Pretty Fly (For 1999) 25th July. The Hardest Saddest Silence is A Look on Blue Monday

 So things feel on the precipice of change on the chart and I am not sure why because sure...glancing at our top ten, "If You Had My Love" by Jennifer Lopez remains at number one despite somewhat dipping sales numbers, it did manage to hold off a charge from "Sometimes" by Britney Spears which climbed one spot to number two.

This pushed "Kiss Me" by Sixpence None The Richer fall back to number three while "Last Kiss" by Pearl Jam remains stalled at number four.

"Say It Once" by Ultra continues it's climb up the chart by rising on to number five whie "Beautiful Stranger" by Madonna recovered two slots to number six. 

"Man! I Feel Like A Woman" by Shania Twain felt like staying at number seven this week, 

One of the biggest gains of the belongs to Taxiride as "Get Set" jumped a massive TWENTY places to number eight this week. Awesome to see as that song is absolutely great, 

Not so great is the ode to orgasms that is "Boom Boom Boom Boom" by The Vengaboys which jumped from fifteen to number nine.

Also rising into the top ten is "Westside" by TQ which rose three places to numbe ten this week.

Losers

We start the losers with Eminem's "Hi! My Name Is" which stumbled ten spots to forty nine, we need that follow up single soon, Em. 

Savage Garden's "The Animal Song" slumped from thirty four to forty eight while Cher's "Strong Enough" was hit with a ten place plunge to forty seven.

"We Like to Party (The Vengabus)" by The Vengaboys utterly collapsed from twenty five to forty one. Sugar Ray's "Every Morning" hit the snooze button so it went down eight to forty.

If you are wondering what happened to "Don't Cry" by Human Nature given it debuted at number five last week...well it fell from five to twenty nine this week...ouch.

"Thank ABBA For the Music" by Steps, Tina Cousins, Cleopatra, B*Witched and Billie Piper fell nine to twenty eight. 

Gains

So I already mentioned the big rise to number eight for "Get Set" by Taxiride but we also saw a ten place gain off its debut to fourteen for "When You Say Nothing at All" by Ronan Keating.

"Scar Tissue" by The Red Hot Chili Peppers climbed from twenty two to fifteen....sigh...wish I actually liked that song more than I do. 

Westlife's "Swear It Again" breaks into the top twenty up twelve to eighteen this week while "All Star" by Smash Mouth got a ten spot bounce to thirty one

New Entries

Five new entries beginning with...

46. "Saddest Song" by Cherry

We're beginning with the third single from Australian five piece girl group Cherry with this song having been written by acclaimed American song writer Diane Warren that was originally meant for a US r'n'b group called Not Real but I think Cherry's version kind of works especially with the elegant production that does have that element of sadness about it as the group sings about the heartache and pain of hearing a song that meant so much to them when they were in a relationship and now that relationship is over, hearing that song on the radio hurts. Decent pop song but in a year where girl group pop songs are everywhere....yeah I am not sure how much this is going to be remembered.

36. "Blue Monday" by Orgy

So Orgy are an American rock band with their first song to hit the ARIA singles chart being this cover of New Order's 1983 hit "Blue Monday" and well...it sure does exist now, doesn't it?  I have never been one for the original song from New Order but I'll take the somewhat slower and gentler delivery of the lyrics in the vocals over having the lyrics shouted at me like Orgy do in the cover. I really do not have much to say about this so I will move on.

35. "The Hardest Thing" by 98 Degrees

Another debutant act on the chart from out of the USA this week courtesy of four piece boy group 98 Degrees and well, this is where I might need to apologise to Boyzone because dear god, this song might be one of the most boring yet infuriating song about cheating where on the verses he says its killing him to be with his mistress but then says on the hook that it's "the hardest thing" to tell his partner that he doesn't love her any more and show no emotion when she breaks down and starts crying...dude, you are an asshole in song form. Get this dirge shithole of a song off the charts.

25. "Have  A Look"  by Vanessa Amorosi

Beginning to feel like the week of the debutant because we have an Australian singer songwriter Vanessa Amorosi making her first mark on the ARIA singles chart and yeah...I'm kind of not surprised that this debuted as high as high as this because my goodness, Amorosi is an absolute powerhouse vocallist, she can absolutely belt with the best of them especially on the hook where she wants an ex back with her after seeing him with somebody else over this really tight pop/rock groove that Amorosi sounds at home over this production...great song!

19. "Silence" by Delerium feat. Sarah McLachlan

Ending the week with a bit of Canadian trance courtesy of producer Delerium who has brought Canadian music royalty Sarah McLachlan on board for this cut and yeah, this is really good too. I just wish Sarah's vocals were slightly louder in the mix over the instrumentation but she sounds ethereal here. Really this does remind me of big beat era early nineties where this song would not be out of place. Damn good song. 

That wraps our week and the worst of the week is pretty easy, that's going to "The Hardest Thing" by 98 Degrees...just spare me from that horrible turd of a song...please.

However the best of the week is a lot harder with that going to "Have A Look" by Vanessa Amorosi...just beating Delerium and Sarah McLachlan...it was close.

ARIA Singles Top 50 Chart Review. 20th July. The One with a Kingdom Fear of Great Expectations

 This week could be worse...I guess...we didn't get hit by the Future album bomb which is something incredibly merciful but what we got instead is..odd to say the least. Let's get to our top ten where of course for a sixth week, it's "Choosin' Texas" by Ella Langley at number one, it continues to rule sales and streaming with a rod of iron.

The top six actually held position this week with "Man I Need" by Olivia Dean at number two, "Rein Me In" by Sam Fender and Olvia Dean at number three, "Stupid Song" by Olivia Rodrigo at number four, "Hate That I Made You Love Me" by Ariana Grande at number five and "Ordinary" by Alex Warren at number six.

"The Cure" by Olivia Rodrigo rebounded one spot to number seven after getting a small streaming bump, it pushed past "Earrings" by Malcolm Todd which slipped one spot to number eight.

Finally "Dracula" by Tame Impala and "Drop Dead" by Olivia Rodrigo held firm at nine and ten respectively.

Losers

Most of the big losers are still Olivia Rodrigo album tracks with "Maggots for Brains" down nine to forty fpir, "Expectations" slipped seven to forty three and "Honeybee" down ten to twenty seven.

The only non Olivia Rodrigo major loser this week was "I Knew It. I Knew You" by Taylor Swift slipped seven to eighteen.

Drop Outs

Four songs took their exits this week with :"Girls" by Kid Laroi finally making it's exit permanent to the On Replay singles chart.
Also gone are "What Is Wrong With Me?" by Olivia Rodrigo and Robert Smith, "Dai Dai" by Shakira and Burna Boy and "Go" by Chemical Brothers (I suspect this will make the year end)

Gains

Noah Kahan's "Orbiter" climbed seven slots this week to number thirty five. Zara Larsson's "Midnight Sun" jumped six spots to thirty eight.

Losers

Two returns this week with "Material Lover" by Sienna Spiro back at forty two while "Bloodstream" by Alyssa Grace returned at number thirty six. 

New Entries

Two new entries, beginning with...

47. "Kingdom of Fear" by Cameron Whitcomb

So this is an interesting one with this being Cameron Whitcomb;s first song to cross over onto the ARIA singles chart, Whitcomb is a Canadian singer/songwritetr who has notched some decent success in Canada but is only just starting to find his footing worldwide courtesy of this song and yeah, it's a solid enough singer/songwriter cut similar to something that Noah Kahan would write and sing, helps that the instrumental and production is pretty solid with those somewhat twangy sounding guitars and that fast paced drumming that works for me.

As for the content of the song? The dissonance between saying "Yeah, I'm good" while internally struggling with self doubt and anxiety so the content here does cut a lot deeper for me given my personal issues...this is a pretty good song...check it out.

41. "Great Expectations" by Sienna Spiro

so this is the only new Sienna Spiro song from that album to hit the ARIA singles chart and given the previous single "Die On This Hill" is dead set one of the worst songs of 2026 so I have rock bottom expectations for this song and well...those rock bottom expectations were met and then satisfied because my goodness, this song is a dreary bore and slog of a song where she sings about falling in love with the idea of someone rather than who that person actually is which on paper is an interesting idea, just a shame the song does nothing interesting and Spiro sounds like she's whining for most of the song.

I'll pass. 

That was the week and best and worst fall out easy with the worst going to "Great Expectation" by Sienna Spiro and the  best going to "Kingdom of Fear" by Cameron Whitcomb.

Next week...ugh...Gracie Abrams album dropped so we'll probably wind up with something from that charting, we'll have to see. 

Pretty Fly (For 1999). 18th July. Don't Cry Say Nothing At All, Sweet Chocolate.

We have a busy week at hand here, up and down the chart and the six new entries hitting the chart including one in the top ten...in fact, the only place where there wasn't any movement was in the top three because for a second week "If You Had My Love" by Jennifer Lopez sits at number one, "Kiss Me" by Sixpence None the Richer at number two and "Sometimes" by Britney Spears at number three.

"Last Kiss" by Pearl Jam rebounded one spot to number four while there's a new entry at number five from Human Nature called "Don't Cry", we'll get to it in the new entries but it did some impressive numbers on sales to land this high of a debut.

All this caused "Say It Once" by Ultra to fall two spots to number six while "Man! I Feel Like A Woman!" by Shania Twain stumbled one spot to number seven. Madonna's "Beautiful Stranger" met the same fate sliding one spot to number eight.

"I Want It That Way" by Backstreet Boys held steady at number nine and Ricky Martin's "Livin' La Vida Loca" stalled at number ten.

Losers

In a week where we have six new entries, a lot of songs took big tumbles this week starting with "Time of Our Lives" by Marcia Hines which fell from thirty two to forty nine this week...seems the party may well be over for this song. 

Similar case for Shawn Mullins song "Shimmer" as it plummeted from thirty nine to forty eight this week while "Get What You Give" by The New Radicals unfortunately tumbled hard from twenty five to forty seven. Ouch!,

Eminem's "Hi! My Name is" slipped nine to thirty nine while Cher's "Strong Enough" became weak enough to fall eight to thirty seven this week. 

"The Animal Song" by Savage Garden dived from twenty seven to thirty four. 

"Every Morning" by Sugar Ray woke up to a ten place fall to thirty two while Lenny Kravitz experienced turbulence with "Fly Away" dropping seven slots to thirty one.

A new Vengaboys song has arrived in the new entries as their previous hit "We Like to Party (The Vengabus)" dives ten to twenty five. 

ATB's "9pm (Til I Come)" is heading in the wrong direction (for me) down seven to twenty one.

Gains

So tragically our biggest gain this week is the underwhelming "These Are The Times" by Dru Hill which somehow got an eight place gain to twenty three...rrally, Australia?

Also getting a boost this week is Taxiride's "Get Set" up from thirty four to twenty eight while "Swear It Again" by Westlife climbed six to thirty.

Re-Entries

Why is our lone return "Stay The Same" by Joey McIntyre? I thought we all agreed at the last chart board meeting that this song was forgettable dross...I served the tea and biscuits, remember?

New Entries

Six new entries this week beginning with...

41. "All Star" by Smash Mouth

The lead single from Smash Mouth's album "Astro Lonnge" and apparently this song draws infltouence from Sugar Ray and Third Eye Blind as the band looked to write a song dedicated to those in the world who are deemed to be outcasts or this really incredibly stupid but otherwise upbeat narrator who rolls with the punches and takes the low blows and comes out the other side, realizing that he or she has so many reasons to live even though they aren't all that smart or in with the popular crowd. This song will definitely hit people in the feels especially given how sticky the hook is and the vocal delivery on the verses is actually pretty fun too so yeah...check this out! 

35. "Insane in the Brain" by Jason Nevins v Cypress Hill

Moving onto what I guess can be classified as a Jason Nevins remix of Cypress Hill's 1993 song "Insane In the Brain" with the original song (that only peaked at number 40) being built around multiple samples including Jamrs Brown grunting of all things but hey, it's a got a nice West Coast hip hop groove that goes down well, as for the content...it's a diss track aimed at Chubb Rock where Cypress Hill accuse him of acting recklessly or irrational. 

Jason Nevins remix is fine enough but I am not going to be thrilled if this becomes a bigger hit than the original...that's all. 

24. When You Say Nothing At All" by Ronan Keating

We have a member of Boyzone going solo with this being a cover of a 1989 Keith Whitley song for the soundtrack of the film Notting Hill. Whitley's version feels like it's coming from this sweet, sincere spot where he is saying that her body language is enough for him to know what she's trying to say without saying a word, it does hit the mark for me especially with the paired back instrumentation.

Keating's version is fine enough until that god awfful pipe breakdown at the end which sounds so shrill and piercing that it takes me out of the song. This cover could have been so much better without that god damn noise playing up some kind of imaginary drama or crescendo which was completely unnecessary. next!

15. "Boom, Boom, Boom, Boom!" by Vengaboys

So we were bound to get a follow up to "We Like to Party (The Vengabus)" from The Vengaboys and well..this really isn't all that good. Lyrically the song is about her wanting to help this friend to forget his problems so they go about this by "spending forever in her room" using boom boom boom boom as a double entendre for sex which frankly is not original considering Paul Lekakis told the world in 1987 he wants a woman back in his room for a little boom boom. Frankly, it's all a bit cringe.

As for the actual music, it doesn't really have any sexual or kinetic energy to it rather a partyish sound bit with some frankly creepy sounding voice effects in there too. 

14. "Sweet Like Chocolate" by Shanks & Bigfoot

Heading across to the UK and this act called Shanks & Bigfoot, a garage producer duo who have been active since 1997 with this song being their first to hit the ARIA singles chart and well...this song is actually pretty good especially with that jaunty opening that then opens into faster percussion and while I am not a huge fan of the vocals on this song, I get why they kind of work, it's a love song that digs into this loved one's presence being rich, comforting and addictive which as a chocolate lover I do get. 

Yeah, you know what? This is really cute, check it out!

5. "Don't Cry" by Human Nature.

Finishing a rather long week with Aussie quartet Human Nature and the latest single from "Counting Down". A quite funky and upbeat song that kind of betrays how the content is about the breakdown of a relationship and realizing that the relationship was fun while it lasted but now it's time to go separate ways and see what else is out there because its not like the relationship is going to be revived like some kind of miracle.

Chorus is catchy and as usual, Human Nature's harmonies are on point, great song!

Great to end the week on a high with two good to great songs, I am going to give best of the week to Human Nature for "Don't Cry"

As for the worst...yeah, it wasn't going to be anything other than "Boom Boom Boom Boom" by The Vengaboys.

ARIA Singles Top 50 Chart Review. 13th July. The one where it's pretty quiet.

 So this week was pretty quiet all things considered which I can be grareful for considering the US Billboard Hot 100 is probably going to get a Ken Carson album bomb so I am relieved that's not happening here in Australia, let's start with the top ten where for a fifth week, it's "Choosin' Texas" by Ella Langley at number one, it's a monster on both sales and streaming right now, it would take something huge to knock this song off the number one spot

"Man I Need" by Olivia Dean held it's place at number two mostly because streaming is still holding this song up, the same can be said for "Rein Me In" by Sam Fender and Olviia Dean which moved up one to number three pushing past "Stupid Song" by Olivia Rodrigo which slipped to number four.

Ariana Grande holds on at number five with "Hate That I Made You Love Me", I expect this song to make a major push for number one post the album release while back in the top ten up five places to number is "Ordinary" by Alex Warren because we can't all be that fortunate to be rid of this song.

Spraking of songs that will not fuck off "Earrings" by Malcolm Todd rose two spots to number seven because streaming has gotten hold of this song...lovely...not..although that could also be because of the weaknesses of "The Cure" by Olivia Rodrigo which fell two spots to number eight and "Dracula" by Tame Impala down two to number nine.

Finally holding on to number ten is "Drop Dead" by Olivia Rodrigo. 

Losers

"What's Wrong With Me?" by Olivia Rodrigo feat. Robert Smith fell ten slots to number forty five while "Expectations" fell six to number six. Overall the falls for tbe remaining Olivia Rodrigo songs still on the charts weren't that bad.

"Be Her" by Ella Langley slipped nine to forty one. 

Drop Outs

The drop outs this week casting aside the four Olivia Rodrigo album tracks that dropped out, those being "Less", "My Way", "Begged" and "U + Me = <3".

The other two were "Hit the Wall" by Gracie Abrams (Although that song will probably return after her new album is released) and "Material Lover" by Sienna Spiro.

Gains

So we did have a couple of major gains this week starting with songs that debuted last week like "Dai Dai" by Shakira and Burna Boy which jumped fifteen places to thirty two  while "My Body Isn't Ready" by Sombr rose nineteen to twenty nine. 

Bizarrely Stella Lefty's "Boston" climbed thirteen to fufteen this week because that's all we need.  Ugh.

Re-Entries

In lieu of any new entries we got a bunch of songs returning to the chart beginning with "Fever Dream" by Alex Warren at fifty, "Opalite" by Taylor Swift at forty seven, "Midnight Sun" by Zara Larsson at forty four, "I Just Might" by Bruno Mars at forty three, "Undressed" by Sombr at forty and "Weren't For the Wind" by Ella Langley at thirty seven.

That wraps up the week, might be in for another quiet week next week but we'll have to see. 

Pretty Fly (For 1999): 11th July. Dear God Wait Til I Get Home, Mama.

So let's just dive straight into this week because the biggest story this week is the new number one, shame it's kind of mediocre because it's "If You Had My Love" by Jennifer Lopez, it got there thanks to sales just giving it the edge over last week's number one "Kiss Me" by Sixpence None the Richer which fell back to number two.

Rising one spot to number three is "Sometimes" by Britney Spears while "Say It Once" by Ultra rose five slots to number four, I wasn't expecting the latter to rise this far but it's one of the better boyband songs on the chart right now.

"Last Kiss" by Pearl Jam slumped three to number five which does feel a bit unexpected than again...not unsurprising. "Man! I Feel Like A Woman!" by Shania Twain rebounded one slot to number six.

Madonna's "Beautiful Stranger" is in need of a beautiful chart rescue as it slipped two spots to number seven. Former number one "No Sctubs" by TLC dipped back from six to number eight.

The best of the boyband songs on the chart "I Want It That Way" by Backstreet Boys slipped one to number nine. 

Returning to the top ten this week is "Livin' La Vida Loca" by Ricky Martin to complete the top ten at number ten. 

Losers

Dru Hill's "How Deep Is Your Love" is on the way out finally after slipping eight slots to fifty, also on the way out is "Touch It" by Monifah down twelve to forry nine...glad to see two awful songs on the cusp of leaving the chart. Thank goodness!

Kind of sad to see "Protect Your Mind (Braveheart)" by DJ Sakin and Friends down seven to thirty eight, the song was pretty good. 

Gains

Biggest gain of the week was sadly rhe pretty poor "Heartbreak Hotel" by Whitney Houstin feat. Faith Evans and Kelly Price, it jumped from thirty eight to twenty this week...ugh.

Also unfortunate is the six place gain to twenty three for "Get Ready" by Ma$e feat. Blackstreet...really, Australia?

"Westside" by TQ's rise continued much to my surprise as it climbed six to number twelve and probably the best of our gains this week..."Canned Heat" by Jamiroquai rebounded six slots to forty three.

Re-Entries

Look, I'll tolerate the return of "Shimmer" by Shawn Mullins at thirty nine but what the hell is "Tarzan & Jane" by Toy-Box doing back at forty one? Come on, we don't need limp Aqua rip offs on the charts.

New Entries

Three new entries this week begining with...

48. "Dear Mama" by 2Pac

Well, it's about time we got a follow up to "Changes" and this latest single is from "Me Against the World", its actually a really sweet tribute to his mother over a really nice piano and guitar groove as 2pac raps about the struggles of single mothers and how he was raised in poverty, his mother's battle with an addiction to cocaine and how the bond he has with his mother endures even though the relationship was not always perfect (no relationship is ever perfect) and how he is learning how to appreiciare his mother for raising him. 

Damn sweet song, check this out!

46. "(God Must Have Spent) A Little More Time on You" by N*SYNC

Third single from N*SYNC's self titled album and this one is the stereotypical boyband ballad only these clowns think its okay to tell this beautiful girl that he has fallen in love with that God must have spent a lottle more time on her than he did anyone else over rather miserable sounding instrumentation that doesn't give the faintest feel of happiness or that "God" or whoever this higher deity is serving up women into the arms of N*Sync.There's no joy or warmth in the band members voices when they are singing that hook either because this girl was not created through immaculate conception, guys!

A deeply stupid song that hopefully will not stick around. Next!

44. "Wait Til I Get Home" by C Note.

Ending the wee with another American r'n'b/pop vocal group that was originally on "Different Kind of Love" and well, this four piece act have decided to be this week's sexy time group because they are urging their girls to wait til they get home for some 'sweet sweet lovin'" over a beat that sounds like it was directly pulled from the 1980s or at least a Hall and Oates song but at least these guys aren't pulling out any cringe lines but rather just pulling straight from the book of song lyric cliches. It's not terrible but I absolutely do not see this sticking around. That's all.

That's our week and oof...worst of the week belongs to N*SYNC for whatever that "(God Must Have Spent) A Little More Time on You". 2Pac easily runs away with the best of the week for "Dear Mama"

ARIA Singles Top 50. July 6th. The One Where Sombr's body isn't ready for Sienna's Material Lover

 Alright so let's get right into this as this one is late enough as it is (my fault, totally procrastinated), straight into the top ten where for yet another week "Choosin' Texas" by Ella Langley, it's got sales and streaming on it's side and it doesn't look like relinquishing it's hold on number one any time soon.

"Man I Need" by Olivia Dean rebounded up one spot to number two thanks mostly to streaming continuing to keep this song around and "Stupid Song" by Olivia Rodrigo slipping back one to number three because it's lost ground on streaming and is doing nothiing on sales. 

Also rebounding one to number four is 'Rein Me In" by Sam Fender and Olivia Dean while "Hate That I Made You Love Me" by Ariana Grande climbed two slots to number five. 

"The Cure" by Olivia Rodrigo held steady at number six,  "Dracula" by Tame Impala leaped three to number seven however there is a culprit for all of this movement with "I Knew It. I Knew You" by Taylor Swift sliding seven spots to number eight.

What kind of mars our top ten this week is the unforrunaate two place return of "Earrings" by Malcolm Todd at number nine. 

Finally, "Drop Dead" by Olivia Rodrigo slipped two spots to number ten. 

Losers

Let's start with the Olivia Rodrigo album cuts that are free falling so "You + Me = <3" down eleven to forty one, "Begged" sliding eighteen to thirty nine, "Less" is doing less down twelve to thirty seven, "My Way" shifts down fourteen to thirty six, "What's Wrong With Me" featuring Robert Smith slumped twelve to thirty five, "Maggots for Brains" down fifteen to thirty one and "Expectations" slid fifteen to thirty 

Drop Outs

One of the big stories this week lies in our drop outs with "Beauty and a Beat" by Justin Bieber and Nicki Minaj finally sent to the on replay charts. Good fucking riddance.

Also gone are "Iconic by Mistake" by Le Sserafim, Katseye and Illit, "Freakin' Out" by Dexter and the Moonrocks alongside two Olivia Rodrigo album tracks those being "Purple" and "Cigarette Smoke"

Gains

So something of a reset is continuing to occur as the Olivia Rodrigo songs fall away so the biggest gains this week were nine place gains for "The Fate of Ophelia" by Taylor Swift to twenty, "Where is My Husband" by Raye at twenty three and "Back to Friends" by Sombr which moved up to twenty five. 

There were also eight place gains for "Nice to Each Other" by Olivia Dean to twenty nine, "Boston" by Stella Lefty to twenty eight and "No Broke Boys" by Disco Lines and Tinashe to twenty seven.

Re-Entries

Two returns this week with "American Girls" by Harry Styles at forty eight and "Hit the Wall" by Gracie Abrams at forty two.

New Entries

Three new entries this week, beginning with...

50. "Material Lover" by Sienna Spiro

Well, it's about time this charted, it comes from the soundtrack of the Devil Wears Prada 2 but given it comes from Sienna Spiro and I've been sour on "Die On this Hill" all year, I had no confidence this would be any good and yet...I kind of like this? It's got this old school jazz and soul vibe that Olivia Dean and Raye also do and I don't think this is better than the best songs from either Olivia or Raye but this is still decent enough. 

The content of the song is all about how Spiro prefers actual physical things or as she calls it "material" things in her hands and that she is a lover of those things. It's better than "Die On this Hill" so I'll take it.

47. "Dai Dai" by Shakira feat, Burna Boy

So this song is for the ongoing football World Cup and well...I wish this didn't sound so thin and generic, it sounds like a song straight out of 2017 to 2019 and it comes off so flat sounding that not even the lyrics which is all about fighting through pain and perseverence etc don't really have much of an impact from either Shakira or Burna Boy,

It's a nothing of a pop song that people will forget in a short period of time. "Waka Waka" was better than this. 

46. "My Body Isn't Ready" by Sombr

So I am not going to lie, I have been frustrated by the chart run for "Homewrecker", that song deserved to be a massive number hit and is probably one of my favourite hits of the year so far and this song is not helped by that awkward and even corny song title however the song overall winds up being good even close to great despite the song title where Sombr is dealing with body image issues (possibly body dysmorphia) and self-doubt which prevented him getting too close to people or pursuing closer relationships with people he liked.

I also like the production here because Sombr's voice doesn't sound as death by filters as it has in the past and the instrumention sounds rich, lush and incredibly organic. I'll take this easily! Good song.

Easy best of the week too. Worst of the week goes to "Dai Dai" by Shakira and Burna Boy

Pretty Fly (For 1999) 4th July These Are The Times for a Last Kiss so Get Ready

A pretty stock standard week here, the usual array of new entries including one that's debuted in the top five so lets not delay things any further and dive into the top ten where sitting at number one for another week is "Kiss Me" by Sixpence None the Richer, it held up on sales this week but I am not certain for how much longer because the challengers are coming.

One of those could be our new entry at nunmber two, "Last Kiss" by Pearl Jam. Terrific sales numbers put this in a good position to challenge...I'll have more to say about this one in the new entries.

Then we get to this week's bulldozer song because "If You Had My Love" by Jennifer Lopez rising eight slots to number three, it pushed "Sometimes" by Britney Spears back to number four.

Madonna's "Beautiful Stranger" remained glued to number five, just unable to bridge the margins to the songs aboveit. 

The chart scramble above left former chart topper "No Scrubs" by TLC down four to number six while "Man! I Feel Like A Woman" by Shania Twain fell three places to seven and "I Want It That Way" by Backstreet Boys slipped one to number eight.

Into the top ten this week is the breezy pop jam "Say It Once" by Ultra which has been climbing quietly in recent weeks, this week its up from sixteen to nine.

Finally "Look at Me" by Geri Halliwell fell two places to number ten. 

Losers

Beginning with "Right Here, Right Now" by Fatboy Slim which slipped nine spots to fifty. 

Unfortunately "Canned Heat" by Jamiroquai fell twelve to forty nine while 4 The Cause's god awful cover of "Stand By Me" slipped nine to forty eight. 

Britney Spears "Baby, One More Time" slumped ten spots to forty six. "Have You Ever"  by Brandy fell nine to forty four and "How Deep Is Your Love" by Dru Hill skidded from twenty six to forty three (Dru Hill have a song in the new entries this week so we aren't done with them). 

Cher's "Strong Enough" is weak enough to fall eight to twenty seven. 

Gains

What caught me by surprise other than Ultra's rise into the top ten was the twenty place gain to eighteen for "Westside" by TQ...good song but boy does that gain feel random.

"Shimmer" by Fuel is a different story as it has had consistent momentum rising eleven to twenty one

Soulsearcher's "Can't Get Enough" rose twelve spots to thirty six.

New Entries

Six new entries this week beginning with...

47. "Give It To You" by Jordan Knight

Oh god, starting off the week with New Kids On the Block alumni Jordan Knight isn't exactly what I'd consider great and looks like my concerns were well justified because this is some incredibly overproduced shlock that even Usher would say no to because this is just some incredibly unsexy pop shlock where Knight claims that she knows he can give his dick to her and how anything goes when the stuffing of the sausage the marshmallow (my interpretation) is done right and the production doesn't even give anything close to romantic or even remotely convince me that Knight knows how to seduce this girl with the overcooked drum machines and bored backing vocals

There are better sex songs out there than this. Get your freak on to something better.

42. "What's My Age Again?" by Blink 182

So we step away from bad pop/r'n'b and into pop punk with this Blink 182 lead single from their album "Enema of the State" and yeah, this one actually is pretty fun helped by that raucous groove and the song being hilarious as it's all about the dumb things the narrator did when he was in his early twenties because hey. we're all naive and silly in our twenties (also helps the video is completely silly). The only nitpick I have is that the vocals are mixed a bit low but otherwise...yeah, damn good, dumb fun. Check this out,

38. "Heartbreak Hotel" by Whitney Houston feat. Faith Evans and Kelly Price

Look, I am not as hung up on Whitney Houston as others, sure wonderful voice but you all know how I feel about her cover of "I Will Always Love You" (I hate it...it's one of the worst songs of 1992/93) however her pop music in the 80s does appeal for me, songs like "I Wanna Dance With Somebody (Who Loves Me)" and "How Will I Know" are absolutely classic pop songs so I was hoping she'd bring the pop class of the 80s just touched up for the late 90s so how does this work?

Well, I am not sure this works mostly because Whitney isn't quite alble to belt on the hook and it sounds like she is straining her voice at points and when Faith Evans only gets the two lines of the bridge and like Kelly Price backing vocals...yeah, this song is really not adding up to the sum of it's part especially when the synth sounds whiny. This is pretty generic R'n'B and I hate saying that about a legend like Whitney Houstion

34. "These Are The Times" by Dru Hill

Anything has to be better than the last time I talked about this group, right? Well at least the production is a little better this time and Dru Hill aren't sounding like they are singing through a tin can however when your song's opening line is "God knows you're a sexy thang"...yeah...straight out of the Song of Solomon that, Dru Hill? The writing really does bring this song down though, I mean "Tear you up in little pieces" and "swallow you up like Reese's Pieces"...seriously?

Again, production not terrible but wow, there's a long way to go in the writing department.

29. "Get Ready" by Ma$e feat. Blackstreet

The lead and apparently only single from Ma$e's album "Double Up" and apparently it was in part produced by Puff Daddy or P Diddy or abuser but anyway, he brought Blackstreet on board for this song and really...come on...there's nothing all that hard about the production here although that farting synth is doing a lot of trying to lift a song as Ma$e brags about his wealth, luxury and the lifestyle of famous people because that's relatable. Also that sample of Shalamar's 1982 hit "A Night to Remember" really is the most interesting part of this song...next.

2. "Last Kiss" by Pearl Jam

I actually kind of like Pearl Jam to a degree, they have some absolute classic songs in their discography and I'd argue "Ten" is a 90s classic rock album however I was leery woth song and turns out I had every right to be because this really does feel like a song stripped of what made Pearl Jam a force in the nineties not helped by Eddie Vedder howling his lungs out on the hook while nothing else surrounding him has any real punch. Yeah, bit disappointed by this. 

That ends our week, the best of the week falls out easily "What's My Age Again" by Blink 182 is riding the Japanese bullet train away with that.

As for the worst? Well there's two incredibly awful sex songs here, I am going to give it to "Give It To You" by Jordan Knight, at least Dru Hill got the mood in the production somewhat right.

 

ARIA Singles Top 50 Review: 29th June The one where Olivia's album bomb recedes.

 So we got plenty of movement this week as the Olivia Rodrigo album bomb recedes and we do have a returning number one that raises eyebrows for me because it's "I Knew It. I Knew You" by Taylor Swift, this song is not dominant on sales or streaming but somehow took the top spot.

I was expexting a second week at number one for "Stupid Song" by Olivia Rodrigo but that fell back to number two, this is still strong on streaming but sales are lacking. 

Former number one "Choosin' Texas" by Ella Langley remains steady at number three, this song is doing remarkably well on sales and holding it's own on streaming but for how much longer. 

Rising two to number four is our likely year end number one "Man I Need" by Olivia Dean while her collab with Sam Fender on "Rein Me In" rebounded three to number five.

"The Cure" by Olivia Rodrigo dropped back four spots to number six while Ariana Grande's "Hate That I Made You Love Me" surprisingly slipped two spots to number seven...wasn't expecting this to slip this week at all.

The next two songs are Olivia Rodrigo songs with "Drop Dead" down four to number eight and "honeybee" slipping two to number nine.

Finally returning to the top ten having rebounded eight spots to number ten is "Dracula" by Tame Impala. 

Losers

The losers this week begin with Olivia Rodrigo album cuts so let's blast through these with "Cigarette Smoke" down twenty one to forty three, "Purple" down twenty two to thirty nine. "U + Me = <3"  slumped fourteen to thirty, "Less" skidded ten to twenty five, "What's Wrong With Me" featuring Robert Smith slumped eleven to twenty three, "my way" down nine to twenty two, "Begged" slipped eleven to twenty one and "Maggots for Brains" down seven to sixteen. 

Oh and "Iconic By Mistake" by Le Sserafim, Katseye and Illit fell eight spots to forty seven.

Drop Outs

Just the one drop out this week with "Fever Dream" by Alex Warren gone...I'd say it's made the year end list but we'll see. 

Gains

So the biggest gain/rebound belong to Alex Warren with "Ordinary" up eleven to twelve while  Dave and Tems with "Raindance" rose up ten slots to nineteen.

"IloveitIloveitIloveit" by Bella Kay rose eight to thirteen. "Cinderella" by Mac Miller and Ty Dolla $ign hit a new peak up seven to eighteen. 

Re-entries

Just the one return with "Orbiter" by Noah Kahan returning at number forty eight.

No new entries this week so that wraps things up for the week. Next week is bound to see Benson Boone (unfortunately) and maybe Sombr so stick around for that!

Pretty Fly (For 1999) 27th June. Tarzan's Bad Girl Jane Does NOT Have My Love

 So no premable just going to dive straight into our top ten where for yet another week, it's "Kiss Me" by Sixpence None the Richer at number one, it's got really nothing that's seriously challenging it for the top spot right now so it's looking pretty comfortable.

I say that because the top three is the same as last week with "No Scrubs" by TLC at number two and "Sometimes" by Britney Spears at number three.

"Man! I Feel Like a Woman" by Shania Twain did move up one spot to number four while the other top ten new entry from last week "Beautiful Stranger" by Madonna made some moves up three to number five. 

This leaves "Livin' La Via Loca" by Ricky Martin stuck at number six while "I Want It That Way" by Backstreet Boys slumped three spots to number seven...could potentially be on the way out, we'll have to see. 

"Look at Me" by Geri Halliwell fell back one slot to number eight while "We Like to Party (The Vengabus)" by Vengaboys remains at number nine and "9pm (Til I Come)" by ATB holds steady at number ten. 

Losers

So we start our losers with The Chemical Brothers "Hey Boy, Hey Girl" down nine to forty having not quite been able to get the traction it needs for a chart run. 

Also down nine to thirty seven is "Canned Hear" by Jamiroquai which for me is disappointing as that song is good and deserves better. 

We'll talk about Monifah in the new entries this week but previous hit "Touch It" is on the way out down eight to thirty three. 

Gains

Not much in the way of gains this week but the biggest of the lot are at least Australian with "Time of Our Lives" by Marcia Hines up six to thirty one and "Get Set" by Taxiride up from thirty four to twenty nine.

Re-Entries

Just the one return this week with Westlife's "Swear It Again" back at number forty three.

New Entries

Three new entries this week, we're trepidatiously starting with...

46. "Tarzan & Jane" by Toy-Box

Aqua, you guys have some explaining to do because my god...I am speechless, to explain Toy-Box are a male and female bubblegum pop duo comprising of Amir El-Falaki and Anila Mirza with this being their debut single that was somehow championed by UK's Smash Hits magazine and somehow I think this song missed tbe early 90s big beat era because this is all ridiculous big chunky beats as these two role play Tarzan and Jane to a comedic degree even if comedy wasn't the intention of the song but seriously when El Falaki shouts on the bridge "Go cheetah, get banana. Go monkey, get funky!"...all I could do was laugh.

Meanwhile all Mirza harps on is about Tarzan being handsome and Jane riding an elephant. The whole song feels like a bad "Barbie Girl" by Aqua type pastiche. I'd take Baltimora's 1985 hit "Tarzan Boy" over this, at least Tarzan's jungle call is better incorporated in that song than it is here. Next!

18. "Bad Girl" by Monifah

Alright, round two with Monifah, you all know I absolutely do not like "Touch It" so I had to hope this would be better and sadly no...this is not it. Monifah's in her bad girl bag trying to show us all she's confident and got all the goods, she's got them Gucci shoes only for a hook that reminds me of kindergarten kids being sing songy when they want to pick on another classmate! Seriously, nothing to extend the awful "bad girl" reference anywhere other than lazy flexing. This is fucking shit too...next!

11. "If You Had My Love" by Jennifer Lopez

So it's a bad sign when we're needing American singer and actress Jennifer Lopez to save our week but none the less here we are and I don't know that this gets there, it's definitely better than the other two songs we've dealt with but I wish the song had more going for it instrumentally especially with that programmed drum line that doesn't sound good, live drums for the win!. The acoustic guitar and piano are fine.

As for the content, it's Lopoz laying the ground rules for a relationship with this admirer of hers, she won't tolerate him cheating on her which I thought was a standard rule in a monogamous relationship?  It then goes to him promising her forever together on the bridge which seems like a bridge too far when it's considered she demonstrated on the first verse that she outright doesn't trust him not to cheat.

However in a really terrible week, it's the best of the week because at least that hook is actually decent. 

As for the worst, god...throw a struck match between them and light the fucking bonfire because both are god awful...I'll give it to Toy-Box because "Tarzan & Jane" is an atrocity that makes me realize we had it good in 1997 with Aqua's "Barbie Girl"

ARIA Top 50 Singles Chart Review. 22nd June The One Where Olivia Seems Pretty Sad For Netting A Huge Album Bomb

 I feel like there's not a lot to say in terms of preamble with a week like this because yeah...we got a major album bomb from Olivia Rodrigo for "You Seem Pretty Sad for a Girl So in Love" and given I think the album is one of the best albums of the year in the mainstream (which granted isn't saying much considering how the mainstream feels like a lottery in terms of album quality), this will be a fun ride to go through.

Let's start with the top ten where we right off the bat need to deal with the album bomb because it's "Stupid Song' by Olivia Rodrigo at number one and it's here thanks mostly to streaming and Youtube. Obviously more about this song later.

It's an Olivia Rodrigo top two with "The Cure" rebounding four to number two while "Choosin' Texas" by Ella Langley slipped back one to number three,

"Drop Dead" by Olivia Rodrigo bounced back up elevens slots to number four while "Hate that I Made You Love" by Ariana Grande fell back two spots to number five. "Man I Need" by Olivia Dean fell two to number six.

New in at number seven is album cut "Honeybee" by Olivia Rodrigo at number seven. More on this song later.

"Rein Me In" by Sam Fender and Olivia Dean skidded down three places to number eight, 

Finally we wrap the top ten with two more songs from Olivia Rodrigo with ?Maggots For Brains" at number nine and "Begged" at number ten.

Losers

I am going to keep this short to save my sanity because over half the chart lost in double digits so I am just going to mention the songs that lost ground in single digits and will probably benefit when the chart resets to equilibrium next week, that said I will mention that last week's number one "I Knew It. I Knew You" by Taylor Swifr slumped ten slots to number eleven. 

Right now to those single digit losers, "Earrings" by Malcolm Todd slipped seven to seventeen...I expect this will be back in the top ten next week unfortunately. 

"Cinderella" by Mac Miller and Ty Dolla $ign remained somewhat steady only falling two spots to number twenty five. 

"Raindance" by Dave feat. Tems fell nine to twenty nine while it was the same size fall for "The Fate of Ophelia" by Taylor Swift to thirty one.  "Back to Friends" by Sombr fell eight to thirty seven and "Boston" by Stella Lefty refuses to go away despite being a slice of nepo baby junk down eight to forty two. 

Finally Katy Perry drops her new single on Friday but "One That Got Away" fell nine to fifty.

Drop Outs.The drop outs this week are combination of songs that have been bouncing on and of the charts for weeks, album cuts, hits from last year and newer songs.

So let's start with the songs bouncing on and off the chart like "APT" by Rose and Bruno Mars (I am ready for this one to be sent to the on replay charts) and "A Couple Minutes" by Olivia Dean (Probably has a slot on this year's year end list locked at this point. 

Drake album cuts "National Treasures" and "Shabang" took their exits after staying around longer than anyone wanted!.

As for the hits from last year that exited, we have "Undressed" by Sombr and "Opalite" by Taylor Swift.

But where Olivia Rodeigo struck hardest is all the newer songs that took their exit like "Edge of the Earth" by The Beaches, "Hit the Wall"  by Gracie Abrams (this song's performance on the chart has been incredibly underwhelming...not good signs for that upcoming album of hers), "American Girls" by Harry Styles, "Bloodstream", "Midnight Sun" by Zara Larsson and "Orbiter" by Noah Kahan.

Gains

So I was going to say that we didn't have any gains tiis week outside of the two Olivia Rodrigo singles in the top ten but we did see "Girls" by The Kid Laroi gain six spots to forty. 

Gains

So we are in album bomb territory for Olivia Rodrigo's "You Seem Pretty Sad for a Girl So in Love", I am only going to be reviewing the songs in the top ten and best and worst so with that in mind: "What's Wrong With Me?" feat. Robert Smith at number twelve, "My Way" at thirteen, "Expectations" at fourteen, "Less" at fifteen (this was so close to best of the week), "U + Me = <3" at sixteen, "Purple" at nineteen and "Cigarette Smoke" at twenty two (Again...another song that has legit claims to be one of Olivia's best songs from this album. Might be her best closer).

That leaves us with five new entries beginning but we're not starting with Olivia Rodrigo because...

39. "Iconic by Mistake" by Le Sserafim, Katseye and Illit

Well, this is unfortunate, mostly because this K-Pop song is really much less than the sum of it's parts to the point that it feels pretty close to a posse cut with trap beats and the groups bragging about how they engrave hate expressed toward them on tombstones that really doesn't convey anything with that damn cutesy hook. It'll fall off the chart pretty quickly so I think it's best we move on from this pretty forgettable slice of k-pop. 

10. "Begged" by Olivia Rodrigo

So now we get to the first of the Olivia Rodrigo cuts that reached the top ten with this song peformed by Olivia on Saturday Night Live and features Weyes Blood on backing vocals, its not quite the most heartbreaking song on the album but it's one of the saddest on the album as Olivia pleads for a connection with her man and Olivia is exhausted from begging for any kind of moment with this guy, this song is the moment where the relationship is well and truly on the way to crumbling over this sweet guitar and those backing vocals which do such a brilliant job of backing Olivia. Damn good song.

9. "Maggots for Brains" by Olivia Rodrigo

So the rest of the songs new this week come from the front half of the album where Olivia is so in love and this song about being so in love that you become emotionally numb and just obsessed with the person you are in love with especthat you lose focus on everything else in your life. Olivia has drescribed the bridge of this song as a bbit of a homage to Weezer which actually comes through in some of the production and lyrics that are inspired by Sex and the City. Definitely check this song out. 

7. "Honeybee" by Olivia Rodrigo

This is a song from "You Seem Pretty Sad for a Girl So in Love" that I was initially a bit  cooler on than I'd have liked but thankfully I do absolutely like this a lot after subsequent listens to the album, its that moment where it's all just fear of rejection meshed with hope that the person you atre head over heels for feels the same way about you and Olivia's voice delicately singing over the piano just hits home. It's just really pretty,

1. "Stupid Song" by Olivia Rodrigo

Ending this week with a song that like both other singles from this album builds into something bigger only this builds from Olivia crooning into this loud vibrant if slight shuttering pop rock song where she admits to wanting this guy in her life more than any stupid love song could ever say and she conveys that "more than a stupid song could ever say" line so god damn well, it sticks in your head especially with that galloping production. Again another really good song that I am glad hit number one.

But best of the week is going to "Maggots for Brains" by Olivia Rodrigo. Worst is going to "Iconic By Mistake" by Le Sserafim, Katseye and Illit.

Next week could be a quiet week but we'll have to see, I think all these Olivia Rodrigo songs could stick around a second week.

Pretty Fly (for 1999) 20th June. Man! Sometimes I Feel Like A Beautiful Stranger

 Ahh this week is...insane, not only are there three new entries in the top ten but we also have a new number one so let's start with the top ten where the new number one is one that I have been predicting for the week with it being a first number one for Sixpence None the Richer, "Kiss Me", it finally got to the top thanks to just getting ahead on those sales margins.

This pushed previous number one "No Scrubs" by TLC back to number two as those margins fell against it and it's coming under threat from the new entry at number three "Sometimes" by Britney Spears, we'll talk about this song in the new entries but as the follow to a huge single it did well on sales to secure a high chart position this week. 

"I Want It That Way" by Backstreet Boys slipped one to number four while we have a second new entry in the top ten in at number five "Man! I Feel Like A Woman" by Shania Twain...again, will talk about this song more later.

Ricky Martin's "Livin' La Vida Loca" had it's momentum clipped down two to number six while "Look At Me" by Geri Halliwell stalls at number seven.

The third new entry in our top ten comes courtesy of Madonna with "Beautiful Stranger"/ 

The party is coming to an end for "We Like to Party (The Vengabus)" by The Vengaboys down four to number nine while "9pm (Til I Come)" by ATB remained at number ten.

Losers

So we have a slew of songs that lost hard this week starting with "Until The Time Is Thtough" by Five down nine to forty nine as it makes it way out out.

Sliding twelve spots to forty five is "That Don't Impress Me Much" by Shania Twain while "Millennium" by Robbie Williams had one of the biggest shock falls of the week down from twenty four to forty one (really thought his song was going to stick around a bit longer).

Former number one "Baby One More Time" by Britney Spears slipped from fourteen to thirty two. "Hey Boy Hey Girl" by The Chemical Brothers fell off their debut of twenty five to thirty one. 

Korn's "Freak On A Lash" stumbled seven to thirty while "Canned Heat" by Jamiroquai unfortunately slumped eight to twenty eight.

People have finally seen sense because "Touch It" by Monifah dropped from eighteen to twenty five.

Gains

Two gains this week worth noting and they are both good songs for a change with "Say It Once" by Ultra up nine to nineteen while Fuel's "Shimmer" rose from thirty six to twenty nine. 

Re-Entries

Soulsearcher's "Can't Get Enough" returned to number fifty this week. 

New Entries

Five new entries this week and we're beginning with a stalwart in rock because...

43. "You'll Be In My Heart" by PhilCollins

We're starting this week off with the first of two movie songs, this one for the Disney film "Tarzan" and they have brought Phil Collins on board for this, now my north star for Disney songs is "Can You Feel the Love Tonight" by Elton John and this does get close on a purely emotional level with Collins singing about how it doesn't matter how near or far someone is, there'll always be a place for him in his heart which is honestly a sweet sentiment but I am not sure the song has that moment like in "Can You Feel the Love Tonight" where Elton sounds like he is telling a story about this place where love reigns...Ithe don't know...it's cute but there's better songs in the Disney franchise.

38. "One Tony Lockett" by James Freud & The Reserves

Okay, we're diving into AFL with this new entry from a short lived novelty pop project put together by former Models frontman James Freud and yeah, this is pretty footy sounding as you might expect with the central hook basically amounting to reminding everyone that there's "Only one Tony Lockett" and then telling Lockett's life story on the verses. The instrumentation is enough and the hook is as catchy as an a sexually transmitted infection so I guess if you like your footy novelty songs, check it out otherwise I'd probably skip it. 

8. "Beautiful Stranger" by Madonna

The second of our movie songs this week with this coming from the sound track of
"Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me" which just...groovy baby given I have never really cared foe that set of films however I was curious about this song given Madonna co-wrote and co-produced this song with William Orbit so I had some hope this was going to be good and...yeah...this is a pretty fun psychedelic pop and disco track that Madonna absolutely sounds awesome on even if I think it's missing a little of that seventies vibe that the Austin Powers movies appear to be all about. 

As for the content...well, it's all about how having an infatuation with a stranger or "devil in disguise" can upend somebody's world which to a degree does make sense for Austin Powers in way seeing as he thinks he is a bit of a ladies man. All in all...fun song...check it out.

5. "Man! I Feel Like A Woman" by Shania Twain

With the impressive top ten run of "That Don't Impress Me Much" and it slowly leaving the chart, I am kind of pleased to see a new Shania Twain song on the chart and whoo boy, this one is a fun one! Shania's taking all the girl power, her own charisma and mixing all together wihh some good old country rock sizzle to make one of the best girls night out songs to date because yeah, she's going out and letting shit hang loose while she's out partying with her best friends because as she reminds everyone on the bridge, the prerogative is for girls to "have a little fun" and you know what? I AM 100% down for that.

This is one insanely fun song that I think will become a hit, don't sleep on this one, ladies! (Also where's the guys version...we need "Woman! I Feel Like A Man")

3. "Sometimes" by Britney Spears

Closing the week out with the follow up to her number one hit "Baby, One More Time" with this being more of a piano led ballad with some strings and Britney's vocals being the star of the show as she admits to being shy and wants her new boyfriend to take it slow with her because she needs time to calm herself down and remove the nerves every time she sees this guy which is why she mentions running and hiding on the hook, it's a pretty good song especially coming from a teenager to wait, take your time and get to know the guy or girl. Good job Britney.

However best of the week is going to Shania Twain for "Man! I Feel Like A Woman", that song was just way too much fun, I can see it being a karoake staple. As for the worst...nothing really hard core deserves but if pushed maybe "One Tony Lockett" by James Freud & The Reserves.

ARIA Top 50 Singles Chart: 15th June. The one where Taylor's number one the week before Olivia blows everything up

 So this week feels irrelevant especially with Olivia Rodrigo likely netting one of the biggest album bombs since Taylor Swift's "The Life of a Showgirl" last year next week so anything here but we do have a week here and a busy one at that so let's dive into the top where for a second week we do have a new number one with "I Knew It. I Knew You" by Taylor Swift and it was a dominant number one on sales, streaming and even Youtube but with Olivia Rodrigo coming next week, I'm not certain it's going to keep up the momentum.

Of course, Olivia's arrival next week makes life difficult for former chart topper "Choosin' Texas" by Ella Langley which dipped backed to number two, it's still got strength on streaming and sales but will it have enough strength to go back to the top when the Olivia Rodrigo album bomb recedes.

Ariana Grande's "Hate That I Made You Love Me" dipped back one to number three...heck it was pretty much the same for the next six songs, they all stumbled back one with "Man I Need" by Olivia Dean at number four, "Rein Me In" by Sam Fender and Olivia Dean at number five, "The Cure" by Olivia Rodrigo at number six, "Janice STFU" by Drake at number seven, "Dracula" by Tame Impala at number eight and "IloveitIloveitIloveit" by Bella Kay at number nine.

Finally like a bad venereal disease, "Earrings" by Malcolm Todd remains at number ten, hopefully Olivia Rodrigo wipes this skidmark of a song out of the top ten. 

Losers

So a good chunk of these losers are probably going form part of the drop outs next week starting with "American Girls" by Harry Styles down seven to forty two. "National Treasures" by Drake slipped eight to thirty five.

"Noble" by F3mii lost its gains from last week down seven to thirty while the virality has disappeared for "Go" by The Chemical Brothers down ten to twenty five. 

Drop Outs

We basically lost two more Drake album tracks like "2 Hard for the Radio", "Ran to Atlanta" feat. Molly Santana and Future and  "Whisper My Name". 

The rest of these are just songs that keep bouncing on and off the charts eg: "Risk It All" and "I Just Might" both by Bruno Mars, "Yukon" by Justin Bieber and "Sailor Song" by Gigi Perez.

Gains

Not too many major gains this week. Maybe "Bed on Fire" by G Flip which rose five slots to twenty eight and "Love Me Not" by Ravyn Lenae which rebounded seven slots to twenty one which is wild. 

Re-Entries

So we did get a bunch of returns with "APT" by Roxe and Bruno Mars back at fifty, "Girls" by The Kid Laroi at forty six (that got a remix with Kehlani for some wild inexplicable reason) and finally "The One that Got Away" by Katy Perry as it's going viral back at fotty one.

New Entries

Four new entries beginning with...

48. "Edge of the Earth" by The Beaches

I am shocked and impressed a The Beaches song from Canadian band The Beaches 2023 album "Blame My Ex" entered the ARIA singles chart but it's here thanks to being used as a pivotal soundtrack moment on Amazon show "Off Campus" and yeah, this is actually a song from the album that I liked a lot back in 2023, with that drum patter that I absolutely have a soft spot for alongside that guitar rollick. As for the content, it's a relationship song where things are pushing and pulling apart yet she seems to always find a way back to them which honestly doesn't feel that healthy but still it's a good song, check it out.

39. "Bloodstream" by Alyssa Grace

Talk about a surprise, this one was a surprise when it turned up on the Australian top 50 chart on Spotify, shame the song is not that good, it's this piano dirge where Alyssa Grace sounds like she's sing crying and god damn it's uncomfortable to listen to. I don't really have much else to say about this song other than it really being quite the miserable listen. Nect!

23. "Cinderella" by Mac Miller feat. Ty Dolla $ign

I feel a bit weird talking about music that charts from an artist that is dead but it seems like those connected with the late Mac Miller are handling the release of his music respectfully and aren't looking to farm his fragments for money unlike those connected with JuiceWRLD and this song is fine enough, it's not perfect, I think it could have done without the Ty Dolla $ign feature but overall it's fine...enough said.

1. "I Knew It. I Knew It" by Taylor Swift

So the discourse around this song has been weird especially for a song for the new Toy Story 5 movie that it's a return to form after a bad album except I'd argue that a return to form for Taylor would be a good to great album but anyway we get this song which was apparently around in some form before "The Tortured Poets Department" and yeah, it's fine even if the production does make it feel like a weaker cut on say "Fearless" or "Speak Now" but I'm just glad we didn't get another "Actually Romantic" or "Cancelled" from Taylor.

That's our week and best of the week is going to "Edge of the Eatth" by The Beaches. Worst of the week for "Bloodstream" by Alyssa Grace.

Next week, Olivia Rodrigo album bomb!

Pretty Fly (For 1999): 13th June. Hey Canned Narcotic Boy Heat

So no preamble this week, lets jump straight into the top ten where to my surprise "No Scrubs" by TLC remains at number one but it's absolutely a margins game because right behind it at number two is "Kiss Me" by Sixpence None the Richer, it's definitely in the right spot to make a play for top spot. 

This saw the Backstreet Boys pushed back one spot to number three with "I Want It That Way", the margins were just too big for this song unfortunately. 

Rising one spot to number four is "Livin' La Vida Loca" by Ricky Martin. Not surprising, the hook on this song is an absolute monster, it's living the crazy life in the top ten.

"We Like to Party (The Vengabus)" by The Vengaboys recovered one spot to number six while "Honey to the Bee" by Billie Piper climbed two to number six. 

People appear to have stopped looking at Geri Halliwell because "Look At Me" slipped three slots to number seven.

Then we have The Offspring realizing their call for the lazy bum in their lives to get a job  with "Why Don't You Get A Job" is slowly not being heard down one to number eight.

The ABBA tribute posse cut "Thank ABBA for the Music" from Steps, Tina Cousins, Cleopatra, B*Witched and Billie Piper remains at number nine. Finally we do have an arrival to the top ten with ATB's "9 PM (Til I Come)" rising one slot to number ten.

Losers

Boyzone's "No Matter What" plummeted from twenty nine to forty eight this week and is on the cusp of leaving the top fifty...good. I still cannot stand that song. 

Another former top ten hit taking a giant tumble is "Anthem for the Year 2000" by Silverchair which got dunked from thirty one to forty six. 

Human Nature's "Last to Know" is on it's last legs sliding from thirty five to forty one likewise for "Until the Time is Through" by Five which tumbled ten to forty. "You Don't Know Me" by Armand Van Helden and Duane Harden got cut down seven to thirty two.

"Right Here, Right Now" by Fatboy Slim dipped six to thirty four.

Gains

So biggest gain of the week belongs to "Millennium" by Robbie Williams which climbed from forty one to twenty four this week which kind of surprises me. The song is good but I guess I shouldn't underestimate Robbie Williams fans. 

A good gain for Everlast's "What It's Like" up from thirty three to twenty six while Ilanda's "It's Our Time" rose eight to thirty one. 

Re-Entries

Two returns this week with "Every Me, Every You" by Placebo back at number fotty seven and "Westside" by TQ at number forty two.

New Entries

 Three new entries beginning with...

49. "Narcotic" by Liquido

Starting the week with a German four piece rock band with this being their first song to hit the ARIA singles chart and the band have made no bones about saying they wanted this song to sound very Weezer-esque and yeah it gets there with that chip tune keyboard that probably shouldn't be forming the main melody and the guitars that have plenty of sizzle and a front man who reminds me more of Spandau Ballet rather than Weezer vocally.

This really isn't doing much for me so I think we best be moving on to...

25. "Hey Boy, Hey Girl" by The Chemical Brothers.

Brand new single from British electronic duo The Chemical Brothers with this song sampling "The Rood is on Fire" by Rock Master Scott & The Dynamic Three. I love the production on this with it's menacing trance groove and then building into this absolute stomper of a dance jam that likely sets night club floors alight already since it's release however that goofy shout of "Here we go!" takes me right out of the song, it just sounds hilarious even as the rest of the song sounds great, It's not bad and definitely worth checking out. 

20. "Canned Heat" by Jamiroquai

Ending the week with British funk group Jamiroquai with this song being the lead single for their fourth album "Synkronized" (Yes, spelled that way) and while I don't think this hits as hard as "Cosmic Girl", this is still straight up groovy and feels like an ode to 70s funk  The song is about finding the insatiable inability to not dance thanks to the canned heat substance on shoes. Good song check it out.

Yeah, it's also best of the week. Worst of the week is going to "Narcotic" by Liquido

ARIA Top 50 Singles Chart Review. 8th June. The one where Ariana Hates She Can't Stop "Choosin' Texas" Return

 So this week is pretty quiet which I am grateful for given the impending Olivia Rodrigo album bomb in a few weeks but before all that let's dive into this week's top ten where "Choosin' Texas" by Ella Langley retook the number one spot this week thanks to strength on streaming but it will face a challenge for a fourth week at number one courtesy of Taylor Swift. 

"Choosin' Texas" faced down a challenge from new entry "Hate That I Made You Love Me" by Ariana Grande entering at number two thanks to good streaming even if sales haven't gotten on board yet. 

This left both "Man I Need" by Olivia Dean and "Rein Me In" by Sam Fender which both held their positions at three and four respectively. 

"The Cure" by Olivia Rodrigo slipped off the number one down four to number five, that's mostly because this song lost sales and it's streaming wavered hard. 

"Janice STFU" by Drake slipped back one to number six, frankly the sooner this song is gone from the top ten the better, its an awful awful song.

"Dracula" by Tame Impala slipped back one to number seven while "IloveitIloveitIloveit" by Bella Kay dropped one to number eight, "Ordnary" by Alex Warren continues to refuse to go away even as it's down one to number nine.

Sadly the worst song to hit the top ten in sometime sits at number ten..."Earrings" by Malcolm Todd which jumped two slots this week. Gross gross gross.

Losers

Drake album tracks falling away continue to be the story in our losers beginning with "2 Hard 4 for the Radio" down thirteen to number forty nine, "Run to Atlanta" featuring Future and Molly Santana is running out of the chart like hot a hot curry through intestines, its down twelve to forty seven. "Whisper My Name" slumped sixteen to thirty seven, "Shabang" got dumped nine to thirty six and is probably going to be out with a whimper rather than a shabang either next week or the week after. Finally "National Treasures" slipped seventeen to twenty seven.

Drop Outs

Drake saw both "Plot Twist" and "Dust" leave alongside "APT" by Rose and Bruno Mars for the eightieth time and "Doors" by Noah Kahan. 

Gains

So we did get some nice chunky gains this week beginning with "Bed on Fire" by G Flip which rose fifteen slots to number thirty three while "Noble" by F3mii climbed fourteen to number twenty three. 

Re Entries

Two re entries this week with "Risk It All" by Bruno Mars back at fifty and "Sailor Song" by Gigi Perez making another return at number forty eight.

New Entries

Two new entries this week, starting with...

45. "Orbiter" by Noah Kahan

Okay, instead of making any song from The Great Divide a hit proper, we get a song that was basically added to a deluxe version of the album and you can tell instantly why the song was cut from the original album, its this weird song that sounds like Kahan is playing a guitar with a string broken, it's a distracting noise that really does take away from the song and it's incredibly unflattering...next.

2. "Hate That I Made You Love Me" by Ariana Grande.

Look, I am not going to dive into Ariana Grande's private life, it's none of my business unless it starts creeping into her music and so here we have the lead single for her upcoming 8th album "Petal" and I guess it's not really good sign thar the song feels like a merger of  "7 Rings" and "We Can't Be Friends" (the former made my worst list, the latter I am mostly ambivalent on) with that watery bubbling noise and tinkling keys as Ariana vocally sings about dealing with people idolising her or worse..engaging in parasocial relationships with her which where my frustration with the song is...the lack of actual punch in Ariana's vocals or in the production, something to give note to the frustration of it all. 

But it is good so I'll give it best of the week. Worst of the weeks goes to "Orbiter" by Noah Kahan. Next week, Taylor Swift's song for Toy Story 5. 

Pretty Fly (For 1999). June 6th. Can't Get Enough Scar Tissue to Shimmer.

So we have an interesting week in prospect here especially as it seems the challengers are coming for our number one which of course remains "No Sctubs" by TLC but those sales margins are starting to look shaky against the competition.

Believe it or not, I don't think that competition is coming from "I Want It That Way" by Backstreet Boys which climb ed one slot to number two, it's solid enough on sales but doesn't look to be in a place to challenge for number one.

What may well be in a place to surpass TLC and the Backstreet Boys lies with "Kiss Me" by Sixpence None the Richer which climbed from fourteen to number three this week and has an incredible amount of momentum to make a move for number one next week.

All this leaves "Look At Me" by Geri Halliwell in a weird spot as it remains stalled at number four, it doesn't have the numbers to make a play for number one but it could face challengers for its spot soon if sales don't improve. 

That challenge could be coming from "Livin' La Vida Loca" by Ricky Martin up one to number five although that jump could be because "We Like to Party (The Vengabus)" by Vengaboys just crashed off the chart cliff slumping four slots to number six.

"Why Don't You Get a Job?" by The Offspring slipped two spots to number seven while Billie's "Honey to the Bee" remains steady at number eight.

The 'We Worship ABBA' crew of Steps, Tina Cousins, Cleopatra, B*Witched and BIllie Piper climbed one spot to number nine with "Thank ABBA for the Music". 

Savage Garden round out the top ten with "The Animal Song" down one to number ten but goodness knows with this song. 

Losers.

 So we do have a few big losers down the bottom end of the chart with "Enjoy Yourself" by A+ down six to forty eight while Pandora's "Rise 'n' Shine" isn't shining so much down nine to forty seven. 

"That Don't Impress Me Much" by Shania Twain continues it's graceful descent out of the chart down nine to thirty three. 

If you were wondering where "Baby, One More Time" by Britney Spears is...well it fell ten spots to seventeen this week.

Gains

There's not much to tell in the way of gains outside of our top ten, really, the biggest gain appears to be for "Say It Once" by Ultra up sev en slots to twenty six.

Re-Entries

Our returns are two songs that I mostly like with "Unforgivable Sinner" by Lene Marlin back at fifty and "Shimmer" by Fuel back at forty three. 

New Entries

Three new entries this week beginning with...

49. "Can't Get Enough" by Soulsearcher

So we're starting this week off with an English Studio project that was created by a record producer named Marc Pomeroy that has roots in alternnative. dance and R&B with this song being the lead single and yeah, this is a lot of fun! The vocals are infectious and the production gives the vocals room to breath and swell, it sounds great! Now given this is more of a dance cut, the content really isn't anything more than dancefloor filler about how they can't get enough of this significant other's love. Good song, definitely check this out. 

46. "Shimmer" by Shawn Mullins

Oh here we have the follow up to "Lullaby" and Shawn Mullins isn't doing the talk singing he did on that song here, the vocal performance is definitely better here than it was on "Lullaby" and overall I think this song is actually a step up, there's more to the guitars and drum work here, more of a flourish if that makes sense and the content doesn't feel as creepy as it did on "Lullaby" and the content of the song does work for what it is.

It points out that we try to keep children innocent and then as they grow teach them to hate and given the way the world is right now, it's a sentiment that has only grown more true with time although this sentiment for Mullins seems to be born out of a moment when he was visiting a friend in hospital, got lost and wound up in the maternity ward where he saw a newborn baby with their eyes wide open and was struck by how innocent the baby is. Check out the song if you are curious. 

16. "Scar Tissue" by Red Hot Chili Peppers

The lead single for the album "Californication" and given the Peppers have made some of the best rock music of the 90s I was hoping for more of that stadium rock vibe that RHCP had going at least in the early nineties, I had hope which is why the minute I went into this song and heard the down tuned guitars and Anthony Kiedis droning, the disappointment felt insurmountable...this song is just BORING...sure there's some good harmonies on the hook but god, otherwise this is just a flat song with no punch or life to it at all. Ugh. 

Yeah, it's the worst of the week. Best is going to "Can't Get Enough" by Soulsearcher because hey at least that song has some good groove and energy to it. 

ARIA SIngles Top 50 Chart Review: 1st June The One Where Olivia's The Cure Brings Greatness to The Charts

This week felt...weird...the fall out of the Drake album bomb was always going to be a thing but we also got two new entries, one of which I am very excited to talk about because folks, we might have one of the best songs of the year on or off the charts at hand here but anyway let's jump into the top ten where we have a new number one "The Cure" by Olivia Rodrigo which got to number one purely on some early sales, excellent streaming and a little Youtube. 

However it is a margins game with "Choosin' Texas" by Ella Langley right behind it down one to number two, this song is still doing EXTREMELY well on sales and streaming and is in a good position to retake the number one should "The Cure" wobble. 

Not so much the case for our next two songs with "Man I Need" by Olivia Dean pushed down one to number three and "Rein Me In" by Sam Fender and Olivia Dean which both just do not have the sales or streaming to match the top two. 

Sadly holding steady at number five is "Janice STFU" by Drake, it's holding steady on streaming sadly. more is the pity given the song sucks. 

Rebounding one spot to number six is "Dracula" by Tame Impala while "ILoveItILoveItILoveIt" by Bella Kay also rebounded one to number seven.  The receding of the Drake album bomb meant the return of "Ordinary" by Alex Warremat  number eight...dang it...come on...it's time for this song to free fall.

Rebounding a massive fourteen spots to number nine (I think the new number one had something to do with this) is "Drop Dead" by Olivia Rodrigo. 

Finally the second Drake song to remain in the top ten is "National Treasures" but it is down six slots to number ten.

Losers

All of our big losers were Drake album tracks with "Dust" down thirty three to forty three. "Plot Twist" down twenty three to forty one, "2 Hard 4 THe Radio" lost it's tuning down twenty one to thirty six,, "Shabang" down seventeen to twenty seven and "Whisper My Name" down fifteen to twenty one.

The only non Drake faller was "Hit the Wall" by Gracie Abrams down nine to thirty one.

Drop Outs

The drop outs are mostly Drake album tracks so gone and won't be back are "Make Them Cry", "What Did I Miss?", "Make Them Pay", "B's On the Table" feat. 21 Savage, "Burning Bridges", "Make Them Know" and "Make Them Remember".

However we also saw one big exit with "Birds of a Feather" by Billie Eilish finally leaving the chart to join the On Replay chart.

Gains

Everything that's not Drake rebounded hard this week so I am going to go through the double digit gains only beginning with "Self Aqare" by Temper City which somehow climbed sixteen to twenty five...people really care about that song? Really?

Ravyn Lenae dropped a new single "Handle" on Friday but her big smash "Love Me Not" continues to hang onto the chart up eleven to twenty four.

Sombr's "12 to 12" rebounded ten to twenty, 

Re-Entries

Our returns are where we saw the most activity other than Drake songs losing or dropping out so what filled the slots left?

I am not sure why "Yukon" by Justin Bieber or "APT" by Rose and Bruno Mars are back but they returned at fifty and forty nine respectively. 

"I Just Might" by Bruno Mars is back at forty seven while Taylor Swift's "Opalite" is back at forty six  (Taylor has a new single for the Toy Story 5 soundtrack coming on Friday).

Olivia Dean's excellent "A Couple Minutes" is also making its return at forty four and Sombr's "Undressed" climbed back in at forty.

New Entries

Two new entries this week, we're beginning with...

48. "Bed on Fire" by G Flip

So we finally got a second Australian song to chart in the singles top 50 behind "Dracula" by Tame Impala albeit it's from G Flip's album last year however the reason it's here is because the song was used in a sex scene on Netflix drama "Off Campus" so how is the song?

It's good? Feels very reminiscent of a Florence and the Machine cut except Florence Welch could absolutely go hell for leather on the vocals which is not really in G Flip's wheel house vocally and they do a fine enough  job here with a song all about exploring a prohibited attraction and embracing it anyway despite those around them saying "No, don't think about it, don't go there".

Good but just short of great song, check it out. 

1. "The Cure" by Olivia Rodrigo 

The second single from Olivia Rodrigo's third album "You Seem Pretty Sad for A Girl So In Love" and and I was curious what we would get with this song...well, I am happy to say that we got something that is absolutely without qualification GREAT, there's something so incredibly transcendent about this song and I think it lies in Dan Nigro's production where finally a song is allowed to have a build and this incredibly satisfying cresecendo that's built up with the vocals and the guitar and just the song taking on layers to reach that point where Olivia just yells "I'm unravelled"

The content is just as good with Olivia using the metaphor of love as a drug but only it's not working, the love her lover is giving is not enough to assuage Olivia's own self doubt and negative self talk that could see her push this lover away because she knows that it does matter how good the love is or how much love he gives that it'll never fix the raging insecurities that Olivia has and she needs to put in the work on herself to fix all that. 

"The Cure" is already oen of my favourite songs of 2026 even just outside the charts alone and I am so glad that Australia has given this a week at number one, damn great song and is absolutely worth your time, check this song out!

Pretty Fly (For 1999): 30th May Get Set and Swear to Kiss Me Again

 Let's dive straight into the week because really there isn't that much to talk about before hand, it's a pretty standard week here especially because remaining at number one is "No Sctubs" by TLC, this song has sales on lock at the moment and doesn't look to be under any threat.

That threat is not going to come from "We Like to Party (The Vengabus)" by The Vengaboys which held steady at number two this week but it is coming under pressure from "I Want it That Way" by Backstreet Boys which rose four places to number three. 

Geri Halliwell's "Look At Me" fell one slot to number four and "Why Don't You Get a Job" by The Offspring slipped one to number five.

New into the top ten this week is "Livin' La Vida Loca" by Ricky Martin which jumped five slots to number six and looks good to go even higher in the weeks ahead.

All this saw "Baby One More Time" by Britney Spears fall two places back to number seven, it's on its way out, we're due a second single from Britney in the next few weeks or so. 

Billie Piper's "Honey to the Bee" added no new bees by staying at number eight while Savage Garden's "The Animal Song" stumbled three spots to to number nine.

Finally "Thank Abba for the Music" by Steps, Tina Cousins, Cleopatra, B*Witched and Billie Piper remained at number ten.

Losers

So let's take a gander at what happened outside the top ten. "Put Your Hands Up" by The Black White Brothers is having a put your hands down nine to forty five this week. 

"This Kiss" by Faith Hill is on it's way out down from thirty five to forty one while N*Sync's "Tearin' Up My Heart" is being torn down six to thirty seven. 

:"That Din't Impress Me Much" by Shania Twain also took a sharp fall sliding eleven places to twenty three while Silverchair's "Ana's Song (Open Fire)" unfortunately fell seven places off it's debut to twenty one. 

Gains

Not much in the way of gains this week with ATB continuing to move up with "9 PM (Til I Come)" up nine to being on the cusp of the top ten at number eleven. 

"Right Here, Right Now" by Fatboy Slim did climb from thirty four to twenty eight while 4 The Cause's cover of "Stand by Me" continues to hang around like a bad bacterial infection climbing from forty two to thirty six this week. 

Re-Entries

Three songs re-entered this week with "Westside" by TQ at forty eight, "Every Me, Every You" by Placebo at forty nine and "All Torn Down" by The Living End at fifty.

New Entries

Three new entries this week, beginning with...

47. "Swear It Again" by Westlife

We starting in Ireland this week courtesy of brand new boy band Westlife and their debut single from their self titled debut album. This song did debut at number one in the UK so I was curious as to what this new five piece boy band could deliver and it turns out that this is a modest little piano based pop ballad with a really big hook that works for what it is and not really much more than that. 

The content of the song is actually interesting where the narrator is addressing rumours being put around that he is getting ready to up and leave his girlfriend/wife and is seeking to reassure her that he will stay with her and swear his love over and over again if that is what is takes. It's a cute song but probably not one that I am going to seek out.

39. "Get Set" by Taxiride

Heading back to a local acts and another band debuting on the charts this week, Taxiride are a four piece band that formed in Melbourne with this song from their debut album "Imaginate" so I was curious as to what could have made this song chart and yeah I think I get it because "Get Set" is one of the most vocal harmony infused pop rock songs to date where they are truly one of the best features of this song along with that driving groove and lyrics that are all about creating your own path, go getting and creating own hope for the future. Terrific song, definitely check this one out. 

14. "Kiss Me" by Sixpence None the Richer

Ending of the week with American Christian alt rock courtesy of Sixpence None the Richer and like both Westlife and Taxiride before them this week, "Kiss Me" Sixpence None the Richer's first single to hit the Australian charts. Now thuis is a bit of a breezy pop/rock song with those acoustic guitars and a keyboard playing fairly close to a sound like an accordion or concertina which is kind of impressive to me!. The content dives love song territory where the narrator just wants the person they are with to kiss them for the first time no matter where they are. It's a bit cloying for me but it's not a bad song just one I could get sick of  if it sticks around.

That wraps up the week and I am not going to give out a worst of thr week this week mostly because none of the new songs are that bad however I am going to give best of the week to "Get Set" by Taxirude because that song is absolutely awesome, 

ARIA Singles Top 50 Chart Review: 25th May, The one where the Drakenami hits.

 We got the Drake album bomb for "Iceman" this week and I am grumpier than even a cat at the vet who is about to have a thermometer shoved up it's anal cavity by the vet, anyway let's get into the top ten because it's not Drake at number one, it's Ella Langley at number one for another week with "Choosing Texas", it was a dominant week on sales, streaming and even on Youtube for this song but the challenge might well come next week from Olivia Rodrigo, we'll have to see. 

It held up comfortably over "Man I Need" by Olivia which held firm at number two, I don't see this going back to number one despite it still being decently strong on streaming but the sales have fallen off a cliff. 

"Rein Me In" by Sam Fender and Olivia Dean also held at number three despite it doing better on sales than "Man I Need" but it lost it's advantage on streaming. 

Then we run into a cluster of Drake songs with "National Treasures" at four, "Janice STFU" at five and "Whisper My Name" at six.

The Drake songs pushed "Dracula" by Tame Impala back three spots to number seven and "IloveitIloveitIloveit" by Bella back three to number eight.

Then we have two more Drake songs from "Iceman" to round out the top ten with "Make Them Cry" at number nine and "Dust" at number ten. 

Losers

A good half of the chart lost ground massively so I am going to focus on the songs outside of the top ten that only lost ground in the single figures this week with "Ordinary" by Alex Warren down six to number twelve, "Daisies" by Justin Bieber down nine to sixteen and "So Easy (To Fall in Love)" by Olivia Dean down seven to seventeen. 

"Homewrecker" by Sombr slipped nine to twenty and maybe in a truly bad sign, our least bad loser was "Earrings" by Malcolm Todd down four to twenty one. 

Then there's "Golden" from K-Pop Demon Hunters down nine to thirteen.

Drop Outs

So this week did see two songs have their time on the chart ended permanently and are off to the on replay singles chart, those being "Stargazing" by Myles Smith and "I Had Some Help" by Morgan Wallen.

As for the rest of these, I am going to group these up:

2025 hits that should have left awhiile ago: "Undressed" by Sombr, "Opalite" by Taylor Swift, "Yukon" by Justin Bieber, 

2026 songs that will likely make the year end: "A Couple Minutes" and "Baby Steps" for Olivia Dean, "I Just Might" and "Risk it All" both by Bruno Mars, 

2026 songs that might return (although in a couple of cases I hope they don't): 'The Great Divide" by Noah Kahan, "Pop Dat Thang" by Dababy, "Pinky Up" by Katseye

Finally...the what the fuck were these songs still doing on the chart: "Manchild" by Sabrina Carpenter, "APT" by Rose and Bruno Mars, "Die with a Smile" by Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars and "Sailor Song" by Gigi Perez, 

Gains

There were no gains this week. 

Re-Entries

The one return was for Drake's "What Did I Miss?" at twenty four.

New Entries

So because we do have an album bomb for 'Iceman" I am going to only cover the five songs from the album that make the top ten so outside of that we have "Ran to Atlanta" with Future and Molly Santana (Future is absolutely useless here) at eleven, "Shabang" at thirteen, "2 Hard 4 The Radio" at fifteen, "Plot Twist" at eighteen, "Make Them Pay" at thirty one, "B's on the Table" feat. 21 Savage (Another useless feature), "Burning Bridges" at thirty eight, " Make Them Know" at forty two and "Make Them Remember" at fotty four.

That leaves us with seven new entries to cover but we aren't going to be starting with Drake because we have...

22. "Hit the Wall" by Gracie Abrams

Alright the lead single from Gracie Abrams new album "Daughter from Hell" out in the middle of July and dear god, this is just a bland nothing of a song that just builds and builds but does nothing with that crescendo or anything imaginative with the words 'hit the wall' and Gracie conveys all the emotion of a fucking Psyduck...Next!

14. "Go" by The Chemical Brothers

My last hope for anyting of good quality before we hit the run of Drake songs is a 2015 song from The Chemical Brothers album "Born in the Echoes", it went viral thanks to a chaotic dance scene in Netflix film "Apex" starring Taron Edgerton and Charlize Theron, TikTok users recreated the dance scene and boom, the latest viral older song is born so how is "Go"? Its actually really damn good, the instrumental sticks in your head and I like the vocals havr some bite and menace about them. Check this out if you are curious.

10. "Dust" by Drake

We begin our laborious exploration of the five pack of Drake songs from Iceman with the second song from the album being first up and it's where Drake is focussed on his longevity in the rap game and taking potshots at Kendrick Lamar and Joe Budden although I do think the shots at Kendrick are really kind of lame, has Drake forgotten that "Not Like Us" was THE song of the summer of 2024 that everyone including the women Drake concern trolls and claims if they are from Atlanta they call him Santa were dancing to "Not Like Us"

Yeah, that production and constant beat switches, this song is not going to stick in my memory much, its forgettable at best. Move on.

9. "Make Them Cry" by Drake

So I actually don't ,mind the album opener, Drake sounds intense and actually sounds reflective when talking about his family members and for once the beat switch sounds better infused or mixed into the song for a change although the usual pot shots at Kendrick Lamar included annd a dig at J Cole for running away from the rap beef in 2024 which is weird coming from Drake of al people for some obvious reasons...

6. "Whisper My Name" by Drake

The protruding theme of ICEMAN comes through so much on this song because this is another track where Drake airs out his grievances with people who sided with Kendrick Lamar during the beef and throwing around threats against people who speak his name too loudly or else they might cop a violent revenge and throwing subliminal shots at J Cole over his failure to participate in the beef and bragging about money being spent on those who presumably stood by him during the beef with Kendrick.

He just will not let shit that happened in 2024 die even though the world has moved on from the beef. The other problem with this song is that considering that Drake is laying out the threats of retribution where's the damn menace in the production? Percussion also sounds way too low here. Not good. 

5. "Janice STFU" by Drake

We get to the song that looks like it might be the song from "Iceman" to stick around long term on the charts and again like the other songs that I have already talked about where Drake is getting aggressive and slamming not only his haters but the industry like the industry has actually failed him when it's been the industry that's helped him be as big as he has been through the 2010s into the 2020s even with the Kendrick Lamar beef and the other times he seems to shoot himself in the foot and just maybe clipping the indistry machine that has helped you to the top isn't the way to do it, Drake!

It also wouldn't be a Drake song where he isn't concern trolling women over a skin crawling repulsive beat with gang vocals that sound straight out of the 2010s. I hope this doesn't stick around...it sucks!

4. "National Treasures" by Drake

Sigh. Another song, anorther round of Drake taking potshots at Kendrick Lamar like the beef hasn't been over for awhile however I do like the basketball references and how cleverly they are woven into the bars and I do like production here with the sample blended well for a change until the beat switch up that dives head first into being incredibly irritating That said...Drake bragging about being untouchable in Toronto sure is interesting...

That's our week and worst of the week is a tie between "Janice STFU" by Drake and "Hit the Wall" by Gracie Abrams. As for the best...The Chemical Brothers run away with that one for "Go". Mext week...the second single from Olivia Rodrigo so get ready for that and the fall out of all of this. 

Pretty Fly (For 1999): 23rd May. Sinner Look At Me Shimmer and have the Time Of Our Lives

So I haven't got much time to be wasted here today so let's skip the preamble and get straight into the top ten where for yet another week, it's "No Scrubs" by TLC at number one thanks to its continued strong margins on sales ahead of "We Like to Party (The Vengabus)" by The Vengaboys at number two.

However we do have a new entry at number three with the debut solo single from former Spice Girl Geri Halliwell called "Look at Me", I'll talk more about the song later, it's here probably mostly due to Spice Girls fans and curiosity factor.

It did help push "Why Don't You Get A Job" by The Offspring back to number four, this song has peaked and should be on the way out soon. 

Former number one "Baby, One More Time" by Britney Spears remained steady at number five, I expect this song's exit to be slow, graceful and steady.

Slipping two spots to number four is "The Animal Song" by Savage Garden while "I Want It That Way" by The Backstreet Boys slipped one off it's debut to number seven.

"Honey to The Bee" by Billie Piper climbed two slots to number eight thanks to some good sales while Monifah's vice like grip on number seven finally crumbled and it fell two to number nine 

The tribute to ABBA by Steps, Tina Cousins, Billie Piper, B*Witched and Cleopatra "Thank ABBA for the Music" jumped into the top ten up one spot to number ten. 

Losers

The big losses are plentiful this week with "Lullaby" by Shawn Mullins bidding adieu to his time on the chart down fourteen to fifty. "Girlfriend/Boyfriend" by Blackstreet slipped twelve to forty nine. 

I am perfectly fine with "Stay the Same" by Joey McIntyre sliding seven to forty seven..the song still sucks, even better is the horrendous cover of "Stand by Me" by 4 the Cause down from twenty eight to forty two. 

Sadly, "Save Tonight" by Eagle Eye Cherry fell ten placs to forty wich is a shame because that song is really good. "Enjoy Yourself" by A+ skidded down from thirty two to thirty nine. 

"This Kiss" by Faith Hill is getting a little cold down eight to thirty five while the public finally appear to be done with "No Matter What" by Boyzone as that collapsed out of the top ten to number twenty three. 

 In the anathema of bad songs taking losses this week joins Dru Hill with "How Deep is Your Love" down from thirteen to twenty one this week...thank goodness!

Gains

So we did have two decent gains this week with the most notable being the rise of "9pm (Til I Come)" by ATB moving up eleven to break into the top twenty at twenty snd Ilanda's "It's Our Time" found a second wind this week up from forty nine to thirty while

of someon

New Entries

Five new entries this week beginning with...

48. "Unforgivable Sinner"  by Lene Marlin

A Norweigan singer-songwriter begins our reviews this week with this being Lene Marlin's first song to hit the ARIA singles chart and I am stunned its even here at all because this song is a harrowing one that centres on the overriding shame and guilt that comrs from causing the death someone close along with the responsibility and regret that they have been saddled with for the rest of their lives and longing for forgiveness that may not ever come...all this is juxtaposed with production that is more acoustic but weirdly upbeat given the sombr and deeply unsettling nature of the content of the song. I like it, hope it sticks around.

45 "Shimmer"  by Fuel

Fuel is another first time entrant to the ARIA singles chart with this song being from the 1998 album "Sunburn" and again this is another song that really dives into emotional turmoil with the production to match this time...this song songs dark from the guitars that don't ever really hit the point of shredding but do their job and drums that keep a steady rhythm as the content dives into the narrator's ideal "perfect" relationship only to realize that that ideal relationship is just a long held illusion that will shimmer and fade away leaving him with nothing but the painful reality that this relationship he is in is nowhere near perfect and in fact he is watching something that was beautiful die in real time.. In short it's another pretty damn good song, check it out. 

32. "Time of Our Lives" by Marcia Hines

First of two Australian new entries this week and a nice change up from the dark subject matter we've been dealing with courtesy of Australian music legend Marcia Hines who brings some good old pop soul and she can sell this in her sleep with those vocals and the production is just bouncy and honestly just radiates the joy of meeting the guy she is done with being friends and wanting to be something more and them reciprocating. Fun song that is definitely a mood lifter. 

14. "Ana's Song (Open Fire)" by Silverchair

Trigger Warning: Discussions of mental health and eating disorders.

Second of the Australian new entries and the second single from Neon Ballroom for Silverchair and wow...this is one hits a real nerve because it's all about Daniel Johns battle with anorexia  which came about as a result of depression and anxiety with the lyrics a pretty confronting image of just how anorexia hit Johns with him admitting he'd eat enough to "stay awake", Ana being the shorthand for anorexia. This just in the content hits hard but it's Daniel himself whose vocal delivery is just raw and devastating, it cuts you to ribbons inside. The drums and guitars all go off and this song just punches so god damn hard, it's worth a listen. 

3. "Look at Me" by Geri Halliwell

So Geri Halliwell has left the Spice Girls and the realm of girl power for a solo career with this being her debut solo single, I will say she was not the strongest vocalist in the group but she does possess a lot of charisma and personality which does help to some degree, I say this because "Look At Me" is not really that good, the song plays for musical theatre that I guess kind of suits Geri to an extent given how her vocals have been produced here however the lyrics and content of the song strike me as odd, she pokes fun at being famous courtesy of being in one of the biggest pop groups of the 90s but she's still famous regardless?

This just doesn't hit in the way that I think those in the Geri Halliwell camp would have been hoping for. Curiosity got this song as high as this...I don't see it sticking around.

It's worst of the week. As for the best...ahh...that's going to "Ana's Song (Open Fire)" by Silverchair but man it was close.