Tag: Top Songs September 2023

Top 30 Songs for September 24-30, 2023

On By EclecticMusicLoverIn Weekly Top 30's5 Comments

Without question, one of the prettiest songs of 2023 is “kisses” by British dream rock band Slowdive. Though they formed way back in 1989, I’m embarrassed to admit I was not familiar with them until hearing “kisses” this past June (which may partly be due to the fact they’ve never had a single chart in the U.S., and only two of their albums have appeared on the Billboard 200 Album chart). Consisting of Rachel Goswell on vocals, guitar and keyboard, Neil Halstead on vocals and guitar, Christian Savill on guitar, Nick Chaplin on bass guitar and Simon Scott on drums, they rose to prominence in the British shoegaze scene in the early 90s. (In a recent NPR interview with Scott Simon, Halstead explained that the term “shoegaze” originated in the early 90s when a journalist from the British music magazine Melody Maker coined it to describe bands such as Slowdive who didn’t have much stagecraft and spent a lot of time looking down at their shoes as they frequently turned their guitar pedals on and off.)

While their second studio album Souvlaki (1993) initially received mixed reviews, it has since been recognized as one of the best albums of the 90s and one of the greatest shoegaze albums of all time by Pitchfork, NME and PopMatters, among others. (Wikipedia) Slowdive broke up soon after the release of their third studio album Pygmalion in 1995, but reunited in 2014, and released their fourth studio album, the self-titled Slowdive, in 2017. They dropped their stunning fifth album Everything Is Alive on September 1st, which became their first top 10 album ever, reaching #4 in the Netherlands, #6 in the UK and #7 in Germany. Though I think it’s one of the best albums of 2023, it only peaked at #63 on the Billboard 200 Album chart. Unbelievably, “kisses” has not appeared on any singles chart, however, it’s the new #1 song on MY chart! About the gorgeous album and song, Halstead told NPR: “A lot of the album is sort of about time passing. And I suppose, seeing as we’re all getting on a bit now, that’s one of the things we’re writing songs about… and ‘kisses’ is about having a second act, having a different chance in life.” Those dreamy synths, shimmery chiming guitars and sublime harmonies are simply breathtaking.

In other chart developments, “Walk Through the Fire” by Virginia singer-songwriter The Frontier, and “Good Vibrations” by Texas duo MISSIO move up two spots to #3 and #4, and Irish singer-songwriter Hozier enters the top 10 with his magnificent “Francesca”. The biggest upward movers are “Loving You” by L.A. dream pop band Cannons, and “Running Out of Time” by Nashville alt-rock band Paramore, both jumping 6 spots to #14 and #15, respectively. Debuting this week are “THE DEATH OF PEACE OF MIND” by American metalcore band Bad Omens, at #28, “Hold Me Like a Grudge” by American rock band Fall Out Boy, at #29, and “HONEY (ARE YOU COMING?)” by Italian rock band Måneskin, at #30.

  1. KISSES – Slowdive (2)
  2. OVERRATED – dwi (1)
  3. WALK THROUGH THE FIRE – The Frontier (5)
  4. GOOD VIBRATIONS – MISSIO (6)
  5. PINEAPPLE SUNRISE – Beach Weather (3)
  6. DIAL DRUNK – Noah Kahan (8)
  7. ODYSSEY – Beck & Phoenix (9)
  8. SAY YES TO HEAVEN – Lana Del Rey (4)
  9. FRANCESCA – Hozier (11)
  10. CALL ME WHAT YOU LIKE – Lovejoy (7)
  11. CANNONBALLERS – Colony House (14)
  12. FORGIVING TIES – Deer Tick(15)
  13. DAYDREAMS AND ALGORITHMS – Eleanor Collides (17)
  14. LOVING YOU – Cannons (20)
  15. RUNNING OUT OF TIME – Paramore (21)
  16. THE NARCISSIST – Blur (10)
  17. WHAT WAS I MADE FOR? – Billie Eilish (19)
  18. WHEN WE WERE CLOSE – Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit (22)
  19. BAD IDEA RIGHT? – Olivia Rodrigo (24)
  20. OVERCOME – Nothing But Thieves (25)
  21. PULL ME THROUGH – Royal Blood (26)
  22. PUPPET SHOW – Beck Black (12)
  23. BONES – Healer (13)
  24. UNDER YOU – Foo Fighters (28)
  25. LAST TIME EVERY TIME FOREVER – Grian Chatten (16)
  26. MY KINDA GIRL – The 23s (29)
  27. DARLING – Western Jaguar (30)
  28. THE DEATH OF PEACE OF MIND – Bad Omens (N)
  29. HOLD ME LIKE A GRUDGE – Fall Out Boy (N)
  30. HONEY (ARE YOU COMING?) – Måneskin (N)

Top 30 Songs for September 17-23, 2023

On By EclecticMusicLoverIn Weekly Top 30's16 Comments

The wonderfully trippy and boisterous “Overrated” by Canadian artist dwi holds the top spot for a second week on my latest Top 30 chart. Sliding into second place is the enchanting love song “Kisses” by British indie dream pop band Slowdive. Songs by two of my favorite acts – “Walk Through the Fire” by Virginia-based singer-songwriter The Frontier, and “Good Vibrations” by Texas-based duo MISSIO – both climb four spots to #5 and #6, respectively. Moving up five spots and entering the top 10 are “Dial Drunk” by Vermont-based singer-songwriter Noah Kahan, at #8, and “Odyssey”, a breezy collaboration between French alt-rock band Phoenix and American singer-songwriter Beck, at #9. “Dial Drunk” has become a huge breakout hit for Kahan, and his version of the song with guest vocals by Post Malone, is currently #1 on the Billboard Alternative Airplay and Adult Alternative Airplay charts.

Three songs make their debut this week: “Under You” by the mighty Foo Fighters, at #28, the sultry love song “My Kinda Girl” by British collective The 23s (which I recently reviewed), at #29, and the sweet love song “Darling” by Canadian artist Western Jaguar, from his wonderful album Oblivion (which I also reviewed), at #30. 

  1. OVERRATED – dwi (1)
  2. KISSES – Slowdive (4)
  3. PINEAPPLE SUNRISE – Beach Weather (2)
  4. SAY YES TO HEAVEN – Lana Del Rey (3)
  5. WALK THROUGH THE FIRE – The Frontier (9)
  6. GOOD VIBRATIONS – MISSIO (10)
  7. CALL ME WHAT YOU LIKE – Lovejoy (5)
  8. DIAL DRUNK – Noah Kahan (13)
  9. ODYSSEY – Beck & Phoenix (14)
  10. THE NARCISSIST – Blur (6)
  11. FRANCESCA – Hozier (15)
  12. PUPPET SHOW – Beck Black (7)
  13. BONES – HEALER (8)
  14. CANNONBALLERS – Colony House (16)
  15. FORGIVING TIES – Deer Tick (17)
  16. LAST TIME EVERY TIME FOREVER – Grian Chatten (11)
  17. DAYDREAMS AND ALGORITHMS – Eleanor Collides (18)
  18. ORBIT – Gooseberry (12)
  19. WHAT WAS I MADE FOR? – Billie Eilish (21)
  20. LOVING YOU – Cannons (22)
  21. RUNNING OUT OF TIME – Paramore (23)
  22. WHEN WE WERE CLOSE – Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit (24)
  23. DAYLIGHT – David Kushner (20)
  24. BAD IDEA RIGHT? – Olivia Rodrigo (25)
  25. OVERCOME – Nothing But Thieves (26)
  26. PULL ME THROUGH – Royal Blood (30)
  27. PSYCHOS – Jenny Lewis (19)
  28. UNDER YOU – Foo Fighters (N)
  29. MY KINDA GIRL – The 23s (N)
  30. DARLING – Western Jaguar (N)

Top 30 Songs for September 10-16, 2023

On By EclecticMusicLoverIn Weekly Top 30's5 Comments

One of my favorite Canadian artists is dwi, the music project of singer-songwriter and instrumentalist Dwight Abell, an immensely creative, talented and imaginative guy with a totally original sound and an endearingly quirky vocal style that make his music so uniquely distinctive. Based on the outskirts of Vancouver, British Columbia, he’s also the longtime bassist for Canadian alternative/power pop band The Zolas. He’s released two phenomenal albums – Mild Fantasy Violence in October 2021, which explored feelings of disconnect from the everyday normalities of relationships, addiction, politics and environmentalism, and Zoo Life this past July, which addressed Dwight’s childhood experiences in foster care, which he equates with being “taken away to a zoo”. (I reviewed both albums, which you can read here and here.)

One of my favorite songs from Zoo Life is “Overrated“, an incredibly infectious track featuring a poweful foot-stomping groove, gnarly bass, spacey synths and dwi’s wonderfully-crazed vocals as he ticks off a number of popular things in culture, like VR, Top Gun, licorice and 69, as well as passion, anger and temper, he feels are overrated. I love the song so much it’s risen to the top of my latest Weekly Top 30 chart. It’s his third song to top my chart, the previous two being “Good Friend” and “Party4One”. The surreal video shows dwi as a kind of gaming character, reflecting his life-long love of video games.

In other chart developments, “Good Vibrations” by another favorite act of mine, Austin, Texas-based MISSIO, enters the top 10 at #10. The biggest upward movers this week are “Cannonballers” by Tennessee indie rock band Colony House and “Forgiving Ties” by Rhode Island alternative folk-rock band Deer Tick, both of which jump six spots to #16 and 17, respectively. The sole debut, at #30, is “Pull Me Through” by British rock duo Royal Blood. The song is from their newly-released fourth studio album Back to the Water Below, which dropped September 1st.

  1. OVERRATED – dwi (3)
  2. PINEAPPLE SUNRISE – Beach Weather (1)
  3. SAY YES TO HEAVEN – Lana Del Rey (2)
  4. KISSES – Slowdive (6)
  5. CALL ME WHAT YOU LIKE – Lovejoy (5)
  6. THE NARCISSIST – Blur (4)
  7. PUPPET SHOW – Beck Black (7)
  8. BONES – HEALER (8)
  9. WALK THROUGH THE FIRE – The Frontier (9)
  10. GOOD VIBRATIONS – MISSIO (12)
  11. LAST TIME EVERY TIME FOREVER – Grian Chatten (11)
  12. ORBIT – Gooseberry (13)
  13. DIAL DRUNK – Noah Kahan (14)
  14. ODYSSEY – Beck & Phoenix (15)
  15. FRANCESCA – Hozier (16)
  16. CANNONBALLERS – Colony House (22)
  17. FORGIVING TIES – Deer Tick (23)
  18. DAYDREAMS AND ALGORITHMS – Eleanor Collides (21)
  19. PSYCHOS – Jenny Lewis (10)
  20. DAYLIGHT – David Kushner (20)
  21. WHAT WAS I MADE FOR? – Billie Eilish (24)
  22. LOVING YOU – Cannons (25)
  23. RUNNING OUT OF TIME – Paramore (27)
  24. WHEN WE WERE CLOSE – Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit (28)
  25. BAD IDEA RIGHT? – Olivia Rodrigo (29)
  26. OVERCOME – Nothing But Thieves (30)
  27. VAMPIRE – Olivia Rodrigo (17)
  28. WHY – Future Theory (18) 20th week on chart
  29. RESCUE ME – Dirty Heads (19) 22nd week on chart
  30. PULL ME THROUGH – Royal Blood (N)

Top 30 Songs for September 3-9, 2023

On By EclecticMusicLoverIn Weekly Top 30's5 Comments

As we slide into September, Beach Weather remain on top for a second week with their breezy love song “Pineapple Sunrise”. Lana Del Rey’s “Say Yes To Heaven” moves into second place, while Canadian artist dwi inches up a notch to #3 with his delightfully boisterous “Overrated”.

Three songs enter the top 10 this week, the first of which is the enchanting dream pop gem “Kisses” by British band Slowdive. After slowly inching up my chart since debuting five weeks ago, the song leaps 12 spots to #6. It’s the lead single from their stunning fifth studio album everything is alive, which dropped this past Friday, September 1st. Shockingly, though it was released in late June, “Kisses” hasn’t yet charted either in the UK or the U.S. “Bones” by British rock band HEALER, which features some of the best power drumming of any song I’ve heard in a long while, moves up three spots to #8. “Walk Through the Fire” by one of my favorite American indie singer-songwriters The Frontier also moves up three spots to #9. And after dropping two spots last week, Beck Black‘s exuberant “Puppet Show” enjoys a resurgence, moving back up three spots to #7.

Making their debut this week are “bad idea right?”, the latest single from American singer-songwriter Olivia Rodrigo, at #29, and “Overcome” by British alt-rock band Nothing But Thieves, at #30.

  1. PINEAPPLE SUNRISE – Beach Weather (1)
  2. SAY YES TO HEAVEN – Lana Del Rey (3)
  3. OVERRATED – dwi (4)
  4. THE NARCISSIST – Blur (2)
  5. CALL ME WHAT YOU LIKE – Lovejoy (5)
  6. KISSES – Slowdive (18)
  7. PUPPET SHOW – Beck Black (10)
  8. BONES – HEALER (11)
  9. WALK THROUGH THE FIRE – The Frontier (12)
  10. PSYCHOS – Jenny Lewis (6)
  11. LAST TIME EVERY TIME FOREVER – Grian Chatten (14)
  12. GOOD VIBRATIONS – MISSIO (16)
  13. ORBIT – Gooseberry (13)
  14. DIAL DRUNK – Noah Kahan (19)
  15. ODYSSEY – Beck & Phoenix (20)
  16. FRANCESCA – Hozier (21)
  17. VAMPIRE – Olivia Rodrigo (7)
  18. WHY – Future Theory (8)
  19. RESCUE ME – Dirty Heads (15) 21st week on chart
  20. DAYLIGHT – David Kushner (17)
  21. DAYDREAMS AND ALGORITHMS – Eleanor Collides (22)
  22. CANNONBALLERS – Colony House (23)
  23. FORGIVING TIES – Deer Tick (24)
  24. WHAT WAS I MADE FOR? – Billie Eilish (25)
  25. LOVING YOU – Cannons (27)
  26. STUCK – 30 Seconds to Mars (9)
  27. RUNNING OUT OF TIME – Paramore (28))
  28. WHEN WE WERE CLOSE – Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit (30)
  29. BAD IDEA RIGHT? – Olivia Rodrigo (N)
  30. OVERCOME – Nothing But Thieves (N)