It’s been a rough week at my house, as we had to say goodbye to our beloved cat Panda, who was part of our family for almost 19 years and finally lost his battle with kidney disease. Feeling heartbroken, I’m not much in the frame of mind to write about music. But given that the new top song on my chart this week is by an artist I’m particularly fond of, I felt I needed to soldier on for his sake, as well as the other indie artists who follow me that have songs on my chart.

After a long, steady climb, the ebullient “Feels Right” by Talk in Waves, the music project of northern Virginia-based singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Jake Mimikos, ascends to #1. It’s his sixth song to top my chart, the previous being “Dark Places” (2019), “Can We Go Back” (2021), “Closer” (2022), “Walk Through the Fire” (2023), and last year’s “Like You Do”, which also holds the honor of being my #1 indie song of 2024. And two more of his singles – “Sleep” in 2020 and “You’re My Drug” from earlier this year – have reached #2. Several of those outstanding songs are featured on his debut album Medicine for the Apocalypse, which he released on July 18th.

Entering the top 10 this week are three great songs all spelled in lower case letters – “jupiter” by San Diego-based indie pop band almost monday, featuring added vocals by L.A.-based indie pop singer-songwriter Jordana, “undressed” by New York City-based sombr (whose single “back to friends” recently spent three weeks at #1 and now sits at #17), and “polyester (yes sir)” by L.A. indie pop-rock band Sorry Ghost, at #s 8, 9 & 10, respectively.

Two songs make their debut this week, starting with “Mistakes” by Columbus, Ohio-based bluegrass-folk band Caamp, whose single “Let Things Go” reached #8 on my chart in early July. Formed in 2012 by childhood friends Taylor Meier and Evan Westfall, Caamp was later joined by Matt Vinson on bass, Joseph Kavalec on keyboards, and NIck Falk on drums. Many of their songs have done well on the Billboard AAA (Adult Alternative Airplay) chart, with four, including “Let Things Go” reaching #1. “Mistakes” is from their sixth and latest album Copper Changes Color, which dropped June 6th.

Entering at #30 is “The Weather” by American pop-punk/rock band All Time Low. Formed in Towson, Maryland, in 2003, the band consists of lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist Alex Gaskarth, lead guitarist Jack Barakat, bassist/backing vocalist Zack Merrick, and drummer Rian Dawson. They’ve released a total of nine studio albums, six EPs, two live albums and thirty-seven singles. “The Weather” is the second single from their forthcoming tenth album Everyone’s Talking!, set for release on October 17th. Their single “Sleepwalking” spent 11 weeks on my chart in 2023.

1. FEELS RIGHT – Talk in Waves (2)
2. NO RAIN, NO FLOWERS – The Black Keys (1)
3. LOVE IS A FIRE – Art Block (5)
4. SALLY, WHEN THE WINE RUNS OUT – ROLE MODEL (7)
5. LONDON TOWN – Healer (6)
6. THE CONTRACT – Twenty One Pilots (3)
7. MOODY – Royel Otis (4)
8. JUPITER – almost monday ft. Jordana (11)
9. UNDRESSED – sombr (12)
10. POLYESTER (YES SIR) – Sorry Ghost (15)
11. FIVE MORE SECONDS – Seafret & KT Tunstall (17)
12. BACKSEAT – Balu Brigada (14)
13. BETTER OFF EVENTUALLY – Bealby Point (8)
14. ASSHOLE – The Lumineers (13)
15. TODAY’S SONG – Foo Fighters (16)
16. BETTER DAYS – Yellowcard (18)
17. BACK TO FRIENDS – sombr (10)
18. LIGHT YEARS APART – Unobliterated (20)
19. RIPPLE – Good Neighbours (9)
20. UNRAVELLING – Muse (21)
21. AFTERLIFE – Alex G (22)
22. AS ALIVE AS YOU NEED ME TO BE – Nine Inch Nails (23)
23. ENSENADA – Sublime (24)
24. MY MIND IS A MOUNTAIN – Deftones (25)
25. HORNETS – Western Jaguar (26)
26. METAL – The Beths (29)
27. EVERYDAY MAGIC – My Morning Jacket (30)
28. BLOOM BABY BLOOM – Wolf Alice (19)
29. MISTAKES – Caamp (N)
30. THE WEATHER – All Time Low (N)