djo, the musical moniker of Joseph David Keery. He’s also an actor who became well known for his roles in the TV series Stranger Things and Fargo. Bringing up the rear is the exceedingly infectious “The Break” by American alt-rock band Blame My Youth. Fronted by Sean Van Vleet, they formed in 2020 and released their debut EP Dance With My Demons in 2022. They’ve since followed with a number of singles, including “The Break”, which was released last December. Though they’re new to me, I’m really liking their music.

1. MURDER ON THE DANCEFLOOR – Royel Otis (1)
2. TOO SWEET – Hozier (2)
3. OVERCOMPENSATE – twenty one pilots (3)
4. DILEMMA – Green Day (4)
5. DON’T FORGET ME – Maggie Rogers (5)
6. CREATURES IN HEAVEN – Glass Animals (8)
7. CAPRICORN – Vampire Weekend (9)
8. MUSTANG – Kings of Leon (10)
9. BURIAL GROUND – The Decemberists & James Mercer (23)
10. TAKE IT OR LEAVE IT – Dead Slow Hoot (12)
11. I’VE GOT LOVING FOR YOU – Bottlecap Mountain (13)
12. ICE CREAM (PAY PHONE) – Black Pumas (7)
13. TIME – MISSIO (6)
14. FORTNIGHT – Taylor Swift feat. Post Malone (17)
15. WANTING AND WAITING – The Black Crowes (11)
16. BROKEN MAN – St. Vincent (19)
17. GOOD TIMES GO – The Kid and I (18)
18. LONELINESS – Pet Shop Boys (20)
19. FOR US ALL – Asgard Raven (21)
20. PANORAMIC VIEW – AWOLNATION (24)
21. NEON PILL – Cage the Elephant (15)
22. SCARED TO START – Michael Marcagi (28)
23. MY GOLDEN YEARS – The Lemon Twigs (14)
24. GOLD – Caitlin Lavagna (27)
25. ON THE GAME – The Black Keys (29)
26. EVERYTHING WE NEED – Mojave Grey (16)
27. ADRIFT – Voodoo Planet feat. Mikey J (30)
28. WRECKAGE – Pearl Jam (N)
29. END OF BEGINNING – Djo (N)
30. THE BREAK – Blame My Youth (N)