Another favorite music act of mine is American folk rock band Lord Huron. Originally formed as a solo act by singer-songwriter and guitarist Ben Schneider in 2010 after he relocated from Michigan to Los Angeles (his name was inspired by the Great Lake he grew up near), Lord Huron eventually became a four-piece that now includes Miguel Briseño on bass, keyboards & theremin, Tom Renaud on guitar, and Mark Barry on drums & percussion. Their uniquely beautiful music is a glorious mash-up of folk, western, rock and roll, pop, surf rock and new age, and has been described by music writers as evoking the ‘high-lonesome’ sound of such legendary acts as The Band and Neil Young, as well as newer acts like Fleet Foxes and My Morning Jacket (whose song “Time Waited” has spent the past three months on my chart, peaking at #1). The most striking features of their sound are the lush twangy and shimmery guitars, backed by stirring orchestral strings, and lead singer Ben Schneider’s beautiful warm vocals, which often convey an arresting and heartfelt vulnerability.
They’ve released four outstanding albums – Lonesome Dreams in 2012, Strange Trails in 2015, Vide Noir in 2018 and the gorgeous Long Lost in 2021, which is one of my favorite albums of the last 10 years. Their beautiful ballad “The Night We Met”, from Strange Trails, was their breakout hit and, shockingly, their only song to ever chart on the Billboard Hot 100, where it peaked at only #84. Nevertheless, it’s been streamed more than three billion times on Spotify. In January they released “Who Laughs Last?”, a hard-charging rock song featuring spoken word verses from actress Kristen Stewart, which they followed in late March with “Nothing I Need”. Those tracks, along with their latest single “Looking Back”, will be included on their forthcoming fifth album The Cosmic Selector Vol. 1, scheduled for release on July 18th.
“Nothing I Need” is gorgeous, featuring the band’s signature rich and colorful guitar work and Schneider’s marvelous vocals. It takes over the #1 spot on my latest Top 30 chart, marking Lord Huron’s third song to reach #1, after “Not Dead Yet” and “Mine Forever”, both from Long Lost, and both of which ended up placing in the top 10 of my 100 Best Songs of 2021 list, with “Mine Forever” ranking #2.
The bittersweet lyrics tell of a man lamenting his lost youth and the love he squandered away through his endless traveling, possibly for his career that now brings him no pleasure: “I fell asleep and when I woke up, I was old. I said goodbye to my youth and my blood ran cold. I got a feeling I just had to get away. I left it all behind on an endless road, but I see her face everywhere I go. I got everything I want and I got nothing that I need.” Schneider, who wrote and sang the lyrics, stated “Nothing I Need” “wonders if it’s possible — within the short time you’ve got — to ever truly know what you want, if it’s worthwhile wanting anything at all, and if there’s any point in pondering what’s down the roads you didn’t take.“
In other chart highlights, sombr‘s “back to friends” continues its strong upward movement, climbing three spots to #3. Three songs enter the top 10 after hovering in the low teens the past few weeks – “Archbishop Harold Holmes” by Jack White, “Barbarian” by L.A.-based alt-rock band AWOLNATION and “Porcelain (Losing All My Patience)” by Irish indie pop-rock band Somebody’s Child – all advancing three spots to #s 8, 9 and 10, respectively.
There are two new debuts again this week, the first of which is the exuberant “Ripple” by English indie rock duo Good Neighbours. Based in London and comprised of Oli Fox and Scott Verrill, they released their debut single “Home” in January 2024, The song was successful, reaching #26 in the UK and #2 on the Billboard AAA chart. I was never wild about that song, but I do like “Ripple”, which I find more infectious and appealing. The second debut is the wonderful “Better Off Eventually” by British Columbia, Canada-based alt-rock band Bealby Point, which I featured in the same Fresh New Tracks post as last week’s debut entry “Moody” by Royel Otis.
NOTHING I NEED – Lord Huron (3)
IT’S AMAZING TO BE YOUNG – Fontaines D.C. (1)
BACK TO FRIENDS – sombr (6)
THE TURNAROUND – DelCobras (4)
WALLS – Frank Joshua (2)
LAREDO – Leon Bridges (5)
SNAKESKIN – NAVE (9)
ARCHBISHOP HAROLD HOLMES – Jack White (11)
BARBARIAN – AWOLNATION (12)
PORCELAIN (LOSING ALL MY PATIENCE) – Somebody’s Child (13)
I just love Fontaines D.C., who’ve become one of my favorite bands over the past couple of years. Formed in 2016 in Dublin, Ireland (the D.C. in their name stands for Dublin City, to differentiate them from another band named the Fontaines) but now based in London, England, they consist of the dangerously charismatic Grian Chatten (vocals), Conor Curley (guitar), Conor Deegan III (bass), Tom Coll (drums) and Carlos O’Connell (guitar). Their latest single “It’s Amazing To Be Young” rises to #1 this week, making it their third song in a year to top my chart. Their song “Starburster” is my #1 song of 2024, with “Favourite” not far behind at #8.
Written and performed by all members of the band, and arranged, produced and mixed by James Ford, “It’s Amazing To Be Young” was inspired by the birth of band guitarist Carlos O’Connell’s first child. Bassist Conor Deegan III elaborated about the song for Genius: “It sounded more like a lullaby or a music box, but with the same lyric ‘it’s amazing to be young’. The feeling of hope a child can give is profound and moving, especially for young men like us. That sense of wanting to create a world for them to grow up in happily. It’s a feeling that fights against the cynicism that can often overtake us in the modern world. So we wanted to declare which side we were on – it really is amazing to be young. We are still free, and want to make that feeling spread. We want to protect it for the others around us, and maybe in doing that, can also help protect it for ourselves.
The video for this song was directed by one of our favourite collaborators Luna Carmoon. Luna has a very visual ear and found a way to bring out the world of our songs, somehow making the feelings more clear and more dreamlike at the same time. This video in particular has many special moments, but I think the way it unifies the different characters together is brilliant, because it embodies the message of not just the song but the album- youth is magical, and stories can become interwoven unexpectedly and feel like worlds colliding. That is youth, that is young love, and I think oftentimes that is romance.”
The video’s fairly long with a few breaks in the song, so here’s an audio video if you’d like to just hear the song itself:
Two songs blast their way into the top 10 this week: the bittersweet folk rock beauty “Nothing I Need” by Lord Huron (which is currently #1 on the Billboard AAA chart, with “It’s Amazing To Be Young at #2) jumps eight spots to #3, while sombr’s cinematic “back to friends” (which sits at #2 on the Alternative Airplay chart) leaps 10 spots to #6.
There are two new debuts again this week, the first of which is “What Was That” by New Zealand singer-songwriter Lorde, who became famous in 2013 at the age of 16 for her monster worldwide hit “Royals”. It’s her first new music since her 2021 album Solar Power (though she did release a single of her cover of “Take Me to the River” that she contributed to the 2024 album Everyone’s Getting Involved: A Tribute to Talking Heads’ Stop Making Sense). The song is the lead single from her fourth album Virgin, set to be released on June 27, and it’s nice to have her back! The second debut, entering at #30, is the endearing “Moody” by Australian guitar-pop duo Royel Otis, which I featured in a recent Fresh New Tracks post. Their marvelous cover of Sophie Ellis-Bextor’s “Murder on the Dance Floor” is my #4 song of 2024.
IT’S AMAZING TO BE YOUNG – Fontaines D.C. (2)
WALLS – Frank Joshua (1)
NOTHING I NEED – Lord Huron (11)
THE TURNAROUND – DelCobras (5)
LAREDO – Leon Bridges (6)
BACK TO FRIENDS – sombr (16)
MORTAL WOUND – The Veils (4)
BAD LARRY – Cloakroom (3)
SNAKESKIN – NAVE (9)
POOR SAD INDIE EVERYTHING – Icarus Phoenix (10)
ARCHBISHOP HAROLD HOLMES – Jack White (12)
BARBARIAN – AWOLNATION (13)
PORCELAIN (LOSING ALL MY PATIENCE) – Somebody’s Child (14)
I seem to have gotten into a pattern of publishing at least one Fresh New Tracks post each week, and hopefully I’ll keep at this until I burn out or fall back into another of my periodic funks again. For my 47th edition, I’m featuring songs by, in alphabetical order, Canadian indie rock band Bealby Point, Maryland alternative pop-rock band Between Daze, Chicago pop-rock-punk band Guardrail, and Australian indie pop-rock duo Royel Otis.
Bealby Point – “Better Off Eventually”
Vancouver, British Columbia is a wellspring of musical talent, as there are several terrific acts from that fair part of Canada I’m especially fond of. I recently wrote about two of them – dwi and Western Jaguar – in a previous Fresh New Tracks post, and another favorite is alt-rock band Bealby Point. Named after a local beachside vacation spot, the four-piece consists of childhood friends Jack Armstrong (lead vocals), Clayton Dewar (lead guitar), Jordan Studer (bass), and Zack Yeager (drums). I love their buoyant, high-energy alternative/garage rock they cheekily call “music to fold laundry to“, and their sound, particularly due to Jack’s vocal style, at times reminds me of The Strokes. Their description of themselves as “fourapproachable guys making cool music” is genuine, based on the mutual respect, camaraderie, and joy of spending time together that’s so evident in all their photos and little acoustic performance sessions they frequently post on TikTok and Instagram. I’ve been following them for more than four years and have featured them four times on this blog, most recently two years ago when I reviewed their single “America”. Their 2021 single “Talk to Me” ended up on my 100 Best Songs of 2021 list.
On May 13th, they dropped their latest single “Better Off Eventually“, a rousing indie pop song speaking to feelings of frustration amid superficiality in the world and yearning for a life filled with meaning. The band elaborates: “This song was conceived in Clay’s basement as part of a batch of songs we wrote and tracked almost 3 years ago with our long-time friend and confidant Matt Di Pomponio (who mixed and produced the track). It’s been sittin’ in the Bealby Vault ever since and we have been patiently awaiting it’s time to be unleashed unto the world. Now is that time. It’s about struggling through life’s battles, learning along the way, owning who you are and being unapologetically true to yourself, no matter what! This song means a lot to us and we hope you find something in it for you.” I love the song’s breezy, upbeat melody, highlighted by Jack and Clay’s colorful intricate guitar work and driven by Jordan’s thumping bassline and Zack’s spirited drumbeats. All of Bealby Point’s songs are so good, and “Better Off Eventually” is no exception.
Between Daze – “Call Out”
Hailing from Baltimore, Maryland is Between Daze, an original songwriting/recording project comprised primarily of Johnny Burkhead (vocals), Scott Rodenberg (guitar) and Kenn (guitar), along with Mike Coyne (bass) and Kevin Walsh (drums). Preferring to remain rather anonymous, they have no photos of themselves on social media or music platforms. They’ve been making alternative pop/rock and roll music together for over 20 years but really began hitting their stride in 2021 with the release of their single “Burn For You”. In the years since, they’ve released a total of eleven singles at the rate of two or three a year. Their latest is “Call Out“, which dropped May 1st. Johnny reached out to me about the song, and as I do with acts who are new to me, I checked out their back catalog to get a better feel for their music. I ended up listening to all eleven of their singles, and can honestly say I like them all.
The band says “Call Out” “tells a story about finding the best in yourself and being able to take on whatever comes your way. It’s about not letting things beat you down for too long, that things will turn for you and eventually be better. Keep believing in yourself, and build the confidence to take on the world!” To drive home their optimistic message, the guys serve up a barrage of roiling gnarly riffs, driving bass and thunderous drums, creating an exhilarating backdrop for Johnny’s fervent vocals. The beautiful cover art for the single was hand painted by artist Jane Link Mangano.
Guardrail “First”
Photo of Xack, Ty, Kevin & Ken by Kennedy Cottrell
Chicago-based Guardrail play a hard-hitting, high-energy style of rock drawn from a blend of punk, pop and metal, which on some songs reminds me of acts like Green Day, Blink-182, Sum 41, and even the Beastie Boys. Formed in 2014, the band has undergone several changes in lineup, and now consists of Kevin Andrew (lead vocals), Ken Ugel (guitar, vocals), Ty Olmstead (bass, vocals) and Xack (drums). (Ken is also guitarist for Chicago bands The Million Reasons and Wild Gravity, while Ty also plays in the band Ghoul For A Goblin.) They released their debut EP wordswords in 2015, and have since followed with two more EPs, numerous singles, (one of which, “Social Meteor”, I reviewed in 2021 and has garnered over 220,000 streams on Spotify), and a full-length album Content in 2023.
Yesterday, May 14th, Guardrail dropped their first new single in two years, appropriately a terrific cover of the Cold War Kids’ 2015 masterpiece “First“. I’m a longtime fan of Cold War Kids and “First” is my favorite song of theirs (it ranks #27 on my Top 100 Songs of the 2010s list). It can be risky for an artist or band to cover a song we love, but the moment I heard Guardrail’s version, I was thrilled. While Guardrail maintains some of the vibe of the original thanks to their chiming guitars, they speed it up with frantic drumbeats, jagged guitar riffs and Kevin’s fervent rapid-fire vocals, giving their version greater urgency and more of a punk feel. Cold War Kids’ original runs 3:20 minutes, whereas Guardrails is shortened to only 3:07 minutes. The band states they “recorded a bunch of covers during the pandemic times, so while we work on new music we’re gonna finally put ’em out.” I say, bring ’em on!
Royel Otis – “moody”
Australian guitar-pop duo Royel Otis was formed in 2019 by Royel Maddell and Otis Pavlovic over a shared love of the same music and bands. Based in Sydney, their sound draws from elements of indie pop, indie rock, new wave, pop rock, post-punk and psychedelic rock. The duo released two EPs in 2021 and 2022 to little notice until the song “Oysters in My Pocket”, from the second EP Bar n Grill, gained traction in late 2022. Their third EP Sofa Kings, released in 2023, proved more successful, with the breakthrough title track marking their first appearance on American charts, eventually peaking at #12 on the Billboard Alternative Airplay chart. In late January 2024, they released their electrifying cover of “Murder on the Dancefloor”, the 2001 disco pop hit by British singer-songwriter Sophie Ellis-Bextor (which she co-wrote with Gregg Alexander, former frontman of the band The New Radicals, who had a hit in the late 90s with “You Get What You Give”), which they performed on the Australian radio station Triple J for their Like a Version program. The song went viral and reached #1 on the Billboard Alternative chart, as well as my own Top 30 chart. I couldn’t get enough of it, and it ended up ranking #4 on my 100 Best Songs of 2024 list. The guys quickly followed with their debut album Pratts & Pain in February 2024, which debuted at #1 on the ARIA Australian Albums Chart, and went on to win four awards at the 2024 ARIA (Australian Recording Industry Association) Music Awards.
Now they’re back with a new single “moody“, which dropped on May 9th. It’s a love song of sorts, detailing a problematic relationship with a woman who drives the singer crazy in both good ways and bad. She’s jealous, bitchy and cranky, yet he’s hopelessly in love with her: “She’s always givin’ it to me. Late nights, she always accusin’. Last time, she said she would kill me. My girl’s a bitch when she’s moody. But she’s my everything. She’s all that I need.” I love the song’s languid laid back groove, highlighted by Royel’s terrific guitar noodling and Otis’ sweet vocals. I think it’s gonna be a hit.
Unbelievably, 2024 ended up being an even crazier year than 2023 was! Though things didn’t turn out as I’d hoped from a political standpoint, it was nevertheless a decent year for me personally, plus there was lots of incredible music to enjoy. As I do at the end of each year, I’ve compiled a list of my 100 favorite songs for 2024. This past Monday, I posted my list of the 100 Best Indie Songs of 2024 (which you can read here), and now this new list represents my compilation of favorite songs that I feel are the overall best of 2024. (Eighteen songs from the Best Indie Songs list also appear on this list.)
Music tastes are very subjective, and while I don’t understand how others cannot share my love for a particular song or artist, I fully realize that not one person will agree with all my song choices or rankings. Furthermore, as a music blogger, I’m exposed to a tremendous amount of new music over the course of a year, both from the literally thousands of artists and bands I follow, as well as all the music I learn about from my fellow bloggers. Despite this, I’ve heard only a tiny fraction of all the music released in 2024. Consequently, my list includes only songs I know, and I’m certain there are likely many great ones that should be included, except that I’ve never heard them. Among the thousands of songs I did hear in 2024, there were many outstanding ones, and it frustrates me to have to cull my list down to only 100, omitting quite a few that I really like. It’s also a challenge ranking them, because a song at #40 isn’t necessarily any better than a song at #70. Perhaps it’s a pointless exercise to even rank them at all, except for the fact that I love making lists!
I avoid ranking albums, as there are simply far too many I’ve either not heard, nor had the time to fully listen to, therefore any list I might compile would be woefully inadequate. That said, there are some particularly beautiful records released in 2024 that impressed me, including Romance by Fontaines D.C. (my overall favorite album of 2024), Songs of a Lost World by The Cure, Leon by Leon Bridges, nothing by Louis Cole, Dreamstate by Kelly Lee Owens, Clancy by twenty one pilots, I AM CINCO by MISSIO, Melt by Beach Weather, HIT ME HARD AND SOFT by Billie Eilish, A Dream Is All We Know by The Lemon Twigs, and As It Ever Was, So It Will Be Again by The Decemberists.
Most of the songs on this list were released in 2024, however, several were released in 2023 but didn’t ‘peak’ until 2024. Likewise, several songs released after November 1st are still moving up my weekly charts and won’t peak until early 2025, thus will appear on my 100 Best Songs of 2025 list. The few songs in this Top 100 that also appeared on my Top 100 Songs of 2023 list, such as Green Day’s “The American Dream Is Killing Me”, which spent a week at #1 at the end of 2023 and another three at #1 in early 2024, are indicated with an asterisk *.
I’ve written brief narratives and included videos for the top 10 songs. As always, I’ve created a Spotify playlist for this Top 100, which is included at the end of the post. Hopefully you’ll find some of your own personal favorites on it. Let me know what songs were your favorites of 2024.
1. STARBURSTER – Fontaines D.C.
Irish alt-rock band Fontaines D.C. are one of the most exciting and interesting acts making music today, and while they’d been gaining acclaim and popularity since the release of their debut album Dogrel in 2019, it was their spectacular fourth studio album Romance, released last summer, that really put them over the top. Elton John recently called them “the best band out there at the moment“. I love their always arresting sound, thanks in part to charismatic lead vocalist Grian Chatten’s distinctive baritone Irish brogue, and they’ve become one of my favorite bands. “Starburster”, the bombastic lead single from Romance, is musically complex and brilliant, and one of the most sonically thrilling songs I’ve heard in a while.
The song was inspired by a panic attack that Chatten suffered in a London tube station, and the jarring gasps heard at the end of each line suggest the gasps or quick breaths of someone experiencing a panic attack. To drive home their message, Fontaines D.C. start with a foreboding Mellotron string loop quickly followed by an elegant piano riff before the music explodes into a bombastic soundscape of stomping trip hop beats, sharp percussion and reverb-soaked twangy guitars. Chatten does a fine job with his commanding rapid-fire rapping of the lyrics, which he’d previously done on the collaborative single “Better Way To Live” with Irish hip-hop trio Kneecap. The song transitions to a calm interlude in the bridge with a majestic string arrangement and Chatten’s vocals now a warm and soothing croon, then finishes with a return of the stomping beats and jarring music. I love it, and couldn’t stop listening to it for months on end, making it my favorite song of 2024.
The song’s rather unsettling video, directed by Aube Pierre, features Chatten performing a variety of daily activities in differing personas ranging from angelic to demonic, sometimes wounded and other times wearing a mask or wig. It’s as ambiguous and scattered as the song’s lyrics.
2. HIGH IN LOW PLACES – Beach Weather
Another favorite act of mine is alternative pop-rock trio Beach Weather, whose “Trouble With This Bed” was my #1 song of 2023, and “Sex, Drugs, Etc.” my #3 song of 2022. Their gorgeous “High In Low Places“, released at the end of May 2024 and featured on their subsequently released second album Melt, takes its place as my second-favorite song of 2024. I love the song’s brooding cinematic vibe in the vein of Ennio Morricone, particularly the twangy guitars and lead vocalist Nick Santino’s sensuous vocals. He had this to say about the song: “We like to call ‘High in Low Places’ our apocalyptic love song. There was beauty in the idea of finding peace in one another while the world was slowly melting. We wanted to create something that felt cinematic, the closing credits of a modern end-of-times western. There are hints of those influences in the guitars and strings running through the chorus where we want to pull everyone into a world but stay hopeful that we can all rise above that insanity transpiring around us.” The lyrics speak to remaining positive and optimistic in the face of life’s problems and obstacles.
3. THE CRAVING – twenty one pilots
Ever since learning about them 10 years ago, twenty one pilots have ranked among my all-time favorite music acts, and their 2015 masterpiece Blurryface is one of my 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. In May 2024, they released their seventh album Clancy, the final installment of their nearly decade-long series of conceptual albums, concluding 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. 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 was twenty one pilots’ 11th song to reach #1 on my chart, and finishes the year at #3.
4. MURDER ON THE DANCE FLOOR – Royel Otis
Without question, one of my absolute favorite songs of 2024 was “Murder on the Dance Floor”, by Australian guitar-pop duo Royel Otis (comprised of Royel Maddell and Otis Pavlovi). It’s a marvelous cover of the 2001 hit “Murder on the Dancefloor” by British singer-songwriter Sophie Ellis-Bextor, which Royel Otis performed on the Australian radio station Triple J for their Like a Version program. Interestingly, the song does not appear on their excellent debut album PRATTS & PAIN that was released in February 2024. The song was co-written by Ellis-Bextor and Gregg Alexander, former frontman of the band The New Radicals (who had a hit in the late 90s with “You Get What You Give”). Ellis-Bextor’s original version gained renewed popularity earlier this year after appearing in the 2023 black comedy thriller film Saltburn, causing it to re-enter the UK Dance Singles Chart, where it reached #1. It also peaked at #3 on the US Billboard Hot Dance/Electronic Songs chart and #51 on the Hot 100, her first song to ever appear on that chart. Royel Otis’ version peaked at #2 on the Alternative Airplay chart, but spent three weeks at #1 on my chart. I love the video of the exuberant studio performance, in which all the musicians involved are positively first-rate.
5. MY GOLDEN YEARS – The Lemon Twigs
Another one of the more interesting music acts around today is American indie rock duo The Lemon Twigs, consisting of the hyper-talented and charismatic brothers Brian and Michael D’Addario. Raised in a musical household on Long Island, New York (their father Ronnie D’Addario is a musician and songwriter in his own right), the two learned to play instruments and sing at an early age. Both Brian and Michael also had extensive stage, while Michael’s also appeared in a variety of television shows and films. The brothers formed The Lemon Twigs while they were both in high school, with each performing lead vocals, lead guitar, drums and other instruments. They cite as their major music influences bands ranging from The Beatles and Beach Boys to Procol Harum and Queen. They recorded their first album Do Hollywood in 2015, when the two were only 15 and 17 years old. The album, which was released in 2016, was well-received by critics and earned them appearances on TV programs like The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, CBS This Morning “Saturday Sessions” and Conan, as well as a coveted spot at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in Indio, California in April 2017.
Their delightful power pop gem “My Golden Years” was the lead single from their fifth studio album A Dream Is All We Know, co-produced by the band and Sean Ono Lennon and released in May 2024. The song seems to pay homage to some of the great songs from the 60s by acts like The Byrds and Beach Boys, as well as early 70s The Raspberries. I absolutely love those gorgeous jangly Rickenbacker guitars and Beach Boys-esque harmonies. Shockingly, I don’t believe the song appeared on any chart in the U.S. or elsewhere, though YouTuber Anthony Fantano of theneedledrop ranked it #13 for the year, and New York Times TV critic James Poniewozik called the song “the soundtrack of my year“.
6. PEACEFUL PLACE – Leon Bridges
Leon Bridges is an enormously talented singer-songwriter based in Fort Worth, Texas. I love his pleasing style of R&B-influenced neo soul, particularly his smooth and warm vocals that remind me at times of the late, great Marvin Gaye and Sam Cooke. His gorgeous song “Peaceful Place”, from his fourth studio album Leon released this past October, spent two weeks at #1 on the Billboard Adult Alternative Airplay chart and four weeks at #1 on my chart, and finishes the year at #6. In addition to his marvelous, soulful vocals, I also love that slide guitar and cool bass line on the track. His 2018 song “Bad Bad News” was one of my favorite songs of that year, and ranks #29 on my Top 100 Songs of the 2010s list. The wonderful video was shot in Mexico City and Los Angeles.
7. TOO SWEET – Hozier
I just love Irish singer-songwriter Hozier, who’s had quite a resurgence over the past year or so with his critically acclaimed third studio album Unreal Unearth, which featured his two hit singles “Eat Your Young” and “Francesca”, his duet “Northern Attitude” with American singer-songwriter Noah Kahan (which appears later in this Top 100 chart), as well as his singles “Too Sweet” and “Nobody’s Soldier”, (which also appears later in this chart). Released in late March a week after he dropped his fifth EP Unheard, “Too Sweet” has turned out to be his highest charting single both in the UK and the U.S. It quickly went to #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 in April, then went on to spend an astonishing 11 weeks at #1 on the Alternative Airplay chart and 8 weeks on the AAA chart. It spent two weeks at #1 on my chart, and ranks #7 for the year. It was Hozier’s fifth song to top my chart (the previous being “Take Me to Church” in 2014, “Nina Cried Power”, featuring Mavis Staples, in 2018, “Eat Your Young” in 2023 and “Northern Attitude” earlier this year). The song’s lyrics are directed at a romantic partner with totally different lifestyle preferences – the singer enjoys staying up late and drinking alcohol and black coffee, in contrast with his partner who goes to bed early, eats healthy, etc. – in other words, she’s too sweet for him.
8. FAVOURITE – Fontaines D.C.
Fontaines D.C. are back with “Favourite“, the second single from their brilliant album Romance, and the second song to not only appear on this chart, but also in the top 10. The uplifting, gorgeous and heartwarming anthem has become their highest-charting song in the U.S., reaching #3 on the Billboard AAA chart. It spent three weeks at the top of my chart, and comes in at #8 for the year. The delightful video features childhood scenes of the band members, juxtaposed with images of them today.
9. TIME – MISSIO
I’m sounding like a broken record, but Austin, Texas-based duo MISSIO (comprised of multi-instrumentalist and vocalist Matthew Brue and multi-instrumentalist and producer David Butler) are yet another of my favorite acts. I love their uniquely eclectic sound that’s an arresting blend of alternative rock, electronic and hip hop, and have written about them several times on this blog. Four of their songs – “I See You”, “Underground”, “Can You Feel the Sun” and “Time” – have reached #1 on my Top 30. “I See You” was my #1 song of 2019, and ended up at #10 on my Top 100 of the 2010s, while “Can You Feel the Sun” was my #4 song of 2021. The darkly captivating “Time”, from their fifth album I AM CINCO, an epic work released last May which I reviewed, finishes at #9 for 2024. I love Matthew Brue’s distinctive tenor voice, which sounds especially vulnerable and heartfelt on this song, accompanied by a gorgeous instrumental arrangement. The simple but profound lyrics touch on anxieties over some of the issues facing our current world and society, with MISSIO reminding us that “time goes wherever you are, now, in each moment” and to “live like it’s your last because you’re not guaranteed a tomorrow.”
10. WRECKAGE – Pearl Jam
While I’ve always liked the music of Pearl Jam well enough, I’ve never been a huge fan. But I really love their magnificent song “Wreckage”, released in April 2024 as the third single from their 12th studio album Dark Matter. I like how the song gradually builds from a compelling downtempo rock song into a spine-tingling anthem, fueled by explosive jangly guitars, tumultuous percussion and Eddie Vedder’s impassioned vocals. In an April 2024 interview with British newspaper The Sunday Times, Vedder said he wrote the lyrics to “Wreckage” about the “desperation” of former U.S. president Donald Trump, elaborating “There is a guy in the United States who is still saying he didn’t lose an election, and people are reverberating and amplifying that message as if it is true. Trump is desperate. I don’t think there has ever been a candidate more desperate to win, just to keep himself out of prison and to avoid bankruptcy. It is all on the line, and he’s out there playing the victim… So the song is saying, let’s not be driven apart by one person, especially not a person without any worthy causes.” The next day, he told Howard Stern that the song could also be about “a difficult relationship”. Whatever it’s about, I love it, and it’s become my favorite song by Pearl Jam. “Wreckage” was a big hit, reaching #1 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock and Adult Alternative Airplay charts. While it peaked at only #2 on my chart, where it spent two weeks, it ranks as my 10th favorite song of 2024.
BEAUTIFUL PEOPLE (STAY HIGH) – The Black Keys
NEON PILL – Cage the Elephant
THE AMERICAN DREAM IS KILLING ME – Green Day *
CREATURES IN HEAVEN – Glass Animals
DILEMMA – Green Day
PANORAMIC VIEW – AWOLNATION
MESSY – Lola Young
THAT’S HOW I’M FEELING – Jack White
BURIAL GROUND – The Decemberists
A FRAGILE THING – The Cure
WHAT NOW – Brittany Howard
NORTHERN ATTITUDE – Noah Kahan & Hozier
LOSE CONTROL – Teddy Swims
SAD IN CAROLINA – Dexter and The Moonrocks
LIKE YOU DO – Talk in Waves
LOST IN SPACE – Foster the People
OVERCOMPENSATE – twenty one pilots
BIRDS OF A FEATHER – Billie Eilish
DIE WITH A SMILE – Lady Gaga & Bruno Mars
RAINBOW – Cage the Elephant
ALL I DIE FOR – SWiiMS
HARDCORE ROMANCE – Beach Weather
ESPRESSO – Sabrina Carpenter
STARGAZING – Myles Smith
GOOD LUCK, BABE! – Chappell Roan
WINTER COWBOY – Frank Joshua
COOL ABOUT IT – boygenius
THE DOOR – Teddy Swims
THE TOWER – Future Islands
A FORETOLD ECSTASY – Mayflower Madame
OH NO! – The Decemberists
I’VE GOT LOVING FOR YOU – Bottlecap Mountain
END OF BEGINNING – Djo
DON’T FORGET ME – Maggie Rogers
KOOL AID BLUE – The Sylvia Platters
BLAME BRETT – The Beaches
MY LOVE MINE ALL MINE – Mitski *
CAN’T SLOW DOWN – almost monday
LOVIN ON ME – Jack Harlow
ATTRACTION – Wild Horse *
I’M IN LOVE – Jelani Aryeh
UP ALL NIGHT – James Bay, The Lumineers & Noah Kahan
DEATH VALLEY HIGH – Orville Peck & Beck
LUNCH – Billie Eilish
MOTHER NATURE – MGMT
LUNAR ECLIPSE – The Vaccines
NOTHING MATTERS – The Last Dinner Party
FORTNIGHT – Taylor Swift & Post Malone
NOBODY’S SOLDIER – Hozier
WHAT IF I FEEL LIKE THIS MY WHOLE LIFE? – HULLAH
FOR US ALL – Asgard Raven
MODERN GIRL – Bleachers
RUN AWAY WITH ME – Cold War Kids
ICE CREAM (PAY PHONE) – Black Pumas
DIAMOND AND THE MISSING SON – Unquiet Nights
ALIVE! – Bakar
EVERYTHING WE NEED – Mojave Grey
YOU JUST PLAYED MY MIND – Oli Barton
BLUSH – Vazum
NEVERENDER – Justice & Tame Impala
CAPRICORN – Vampire Weekend
MUSTANG – Kings of Leon
ON THE GAME – The Black Keys
GARMONBOZIA – Flying Lotus
INTO GOLD – London Grammar
BOTHERING ME – Sarah Blasko
TAKE IT OR LEAVE IT – Dead Slow Hoot
LONELINESS – Pet Shop Boys
A TEAR IN SPACE (AIRLOCK) – Glass Animals
WANTING AND WAITING – The Black Crowes
FIND MY WAY – Ships Have Sailed
SUPERSAD – Suki Waterhouse
HOW DID YOU GET HERE? – Antony Szmierek
WAR – HEALER
SCARED TO START – Michael Marcagi
THE BREAK – Blame My Youth
GOOD PEOPLE – Mumford & Sons, Pharrell Williams
GOLD – Caitlin Lavagna
I HAD SOME HELP – Post Malone & Morgan Wallen
RUN YOUR MOUTH – The Marías
TOO MUCH – girl in red
THE LIGHTHOUSE – Stevie Nicks
DARK MATTER – Pearl Jam
BROKEN MAN – St. Vincent
HONEY – Mr Bewlay
BOBBY SOX – Green Day
BIG CAT TATTOOS – Hamish Hawk
MIND GAME (3:33) – Collette McLafferty & John Serrano
Beach Weather remain at #1 for a third week with their gorgeous and cinematic Spaghetti Western-esque “High in Low Places”, which I love more with every listen. Nine days ago, they released their latest and appropriately-titled single “Hottest Summer on Record”, which is guaranteed to appear on my chart in the coming weeks. Pearl Jam‘s “Wreckage” holds at #2 for a second week, while “Starburster”, by the always remarkable Fontaines D.C. moves up two spots to #3. I love this song, and can’t get enough of its contrasting bombastic and melodic brooding vibe. twenty one pilots‘ poignant “The Craving” also advances two spots, to #4, while “Lost In Space” by Foster the People is this week’s biggest upward mover, jumping six spots to #15.
Three songs make their debut this week, the first of which is the wonderful Latin-flavored “Oh No!” by The Decemberists, entering at #28. Along with “Burial Ground”, which spent two weeks at #1 and now sits at #21, the esteemed band currently has two songs on this chart. Both are from their excellent latest album As It Ever Was, So It Will Be Again. Next up is “You Just Played My Mind” by English singer-songwriter Oli Barton, which I reviewed upon its release on June 21. This is his sixth song to appear on my chart over the past seven years. Entering at #30 is “War” by English alt-rock band Healer, which also came out on June 21st, and which I also reviewed. This is their second song to appear on my chart, their first being last year’s “Bones”.
HIGH IN LOW PLACES – Beach Weather (1)
WRECKAGE – Pearl Jam (2)
STARBURSTER – Fontaines D.C. (5)
THE CRAVING – twenty one pilots (6)
PANORAMIC VIEW – AWOLNATION (4)
CREATURES IN HEAVEN – Glass Animals (3)
END OF BEGINNING – Djo (7)
TOO SWEET – Hozier (8)
A FORETOLD ECSTASY – Mayflower Madame (10)
ON THE GAME – The Black Keys (9)
LUNCH – Billie Eilish (13)
THE BREAK – Blame My Youth (14)
TOO MUCH – girl in red (15)
LIKE YOU DO – The Frontier (18)
LOST IN SPACE – Foster the People (21)
I HAD SOME HELP – Post Malone feat. Morgan Wallen (17)
VICES – 5ilas & Shimmer Johnson (20)
RUN YOUR MOUTH – The Marías (22)
WHAT IF I FEEL LIKE THIS MY WHOLE LIFE? – HULLAH (23)
PAYBACK – Aaron Frazer (24)
BURIAL GROUND – The Decemberists & James Mercer (11)
MURDER ON THE DANCEFLOOR – Royel Otis (12)
ESPRESSO – Sabrina Carpenter (25)
FOR US ALL – Asgard Raven (16)
RAINBOW – Cage the Elephant (27)
JUST WANNA SLEEP – Halfloves (28)
WAKING LIFE – Nicholas a. Milillo feat. Dee Wolf, Bobby Jasso, Gabrielle Marella and the voice of Tony Milillo (30)
Some of you who read my blog or this post may wonder what my weekly Top 30 lists represent or how they’re compiled. They’re essentially lists of my favorite songs for a given week, my own personal Top 30 that I would focus on were I the program manager of my own radio station.
There’s so much great music out now that I could have included 40 songs on this week’s Top 30. And all the songs in this week’s top six could easily be #1 (two of them already have). The sultry “High in Low Places” by Beach Weather remains on top for a second week, while Pearl Jam‘s gorgeous song “Wreckage” moves up a notch to #2. I love Glass Animals‘ “Creatures in Heaven”, AWOLNATION‘s “Panoramic View” and Fontaines D.C.’s “Starburster” so much, as well as “The Craving”, which reinforces yet again why twenty one pilots continue to be one of my favorite music acts of all time.
Entering the top 10 this week are “On the Game” by The Black Keys and “A Foretold Ecstasy” by Norwegian psych-noir band Mayflower Madame. The one debut is “Waking Life” by Nicholas a. Milillo featuring Dee Wolf, Bobby Jasso, Gabrielle Marella and the voice of Tony Milillo. I reviewed the dramatic song when it came out four weeks ago.
HIGH IN LOW PLACES – Beach Weather (1)
WRECKAGE – Pearl Jam (3)
CREATURES IN HEAVEN – Glass Animals (2)
PANORAMIC VIEW – AWOLNATION (5)
STARBURSTER – Fontaines D.C. (6)
THE CRAVING – twenty one pilots (10)
END OF BEGINNING – Djo (7)
TOO SWEET – Hozier (4)
ON THE GAME – The Black Keys (12)
A FORETOLD ECSTASY – Mayflower Madame (14)
BURIAL GROUND – The Decemberists & James Mercer (8)
MURDER ON THE DANCEFLOOR – Royel Otis (9)
LUNCH – Billie Eilish (17)
THE BREAK – Blame My Youth (15)
TOO MUCH – girl in red (16)
FOR US ALL – Asgard Raven (11)
I HAD SOME HELP – Post Malone feat. Morgan Wallen (19)
LIKE YOU DO – The Frontier (20)
GOLD – Caitlin Lavagna (13)
VICES – 5ilas & Shimmer Johnson (22)
LOST IN SPACE – Foster the People (23)
RUN YOUR MOUTH – The Marías (24)
WHAT IF I FEEL LIKE THIS MY WHOLE LIFE? – HULLAH (25)
PAYBACK – Aaron Frazer (26)
ESPRESSO – Sabrina Carpenter (27)
SCARED TO START – Michael Marcagi (18)
RAINBOW – Cage the Elephant (29)
JUST WANNA SLEEP – Halfloves (30)
I’VE GOT LOVING FOR YOU – Bottlecap Mountain (21)
WAKING LIFE – Nicholas a. Milillo feat. Dee Wolf, Bobby Jasso, Gabrielle Marella and the voice of Tony Milillo (N)
On the strength of their infectious melodies, ace musicianship, strong charisma, and lead singer Nick Santino’s beautiful vocals, pop-rock trio Beach Weather have become one of my top favorite bands. In fact, a photo I took of them at a concert last year graces the header of my X (formerly Twitter) page. In addition to Santino, the band includes Reeve Powers on bass and Sean Silverman on guitar. I’ve loved every one of their songs, and their latest single “High In Low Places” becomes their fourth to top my weekly Top 30 chart (the previous three are “Sex, Drugs, Etc.”, “Trouble With This Bed” and “Pineapple Sunrise”.
The song has a brooding cinematic vibe in the vein of Ennio Morricone that would make it a great addition to the soundtrack of a Spaghetti Western film, and I love the twangy guitars and Santino’s sensuous vocals. He had this to say about the song: “We like to call ‘High in Low Places’ our apocalyptic love song. There was beauty in the idea of finding peace in one another while the world was slowly melting. We wanted to create something that felt cinematic, the closing credits of a modern end-of-times western. There are hints of those influences in the guitars and strings running through the chorus where we want to pull everyone into a world but stay hopeful that we can all rise above that insanity transpiring around us.” The lyrics speak to remaining positive and optimistic in the face of life’s problems and obstacles: “You and I got some troubles we’re facing, I know we can make it staying high in low places. Never mind all the tears that we wasted, I know we can make it staying high in low places.”
The video, which was shot in the Arizona desert outside Phoenix, involved the guys getting stuck by cholla cactus and other hazards that come from being in a beautiful but hostile environment – one I’m intimately familiar with living in the Coachella Valley.
In other chart happenings of note, “The Craving” by twenty one pilots moves up five to enter the top 10 at #10, and “Foretold Ecstasy” by the wonderfully-named Norwegian psych-noir band Mayflower Madame advances four spots to #14. Two songs make their debut this week. Entering at #29 is “Rainbow”, by another favorite band of mine, Nashville-based Cage the Elephant, whose previous single “Neon Pill” was a huge #1 hit on all the Alternative charts, as well as my personal Top 30. And coming in at #30 is the rousing garage rock gem “Just Wanna Sleep” by Iowa indie rock band Halfloves, which I reviewed last month.
HIGH IN LOW PLACES – Beach Weather (2)
CREATURES IN HEAVEN – Glass Animals (1)
WRECKAGE – Pearl Jam (3)
TOO SWEET – Hozier (4)
PANORAMIC VIEW – AWOLNATION (6)
STARBURSTER – Fontaines D.C. (9)
END OF BEGINNING – Djo (10)
BURIAL GROUND – The Decemberists & James Mercer (5)
MURDER ON THE DANCEFLOOR – Royel Otis (7)
THE CRAVING – twenty one pilots (15)
FOR US ALL – Asgard Raven (8)
ON THE GAME – The Black Keys (13)
GOLD – Caitlin Lavagna (12)
A FORETOLD ECSTASY – Mayflower Madame (18)
THE BREAK – Blame My Youth (16)
TOO MUCH – girl in red (17)
LUNCH – Billie Eilish (19)
SCARED TO START – Michael Marcagi (11)
I HAD SOME HELP – Post Malone feat. Morgan Wallen (21)
LIKE YOU DO – The Frontier (22)
I’VE GOT LOVING FOR YOU – Bottlecap Mountain (14)
VICES – 5ilas & Shimmer Johnson (25)
LOST IN SPACE – Foster the People (26)
RUN YOUR MOUTH – The Marías (27)
WHAT IF I FEEL LIKE THIS MY WHOLE LIFE? – HULLAH (28)
It’s another great week for music, and Glass Animals remain on top for a second week with their beautiful song “Creatures in Heaven”. Beach Weather slide into the second spot with their smoldering summer hit “High In Low Places”, while Pearl Jam‘s “Wreckage” moves up a spot to #3. I really love this song, which has become my favorite Pearl Jam song ever. Hozier‘s “Too Sweet”, which has become the biggest hit of his career, is currently #1 on the Billboard Rock/Alternative Airplay, Alternative Airplay and AAA (Adult Alternative Airplay) charts, having spent nine consecutive weeks and counting on the latter. The song spent two weeks at #1 and four weeks at #2 on my chart, and now sits at #4. “End of Beginning” by Djo enters the top 10, and “The Craving” by twenty one pilots jumps 10 spots to #15, making it the biggest upward mover this week.
Debuting this week are two marvelous songs by artists who make their first appearance on my chart. The first is “Payback” by L.A.-based singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Aaron Frazer. It’s funny, not funny how often we come across artists or bands in passing, but sadly not pay close enough attention at the time for things to fully register. Though he’s been making music for more than a decade, first as a member of contemporary R&B and soul revival group Durand Jones & The Indications, and also more recently as a solo artist, I didn’t become fully cognizant of the immensely talented falsetto-voiced Mr. Frazer until seeing “Payback” moving up the Billboard AAA chart, as well as reading about him in a post by fellow blogger Christian’s Music Musings. In doing a bit of searching about Durand Jones & The Indications, I saw they were the ones who sang the wonderful song “Witchoo”, which reached #22 on the AAA chart in 2021. I’ve always loved male singers with tenor and falsetto voices, so Frazer’s vocal style is right up my alley. “Payback”, from his terrific second album Into The Blue, has an irresistible retro 60s soul vibe that calls to mind some of the great soul acts like Marvin Gaye, the Temptations and The Capitols (who had a hit with “Cool Jerk”), but with a modern edge.
The second debut, entering at #30, is the Latin-tinged “Espresso” by American singer and actress Sabrina Carpenter. After appearing in various TV and films, she gained recognition for her role in the Disney Channel series Girl Meets World that aired from 2014–2017. She’s released five albums since 2014, the last of which, her 2022 release Emails I Can’t Send, was successful, reaching #23 on the Billboard Hot 200 Album chart. “Espresso” was the lead single from her forthcoming sixth album Short n’ Sweet, due for release August 23rd. Her follow up single “Please Please Please” reached #1 on the Hot 100 last week, but I like “Espresso” more.
CREATURES IN HEAVEN – Glass Animals (1)
HIGH IN LOW PLACES – Beach Weather (5)
WRECKAGE – Pearl Jam (4)
TOO SWEET – Hozier (3)
BURIAL GROUND – The Decemberists & James Mercer (2)
PANORAMIC VIEW – AWOLNATION (8)
MURDER ON THE DANCEFLOOR – Royel Otis (6)
FOR US ALL – Asgard Raven (7)
STARBURSTER – Fontaines D.C. (10)
END OF BEGINNING – Djo (12)
SCARED TO START – Michael Marcagi (13)
GOLD – Caitlin Lavagna (14)
ON THE GAME – The Black Keys (15)
I’VE GOT LOVING FOR YOU – Bottlecap Mountain (9)
THE CRAVING – twenty one pilots (25)
THE BREAK – Blame My Youth (18)
TOO MUCH – girl in red (19)
A FORETOLD ECSTASY – Mayflower Madame (20)
LUNCH – Billie Eilish (22)
FORTNIGHT – Taylor Swift feat. Post Malone (11)
I HAD SOME HELP – Post Malone feat. Morgan Wallen (23)
LIKE YOU DO – The Frontier (24)
ADRIFT – Voodoo Planet feat. Mikey J (17)
LONELINESS – Pet Shop Boys (16)
VICES – 5ilas & Shimmer Johnson (27)
LOST IN SPACE – Foster the People (28)
RUN YOUR MOUTH – The Marías (29)
WHAT IF I FEEL LIKE THIS MY WHOLE LIFE? – HULLAH (30)
It makes my blood boil when I hear my contemporaries – or anyone for that matter – opine that there’s no good music being made any longer, because nothing could be further from the truth! While I concede that some of the best non-classical music was created during the years 1965-1973, there are many talented artists and bands putting out great music today, several of whom are represented on my latest Weekly Top 30.
Case in point is English psychedelic art pop band Glass Animals, whose beautiful song “Creatures in Heaven” ascends to the #1 spot. Formed in 2010 when they were all attending college in Oxford, the band consists of Dave Bayley (vocals, guitar, keyboards, drums, songwriting), Drew MacFarlane (guitar, keyboards, backing vocals), Edmund Irwin-Singer (bass, keyboards, backing vocals), and Joe Seaward (drums). Since 2014, they’ve released three albums, with their fourth, I Love You So F***ing Much, slated for release on July 19. “Creatures in Heaven” was the lead single from that album.
I first learned about Glass Animals in 2016, when they released their second album How to Be a Human Being. One of the songs from that album is “Life Itself”, which I loved so much it went to #1 on my Top 30 chart and ended up ranking #60 on my decade-end 100 Best Songs of the 2010s list. I love Dave Bayley’s singing voice, which is so distinctive that it makes their songs immediately identifiable as only theirs. “Creatures in Heaven” becomes their second song to top my chart (“Heat Waves” peaked at #2, but spent four weeks at #1 on the Billboard Hot 100, becoming their biggest hit so far).
About “Creatures in Heaven”, Bayley told Atwood Magazine: “It’s about a moment in time, be it a split second or a year or whatever, having the capacity to be enormously formative and life-changing, even if it is over. Or if it doesn’t go as planned. Or if it dies too soon. It is still fucking beautiful. The love and care and the feeling in that moment lives forever. It never really dies. If that’s how you choose to see it.”
The two biggest upward movers this week are by two more bands I love – “Starburster” by Irish alt-rock band Fontaines D.C., leaping eight spots to enter the top 10 at #10, and “High In Low Places” by American pop-rock band Beach Weather, which jumps seven spots to enter the top 10 at #5. And this week there are four new debuts, starting with “The Craving” by twenty one pilots, entering at #25. The second single from their latest album Clancy, “The Craving” replaces their previous single “Overcompensate”, which just spent 15 weeks on my chart, 13 of them in the top 10.
Entering at #28 is “Lost In Space” by Foster the People, which now consists of founding member and frontman Mark Foster and multi-instrumentalist Isom Innis, who started as a touring member of the band way back in 2010. The exuberant song is the lead single from their upcoming fourth studio album Paradise State of Mind, to be released on August 16. Both twenty one pilots and Foster the People were my top two favorite bands for several years in the mid-to-late 2010s, and I’ve had the pleasure of seeing them both in concert.
Next up is the sensuous “Run Your Mouth” by L.A.-based indie pop band The Marías. Formed in 2016, the band is comprised of lead vocalist María Zardoya and drummer/producer Josh Conway, guitarist Jesse Perlman, and keyboardist Edward James. Known for performing songs in both English and Spanish, they’ve released two albums, Cinema in 2021 and Submarine, which dropped May 31st. Their 2021 single “Hush” reached #1 on the Billboard AAA chart.
The fourth new entry, coming in at #30, is the hauntingly beautiful and moving “What if i feel like this my whole life?” by talented and silky-voiced English singer-songwriter HULLAH (which I recently reviewed). This is his third song to appear on my chart, the previous two being “Chasing Trains”, which reached #1, and “Wild as the Wind”, which reached #7.
CREATURES IN HEAVEN – Glass Animals (3)
BURIAL GROUND – The Decemberists & James Mercer (1)
TOO SWEET – Hozier (2)
WRECKAGE – Pearl Jam (6)
HIGH IN LOW PLACES – Beach Weather (12)
MURDER ON THE DANCEFLOOR – Royel Otis (4)
FOR US ALL – Asgard Raven (9)
PANORAMIC VIEW – AWOLNATION (10)
I’VE GOT LOVING FOR YOU – Bottlecap Mountain (5)
STARBURSTER – Fontaines D.C. (18)
FORTNIGHT – Taylor Swift feat. Post Malone (7)
END OF BEGINNING – Djo (14)
SCARED TO START – Michael Marcagi (13)
GOLD – Caitlin Lavagna (15)
ON THE GAME – The Black Keys (16)
LONELINESS – Pet Shop Boys (8)
ADRIFT – Voodoo Planet feat. Mikey J (17)
THE BREAK – Blame My Youth (19)
TOO MUCH – girl in red (20)
A FORETOLD ECSTASY – Mayflower Madame (22)
DILEMMA – Green Day (11)
LUNCH – Billie Eilish (25)
I HAD SOME HELP – Post Malone feat. Morgan Wallen (29)
LIKE YOU DO – The Frontier (27)
THE CRAVING – twenty one pilots (N)
BROKEN MAN – St. Vincent (21)
VICES – 5ilas & Shimmer Johnson (30)
LOST IN SPACE – Foster the People (N)
RUN YOUR MOUTH – The Marías (N)
WHAT IF I FEEL LIKE THIS MY WHOLE LIFE? – HULLAH (N)
The delightful “Burial Ground” by Portland, Oregon five-piece The Decemberists, featuring James Mercer, remains at #1 for a second week, and in fact, the top six songs on last week’s chart, including Hozier‘s “Too Sweet”, Glass Animals‘ “Creatures in Heaven”, Royel Otis‘ “Murder on the Dancefloor”, Bottlecap Mountain‘s “I’ve Got Loving For You” and Pearl Jam‘s “Wreckage” – all remain in place again this week. The beautiful “Panoramic View” by AWOLNATION moves up a spot to enter the top 10. The biggest upward mover this week is “High In Low Places” by Beach Weather, leaping nine spots to #12.
Two songs make their debut this week. The first is “I Had Some Help” by Post Malone featuring Morgan Wallen. At first I dismissed this song, as I’m not a big fan of Country nor Morgan Wallen, but the song is just too damned catchy to resist. It debuted at #1 on the Billboard Hot 100, and has remained there five weeks and counting. This makes two songs by Post Malone on this chart, the other being “Fortnight”, his collaboration with Taylor Swift. The second new entry is “Vices”, a beautiful and uplifting track by California musician/producer 5ilas (aka Shane Roberts) and Canadian singer-songwriter Shimmer Johnson, who’ve collaborated together on several songs. I reviewed the song when it came out last month. It’s Johnson’s third song to appear on my chart; her previous two – “Starts With You” and “Essence”, a collaboration with Danish producer/composer Refeci, both reached #1.
BURIAL GROUND – The Decemberists& James Mercer (1)
TOO SWEET – Hozier (2)
CREATURES IN HEAVEN – Glass Animals (3)
MURDER ON THE DANCEFLOOR – Royel Otis (4)
I’VE GOT LOVING FOR YOU – Bottlecap Mountain (5)
WRECKAGE – Pearl Jam (6)
FORTNIGHT – Taylor Swift feat. Post Malone (8)
LONELINESS – Pet Shop Boys (9)
FOR US ALL – Asgard Raven (10)
PANORAMIC VIEW – AWOLNATION (11)
DILEMMA – Green Day (7)
HIGH IN LOW PLACES – Beach Weather (21)
SCARED TO START – Michael Marcagi (15)
END OF BEGINNING – Djo (20)
GOLD – Caitlin Lavagna (17)
ON THE GAME – The Black Keys (18)
ADRIFT – Voodoo Planet feat. Mikey J (19)
STARBURSTER – Fontaines D.C. (24)
THE BREAK – Blame My Youth (22)
TOO MUCH – girl in red (23)
BROKEN MAN – St. Vincent (16)
A FORETOLD ECSTASY – Mayflower Madame (25)
OVERCOMPENSATE – twenty one pilots (12)
DON’T FORGET ME – Maggie Rogers (13)
LUNCH – Billie Eilish (28)
MUSTANG – Kings of Leon (14)
LIKE YOU DO – The Frontier (29)
HIGHWAY QUEEN – Mt. Joy (27)
I HAD SOME HELP – Post Malone feat. Morgan Wallen (N)
ECLECTIC MUSIC LOVER 