Thursday 9 July 2020
2000 Sound. 9th July. "Freestyler" boms up at number one. Eminem asks for The Real Slim Shady in the new entries
Monday 6 July 2020
Rating the Number One songs on the week of my birthday part 2: 2000 to 2020
If you missed part 1, click here to read part 1 which was 1987 to 1999.
Here's part two starting with a rock banger from 2000
2000: “Mascara” by Killing Heidi
I still like this song a lot, Ella Hooper is an amazing rock
vocalist. Killing Heidi were definitely on a winner with this song and the chorus
is quite hard to get out of your head once you hear it. 8/10
2001: “Can’t Fight the Moonlight” by LeAnn Rimes
I will guarantee most people forget that this song was a
number one hit for LeAnn Rimes, the song coming from the soundtrack for the
movie “Coyote Ugly” but it signified a move toward a pop direction for Rimes
which didn’t suit her at all and yeah, the production here isn’t great. 6/10
2002: “Whenever, Wherever” by Shakira
“Lucky that my breasts are small and humble so you don’t
confuse them with mountains” should have been a meme already and really showcased
the incredible charisma of Shakira. Pity, she hasn’t had more hits in the 2010s
in Australia, could have done with her on the charts here. 8/10
2003: “Lose Yourself” by Eminem
Look, this song from “8 Mile” Is a classic and if I said anything
negative about it, I’d be hung, drawn and quartered. I miss this Eminem right
now. Enough said. 9/10
2004: “What About Me” by Shannon Noll
Another cover, this time Shannon Noll’s debut hit is a cover
of Moving Pictures 1982 hit “What About Me?” and while I think “Learn to Fly”
and even “Drive”, the latter of which has meme possibilities, are better of the
singles from “That’s What I’m Talking About”, his cover does the original justice
which is all you can ask for, right? 7/10
2005: “Over and Over” by Nelly feat. Tim McGraw.
I don’t really feel much of anything toward this song tbh,
it’s a pleasant R’n’b crossed with country song, it just feels meh to me. 5/10
2006: “Run It!” by Chris Brown feat. Juelz Santana
This was annoying in 2006 when it was a hit and Chris Brown’s
star was on the rise and the production does not help. Fuck this. 3/10
2007: “Lips of an Angel” by Hinder.
Why the hell was this garbage a hit? Were we really that desperate
for Nickelback knock offs that we had to send this piece of shit to number one?
The vocals suck and the lyrics are just whining
that this girl’s ability to give great blow jobs is making is difficult to be
faithful to his girlfriend who is in the next room with nothing to sell any
kind of danger at all. Fuck this trash off! Worst number one of the 2000s! 1/10
2008: Bleeding Love” by Leona Lewis
Oh a pleasant change, Leona Lewis’s “Bleeding Love”, a song
that I loved back in 2008 but yeah I can’t lie…it hasn’t aged all that well in
terms of the production. 7/10
2009: “You Found Me” by The Fray
I have never liked The Fray and this song is just cut price Red
Hot Chilli Peppers. I just don’t like the vocals on this song at all. 4/10
2010: “Replay” by Iyaz
I guess the record industry were really desperate to keep
the cocaine pile going after they all blackballed Chris Brown, that said, this
song sounds more like an Akon rip off and not a pleasant one at that. Annoying to
say the least 3/10
2011: “S&M” by Rihanna
A song that makes bondage sound less sexy than catching gonorrhoea.
Yuck 3/10
2012: “Wild Ones” by Flo Rida feat. Sia
Well at least this has a decent hook but otherwise pass. 5/10
2013: “Same Old Love” by Macklemore and Ryan Lewis feat.
Mary Lambert
I miss this Macklemore and this song sends an incredibly
important message…Love is love. 8/10
2014: “Say Something” by A Great Big World and Christina
Aguilera
I respect this song more than I like it tbh, it does paint
the picture of a painful break up well but I am not sure that without Christina
Aguilera the song would hold up as well. 6/10
2015: “FourFIve Seconds” by Rihanna, Kanye West and Sir Paul
McCartney
This is much better. I really like this song, Rihanna’s hook
reminding me a lot of the Golden Girls theme and Kanye is good. I just wish
they had given Sir Paul McCartney more to do on the song other than play the guitar.
7/10
2016: “Never Be Like You” by Flume feat. Kai
I honestly wish I liked this more than I do. It’s fine
enough. Bit strange that Flume isn’t having consistent success though 6/10
2017: “Shape Of You” by Ed Sheeran
Yes, this song was overplayed on the radio, but you know
what? I do like it. Ed Sheeran’s best songs know their way around a hook and it’s
not designed to be a romantic song, this relationship for both Ed and the girl
is disposable, it’s just for the hook up. Its sleazy and for me it works. 8/10
2018: “God’s Plan” by Drake
Oh come on Australia, you know you don’t have to send every piece
of background noise filler Drake releases to number one right. BORING! 4/10
2019: “7 Rings” by Ariana Grande
I have already expressed my feelings about this song enough.
It’s one of Ariana Grande’s worst songs of her career. 3/10
2020: “Blinding Lights” by The Weeknd
I am going to save my comments about this song for year end.
All you need to know that you need to hear this. 9.5/10
Sunday 5 July 2020
ARIA Singles Top Ten/Chart Review: 6th July. Jason Derulo gives out some "Savage Love" to go number one
Saturday 4 July 2020
Rating the number ones on my birthday Part 1: 1987 to 1999
1987: “You keep Me Hangin’ on” by Kim Wilde
The production has aged badly on this one but hey it is
still a solid cover of the Supremes song, one of several covers that Kim Wilde
has done in her music career. 7/10.
1988: “(I’ve Had) The Time of My Life” by Bill Medley and
Jennifer Warnes
Another song where the production hasn’t aged well but this
one has become a classic thanks to the movie “Dirty Dancing”. I don’t really
love it but I don’t hate it either. 6/10
1989: “Teardrops” by Womack and Womack
This year had two number ones on my birthday, mainly because
the Australian Music Report and ARIA were both publishing charts at the time
but I elected to talk about this one because this is probably the best of the
three songs from the 80s, I love the groove and this feels like it hasn’t aged
as badly as “You Keep Me Hangin’ On”. 8/10
1990: “Love Shack” by The B-52s
A BONAFIDE PARTY CLASSIC AND I WILL HEAR NO SLANDER OF THIS
SONG! Although the female vocals can get a little annoying but damn this song
is a party and a half. 9/10
1991: “I’ve Been Thinking about You” by Londonbeat
Oof. Early nineties R ‘n’ B and an early hint of the R ‘n’ B
explosion of the mid-nineties, that said “I’ve Been Thinking About You” is the
sort of song with groove and spark that most songs today can only dream of and
I do love the vocal harmonies 8/10
1992: “Let’s Talk about Sex” Salt-n-Pepa
A song that probably got common use in classrooms as an
inroad to sex education with teenagers. Again…this song is a load of fun but
sends an important message to have that conversation about the birds and the
bees…7/10
1993: “I Will Always Love You” by Whitney Houston
A cover of Dolly Parton’s “I Will Always Love You” that rips
away the understated nature of the original to instead come across as
incredibly cheesy and overwrought. I know they wanted to show off Whitney’s
powerful vocals but come on there was no need to turn a Dolly Parton song into
making me want to vomit. 3/10
1994: “Give It Up” by Cut ‘n’ Move
I think I prefer the KC and the Sunshine band original and
can somebody answer the phone that’s ringing in the back of the mix on the
chorus? Pass. 5/10
1995: “Another Night” by The Real McCoy
Ooh a dance song from the big beat era that is not
completely annoying. I like this a lot. Just wish I could understand what the
man is singing about, he is a way too low in the mix or trying to impersonate
the lead vocalist from Right Said Fred but yeah this song has a groove and
energy that is a lot of fun 7/10
1996: “Wonderwall” by Oasis
I honestly always have mixed feelings about this one. Yeah,
the Gallagher brothers were dicks around that time, but “Wonderwall” is nigh on
a 90s classic. 8/10
1997: “Don’t Speak” by No Doubt
While still good, this wasn’t No Doubt’s best song from the
Tragic Kingdom album,” Sunday Morning” was much better but “Don’t Speak” is
still a good song and Gwen Stefani proved a really good front woman for the
band. 7/10
1998: “My Heart Will Go On” by Celine Dion
This song from the overdramatised James Cameron movie “Titanic”
is in the same category as “I Will Always Love You” by Whitney Houston and the
fact I heard it at year end school assembly two years running is enough to make
me want to never hear this song again while actively vomiting into a toilet.
3/10
1999: “Believe” by Cher
We finally come across a song where the cover done in 2017
by Australian group The DMAs is much better than the original. The production
on the original by Cher has not aged well and Cher shrieking “Do you believe in
life after love” gets stale damn fast. 4/10
Thursday 2 July 2020
New Music Friday review: Boys don't cry so stick that in your country song, Girlfriend!
I am reviving New Music Friday review because the past week
has delivered so much damn great new music that deserves attention and I do not
want to see get lost between the cracks. Spanning Eric Church to Megan Thee
Stallion to Dan Owen, we got some amazing music so let’s start with…Charlie
Puth?
“Girlfriend” by Charlie Puth
So Charlie Puth was busy releasing music last year which, for
most part, people ignored, it wasn’t good and felt like most of the songs were
at least two steps down in quality from the best songs on “Voicenotes” but his
new single “Girlfriend” could be considered right up there with “Done for Me”
(feat Kehlani) or “If You Leave Me Now” (feat. Boyz II Men), this song has slick
pop grooves that go on for miles and features some of the best hooks that Puth
has written in ages, if you are looking to satisfy that sweet tooth, there’s no
better place to start then with this song.
Rating: 9/10
“Boys Don’t Cry” by Dan Owen
UK singer-songwriter Dan Own is an artist I have been
following for awhile now, his 2018 album “Stay Awake With Me” is one of my
favourite albums for that year, since then he has released a folk EP and
collaborated with UK country act Ward Thomas however “Boys Don’t Cry” is the
lead single from a new album and well…if this is a sign of things to come…well
I am looking forward to that sophomore album because for one thing “Boys Don’t
Cry” still is signature Dan Owen in sound but the lyrics delve into mental
health stereotypes/stupid belief that boys/men don’t cry because men crying is
seen as weak and Owen acknowledges that hiding raw emotion and tears is hard to
hide so wouldn’t it be easier to let that emotion out with the support of others
there.
Rating: 8/10
“Stick That In Your Country Song” by Eric Church
Going from Dan Owen to the new leadoff single for American
country rock singer Eric Church might seem like whiplash but it kind of feels
natural to talk about “Stick That In Your Country Song” next mainly because it
feels like Eric Church is making a statement with this song in terms of challenging
the rest of mainstream country who right now aren’t releasing the most challenging
material rather sticking to songs about beer, bars, girls, trucks and tailgates
rather than singing about anything of substance like teachers doing it tough
with very little funding or issues facing rural America. Church wants more
substance to country music than the stock standard clichés typical of the mid
2010s bro country movement and stopped doing what country is so good at which was
telling those stories of rural America. This song is quickly becoming one of my
favourites of 2020, check it out!
Rating: 9/10
“Girls In the Hood” by Megan Thee Stallion
So quite honestly if I am looking for female rap, I don’t
look to Nicki Minaj anymore, Nicki’s music has become more about advertising
than anything that is actually music so more often than not I have looked
toward Meghan Thee Stallion because yeah, I still think “Savage” is a pretty damn
good song and as for her new single “Girls in the Hood”? Well it’s certainly
braggadocious with Megan rapping about her lavish lifestyle, clapping back at her
haters and challenging the somewhat patriarchal cannon that is rap music (could
argue in music across the board honestly) all while flipping Eazy-E’s “Boys in
the Hood”. Its not anything revolutionary but it’s still a great song. Hope
this is a hit for her.
Rating: 7/10
“How You Like That” by Blackpink
If you ever want to hear a case of a song having blown it’s
potential, it’s right here with Blackpink’s new single, there’s a lot to like
about the verses and the bridge, there’s promise there but that chorus has to be
one of the more poorly produced choruses of the year with it’s rattling
electronics etc, it just doesn’t work at all. Again, before the stans get upset
with me, it’s not Blackpink themselves that are the problem, it’s the
production they are put over that is the issue.
Rating: 5/10
“Standing with You” by Guy Sebastian
So no, I am not going to discuss Guy Sebastian being apart
of Prime Minister Scott Morrison or the most recent issues involving his
manager, I am going to write about his new single “Standing With You”, a song
that is getting traction on iTunes right
now and in the realm of Guy Sebastian songs its not quite as catchy as “Choir”
or even “Before I Go”, it’s a ballad that while is growing on me, I’m not sure
this is going to have any real staying power on the charts, that said given how
well “Choir” did last year, that remains to be seen. Objectively the song is
fine, if you like a good empowering ballad than this would be the song to go
for.
Rating: 6/10
- "Team" by Rory Noble
- "Greed" by Tash Sultana
- "I Miss You. I'm Sorry" by Kita Alexander
- "Overkill" by Holly Humberstone
- "I Cry" by Usher
- "Say Something" by Eskimo Joe.
2000 Sound: 2nd July. Kylie has the chart spinning around to her newest number one hit.
"Californication" debuting at 44, I can see this sticking around. RHCP fans are pretty good about making sure Red Hot Chilli Peppers have some longevity on the charts.