ARIA top 50 Singles Chart. 12th October The One Where Choosin' Texas is Unfortunately Co-Opted

 This week is not exactly a good one...we got a new entry that might be the biggest piece of sbit I have heard in some time but anyway before all of that nonsense, let's dive into the top ten where we have a returning number one..."Choosin' Texas" by Ella Langley...it's this song's sixteenth week at number one, streaming was enough to push this song past "Patient Zero" by Taylor Swift down to number two as it couldn't match on streams.

What is interesting is what is going on behind because "Man I Need" by Olivia Dean has picked up a second wind on streaming and could make a play to return to number one as it rebounded four to number three.

"Rein Me In" by Sam Fender and Olivia Dean rebounded two number four while "Nicole Kidman" by Adela bounced back three to number five, Sadly "Ordinary" by Alex Warren also got a three place rebound to number six...seems like that song will be on the chart until the two year rule is used on it. 

The rest of the top ten is also just songs slotting back into normal position post Taylor Swift's mini album bomb with "Boston" by Stella Lefty up four to seven, " Stupid Song" by Olivia Rodrigo up five to eight, "Ain't In LA" by Adela moving up three to nine and "The Cure" by Olivia Rodrigo up four to number ten. 

Losers

The big story in our losers is the collapse of the Taylor Swift songs that aren't "Patient Zero" with "Babylon" faring the best of them and that fell twenty eight spots to thirty two, "Pink Clouding" tumbled thirty one to thirty six and "Cleveland!" took a well deserved thirty six place dive to thirty nine.

Outside of Taylor, "Moving to The Sun" by Hugel, Imael Angel and Ultra Nate is not really getting going here as it plummeted seventeen spots to forty.

Drop Outs

So we did see two Taylor Swift songs depart with those being "Opalite" and "I Knew It, I Knew You" (should make the year end for 2026).

Also gone are "Cinderella" by Mac Miller feat. Ty Dolla $ign, "Janice STFU" by Drake (more about him in the new entries and "Oh Yeah?" by Steve Lacy. 

The rest are recent new entries that just weren't likely to see more time time on the chart with "Ashke" by Mxrci and Karan Aujla and "Blessings" by Calvin Harris and Clementine Douglas.

Gains

So it appears we are going to give Ashe a hit with "Stop The Wedding" up twelve to eleven...actually happy with that...that song has been an earworm for me lately.

Out of nowhere though is an unexplainable twenty place gain to nineteen for "Nice to Each Other" by Olivia Dean...maybe people are revisting "The Art of Loving" or something because otherwise...huh?

Sombr's "My Body Isn't Ready" climbed nine to twenty four.

Re-Entries

Let's blow through the four returns this week, "Material Lover" by Sienna Spiro is back at forty nine while Spiro's other hit "Die on this Hill" continues to be a pest I want to call an exterminator for as it returned at forty seven.

"Baby Sreps" by Olivia Dean stepped back onto the chart at forty six while "A Couple of Minutes" also by Olvia Dean returned at  forty two.

New Entries

Three new entries this week, we unfortunately must first deal with what escaped out of Canada first...

48. "Solar Eclipse" by Drake feat. Don Toliver

Why couldn't Drake just be satisfied with "STFU Janice" going number one on the Hot 100 and just rest for the rest of 2026 and not released this absolute nonsense? This is just trend chasing garbage because Drake isn't the biggest thing on the charts right now...yes, he and Don Toliver interpolated "Choosin' Texas" by Ella Langley and it's fucking embarrassing how bad the interplation is because it's just Drake crooning about this woman having hold of his wood grain because she's from Texas which springs to mind any number of small penis jokes etc and how she is riding on him spilling yak (gross) which springs to mind that these two are having sloppy drunken sex. Did Dtrake miss the point of "Choosin' Texas" or something?

Don Toliver isn't much better here, his verse is talking about how it's all over her blouse and mouth and given Drake's verse...ew ew ew. Also the music is some of the most tuneless mush I have heard this year. GET THIS SHIT OFF THE FUCKING CHARTS! Absolute gross piece of fucking shit.

42. "Storm" by Gener8tion feat. Yung Lean

This is going to take a moment to explain, Gener8tion is the name of an electronic/dance and audiovisual project headed by DJ Surkin, a French DJ that uses multiple platforms to express elements that are dystopian, high concept and cinematic visuals with futuristic electronic music pair that with Swedish rapper Yung Lean who first rose to prominence after "Ginseng Strip 2000" went viral in 2013 hence we get this song and on the instrumental alone, this is a pretty damn solid song, it reminds me of the Pet Shop Boys in some ways.

Just a shame that Yung Lean feels like a complete non presence on this song but I do think the bones of a really good song are here so I guess, check it out if you are curious.

35. "Draw You Out" by Noah Kahan

Ending the week with a new single from Noah Kahan, I was actually excited to check this out given his most recent album really grew on me this year and this was for the sound track of the new Hunger Games film which has had a good track record of great songs eg "Can't Catch Me Now" by Olivia Rodrigo. 
Sadly this isn't anywhere near "Can't Catch Me Now" quality because this song really does feel like a lesser cut from the album "The Great Divide", everything from the guitar driving the song to lyrics just feel like a song that got left off the album but recorded for the soundtrack of this movie out of sheer ambivalence. 

But it's not worst of the week...that's going to "Solar Eclipse" by Drake and Don Toliver for being one of the most disgusting songs I have ever heard. 

Best is going to "Storm" by Gener8ion and Yung Lean if only because the instrumental is actually really good. 

Pretty Fly (for 1999) 10th October Larger Than Love Goin' Down

Let's not waste time as this is late going out already so let's dive into the top ten where for yet another week its Lou Bega's "Mambo No. 5" at number one and really it's just on the margins because "Genie in a Bottle" by Christina Aguilera, at number two, sure isn't getting near it right now.

That might leave a door open for our new entry at number three that being "Larger Than Life", more about the song's quality later but it's here thanks to great sales but songs that debut this high from boy bands normally don't stay this high so we'll see.

What surprised me was the big five place gain for "Unpretty" by TLC to number four. Don't get me wrong, I am happy to see it so high but still shocked it's doing so well. 

All this triggered something of a collapse for "Last Kiss" by Pearl Jam which fell three to number five and "If Ya Gettin' Down" by Five which slipped to number six, this song has thankfully peaked and will hopefully stop dragging down the quality of the top ten. 

Down two to number seven is "I Knew I Loved You" by Savage Garden...I am sorry but this song is still so utterly creepy to me. 

"2 Times" by Ann Lee remains at number eight while "All Star" by Smash Mouth slipped two to number nine.

Finally it looks like Ronan Keating's "When You Say Nothing At All" is done because it fell four to number ten. 

Losers

Wow, we have a lot of songs that lost hard this week so let's begin at the bottom of the chart with "I Want It That Way" by Backstreet Boys slipping eleven to forty eleven.

"The Hardest Thing" by 98 Degrees is making climbing the charts a hard thing (praise the small mercies) down ten to forty two. "She's All I Ever Had" by Richy Martin also fell ten to forty.

Another song to experience a ten place dip was "Sometimes" by Britney Spears down to thirty six. 

"If You Had My Love" by Jennifer Lopez slipped eight to thirty two wbile "American Woman" by Lenny Kravitz fell nine to thirty one. 

Westlife's "Swear It Again" is swearing nine places down to twenry nine. 

Re-Entries

Look, I am not exactly jumping for joy given our re-entries are "Nookie" by Limp Bizkit at fifty and "Mi Chico Latino" by Geri Halliwell at forty four...come on, seriously.

Gains

Boy, the gains are a mixed bag, I am not exactly thrilled that "I Love You" by Martina McBride saw traction to move up eight to thirty eight.

I guess I am okay with "In My Eyes" by Milk Inc having the biggest gain of the week as it jumped from forty eight to thirty three and "Forever" by Tina Cousins climbed eleven to twenty three.

New Entries

Six new entries this week beginning with...

48. "Goin' Down" by Mel C

So we have a solo single from former Spice Girl Mel C and this is very much not a song that I could foresaw from the Spice Girls because tbis leans into rock territory which is excellent especially with Mel's vocal timbre, she was one of the better singers in the Spice Girls so I'm delighted she's going in this direction, I am just a little disappointed that for some reason they put filters on her voice...why? It just takes away all the anger that is so evident in Mel's voice

Those vocal filters are probably the worst part of the song because the content here is pretty good to coming from the standpoint of having been betrayed and then fighting back to ensure the person who betrayed her is going down. Then again the song also seems like a message to those in the music industry who tried to pigeonhole her in pop music.  Good song.   

44. "A Straight Line" by Michael Hutchence

Was not expecting a Michael Hutchence solo cut to chart this week but hey, I'll take it all the same as it's the only Aussie new entry this week and Hutchence going into a more funk rock direction and as usual displaying a whole load of more charismas that most pop artists do and yet I am not overtly iimpressed with this song because it relies so much on Hutchence's charisma over everything else. 

There's no real hook until after the second verse, it also just feels like there's something missing with this song.,,maybe a better fleshed out hook? I don't know. Definitely not the worst thing ever but I won't be coming back to this. 

39. "You've Got A Way" by Shania Twain

So I think I have worked out that I like my Shania Twain songs to have lot of personality and "cheeky grin" attitude about them because that's when Shania is absolutely at her best, "Man! I Feel Like A Woman" has only gotten better with time and "That Don't Impress Me Much"is hilarious even if the Brad Pitt line hasn't aged particularly well. 

Now we have her latest single and it's something of an overproduced ballad with strings, piano and twangy guitar (gotta keep it country or whatever qualifies as country) love song where Shania is grateful for everything this guy brings to her life and she deeply adores him which is a sweet sentiment but when you've already put out "Still the One" that did a similar sentiment and was a better song? Yeah...

30. "My Love Is Your Love" by Whitney Houtson

Oh god, another new Whitney Houston song, I wasn't looking forward to covering another new song after the previous single "Heartbreak Hotel" and yeah, sadly this one is not good either and it mostly boils down to Whitney being such a weird non presence on the song with her vocals barely able to be heard over the instrumental. 

Also the lyrics feel a bit stale here too, all about how love endures even during a war and the end of the world, it's all very corny at this point. Please...can we not let this song be a thing?

22. "Blue (Da Ba Dee)" by Eiffel 65

So here we have an Italian Eurodance group that formed in 1997 with this song being their first break out and honesty.,,this is pretty damn fun if you can get past the weird sports announcer type vocals which do add to the weird novelty of this song especially as it tells a story which is uncommon for pop music these days.

That story is about a fictional person who lives in a world that's blue, his house, his car and everything else in his life is all blue. The band have said that the song is about how we all have a colour that we live through the prism of on a particular and in this character's case it was blue (sad), it's certaiinly an interesting idea which doesn't help explain why the song devolves into the gibberish hook. but it still works. 

The music works too...good song. Check it out.

3. "Larger Than Life" by Backstreet Boys

Final song of the week is coming from the Backstreet Boys, this being from their album "Millennium" and wow, this is absolutely a fan service song although one that I actually do like a fair bit as the boys do have a good energy here because yeah this is a love better to their fans thanking them for their love and devotion for getting the grooup to where they are now  but also acknowledges that the price and the sacrifices of being famous have mounted eg: the loss of privacy etc.

I do wish the instrumentation didn't feel so plastic but all up, it's decent pop song and worth checking out

It's not best of the week though because that's going to "Blue (Da Ba Dee)" by Eiffel 65. Worst of the week is going to whatever "My Love Is Your Love" by Whitney Houston is. 

ARIA Top 50 Singles Chart Review. 5th October. The One with a Showgirl Encore and a Punjabi debut

 Look, I don't really enjoy weeks like this one where one artist has four songs debut inside the top ten especially when it's the extended addition of an already awful album that's one of the worst of said artist's career...yeah...Taylor Swift is back on the charts and back at number one with "Patient Zero" hitting the top spot thanks to dominating sales, streaming and Youtube.

All that was enough to push it past "Choosin' Texas" by Ella Langley down to number two, it just didn't have the strength to compete with the Taylor Swift machine this week.

From there, we do have three consecutive new Taylor Swift songs at numbers three, four and five with "Cleveland!", "Babylon" and "Pink Clouding" in that order. 

Then we have the songs that will recover when the Taylor Swift mini bomb recedes with "Rein Me In" by Sam Fender and Olivia Dean down four to number six and "Man I Need" by Olivia Dean down four to number seven.

The same can be said of "Nicole Kidman" by Adela down four to number eight...I actually think this song might make a play for number one soon. 

What I am hoping doesn't recover is "Ordinary" by Alex Warren which suffered a four place loss to number nine, enough is enough...come on.

Finally, up four on the back of the encore album release is "The Fate of Ophelia" by Taylor Swift to number ten.

Losers

So we got a lot of double digit losers this week beginning with "Oh Yeah?" by Steve Lacy down ten spots to forty nine. 

"Cinderella" by Mac Miller feat Ty Dolla $ign is losing chart position in the same way Cinderella lost slippers down eleven to forty six while "Daisies" by Justin Bieber slmmped twelve to forty two. 

"No Broke Boys" by Disco Lines and Tinashe fell thirteen spots to thirty one while Alyssa Grace's "Bloodstream" stopped flowing down thirteen to thirty seven. 

Drop Outs

Six drop outs all of whom have been on and off the chart with regularity so we'll just run through these beginning with " A Couple Minutes" by Olivia Dean, "Stateside" by Pink Pantheress and Zara Larsson, "I Just Might" by Bruno Mars, "APT" by Rose and Bruno Mars, "Victory Lap" by Fred Again, Skepta and Plaqueboy Max and finally "Material Lover" by Sie nna Spiro.

Gains 

Both  big gains this week are from Noah Kahan with "Willing and Able" up seventeen slots to twenty three while "Orbiter" continues to climb up ten to twenty seven

Re-Entries

Just the one return this week with that being "Opalite" by Taylor Swift  back at number thirty eight.

New Entries

Five new entries with four of them from Taylor Swift however we're not starting with her because...

48. "Ashke" by Mxrci and Karan Aujla

Well this is a first and it's one that's going to take a little bit to explain. Mxrci is an Indian music producer based in Mohali. Karan Aujla is also an Indian Punjabi musician who has seen some chart success in Canada (this song debuted high in Canada too) and sadly I don't think I will be coming back for more of this mostly because I am not a huge fan of the production here which feels way too heavily weighted in the trap sound and when the content is the standard bragging about winning and being ahead of your rivals....yeah I'm skipping this.

5.  "Pink Clouding" by Taylor Swift

4. "Babylon" by Taylor Swift

3. "Cleveland!" by Taylor Swift

1. "Patient Zero"  by Taylor Swift.

I decided to put all the Taylor Swift songs together and review the whole The Life of a Showgirl Encoore together tather than as separate songs because honestly...I'd just be repeating myself a bit because the problems with all four of these songs are almost the same, the drum mixing on these songs is horrendous and Taylor's writing shows she's tired because man alive on "Cleveland!" her writing is absolutely awful, why invoke memories of Gabby Barrett's "The Good Ones" with the line "he's all mine", dead set Taylor, stop caring what your haters have to say about you because your songs about them are never any good.

The one song that doesn't feel too badly written but with the same production issues is "Pink Clouding" so I guess that's best of the week but maaan that's going to be needing some qualifiers

Worst of the week is going to Taylor as well for "Cleveland!"

Pretty Fly (For 1999) 3rd October. In My Eyes I Knew Burning Love House Down

So this week feels busier than normal even if we might have the worst set of new entries I have seen in 1999 so far however let's go through the top ten before all of that and for another week, it's "Mambo No. 5" by Lou Bega at number one and really, I don't see what's challenging it right now, it's holding a comfortable margin over "Genie in a Bottle" by Christina Aguilera which moved up one spot to number two and pushing "Last KIss" by Pearl Jam back to number three.

"If Ya Gettin' Down" by Five rebounded one spot to number four while there's a new entry at number five that being "I Knew I Loved You" by Savage Garden, we'll talk about the quality of this song later. 

Slipping two spots to number six is "When You Say Nothing At All" by Ronan Keating while "All Star" by Smash Mouth fell one to number seven.

Ann Lee's "2 Times" might be the beneficiary of any further falls for songs above it as it climbed one to number eight, it may also take "Unpretty" by TLC with it as it climbed three spots to nine thus making a very welcome top ten entry, both songs took advantage of the weaknesses of "Boom, Boom, Boom, Boom!" by Vengaboys which tumbled three slots to number ten. 

Losers

We did have a few big losers this week with "I Don't Want to Wait" by Paula Cole down ten to fifty, "Scar Tissue" by Red Hot Chili Peppers down twelve to forty nine and "Get Set" by Taxiride down eight to forty four. 

"Livin' La Vida Loca" by Ricky Martin fell seven to thirty eight while "Sometimes" by Britney Spears slipped from nineteen to twenty six. 

Gains

Two major gains this week with "King of My Castle" by Wamdue Project up twelve to thirty three and "Forever" by Tina Cousins up from forty nine to thirty four. 

New Entries

Five new entries beginning with... 

48. "In My Eyes" by Milk Inc

So just a warning here, this week is going to be quite the eclectic one and I am not sure it's going to be in the good but we're beginning with Milk Inc, a Belgian electronic/dance act and their single "In My Eyes" and you know what? I think this is okay especially with that damn solid bass groove and I like the synth choices here, there's definitely something about this that would get me up on my feet although if I do have one quibble...it's the female vocals, they do nothing to bring any kind of energy to the track and don't really fit the song...otherwise this is pretty good. 

46. "I Love You" by Martina McBride

Okay, now we're delving into pop country from an artist that's not Shania Twain, Martina McBride is an Anerican country singer/songwriter with this song from the film "The Runaway Bride" becoming her first to chart in Australia and far out...there's something about this song that makes me want to throw something screaming off a balcony because this is the sort of love song that hits the direct point of laying it on thicker and being sp completely gooey that it's over the top, it's sweet to the point it makes you want to vomit, blue skies everyday when you've known this dude a week or two? Yeah fuck off with that!

Also I hate how the hook isn't loose and it sounds like she is forcing the words out of her throat...yeah...get this goo ball of a song off the charts!

45. "Some Kind of Love Song" by Friendly

So this song is an Australian trip hop/electronic song from Andrew Kornweibel who goes by the name Friendly, he got vocals from Sia Furler on this song and this song feels so twisted and odd sounding that I think this works, the trip hop flourishes give the song an interesting flourish as the production warps and changes plus Sia's voice is a damn good fit here where she absolutely suits the weird vibe of the production. As for the content Sia is hurt and fed up by her partner making cruel or dismissive remarks and then labelling them as jokes, the comments left her feeling a loss of self esteem especially not helped if this partner is labelling her as "oversensitive. Good song...definitely worth giving a listen.

31. "Burning Down The House" by Tom Jones and The Cardigans

Woo boy, a Talking Heads cover and I already have some concerns over this before hearing it thanks to Welsh legend Tom Jones being on the song and I am not sure he can do David Byrne's vocal on this particular track justice and after hearing it...it's just what I feared...the song is straight flat pop song where the punch has been taken out of it and put through the blender of 90s pop music, there isn't even a scream from Jones at the beginning but rather Nina from The Cardigans singing "Fighting fire with fire". Yeah...I just really don't like this at all, we can do better... 

5. "I Knew I Loved You" by Savage Garden

So this song is going to be on "Affirmation" and the video does feature a young Kirsten Dunst which is probably the most interesting part of this because man alive this song is dreary nonsense although it woul appear somebody is having hallucinations of a sort if he is dreaming attractive women to life and falling in love with them before he has even met these women is also really just flat out creepy. We can do better than this song.

That wraps our week...not much in the way of quality here this week but worst of the week goes to "I Knew I Loved You" by Savage Garden for eliciting the creepy factor. Best of the week is going to Friendly for "Some Kind of Love Song" although there wasn't that much competition.

ARIA Top 50 Singles Chart Review. 26th September. The one where Calvin turns up

 Sigh. This week feels a bit pointless given we're likely going to see an influx of Taylor Swift songs from the encore of The Life of a Showgirl" (more on that next week), it almost kind of feels superfluous to even write this but anyway let's go to our top ten where for a fifteenth week, it's "Choosin' Texas" by Ella Langley at number one, now it'll probably lose the top spot to Taylor Swift next week but held number one this week thanks to it's margins on sales and streaming. 

Especially ahead of what have been our number two and three for months with "Rein Me In" by Sam Fender and Olivia Dean at number two and "Man I Need" by Olivia Dean at number three. 

Both these songs are set to come under pressure from "Nicole Kidman" by Adela which rose ten slots to number four thanks to strength on streaming, it had the impact of pushing "Ordinary" by Alex Warren back to number five and "Boston" by Stella Lefty back to number six.

Rising six slots to number seven on a good week for Adela is "Ain't in L.A" while "Stupid Song" by Olivia Rodrigo fell back two to number eight and "Earrings" by Malcolm Todd slipped two to number nine.

Rounding out the top ten is the return to the top ten of "Self Aware" by Temper City at number ten.

Losers

"Oh Yeah?" by Steve Lacy fell eight to thirty nine while "Love Me Not" by Ravyn Lenae slipped seven to fifteen (Coold be charting any song from her most recent album, Australia...just saying).

Drop Outs

Sp we did see five songs leave this week and I am mostly okay with all of these leaving? Sure I like "Undressed" by Sombr but it's had it's run on the charts now and "Noble" by F3miii has worn out it's welcome for me so I am glad to see it gone especially if it's taking "Carry You Home" and "Fever Dream" by Alex Warren and "Risk It All" by Bruno Mars with it. 

Gains

The biggest gain of the week unfortunately belongs to "Moving to the Sun" by Hugel, Imael Angel and Ultra Nate which climbed twenty to a new peak of twenty seven.

"The Fate of Ophelia" by Taylor Swift jumped ten to fourteen...it could return to the top ten next week with the release of the encore/deluxe edition of The Life of A Showgirl. 

"No Broke Boys" by Disco Lines and Tinashe rebounded seven to eighteen.

Re-Entries

Four returns this week beginning with "Victory Lap" by Fred Again, Skepta and Plaqueboy Max back at number forty eight.

"Stateside"  by PinkPantheress and Zara Larsson returns at number forty six while I am thrilled to see "Willing and Able" by Noah Kahan back at forty one (finally one of the good songs from that album is getting some decent traction)

Finally "My Body Isn't Ready" by Sombr returned yet again at number thirty six.

New Entries

One new entry this week...

42. "Blessings" by Calvin Harris feat. Clementine Douglas

So this is a song that was on Calvin Harris best of album last year and this is a pretty solid dance/electronic song about a parasocial relationship that ends with the person walking away with maturity and self respect in tact rather than diving into bitterness or resentment which is something that i do like. It's a fine enough song that doesn't give me a lot to say.

And that will be in stark contrast to next week...because...ugh...it's going to be all about Taylor Swift. 

Pretty Fly (For 1999) 26th September If I Let Dophin's Baby Back Forever

So this feels like a less and more week at hand here...we got the usual clatter of new entries but for the most part it was a pretty calm week with none of the craziness of previous weeks however there is still a little bit going on in our top ten where for yet another week, it's "Mambo No. 5" by Lou Bega at number one, it held sway over "Last Kiss" by Pearl Jam holding steady at numbe two.

Rising two spots to number three is "Genie in a Bottle" by Christina Aguilera while "When You Say Nothing At All" by Ronan Keating has somewhat stalled out at number four, I don't see this song moving any higher.

It was a straight swap though because "If Ya Gettin' Down" by Five slipped two to number five. while Smash Mouth rebounded one spot to number six. 

"Boom, Boom, Boom, Boom!" by Vengaboys slipped one to number seven.

Tal Bachman has his first top ten hit as "She's So High" climbed five to number eight while "2 Times" remains at number nine for the second week in a row for Ann Lee.

Finally "Wild Wild West" by Will Smith slipped two to number ten and seems to have peaked. 

Loserrs

Not much in the way of big losers this week apart from maybe "Say It Once" by Ultra down seven to fifty and "Nookie" by Limp Bizkit down ten to thirty eight. 

 Gains

So we did see "Everywhere You Go" by Taxiride get a nice ten place boost to twenty nine while "Smooth" by Santana and Rob Thomas climbed six to sixteen (this song is absolutely huge in the US). 

New Entries

Five new entries beginning with...

49. "Forever" by Tina Cousins

First of two newcomes from out of the UK this week, the first being Tina Cousins with this song being the fifth single from her debut album "Killing Time" and yeah, this is pretty damn good! Cousins definitely has a presence about her in terms of her vocals because my gosh she sounds phenomenal here and the lyrics hit hard here too, a relationship on the verge of breaking up and Cousins just asking to have one final forever moment with this person before they go their separate ways for good. Hope this sticks around, don't mind this. 

49. "The Dolphin's Cry"  by Live

Brand new Live single from "The Distance to Here" and it's another hook ridden song from this American group and I suspect that the hook is probably what this song is going to be remembered for because man, that hook is damn sticky as hell and for once most of the vocals aren't completely buried behind the instrumentation on this song which is nice and Ed Kowalczyk is definitely a solid presence behind the microphone, he makes this song work.

The content also works decently here, all about finding a connection with somebody special be romantic or spiritual. I do like this, check it out!

47. "Bye Bye Baby" by TQ

Kind of surprised that it has taken so long to follow up "Westside" for YQ but we did finally get it and...wow,,,this is A LOT, it's a piano led R'N'B song where  TQ describes being out in a car with his girlfriend when attackers fatally shoot and kill his girlfriend leaving him with feelings of intense grief and anger that quickly crystallises into wanting revenge against those who killed his girlfriend and threatening to hunt those responsible down and shoot them with his gun. Now I do wish the music was a little darker to match the content of the song. that's all, it just doesn't quite hit for me.

39. "Bring It All Back" by S Club 7

Last two songs new this week are from UK acts with this one being the debut single from a manufactured to some degree group featuring both men and women called S Club 7, four girls (Jo, Rachel, Tina and Hannah) and three men (Jon, Paul and Bradley) and this song is a complete contrast to the TQ song because for one thing, it's a bright sunshiney song about how we shouldn't give it up and strive to reach the top and not letting the little things bother us, its a pretty cute empowerment song led by the girls especially Jo and Rachel who do have the most powerful voices of any of the female members especially Jo while Bradley does do some adlibs on the final chorus...pretty fun little pop jam...check this out!

13. "If I Let You Go" by Westlife

So given the success of "Swear It Again", it's no surprise to see Westlife back with a follow up single and I actually like this one a bit better than "Swear it Again" mostly because unlike "Swear It Again", this song has a hook that absolutely soars with the boys voices for a change, the hook actually sounds anthemic and yeah, the content is your standard guy wondering how he is going to cope if he lets his love interest go but at least Westlife can somewhat sell it? Decent song.

But yeah, this was a pretty good week, I don't think it's worth doing worst of the week so let's go straight to best to of the week, that's going to S Club 7 for "Bring It All Back"...yeah, it's an empowerment song but it's one that made me smile. 

ARIA Top 50 Singles Chart. 21st September. The One With references to Nicole Kidman

 Nopreamble this week because there's ust not much to say, as per usual, it's "Choosin' Texas" by Ella Langley ruling the roost at number one, it's pretty much had sales and streaming on lock every week and that may not change until Taylor Swift's new single that's being released on Friday.

The top six held position with "Rein Me In" by Sam Fender and Olivia Dean at number two, "Man I Need" by Olivia Dean at number three, "Ordinary" by Alex Warren at number four, "Boston" by Stella Lefty at number five and "Stupid Song" by Olivia Rodrigo at number six. 

Unfortunately "Earrings" by Malcolm Todd rebounded two spots to number seven while "Love Me Not" by Ravyn Lenae returns to the top ten up three to number eight (seems faitly endemic of what is wrong with the charts), it did force "Loser" by Tame Impala back two slots to number ten and "The Cure" by Olivia Rodrigo down two to number ten.

Losers

So the biggest loser this week was Bruno Mars wth "Risk It All" down twenty four to forty three and "I Just Might" down fourteen to forty one.

Meanwhile "Fever Dream" by Alex Warren down ten to forty nine.

Drop Outs

So we do have two drop outs this week with the biggest being "Dai Dai" by Shakira and Burna Boy (miracle it lasted this long on the top 50, the other being "My Body Isn't Ready" by Sombr.

Gains

There isn't much in the way of gains this week with the biggest being the eleven place gain for "Stop the Wedding" by Ashe to thirty six.

Re-Entries

Just the one return this week with "Undressed" by Sombr back at number forty eight. 

New Entries

14. "Nicole Kidman" by ADELA

So I still don't like "Ain't in LA" all that much, it's still this wispy insubstantial song that is below the grade of song that Adela is capable of as proven by her EP last year "Mr Provocateur" and look this is only slightly better than "Ain't In La" because it yet again feels like she's playing down to what her label thinks are acceptable non challenging standards for the mainstream with that sample amd that cooing vocal delivery that plays more for Ariana Grande. Ugh. I think I am going to skip this one too. 

That wraps our week. Next week...well I would have said something from Miley Cyrus but that doesn't seem likely so we'll have to see. 

Pretty Fly (For 1999), 19th September. One More Tasty Chance Everywhere

 Alright, let's get this party started because we have a new number one, knocking Pearl Jam's "Last Kiss" from number one is Lou Bega's catchy as hell "Mambo No. 5", now this song is selling like hotcakes as it climbed the six places to reach the top of the chart summit.

It had the impact of pushing "Last Kiss" by Pearl Jam back to number two as it just couldn't compete on sales and places "If Ya Gettin' Down" by Five down to number three in an awkward place...it's run for the top might be over at this point.

Slipping one to number four is "When You Say Nothing at All" by Ronan Keating while "Genie In a Bottle" by Christina Aguilera climbed one to number five.

It pushed "Boom, Boom, Boom, Boom!" by Vengaboys down one to number six while the big loser in all the reshuffling is "All Star" by Smash Mouth which tumbled three places to number seven. 

Rising one spot to number eight is "Wild Wild West" by Will Smith while up four to number nine is "2 Times" by Ann Lee, still not a fan of "2 Times"...just sounds a bit twee to me but anyway.

Finally slipping two to number ten is "Sweet Like Chocolate" by Shanks & Bigfoot.

Losers

So we begin with "Westside" by TQ diving ten slots to forty nine while "Love's Got a Hold On My Heart" by Steps fell seven to forty four. 

"Animal" by Jebediah slipped nine to forty.

Former number one "Kiss Me" by Sixpence None the Richer tumbled ten to thirty one while "Nookie" by Limp Bizkit fell nine to twenty eight. 

Finally, Killing Heidi's "Weir" fell ten to twenty four. 

Gains

We got a decent amount of gains this week beginning with "She's So High" by Tal Bachman up from thirty two to thirteen. 

We also saw Enrique Iglesias get a nice twelve place boost to fifteen with "Bailamos" off that debut last week (More on the Iglesias family in the new entries) while the absolutely excellent "Unpretty" by TLC rose from twenty nine to sixteen this week. 

"When I Grow Up" by Garbage jumped seven to thirty five.

New Entries

Six new entries starting most interestingly with...

50. "Forgiven" by Ben Harper and The Innocent Criminals

Ben Harper is an American singer song-writer and multi instrumentalist, he has been active in the music scene since 1992. This particular song coming from Harper's album "Born to Shine" and well...I am not a fan of the production here especially when the guitars somewhat bury Ben Harper's vocals in tbe mix and leaves the song feeling somewhat underweight.whch is a shame because the content is actually really damn good, the narrator is opening themselves up to forgiving whatever this other person has done and giving this perosn space to come back into the narrator's life. 

I wish this was better that's all. 

46. "One More Chance" by Julio Iglesias Jr. 

So we have another member of the Iglesisas family on the chart, this time it's Julio Iglesias Jr who is the son of Julio Iglesias and brother of recent chart debutant Enrique. Julio Jr's song here has a lot of elements that do work like that incredible backing vocals from the woman at the beginning and the slow build but I feel like it's Julio Jr's vocals that are the problem here, they just don't impress me, they sound like somebody who has been smoking twenty packs of cigarettes a week and that's a shame because I really like everything else about the song here. Not going to lie...bit disappointed. 

45. "Tasty" by Ilanda

First of three Australian songs this week comes from Ilanda, with this the follow up to "It's Our Time" and well.. this song is somewhat worse even if this sounds likr an *NSYNC song with more sound effects than is necessary and I do suspect that this song is all about getting the freak on between the sheets aka eating bis partner out and he likes her being tasty and nasty at the same time which makes the production feel somewhat less sexy...actually screw that...makes the song feel horribly gross and not as sexy as anyone in Ilanda thinks...eww...let's move on.

39. "Everywhere You Go" by Taxiride

Oh hey, it's the second single from Taxiride and given how much I think "Get Set" is great, I was hoping that the second single would be as good and you know what? I think this does get there, this is a soaring pop rock song that still features some pretty terrific harmonies and a sticky central hook, also this song goes through some gear shifts and changes in sound that make this song somewhat compelling melodically. Also the content is pretty sweet with it all about reassuring a person that no matter where they go, somebody will always be with  them in spirit without holding them back. First really damn great song of the week and Taxiride are on fire right now! Check this out.

26. "Bills, Bills, Bills" by Destiny Child

The newcomer to the ARIA top 50 of the week is Destiny's Child...an American R'n'B girl group out of the good old US of A, they've had two previous singles peak outside of the top 50 in Australia with this single from their second album "Writing's on the Wall" being the first to chart inside the Australian top 50 and I hate saying but this song is kind of lousy, I just hate how slimy and kind of gross this beat sounds paired with the voices of the girls, the only one who can remotely sell this is Beyonce who proves to have some serious vocal chops but yeah, they can ask others to pay their bills because I ain't comng back to this. 

17. "Miss You Love" by Silverchair

Finishing a long week with the newest single from "Diorama" by Silverchair and it's probably one of Silverchair's better ballads especially with the way instrumentation allows for Daniel Johns vocals to shine here, he sounds incredible. As for the lyric cntent of the song, its aimed at discussing the societal expectations of what showing love looks like and what affection looks like emotionally or feeling numbness. Really,there isn't that muh to say givn how good the song is. Check it out.

That wraps thhe week with the worst of the week going to "Bills, Bills, Bills" by Destiny's Child. Best of the week is going to "Everywhere You Go" by Taxi ride but it was a close go between it and "Miss You Love" by Silverchair.

ARIA Singles Top 50 Chart Review. 14th September. The One Where AI Messes Up Sun Dreams

Alright diving straight into the top ten where for yet another week, it's 
"Choosin' Texas' by Ella Langley at number one and there's no end in sight for this song's reign at the top especially now with a Drake and Don Toliver remix on the way (I have heard some of it...it's not good). 

The top six remained the same with "Rein Me In" by Sam Fender and Olivia Dean at number two, "Man I Need" by Olivia Dean at number three, "Ordinary" by Alex Warren at number four, "Boston" by Stella Lefty at number five and "Stupid Song' by Olivia Dean at number six.

Rebounding one slot to number seven is Tame Impala's "Loser" which swapped places with "The Cure" by Olivia Rodrigo. "Earrings" by Malcolm Todd and "Self Aware" by Temper City both held position at nine and ten respectively.

Losers

So we did see "ILoveItILoveItILoveIt" by Bella Kay fall thirteen to thirty while "Animal" by Katseye continues its slow tumble down nine to thirty one.

Drop Outs

So we did have four songs drop out with Sombr's "Undressed" perhaps the biggest of the four and he did take "White Keys" by Dominic Fike and "Die on this Hill" by Sienna Spiro with him so that's all good. Also taking its exit is "Weren't for the wind" by Ella Langley.

Gains

So our gains are an odd mix, Bruno Mars saw sizeable gains for both "I Just Might" and "Risk It All" due to his tour of Australia. "Risk It All" climbed nineteen slots back into the top twenty at nineteen while "I Just Might" jumped nine slots to twenty seven. 

Adela's "Ain't in LA' climbed twenty seven spots to be the biggest gainer of the week and breaking into the top twenty at fifteen. 

Also breaking into the top twenty is "Midnight Sun" by Zara Larsson up nine to seventeen. 

Re-Entries

So two songs returned this week with Sombr's "My Body Isnn't Ready" back at number forty nine and "APT" by Rose and Bruno Mars back at forty four. 

New Entries

Two new entries this week beginning unfortunately with...

50. "Moving to the Sun" by Hugel, Imael Angel and Ultra Nate

So in the last few weeks or so, ARIA made a change to the charts that banned tracks deenmed to be 100% AI from the Australian charts, any tracks that have an element or two of AI in them hence i was surprised that this song showed up because this song started life as 100% AI track out of the notorious SUNO AI studios.

French producer Hugel heard the AI version and remade it from scratch in a stadio using actual instruments complete with Afro house grooves and adding vocals from 90s/2000's act Ultra Nate  to the song so hence ARIA allowed it to chart as a result and well...the song still sucks even with the fact it was rebuilt by humans mostly because the lyrics still have that very AI feel to them and there's only so much that Ultra Nate can do here vocally to make the lyrics make sense because what the hell is "I'm moving to the sun, I did it all the time"?

Yeah, the sooner this song is off the charts the better for all concerned. Hugel needs to find better songs to jump on here because this ain't it. Fuck AI.

47. "Stop the Wedding!" by Ashe.

Took long enough for Ashe to land another charting song on the ARIA singles chart, she charted with a Niall Horan remix of her song  "Moral Of the Story" back in 2020  which peaked at number forty four. .Now she's got this song going viral and this song has one hell of an interesting premise that you don't often hear in a pop song, a song that's all about someone wanting to stop the weddbecause they realize that the relationship feels wrong and going to a commitment for life to that person would be a mistake and the production does play up some of the tension and drama around taking such a decision to stop or cancel a wedding with the faster guitars on the verses etc, I am not crazy abut the chorus of this song but you know what? It's solid enough song with a premise you don't often see on the charts which is probably why it's going viral right now.

That ends our week and "Stop the Wedding" by Ashe is the easy best of the week. "Moving to the Sun" by Hugel, Imael Angel and Ultra Nate is the easy worst of the week.

Next week, I imagine we'll probably see Adela with a song or two from her album chart...

Pretty Fly (For 1999). 12th September. Mambo Genie of My Castle in a Bottle No. 5 All I Ever Had

 We got a wild one this week, got two shiny new entries in the top ten this week and they both might be worth keeping an eye on so let's dive straight in, there's no movement at the top as "Last Kiss" by Pearl Jam continues to hold sway at number one ahead of "If Ya Gettin' Down" by Five at number two and "When You Say Nothing at All" by Ronan Keating at nunmber three. 

Smash Mouth are the first of our movers this week as "All Star" climbed to a new peak of number four., it switched places with "Boom, Boom, Boom, Boom!" by The Vengaboys at number five and appears to be on the way out.

Then we have the first of our two new songs inside the top ten with "Genie in a Bottle" by Christina Aguilera at number six, it's here thanks to sales really giving this song a huge lift.

Right behind it is the second of the new songs to debut in the top ten that being "Mamb No. 5" by Lou Beg at number seven, like with "Genie in a Bottle", I'll go into this song's quality in the new entries but this looks like a hit in the making maybe more so than "Genie in a Bottle" but we'll have to wait and see but right now those numbers are looking solid for a run at the top.

It did cause "Sweet Like Chocolate" by Shanks & Bigfoot to go slightly off down one to number eight while rising two slots to number nine is "Wild Wild West" by Will Smith. 

Finally "Baby Did A Bad Bad Thig" by Chris Isaak fell one slot to complete our top ten for this week at number ten. 

Losers

A lot of big losers this week with a couple of former top ten hits suffering big plunges this week, take "Man! I  Feel Like A Woman" by Shania Twain down from twenty six to forty five while "Say It Once" by Ultra down from forty three to twenty five.

"When I Grow Up" by Garbage slipped eight slots to forty two while "Saltwater" by Chicane featuring Maire Brennan fell seven to thirty eight, it was a similar story for Steps with "Love's Got a Hold of My Heart" down eight to thirty seven. 

Sadly, "Dig" by Mark Lizotte fell hard off it's debut down from eighteen to thirty three while "Livin' La Vida Loca" by Ricky Martin fell seven to thirty. 

Gains

So we did see a few gains and I am mostly fine with the big gains we got like "Bailamos" by Enrique Iglesias climbing twelve to twenty seven. 

"Smooth" by Santana feat. Rob Thomas up eleven to twenty two however the biggest gain of the week belonged to "Sing It Back" by Moloko which jumped from forty one to twenty four. 

New Entries

Five new entries this week beginning with...

47. "King Of My Castle" by Wamdue Project

So we're starting this week with what seems like our weekly new electronic music entry this time coming from an American music producer Chris Brann who goes under the name Wamdue Project with vocals supplied by Gaelle Adisson. 

Now this song is fascinating because it actuallt references Sigmund Freud's theroy about the unconscious being that the human ego is not actually free but is controlled by the unconscious mind (which to a degree does explain a lot about human behaviour recently) which makes it a shame that I am not really all that impressed by the production here, the vocals from Adisson are buried in the mix which is not great given I am not sure her vocals are all that impressive to begin with! The instrumentation doesn't change all that much or do anuthing all that interesting...ehh, we can do better.

44. "Mambo No. 5" by Latin Lou + The Mambo All Stars

See number 7 for my thoughts on "Mambo No. 5", this is just the same song with a Latin touch.

35. 'She's All I Ever Had" by Ricky Martin

So after the party that was the previous single "Livin' La Vida Loca", we're going into ballad territory with this song from Ricky Martin and while this instrumentally sounds great, I cannot help but think this strips Ricky of his charm and charisma, it  sounds like something Bryan Adams would have madei in the early nineties especially on the hook but at least Ricky sounds somewhat believeable here in that this woman in his life is all he has ever had or needed. It's fine, I just wish it felt a little less Bryan Adams and more Ricky Martin...just saying.

7. "Mambo No. 5" by Lou Bega

The second of three newcomers to the chart this week and it comes from German singer David Lubega Balemezi but goes by Lou Bega, he has taken a classic 1949 instrumental piece by Prado to remake it into this song and well...this song is just sold on Lou Bega's charisma and effortless charm alone and it makes sense considering how many women he has on his arm in this song. In the first verse he mentions he can't beer bust like last week before talking about women that he likes and how flirting is a sport, he sounds like he is having fun flirting with Angela, Pamela, Sandra, Rita, Jessica, Monica, Tina and Erica!

Then he gives out the instructions for a dance on the second verse and the song immediately tilts into being this insanely silly but fun dance song. I dig it, this is hilarious, check it out.

6. "Genie in a Bottle" by Christina Aguilera.

Third and final newcomer of the week is from American singer Christina Aguilera, she got her start around the same time as Britney Spears did on Mickey Mouse Club and is now releasing this song as her debut single and well...it's okay? I don't think its anywhere near as good as Britney's "Baby, One More Time" but I do like the piano and Christina is definitely a talented singer...there's more to her range than she shows on this song. 

As for the content, she's telling this dude that if he wants to get with her than he needs to pretend she's this genie in a bottle and has to rub the bottle the right way to let her out...the Aladdin trope in full there, only surprised there was no mention of giving the guy three wishes. In short, the song is fine, Aguilera has potential but she can do better.

That ends this week and while nothing was too egregious, I am giving worst of the week to "King Of My Castle" by Wamdue Project. "Mambo No. 5" by Lou Bega is getting the best of the week because yeah...that song is so much fun. 

ARIA Top 50 Singles Chart. 7th September. The One Where There's Very Little To Say

 Alright, this one is going to be brief because there were again no new entries and...I am kind of disappointed by the fact that Alex Warren's "Emerald Eyes" didn't debut.but anyway let's get into the top ten where of course there's no change at the top where "Choosin' Texas" by Ella Langley rules the roost for yet another week, it's still a monster, sales and streaming.

Hence it held up easily over "Rein Me In" by Sam Fender and Olivia Dean at numbder two which effectively swapped positions with "Man I Need" by Olivia Dean which slipped back to number three. 

Same goes for Alex Warren's "Ordinary" jumping back up one slot to number four and "Boston" by Stella Lefty falling back to number five.

"Stupid Song" by Olivia Rodrigo held steady at number six while Rodrigo's other top ten hit right now "The Cure" rebounded two slots to number seven. 

"Loser" by Tame Impala also held firm at number eight although I really would like to see this leave the top ten quickly now. the same goes for "Earrings" by Malcolm Todd which fell two to number nine.

Finally remaining steady at number ten is "Self Aware" by Temper City.

Losers

Former number one "Animal" by Katseye fell nine slots to twenty two while "Oh yeah?" by Steve Lacy hit a thirteen slot rough patch back to twenty nine. 

Olivia Rodrigo's "Drop Dead' slipped eight to thirty five while F3miii's "Noble" suffered a ten place skid to forty nine. 

Drop Outs

So we did see four songs drop out, those being "Some of Your Love" by PartyNextDoor, "Petal" by Ariana Grande, "Baby Steps" by Olivia Dean and maybe the biggest drop out of the four..."Stateside" by PinkPantheress and Zara Larsson.

Gains

So most of our big gains were for older songs however "Midnight Sun" by Zara Larsson climbed ten to twenty six.

Bruno Mars tour of Australia also saw "I Just Might" rise fourteen off it's return to number thirty six. 

The two older songs that saw major boosts were "Back to Friends" by Sombr up twelve to sixteen and "Where is My Husband" by RAYE up ten to fifteen. 

Re-Entries

Four returns this week with album release impact seeing Alex Warren's "Fever Dream" back at thirty one although he also saw the return of "Carry You Home" at forty six.

Bruno Mars had "Risk It All" back at number thirty eight while finally Sombr's "Undressed" is back at fifty.

With there being no new entries to talk about that wraps this week. Next week could be as quiet as this week because unless streaming picks up...I do not see the new Miley Cyrus single charting but we'll have to see. 

Pretty Fly (For 1999). 5th September. Sing it and Bailamos Back, Nookie!

 Let's dive right into the top ten where for yet another week, it's "Last Kiss" by Pearl Jam remains at number one for yet another week, its strong on sales still. Really, am over this song already though however I am glad it kept "If Ya Gettin' Down" by Five at nunmber two.

Rising one slot to number three is "When You Say Nothing At All" by Ronan Keating which had another good sales week to the point it pushed "Boom Boom Boom Boom" by Vengaboys back to number four.

A song that might make a play for number one is "All Star" by Smash Mouth as it moved up two number five.

"Silence" by Delerium feat. Sarah McLachlan claimbed two slots to number six while "Sweet Like Chocolate" by Shanks & Bigfoot slipped back one to number seven.

All this action was likely because "If You Had My Love" by Jennifer Lopez slipped three slots to number eight, this song appears to be on the way out now. 

"Baby Did A Bad Bad Thing"  by Chris Isaak rose six into the top ten at number nine. Finally Britney Spears completes the top ten at number ten with "Sometimes" dropping one spot. 

Losers

Australia have had enough of Soulsearcher's "Can't Get Enough" so its down ten to fifty this week. 

"The Day the World Went Away" bore witness to the day it fell off it's chart debut of thirty one to forty six for Nine Inch Nails.

"Westside" is heading southside on the charts down from twenty six to forty for TQ while "Animal" by Jebediah lost it's bite down twelve to twenty eight.

Gains

Gains are a bit on the slow side with the biggest gain of the week being for a consistent gainer lately that being "2 Times" by Ann Lee which climbed ten places to number twelve.

New Entries

Six new entries this week, beginning with

43. "Mi Chico Latino" by Geri Halliwell

About time we got the follow up to the rather underwhelming "Look at Me" (seriously...that song only gets worse with time) and well, I am not convinced that this song is that much better although Geri's vocals are definitely sounding better on the verses until that bridge and honestly this just feels like it's trying to do a 90s version of "La Isla Bonita" by Madonna only this song doesn't quite stick the landing. I'd probably skip this song. 

41. "Sing It Back" by Moloko

Another newcomer on the chart...had a lot of those in 1999, this time it's an English-Irish electronic duo of singer Roisin Murphy and producer Mark Brydon and I'll say this...this song is pretty effective at what it does well especially in the production which features some really nice sounding guitarrs and percussion and Murphy's vocals are placed really nicely in the mix because she just stands out here.as she tries to keep a fading connection in her life via using music and wanting this other person to sing it back to her. All in all...pretty good song. 

39. "Bailamos" by Enrique Iglesias

We're onto another newcomer although Enrique Iglesias has been around awhile in Latin America having released three albums in Spanish with his fourth album his debut English album and well...this is actually a pretty damn good introduction to Iglesias sound. "Bailamos" (English translatoin: "We Dance") is for the film "Wild Wild West" and well, I just think this song is absolutely great and I'd love to see it be huge here, I love the elements of flamenco that slide in and Enrique Iglesias has enough charm and charisma to make his urging of surrendering to the music and just simply living in the moment work. Great song but I don't know if  it''s better than...

32. "Unpretty" by TLC

The follow up to the nummber one hit "No Scrubs"...I am going to ditch any kind of preamble with this song because this is better than "No Scrubs" mostly because the message this song carries holds resonance for me especially when the production is somewhat more restrained even if there is a pretty cool little guitar solo toward the end as TLC sing that no matter how much make up you put on or doing your hair nice, you are only going to be pretty on the outside when it's what's on the inside that counts in terms of accepting yourself flaws and all. This is just a  damn great pop r'n'b song, check this out.

18. "Dig" by Mark Lizotte

I was kind of shocked this debuted higher than TLC but hey, it's nice to see Mark Lizotte in the top 20 of the ARIA singles chart mostly because this song is his first single under his actual birth name rather than Diesel and wow...this snng is definitely nothing like what he made as Diesel, it reminds me a lot of Collective Soul but with more of a jangle pop edge. The content is somewhat dark, Lizotte encouraging this person not to dig to correct his past mistakes but rather to accept what happened and become "friends" with those demons. Another damn good song.

13. "Nookie" by Limp Bizkit

 To end what has been a long week, we're finishing it off with American act Limp Bizkit because of course we can't have all good things. Yeah, this sucks, there's no melody to this and it sounds like the percussion is actively playing two separate songs at once while Fred Durst has all the presence of a street sweeper even with just how annoying his vocals are, there's nothing here that makes me want to come back to this shit show of a song.

Yeah, easy worst of the week. As for the best...it was a really good week overall, I am going to go with "Unpretty" by TLC narrowly ahead of Mark Lizotte and Enrique Iglesias. 

ARIA Top 50 Singles Chart. 31st August. The one where normal service is resumed aka Ella's number one

 Little point in messing around, let's jump straight into the top ten where "Choosin' Texas" by Ella Langley returns to number one as it continues to hold sway on sales and streaming. 

"Man I Need" by Olivia Dean returned to number two while "Rein Me In" by Sam Fender and Olivia Dean rebounded to number three.

Rising two slots to number four is "Boston" by Stella Lefty...can we not let this song rise any further, Australia...please/

Staying steady at number five is "Ordinary" by Alex Warren while "Stupid Song" by Ollivia Rodrigo rebounded two slots to number six. 

Returning to number seven up three is "Earrings" by Malcolm Todd, it moved past "Loser" by Tame Impala which slipped one to number eight,

"The Cure" by Olivia Rodrigo remained steady at number nine. Finally, arriving in the top ten this week is "Self Aware" by Temper City which climbed two slots to..unfortunately...hit number ten this week...ugh.

Losers

Two major losers this week with "Petal" by Ariana Grande slipping ten to forty two, mostly because I think people are still clinging to "Hate That I Made You Love Me" which is understandable as "Petal" is pretty lousy.

The other major loser is last week's number one "Animal" by Katseye which fell twelve lots thirteen.

Drop Outs

This week saw four songs leave with Sombr's "My Body Isn't Ready" and "Undressed" gone alongside "Been by Now" by Morgan Wallen and "The Days (Notion Remix" by Chrystal. 

Gains

Not much in the way of gains this week with the biggest gain being a fifteen place jump for "Great Expectation" by Sienna Spiro to fifteen for some reason. That song is not any good for goodness sake!

Re-Entries

Three returns this week beginning with "I Just Might" by Bruno Mars at fifty, "Baby Steps" by Olivia Dean at forty nine and "Die on This Hill" by Sienna Spiro at forty eight. 

New Entries

Just the one new entry this week so let's talk about...

32. "Some of Your Love" by PartyNextDoor

So when I saw this debuted, I rolled my eyes, it's not like PartyNextDoor as a artist is a goldmine of personality and he was worse than Drake on "Some Sexy Songs 4 U" and yeah, it's no different here with the production that ensures that this song could have been done better by The Weeknd especially with that guitar and PartyNextDoor is using Jesus Christ turning water into wine on the second verse to justify his love of alcohol which is just weird as hell so no this song sucks.

That's our week and man alive, the charts suck right now. Next week could be anything...I guess maybe Alex Warren? We'll have to see. 

Pretty Fly (For 1999). 29th August. The Day Animal Went Away Smooth

 No preamble this week, let's just get straight into it with our top ten where for yet another week, it's Pearl Jam's "Last Kiss" at number one, it's ruling sales right now to the point that I don't see what is going to challenge it.

Sure Five rise to number two with "If Ya Gettin' Down" but it's thankfully not bridging any margins right now, really could argue it moved up one because "Boom Boom Boom Boom" by The Vengaboys which slipped one to number three. 

"When You Say Nothing At All" by Ronan Keating remained at number four likewise for Jennifer Lopez's "If You Had My Love" which remains at number five.

"Sweet Like Chocolate" by Shanks & Bigfoot rose one spot to number six as it continues to get traction. Smash Mouth's "All Star" jumped three spots to number seven while "Silence" by Delerium feat. Sarah McLachlan remains rooted to the number eight slot.

"Sometimes" by Britney Spears slipped three places to number nine while rising into the top ten is "Wild Wild West" by Will Smith up one to number ten.

Losers

Not much in the way of major losers this week although we did see "Don't Cry" by Human Nature slip from twenty eight and "Say It Once" by Ultra dropping from nineteen to twenty five. 

Finally "Man! I Feel Like A Woman!" by Shania Twain was the biggest loser of the week down nine spots to wenty three.

Gains

Also not much to report with out gains. Ann Lee's "2 Times" continues to see traction this week, it's up eleven to twenty three.

New Entries

Three new entries this week beginning with...

38. "Smooth" by Santana feat. Rob Thomas

So we're beginning this week with a song that I am certain is probably already showing signs of dominating the US charts. Santana, a rock legend of the 70s and 80s working with the lead singer of Matchbox Twenty, Rob Thomas and I guess if you picture a cross section where these two could possibly meet, it's "Smooth" with Santana providing this searing Latin guitar groove and Rob Thomas sliding in with the vocals that definitely are filtered on the verses however when the filter disappear on the hook and what a hook it is, Thomas is singing with a conviction that I haven't heard since Matchbox Twenty's first album. This song is going to be huge in the US and should be msssive in Australia too. Check this out.

31. "The Day The World Went Away" by Nine Inch Nails

So my experience with NIne Inch Nails is rather limited, they are a band I really haven't seeked out to llisten to unless they have appeared in the new entries for one of these blog entries but anyway we have this song which comes from Nine Inch Nails album "The Fragile" and well I like the sentiment of the song and not much else here, it's about the loss of a loved one that leaves a person so shattered and empty the world feels like it's gone away from them the loss being that hard to cope with. 

However I really cannot get behind the production here, it just feels like a wall of noise with Trent Reznor's voice barely heard in the middle of the mix, it's a hard listen. I think I am going to skip this one. 

16. "Animal" by Jebediah

I am floored this song debuted as high as it has, definitely something I wouldn't have expected when I first looked at the chart for this week but anyway Jebediah are a alternative roclk band hailing from Perth, Western Australia. This song coming from their second album titled "Of Someday Shambles" and well...this is fine, it's better than the Nine Inch Nails track before it because yeah there's good melody here even if some the instrumentation sounds oddly electronic and I am not overly wild about the vocals either, they can feel a bit to sharp and nasal for me. I don't think the song is bad...far from it, it's just not for me. 

That wraps this week and the best and the worst falls out easily. Worst of the week goes to "The Day the World Went Away" by Nine Inch Nails. Best of the week went to "Smooth" by Santana feat. Rob Thomas

ARIA Top 50 Singles Chart Review: 24th August The One Where I'm Confused.

 So this week confounded and confused me in one way and yet it seems like another very stagnant, slow week on the ARIA singles chart however where the confusing and confounding comes in is right at the very top because we have a new number one..it's "Animal" by Katseye and I am not really sure how because it's not like it's been even close to "Choosin' Texas" by Ella Langley which slipped back to number two this this week on sales or streaming unless "Animal" got some incredible traction on Youtube...just a weird one. 

Anyway "Man I Need" remained steady at number three while "Rein Me In" by Sam Fender and Olivia Dean slipped back two to number four,

"Ordinary" by Alex Warren fell back one to number five while "Boston" by Stella Lefty hit a new peak rising two to to number six.

There was also a new peak for "Loser" by Tame Impala up four to mimber seven. "Stupid Song" by Olivia Rodrigo slipped back two to number eight while "The Cure" also by Olivia Rodrigo remained at number nine.

Finally "Earrings" by Malcolm Todd stumbled three spots to number ten. Can only hope this means the song exits the top ten next week. We deserve that piece of good news, surely?

Losers

So if you are wondering where "Hate That I Made You Love Me" by Ariana Grande went, it fell six places to number eleven. "Daisies" by Justin Bieber fell seven to thirty four. 

The biggest fall of the week was "Petal" by Ariana Grande which got dumped twenty two spots to thirty two. 

Drop Outs

Three songs took their exits this week with "Sailor Song" by Gigi Perez and "Die On This Hill" by Sienna Spiro taking their exits (again).

The only other exit is "The One That Got Away" by Katy Perry which went to the On Repeat Top 50 Singles Chart

Gains

As for the gains this week, not too many major gains but we did see a twelve place gain for "Oh Yeah?" by Steve Lacy to number thirteen. "Where Is My Husband" by RAYE up seven to twenty two and "Nice to Each Other" by Olivis Dean up seven to twrnty four

Re-Entries

Two songs returned this week, I am particularly pleased to see "My Body Isn't Ready" by Sombr back at number forty eight. Also back this week though is the still incredibly annoying "The Days (Notion Remix)" by Chrystal.

New Entries

Just the one new entry this week so let's talk about...

46. "Ain't in LA" by Adela

Oh I have been waiting for this chart debut to happen, I was expecting it sooner than this though, for those who don't know, Adela is a Slovakian singer-songwriter and dancer, she rose to prominence on 2023 show Dream Academy (yes, same show that spawned the birth of Katseye) and she actually put out an EP called The Provocateur around the same time last year that got a lot of praise and attention...now that really wasn't to my taste but I got why she was so highly thought of so I was curious when "Ain't In LA" the latest single from her upcoming debut album "La Prima" due out next week, I was curious and...

I'm sorry but I am not a fan of this at all, this just sounds like it's been melting in the California sun on a freeway between the California desert and Nevada.because right from the opening this reminds me of god damn "23" by Mike Will Made It especially with the creepy ass male vocal that sounds slimy as fact while Adela pontificates that the maybe the baddest bitches aren't in L.A over one of the more lethargic beats imaginable.

Yeah, this bis is disappointing. Skip it

It's also the worst of the week. No best of the week because we only had the one new debut.

Next week...oh god...PartyNextDoor...maybe Olivia Rodrigo could notch an early debut with her new song...

Pretty Fly (For 1999) 22nd August. Friend, You Are Not My Passenger

 Little bit of a slower week this week but I'll take a slower week so let's dive into the top ten where for yet another week, it's "Last Kiss" by Pearl Jam at number one, it's pretty much a solid lock to stay at the top next week too. 

Meanwhile "Boom, Boom, Boom, Boom!" by The Vengaboys rebounded one spot to number two but it's coming under pressure from "If Ya Gettin' Down" by Five which climbed three spots to number three because I guess a bunch of people are wiggy wiggy that Five are apparently getting jiggy...ew.

Anyway "When You Say Nothing At All" by Ronan Keating rose two to number four although that's probably because "If You Had My Love" by Jennifer Lopez which slipped three to number five. 

Britney Spears saw a one place slide to number six for "Sometimes", it's now got "Sweet Like Chocolate" by Shanks & Bigfoot which climbed two slots to number seven and "Silence" by Delerium feat. Sarah McLachlan which moved up three to number eight. 

Former number one "Kiss Me" by Sixpence None the Richer slipped two spots to number nine. 

Smash Mouth jumped into the top ten up four spots to number ten with "All Star"

Losers

So we start with "Look at Me" by Geri Halliwell sliding out of the top fifty down ten slots to forty six, we have to be due a new single from her soon. 

Monifah's "Bad Girl" dipped twelve to forty while "When I Grow Up" by Garbage fell off it's debut to fall seven to twenty nine.

Ultra's "Say It Once" fell out of the top ten down nine to nineteen. 

Gains

The gains are a bit on the messy side this week, we do have "American Woman" by Lenny Kravitz rising from twenty three to sixreen and somehow "Baby Did A Bad Bad thing" by Chris Isaak is the biggest riser of the week climbing from it's return of thirty five to eighteen.

"2 Times" by Ann Lee rose twelve slots to thirty one while "Saltwater" by Chicane feat. Maire Brennan regained some ground rising from forty two to thirty five.

Re-Entries

One return this week with "Happiness" by Regurgitator back at number forty four

New Entries

Two new entries this week, beginning with....

49. "You Are Not My Friend" by Frenzal Rhomb

Both new entries are from Australian rock bands and we're starting off with this relationship break up that's gotten nasty from punk rockers Frenzal Rhomb and this is one I really do not get the instrumental appeal of, for a song where he is resentful and angry because this ex friend rooted against the narrator's successful career but I'm sorry this song for as mad as the lyrics are just isn't going hard enough in the instrumentation to sell the anger and resentment that's clearly on display here. This song could be so much better...next!

32. "Passenger" by Powderfinger

Now this is more like it. Powderfinger back with a new single and the first thing I noticed is how there's genuine tension in the vocal delivery on the verses and how the song actually builds into a damn great hook delivered with conviction by frontman Bernard Fanning. It's a song all about escaping the 9 to 5 grind and everyday routines for something different and exciting that's completely out of the rat race. Damn great song, check this out!

Yeah, easy best of the week for "Passenger" by Powderfinger. Worst of the week goes to "You Are Not My Friend" by Frenzal Rhomb.  

ARIA Top 50 Singles Chart Review. 17th August The one where Best of the Week is not one of the new entries

Lets dive into this week because not that much changed especially in the top ten. "Choosin' Texas" by Ella Langley continues to rule the chart at number one. It's still a strong sales and streaming leader...nothing is getting near it. 

That includes "Rein Me In" by Sam Fender and Olivia Dean which jumped two places to retake number two thanks mostly to a decent week on sales. "Man I Need" by Olivia Dean held firm at number three.

Continuing to hang around like a venereal disease that refuses to go away, "Ordinnary" by Alex Warren up three to number four because Australians apparently don't realize new music exists. 

Slipping three to five is Ariana Grande's "Hate That I Made You Love Me", more on Ariana later. "Stupid Song" by Olivia Rodrigo held firm at number six. "Earrings" by Malcolm Todd rrebounded two slots to return to it's peak of number seven. 

 There's a new arrival to the top ten...sadly...it's "Boston" by Stella Lefty which climbed three to number eight. The less said the better. "The Cure" by Olivia Rodrigo rebounded one spot to number nine.

All off this is because "Petal" by Ariana Grande slumped five spots to number ten. 

Losers

So there's not much to talk about in the way of losers this week with the biggest unsurprisingly being "Dai Dai" by Shakira and Burna Boy down twenty five slots to thirty eight. 

Other than that most songs regained position thanks to the recedation of the Ariana Grande album bomb

Drop Outs

So the drop outs are just every single album track from Ariana Grande's "Petal"...

Gains

So I don't think it's worth going through every song that rose this week so I am going to do double digit gains and the songs that hit new peaks this week. 

The one double digit gain is "Love Me Not" by Ravyn Lenae up ten to fifteen.

Now onto the new peaks this week with Sienna Spiro seeing traction for "Material Lover" to go up neight to forty one and "Great Expectations" up eleven to thirty four.

Whiskey Myers "Broken Window Serenade" climbed eight to thirty six wbile "Bloodstream" by Alyssa Grace rose one to hit seventeen. and 

Finally Temper City's "Self Aware" jumped three to reach number twelve. 

Re-Entries

With the exit of all the Ariana Grande songs, we have eight songs returning this week and we begin with the unfortunate return of "Die On This Hill" by Sienna Spiro at fifty...seriously this song is rancid...get it off the charts. 

Also back is "Undressed" by Sombr at forty nine, "A Couple Minutes" by Olivia Dean at forty eight, "Been by Now" by Morgan Wallen at forty seven, "Sailor Song" by Gigi Perez (have to think this song is getting close to being moved to the on replay chart) at forty six, "Orbiter" by Noah Kahan at forty five, "Stateside" by Pink Pantheress and Zara Larsson at forty four and finally "Midnight Sun" by Zara Larsson at forty three.

New Entries

Two new entries this week, beginning with....

25. "oh yeah?" by Steve Lacy

Hey Steve Lacy finally turns back up on the chart with a song from his new album that seems to have some momentum on the charts which means I can hope all the Steve Lacy wannabes like Malcolm Todd can go away and while I like this a good deal more than "Earrings", this just feels flat and meandering from Steve Lacy, not helped by the background vocals. I'd skip this,

12. "Loser" by Tame Impala

God damn it. We did not have to go back to "Deadbeat" to grab another Tame Impala song to make a hit because this is complete buns too. Kevin Parker's voice is buried in the mix and production that doesn't evolve or do much over the run time of the song and it doesn't even move out of first gear. Completely underwhelming.

Completely underwhelming describes the week here. Best of the week is going to "Things Take Time" bv Gang of Youths...a song that deserves to be on the charts if we're all about supporting Australian music in this country. Worst of the week is "Loser" by Tame Impala...can't stand how that song sounds

Pretty Fly (for 1999). 15th August. I Won't Get Down as She's High On Love

 So let's dive into this week starting with the top ten because nothing changed with our top three. "Last Kiss" by Pearl Jam remains at number one ahead of "If You Had My Love" by Jennifer Lopez at number two and "Boom Boom Boom Boom" by Vengaboys at number three.

Five's new song "If Ya Gettin' Down" enters at number four. More about the quality or the lack there of letter but it did havw the impact of pushing "Sometimes" by Britney Spears back to number five.

The rise of "When You Say Nothing At All" by Ronan Keating continues as it umped one spot to number six that said it likely benefited from the two spot slide for "Kiss Me" by Sixpence None the Richer to number seven.

Also sliding two slots was "Man! I Feel LIke A Woman!" by Shania Twain to number eight while "Sweet Like Chocolate" by Shanks & Bigfoot remains at number nine.

Finishing up our top ten for this week is "Say It Once" by Ultra which slipped two to number ten.

Losers

Turns out the public have had enough of Soul Searcher's "I Can't Get Enough" which is down ten slots to forty nine. They are also flying away from Lenny Kravitz with "Fly Away" down six to forty eight. 

"Saltwater" by Chicane feat. Maire Brennan slumped from thirty six to forty two while "Get Ready" by Ma$e feat. Blackstreet stumbled from thirty five to forty one. 

I am very happy the two NKOTB alumni solo songs fell this week with Jordan Knight's "Give It To You" down seven to forty and "Stay the Same" by Joey McIntyre down seven to thirty eight.

The tribute to ABBA "Tbank ABBA For the Music" by Steps (more on them in the new entries), Cleopatra, Tina Cousins, B*Witched and Billie slipped ten to thirty nine as it heads toward the chart exit.

"Why Don't You Get a Job?" by The Offspring slid nine to tthirty seven while "Look at Me" by Geri Halliwell fell six to thirty six. "These Are the Times" by Dru Hill fell ten to thirty three (why is this song still on the chart? It's garbage)/.

Gains

Our gains are a mixed blessing indeed this week with "Shimmer" by Fuel riding its way up from twenty three to sixteen, "Have A Look" by Vanessa Amorosi rising from twenty one to seventeen and "Weir" by Killing Heidi having the biggest gain of the week rising twelve to twenty six. 

However we also saw "I Don't Want to Wait" by Paula Cole up from thirty four tto twenty nine and "The Hardest Thing" by 98 Degrees up six to thirty one...sigh...can we not make either song a hit please?

Re-Entries

So bit of a weird one this week with Chris Isaak's "Baby Did A Bad Bad Thing" returning to the chart at number thirty five. It originally debuted on the chart in October 1995 peaking at number thirty three in November of that year although apparently the reason this song is back is because of a remix. It's just weird as I really do not care for this song at all. 

New Entries

Five new entries this week beginning with...

50. "I Won't Let You Down" by Kate Cebrano

So we're starting this week with Kate Ceberano's cover of English group Ph.d's 1982 hit and she's turned this song into a spacey sounding pop rock song where I have to ask who did the vocal production on this because Kate doesn't sound that good here, her voice sounds almost buried by the noise that's trying and failing to add more weight and layers to a song that kind of doesn't need it given the subject matter where the narrator is begging for a second chance from their beloved and vowing that they won't let their darling down again. I think I'll pass on this one.

44. "She's So High" by Tal Bachman

- Okay so this week's chart debutant is a Canadian singer songwriter Tal Bachman whose father happened to be in 70s band Bachman Turner Overdrive. Bachman described this song as having taken inspiration from Sheryl Crow's "If It Makes You Happy" and is apparently about the time Bachman tried to get the hottest girl in his school to date his stepbrother but wound up in complete awe of her himself. Just a shame that the thing that bothers me about this song is Bachman himself where he sounds like he is having a wrench tightened on his balls on the hook, its actually tough to listen to.

Throw in the random reference to Joan of Arc who burned at the stake and it's a strange ass thing to be in awe of this girl yet compare her to a woman who burned at the stake...come on, we can do better. Next!

30. "Love's Got a Hold of My Heart" by Steps

So I liked "Heartbeat" from Steps so I was curious what they would offer with this latest single and wow, this feels very much like it was set for a musical theatre stage especially with the way Claire and Faye's are embracing the vocal gymnastics here and even if I am not a fan of the whispered adlibs Lisa provides (tad creepy) but it doesn't take away from the song overall especially as the song builds into that incredibly dramatic chorus that does give off a woman flinging her forearm to her head and gasping "Love has this brutal hold on my heart!" It's a cute Pete Waterman co produced song...check it out.

22. "When I Grow Up" by Garbage

Always fun to have a new Garbage song on the chart and this one is no exception, it comes from their album "Version 2.0" and well this may as well be an alt rock anthem for those people out there who feel misunderstood by the rest of society but are seeking to gain control of their life and live it on their terms ignoring the judgements of others who try to do to the contrary, Shirley Manson is also very adept at selling this message because my god does she command the attention on this song, she's got this tone that makes this song work, she's the one in control of her...nobody else. This is definitely worth a listen...good song, shame I can't say the same for...

4. "If Ya Gettin' Down" by Five

I mean...if we're going to give Five the highest charting new song of the week, it couldn't have been for something that's better than a brag anthem where every line of the hook ends in the word 'baby' all before J raps about refreshing your mind that boys are bring the funk back to town, well I'd say they were bringing the funk back if it weren't for the god damn piercing whistle on the hook, the amateurish brag rapping from J smf ABS (who opens his verse wtth "wiggy wiggy, I'm getting jiggy". Seriously? Who on earth is impressed by the rhyming here? Also telling us he only has 12 seconds left on his verse, nobody asked, dude.)  

The most I can praise here is the bass groove which actually unlike the rest of this mess has an appeal and under anything that's better that god awful rapping and that piercing whistle that would drive cars into dirches, there'd be some appeal but no, this song can get in the fucking bin.

Yeah, easy worst of the week for "If Ya Gettin' Down" by Five, I never want to hear that song again. Best of the week is going to Garbage for "When I Grow Up", it's just got more connectivity for me than "Love's Got a Hold on My Heart" by Steps/

ARIA Top 50 Singles Chart Review 10th August. The One Where I Try To Go As Easy As Possible

 So we got the Ariana Grande album bomb and while I doon't really have a lot to say about the album, I will get to what I have to say about it later so let's dive into the top ten where of course "Choosin' Texas" by Ella Langley continues to rein supreme at number one for another week, it's got streaming and sales on lock at this point and nothing is getting near it.

Not even the album boost for "Hate That I Made You Love Me" by Ariana Grande up four slots to number two, would expect to see this fall back next week however it did push "Man I Need" by Olivia Dean back one to number three and "Rein Me In" by Sam Fender and Olivia back to number four.

The album bomb from Ariana Grande ensured that the album title track and new single "Petal" entered at number five, more on this song later, it did knock "Stupid Song" by Olivia Rodrigo back to number six and "Ordinary" by Alex Warren down three to number seven.

Holding steady at number eight much to my surprise is "Animal" by Katseye, I am okay with it, just surprised. "Earrings" by Malcolm Todd fell two slots to number nine and "The Cure" by Olivia Rodrigo slipped back one to round out the top ten at number ten. 

Losers

So this album bomb didn't force the large scale double digit drops for so many songs this week so I am going to focus on those double digit drops starting with "Noble" by F3miii which slipped fifteen to fifty.

"The One That Got Away" by Katy Perry slipped ten slots to forty six, it was also a ten place drop for "White Keys" by Dominic Fike to forty two. 

"Where is My Husband" by Raye slumped eleven to thirty three and "12 to 12" by Sombr trundled down ten to thirty one. 

"Drop Dead" by Olivia Rodrigo dropped thirteen to twenty nine.

Drop Outs

So because of the album bomb we have a slew of songs dropping out that will in likelihood all be back next week so let's rip through these beginning with "Been By Now" by Morgan Wallen, "Orbiter" by Noah Kahan, "Stateside" by Pink Pantheress feat. Zara Larsson, "Midnight Sun" by Zara Larsson, "I Just Might" by Bruno Mars, "Kingdom of Fear" by Cameron Whitcomb, "Undressed" by Sombr, "Bed on Fire" by G Flip, "Freaked Out" by Fat Papi and prodshushy, "Sailor Song" by Gigi Perez and finally the last of the Olivia Rodrigo album tracks "Honeybee"

Gains

Just the one maor gain this week with it unfortunately being "Bloodstream" by Alyssa Gace which rose eleven slots to eighteen...yay...not

New Entries

So we did get an Ariana Grande album bomb for "Petal" this week so let's go through the debuts that weren't top ten or best or worst of the week. "Nowhere, nobody" at forty eight, 'Warning Signs (interlude)" at forty seven", "never get over me" enters at forty,"freak" at thirty nine "big feelings" at thirty five, "like i do" at twenty two, "stay" at twenty, "all well" at nineteen and "kiss me" at twelve.

All that makes things easier because we now only have two songs to talk about and they are both Ariana Grande songs, beginning with....

43. "Bad Things (Bunny Hop)" by Ariana Grande

So "Petal" as an album is...fine...it's not good but it's not terrible either, if anything is emblematic of an artist making what amounts to be one of the artist's most creatively tired albums to date, I can't imagine Ariana is exactly getting much rest between Wicked and her current tour for her previous album, it kind of reminds me a lot of "The Life of A Showgirl" by Taylor Swift in that both are tired albums from artists who probably should have taken a break post tour/post filming before even writing said albums. 

As for this song, it's one of the better tracks on the album although it's really because it plays close to "Blinding Lights" by The Weeknd in it's sound and even if Ariana's vocals sound tired and bored, I can tolerate this. Good song. At least, it's better than...

5. "Petal" by Ariana Grande.

I knew this was going to be bad when somebody mentioned that it sounded like "7 Rings", a song that I still hate to this very day, and yeah this does remind me of "7 Rings" with that drippy synth line and production that can barely hold itself together and Ariana sounding frail as all hell in the mix. 

I hope time away helps Ariana to get better and time erases this song. 

It's easy worst of the week. "Bad Things (Bunny Hop)" gets best of the week. Keeping the reviews short and sharp this week, really felt uncomfortable even talking about Ariana right now especially with how horrible the discourse around her has been. 

Next week...huh...the fall out and what could be a quiet week. Stay tuned for the next episode of "Pretty Fly (For 1999)" as well!

Pretty Fly (For 1999) 8th August 2 Times in the Wild West.

Alright so we have a bit of a quieter week this week, not complaining as things are for once a bit crazy on the 2026 ARIA singles chart this week with the Ariana Grande album bomb but we still have a full top 50 to look at here so let's dive into the top ten where the top two remain the same as last week with "Last Kiss" by Pearl Jam remaining at the number one spot for a second week ahead of "If You Had My Love" by Jennifer Lopez remaining at number two.

Rising two spots to number three is "Boom Boom Boom Boom!" by The Vengaboys because of course it took advantages of the weaknesses of "Sometimes" by Britney Spears which slipped one spot to number four and "Kiss Me" by Sixpence None the Richer which fell back to number five. 

Shania Twain's "Man! I Feel Like A Woman!" remained at number six this week while "Whien You Say Nothing at All" by Ronan Keating continued it's rise up two to number seven, it did push past "Say It Once" by Ultra down one to number eight, 

"Sweet Like Chocolate" by Shanks & Bigfoot climbed four slots into the top ten at number nine which is pretty sweet for this song while finally "Beautiful Stranger" by Madonna is starting to develop growing pains down four to number ten.

Losers

We did see some big losers this week with "What It's Like" by Everlast down seven to fifty,. "The Animal Song" by Savage Garden dropping from forty two to forty nine and "Honey to the Bee" by Billie Piper hitting the skids down from thirty five to forty eight...ouch!

TLC's "No Scrubs" dived eight to forty one while Geri Halliwell's "Look At Me" slumped seven to thirty and "Why Don't You Get a Job?" by The Offspring slumped from twenty to twenty eight. 

Gains

Not too many major gains this week with "Weir" by Killing Heidi up six slots to thirty eight but the big gain of the week belonged to "All Star" by Smash Mouth as it smashed it's way up from thirty one to seventeen. I am happy about both these songs gaining.

However can we please stop it with the gains for "Stay the Same" by Joey McIntyre, it's up from thirty nine to thirty one this week. Please stop. 

Re-Entries

Two re-entries this week with "Ana's Song (Open Fire)" by Silverchair back at number forty three and weirdly enough Orgy's cover of "Blue Monday" came back at forty five.

New Entries

Just two new entries this week beginning with///

40. "2 Times" by Ann Lee

1999 feels like the year of the chart debutant because we have another one this week in the form of English singer Ann Lee, this being her lead single and well, I am not really digging this at all mostly because Lee's vocals just do not have  any kind of presence or power to them that make me want to go back to this song again. For a dance/electronic song to sound this small scale and kind of twee sounding right down to the high pitched do dos. Not a song I really want sticking around...next!

11. "Wi;d Wild West" by Will Smith feat. Dru Hill & Kool Mo Dee

So we finally got a new single from Will Smith following on from the success of "Miami" earlier in 1999 with this song created for a steampunk film of the same name that Smith starring in and indeed the song is all about Smith's character in the movie Jim West and how he is such a tough stern agent that he cannot be messed with and the song actually samples Stevie Wonder's 1976 hit "I Wiish" rather prominently and you know what? I had an insane amount of fun with this song, Will Smith slides straight into character effortlessly...this is good fun...check it out.

Obviously best of the week goes to "Wild Wild West". Worst of the week going to "2 Times" by Ann Lee because I really cannot stand that song.