Tag: Wolf Alice

My Top 30 Songs for August 3-9, 2025

On By EclecticMusicLoverIn Weekly Top 30's8 Comments
Photo of Twenty One Pilots from their Facebook account

One of my favorite music acts for the past ten years is Twenty One Pilots, comprised of the dynamic duo of singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Tyler Joseph and power drummer Josh Dun. Their latest single “The Contract” is my new #1 song this week, marking their 13th song to reach the top of my chart, and their third in just the past year, following “The Craving” last September and “The Line” this past March. The lead single from their forthcoming eighth studio album Breach, to be released September 12th, “The Contract” starts the final act of the narrative begun on their 2015 album Blurryface and continued through Trench, Scaled And Icy, and last year’s Clancy.

The song is a frenetic and electrifying mash-up of music styles, something Twenty One Pilots have incorporated into many of their songs over the years. As Kory Grow observed in his article about the single for Rolling Stone, the song “ping-pongs between pop, rap, emo, and drumline practice.” While I love that about the song and their music in general, some do not. Paulo Ragusa, a writer who’s obviously not a Twenty One Pilots fan, trashed the song in his article for Consequence Sound, calling it “a complete mess, a sloppy hodge-podge of genres and styles that directly compete with one another from moment to moment.” Well, to each their own I say, as “The Contract” takes its place among a long line of songs I love by this talented duo.

In other chart news, Lorde enters the top 10 with “What Was That”, and we have two new debuts. The first is “Five More Seconds”, a wonderfully exuberant collaboration by English duo Seafret and Scottish singer-songwriter KT Tunstall, which enters at #29. Seafret, based in Yorkshire and comprised of singer Jack Sedman and guitarist Harry Draper, released three albums and a number of singles from 2015-2023 and saw their debut 2015 single “Atlantis” go viral on TikTok over the past three years, eventually racking up over 1.1 billion streams on Spotify alone. KT Tunstall burst onto the British music scene in 2004 with her debut album Eye to the Telescope, which spawned the hit singles “Black Horse and the Cherry Tree” and “Suddenly I See”, which won the Ivor Novello Award for Best Song in 2006. “Five More Seconds” marks both Seafret and KT Tunstall’s first new music in two years.

The second debut is “light years apart” by Unobliterated, the music project of England-born and now Portugal-based singer-songwriter and musician Gary Taylor. In my review of the song upon its July 11 release, I described it as “majestic”, with a haunting melody driven forward by a strong pulsating groove and layered with swirling atmospheric synths and warm guitar notes to create a mesmerizing backdrop for Taylor’s arresting vocals that masterfully convey a sense of both despair and hopeful optimism.

  1. THE CONTRACT – Twenty One Pilots (3)
  2. MOODY – Royel Otis (1)
  3. BACK TO FRIENDS – sombr (2)
  4. BASIC BEING BASIC – Djo (4)
  5. NO RAIN, NO FLOWERS – The Black Keys (7)
  6. FEELS RIGHT – Talk in Waves (9)
  7. PORCELAIN (LOSING ALL MY PATIENCE) – Somebody’s Child (5)
  8. NOTHING I NEED – Lord Huron (6)
  9. SCARS – Secret Postal Society (10)
  10. WHAT WAS THAT – Lorde (11)
  11. RIPPLE – Good Neighbours (13)
  12. BONNET OF PINS – Matt Berninger (8)
  13. BETTER OFF EVENTUALLY – Bealby Point (15)
  14. LOVE IS A FIRE – Art Block (17)
  15. LONDON TOWN – HEALER (18)
  16. BLOOM BABY BLOOM – Wolf Alice (19)
  17. CATCH THESE FISTS – Wet Leg (12)
  18. SALLY, WHEN THE WINE RUNS OUT – ROLE MODEL (21)
  19. JUPITER – almost monday ft. Jordana (22)
  20. UNDRESSED – sombr (23)
  21. EMERGENCE – Sleep Token (16)
  22. ASSHOLE – The Lumineers (25)
  23. BACKSEAT – Balu Brigada (26)
  24. POLYESTER (YES SIR) – Sorry Ghost (27)
  25. RITALIN – Dexter and The Moonrocks (14)
  26. RELATIONSHIPS – HAIM (20)
  27. TODAY’S SONG – Foo Fighters (29)
  28. INCOMPREHENSIBLE – Big Thief (30)
  29. FIVE MORE SECONDS – Seafret & KT Tunstall (N)
  30. LIGHT YEARS APART – Unobliterated (N)

My Top 30 Songs for July 20-26, 2025

On By EclecticMusicLoverIn Weekly Top 30's9 Comments
Photo of Otis Pavlovic and Royel Maddell by Shervin Lainez for Flood Magazine

We have a new #1 song this week, as well as four new debuts. Over the past year, I’ve become a fan of Australian act Royel Otis on the strength of their infectious guitar-pop sound and charming, laid-back persona. Formed in 2019 by Royel Maddell (who rarely shows his face) and Otis Pavlovic, the Sydney-based duo draw from elements of indie pop, indie rock, new wave, pop rock, post-punk and psychedelic rock in the creation of their music. They 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 and 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 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 Australian Albums Chart, and went on to win four awards at the 2024 ARIA (Australian Recording Industry Association) Music Awards. They also released a wonderful cover of The Cranberries’ classic “Linger”.

Their charming single “moody“, released on May 9th, is 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, and it ascends to #1 on my latest chart.

The joyoustly upbeat “Feels Right” by northern Virginia artist Talk in Waves, who’s no stranger to my charts, enters the top 10 at #10. And as I noted above, four songs make their debut this week, three of which are spelled in all lower case letters. Entering at #27 is “jupiter” by San Diego-based indie pop band almost monday, comprised of Dawson Daugherty (vocals), Cole Clisby (guitar), and Luke Fabry (bass), and featuring L.A.-based indie pop singer-songwriter Jordana. The song was originally included on their 2014 album DIVE as a recording by only the band, but a new version with Jordana singing backing vocals was released in January on a deluxe version of DIVE. It’s the third song by almost monday to appear on my chart, following 2020’s “broken people” and last year’s smash hit “can’t slow down”.

The second debut, coming in at #28, is the relentessly catchy “undressed” by sombr, whose single “back to friends” just spent three weeks at #1 and now sits at #2. The song continues the theme exploring the challenges of moving on from a failed relationship that was first introduced in “back to friends”. Next up is “Backseat” by New Zealand-born and now New York City-based duo Balu Brigada, comprised of multi-instrumentalist brothers Henry and Pierre Beasley, whose single “So Cold” spent three weeks at #1 on my chart in March. Though a long one, running nearly six and a half minutes, “Backseat” is a compelling, melodically complex song that’s sure to be another hit for the talented brothers.

Last but certainly not least is the delightful “polyester (yes sir)” by L.A. indie pop-rock band Sorry Ghost, which I featured in a recent Fresh New Tracks post. As I noted in that post, the charismatic band – comprised of Dan Anton (vocals), Matt Polito (guitar and vocals), Tate Silver (drums) and Sean Duong (guitar and vocals) – have a cheeky sense of humor and frequently delight their fans and followers with hilarious and endearing video reels of themselves on Instagram and TikTok. I love the song’s mellow vibe that sits in a sweet spot between sunny and melancholy, as well as the colorful blend of jangly and chiming guitars accompanied by pleasing harmonies.

  1. MOODY – Royel Otis (2)
  2. BACK TO FRIENDS – sombr (1)
  3. PORCELAIN (LOSING ALL MY PATIENCE) – Somebody’s Child (4)
  4. THE CONTRACT – Twenty One Pilots (8)
  5. BASIC BEING BASIC – Djo (5)
  6. NOTHING I NEED – Lord Huron (3)
  7. CATCH THESE FISTS – Wet Leg (6)
  8. RITALIN – Dexter and The Moonrocks (9)
  9. BONNET OF PINS – Matt Berninger (10)
  10. FEELS RIGHT – Talk in Waves (11)
  11. SCARS – Secret Postal Society (12)
  12. WHAT WAS THAT – Lorde (13)
  13. ARCHBISHOP HAROLD HOLMES – Jack White (7)
  14. NO RAIN, NO FLOWERS – The Black Keys (18)
  15. RIPPLE – Good Neighbours (17)
  16. BETTER OFF EVENTUALLY – Bealby Point (19)
  17. RELATIONSHIPS – HAIM (20)
  18. EMERGENCE – Sleep Token (21)
  19. LOVE IS A FIRE – Art Block (22)
  20. LONDON TOWN – HEALER (23)
  21. BLOOM BABY BLOOM – Wolf Alice (24)
  22. IT’S AMAZING TO BE YOUNG – Fontaines D.C. (14)
  23. BARBARIAN – AWOLNATION (15)
  24. LET THINGS GO – Caamp (16)
  25. ASSHOLE – The Lumineers (26)
  26. SALLY, WHEN THE WINE RUNS OUT – ROLE MODEL (30)
  27. JUPITER – almost monday ft. Jordana (N)
  28. UNDRESSED – sombr (N)
  29. BACKSEAT – Balu Brigada (N)
  30. POLYESTER (YES SIR) – Sorry Ghost (N)

I feel guilty including a Spotify playlist anymore, but here it is in case anyone cares to check out any of the songs:

Top 30 Songs for July 13-19, 2025

On By EclecticMusicLoverIn Weekly Top 30's3 Comments

20-year-old artist sombr has a firm grip on the top spot as his song “back to friends” spends a third week at #1, while Australian duo Royel Otis move up two spots to #2 with “moody” (I find it fascinating that a lot of acts today use all lowercase letters for their names and song titles). Twenty One Pilots (who for many years also spelled their name in all lowercase) advance five spots to enter the top 10 at #8 with “The Contract”, followed by Dexter and The Moonrocks‘ “Ritalin” and Matt Berninger‘s “Bonnet of Pins”, coming in at #s 9 and 10, respectively. The Black Keys are this week’s biggest upward mover with “No Rain, No Flowers”, jumping eight spots to #18.

The lone new debut this week is “Sally, When The Wine Runs Out” by ROLE MODEL, the music project of American singer-songwriter Tucker Harrington Pillsbury. Born in Maine and now based in Los Angeles, he began his music career in 2016, rapping under his first name Tucker, but soon changed his stage name to Dillis, under which he released an album Moth. In early 2017, he again changed his name, this time to ROLE MODEL, and switched from rapping to singing. He released his debut EP Arizona in the Summer that December, which earned him a following online and captured the attention of the late rapper Mac Miller, who invited him to Los Angeles to work with him on a music project. ROLE MODEL was subsequently signed to Interscope in 2018, and continued releasing singles and two more EPs, culminating in the release of his debut album Rx, though none of them charted.

In July 2024 he released his sophomore album Kansas Anymore, featuring a more country folk sound. He followed this past February with a deluxe edition of the album, Kansas Anymore (The Longest Goodbye), accompanied by the sweet single “Sally, When The Wine Runs Out”. Like many songs these days, it became popular on TikTok, undoubtedly helped by Tucker’s good looks and charming persona, and is his first song to chart in the U.S. and several countries, including Canada, the UK, Ireland, New Zealand and Israel.

  1. BACK TO FRIENDS – sombr (1)
  2. MOODY – Royel Otis (4)
  3. NOTHING I NEED – Lord Huron (2)
  4. PORCELAIN (LOSING ALL MY PATIENCE) – Somebody’s Child (3)
  5. BASIC BEING BASIC – Djo (6)
  6. CATCH THESE FISTS – Wet Leg (7)
  7. ARCHBISHOP HAROLD HOLMES – Jack White (5)
  8. THE CONTRACT – Twenty One Pilots (13)
  9. RITALIN – Dexter and The Moonrocks (11)
  10. BONNET OF PINS – Matt Berninger (12)
  11. FEELS RIGHT – Talk in Waves (15)
  12. SCARS – Secret Postal Society (14)
  13. WHAT WAS THAT – Lorde (16)
  14. IT’S AMAZING TO BE YOUNG – Fontaines D.C. (8)
  15. BARBARIAN – AWOLNATION (9)
  16. LET THINGS GO – Caamp (10)
  17. RIPPLE – Good Neighbours (19)
  18. NO RAIN, NO FLOWERS – The Black Keys (26)
  19. BETTER OFF EVENTUALLY – Bealby Point (22)
  20. RELATIONSHIPS – HAIM (23)
  21. EMERGENCE – Sleep Token (24)
  22. LOVE IS A FIRE – Art Block (25)
  23. LONDON TOWN – HEALER (28)
  24. BLOOM BABY BLOOM – Wolf Alice (29)
  25. THE TURNAROUND – DelCobras (17) 19th week on chart
  26. ASSHOLE – The Lumineers (30)
  27. THREE SIX FIVE – Shinedown (18)
  28. WALLS – Frank Joshua (20) 21st week on chart
  29. LAREDO – Leon Bridges (21)
  30. SALLY, WHEN THE WINE RUNS OUT – ROLE MODEL (N)

Top 30 Songs for July 6-12, 2025

On By EclecticMusicLoverIn Weekly Top 30's4 Comments
Photo of sombr from his Facebook account

The cinematic anthem “back to friends” by sombr holds onto the top spot for a second week, while Lord Huron‘s “Nothing I Need” remains at #2 again after spending two weeks at #1. Irish pop rock band Somebody’s Child moves up a spot to #3 with their beautiful “Porcelain (Losing All My Patience)” and Australian duo Royel Otis slide into fourth place with “moody”.

There are three new debuts this week, starting with “The Contract” by my favorite music act Twenty One Pilots, comprised of the dynamic duo Tyler Joseph and Josh Dun, entering my chart at lucky #13. The lead single from their forthcoming eighth studio album Breach, to be released September 5th, “The Contract” starts the final act of the narrative begun on their 2015 album Blurryface and continued through Trench, Scaled And Icy, and last year’s Clancy.

Entering at #29 is “Bloom Baby Bloom” by English alt-rock band Wolf Alice, consisting of Ellie Rowsell on lead vocals, Joff Oddie on guitar, Theo Ellis on bass and Joel Amey on drums. The song is the lead single from their fourth studio album The Clearing, to be released August 29th. And coming in at #30 is “Asshole” by Denver, Colorado-based alternative folk rock band The Lumineers, now a duo consisting of Wesley Schultz (lead vocals, guitar) and Jeremiah Fraites (drums, percussion, piano). Also dubbed “First We Ever Met” to mollify radio censors and self-righteous Puritans, “Asshole” is from their fifth and latest studio album Automatic, which dropped February 14th.

  1. BACK TO FRIENDS – sombr (1)
  2. NOTHING I NEED – Lord Huron (2)
  3. PORCELAIN (LOSING ALL MY PATIENCE) – Somebody’s Child (4)
  4. MOODY – Royel Otis (6)
  5. ARCHBISHOP HAROLD HOLMES – Jack White (3)
  6. BASIC BEING BASIC – Djo (9)
  7. CATCH THESE FISTS – Wet Leg (10)
  8. IT’S AMAZING TO BE YOUNG – Fontaines D.C. (5)
  9. BARBARIAN – AWOLNATION (7)
  10. LET THINGS GO – Caamp (8)
  11. RITALIN – Dexter and The Moonrocks (15)
  12. BONNET OF PINS – Matt Berninger (16)
  13. THE CONTRACT – Twenty One Pilots (N)
  14. SCARS – Secret Postal Society (18)
  15. FEELS RIGHT – Talk in Waves (19)
  16. WHAT WAS THAT – Lorde (20)
  17. THE TURNAROUND – DelCobras (11)
  18. THREE SIX FIVE – Shinedown (12)
  19. RIPPLE – Neighbours (23)
  20. WALLS – Frank Joshua (13) 20th week on chart
  21. LAREDO – Leon Bridges (14)
  22. BETTER OFF EVENTUALLY – Bealby Point (24)
  23. RELATIONSHIPS – HAIM (25)
  24. EMERGENCE – Sleep Token (26)
  25. LOVE IS A FIRE – Art Block (28)
  26. NO RAIN, NO FLOWERS – The Black Keys (29)
  27. SPACEMAN IN TULSA – Counting Crows (17)
  28. LONDON TOWN – HEALER (30)
  29. BLOOM BABY BLOOM – Wolf Alice (N)
  30. ASSHOLE – The Lumineers (N)

Top 30 Songs for February 13-19, 2022

On By EclecticMusicLoverIn Weekly Top 30's5 Comments

There’s lots of movement on this week’s Top 30. One of the downsides of curating a weekly list is that all songs must eventually move down, then off. I hate dropping songs I still like, but it must be done in order to make way for new ones on their way up. I’ve loved the music of British psychedelic pop/rock band Solar Eyes since first learning about them last summer, and have written about two of their singles, “Naked Monkey on a Spaceship” and “I See the Sun”. Inspired by the Quentin Tarantino film Once Upon A Time In Hollywood, “I See the Sun” is a glorious cinematic gem, highlighted by gorgeous spaghetti western-style guitars that would make Ennio Morricone proud. The stunning song takes over the #1 spot on my Weekly Top 30.

Spoon’s “The Hardest Cut” climbs three spots to #3, British band Apollo Junction’s “Two Car Family” moves up two spots to #5, and three songs enter the top 10: “One and the Same” by British alternative psychedelic rock band Future Theory, “Wake Me Up” by British alt-rock band Foals, and “Chapstick” by Nashville pop-rock band COIN. After a sluggish few weeks, twenty øne piløts’ “The Outside” and Mitski’s “The Only Heartbreaker” leap eight spots to #11 and #12, respectively. Debuting this week are “I’ll Call You Mine” by girl in red and “Give a Little Lovin’” by Jamie Alimorad, which enter at #29 and #30.

  1. I SEE THE SUN – Solar Eyes (2)
  2. STARTS WITH YOU – Shimmer Johnson (1)
  3. THE HARDEST CUT – Spoon (6)
  4. CRUTCH – Band of Horses (3)
  5. TWO CAR FAMILY – Apollo Junction (7)
  6. TIME IN DISGUISE – Kings of Leon (4)
  7. GOOD FRIEND – dwi (5)
  8. ONE AND THE SAME – Future Theory (13)
  9. WAKE ME UP – Foals (14)
  10. CHAPSTICK – COIN (17)
  11. THE OUTSIDE – twenty øne piløts (19)
  12. THE ONLY HEARTBREAKER – Mitski (20)
  13. I DON’T LIVE HERE ANYMORE – The War on Drugs feat. Lucius (8)
  14. UNTIL I COME HOME – Two Feet & grandson (16)
  15. HEAD IN THE CLOUDS – Thunder Fox (18)
  16. LEFT BEHIND – a million rich daughters (9)
  17. SMILE – Wolf Alice (10)
  18. JUST LIKE ALWAYS – Oli Barton & the Movement & Maella (22)
  19. REDCHURCH STREET BLUES – Philip Morgan Lewis (23)
  20. MAGNIFICENT HURT – Elvis Costello & The Imposters (24)
  21. THE TIPPING POINT – Tears for Fears (11)
  22. U&ME – alt-J (12)
  23. JOURNEYMAN’S BALLET – Sam Rappaport (15)
  24. OH MY GOD – Adele (26)
  25. INDUSTRY BABY – Lil Nas X featuring Jack Harlow (21)
  26. BROKEN HEARTS – Ships Have Sailed (28)
  27. SOMETHING FROM NOTHING/POINTS OF LIGHT – Secret Postal Society (29)
  28. LOVE DIES YOUNG – Foo Fighters (30)
  29. I’LL CALL YOU MINE – girl in red (N)
  30. GIVE A LITTLE LOVIN’ – Jamie Alimorad (N)

Top 30 Songs for February 6-12, 2022

On By EclecticMusicLoverIn Weekly Top 30's19 Comments

I’m a long-time fan of disco and dance music of all kinds, so it’s a given I’d love the sleek earworm “Starts With You” by Canadian born, and now L.A.-based, singer-songwriter Shimmer Johnson. The song is actually a departure from her more typical adult contemporary style and repertoire of heartfelt ballads, and I love the sultry dance groove and funky Nile Rodgers-style guitar. After a long, steady climb, the song has finally landed atop my Weekly Top 30.

Sliding into second place is the spaghetti western-esque stunner “I See the Sun” by British psychedelic pop/rock band Solar Eyes. Entering the top 10 is Spoon’s rousing and gnarly “The Hardest Cut”, which jumps five spots to #6. And like last week, I wanted to add at least five new songs to this week’s list, but that would require eliminating five songs, which I could not do. Thus, the lone debut this week is Foo Fighters’ “Love Dies Young”, which I probably should have added to my list weeks ago.

  1. STARTS WITH YOU – Shimmer Johnson (4)
  2. I SEE THE SUN – Solar Eyes (5)
  3. CRUTCH – Band of Horses (1)
  4. TIME IN DISGUISE – Kings of Leon (2)
  5. GOOD FRIEND – dwi (3)
  6. THE HARDEST CUT – Spoon (11)
  7. TWO CAR FAMILY – Apollo Junction (8)
  8. I DON’T LIVE HERE ANYMORE – The War on Drugs feat. Lucius (6)
  9. LEFT BEHIND – a million rich daughters (9)
  10. SMILE – Wolf Alice (10)
  11. THE TIPPING POINT – Tears for Fears (7)
  12. U&ME – alt-J (13)
  13. ONE AND THE SAME – Future Theory (14)
  14. WAKE ME UP – Foals (16)
  15. JOURNEYMAN’S BALLET – Sam Rappaport (12)
  16. UNTIL I COME HOME – Two Feet & grandson (18)
  17. CHAPSTICK – COIN (19)
  18. HEAD IN THE CLOUDS – Thunder Fox (20)
  19. THE OUTSIDE – twenty øne piløts (21)
  20. THE ONLY HEARTBREAKER – Mitski (22)
  21. INDUSTRY BABY – Lil Nas X featuring Jack Harlow (23)
  22. JUST LIKE ALWAYS – Oli Barton & the Movement & Maella (24)
  23. REDCHURCH STREET BLUES – Philip Morgan Lewis (25)
  24. MAGNIFICENT HURT – Elvis Costello & The Imposters (26)
  25. LOVE LOVE LOVE – My Morning Jacket (15)
  26. OH MY GOD – Adele (27)
  27. I DON’T WANNA TALK (I JUST WANNA DANCE) – Glass Animals (17)
  28. BROKEN HEARTS – Ships Have Sailed (29)
  29. SOMETHING FROM NOTHING/POINTS OF LIGHT – Secret Postal Society (30)
  30. LOVE DIES YOUNG – Foo Fighters (N)

Top 30 Songs for January 30-February 5, 2022

On By EclecticMusicLoverIn Weekly Top 30's16 Comments

There’s not a lot of movement on my latest Weekly Top 30, as the top seven songs from last week remain in the top seven this week, albeit with a bit of shuffling of the ones at #s 2-7. Band of Horses’ beautiful song of unrequited love “Crutch” remains at #1 for a second week, and dwi’s “Good Friend” switches places with Kings of Leon’s “Time in Disguise” for the #2 and #3 spots. Canadian-American singer-songwriter Shimmer Johnson’s wonderful dance-pop song “Starts With You” moves up a notch to #4, followed close behind at #5 by the marvelous spaghetti western-esque “I See the Sun” by British psychedelic pop/rock band Solar Eyes.

There are at least six new songs I wanted to add to this list, but only had room for two: L.A. pop-rock duo Ships Have Sailed’s breathtaking “Broken Hearts” enters at #29, replacing their song “Love in October” after its 14-week run, which itself replaced their previous single “Take My Money”, meaning they’ve continuously had a song on my Weekly Top 30 since mid-August of last year. Welsh artist Secret Postal Society’s uplifting couplet “Something From Nothing/Points of Light” enters at #30.

  1. CRUTCH – Band of Horses (1)
  2. TIME IN DISGUISE – Kings of Leon (3)
  3. GOOD FRIEND – dwi (2)
  4. STARTS WITH YOU – Shimmer Johnson (5)
  5. I SEE THE SUN – Solar Eyes (7)
  6. I DON’T LIVE HERE ANYMORE – The War on Drugs feat. Lucius (4)
  7. THE TIPPING POINT – Tears for Fears (6)
  8. TWO CAR FAMILY – Apollo Junction (9)
  9. LEFT BEHIND – a million rich daughters (10)
  10. SMILE – Wolf Alice (12)
  11. THE HARDEST CUT – Spoon (16)
  12. JOURNEYMAN’S BALLET – Sam Rappaport (13)
  13. U&ME – alt-J (14)
  14. ONE AND THE SAME – Future Theory (15)
  15. LOVE LOVE LOVE – My Morning Jacket (8)
  16. WAKE ME UP – Foals (17)
  17. I DON’T WANNA TALK (I JUST WANNA DANCE) – Glass Animals (11)
  18. UNTIL I COME HOME – Two Feet & grandson (19)
  19. CHAPSTICK – COIN (20)
  20. HEAD IN THE CLOUDS – Thunder Fox (21)
  21. THE OUTSIDE – twenty øne piløts (22)
  22. THE ONLY HEARTBREAKER – Mitski (24)
  23. INDUSTRY BABY – Lil Nas X featuring Jack Harlow (25)
  24. JUST LIKE ALWAYS – Oli Barton & the Movement & Maella (26)
  25. REDCHURCH STREET BLUES – Philip Morgan Lewis (27)
  26. MAGNIFICENT HURT – Elvis Costello & The Imposters (28)
  27. OH MY GOD – Adele (30)
  28. BEGGIN’ – Måneskin (18)
  29. BROKEN HEARTS – Ships Have Sailed (N)
  30. SOMETHING FROM NOTHING/POINTS OF LIGHT – Secret Postal Society (N)

Top 30 Songs for January 23-29, 2022

On By EclecticMusicLoverIn Song Lists7 Comments

The poignant and beautiful “Crutch” by Band of Horses takes over the top spot on my latest Weekly Top 30. It’s their first song to ever top a Billboard chart, recently spending two weeks at #1 on the Adult Alternative Chart. It was a tough decision knocking dwi’s wonderful song “Good Friend” down to #2, as I still love it so much. Finally entering the top 10 are three great songs – Solar Eyes’ “I See the Sun”, Apollo Junction’s “Two Car Family”, and a million rich daughters’ “Left Behind”. Debuting this week are Elvis Costello & the Imposters’ “Magnificent Hurt” and Adele’s “Oh My God”. It took a while for “Magnificent Hurt” to grow on me, because I can sometimes be a real idiot when it comes to music (as well as many other things, unfortunately). But after reading two recent posts about the song and Costello’s new album by fellow blogger Christian’s Music Musings, I finally realized what a terrific song it is. 

The video for “Crutch” is odd but sweet, and features lots of cute cats, so please watch.

  1. CRUTCH – Band of Horses (2)
  2. GOOD FRIEND – dwi (1)
  3. TIME IN DISGUISE – Kings of Leon (4)
  4. I DON’T LIVE HERE ANYMORE – The War on Drugs feat. Lucius (3)
  5. STARTS WITH YOU – Shimmer Johnson (6)
  6. THE TIPPING POINT – Tears for Fears (7)
  7. I SEE THE SUN – Solar Eyes (11)
  8. LOVE LOVE LOVE – My Morning Jacket (5)
  9. TWO CAR FAMILY – Apollo Junction (12)
  10. LEFT BEHIND – a million rich daughters (13)
  11. I DON’T WANNA TALK (I JUST WANNA DANCE) – Glass Animals (9)
  12. SMILE – Wolf Alice (14)
  13. JOURNEYMAN’S BALLET – Sam Rappaport (15)
  14. U&ME – alt-J (16)
  15. ONE AND THE SAME – Future Theory (17)
  16. THE HARDEST CUT – Spoon (19)
  17. WAKE ME UP – Foals (18)
  18. BEGGIN’ – Måneskin (8)
  19. UNTIL I COME HOME – Two Feet & grandson (20)
  20. CHAPSTICK – COIN (21)
  21. HEAD IN THE CLOUDS – Thunder Fox (22)
  22. THE OUTSIDE – twenty øne piløts (23)
  23. LOVE IN OCTOBER – Ships Have Sailed (10)
  24. THE ONLY HEARTBREAKER – Mitski (25)
  25. INDUSTRY BABY – Lil Nas X featuring Jack Harlow (28)
  26. JUST LIKE ALWAYS – Oli Barton & the Movement & Maella (29)
  27. REDCHURCH STREET BLUES – Philip Morgan Lewis (30)
  28. MAGNIFICENT HURT – Elvis Costello & The Imposters (N)
  29. DON’T BRING ME DOWN – Two Feet (24)
  30. OH MY GOD – Adele (N)

Top 30 Songs for January 16-22, 2022

On By EclecticMusicLoverIn Weekly Top 30's5 Comments

I just can’t get enough of those exuberant jangly guitars, driving beats and soaring vocals on the marvelous “Good Friend” by Canadian artist dwi, and it remains my favorite song for a second week. Closing in at #2 is “Crutch” by Band of Horses, and climbing four spots to #4 is the beautiful “Time in Disguise” by Kings of Leon. It’s not doing particularly well on the Alternative charts, which is perplexing to me, especially given that “Bandit” was the top song of 2021 on the Adult Alternative Airplay chart. The ebullient dance-pop tune “Starts With You” by L.A.-based singer-songwriter Shimmer Johnson climbs three spots to #6, and Tears for Fears’ “The Tipping Point” also climbs three spots to #7.

Three songs debut on this week’s chart: Though it’s been out for over three months, “INDUSTRY BABY” by Lil Nas X featuring Jack Harlow finally enters my chart at #28. Bringing up the rear are new songs by two of my favorite acts from London, England – “Just Like Always” by Oli Barton & the Movement and Maella, and “Redchurch Street Blues” by Philip Morgan Lewis, which enter at #29 & #30, respectively.

  1. GOOD FRIEND – dwi (1)
  2. CRUTCH – Band of Horses (3)
  3. I DON’T LIVE HERE ANYMORE – The War on Drugs featuring Lucius (2)
  4. TIME IN DISGUISE – Kings of Leon (8)
  5. LOVE LOVE LOVE – My Morning Jacket (4)
  6. STARTS WITH YOU – Shimmer Johnson (9)
  7. THE TIPPING POINT – Tears for Fears (10)
  8. BEGGIN’ – Måneskin (5)
  9. I DON’T WANNA TALK (I JUST WANNA DANCE) – Glass Animals (6)
  10. LOVE IN OCTOBER – Ships Have Sailed (7)
  11. I SEE THE SUN – Solar Eyes (12)
  12. TWO CAR FAMILY – Apollo Junction (13)
  13. LEFT BEHIND – a million rich daughters (14)
  14. SMILE – Wolf Alice (15)
  15. JOURNEYMAN’S BALLET – Sam Rappaport (17)
  16. U&ME – alt-J (18)
  17. ONE AND THE SAME – Future Theory (19)
  18. WAKE ME UP – Foals (20)
  19. THE HARDEST CUT – Spoon (22)
  20. UNTIL I COME HOME – Two Feet & grandson (23)
  21. CHAPSTICK – COIN (24)
  22. HEAD IN THE CLOUDS – Thunder Fox (25)
  23. THE OUTSIDE – twenty øne piløts (26)
  24. DON’T BRING ME DOWN – Two Feet (11)
  25. THE ONLY HEARTBREAKER – Mitski (30)
  26. JUSTIFIED – Kacey Musgraves (16)
  27. KALEIDOSCOPE – Soda Cracker Jesus (21)
  28. INDUSTRY BABY – Lil Nas X featuring Jack Harlow (N)
  29. JUST LIKE ALWAYS – Oli Barton & the Movement & Maella (N)
  30. REDCHURCH STREET BLUES – Philip Morgan Lewis (N)

Top 30 Songs for January 9-15, 2022

On By EclecticMusicLoverIn Weekly Top 30's4 Comments

I’m thrilled to place the lively but poignant song “Good Friend” by Canadian artist dwi at #1 on this week’s Top 30. The music project of insanely creative and talented Vancouver-based singer-songwriter Dwight Abell, dwi was one of my favorite new music discoveries of 2021, and his brilliant debut album Mild Fantasy Violence is among my favorite releases of the year (read my review here). “Good Friend” is about discovering after the fact that a friend had been going through some hard times, and wishing you’d known more at the time so you could have helped them through it. I love the song’s infectious hard-driving melody, colorful guitar work and dwi’s expressive vocals lamenting about his shortcomings as a friend: “Had I known you were broken inside. Had I known you were empty inside. If I was a good friend, I’d a known better. If I was a good friend, I’d have done better./ I’m done with the drugs, but there’s still some left inside.”

In other chart developments, “Crutch” by Band of Horses jumps four spots to #3, Tears for Fears’ “The Tipping Point” enters the top 10, and Mitski debuts with “The Only Heartbreaker”, her first-ever appearance on my Weekly Top 30 chart.

  1. GOOD FRIEND – dwi (2)
  2. I DON’T LIVE HERE ANYMORE – The War on Drugs featuring Lucius (1)
  3. CRUTCH – Band of Horses (7)
  4. LOVE LOVE LOVE – My Morning Jacket (4)
  5. BEGGIN’ – Måneskin (3)
  6. I DON’T WANNA TALK (I JUST WANNA DANCE) – Glass Animals (6)
  7. LOVE IN OCTOBER – Ships Have Sailed (8)
  8. TIME IN DISGUISE – Kings of Leon (9)
  9. STARTS WITH YOU – Shimmer Johnson (10)
  10. THE TIPPING POINT – Tears for Fears (12)
  11. DON’T BRING ME DOWN – Two Feet (5)
  12. I SEE THE SUN – Solar Eyes (13)
  13. TWO CAR FAMILY – Apollo Junction (14)
  14. LEFT BEHIND – a million rich daughters (15)
  15. SMILE – Wolf Alice (16)
  16. JUSTIFIED – Kacey Musgraves (11)
  17. JOURNEYMAN’S BALLET – Sam Rappaport (19)
  18. U&ME – alt-J (20)
  19. ONE AND THE SAME – Future Theory (21)
  20. WAKE ME UP – Foals (22)
  21. KALEIDOSCOPE – Soda Cracker Jesus (18)
  22. THE HARDEST CUT – Spoon (25)
  23. UNTIL I COME HOME – Two Feet & grandson (27)
  24. CHAPSTICK – COIN (28)
  25. HEAD IN THE CLOUDS – Thunder Fox (29)
  26. THE OUTSIDE – twenty øne piløts (30)
  27. ALL TOO WELL (10 Minute Version) – Taylor Swift (17)
  28. SURVIVOR – Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats (23)
  29. EASY ON ME – Adele (24)
  30. THE ONLY HEARTBREAKER – Mitski (N)