Tag: Myles Smith

Top 30 Songs for November 3-9, 2024

On By EclecticMusicLoverIn Weekly Top 30's12 Comments

Leon Bridges holds onto the top spot for a second week with his bucolic and soulful “Peaceful Place”, while “That’s How I’m Feeling” by Jack White and “BIRDS OF A FEATHER” by Billie Eilish remain at #’s 2 and 3 for a second week. Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars enter the top 10 with their duet “Die With A Smile”.

Perhaps the biggest music event of this past week was the release of Songs of a Lost World, the long-awaited fourteenth album by The Cure. The legendary English alternative goth rock band has undeniably had a massive influence on too many artists and bands to name over the past 40 years, so for them to release an album of all new material – their first new album in 16 years – is a momentous occasion. And more importantly, Songs of a Lost World does not disappoint, as Robert Smith (who’s now 65) and The Cure sound every bit as great and relevant as they ever have. The band teased the new album with the release of “Alone” in late September, a sprawling cinematic masterpiece running nearly seven minutes. They followed two weeks later with “A Fragile Thing”, an equally gorgeous song that enters my chart at #26.

The second, long-overdue debut this week is “Mind Game”, a lovely collaboration by Chicago-based singer-songwriter and author Collette Mclafferty and Spanish singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and producer John Serrano, a hyper-talented artist whose music I’ve previously featured a couple times on this blog. Mclafferty wrote the lyrics and sang lead vocals, while Serrano composed the music, played all instrumentation, sang backing harmonies and produced the track.

  1. PEACEFUL PLACE – Leon Bridges (1)
  2. THAT’S HOW I’M FEELING – Jack White (2)
  3. BIRDS OF A FEATHER – Billie Eilish (3)
  4. THE DOOR – Teddy Swims (6)
  5. STARGAZING – Myles Smith (4)
  6. DEATH VALLEY HIGH – Orville Peck & Beck (8)
  7. FAVOURITE – Fontaines D.C. (9)
  8. GOOD LUCK, BABE! – Chappell Roan (5)
  9. UP ALL NIGHT – James Bay, The Lumineers & Noah Kahan (10)
  10. DIE WITH A SMILE – Lady Gaga & Bruno Mars (11)
  11. THE LIGHTHOUSE – Stevie Nicks (14)
  12. MESSY – Lola Young (7)
  13. GARMONBOZIA – Flying Lotus (16)
  14. CAN’T SLOW DOWN – almost monday (17)
  15. HARDCORE ROMANCE – Beach Weather (19)
  16. NOBODY’S SOLDIER – Hozier (23)
  17. BOTHERING ME – Sarah Blasko (20)
  18. RAINBOW – Cage the Elephant (12)
  19. INTO GOLD – London Grammar (13)
  20. THE EMPTINESS MACHINE – Linkin Park (22)
  21. NEVERENDER – Justice & Tame Impala (24)
  22. SAD IN CAROLINA – Dexter and the Moonrocks (27)
  23. ESPRESSO – Sabrina Carpenter (15)
  24. SUPERSAD – Suki Waterhouse (28)
  25. BOBBY SOX – Green Day (29)
  26. A FRAGILE THING – The Cure (N)
  27. BIG CAT TATTOOS – Hamish Hawk (18)
  28. KINKY – bby (30)
  29. YOU JUST PLAYED MY MIND – Oli Barton (21)
  30. MIND GAME – Collette Mclafferty & John Serrano (N)

Top 30 Songs for October 27-November 2, 2024

On By EclecticMusicLoverIn Weekly Top 30's13 Comments
Photo taken from Leon album cover

Lots of changes on my latest Weekly Top 30, with a new #1 song and four new entries. Fort Worth, Texas-based singer-songwriter Leon Bridges takes over the top spot with his lovely song “Peaceful Place”. His smooth, incredibly pleasing vocals remind me at times of the late, great Marvin Gaye and Sam Cooke, and I love that slide guitar and cool bass line on the track. The song is from his fourth studio album Leon, which dropped October 4th. It’s his second song to top my list, the previous being “Bad Bad News” in 2018. The wonderful video was shot in Mexico City and Los Angeles.

Entering the top 10 are “Favourite” by Irish band Fontaines D.C., at #9, and “Up All Night”, a lively foot-stomping collaboration between James Bay, The Lumineers and Noah Kahan, at #10. Of the four new entries this week, three are by acts who are totally new to me, two of which are singing about some kind of sadness. The first, coming in at #27, is the rousing “Sad in Carolina” by Dexter and the Moonrocks, a four-piece rock band from Abilene, Texas (not too far west of Leon Bridges’ home of Fort Worth) who describe their sound as “sad cowboy music”. Comprised of James Tuffs on lead vocals and rhythm guitar, Ryan Anderson on lead guitar and backing vocals, Ty Anderson on bass, and Fox on drums and backing vocals, they’ve been putting out music since 2021. Released on May 1st, “Sad in Carolina” is featured on their latest EP Western Space Grunge, which dropped in July. Judging from their prodigious Instagram posts, the guys appear to have a wicked sense of humor.

The second debut is “Supersad” by English singer-songwriter, actress and model Suki Waterhouse. The London-based artist, who began modeling at the age of 16, started recording and releasing music in 2016. Her second single, “Good Looking”, released in 2017, later became a viral hit in 2022, garnering nearly half a billion streams on Spotify alone. She and her partner, actor Robert Pattinson, welcomed their first child in March, and she opened for Taylor Swift’s The Eras Tour on August 17th at Wembley Stadium. “Supersad” is from her second studio album Memoir of a Sparklemuffin, released on September 13th.

Coming in at #29 is “Bobby Sox” by legendary alt-rock band Green Day. The song is the fifth single from their latest album Saviors, released this past January. The fourth new entry is “Kinky”, a riotous romp by English alternative rock/hip hop band bby. Formed at the end of 2022, the young five-piece consists of Benjy Gibson on lead vocals, Jessy Jacquet-Cretides and Tommaso Medica on guitar, Deon Graham on bass, and Tom Parkin on drums. Their debut single “hotline”, released in August 2023, quickly blew up, garnering millions of streams across multiple streaming platforms. They followed with a series of singles which culminated in the release of their terrific debut album 1 this past July.

  1. PEACEFUL PLACE – Leon Bridges (2)
  2. THAT’S HOW I’M FEELING – Jack White (1)
  3. BIRDS OF A FEATHER – Billie Eilish (4)
  4. STARGAZING – Myles Smith (5)
  5. GOOD LUCK, BABE! – Chappell Roan (6)
  6. THE DOOR – Teddy Swims (8)
  7. MESSY – Lola Young (3)
  8. DEATH VALLEY HIGH – Orville Peck & Beck (10)
  9. FAVOURITE – Fontaines D.C. (11)
  10. UP ALL NIGHT – James Bay, The Lumineers & Noah Kahan (14)
  11. DIE WITH A SMILE – Lady Gaga & Bruno Mars (15)
  12. RAINBOW – Cage the Elephant (7)
  13. INTO GOLD – London Grammar (9)
  14. THE LIGHTHOUSE – Stevie Nicks (17)
  15. ESPRESSO – Sabrina Carpenter (12)
  16. GARMONBOZIA – Flying Lotus (18)
  17. CAN’T SLOW DOWN – almost monday (19)
  18. BIG CAT TATTOOS – Hamish Hawk (16)
  19. HARDCORE ROMANCE – Beach Weather (24)
  20. BOTHERING ME – Sarah Blasko (25)
  21. YOU JUST PLAYED MY MIND – Oli Barton (13)
  22. THE EMPTINESS MACHINE – Linkin Park (26)
  23. NOBODY’S SOLDIER – Hozier (27)
  24. NEVERENDER – Justice & Tame Impala (30)
  25. HOLOGRAM – Raker (20)
  26. LIKE YOU DO – Talk in Waves (21) 21st week on chart
  27. SAD IN CAROLINA – Dexter and the Moonrocks (N)
  28. SUPERSAD – Suki Waterhouse (N)
  29. BOBBY SOX – Green Day (N)
  30. KINKY – bby (N)

Top 30 Songs for October 20-26, 2024

On By EclecticMusicLoverIn Weekly Top 30's7 Comments
Photo by David James Swanson

Guitarist extraordinaire Jack White remains on top for a second week with his bombastic rocker “That’s How I’m Feeling”, while silky-voiced Leon Bridges moves into second place with his mellifluous single “Peaceful Place”. Entering the top 10 are “The Door” by powerhouse singer-songwriter Teddy Swims, at #8, and “Death Valley High” by the enigmatic and sexy country singer-songwriter Orville Peck and singer-songwriter-producer Beck, at #10. Two songs share the biggest upward mover title this week – “Die With A Smile” by Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars and “The Lighthouse” by Stevie Nicks, each jumping eight spots to #15 and #17, respectively.

The sole debut is “Neverender”, a wonderful collaboration by French electronic music duo Justice and Australian band Tame Impala. Consisting of Gaspard Augé and Xavier de Rosnay, Justice is completely new to me, despite the fact they’ve been making music for nearly 20 years. They’re quite popular, with over 5.7 million monthly listeners on Spotify and 1.5 million followers on Facebook. Tame Impala, fronted by insanely talented singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Kevin Parker, ranks high among my favorite music acts. As far as I’m concerned, any song involving Tame Impala is a winner, and their collaboration “New Gold” with Gorillaz and Bootie Brown is my #2 song of 2023. “Neverender” is from Justice’s fourth studio album Hyperdrama, released this past April.

  1. THAT’S HOW I’M FEELING – Jack White (1)
  2. PEACEFUL PLACE – Leon Bridges (4)
  3. MESSY – Lola Young (2)
  4. BIRDS OF A FEATHER – Billie Eilish (6)
  5. STARGAZING – Myles Smith (5)
  6. GOOD LUCK, BABE! – Chappell Roan (7)
  7. RAINBOW – Cage the Elephant (3)
  8. THE DOOR – Teddy Swims (12)
  9. INTO GOLD – London Grammar (10)
  10. DEATH VALLEY HIGH – Orville Peck & Beck (11)
  11. FAVOURITE – Fontaines D.C. (15)
  12. ESPRESSO – Sabrina Carpenter (8)
  13. YOU JUST PLAYED MY MIND – Oli Barton (9)
  14. UP ALL NIGHT – James Bay, The Lumineers & Noah Kahan (18)
  15. DIE WITH A SMILE – Lady Gaga & Bruno Mars (23)
  16. BIG CAT TATTOOS – Hamish Hawk (17)
  17. THE LIGHTHOUSE – Stevie Nicks (25)
  18. GARMONBOZIA – Flying Lotus (21)
  19. CAN’T SLOW DOWN – almost monday (22)
  20. HOLOGRAM – Raker (20)
  21. LIKE YOU DO – Talk in Waves (13) 20th week on chart
  22. WAR – Healer (14)
  23. HONEY – Mr Bewlay (16)
  24. HARDCORE ROMANCE – Beach Weather (26)
  25. BOTHERING ME – Sarah Blasko (27)
  26. THE EMPTINESS MACHINE – Linkin Park (29)
  27. NOBODY’S SOLDIER – Hozier (30)
  28. LOST IN SPACE – Foster the People (19)
  29. THE CRAVING – twenty one pilots (24)
  30. NEVERENDER – Justice & Tame Impala (N)

Top 30 Songs for October 13-19, 2024

On By EclecticMusicLoverIn Weekly Top 30's15 Comments
Photo of Jack White by David James Swanson

As I curate my Top 30 chart each week – which essentially reflects my favorite songs at that moment in time – I cannot deny that my choices are influenced to some degree by what’s happening on other “official” music charts. Sometimes a song comes along that’s either so good or has such strong crossover appeal that it tops nearly every major chart. But more often than not, totally different songs top each of the various charts, with virtually no overlap. Case in point is this week, where the mediocre “A Bar Song (Tipsy)” by Shaboozey has inexplicably spent 13 weeks and counting at #1 on the Billboard Hot 100, while “The Emptiness Machine” by the reconstituted rock band Linkin Park is #1 on the Mainstream Rock and Alternative Airplay charts, and “Up All Night”, a collaboration between James Bay, The Lumineers and Noah Kahan, is #1 on the Adult Alternative Airplay chart. None of these three songs appears on the other mentioned charts.

I’m not quite sure what the point of that discussion is, other than to provide a bit of context, but my new favorite song this week is “That’s How I’m Feeling” by Jack White, which does currently occupy a spot in the top 10 of most alternative and rock charts. The boisterous rocker was the lead single from his sixth studio album released as a solo artist, No Name, which dropped this past July. Many music critics and fans have praised the album and song, calling it a return to his blues and garage roots and favorably comparing it to his music with the White Stripes. It’s probably my favorite song by White as a solo artist.

In other chart highlights, “Peaceful Place” by Leon Bridges climbs six spots to #4, and the ethereal and dreamy “Into Gold” by London Grammar moves up four spots to enter the top 10 at #10. The aforementioned “Up All Night” jumps seven spots to #18, making it the biggest upward mover this week. Three songs make their debut, the first of which, entering at #25, is “The Lighthouse”, a powerful song of both anger and hope by legendary singer-songwriter Stevie Nicks, who’s still going strong at 76. (I saw her in concert last December, which you can read about here.) She performed the song last night on Saturday Night Live, her first appearance on the long-running show in 41 years.

Inspired by the overturning of Roe v. Wade by the U.S. Supreme Court in 2022, Nicks co-wrote the song with Magnus Birgersson and Vincent Villuis. The track was co-produced by Nicks, Sheryl Crow (who plays electric guitar and bass and sings backing vocals), and famed producer Chris Cobb (who’s worked with Chris Stapleton, Brandi Carlile, Lady Gaga, John Prine, Sturgill Simpson, Jason Isbell, The Highwomen, Take That, Rival Sons, and many more), who also played guitar. The song begins rather tentatively, and Nicks’ vocals sound quite different in the verses; at first listen I thought they might be by another singer, but she sounds like her usual self in the anthemic choruses.

The second debut, entering at #29, is “The Emptiness Machine” by Linkin Park. I was resistant to the song at first, as I had mixed feelings about the legendary band taking on a new female co-lead singer, resulting in a major change to their style and sound. But after reading through scores of comments on the YouTube video for the song, I came to realize I was the one who was being closed-minded. The song, which quickly shot to #1 on the Rock and Alternative charts, has since grown on me. Coming in at #30 is “Nobody’s Soldier” by Irish singer-songwriter Hozier, whose previous single “Too Sweet” has become one of the biggest hits of the year. His latest single is more fast-paced and harder-driven than his usual style. I like it!

  1. THAT’S HOW I’M FEELING – Jack White (4)
  2. MESSY – Lola Young (1)
  3. RAINBOW – Cage the Elephant (2)
  4. PEACEFUL PLACE – Leon Bridges (10)
  5. STARGAZING – Myles Smith (6)
  6. BIRDS OF A FEATHER – Billie Eilish (7)
  7. GOOD LUCK, BABE! – Chappell Roan (8)
  8. ESPRESSO – Sabrina Carpenter (3)
  9. YOU JUST PLAYED MY MIND – Oli Barton (9)
  10. INTO GOLD – London Grammar (14)
  11. DEATH VALLEY HIGH – Orville Peck & Beck (15)
  12. THE DOOR – Teddy Swims (16)
  13. LIKE YOU DO – Talk in Waves (5) 19th week on chart
  14. WAR – Healer (12)
  15. FAVOURITE – Fontaines D.C. (18)
  16. HONEY – Mr Bewlay (13)
  17. BIG CAT TATTOOS – Hamish Hawk (19)
  18. UP ALL NIGHT – James Bay, The Lumineers & Noah Kahan (25)
  19. LOST IN SPACE – Foster the People (11)
  20. HOLOGRAM – Raker (22)
  21. GARMONBOZIA – Flying Lotus (23)
  22. CAN’T SLOW DOWN – almost monday (24)
  23. DIE WITH A SMILE – Lady Gaga & Bruno Mars (28)
  24. THE CRAVING – twenty one pilots (17)
  25. THE LIGHTHOUSE – Stevie Nicks (N)
  26. HARDCORE ROMANCE – Beach Weather (29)
  27. BOTHERING ME – Sarah Blasko (30)
  28. PERMANENT RECORD – GG Fearn (20)
  29. THE EMPTINESS MACHINE – Linkin Park (N)
  30. NOBODY’S SOLDIER – Hozier (N)

Top 30 Songs for October 6-12, 2024

On By EclecticMusicLoverIn Weekly Top 30's11 Comments
Photo by Sophie Jones

Though it’s now Autumn, the weather here in the Southern California desert is still quite summer-like, with temperatures over the past week ranging from 107-117 (41-47C). This unrelenting heat, combined with the sorry state of our impending election, in which a vile, incoherent and corrupt serial liar has a good chance of being elected President for a second time, has made it difficult for me to stay positive. Thankfully, there’s lots of great music to help brighten my mood a bit.

English singer-songwriter and musician Lola Young‘s “Messy”, a scathing rant against a romantic partner who can never be satisfied, remains at #1 for a second week, while Cage the Elephant‘s “Rainbow” moves into second place. Jack White‘s boisterous “That’s How I’m Feeling” climbs four spots to #4, and the appropriately titled “Peaceful Place” by Leon Bridges jumps seven spots to enter the top 10 at #10. The gorgeous song is from his fourth studio album Leon, which dropped this past Friday, October 4th. “Favourite” by Fontaines D.C. is this week’s biggest upward mover, leaping eight spots to #18. (Their song “Starburster” falls eight spots to #26, its 19th week on this chart, three of which were spent at #1 and another three at #2.)

Two songs enter my chart this week, the first of which is “Hardcore Romance”, a steamy and sultry number by one of my favorite bands Beach Weather, whose equally sultry “High In Low Places” has spent the past 18 weeks on my chart, three of them at #1. Both songs will be included on their forthcoming second album Melt, scheduled for release on October 25th.

Entering at #30 is the darkly beautiful “Bothering Me”, by Australian singer-songwriter, musician and producer Sarah Blasko, which I learned about in a recent post by fellow blogger Robert Horvat, who writes a terrific blog Rearview Mirror. About the meaning behind the song, Sarah told Australian webzine Noise11: “Dreams seem to be a way of processing things that happen during the day and so I embraced dreaming as a way of getting over things. Getting older is TOUGH. Sometimes I don’t know who I am anymore and that I’ve lost touch with the person I used to be and the dreams I held. I try to let go but not let go at the same time because dreams are important.” “Bothering Me” is the second single from her forthcoming seventh studio album I Just Need to Conquer This Mountain, to be released in November.

  1. MESSY – Lola Young (1)
  2. RAINBOW – Cage the Elephant (3)
  3. ESPRESSO – Sabrina Carpenter (4)
  4. THAT’S HOW I’M FEELING – Jack White (8)
  5. LIKE YOU DO – Talk in Waves (2)
  6. STARGAZING – Myles Smith (6)
  7. BIRDS OF A FEATHER – Billie Eilish (7)
  8. GOOD LUCK, BABE! – Chappell Roan (9)
  9. YOU JUST PLAYED MY MIND – Oli Barton (10)
  10. PEACEFUL PLACE – Leon Bridges (17)
  11. LOST IN SPACE – Foster the People (5)
  12. WAR – Healer (13)
  13. HONEY – Mr Bewlay (14)
  14. INTO GOLD – London Grammar (15)
  15. DEATH VALLEY HIGH – Orville Peck & Beck (16)
  16. THE DOOR – Teddy Swims (20)
  17. THE CRAVING – twenty one pilots (11)
  18. FAVOURITE – Fontaines D.C. (26)
  19. BIG CAT TATTOOS – Hamish Hawk (21)
  20. PERMANENT RECORD – GG Fearn (22)
  21. OH NO! – The Decemberists (12)
  22. HOLOGRAM – Raker (23)
  23. GARMONBOZIA – Flying Lotus (24)
  24. CAN’T SLOW DOWN – almost monday (25)
  25. UP ALL NIGHT – James Bay, The Lumineers & Noah Kahan (28)
  26. STARBURSTER – Fontaines D.C. (18) 19th week on chart)
  27. HIGH IN LOW PLACES – Beach Weather (19)
  28. DIE WITH A SMILE – Lady Gaga & Bruno Mars (29)
  29. HARDCORE ROMANCE – Beach Weather (N)
  30. BOTHERING ME – Sarah Blasko (N)

Top 30 Songs for September 29-October 5, 2024

On By EclecticMusicLoverIn Weekly Top 30's8 Comments
Photo by Sophie Jones

A new week, another new song to top my chart. “Messy”, the defiant, emotionally-charged single by English singer-songwriter and musician Lola Young, ascends to the #1 spot. The 23-year-old South London-based artist lists Joni Mitchell, Prince, Adele, SZA, Frank Ocean, and Anderson .Paak among her musical influences, and her provocative songwriting and smoky vocal style have earned her comparisons with the late Amy Winehouse. “Messy” is from her critically-acclaimed third album This Wasn’t Meant For You Anyway, which dropped June 21st. Young named-dropped its title in a statement: “Here is my first born child, a fuck you to all my exes, and basically me just trying to figure out some shit openly and honestly on record. First of many and if you don’t like it, then this wasn’t meant for you anyway.”

Accordingly, “Messy” is an angry tirade to a romantic partner, with brilliantly written, highly relatable lyrics expressing her exasperation with them for never being satisfied with her, no matter how hard she’s tried to please them: “Cause I’m too messy and then I’m too fucking clean. You told me get a job then you ask where the hell I’ve been. And I’m too perfect till I open my big mouth. I want to be me, is that not allowed? And I’m too perfect till I show you that I’m not. A thousand people I could be for you, and you hate the fucking lot.” I love both the song and video.

Three songs enter the top 10 this week – “That’s How I’m Feeling” by Jack White, “Good Luck, Babe!” by Chappell Roan, and “You Just Played My Mind” by English singer-songwriter Oli Barton, charting at #8, #9 and #10, respectively. Teddy Swims has the biggest upward mover with his marvelous single “The Door”, jumping eight spots to #20. The lone debut this week is “Die With A Smile”, the beautiful collaborative single by music heavyweights Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars, finally entering my chart at #29. Though I really like both artists, it took a while for the song to grow on me for some inexplicable reason.

  1. MESSY – Lola Young (4)
  2. LIKE YOU DO – Talk in waves (1)
  3. RAINBOW – Cage the Elephant (3)
  4. ESPRESSO – Sabrina Carpenter (5)
  5. LOST IN SPACE – Foster the People (2)
  6. STARGAZING – Myles Smith (8)
  7. BIRDS OF A FEATHER – Billie Eilish (10)
  8. THAT’S HOW I’M FEELING – Jack White (14)
  9. GOOD LUCK, BABE!” – Chappell Roan (11)
  10. YOU JUST PLAYED MY MIND – Oli Barton (13)
  11. THE CRAVING – twenty one pilots (6)
  12. OH NO! – The Decemberists (7)
  13. WAR – Healer (15)
  14. HONEY – Mr Bewlay (16)
  15. INTO GOLD – London Grammar (17)
  16. DEATH VALLEY HIGH – Orville Peck & Beck (18)
  17. PEACEFUL PLACE – Leon Bridges (20)
  18. STARBURSTER – Fontaines D.C. (9)
  19. HIGH IN LOW PLACES – Beach Weather (12)
  20. THE DOOR – Teddy Swims (28)
  21. BIG CAT TATTOOS – Hamish Hawk (23)
  22. PERMANENT RECORD – GG Fearn (22)
  23. HOLOGRAM – Raker (24)
  24. GARMONBOZIA – Flying Lotus (25)
  25. CAN’T SLOW DOWN – almost monday (26)
  26. FAVOURITE – Fontaines D.C. (27)
  27. PANORAMIC VIEW – AWOLNATION (19) 21st week on chart
  28. UP ALL NIGHT – James Bay, The Lumineers & Noah Kahan (30)
  29. DIE WITH A SMILE – Lady Gaga & Bruno Mars (N)
  30. WHAT IF I FEEL LIKE THIS MY WHOLE LIFE? – HULLAH (21)

Top 30 Songs for September 15-21, 2024

On By EclecticMusicLoverIn Weekly Top 30's11 Comments

Three and a half months after its release, “Lost In Space” by Foster the People finally ascends to the #1 spot, something I would not have predicted when it first appeared on my chart 12 weeks ago. Though they’ve been one of my favorite bands for well over 10 years, I wasn’t sure about the song at first. With its throwback disco/funk beat and heavy electronic vibe , it sounded quite different from anything they’d done before. In time, however, it eventually grew on me to the point where I now love it. I like its exuberant cinematic feel, especially the lush orchestral strings. “Lost In Space” was the lead single from their fourth studio album Paradise State of Mind, released on August 16, and is their fourth song to top my chart, following “Pumped Up Kicks”, “Coming of Age” and “Sit Next To Me”.

Still based in Los Angeles since forming in 2009, Foster the People now consists of founding member and front man Mark Foster and multi-instrumentalist Isom Innis, who started as a touring member of the band way back in 2010. A lot has happened with Foster and the band since the release of their 2017 album Sacred Hearts Club; he got sober in 2018, married actress Julia Garner in 2019, and saw the departure of the band’s founding drummer Mark Pontius in early 2021 during the waning days of the Covid pandemic, when they were unable to tour or perform live. All these changes caused Foster to look inward. In an interview with GRAMMY.com, he explained “I just dove into myself, really unpacking a lot of things emotionally, psychologically. Finding out who Mark is outside of music and getting comfortable with that.” He decided to explore new musical sounds for their next record Paradise State of Mind, diving into the disco/funk crossover pioneered by artists like Nile Rodgers and Giorgio Moroder in the late ’70s, utilizing synth stylings similar to that of P-Funk’s Bernie Worrell. In a Reddit thread, he noted that 95% of the synths are analog, and all of the strings are live.

The colorful video, a great deal of which is shot in vivid red hues, was directed by Rupert Höller. It’s kind of a modernized and trippy take on the Busby Berkeley movie musicals of the 1930s, with Mark Foster filmed on various sets, one of them a tall red staircase, and surrounded by lots of dancers. Though it’s a pretty enjoyable video overall, I can’t figure out the intended meaning of all those hands swaying, fluttering and caressing Foster’s face.

In other chart news of note, Virginia-based singer-songwriter Jake Mimikos, who’s been recording and releasing music as The Frontier for the past 10 years, has just changed his music moniker to Talk in waves, to reflect his evolving sound. His latest single “Like You Do” advances a spot to #3. English singer-songwriters Lola Young and Myles Smith enter the top 10 with their songs “Messy” and “Stargazing”, each moving up two spots to #9 and #10, respectively.

Three marvelous songs make their debut this week, the first of which is the lovely and captivating “Peaceful Place” by enormously talented Texas-based singer-songwriter Leon Bridges. I love his pleasing style of R&B-influenced neo soul, particularly his smooth and warm vocals. The song is the lead single from his fourth studio album Leon, scheduled for release on October 4, 2024, and marks Bridges’ sixth appearance on my chart, four times as a solo artist and twice in collaboration with Texas-based psych rock band Khruangbin. His beautiful song “Bad Bad News” ranks #29 on my Top 100 Songs of the 2010’s list.

Entering at #29 is the delightful “can’t slow down” by San Diego-based indie pop trio almost monday. It’s their second appearance on my chart, their first being their 2020 single “broken people”. They’ll be releasing their debut studio album Dive on September 25th. Last, but certainly not least, is “Favourite” by Irish band Fontaines D.C., the second single to be released from their outstanding latest album Romance, which dropped August 23rd. Along with “Starburster”, which spent three weeks at #1 and currently sits at #4, “Favourite” gives the band two songs on this chart.

  1. LOST IN SPACE – Foster the People (3)
  2. THE CRAVING – twenty one pilots (1)
  3. LIKE YOU DO – Talk in waves (4)
  4. STARBURSTER – Fontaines D.C. (2)
  5. OH NO! – The Decemberists (6)
  6. ESPRESSO – Sabrina Carpenter (8)
  7. HIGH IN LOW PLACES – Beach Weather (5)
  8. RAINBOW – Cage the Elephant (10)
  9. MESSY – Lola Young (11)
  10. STARGAZING – Myles Smith (12)
  11. PANORAMIC VIEW – AWOLNATION (7)
  12. BIRDS OF A FEATHER – Billie Eilish (14)
  13. GOOD LUCK, BABE! – Chappell Roan (15)
  14. WHAT IF I FEEL LIKE THIS MY WHOLE LIFE? – HULLAH (9)
  15. YOU JUST PLAYED MY MIND – Oli Barton (16)
  16. WAR – Healer (18)
  17. HONEY – Mr Bewlay (19)
  18. INTO GOLD – London Grammar (20)
  19. THAT’S HOW I’M FEELING – Jack White (21)
  20. DEATH VALLEY HIGH – Orville Peck & Beck (22)
  21. WAKING LIFE – Nicholas a. Milillo feat. Dee Wolf, Bobby Jasso, Gabrielle Marella and the voice of Tony Milillo (13)
  22. PERMANENT RECORD – GG Fearn (26)
  23. BIG CAT TATTOOS – Hamish Hawk (27)
  24. A FORETOLD ECSTASY – Mayflower Madame (17)
  25. HOLOGRAM – Raker (29)
  26. GARMONBOZIA – Flying Lotus (30)
  27. RUN YOUR MOUTH – The Marías (24)
  28. PEACEFUL PLACE – Leon Bridges (N)
  29. CAN’T SLOW DOWN – almost monday (N)
  30. FAVOURITE – Fontaines D.C. (N)

Top 30 Songs for September 8-14, 2024

On By EclecticMusicLoverIn Weekly Top 30's13 Comments

The past week has been blazing hot in Southern California, with many locations either reaching or breaking their all-time record high temperatures (112 in downtown L.A., 114 in Burbank, 119 in Woodland Hills and 121 in Palm Springs, the sixth time this summer it’s reached or exceeded 120 here!). My latest top 30 is sizzling hot too, filled with terrific songs by some of the best artists making music today.

“The Craving” by twenty one pilots maintains a firm grip on the top spot for a third week, while Fontaines D.C.‘s “Starburster” still has the power to excite and amaze, and thus remains at #2 for a third week after spending three weeks at #1. Moving into third place is “Lost In Space” by one of my longtime favorite acts Foster the People. The song took a while to really grab me, but now I love it! Always dependable singer-songwriter The Frontier moves up a notch to #4 with his heartwarming “Like You Do”, while Beach Weather‘s sultry “High In Low Places” inches down a notch to #5. It’s the song’s 11th week in the top five, three of which were spent at #1. Cage the Elephant‘s “Rainbow” moves up one, entering the top 10 at #10. The biggest upward movers this week are “That’s How I’m Feeling” by Jack White and “Death Valley High” by Orville Peck & Beck, each advancing seven spots to #21 and #22, respectively.

Two songs make their debut this week, starting with the lovely “Hologram” by Miami-based pop-rock duo Raker (which I reviewed last month). The second is the captivating and sensuous “Garmonbozia” by Los Angeles-based singer-songwriter, musician and producer Flying Lotus (aka Steven Ellison), which I learned about in a recent post on the wonderful New Music Jason’s Picks blog. The talented and multi-faceted artist has had a long and successful career since 2007, releasing ten albums, numerous EPs, and collaborating with the likes of Thundercat, Denzel Curry, Anderson .Paak and Smoke DZA, among others. Ellison named the song after the mysterious substance that looks like creamed corn and represents “pain and sorrow” referenced in the TV series Twin Peaks.

  1. THE CRAVING – twenty one pilots (1)
  2. STARBURSTER – Fontaines D.C. (2)
  3. LOST IN SPACE – Foster the People (6)
  4. LIKE YOU DO – The Frontier (5)
  5. HIGH IN LOW PLACES – Beach Weather (4)
  6. OH NO! – The Decemberists (7)
  7. PANORAMIC VIEW – AWOLNATION (3)
  8. ESPRESSO – Sabrina Carpenter (8)
  9. WHAT IF I FEEL LIKE THIS MY WHOLE LIFE? – HULLAH (9)
  10. RAINBOW – Cage the Elephant (11)
  11. MESSY – Lola Young (12)
  12. STARGAZING – Myles Smith (15)
  13. WAKING LIFE – Nicholas a. Milillo feat. Dee Wolf, Bobby Jasso, Gabrielle Marella and the voice of Tony Milillo (13)
  14. BIRDS OF A FEATHER – Billie Eilish (19)
  15. GOOD LUCK, BABE! – Chappell Roan (20)
  16. YOU JUST PLAYED MY MIND – Oli Barton (18)
  17. A FORETOLD ECSTASY – Mayflower Madame (10)
  18. WAR – Healer (21)
  19. HONEY – Mr Bewlay (22)
  20. INTO GOLD – London Grammar (26)
  21. THAT’S HOW I’M FEELING – Jack White (28)
  22. DEATH VALLEY HIGH – Orville Peck & Beck (29)
  23. LUNCH – Billie Eilish (14)
  24. RUN YOUR MOUTH – The Marías (16)
  25. I HAD SOME HELP – Post Malone feat. Morgan Wallen (17)
  26. PERMANENT RECORD – GG Fearn (27)
  27. BIG CAT TATTOOS – Hamish Hawk (30)
  28. WRECKAGE – Pearl Jam (23)
  29. HOLOGRAM – Raker (N)
  30. GARMONBOZIA – Flying Lotus (N)

Top 30 Songs for September 1-7, 2024

On By EclecticMusicLoverIn Weekly Top 30's11 Comments

twenty one pilots hold on to the top spot for a second week with their heartwarming love song “The Craving”, while Fontaines D.C., AWOLNATION and Beach Weather remain at #2, 3 & 4 for a second week with “Starburster”, “Panoramic View” and “High In Low Places”, respectively. Northern Virginia singer-songwriter The Frontier‘s uplifting song of tribute “Like You Do” moves up a notch to #5, and the melancholy and introspective “What if i feel like this my whole life?” by English singer-songwriter HULLAH enters the top 10 at #9. He just released another new single “Roads” this past Friday, August 30th. The biggest upward mover this week is “Messy” by English singer-songwriter Lola Young, advancing nine spots to #12.

Debuting this week are three great songs by innovative and rather unorthodox artists, the first of which is “That’s How I’m Feeling” by Detroit-born and now Nashville-based singer-songwriter and guitarist extraordinaire Jack White. The song is from his sixth studio album No Name, which dropped August 2nd. White gained more of my respect a few days ago when he posted this scathing rant against the despicable Donald Trump after a woman named Margo Martin played “Seven Nation Army” at one of his campaign rallies: “Oh….Don’t even think about using my music you fascists. Law suit coming from my lawyers about this (to add to your 5 thousand others.) Have a great day at work today Margo Martin. And as long as I’m here, a double fuck you DonOLD for insulting our nation’s veterans at Arlington you scum. You should lose every military family’s vote immediately from that if ANYTHING makes sense anymore.” His words pretty closely mirror my feelings for the odious mutherfucker.

The second debut is the delightfully catchy “Death Valley High” by enigmatic gay alt-country singer-songwriter Orville Peck (born Daniel Pitout in Johannesburg, South Africa, and known for always wearing a mask so as not to show his face publicly) and legendary singer-songwriter Beck. Co-written with Beck, the song is from Peck’s third studio album Stampede, also released on August 2nd. The album features 16 tracks, all of which are duets with other artists. Beck’s influence is immediately apparent, as the song features a riff that’s similar to the recent Black Keys #1 hit song “Beautiful People (Stay High)”, which he also co-wrote and produced.

The third debut, entering at #30, is “Big Cat Tattoos” by Scottish singer-songwriter Hamish Hawk, whose music has been described as sophisti-pop, post-punk and art rock. His rich baritone voice has been compared to those of Scott Walker, Neil Hannon and Morrissey. Released in late April, the song is from his third solo studio album A Firmer Hand, which dropped August 16th. The critically acclaimed album features 12 tracks touching on Hawk’s relationships with the men in his life including friends, lovers, family members and colleagues, and exploring themes of sex, lust, rejection, masculinity, shame and sexual repression.

  1. THE CRAVING – twenty one pilots (1)
  2. STARBURSTER – Fontaines D.C. (2)
  3. PANORAMIC VIEW – AWOLNATION (3)
  4. HIGH IN LOW PLACES – Beach Weather (4)
  5. LIKE YOU DO – The Frontier (6)
  6. LOST IN SPACE – Foster the People (7)
  7. OH NO! – The Decemberists (8)
  8. ESPRESSO – Sabrina Carpenter (10)
  9. WHAT IF I FEEL LIKE THIS MY WHOLE LIFE? – HULLAH (11)
  10. A FORETOLD ECSTASY – Mayflower Madame (5)
  11. RAINBOW – Cage the Elephant (15)
  12. MESSY – Lola Young (21)
  13. WAKING LIFE – Nicholas a. Milillo feat. Dee Wolf, Bobby Jasso, Gabrielle Marella and the voice of Tony Milillo (18)
  14. LUNCH – Billie Eilish (9)
  15. STARGAZING – Myles Smith (19)
  16. RUN YOUR MOUTH – The Marías (13)
  17. I HAD SOME HELP – Post Malone feat. Morgan Wallen (12)
  18. YOU JUST PLAYED MY MIND – Oli Barton (20)
  19. BIRDS OF A FEATHER – Billie Eilish (24)
  20. GOOD LUCK, BABE! – Chappell Roan (25)
  21. WAR – Healer (22)
  22. HONEY – Mr Bewlay (23)
  23. WRECKAGE – Pearl Jam (14)
  24. PAYBACK – Aaron Frazer (17)
  25. END OF BEGINNING – Djo (16)
  26. INTO GOLD – London Grammar (29)
  27. PERMANENT RECORD – GG Fearn (30)
  28. THAT’S HOW I’M FEELING – Jack White (N)
  29. DEATH VALLEY HIGH – Orville Peck & Beck (N)
  30. BIG CAT TATTOOS – Hamish Hawk (N)

Top 30 Songs for August 25-31, 2024

On By EclecticMusicLoverIn Weekly Top 30's13 Comments

Ever since learning about them nearly 10 years ago, twenty one pilots have ranked among my all-time favorite music acts. Their 2015 masterpiece Blurryface is one of my top 10 favorite albums of all time. Still based in their hometown of Columbus, Ohio, the dynamic duo consists of singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Tyler Joseph and drummer Josh Dun. Joseph is a brilliant and imaginative songwriter, as well as a damn fine rapper, and Dun is one of the best drummers around today. Their eclectic sound is a blend of alternative rock, hip hop, synth-pop, bedroom pop, emo rap, indie and garage rock.

This past May, they released their seventh album Clancy, the final installment of their nearly decade-long series of conceptual albums. Clancy concludes the storyline of the character Clancy, who resides in the fictional dystopian city of Dema in the metaphysical world of Trench we were introduced to on their 2018 album Trench. The album was co-produced by Joseph and his frequent collaborator Paul Meany, a singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, music director and producer who’s also front man of alt-rock act Mutemath. One of the album’s tracks, “The Craving”, was released in two different versions, one being the album cut featuring a stripped-down acoustic arrangement subtitled “Jenna’s Version”, and the other the single version featuring a fuller arrangement. Joseph wrote the song as a dedication to his wife Jenna. The beautiful single version is my new #1 song this week, making it twenty one pilots’ 11th song to reach #1 on my chart (their previous single “Overcompensate” recently peaked at #2).

In other chart news of note, Sabrina Carpenter‘s breezy dance-pop gem “Espresso” climbs six spots to enter the top 10 at #10, and Lola Young‘s powerfully defiant “Messy” moves up six spots to #21. Two songs make their debut this week: entering at #29 is the hauntingly beautiful “Into Gold” by English indie pop trio London Grammar. Formed in 2009 the band consists of Hannah Reid, Dan Rothman and Dominic “Dot” Major. They’ve released three albums thus far, with a fourth, The Greatest Love, due for release later this year. Though their albums have been quite successful in the UK, many European countries and Australia, some reaching #1 in those countries, they’ve had only limited success in the U.S. “Into Gold” was released on June 21st as the third single from The Greatest Love, and marks London Grammar’s first appearance on my chart. Entering at #30 is the topically relevant and captivating “Permanent Record” by Welsh singer-songwriter GG Fearn, which I reviewed last month. The talented artist just released her album “Scopophobia”, a soundtrack to the independent Welsh horror film of the same name, featuring “Permanent Record”, along with previously-released songs and new ones written especially for the film.

  1. THE CRAVING – twenty one pilots (2)
  2. STARBURSTER – Fontaines D.C. (1)
  3. PANORAMIC VIEW – AWOLNATION (4)
  4. HIGH IN LOW PLACES – Beach Weather (3)
  5. A FORETOLD ECSTASY – Mayflower Madame (5)
  6. LIKE YOU DO – The Frontier (7)
  7. LOST IN SPACE – Foster the People (8)
  8. OH NO! – The Decemberists (10)
  9. LUNCH – Billie Eilish (6)
  10. ESPRESSO – Sabrina Carpenter (16)
  11. WHAT IF I FEEL LIKE THIS MY WHOLE LIFE? – HULLAH (14)
  12. I HAD SOME HELP – Post Malone feat. Morgan Wallen (12)
  13. RUN YOUR MOUTH – The Marías (13)
  14. WRECKAGE – Pearl Jam (9)
  15. RAINBOW – Cage the Elephant (17)
  16. END OF BEGINNING – Djo (11)
  17. PAYBACK – Aaron Frazer (15)
  18. WAKING LIFE – Nicholas a. Milillo feat. Dee Wolf, Bobby Jasso, Gabrielle Marella and the voice of Tony Milillo (20)
  19. STARGAZING – Myles Smith (21)
  20. YOU JUST PLAYED MY MIND – Oli Barton (23)
  21. MESSY – Lola Young (27)
  22. WAR – Healer (24)
  23. HONEY – Mr Bewlay (26)
  24. BIRDS OF A FEATHER – Billie Eilish (29)
  25. GOOD LUCK, BABE! – Chappell Roan (30)
  26. BABY BLUE MOVIE – Cigarettes After Six (25)
  27. CREATURES IN HEAVEN – Glass Animals (18)
  28. TOO SWEET – Hozier (19) 20th week on chart
  29. INTO GOLD – London Grammar (N)
  30. PERMANENT RECORD – GG Fearn (N)