New Music Friday Review Part 1 April 30: "Your Power" by Billie Eilish

Normally I avoid reviewing songs that are going to chart on the ARIA Singles chart for New Music Friday Review so mostly to avoid becoming repetitive and the big songs that chart get reviewed anyway but I realized while listening to "Your Power" by Billie Eilish that the paragraph I afford a new song entering the chart during the ARIA singles top ten/chart review blog was not going to be enough given how dark the themes and ideas of the song are and I wanted to give the song it's full due.

Gtanted, Billie Eilish's lyrics always require a lot of deeper thought and there's always a lot of depth to the subtext of many of the songs she has written especially on the debut album "When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?" and that felt like the case with the darker songs she has released for this upcoming album entitled "Happier Than Ever" beforehand with the Bond theme "No Time to Die" and "Therefore I Am" so what did we get with "Your Power"?

Well, we might have gotten one of the most appropriate songs this year in line with all the talk around consent and domestic violence in Australia with Eilish asking people in positions of power over others not to abuse that position or status and even to a degree points how so many people who gain great power tend to abuse that position be it politicians or somebody placed in a position of trust within a relationship or family dynamic. 

As always the lyrics from Eilish are pointed and she finds a way to share her own personal experience of an abuse of power following the end of her relationship with an adult when she was underage but Eilish is clever enough to ensure that everybody can connect to the song especially in a world where it feels like abuses of power are becoming more and more common just not in the political world but in our communities with the cases of domestic violence and sexual assault. Eilish is triggering that need for reflection and how we as human beings can get better to recognise that with power over others comes responsibility and for somebody like Eilish to recognise that is something special.

As for the music itself, it's a restrained acoustic guitar and just Eilish's vocals which again make the the song even more powerful and give the message Eilish is conveying more power.  This might be one of my favourite likely hits this year so far and it might just be one of the more important songs that Billie Eilish will ever release. 

ARIA Singles Chart Top ten/ Chart Review. 3rd May. Save Your Tears and Runway

So again another reasonably quiet week. Yeah we got some moves on the chart but we only got the one new entry so the turnover on the chart this week has been relatively slow...that said if we get an album bomb from DJ Khaled next week then I am not complaining about this week being quiet.

So let's get started with the top ten where nothing changed at the very top with "Montero (Call Me By Your Name)" by Lil Nas X maintained the number one spot for a second week and honestly it's really only there because it's more consistent on streaming and doing better on sales than its closest rivals.

Speaking of it's closest rivals, the surprise was that "Heat Waves" by Glass Animals rebounded to number  stwo as this song got a second wind on streaming, it surpassed "Peaches" by Justin Bieber feat Daniel Caesar and Giveon, mostly because it started to fall back on streaming as "Heat Waves" went ahead of it this week but it's a running battle. 

Returning to the top ten is "Save Your Tears" by The Weeknd which climbed 15 places to number four thanks to a remix that features Ariana Grande (Most notably wasn't credited by Ariana when the chart was released on Friday). The remix created a streaming surge which saw this song return and that probably won't last.

Rising three places to number five is "Kiss Me More" by Doja Cat feat. SZA...this song is a number one hit in the making, it's getting its ducks in order on streaming, just needs sales to get on board and this will be number one soon...mark my words/

It pushed back "Astronaut in the Ocean" by Masked Wolf down one place to number six as streaming fell back for this...thank goodness, I am pretty well sick of this song. 

"Rapstar" by Polo G also fell back three places to number seven, this song is starting to have the feelings of what happened to "Calling My Phone" by Lil Tjay and 6lack earlier this year, Tiesto's "The Business" fell one place to number eight as it's on its way out naturally.

Slipping three places to number nine is "Deja Vu" by Olivia Rodrigo as it lost momentum on streaming this week. 

Hanging onto the top ten at number ten is "Without You" by The Kid Laroi but we're not going to see this song leave the top te just yet as it will get a boost from the just released remix that features Miley Cyrus

Gains

So I already mentioned "Save Your Tears" by The Weeknd returning to top ten at number four but there was a seven place gain for "Body" by Russ Millions and Tion Wayne up to 21...again,,,we don't need this shit becoming a hit.

Fleetwood Mac's "Dreams" refuses to leave the chart as it rose five places to 31 while Amy Shark's "Love Songs Ain't Fir Us" feat. Keith Urban jumped eight places to 36 as it got something of a resurgence on streaming...expect this to get a further boost thanks to the release of Shark's album "Cry Forever"

"Martin & Gina" by Polo G climbed four places to number 42.

Wha

Losers 

Only two major losers this week with "Mr Perfectly Fine (Taylor's Version)" continuing to make it's way out of the chart down 12 place to number 45.

"My Head & My Heart" by Ava Max fell down seven places to number 38 (I haven't thought about that song in AGES)

Drop Outs

The lone drop out is "What Other People Say" by Sam Fischer and Demi Lovato....am perfectly fine with that if I am being honest.

New Entries

Just one new entry this week...

35. "Runway" by AURORA

So a 2016 single from Norweigan singer AURORA hits the ARIA singles chart after...of course...it blew up on Tik Tok, so how it is? Honestly, I kind of like this and it probably speaks more effectively during a pandemic now than it did in 2016 given the song is about wanting to escape and get home to family, it's a smart understated some minimalist song that Aurorar wrote when she was 11 or 12 (which given the lyrics is incredibly impressive), it reminds me of a sound that I think Billie Eilish would be impressed by and that's not a bad thing at all. Check this out of you are curious.

No best or worst of the week as we only have the one new entry. As for next week, Billie Eilish and maybe something from that worthless DJ Khaled album but we'll see what happens when the chart updates at 5pm AEST on Friday. 

New Music Friday Review. 23rd April. He said when it was over, She Said Don't waste your Love

 "Life of the Party" by The Veronicas feat. Allday

So I wasn't expecting this so soon after the release of the loud and raucous lead single "Godzilla" however this song is actually more Allday's than The Veronicas given The Veronicas are really only only on the chorus and one verse on a song where both The Veronicas and Allday are just out at a party trying to find somebody to make a genuine connection with even as everybody else is trying to be the 'life of the party' or the centre of attention at that party. It's decent but I'm not sure it's all that memorable. Ehh, check it out if you are curious.

Rating 6/10

"Don't Waste Your Love" by Boo Seeka feat. Golding

So this song is kind of interesting especially as it's this fizzy EDM/pop number that yeah, is rather catchy as Boo Seeka and Golding urge people not to waste their love or time but to rather enjoy the good moments in life. I love the positive message this song sells here. I don't mind it at all. Not bad! 

Rating: 7/10

"When Was It Over" by Sasha Sloan feat. Sam Hunt

Okay so I was not expecting Sam Hunt to turn up on a pop song by Sasha Sloan so this kind of turned up out of nowhere and while the song is about not being able to let go of somebody after a relationship has broken down and honestly it's a sentiment that Sasha Sloan sells well here, she sounds genuine enough over the guitar strums and then Sam Hunt shows up and if you got the feeling this would be like going over old territory for him? Well you'd be right because he sounds like the same smug jerk behind songs like "Drinking too Much" and "Body Like a Backroad"...yeah no...this song might be tolerable but it's only because of that guitar and Sasha Sloan.

Rating: 6/10 

"He Said, She Said" by CHVRCHES

So I was slow to the CHVRCHES hype train, seemed like everyone was going nuts about them a few years ago after they released "Every Open Eye", an album that is loved by critics but I missed it and only managed to hear them when they released the lead single "Get Out" for the 2018 album "Love Is Dead" and I still don't quite understand the fuss, yeah the band have good hooks but production was an issue quite honestly it remains an issue with the new single for the band's fourth album because my god the production here is off with that awful sounding guitar that sounds like it comes off a bad Sonic game from 1992, it's just not been mixed properly. I get wanting to do the 80s sound but this is the 80s sound done badly.

Rating 4/10

Good 1992 Vibrations. April 26th: Take It from Me, L.O.V.E, Nothing Else Matters 2 Night

 Let's not muck around this week and get stuck into the top ten where to nobody's surprise, "Under The Bridge" by Red Hot Chili Peppers remains at number one for a second week, its got a decent sized sales margin over "Way Out West" by James Blundell and James Reyne which climbed one place to number two and "Get Ready for this" by 2 Unlimited which rose one to number three.

Granted the reason for the above gains is because "Marvellous" by The 12th Man feat. MCG Hammer slipped two places to number four as the momentum for this song is starting to fade away.

The momentum for "Stay" by Shakespears Sister isn't fading though, it's up two places to number five this week...unfortunately. Also not going away is "To Be With You" by Mr Big up three places to number six because we need cornball garbage in the top ten right now (sarcasm fully intended).

All of that saw "Not a Day Goes" by Rick Price down two places to number seven while "Let's get Rocked" by Def Leppard slipped two places to number eight.

We have two songs joining the top ten this week and its a bit of a mixed bag because on the one hand there's the garbage that is Teen Queen's cover of "Be My Baby" up three places to number nine for some reason but on the other "Alive" by Pearl Jam finally reached the top ten climbing one place to number ten which is awesome because yeah I still like that song.

Gains

So let's begin with the songs that debuted last week and gained this week and unfortunately one of them is the audio torture that is "James Brown is Dead" by L.A. Style which climbed from 34 to 18 this week. In better news "Djapana (Sunset Dreaming) by Yothu Yindi jumpe from 41 to 20 this week which is nice to see!.

Even better "I Love Your Smile" by Shanice rose from 38 to 22. Again, I like the song so am happy to see it climbing.

"Diamnds & Peatls" by Prince and The New Power Generation rebounded from 36 to 25 for some reason while "Baby Love" by Dannii Minogue jumped from 33 to 26. 

"Help Yourself" by Julian Lennon got a thirteen place gain to 30...I am still indifferent on this song and I'm not completely sure as to why. 

Losers

Wow....it was a busy week here so let's start with the songs that are fizzing out before their time like "Stars" down eight places to number 50, "Ghost of a Texas Ladies Man"  by Concrete Blonde down ten to 49 (In the case of the former, I am disappointed, in the case of the latter...I'm fine with it...the song isn't good), "Human Touch" by Bruce Springsteen unfortunately continues to fade, this week down eleven to 37 and "Feels So High" by Des'ree down from 29 to 35.

"Give Me Just A little More Time" by Kylie Minogue took an eight place hit down from 24 to 32 this week.

Then we have a slew of hits taking losses this week like "Rocket Man (I think it's going to be a Long Long Time)" by Kate Bush which plunged from 28 to 46, "Pride (In the Name of Love" by Clivilles & Cole down fifteen spots to 45 and "Justified & Ancient" by The KLF down eight to 43, "Love You Right" by Euphoria slumping from 25 to 40,  "Smells Like Teen Spirit" by Nirvana skittled from 27 to 39, "Saltwater" by Julian Lennon pummelled down from 18 to 38 and "November Rain" by Guns 'n' Roses" down six to 27. 

New Entries

Six new entries this week, half of them being Australian. We starting off with....

47. "Sometimes (Live)" by Midnight Oil

Well this feels kind of odd, the live version of a song from Midnight Oil's 1987 album "Diesel & Dust" hitting the chart however this is a live recording of the song from the compilation album "Scream in Blue" and what I will say about this is that it's a bit frustrating again because it feels like Peter Garrett is is buried underneath the bevy of guitars and drums, don't get me wrong the instrumentation sounds good here but the mixing is just off. Also is there that need to drum the word 'sometimes' into our heads so much. Ehh, sorry but this isn't Midnight Oil's best...I'm skipping this. 

42. "That Word (L.O.V.E)" by The Rockmelons feat. Cutty Ranks, Nardo Ranks & Deni Hines

Now this is more like it. The Rockmelons bringing their pop/reggae sound and team up with Deni Hines again with Cutty and Nardo Ranks bringing the hype which does feel unnecessary to a degree as the song is pretty darn catchy enough with just the Rockmelons and Deni Hines on it and yeah the lyrics are a pretty standard set about a universal theme but you know what, this has hit written all over it, its catchy, breezy and honestly perfect for a summer at the beach hence I'm surprised it's only just debuting in mid autumn. I like this. Check it out!

41. "Take It From Me" by Girlfriend

Okay, so this is a brand new five member all girl group, it's members being Robyn Loau, Melanie Alexander, Siobhann Heidenreich, Lorinda Noble and Jacqueline Cowell, the band formed in 1991 with this song being the group's debut with mostly Loau and Alexander sharing the solo vocals, Loau singing the verses with Alexander in on the bridge and for me, its Loau's vocal delivery that better matches the almost new jack swing vibe of the song where the girls are begging their man to take their word that they'll be good to him. It's a cute pop dance song, check it out if you are curious.

33. "Sound" by James

This song is the first single from James fourth studio album "Seven" yet why does this remind me of U2? That instrumentation really does give me U2 knock off vibes and those vocals on the verses are creepy and that wailing post the hook is nonsense and pretty headache inducing. In short this is artsy wank and effectively meaningless rubbish...skip it.

29. "Nothing Else Matters" by Metallica

Metallica return to the ARIA charts with this being the third single from their self titled debut album, and yeah I got chills, for one thing the production on this song is OUTSTANDING, it starts off with this low guitar and slowly brings in more orchestral elements  before James Hetfield starts singing about how he is on tour being away from home and everyone he loves and missing those people, being home with those people is the thing that matters for him, this power ballad hits pretty god damn hard. It's been a damn good year for rock so far and Metallica just added to it with this. Definitely give this a listen!

28. "Money Don't Matter 2 Night" by Prince & The New Power Generation

Well here's the latest single from "Diamonds & Pearls" and...well...it's better than "Cream" and the title track, for one thing there's a groove with the guitars and Prince having a better presence on the song as the lyrics shame the greedy and the focus on the material things (something on reflection has gotten increasingly worse in the 2020s) and slamming the rushing off to war by politicians post the first gulf war the previous year/ I like this, certainly the best of the singles so far.

However "Nothing Else Matters" by Metallica is nabbing best of the week with "Take It From Me" by Girlfriend and "That Word (L.O,V.E)" by The Rockmelons, Cutty Ranks, Nardo Ranks and Deni Hines tying for honourable mention.

Worst of the week fall out easily that being "Sound" by James for just being intolerable artsy wank.

ARIA Top 50 Singles Top Ten/Chart Review: 26th April. Montero's Calling by Your Name at Number One

So in a week with absolutely no new entries, this week's chart update could be one of the shortest yet but the thing is we did see three re entries but the big news this lies in our top ten with our new number one and as expected it's "Montero (Call Me by Your Name" by Lil Nas X rising to top spot on the basis of strength on sales and some streaming particularly on Spotify, it was just enough of an edge to push "Peaches" by Justin Bieber feat. Daniel Caesar and Giveon down to number two but this could get back to number one, its certainly still pretty consistent on streaming.

This places "Heat Waves" by Glass Animals down to number three in a vulnerable position because streaming isn't going to hold it up much longer however it held up enough over "Rapstar" by Polo G which remained at number four, it's got some steady streaming but that's about it.

The same can be said for 'Astronaut in the Ocean" by Masked Wolf at number five, it's got decent streaming and some sales but it's an open question as to whether it can push any higher.

Olivia Rodrigo's "Deja Vu" spends it's first week inside the top ten up five places to number six this week, it's got solid streaming but that's going to need to continue improving if it's going to climb higher.

However it did enough to push "The Business" by Tiesto down one spot to number seven as it's started to finally bleed on streaming...thank goodness...this song has started to piss me off lately.

Hit in the making, "Kiss Me More" by Doja Cat feat. SZA climbed two places to number eight and if there was a song in the top ten right now to make a run at the top of the chart, it's this one, it seems to be a song that everyone likes and it's showing on streaming. Need sales to get on board and we might have a monster hit on our hands.

Down one spot to number nine is "Cover Me in Sunshine" by Pink and Willow Sage Hart, it's still a behemoth on sales but it's started to flag a little on streaming.

Finally "Without You" by The Kid Laroi is down three places to number ten but this could get a boost as there's a remix with Miley Cyrus coming so we'll have to see.

Gains

So outside of the top ten, "BED" by Joel Corry feat RAYE and David Guetta climbed 18 places off it's chart debut last week while Corry's big hit "Head & Heart" feat. MNEK rebounded four places to number 24.

Saweetie's "Best Friend" feat. Doja Cat got a five place boost to number 42 while "Body" by Russ Millions and Tion Wayne continued it's upwards momentum by rising four to 28 (WHY?)

Re Entries

So there were three re entries this week headlined by the return of "Martin & Gina" by Polo G (this might finally have some streaming traction...we can hope) at number 46. 

Also back is "What Other People Say" by Sam Fischer & Demi Lovato at number 47 and "Don't Start Now" by Dua Lipa at number 50.

Losers

There was one big loser this week with "Mr Perfectly Fine (Taylor's Version)" by Taylor Swift down 14 to 33 but apart from that there's not too many other notable losers this week, 

Drop Outs

Gone are "Love Story (Taylor's Version)" and "Forever & Always (Taylor's Version)" both from Taylor Swift, they took "Anywhere Away from here" by Rag 'n' Bone Man & Pink with them.

New Entries

There's no new entries on the ARIA singles chart this week and there's nothing of note on the charts around the world so might wrap up the week here. Next week is really who knows at this point because again it was a quiet week for new releases, we might get an Aurora song on the chart thanks to a sudden streaming push but we'll find out on Friday at 5pm. 

New Music Friday Review. 16th April. Sabotage of Shots in Dark Low Key Love Country Again

 "Country Again" by Thomas Rhett

So am I the only one confused here with what is happening with Thomas Rhett's "Country Again (Side A)" album roll out? He released "What's Your Country Song?", a  song that is much closer to the tropes of bro country that we're used to coming from Thomas Rhett but then he released two songs called "Want It Again" and "Growing Up" both leaning toward the more neo traditional country sound and I am pleased to say that "Growing Up" grew on me fair bit so what's the deal with the latest single "Country Again"

Uh...turns out its great! Yeah it amps up the warm spun neo traditional sound with guitars and even a fiddle as Rhett sings about spending less time in Nashville and Los Angeles and more time out fishing and hunting even cranking up Eric Church (given Eric's new album I can't say I can blame Thomas Rhett for cranking up 'Heart' to loud levels!) and basically that feeling of being home in the country. I'm not sure it's better than "Marry Me" but this coming from Thomas Rhett is still really darn good. Check this out.

Rating: 9/10

"Low Key in Love" by The Struts feat. Paris Jackson

So this was a collaboration that made no sense before listening to the song and after hearing the song made all the sense in the world. UK glam rock pop act The Struts, much like Greta Van Fleet, kind of border on pandering toward the past of rock music a fair bit even The Struts don't seep into the cringey Led Zeppelin worship of Greta Van Fleet and teaming up with the daughter of Michael Jackson, Paris, who is coming off releasing her own debut album last year so yeah I was a bit curious for this, did it deliver?

Well yes and no, it's not on the same level as the stomper of a song that was "Body Talks" with Kesha that should have been a massive hit a few years ago but its infused with similar funk and soul rock vibes, The Struts and Paris Jackson do have some chemistry but Paris is still finding her range and where she's most comfortable, she's not nearly as confident a presence behind the mic however the song is fine but I'm not sure that its as strong as it could have been.

Rating: 7/10

"Shots in the Dark" by Iann Dior feat. Trippie Redd

Okay...I'm conflicted on this one. I love the rock sound that's here but there's no way both Iann Dior and Trippie Redd sound good here but I cannot avoid the feeling that Dior is trying way too hard to scrounge a hit using the same formula as "Mood"///I think I like the sound of this and it just hasn't been executed quite right.

Rating: 5/10

"Sabotage" by Bebe Rexha

Well this is better...I guess...the song takes a little bit to get going but the piano sounds nice here but Bebe Rexha's vocals are just no...they leave me in the mind of singing so high that she's trying to get the constipated cows in a farmyard to pee and for a song about the frustration that comes from the self sabotaging of a relationship and a lot else in her life. This doesn't quite work for me.

Rating: 6/10

 

Good 1992 Vibrations. 19th April. America, Help Yourself to get Skin to Skin

 Well this week was a busy one in more ways than one, we got a heap of new entries which we will get to but we also got plenty of movement in our top ten so let's start there because the big story is that we have a new number one with "Under the Bridge" by Red Hot Chili Peppers taking the number one spot and yeah, this is great news, it dominated sales this week to move past "Marvellous" by The 12th Man feat MCG Hammer which slipped back to number two this week and it could be coming under some pressure.

That pressure coming from "Way Out West" by James Blundell and James Reyne up one spot to number three following a surprisingly impressive sales week. 

All this helped knock "Get Ready for This" by 2 Unlimited down two places to number four and its now under pressure from "Not a Day Goes By" by Rick Price which rocketed up five places to number five.

Up one place to number six is "Lets Get Rocked" by Def Leppard, it's looking pretty comfortsble in the top ten right now.

Meanwhile joining the top ten for the first time is "Stay" by Shakespears Sister which climbed four places to number seven because we need sludge like this in the top ten...yay...I guess.

Down three places to number eight is "Dizzy" by Vic Reeves & The Wonder Stuff. This song has secured it's place on the year end and is fading naturally so yeah I am fine with it leaving the top ten,

Mr. Big also get their first week in the top ten because unbelievably the corniest song to ever become a hit "To Be With You" climbed eleven places to number nine. How the fuck does nobody else see the cringe with this song?

Finally U2's "One look looks to be on the way out down two places to number ten.

Gains

So I already talked about the big gain for Mr Big in the top ten but there were some other notable gains like somehow Teen Queens incredibly lame cover of "Be My Baby" jumped off its debut at 30 all the way up to number 12...WHY?

In more pleasing news "Why' by Annie Lennox got a ten place gain to 22 while "Give Me Just A Little More Time" by Kylie Minogue got a big boost off it's number 40 debut to 24. 

"Insanity" by Oceanic up eight to 31 while "Baby Love" by Dannii Minogue climbed from 38 to 33 (actually cool with this gain...the cover is fine)

The gain I am pleased about is "I Love Your Smile" by Shanice up from 44 to 38. Good, that song is still adorable.

Losers

So the hits again took the biggest hits this week with "The Globe" by Big Audio Dynamite II down from 36 to 50 as it's lifespan on the chart seems destined to reach its end. "Justified & Ancient" by The KLF tumbling from 22 to 35, "Come As You Are" by Nirvana come down from 32 to 26 as they are, "Rocket Man (I Think it's Going to be a Long Long Time)" by Kate Bush dropped seven places to 28 while "Human Touch" by Bruce Springsteen unfortunately suffered from lack of touch down eight to 26. 

Former chart topper "Saltwater" by Julian Lennon dropped out of the top ten at number six all the way to 18. (More on Julian Lennon soon in the new entries) while "HIgh" by The Cure got taken down pegs from nine to 14

The same can mercifully be said for "Don't Talk Just Kiss" by Right Said Fred which slipped twelve places to 45, thank goodness. Nor am I complaining that "Ghost of a Texas Ladies Man" by Concrete Blonde stumbled from 31 to 39.

New Entries

We have a rather eclectic set of new arrivals this week starting with: 

49. "America: What Time is Love?" by The KLF

Ahh...the follow up single to the still pretty great "Justified & Ancient" and this one is considering complicated to explain, it's had many reworkings before this version was released in the UK in February and it hit the charts this week in Australia but that complexity makes this song interesting and you can definitely hear the anti war sentiment here (especially barely a year after the Gulf War in the Middle East) and it leaping from classical to dance techno almost rock is wild enough that it actually works well, the transitions between the sounds are impressive here. Check it out and if you want to read about the history of the song than here's the wikipedia link: "America: What Time is Love" by The KLF. I highly recommend checking out the song!

43. "Help Yourself" by Julian Lennon

Here's another follow up to a highly successful single, this time from Julian Lennon and given how much I like "Saltwater", I was kind of holding some expectations for this one and look...I'm kind of disappointed? The song isn't bad per se but it just sounds so formulaic in terms of what has been the dominant sound in pop in the late 80s to early 90s. Granted the guitars here do sound good here, I just wish Lennon was a little further forward in the mix especially given the song is about encouraging people to actually stop expecting everyone else to help them but to help themselves...ehh, I don't know...I can see this growing on me but as it is...it could have been better.

41/ "Djapana (Sunset Dreaming)" by Yothu Yindi

I have always wanted to have a chance to write about Yothu Yindi at some point especially given the group's impact on Australian culture and "Treaty" being one of those songs I respect the hell out of (that song is AMAZING) so I was curious for this and yeah, this is excellent...blending modern pop music with Aboriginal music for a song that calls out Australians for not being fair to Aboriginal people over the land and yeah that hook is sticky as hell. Great song...hope it does well.

34. "James Brown is Dead" by L.A Style

Oh dear. god. Dutch electronic duo L.A. Style have landed their first single on the Australian charts and while it's not the worst thing I have heard while covering 1992,...it's up there. The obnoxious dance music interspersed with rapping and the occasional voice that says "James Brown is dead" in the utmost of creepy fashions, we get it...James Brown was a legend of soul and funk yet the best you can do to pay tribute is this piece of audio nightmare fuel? Yeah...this is awful...I don't want to ever have to hear this piece of crap again.

19. "Skin to Skin" by Melissa

Well okay, it can only go up from here in spite of my reservations about Melissa and her music (No one can really convince me that "Read My Lips" is not cringey songwriting...come on..."if you want to wait til later, get your hands off my detonator"? Describing your vagina has something set to explode is definite cringe if you ask me) but anyway here's her new single that's the highest new entry of the week and well..its definitely a Melissa song with that beat reminiscent of her previous hits but again that song writing that relies way to much on cliches "love not war", "lay down your arms" etc. It's got the feel of a song that'd do well at Rock Estefodds not the pop charts. It's not precisely bad but it's not something I'd come back to.

That ends our week and wow...we're low on best contenders, I'm giving the best of the week to Yothu Yindi for "Djapana (Sunset Dreaming)" just ahead of "America: What Time Is Love)" by The KLF...it was close there.

However there was no competition for worst of the week because that's going to "James Brown is Dead" by L.A Style. A song that is nothing but a squealing thumping headache.