Good 1992 Vibrations. 13th September. Proove Love is The Strangest Thing the Day You Went Away

So this week turned out to be reasonably normal thank goodness, standard amount of new entries with most of them being Australian which is interesting but anyway before all that let's deal with the top ten which is considerably less interesting because for yet another week "Amigos Para Siempre (Friends for Life)" by Jose Carreras and Sarah Brightman maintains the number one but those margins are starting to close even further and could open the way for "Humpin' Around" by Bobby Brown, which stayed at number two, to potentially take the number one spot soon...it's getting tighter.

That leave Snap's "Rhythm is a Dancer" an interested bystander at number three again this week, it could make hay if "Humpin' Around" suddenly falters in it's chase for number one.

There's a new arrival in the top five with "Life is a Highway" by Tom Cochrane up three places to number four because of all we have to let tepid pop/rock get high...sigh.

At least it pushed "Please Don't Go" by K.W.S down one place to number five...the sooner this is gone the better, the same goes for 'As Ugly as They Wanna Be" down one spot to number six for Ugly Kid Joe.

Unfortunately it also meant "Everything Is Alright" by John Farnham, Kate Ceberano and Jon Stevens slipped one to number seven while 'Baby Got Back" by Sir Mix A Lot remained steady at number eight,

Rising from 13 to number nine this week is unfortunately "Sesame's Treet" by Smart E's which is NOT a good thing...

Finally, on it's way out is Mariah Carey's cover of "I'll Be There" which is down one to number ten. 

Gains

In promising signs, Rosette's "How Do You Do" rose six places to 14 while "The Best Things in Life Are Free" by Luther Vandross and Janet Jackson climbed from 39 to 23. I still like both songs.

In a continuation of it's weird chart run, "It's Probably Me" by Sting with Eric Clapton jumped 14 places to 26 this week. while "Love is in the Air" by John Paul Young climbed from 32 to 27. 

Weirdly "Baby Don't Cry" by INXS is up five to 30 and "All I Want Is You" by Bryan Adams is unfortunately also p five to 36.

"She's Got That Vibe" by R. Kelly & Public Announcement up from 44 to 37, it's been hanging around the lower half of the chart for a couple of months now.

Surprisingly "Candyman" by Ratcat is up ten to 38, I'm fine with that...then again maybe it's because it was the best of a really awful week that I'm being nice to this song? I don't know.

Re entries

Just the one re entry with "November Rain" by Guns N Roses back at 41 which is good. I like the song...it's grown on me since it was last on the chart earlier in the year.

Losers

Alright, let's start as usual at the bottom with "Live and Learn" by Joe Public slipping five to 50 while "Warm It up" by Kriss Kross down nine to 46.

Radio Freedom's "I Can Feel It" fell nine to 39 (more on Radio Freedom in the new entries shortly). "Sexy MF" by Prince and The New Power Generation takes a slide down from 29 to 36 while "Ain't 2 Proud 2 Beg" by TLC tumbled from 28 to 35.

Kiss plunged from 37 to 33 with "God Gave Rock n Roll to You II" while "Save the Best for Last" by Vanessa Williams slipped from 23 to 28 and "Hazard" by Richard Marx crashed eight spots to 25,

"This Used to be my Playground" by Madonna collapsed six places to number 20,

New Entriess

Five new entries this week, let's start with...

49. “Ain’t Love the Stangest Thing” by The Black Sorrows.

Here’s the lead single from the Black Sorrow’s seventh studio album entitled “Better Times” and yeah, I’m not sure what to think about this new song, it’s fairly standard Black Sorrows with that bluesy guitar and the instrumentation giving the song a weirdly dark vibe for a song about pondering how love is the strangest thing or maybe that’s the whole point of the song where by it’s musing on the emotions that love makes you feel. Look, it’s fine for what it is but I won’t be surprised if I forget about it in a few days.

 

48. “Motor City (I Get Lost)” by Company of Strangers.

Ohh how to explain this one? Okay so Company of Strangers is an Australian supergroup comprising of Daryl Braithwaite, Simon Hussey, Jef Scott and James Reyne with this song being the lead single and well…this is an interesting because for one thing, it’s got this chugging keyboard and percussion underneath it but the vocals from James Reyne here underwhelm here and it doesn’t quite have the explosive energy it wants and kind of mishmashes styles here with the instrumental post the chorus sounding like something off Daryl Braithwaite’s album of the time but the rest, if anything, reminding me a lot of releases by U2 in 1991. This could be better. Just saying.

 

45. “Breaking the Girl” by Red Hot Chili Peppers

Okay, another single from “Blood Sugar Sex Magik”, a ballad that’s more melodic than their previous singles and references the band’s frontman Anthony Kiedis then girlfriend and honestly I’m not sure about this one, it’s definitely not better than “Under the Bridge” but given the week that’s been for new releases in rock and how the song slowly becomes ever more distorted toward the end, it still works for what it is, I’ll take it…I guess.

 

43. “The Day You Went Away” by Wendy Matthews

Well…it’s Australians aplenty this week with this song being the lead single for Wendy’s sophomore album “Lily”, this song originally having been recorded by a British electronic act called Soul Family Sensation, an act Matthews shares a publisher with. The song had been written about a painful relationship breakdown and I got to say the production on Wendy’s version is considerably better, it’s strips the song back to the piano taking out some of the beyond clunky percussion, it allows the listener to focus on the words Matthews is singing as she ponders the breakdown of this relationship and the day this person is ‘leaving her behind’, yeah, this is a gorgeous ballad. Please check this out.

 

42. “Proove” by Radio Freedom

So “I Can Feel It” becoming a top ten hit genuinely surprised me…was not expecting that…so the success of that song means we now get a follow up single and yeah I don’t see this one catching on like “I Can Feel it” mostly because this doesn’t quite have the joy or energy of it’s predecessor, it’s going for this mix between dance/gospel that doesn’t quite work and I have never been wild on the singing vocals that don’t have as much charisma to carry a song like this. Honestly, I feel like the only energy being brought to the song is by the rapping so yeah I’m skipping this.

 

“Proove” by Radio Freedom is getting worst of the week mainly because I can see “Motor City (I Get Lost)” by Company of Strangers growing on me and there’s just too many elements on “Proove” don’t work, it just feels overall a disappointing follow up to a massively successful single.

 

Wendy Matthews runs away with best of the week for “The Day You Went Away” and that wasn’t even a contest.

ARIA Singles Top Ten/Chart Review. 13th September. Certified Drake Boy, Don't Shut Me Down!

Last week was the week of Kanye. This week is the week of Drake and his new album "Certified Lover Boy" slamming into the ARIA singles chart with twenty songs from the album which according to ARIA is a record...just unfortunate that "Certified Lover Boy (or if you wanting be snarky "Certified Streaming Bait") doesn't rise beyond being anything but an insult to ambient background noise apart from moments when Drake decides to faceplant into complete cringe on the album (it happened a fair bit) and given we're out of the realm of album bombs with Lil Nas X likely to get one in a couple weeks time thanks to the release of "Montero", things aren't going to settle down any time soon.

Anyway let's get to the top ten because for yet another week, it's "Stay' by The Kid Laroi feat. Justin Bieber at number one, it's still strong on streaming which is why it held onto the number one spot but those margins are narrowing and there's some signs that streaming could be done with this song.

We then get to the first signs of the Drake album bomb because debuting at number two is "Girls Like Girls" by Drake featuring Lil Baby, now this a single apparently as it's gone to radio but I have questions about how memorable the song is...we'll get to why later.

Then it's "Fair Trade" by Drake feat. Travis Scott at number three because like "Girls Want Girls" it had strong streaming but that's about it... pretty sure it charted this high because name recognition alone...

Then there's Ed Sheeran's "Bad Habits" which slipped two places to number four but in stark contrast to everything that isn't Drake this week, it's pretty stable and should rebound.

It's also the case for "Cold Heart (PNAU Remix)" by Elton John and Dua Lipa down two to number five, it's stable and will rebound next week,

Then we get to more Drake because "Champagne Poetry" lands at number six while the other song being pushed as a single "Way 2 Sexy" by Drake feat. Future and Young Thug debuting at number seven.

Concluding the depressing amount of Drake in the top ten is "Papi's Home" at number 8. 

"Hurricane" by Kanye West feat. Lil Baby and The Weeknd slipped five places to number nine (interestingly, if the Drake album bomb didn't happen, it would have remained at number four) 

Finally 'Heat Waves" by Glass Animals remains at number ten for this week.

I regret not doing this last week with the Kanye album bomb but I thought it would be interesting to go through what the top ten would look like if the Drake album bomb didn't happen:

10. "Kiss Me More" by Doja Cat feat. SZA

9. "Happier Than Ever" by Billie Eilish

8. "Beggin" by Maneskin

7. "Good 4 U" by Olivia Rodrigo

6. "Industry Baby" by Lil Nas X feat. Jack Harlow

5. "Heat Waves" by Glass Animals

4. "Hurricane" by Kanye West feat. Lil Baby and The Weeknd

3. "Cold Heart (PNAU remix)" by Elton John and Dua Lipa

2. "Bad Habits" by Ed Sheeran

1. "Stay" by The Kid Laroi and Justin Bieber

Gains

There were no gains this week.

Re Entries

"Drivers License" by Olivia Rodrigo returned at number 48 in the only return to the chart this week

Losers

Folks, anything that wasn't Drake took hard falls this week, let's start with the hits taken by the previous week's album from Kanye West that somehow remained on the chart with "Moon" falling 28 to 43, "Off the Grid" fell 17 places to 26 and  "Jail" got locked up down 19 spots to 24.

As for the rest of our losers, "Traitor" by Olivia Rodrigo fell ten to 50 while "Good 4 U" slumped seven to 15. "Little Bit of Love" by Tom Grennan tumbled 13 places to 49. "Take My Breath" by The Weeknd fell 12 to 47 while "Save Your Tears" also by The Weeknd. 

"Missing Piece" by Vance Joy plunged 17 places to 45 while "Without You" by Miley Cyrus feat. The Kid Laroi fell 12 to 44.

"I Guess I'm In Love" by Clinton Kane stumbled nine to 42 (this looks like it may have some traction going forward which is interesting). "2055" by Sleepy Hallow collapsed 10 places to 35 while "Dreams" by Jolyon Petch got hit with a 14 place fall to 34. "Montero (Call Me By Your Name)" by Lil Nas X slipped nine to 32 (It and "Industry Baby" will rebund hard when Lil Nas X gives birth to his album "Montero" on 17th September) while "Visiting Hours" by Ed Sheeran stumbled 15 to 31.

"Levitating" by Dua Lipa slipped seven to 25 while "Need to Know" by Doja Cat slumped ten places to 22.while "Kiss Me More" by Doja Cat feat SZA down seven to 21. "Happier Than Ever" by Billie Eilish down nine to 20 while "Beggin'" by Maneskin crashed ten places to 17.

Drop Outs

So we lost a large majority of the Kanye album cuts but also leaving but will likely all be back in the next few weeks are "Leave Before You Love Me" by Marshmello feat. Jonas Brothers "I Wanna Be Your Slave" by Maneskin, "Astronaut In the Ocean" by Masked Wolf (he dropped an album yesterday so this song will definitely return), "Rumors" by Lizzo feat. Cardi B, "Peaches" by Justin Bieber feat. Daniel Caesar and Giveon, "Get Into It (Yuh)" by Doja Cat and "Friday" by Riton and Nightcrawlers feat. Mufasa and Hyperman.

The only non Kanye drop out that I expect won't return is "Butter" by BTS.

New Entries

Alright, you all know my album bomb rules, these are all the Drake songs that debuted this week that I won't be giving a review to: "Way 2 Sexy" feat. Future and Young Thug at number 7, "Papi's Home" at number 8, "Love All" feat. Jay Z at number 12. "Knife Talk' feat. 21 Savage and Project Talk at number 13, "In the Bible" feat. Lil Durk and Giveon at number 14, "TSU" lands at 16, "No Friends in the Industry" at 18, "N 2 Deep" feat. Future at 19,  "Pipe Down"  at 23, "7am on the Bridle Path" at 28, "Race My Mind" at 29, "IMY2" feat. Kid Cudi at 33, "Fountains" feat. Tems at 36, "Yebba's Heartbreak" feat. Yebba at 38, "You Only Live Twice" feat. Lil Wayne and Rick Ross at 40, "Get Along Better" feat. Ty Dolla $ign and finally..."Fucking Fans" at 46.

So that leaves us with just five new entries (I'll be keeping the Drake reviews brief) and mercifully we get a brief reprieve from Drake because we start off with...

39. "I Still Have Faith in You" by ABBA

I cannot lie, this is probably the best moment I've had since I created this blog, I never thought I'd have the opportunity to talk about NEW MUSIC from ABBA of all groups...its honestly really just awesome even if it sucks that neither song hit the top ten and wouldn't have hit the top ten even if "Certified Lover Boy" wasn't a thing on the chart this week, this song would have debuted around 22 or 23 but it's even more awesome that the new songs are really good too!. "I Still Have Faith In You" is pretty much a great fit to where they left off n their previous studio album with it's pianos and gospel swell. Agnetha and Frida sound absolutely incredible for their age as they reassure that friend that they will keep the faith and the production just sounds so warm and comforting here. This is really good.

27. "Don't Shut Me Down" by ABBA

So not surprisingly the more pop leaning cut of the two new ABBA songs fared a bit better and would have debuted in the top twenty if not for bloody Drake and again, I can't fault this because this just a gorgeous pop song that opens slow with the description of a scene in a park and lytics about forgiveness and not shutting each other down, its actually weird to hear a pop song that isn't completely washed out sounding and the fact the harmonies on this song from the members of ABBA put most modern acts to shame, Definitely a great song and one I hope becomes a hit. Check this out, its well worth it unlike what we're about to dig into...

6. "Champagne Poetry" by Drake

The most interesting part of this song is that awful sample of "Michelle" by The Beatles which is flattened to where Sir Paul McCartne sounds like a god damn chipmunk as Drake rambles through a series of things including his son, recent events like the Black Lives Matter protests etc, his business dealings with OVO. and his issues with the media coverage of him...yet I'm struggling to care because Drake raps about all this with the enthusiasm of somebody who needs the sound of having passion explained to him. NEXT

3. "Fair Trade" by Drake feat. Travis Scott

So I am guessing this debuted so high because of the Travis Scott feature because this track is an absolute MESS. Drake complains about fake friends and declares he is going to cut those fake friends out of his life but it seems like Travis Scott didn't get the memo because he is off talking about women. men and cars over a sample from a song by Charlotte Day Wilson. I'll be skipping this.

2. "Girls Want Girls" by Drake feat. Lil Baby

So there's only one reason why this song charted so high or will even stick around is because of one line from Drake where he says "Yeah, say that you a lesbian, girl, me too" on the hook and that really just ends any other interest in the song because of the total what the hell line from Drake. Lil Baby is really better than he needs to be on this waste of space of a song which is amplified by the dreary trap beat that doesn't do anything to help either rapper.

That ends the week, neither are a contest this week with ABBA taking best of the week for "Don't Shut Me Down". As for the worst "Fair Trade" by Drake feat. Travis Scott takes the worst of the week.

Next week? Hopefully most of the Drake disappears. Likely new Ed Sheeran and possibly Troye Sivan but we'll see when the chart updates on Friday

Good 1992 Vibrations. 6th September. Best Things In Love Are Just Another Day

 Another semi regular week here and really the top ten look like it might be starting to get tight at the top again so let's start there, shall we? "Amigos Para Siempre (Friends For Life)" by Jose Carreras and Sarah Brightman retained number one for another week, it's still got a decent margin at the top but it's starting to face competition and that competition is coming in the form of "Humpin' Around" by Bobby Brown which climbed one place to number two, its slowly but surely pulling back the margins to our current number one, it's just a matter of when it will get there.

Also making a play is "Rhythm is a Dancer" by Snap which climbed two places to number three, I am not sure if this song is a player for number one yet but we'll see what happens. 

None the less it pushed back both Please Don't Go" by K.W.S two places to number four and "As Ugly As They Wanna Be" by Ugly Kid Joe back one to number five because it seems like both have thankfully peaked. 

In great news, "Everything's Alright" by John Farnham, Kate Ceberano and Jon Stevens rose one spot to number six as it continues it's climb up the chart.

What's not so good is the continued rise for "Life is a Highway" by Tom Cochrane which rose three places to number seven for unexplainable reasons then there's the four place gain for "Baby Got Back" by Sir Mix A Lot to number eight, I expect this to be a hit somehow despite the obnoxious vocals.

Steady at number nine is "I'll be There" by Mariah Carey while "Damn, I Wish I Was Your Lover" by Sophie B. Hawkins slipped two places to number ten as it's run looks finally done.

Gains

Okay so when the gains start with Smart E's "Sesame's Treet" rising from 31 all the way up to 13...that's not a good sign, throw in "Take This Heart" by Richard Marx jumping from 22 to 15 and there's more problems.

Then there's "Achy Breaky Heart" by Billy Cyrus which of course got an eight place climb to number 22....sigh.

In better news, "Tennessee" by Arrested Development is up ten places to 24 however it also brought with it the really mediocre "Boy in the Moon" by Margaret Urlich which rocketed from 39 to 25 but win some lose some...I guess.

"Ain't 2 Proud 2 Beg" by TLC got a nice boost from 41 to 28

Losers

So a lot of hits earlier this year took falls this week like "Jump" by Kriss Kross slumped six places to 49 while 'Cry" by Lisa Edwards collapsed from 29 to 46 while "She's Got that Vibe" by R.Kelly and Public Announcement slipped from 37 to 44.

I am delighted that "Beauty and The Beast" by Celine Dion and Peabo Bryson plummeted from 28 to 43 and disappointed that "I Don't Care" by Shakespears Sister slipped six to 38.

"ABBA esque" by Erasure fell nine to 33 while Michael Jackson is caught in a chart "Jam" down ten to 31.

"God Gave Rock 'n' Roll to You II" by KISS suffered a nine place slump to 27 while "Save the Best for Last" by Vanessa Williams fell out of the top twenty to 23.

Finally former chart topper "Hazard" by Richard Marx dropped eleven places to 17.

New Entries

Four new entries this week, let's start with...

50. "Just Another Day" by Jon Secada

So we're starting our look at the new entries with this lead off single from Cuban American singer/songwriter Jon Secada and wow...I've never heard a love song sound this flat and emotionless, sure it's got a good bass groove and the drums do a lot here to try to give this song some weight but I can't get past the idea that this song is really just the 1992 version of "Someone You Loved" by Lewis Capaldi although as it least Secada sounds a little better here but again this song does nothing for me other than cause mild irritation.

41. "Indio" by Indecent Obsession

So a new single from that sophomore album from Indecent Obsession and this isn't bad? Even though I can absolutely tell they've been inspired by George Michael because it's a dead ringer for the sound that George Michael has used on songs like "Too Funky" but hey, this is catchy and has a solid groove to it, I'll certainly take it over the previous song. Yeah, I can be jamming to this. 

39. "Best Things in Life Are Free" by Luther Vandross and Janet Jackson

Well this is a collab that makes some sense especially if you look at the music both Luther Vandross and Janet Jackson have been releasing and the minute this song starts the chemistry between Vandross and Jackson is there for all to see, they sound so god dang comfortable together its insane. Throw in the guest verse from Bell Biv DeVoe and this song is just all over a summer feel good jam. Yeah, I've been looking for more high energy pop/hip hop grooves like this. Thanks Luther and Janet!

32. "Love Is in The Air" by John Paul Young

So a 1977 disco song from John Paul Young that originally peaked at number three in 1978 has been given a remix for the film Strictly Ballroom therefore this song is back on the charts..yet I just don't feel anything when I listen to this? I don't know,,,the lyrics just hit the spot where it becomes cringe especially with JPY shrieking "LOVE IS IN THE AIR!" on the hook but at least there's passion here and the song has a pretty memorable melody and production.

And it's because of the production that it's spared worst of the week with that going to "Just Another Day" by Jon Secada.

However the best falls out easily...that's going to "Best Things in Life Are Free" by Luther Vandross and Janet Jackson

ARIA Singles Top Ten/Chart Review: 6th August, Woman Get Into It with Donda (Yuh)

Fair to say the chart this week has been absolutely massacred thanks to the release of Kanye West's new album "Donda" on Monday and as a result we got nineteen of twenty four songs from that album on the ARIA singles chart...then you remember there's likely to be a Drake album bomb next week and Lil Nas X in a couple of weeks time so the charts are about to get pretty god damn messy and that's not even counting the number of big scattered singles we're going to get from big names in the lead up to the end of the year....still expecting, Adele, Kendrick Lamar and maybe Rihanna to release singles or albums before the year is over. 

Let's get to the top ten where remarkably in spite of the best efforts of Kanye, the top two remained stable with "Stay' by The Kid Laroi feat. Justin Bieber maintained the number one spot for an eighth week, it's going to be interesting to see if it's streaming can hold up against the onslaught that's Drake next week.

The challenge may not come from "Bad Habits" by Ed Sheeran which remains at number two but it's numbers on streaming while steady aren't challenging those of "Stay" right now.

Then there's "Cold Heart (PNAU Remix)" by Elton John and Dua Lipa which rose spot to number three thanks to solid streaming and being sales behemoth...people on iTunes love this song...wish the song was better.

The first of three Kanye West songs in the top ten pops up at number four courtesy of "Hurricane' which features Lil Baby and The Weeknd (weirdly neither are credited as features on Spotify) and looks like the one getting the biggest push on streaming right now. Close behind that is "Jail" by Kanye West feat Jay Z at number five...now unlike "Hurricane", I don't expect this one to hang around.

"Industry Baby" by Lil Nas X and Jack Harlow got pushed back one spot thanks to Kanye but it should rebound hard because it has the album coming. 

"Beggin'" by Maneskin held onto number seven thanks to mostly consistent streaming this week despite the Kanye impact. 

However Kanye did impact Olivia Rodrigo here as "Good 4 U" slipped two places to number eight however that might have happened anyway as the song is starting to fade naturally.

The third Kanye song to hit the top ten is "Off the Grid" featuring Fivio Foreign and Playboi Carti in at number nine...again...should fade when Drake turns up next week.

Glass Animals returned for another week in the top ten with "Heat Waves up one spot to number ten.

Gains

The biggest gainerthis week was "Heat Waves" by Glass Animals climbing that one solitary place to number ten

Re entries

We did see one re entry with a remix by Megan Thee Stallion helped "Butter" by BTS return at number 47...I kind of also suspect it will go with most of the Kanye next week when Drake shows up.

Losers

Oh good fucking lord, I am going to start from the bottom here and work my way up because there is a LOT of losers here, we begin with "Friday" by Riton and Nightcrawlers feat. Mufasa and Hyperman down 25 spots to 50.

Former chart topper "Peaches" by Justin Bieber feat. Daniel Caesar and Giveon got pushed back 22 spots to 48.

"Rumours" by Lizzo feat. Cardi B got hit with a 25 place plunge to 45. I am hopeful this rebounds in the weeks ahead.

"Astronaut in the Ocean" by Masked Wolf drowns 20 spots to 43 while "I Wanna Be Your Slave" by Maneskin is on bended knee down 18 to 42,

"Traitor" by Olivia Rodrigo slumped 18 spots to 40 while "Leave Before You Love Me" by Marshmello and Jonas Brothers fell 11 to 39.

The falls continue with "Little Bit of Love" by Tom Grennan slipping 15 to 36 and "Take My Breath" plunging 18 to 35 (I have some concerns over the longevity of "Take My Breath") while The Weeknd's other song "Save Your Tears" drops 12 spots to 27.

"Guess I'm In Love" by Clinton Kane held on pretty well all things considered only dropping six places to 33 while "Without You" by The Kid Laroi feat. Miley Cyrus slipped 13 spots to 32.

"Missing Piece" by Vance Joy collapsed 10 places to 28 and "2055" by Sleepy Hollow down 12 to 25. 

"Montero (Call Me by Your Name)" by Lil Nas X skidded nine places to 23,,,again not worried as this song should rebound in a few weeks time. "Levitating" by Dua Lipa fell six places to 18.

"Visiting Hours" by Ed Sheeran dived out of the top ten down 13 to 16...sales is really doing wonders for this song.

Drop Outs

So lets deal with likely year end list makers that probably won't be concerned at the early exit like "Goosebumps (remix)" by HVME and Travis Scott, "Cover Me in Sunshine" by Pink and Willow Sage Hart, "Body" by Russ Millions and Tion Wayne, "Deja Vu" and "Drivers License" both by Olivia Rodrigo and "The Business" by Tiesto, Although there's an argument to say that "BED" by Joel Corry, RAYE and David Guetta is also likely to make year end list.

In doubt for year end is "Rasputin" by Majestic and Boney M...I am okay if it doesn't.

Then there's the songs that had some momentum but had it cut short like "Love Tonight" by Shouse, "Dumb Love" by Mimi Webb and "Cloudy Day" by Tones and I.

"Don't Go" by Skrillex feat. Justin Bieber and Don Toliver also left (that song's lack of promo is surprising...maybe Bieber's fans don't care for it either)

Those took with them scattered songs like "Not Sober" by The Kid Laroi, Polo G and Stunna Gambino, "Mood Ring" and "Solar Power" both by Lorde and "Dreams" by Fleetwood Mac (that song had an impressive run for something was spawned by a viral meme last year)

Then there's the cuts from 2018/19/20...some that have stayed long enough to likely have made the year end for 2021 like "You Broke Me first" by Tate McRae, "Someone You Loved" by Lewis Capaldi, "Watermelon Sugar' by Harry Styles, "Mood" by 24kGoldn and Iann Dior and "Perfect" by Ed Sheeran

Okay, that last one won't make this year's year end but still. Finally, the classic "Blinding Lights" by The Weeknd also departed the chart. 

It's hard to say what will come back once these album bombs go away but some of this is song I'm kind of glad to see gone.

New Entries

There's twenty one new entries to the ARIA singles chart this week and given my album bomb rules, I only cover the top three charting songs from the album plus any songs that qualify for best or worst of the week so here's the full chart placements of the "Donda" album bomb from Kanye:

"New Again" arrives at 42, "Jesus Lord" at 44 (this was close to worst of the week), "Keep My Spirit Alive" at 41, "Donda" at 38, "Pure Souls" at 37, "Remote Control" at 34, "No Child Left Behind" at 31, 'Junya" at 30, "24" at 29 (so disappointed it didn't debut at 24), "Heaven and Hell" debuted at 24, "Ok Ok" at 22, "God Breathes" at 20 (another song that could have gotten worst of the week...it's not good), "Jonah' at 19, "Believe What I Say" at 17 (I liked this one...probably one of the better cuts from the album), "Moon" at 15 and finally, "Praise God" at 13.

That leaves us with just five new entries to talk about but we're not starting off with Kanye because...

49. "Get Into It (Yuh)" by Doja Cat

So I won't lie, I am impressed by how well "Planet Her" has done on the charts around the world since it's release and it looks like Doja Cat is having a number of songs from the album land on the charts with this going viral apparently which I don't mind because it is one of the better cuts from the album, for one thing it plays to the more playful side of Doja Cat with the twinkling piano keys and knock of percussion, it gives the song a rather British street feel which is yeah pretty cool for a sex song and the reference to Ariana Grande's 'yuh' in the verses is actually pretty funny, it's also one of the songs where Doja's vocal delivery works. Check this out.

26. "Woman" by Doja Cat

Now this is the cut from "Planet Her" that I didn't like all that much, a tropical beat with an unspired chorus where Doja begs this guy to let her be his woman and ends up drumming the word 'woman' into our ears in the most annoying fashion. Also the percussion over any obvious melody is really kind of annoying here. I'll stick with "Get Into It (Yuh)"...thanks

9. "Off the Grid" by Kanye West feat. Fivio Foreign and Playboi Carti

So let's begin with the first of three Kanye West songs we'll be looking at and this might be the worst of them where Kanye brags about being off social media and about moving away from 'secular music' to devoting himself to religion and making music that is aimed at worshipping God but than Playboi Carti shows up to brag about how much money he gave away to women dancing at a strip club and getting a tattoo with his son's name on it which doesn't feel very in line with being off the grid or as Christian (more in line with the prosperity gospel that was "Jesus is King") as the song wants to try to be. At least Fivio Foreign shows up to get the song back on track even if you get the feeling the verse about being in prison was meant for another song on the album but this is just a forgettable nothing of a song. 

5. "Jail"  by Kanye West feat. Jay Z

Now this is better, this has an actual groove and hook here...I can see that hook being belted out live and sounding amazing. It's a song where Kanye knows that he is most likely going to fail in his walk with Christianity but is relying on God to help eg: bail him out...it's a bit of a nod back to "Life with Pablo" and tracks on there and from there Kanye references his recent divorce and how being single may well have it's benefits, then Jay Z shows up to reiterate what Kanye has already said, reference an interview Kanye did with Zane Lowe in 2013 and past Kanye tracks. Look, this is pretty good, probably one of the better tracks on the album.

4. "Hurricane" by Kanye West feat. Lil Baby and The Weeknd

There are ten unreleased versions of this song out there apparently but the official released version on "Donda" is the one featuring both Lil Baby and The Weeknd. The song opens with The Weeknd singing the hook begging God and Jesus to not let him drown and references himself walking on water then Lil Baby raps about his personal struggles like the deaths of three of his friends before noting the fact that in his come up he has gone from sheepskin floor mats to biiying expensive luxury cars (again, I question how bragging about wealth here on a Christian album is really all that Christian)

Then Kanye shows up to brag about his influence on pop culture and how he dropped out of school and yet still become successful. Again I question how much all this bragging about money and homes is really all that Christian or fits within the realm of Christianity. "Hurricane" is fine...I guess.

And that completes our week and best and worst kind of fall out a lot easier than I thought with "Off the Grid" by Kanye West feat. Playboi Carti and Fivio Foreign taking the worst of the week.

I'm giving Doja Cat the best of the week though for "Get into it (Yuh)" mostly because I can see myself coming back to that one.

Next week, the unpleasant task of finding something to say about a Drake album bomb. Joy. Hopefully we get some ABBA or even Little Mix to make things tolerable and it's not just all Drake. Find out at 5pm AEST on Friday when ARIA updates their chart. 

Good 1992 Vibrations. 30th August. Take this Candyman's Achy Breaky Heart Treet

 We got a pretty standard week here even if the new entries look like being nightmare from Elm Street stuff but we'll get to that because our top ten saw some interesting moves just not at the top where "Amigos Para Siempre (Friends for Life)" by Jose Carreras and Sarah Brightman held the number one spot for another week, it's looking pretty strong right now. 

It thankfully held up over "Please Don't Go" by K.W.S which remains at number two this week (the sooner this plummets from the top ten the better) as there's no way it could have clawed back that sales margin that "Amigos Para Siempre (Friends for Life)" has on it.

However it may well be coming under threat from "Humpin' Around" by Bobby Brown which climbed from its debut of number 10 up to number three!. This looks like it could make a play for number one unfortunately (I still don't like this song all that much) in the next few weeks.

All that left both "As Ugly As They Wanna Be" by Ugly Kid Joe and "Rhythm is a Dancer" by Snap static at numbers four and five respectively.

However the big move by "Humpin' Around" is cause "Hazard by Richard Marx to slump three places to number six while "Everything's Alright" by John Farnham, Kate Ceberano and Jon Stevens climbed one place to number seven...I'm happy this is becoming a hit, it's infinitely more interesting than a lot of the songs that have become hits this year. 

It pushed past "Damn, I Wish I Was Your Lover" by Sophie B. Hawkins which fell one to number eight while "I'll be There" by Mariah Carey remains stuck at number nine.

Finally moving up seven places somehow to number is "Life is A Highway" by Tom Cochrane...yikes.

Gains

So apart from the big gains I've already mentioned in the top ten, what else gained...well "God Gave Rock n Roll to You II" by Kiss broke into the top twenty up from 21 to 18 as did Euphoria by jumping an impressive ten places to 19.

The same goes for "How Do You Do" by Roxette which leaped ten places to 20...I'm fine with that! The song is damn good.

I'm also fine with "It's Not Over" by The Rockmelons feat. Deni Hines climbing six places to 25 or "Tennessee" by Arrested Development jumping eight to 34.

"It's Probably Me" by Sting with Eric Clapton continues to climb, this week it climbed from 41 to 36...kind of weird considering how flat the song is. 

Then there's the questionable gains like "All I Want is You" by Bryan Adams which rocketed up eleven places to 38 or "Boy in the Moon" by Margaret Urlich picked up from 45 to 39. 

Losers

Not a good week for Kriss Kross here as "Jump" plunged from 25 to 43 while "Warm It Up" slumped from 24 to 40...Ouch.

"Just Take My Heart" by Mr Big looks like its taking it's leave as it fell six places to 50 while "That Word (L.O.V.E)" by The Rockmelons feat. Cutty Ranks, Nardo Ranks and Deni Hines slipped six places to 49.

"Clunk EP" by Frente fell nine spots to 48 while "I Don't Care as Long as We Beat New Zealand" by Andrew Denton and The Live & Sweaty Team hit a hurdle and stumbled down nine to 47..

Elton John's "The One" collapsed eleven places to 46 while En Vogue's "My Lovin' (You're Never Gonna Get it)" got hit with a fall from 36 to 42. 

Sadly "Ain't 2 Proud 2 Beg" by TLC lost all it's gains to fall from 28 to 41 while former top ten hit "Cry" by Lisa Edwards cried from 22 to 29 this week. 

"Sexy MF" by Prince and The New Power Generation fell out of the top twenty down to 26. 

Finally "Too Funky" by George Michael fell five places out of the top ten to number 11. 

New Entries

Four new entries this week beginning with...

44. "Candyman" by Ratcat

This is the third single taken from Ratcat's third album entitled "Insideout" and well...I'm not sure how I feel about this one where the vocals sit behind these whirring guitars as Ratcat begs for mum and dad to give them a pill because they are feeling ill so I guess its a drugs related song? It's fine but it does feel like a fragment of a song...given what else is new on the chart thiis week, I guess I'll take it.

31. "Sesame's Treet" by Smart E's

Oh joy a remix of the fucking Sesame Street theme has show up on the chart...lovely...and the worst part is this song an annoying slapdash dud. The Sesame Street theme is sung by kids whose pitches are already pretty high up and those drums mixed way to loud and don't go with the rest of the song at all...it's a mess and then you get to the implied drug use and yeah I have no need for this...NEXT!

30. "Achy Breaky Heart" by Billy Ray Cyrus

So this is the breakout single from American singer songwriter and actor Billy Ray Cyrus with the song being written by Don Von Tress with Cyrus recording it in 1991 and releasing it on his debut album called "Some Gave All" yet all this song is is a guy having a sulk because this girl is leaving him yet doesn't want her to tell his heart because his heart might blow up and kill him...like seriously grow up and be an adult about it, dude. She doesn't want you anymore. The way the lyrics are structured here is this guy having a massive tantrum and over reacting to the end of their relationship...like dude, grow up already and oh yeah...the song sucks....NEXT!

22. "Take This Heart" by Richard Marx

Wow, did this week decide to suck so bad we're ending it off with this limp love song from Richard Marx where the guitars sound so limp behind a vocalist who can barely sell the song? It sounds like Marx returned to his 80s sound and come up with a limp rip off that doesn't do much. This doesn't work at all for me so yeah let's just move on.

That ends our week and just wooow, the new entries sucked hard...I'm giving best of the week to "Candyman" by Ratcat by virtue of having a lot more going for it than the rest. Worst of the week, that's tough...I'll give it to "Achy Breaky Heart" because yeah the song is as juvenile as it is gets.

ARIA Singles Top Ten/Chart Review: Guess Visiting Love Hours Don't Go is a Mood Ring

So this week feels a little weird more because I was expecting a lot more than what we got and it feels like the chart is getting ready for an upcoming onslaught of big releases in the weeks ahead eg: Kanye is supposed to be dropping 'DONDA' in Kanye time or something like that but we'll worry about that when or if it happens so let's not waste any more time and get stuck into the top ten where yet again its "Stay' by The Kid Laroi and Justin Bieber spending a seventh week at number one, now it's starting to lose ground on streaming but not fast enough to lose the number one at this stage.

"Bad Habits" by Ed Sheeran remains stuck at number two as the gaps on streaming remained, it's not getting any closer to "Stay", I am not certain it's going back to number one. 

Right behind it is a new entry also from Ed Sheeran called "Visiting Hours", more about the quality of this song later, but this debuted so god damn high thanks to those incredible sales with some support on streaming, its going to need those sales margins and then some to stay in the top ten next week though.

I say that because "Cold Heart (Pnau Remix)" by Elton John and Dua Lipa climbed three places to number four, folks, this song has some genuine traction going forward, it could overtake both Ed Sheeran songs to make a play for number one...warning you all now.

This pushed it past "Industry Baby" by Lil Nas X and Jack Harlow remaining at number five, now this could also make a run for number one with Lil Nas X finally announcing that the debut album will be dropping on 17th September (I am really looking forward to it too)

"Good 4 U" by Olivia Rodrigo slumped three places to number six as it's losing strength across the board and her label is more focussed on pushing both 'Traitor" and "Brutal' while there was also a three place slip for "Beggin'" by Maneskin to number seven because similar bleeding on streaming is happening for it where it's showing signs that it's run is done.

"Happier Than Ever" by Billie Eilish suffered a two place fall to number eight although I will say this song is falling much more slowly than normal for a Billie Eilish song.

Remaining where it is is "Need to Know" by Doja Cat at number nine while "Kiss Me More" by Doja Cat and SZA looks to be headed out as it tumbled two places to number ten.

Gains

There's not too much in the way of major gains this week with "Cold Heart (PNAU Remix" being the biggest gainer of the week up to number four as I already mentioned but beyond that...that was really the only significant gain.

Re entries

Got three re entries which can be explained easily with "Perfect" by Ed Sheeran back at number 49 thanks to the release of "Visiting Hours" and people probably going back to this song. 

"You Broke Me First" by Tate McRae returns at number 42 because well something needs to fill the number 42 slot...I guess.

The other return is "Solar Power" by Lorde which returned at 39 courtesy of the release of the album and we do have more Lorde to talk about in the new entries. 

Losers

So let's work our way through these starting with "Goosebumps" by HVME feat. Travis Scott down nine places to number 50 while "Not Sober" by The Kid Laroi feat. Polo G and Stunna Gambino slipping nine spots to 46,

Then there's "Body' by Russ Millions and Tion Wayne on the way out anyway as it tumbled seven to 45 while "BED" by Joel Corry, RAYE and David Guetta continues to fall out of its chart bed down six to 41.

The run of "Deja Vu" by Olivia Rodrigo is done as it slides down ten to 38 while "Rasputin" by Majestic vs Boney M is mercifully not becoming a hit down six to 36

Finally "Take My Breath" by The Weeknd slipped six places to 17 as somehow it looks like this song may not be catching on which is kind of disappointing.

Drop Outs

The drop outs are kind of all over the shop, it includes songs like "Rapstar" by Polo G, "Your Love (9pm)" by ATB, Topic and A7S and possibly "Favourite Crime" by Olivia Rodrigo (Kind of hope it has)

Then there's songs that likely won't make the year end from here like "Your Right" by Doja Cat feat. The Weekend and "Heartbreak Anthem" by Galantis, David Guetta and Little Mix.

Then there's the older songs or past hits that left like "Head & Heart" by Joel Corry and MNEK and also "Mr Brightside" by The Killers 

New Entries

Four new entries this week, let's unfortunately start with an easy target...

43. "Don't Go" by Skrillex with Justin Bieber and Don Toliver

Oh look, two thirds of the collab responsible for one of the worst songs of 2015/16 have reunited and brought Don Toliver along for the ride so yeah no surprise that this absolutely sucks. The production from Skrillex is some of the cheapest I've heard in a song in any genre this year with the flat buzzing noises and trap sound so much so you don't notice that Bieber is crooning his way through the song with so little charisma or passion because of how atrocious the production is and Don Toliver really is not that much better than Bieber here so yeah...this sucks. NEXT!

29. "Mood Ring" by Lorde

I've heard a lot of the discourse about the new album from Lorde especially from those disappointed with it in light of how brilliant Lorde's sophomore album "Melodrama' was with this being another single from it and honestly this isn't one of my favoured cuts from "Solar Power", it feels weirdly wispy in a way that I wouldn't expect coming from Lorde (even if I do like the new sound on "Solar Power" more than most). The song is trying to be all thoughtful about how the world is in the midst of the pandemic but really ends up saying a whole load of nothing,..it's weirdly forgettable.

27. "Guess I'm In Love" by Clinton Kane

So I was kind of surprised that this song is the first time Perth's Clinton Kane has charted on the ARIA singles especially when "Chicken Tendies" charted on the US Billboard Hot 100 earlier this year, anyway Kane is more commonly known as working with Martin Garrix before branching out on his own this year with spare piano ballad "Guess I'm In Love" being his latest single and honestly I am a bit middled on this one...I do understand why this would click with some people, it's tapping into that emotion of falling in love with somebody for that first time and believing that they've found the one and Kane is singing this with more passion and emotion in his voice than I've heard on a few other songs in this vein but I kind feel like this could have been better with more of an orchestral swell going into that final singing of the hook. It's good but could be better.

3. "Visiting Hours" by Ed Sheeran

So here's the biggest new entry of the week, a song that Ed Sheeran wrote while in hotel quarantine in Melbourne and performed it at the state memorial service for Australian music promoter Michael Gudinski for whom the song dedicated to. Jimmy Barnes and Kylie Minogue provide backing vocals on the song and yeah this song hits hard as the vocal production allows for Ed to sound really raw and really emotional as he sings about wishing he could visit heaven even just for a couple of hours just to share with Michael how Sheeran's daughter is growing up and get those last words of advice. I think what I appreciate more is the spare production that allows Sheeran's voice and raw emotion to shine through but I'm not going to lie for people going through a rough time especially with the pandemic going on, this song may cut a little close to home right now.

That wraps up the week and both the best and the worst fall out easily here. The worst is going to "Don't Go" by Skrillex with Justin Bieber and Don Toliver for being a cheap slice of lazy trap that doesn't have the balls to at least be interesting.

As for the the best, it's going to Ed Sheeran for "Visiting Hours"...not really a contest as the song does hit hard.

Next week, well I imagine "Butter" by BTS returns thanks to the Megan Thee Stallion remix, we may well get some impact from that Halsey album but we'll have to find out on Friday at 5pm

Good 1992 Vibrations. 23rd August. I Don't Care as Long as Baby Don't Cry Humpin' Around

 So we've got a pretty diverse week in the new entries and the top ten...ughh,..actually let's get to the top ten because for a second week "Amigos Para Siempre (Friends For Life)" by Jose Carreras and Sarah Brightman held onto the number one spot, this looks locked for a long stay at the top here, folks and in a way that's kind of relieving because right behind it at number two is "Please Don't Go" by K.W.S which returned to number two because people are still dignifying this stupid song.

Anyway it pushed back "Hazard" by Richard Marx to number three while "As Ugly as They Wanna Be" by Ugly Kid Joe has stalled at number and its under threat of being passed by "Rhythm is Dancer" by Snap which jumped seven places to hit the top ten at number five this week!

Hell, "Rhythm is a Dancer" has got that much momentum it pushed "Too Funky" by George Michael back to number five this week. 

Sophie B. Hawkins slow and steady climb up the top ten continues as "Damn, I Wish I was Your Lover" rose one spot to number seven. 

In the second of four songs ("Rhythm is a Dancer" being the first) spending their first week inside the top ten, "Everything is Alright" by John Farnham, Kate Ceberano and Jon Stevens up five spots to number eight...nice to see as I still really like that song. 

Rising two places to hit the top ten at number nine is Mariah Carey's version of "I'll Be There"...I'm cool with that as well. The song is fine even if I think Mariah over does it vocally on the song.

Finally the fourth song is a new entry and it comes from Bobby Brown with a song called 'Humpin' Around" debuting at number ten, I'll have more to say about this song later but this looks like it may well be on the road to being a hit...wouldn't surprise me if it made a run for number one in the weeks ahead.

Gains

"Knockin' On Heaven's Door" by Guns 'N' Roses continues to knock it's way up the chart, this  week its up six places to 14.

I am not impressed that Sir Mix A Lot's "Baby Got Back" rose from 23 to 16 and "Life is A Highway" by Tom Cochrane jumped from 24 to 17...we can do so much better than both these songs, Australia.

En Vogue's "My Lovin' (You're Never Gonna Get It)" leaped from 41 to 36 this week while "It's Probably Me" by Sting with Eric Clapton climbed seven places off it's debut last week to 41. 

Losses

Alright...XTC get us underway here because "The Disappointed" slumped six places to 50 while "Deeply Dippy" by Right Said Fred dipped seven places to 47 (thank god, this is unlikely to be a hit here) 

2 Unlimited's "Workaholic" isn't quite working out a hit for them as it plunged from 39 to 46 while Mr Big sky dives from 38 to 44 with "Just Take My Heart",

The Rockmelons massive hit earlier this year with Cutty Ranks, Nardo Ranks and Deni Hines "That Word (L.O.V.E)" slipped from 36 to 43 this week. 

"Clunk EP" by Frente" clunked out eleven places to 39 as its on its way out...again I don't have a problem with that. 

"She's Got That Vibe" by R. Kelly & Public Announcement slipped six places to 37 while "The One" by Elton John tumbled eight places to 35 and "Beauty & The Beast" by Celine Dion and Peabo Bryson stumbled nine places to 27...thank goodness.

"Cry" by Lisa Edwards continues to lose momentum as it fell from 15 to 22 while "Sexy MF" by Prince and The New Power Generation slipped ten places to 19, "Save The Best for Last" by Vanessa Williams slipped six places to 13 and "Heaven Knows" by Rick Price tumbled six places out of the top ten to 12...a pretty sudden fall for that last song unfortunately.

New Entries

Six new entries this week, let's begin with.

49. "All I Want is You" by Bryan Adams

So here we go again with Bryan Adams..oh god, what's with the shrill guitars that can't build any sort of solid momentum and Bryan Adams yelling that if this girl doesn't want love she must be nuts or crazy not to want it because all Adams wants is her, it's love or bust according to Adams. Yeah, this is not even close to romantic, this is just yuck. Maybe I was too harsh on "Ihought I died and gone to heaven" because somehow this is even worse than that. SKIP IT!

40. "Baby Don't Cry" by INXS

Ahh a second single from that forthcoming INXS album, this time with a more memorable melody but again it's the placement of the vocals in the mix around the hook that bother me here, they sound almost compressed or buried by the guitars and when the most charismatic lead vocallist in rock like Michael Hutchence sounds like he is recording his vocals three rooms over...it's a bit of a worry. It's not completely bad but this doesn't work the way I think INXS were hoping it too. 

38. "I Don't Care As Long as We Beat New Zealand" by Andrew Denton and The Live & Sweaty        Team

Oh god, how to explain this? Alright, this song comes courtesy of ABC's part sports talk part comedy show "Live and Sweaty" that is hosted by Andrew Denton. Now it should be stressed that this song is a novelty song parodying the sporting rivalry between Australia and New Zealand so I'm going to judge it on the level of it being a pretty silly novelty song that even samples Norman May shouting "Gold! Gold! Gold" at the 1980 Moscow Olympics and Denton bemoaning the fact that Australia no longer had the Olympic stars like Shane Gould and Dawn Fraser to get the country that bounty of gold at the Olympics anymore but it according to Andrew Denton and the Live and Sweaty team...they don't care as long as Australia beats New Zealand. Look, the song is kind of funny but it is going to age kind of badly in the months ahead beyond the Olympics.

31. "It's Not Over" by The Rockmelons and Deni Hines

Oh finally a song that is actually pretty damn good, The Rockmelons choosing to go a slightly softly route here with Deni Hines taking lead vocals on a song where she's expressing regret for mistreating this guy in that she was cheating on her partner and now is hoping that this partner will open his heart and forgive her even though she knows she can't turn back time to fix the mess she's made of the relationship. Yeah this is pretty solid even if I think the hook is a little repetitive but there's enough emotion in that that hook from Hines to make it pretty good. Check it out!

29. "Do For You" by Euphoria

Alright, the latest from Euphoria and it turns out its a pretty snazzy little pop rock number with Andrew McFarland taking the lead vocals and yeah it fits here because this is honestly the best thing Euphoria have released even it sounds directly ripped from the eighties and even if the "Na na na" part of the song doesn't sound like it fits and it is a pretty basic love song, it still all works well. Yeah this song is a bit of fun, check it out!

10. "Humpin' Around" by Bobby Brown. 

So here's the return of Bobby Brown with a new single and it's got all the hallmarks of having the new jack swing sound here combined with an interpolation of "Dancing Days" by Led Zeppelin, it's fairly obvious that Bobby Brown wants to be like Michael Jackson although its obvious he doesn't have the charisma to pull that off and let's be real here, Brown sounds more flat than anything else. Trade Bobby for Michael and this song could have been massive.

That rounds up the week and the worst falls out easily...that's going to "All I Want is You" by Bryan Adams for being utterly sleazy and worthless.

As for the best though, it's between two but "It's Not Over" by The Rockmelons feat. Deni Hines just edges out "Do For You" by Euphoria for the best.