New Music Friday Review: 12th February: What it feels like when only love can save me now

 "Only Love Can Save Me Now" by The Pretty Reckless feat Matt Cameron and Kim Thayil

So this seems to pretty likely to be the next single from the recently released The Pretty Reckless album "Death by Rock n Roll" this time bringing on board Matt Cameron of Soundgarden and Kim Thayil of Pearl and also Soundgarden for this song as The Pretty Reckless are big fans of Soundgarden.

There was a reason for bringing the members of Soundgarden on board because this song is basically a homage to Soundgarden and the band's frontman the late Chris Cornell. The whole song souds like it's straight out of the 90s grunge era and Pretty Reckless frontwoman Taylor Momsen sounds fantastic. Also that guitar solo from (I think) Matt is AWESOME. Check this song and indeed the rest of that Pretty Reckless album, it's something special.

Rating: 9/10

"Take Me Away" by Morgan Wade

So American bluegrass, pop and rock singer Morgan Wade caught my attention late last year with "Don't Cry" and with this song...all I can say is don't sleep on Wade's album "Reckless" when it is released in March so yeah I am literally putting this here as a reminder to you all to check this amazing artist's work out and oh yeah, the song "Take Me Away" is outstanding.

Rating: 8/10

"What It Feels Like" by Nipsey Hussle and Jay Z

So I am a bit leery of writing about the work of artists released after they have died, mostly because I am always concerned that any new release is cashing in on the legacy the dead artist left as we've seen with XXXtentacion and Juice WRLD (Yes, it's getting to that point with Juice unfortunately) so this new song involving Jay Z and the late Nipsey Hussle kind of bothered me but than I learned that the track has been in the making when Nipsey died, it's taken eight years for the song to be released so was the wait worth?

Well...I think it was, I love the instrumentation and the energy that both Jay Z and Nipsey Hussle bring to the song, I don't think this will be a hit but it's still excellent and well worth your time checking out.

Rating 8/10

"Big" by Rita Ora, David Guetta and Imanbek feat. Gunna.

Okay...stop...just stop! Why do pop acts especially ones like Rita Ora feel the need to have the underwhelming presence of Gunna on their songs? I mean I half expect this sort of crap from Bebe Rexha's next album if that's ever going to happen but anyway back to this song and really...it's rubbish, the production squishes Rita Ora's vocals into this flat as hell monotone that's completely uninteresting combined with production from Imanbek and David Guetta that is really dime a dozen and doesn't fit at all with the song's title.

The song sucks is what I am trying to say. It's not the worst thing I've heard but wow...it's on the list of suck.

Rating: 3/10

New Music Friday Review: 29th January. All You Ever Wanted was a Girlfriend so C'est La Vie

"C'est La Vie" by The Killers

No, this is not the lead off single for that album that's apparently coming from The Killers this year, this is from their deluxe edition of "Imploding the Mirage" and as somebody who is becoming a fan of The Killers thanks to that last album, I am glad "C'est La Vie" is not the lead single for that next album because to put it in a polite manner, this song is a mess to the point where Brandon Flowers does not sound good here at all and the instrumentation is all clunky and not all in line with how amazing the rest of "Imploding the Mirage" was.

Avoid this song if you possibly can...

Rating: 4/10

"All You Ever Wanted" by Rag 'n' Bone Man

Fair to say that I wasn't looking forward to hearing this song given what Rag 'n' Bone man had done in the past especially with how "Human" just faded harder than the bluff and bluster of a certain former US President so I pretty much went into this with no expectations whatsoever so how was "All You Ever Wanted" by Rag 'n' Bone Man?

Holy shit! I was not expecting this from somebody like Rag 'n' Bone Man of all people, he has pivoted toward more of the rock sound that The Killers embraced on "Imploding the Mirage" and my god he does it so damn well...it sounds awesome and was one of the best new songs that was released on Friday. Check this out!

Rating: 9/10

"Girlfriend" by Rebecca Black

It's been pretty clear for awhile now that Rebecca Black is trying to walk the path of being a serious musician since she was some marketing mob's plaything when "Friday" escaped into the public consciousness so I was curious to check out this song and yeah, its a pretty damn solid pop song that Rebecca sounds good over this production and lyrics about getting back with a partner (in this case, Rebecca's girlfriend) so yeah this is a decent pop song. Might be time for people to start taking Rebecca Black as something more than the "Friday" song girl.

Rating 7/10

"Higher" by Clean Bandit feat. Iann Dior

So we have the first Clean Bandit in awhile, they've brought on board Iann ior for this one so after Dior's feature on "Mood", I was weirdly optimistic that this one would turn out alright and yeah...this is pretty good, the only issue I have is with the production that's occasionally louder than the vocals but yeah there's a bounce and groove to this song that works well and Dior's delivery matches the production well even if it reminds me in parts and the harmonies at the end work well...it's just a nice song to have around...good job Clean Bandit and Iann Dior

Rating: 7/10

"Everything We Need" by A Day to Remember

I'll keep this short. A Day To Remember has been treleported to the world of the Imagine Dragons and looks highly unlikely to comeback, although this song reminds of that One Republic song "Something I Need" and I didn't like that song either. Not going to enjoy hearing this in shitty car commercials and phone company ads.

Rating: 2/10

Finally...something I need to address...

I will not be reviewing songs released from the soundtrack of the film "Music"

Normally I would not refuse to write about a song that come from an unexpected source but I won't be reviewing the song that was released on Friday from the soundtrack for "Music" due to the issues that I have with this film eg: a film about autism that has no actual autistic actors cannot be authentic to what autistic people experience (only got to look at the music videos for a song like "Together" to discover that they aren't at all friendly to autistic people with sensory overload), the use of prone restraint to deal with a meltdown in the film, Sia's unwillingness to listen to those who are actually autistic and their justified and well thought out criticisms of the film and I am concerned that this film might play into some romanticised and Hollywood styled stereotypes and tropes about autism.

That is where I feel comfortable leaving it for now. Go watch films about autism that have real representation of autism not this Hollywood stylised representation of it.

New Music Friday review: Boys don't cry so stick that in your country song, Girlfriend!

I am reviving New Music Friday review because the past week has delivered so much damn great new music that deserves attention and I do not want to see get lost between the cracks. Spanning Eric Church to Megan Thee Stallion to Dan Owen, we got some amazing music so let’s start with…Charlie Puth?

 

“Girlfriend” by Charlie Puth

So Charlie Puth was busy releasing music last year which, for most part, people ignored, it wasn’t good and felt like most of the songs were at least two steps down in quality from the best songs on “Voicenotes” but his new single “Girlfriend” could be considered right up there with “Done for Me” (feat Kehlani) or “If You Leave Me Now” (feat. Boyz II Men), this song has slick pop grooves that go on for miles and features some of the best hooks that Puth has written in ages, if you are looking to satisfy that sweet tooth, there’s no better place to start then with this song.

Rating: 9/10

 

“Boys Don’t Cry” by Dan Owen

UK singer-songwriter Dan Own is an artist I have been following for awhile now, his 2018 album “Stay Awake With Me” is one of my favourite albums for that year, since then he has released a folk EP and collaborated with UK country act Ward Thomas however “Boys Don’t Cry” is the lead single from a new album and well…if this is a sign of things to come…well I am looking forward to that sophomore album because for one thing “Boys Don’t Cry” still is signature Dan Owen in sound but the lyrics delve into mental health stereotypes/stupid belief that boys/men don’t cry because men crying is seen as weak and Owen acknowledges that hiding raw emotion and tears is hard to hide so wouldn’t it be easier to let that emotion out with the support of others there.

Rating: 8/10

 

“Stick That In Your Country Song” by Eric Church

Going from Dan Owen to the new leadoff single for American country rock singer Eric Church might seem like whiplash but it kind of feels natural to talk about “Stick That In Your Country Song” next mainly because it feels like Eric Church is making a statement with this song in terms of challenging the rest of mainstream country who right now aren’t releasing the most challenging material rather sticking to songs about beer, bars, girls, trucks and tailgates rather than singing about anything of substance like teachers doing it tough with very little funding or issues facing rural America. Church wants more substance to country music than the stock standard clichés typical of the mid 2010s bro country movement and stopped doing what country is so good at which was telling those stories of rural America. This song is quickly becoming one of my favourites of 2020, check it out!

Rating: 9/10

 

“Girls In the Hood” by Megan Thee Stallion

So quite honestly if I am looking for female rap, I don’t look to Nicki Minaj anymore, Nicki’s music has become more about advertising than anything that is actually music so more often than not I have looked toward Meghan Thee Stallion because yeah, I still think “Savage” is a pretty damn good song and as for her new single “Girls in the Hood”? Well it’s certainly braggadocious with Megan rapping about her lavish lifestyle, clapping back at her haters and challenging the somewhat patriarchal cannon that is rap music (could argue in music across the board honestly) all while flipping Eazy-E’s “Boys in the Hood”. Its not anything revolutionary but it’s still a great song. Hope this is a hit for her.

Rating: 7/10

 

“How You Like That” by Blackpink

If you ever want to hear a case of a song having blown it’s potential, it’s right here with Blackpink’s new single, there’s a lot to like about the verses and the bridge, there’s promise there but that chorus has to be one of the more poorly produced choruses of the year with it’s rattling electronics etc, it just doesn’t work at all. Again, before the stans get upset with me, it’s not Blackpink themselves that are the problem, it’s the production they are put over that is the issue.

Rating: 5/10

 

“Standing with You” by Guy Sebastian

So no, I am not going to discuss Guy Sebastian being apart of Prime Minister Scott Morrison or the most recent issues involving his manager, I am going to write about his new single “Standing With You”, a song that is getting traction  on iTunes right now and in the realm of Guy Sebastian songs its not quite as catchy as “Choir” or even “Before I Go”, it’s a ballad that while is growing on me, I’m not sure this is going to have any real staying power on the charts, that said given how well “Choir” did last year, that remains to be seen. Objectively the song is fine, if you like a good empowering ballad than this would be the song to go for.

Rating: 6/10

So that wraps up the new music reviews in full other songs to check out include:

• "Team" by Rory Noble
• "Greed" by Tash Sultana
•  "I Miss You. I'm Sorry" by Kita Alexander
• "Overkill" by Holly Humberstone
• "I Cry" by Usher
• "Say Something" by Eskimo Joe.

Few week updates: Trying to find time to work on my best hit songs of 1998 list, obviously with coming out of COVID lockdown has meant that there's less time to work on pet projects etc.

New Music Friday Review: 19th October. Zara Larsson, Major Lazer working with Tove Lo

Song: Ruin My Life
Artist: Zara Larsson





We start of this week's new music review with the lead off single for Zara Larsson's second album, a song I was kind of excited about however I can't be the only one feeling let down a little, right? For a start, Zara sounds totally devoid of any personality that made her a joy to listen to on previous hits and the chorus is just really painfully reptetive asking him to ruin her life and nights because she misses him. It's just a painfully mediocre song.



Rating 5/10


Song: when the party's over
Artist: Billie Eilish





This is the second single from Billie Eilish's debut album s and it is a dark one at that which features Eilish, backing vocals and sparse piano and strings as Eilish sings about her anger at this person in life and needing space from said person where she just wishes they would leave her the hell alone. Its a good song but its definitely not as good as "Bellyache" or "you should see me in a crown".

Rating 7/10



Song: Sunflower
Artists: Post Malone feat. Swae-Lee




This song is for the new Spiderman movie and while I don't mind the production, the grooves in this song are pretty awesome however the content of this song really does render this song kind of mediocre if I am to be honest and probably forgotten within weeks but given the streaming figures for this song, I'd not be surprised if it becomes a hit

Rating: 4/10


Song: Blow That Smoke
Artist: Major Lazer, Tove Lo




So I am not a fan of either artist. Major Lazer's "Lean On" was one of the more annoying hits of recent times while I've never cared for Tove Lo so much like in the recent past with Calvin Harris working with Frank Ocean and Migos on "Slide" last year, could "Blow that Smoke" by Major Lazer feat. Tove Lo work for me? Well honestly I think it does in that it feels like the perfect song to jump around to by the pool, its not bad. Hopefully becomes a hit.

Rating: 8/10


So yeah "Blow That Smoke" is the best song of New Music Friday would love to see this become a hit.

New Music Friday Review for 12th October: Little Mix and Nicki Minaj team up, Meg Mac returns as female empowerment is the word

Song: Woman Like Me
Arists: Little Mix, Nicki Minaj



So here we have the lead single from Little Mix's upcoming fifth album titled "LM5" and am I the only one who is more than a little underwhelmed by this song? It's got these annoying whooping noises however the chorus is catchy and does a lot of the heavy lifting but than we get to a pretty lazy Nicki Minaj verse where she is just flexing, it sounds like a verse she'd drop on any song she's collaborated on, it seems really tacked on and kind of unnecessary.

Rating: 6/10


Song: I'm Still Here
Artist: Sia


Sia's new single "I'm Still Here" is aimed at being a big summer anthem quite clearly even though I am not convinced some of the production choices are quite right even though it does make for quite haunting ballad and Sia is conserving a lot of her vocal power and it works well as she sings about overcoming hurdles and keeping on moving forward despite setbacks. Its actually not all that bad a song.

Rating: 7/10


Song: MIA
Artists: Bad Bunny, Drake





 So I groaned when I learnt Drake who is rapidly joining the ranks of over exposed celebrities in 2018 and given Bad Bunny hasn't impressed me in the past, I wasn't looking forward to this song but much to my surprise, this actually really isn't bad especially given it actually turns out to be a love song and Drake and Bad Bunny want their girls to tell everyone that they are with them and in love. The instrumentation is stereotypically Spanish but for a song feat. Drake, it's not a bad reggaeton song...it's at very least tolerable.

Rating: 7/10


Song: Light On
Artist: Maggie Rogers





 If there was a song that I want to be a hit, it is this one. "Light On" centres around Rogers own self doubt and is coming to grips with the world and herself as she acknowledges her friends and family. It's all set to a pretty damn great electronic pop beat. Love it, love it. Bring on that debut album in January 2019.

Rating: 9/10


Song: Give Me My Name Back
Artist: Meg Mac



I mentioned the return of Little Mix earlier and the powerful "Give Me My Name Back" is a some way to announce the return of one of the break out female singer songwriters Meg Mac and really, this song is incredible and it won't get the attention it deserves given Meg Mac is really only known by people in Australia. Lyrically very moving and resonant, "Give Me My Name Back" is definitely a song that I will be returning to.

Rating: 9/10

Best song of the week is Meg Mac's "Give Me My Name Back"...only just though. I just think Meg nails the nuance of a poweful female statement.

New Music Friday Review 5th October: Charli XCX feat. Troye Sivan, Halsey

Song: 1999
Artists: Charli XCX, Troye Sivan




So I will admit this song hit me right in the sweet spot, a song where Charli XCX and Troye Sivan wish they could jump in a time machine and go back to 1999, a feeling that in the past more often as I get older I and plenty of others as they get older could go back and live in a particular year.

Unlike with the references Anne-Marie made in '2002' (a song that I have come around on a little bit), Charli XCX rattles off Britney Spears "Baby One More time", drive around wearing Nikes and listening to Eminem while Troye Sivan sings about dancing around to Michael Jackson as a kid in 1999.

Even better the production sounds like something that could have been made in the year 1999 but sounds as modern as anything. It's a genuinely good song, check it out and the hilarious video clip whch sees Charli and Troye impersonate Leonardo Di Caprio and Kate Winslet in Titanic, Eminem and the Spice Girls however I do wish that they'd pulled out an impersonation of Britney's Baby One more time" clip seeing as there is an actual reference to that song within this song.


Rating: 8/10


Song: Sucker Punch
Artist: Sigrid




How hasn't this young lady had a hit in Australia yet? She's been putting out some of the best pop music around the world in the last couple of years and yet we haven't given her a hit, even the United Kingdom give her a hit with "Strangers" and like with that song "Sucker Punch" is a ridiculously quirky and fun pop song about love akin to that sucker punch in the stomach that this guy is giving her.

While it's not as good as "Strangers", it's still a lot of great fun which we need more of in modern pop music.

Rating: 7/10


Songs: TINTS
Artists: Anderson Paak, Kendrick Lamar




Okay, I can't lie, this song seems like another attempt to copy Mark Ronson and Bruno Mars huge hit "Uptown Funk" or similar to what Bruno Mars ttried to achieve with his last album (if you didn't know you could be confused and think that Bruno Mars had released a new song) but my god, this song is also just a ball of retro fun in a song that talks about getting a car's windows tinted.

Rating: 8/10


Song: Without Me
Artist: Halsey






There was bound to be a song about heartbreak from Halsey given the year she has had with the rather overtly publicised break up and subsequent reunion with rapper G-Eazy. The first real issue I have with this song is the framing, it's Halsey going on about everything she did for this guy just for him throwing it back in her face, there's no acknowledgement of what she may have done to trigger the end of this relationship - it does take two for a relationship to form or fall apart, either way there's no real balance in the framing of this song which makes it really hard to believe to be quite frank.

Rating 5/10


Anyway that's it for this week. Best is going to "1999" by Charli XCX and Troye Sivan (that song does hit a sweet spot for me, I can't lie). No more worst song as there's point in that kind of thing to me anymore.

Will be checking out the new Little Mix song where they've teamed up with Nicki Minaj (Uh oh), new Sia and the newest single from Maggie Rogers.

New Music Friday Review: Clean Bandit has a shocker while Pharrell and Camila underwhelm

So New Music Friday can deliver some great new music but on other weeks it can suck donkeys and unfortunately the big names didn't deliver the goods for New Music Friday this time around while an Australian act's comeback does deliver.


Song: Solo
Artist(s): Clean Bandit, Demi Lovato






I got to be honest here, I loved a lot of what Clean Bandit released in 2016 into 2017 be it "Rockabye" with Anne-Marie and Sean Paul or "Symphony" with Zara Larsson so I was looking forward to "Solo" with Demi Lovato and wow, what we got couldn't be any further removed from either "Rockabye" and "Symphony" because this is actually pretty damn awful and the reason for the awfulness is the production wbich has a pretty nice orchestral sound which is surrounded by chipmunk fragments and then "WOOP WOOP WOOP WOOP!" right before Demi starts singing. What a ridiculous way to start a song

The lyrics are as basic as all hell as well with Demi singing about stuffing up a relationship and complaining she's too broken hearted over the breakdown of her relationship to have sex which is very immaturely handled with "I wanna fu-oo-oo!"

This mess is anything bar a jam, I'll stick with Ariana Grande's "No Tears Left to Cry".


Rating: 3/10


And because we're not done with Demi Lovato...

Song: Fall in Line
Artist: Christina Aguilera, Demi Lovato



Given how badly "Accelerate" has tanked on the charts, it really isn't surprising that Christna Aguilera is releasing this feminist power ballad with Demi Lovato and while it's not bad at all, the percussion feels a little heavy and I am not sure why the song needs the male voice in the background (especially as I have heard some women speak that same way to men) however I do get the themes the song is angling for which is allowing women to decide what they want to do with bodies and not to kertow to others expectations,

It's okay without being good or great but I do wish "Twice" was the single even though she released THAT the week after "Accelerate"

Rating 6/10







Song: Sangria Wine
Artists: Pharrell Williams, Camila Cabello



So I was hearing A LOT about this song before it was even released as a single with talk that it was set to be a US summer smash and well...quite honestly for all the hype, I expected better, Pharrell and Camila trying to sing against way too much percussion with little too no melody at least until toward the end of the song where Camila takes control and the only saving grace being that Camila actually sounds a lot better on this song than she did on "Never Be The Same".

"Sangria Wine" is pretty much just a disappointment quite honestly. Would expect better from Pharrell.


Rating: Only marginally better than "Solo" 4/10


Song: Healing Hands
Artist: Conrad Sewell




Conrad Sewell finally has a new recording deal and is back with some brand new music, I am choosing to cover "Healing Hands" because largely it is an excellent song. "Healing Hands" builds through the verse and bridge into the chorus which instead of dropping does what a chorus should do and lift the song, it sounds absolutely amazing courtesy of the production, Sewell singing about how he made an awful mistake pushing a loved one away while  in a relationship but this person has stuck by him despite this and Sewell is vowing to never push this person away. Great song!

Rating: 8/10



Song: Don't Go Breaking My Heart
Artist: Backstreet Boys

As I've already given my opinion on this song, the review is here: http://australianchartattack.blogspot.com.au/2018/05/new-music-friday-review-oh-my-god-they.html

Rating: 8/10


Best of the week: I was all set to give it to the Backstreet Boys but honestly I think Conrad Sewell's "Healing Hands" is just a touch better.

Worst of the Week: Toss up between "Sangria Wine" for being disappointing and "Solo" for just being a terrible song, ehh, it goes to "Solo"

Next week: New Music Friday Review is taking a break but check out Christine and the Queens new single "Girlfriend" and Maggie Rogers "Fallingwater"

New Music Friday Review: Oh my god, they are back again... Backstreet's back....ALRIGHT!!!

Big week for new music including Selena Gomez and a quartet of female musicians collaborating for a pretty controversial song plus a special review of a freshly released new single from....the Backstreet Boys.




Song: Back To You
Artist: Selena Gomez






Selena Gomez frustrated me the majority of last year because her best work was when she was working in EDM pop be it with Marshmello on "Wolves" (a song I've changed my mind on) and on "It Ain't Me" with Kygo (a song that made my top ten best hit songs of 2017 list) but when she went out on her own she released R 'n' B pop songs that...well...sucked.

The reason why I say that is because her newest single from the second season soundtrack of "13 Reasons Why" is actually pretty darn good, it plays in the EDM pop lane that doesn't stress Selena's vocals and it works so well for her. "Back To You" is allegedly said to be about Justin Bieber but really does it matter when it's a pretty breezy lightweight pop song that just works?


Rating: 8/10


Song: Girls
Artist: Rita Ora, Cardi B, Charli XCX, Bebe Rexha


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So this song has gotten a lot of attention for the lyrics with singers Kehlani and Hayley Kiyoko calling out the song for creating a rather false impression of bi-sexual women which lead vocalist Rita Ora later apologised for but regardless of the lyrical content which is a little obnoxious to be honest. Come on there's more to be bi-sexual than just kissing women, it's a pretty basic song that doesn't really get past hooking up with some woman. I've long ago stopped suggesting choruses need to have a brain or a point.


Rating: 5/10


Song: Temporary Me
Artist: Kings



Well this song reminds me of Andy Grammer in a strange way however Kings lyrics are a bit more blunt than Andy. Overall I get the lyrics which are your standard Kings is jealous of the new man in his ex-girlfriend's life and he feels that this new guy is just a replacement for him and knows that once she's done with him, she'll be back with him...it's a bit pissy if I can be blunt but the problem is with the oddly chipper production which features whistling which sounds awfully out of tune here.


Rating: 6/10



Song: New Light
Artist: John Mayer




John Mayer sounds like he has been inspired by Charlie Puth's new sound (that is working for him) and Fleetwood Mac all in one go but unlike Puth's new direction, this really does not work at all for Mayer. I'd prefer Puth or even Shawn Mendes over this kind of production that is somewhat way too smooth and too slick for Mayer.


Rating: 6/10


Best of the week: "Back to You" by Selena Gomez
Worst of the week: "Girls" by Rita Ora and co. It could have been much better than what it is. Wasted potential.

Next New Music Friday:

"Downtown's Dead" by Sam Hunt
"Fall in Line" by Christina Aguilera and Demi Lovato
"Solo" by Clean Bandit feat. Demi Lovato

That and more tomorrow!

A song that did drop today and will appear on the new New Music Friday playlist is the new single from a 90s boy band whose middle name might as well be 'longevity' because they are still around in an age where boy bands are only meant to last five years tops.

Song: Don't Go Breaking My Heart
Artist: Backstreet Boys






So I can't deny that I am a Backstreet Boys fan and did grow up with songs like "Backstreet's Back (Alright)" and "All I Have To Give" so this could sound very biased when I say that this new single "Don't Go Breaking My Heart" is an unexpectedly funky pop song when by title alone I was expecting a ballad so to hear a song that actually is pretty fresh every time I hear it is pretty sweet.

The guys vocals are on point and the chorus reminds me a little of Mariana's Trench single "Rhythm of Your Heart", it's groovy and it's message to this girl to stop messing around with their hearts.

So yeah, I hope this is a hit, please let this be a hit, Australia, the boys deserve it not just for the song but for the dancing which is perfectly synchronised!.

Rating: 8/10

New Music Friday Review: Christina Aguilera's comeback single disappoints as Troye Sivan goes 80s

We got a mixed bag this week, Troye Sivan continues his album roll out, Shawn Mendes releases another song from his album but this time he isn't alone and the return of two divas Christina Aguilera and Celine Dion.

Let's start with the return of Christina Aguilera...

Song: Accelerate
Artists: Christina Aguilera, 2Chainz, Ty Dolla $ign




This is not a good sign. For one thing the song doesn't make real use of the incredible voice that we all know that Christina Aguilera actually has but instead has her sing-rapping in a staccato style more commonly seen on Migos recent work while 2Chainz and Ty Dolla $ign add their usual nothing to the song, it's different for Christina but "Accelerate" isn't anything that we haven't had drilled into our heads for months now by Quavo, Offset and Takeoff now for months. This song is just so disappointing.


Rating: 3/10


Song: Ashes
Artist: Celine Dion


Celine Dion is back and this time she's teamed up with the movie "Deadpool 2' for the single "Ashes" which is by en large a ballad, it is also perfectly suited to the movie's villain whom the song is about and his rise, Dion sounds absolutely amazing on this song and the production allows her vocals to shine beautifully on what should be a massive soundtrack hit.

Rating: 8/10


Song: Bloom
Artist: Troye Sivan



After the somewhat disappointing chart performance of the lead single "My My My!", Troye Sivan returns with "Bloom" a much better song caked in 80s vibes that almost production wise at least reminds me of Alex Cameron, sure, the lyrics don't play anywhere near what Alex Cameron did on "Forced Witness" but "Bloom" is still a decent song regardless of what it may be about be it LGBT love or not.


Rating: 7/10


Song: Youth
Artist: Shawn Mendes, Khalid



It doesn't take a rocket scientist to work out that Shawn Mendes has definitely improved in terms of his songwriting post the release of Illuminate (his poor second album) and given Khalid is collaborating on anything that moves, this song seems like a good fit for both with it's passionate lyrics, I just wish the production had a little more spark and fire to match the lyrics


Rating: 6/10


Best: "Ashes" by Celine Dion
Worst: "Accelerate" by Christina Aguilera feat. 2Chainz and Ty Dolla $ign

This week:

"Girls" by Rita Ora, Cardi B, Charli XCX and Bebe Rexha
"Back to You" by Selena Gomez
Two new singles from Meghan Trainor even though we didn't ask for them

New Music Friday Review; Liam Payne and J Balvin try to create the 2018 "Despacito" and new Ariana Grande

Song: Familiar
Artists: Liam Payne, J Balvin


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I truly believe that "Despacito" has begun a serious trend of English/American artists teaming up with Latin music stars to attempt to find a hit given Liam's last single with Zedd "Bedroom Floor" really did tank hard and well, I am not sure that "Familiar" is the hit that Liam wants or needs, oh sure its catchy and the lyrics aren't THAT bad, they are all about getting to 'know' that hot girl's body with the typical latin pop instrumentation and production, I can't say I am overtly crazy about the song though.

However this trend of people trying to create the 2018 "Despacito" needs to stop and soon.

Rating: 6/10


Song: Babe
Artists: Sugarland, Taylor Swift





American country act Sugarland are back and this time they have released a song that was an off cut from Taylor Swift's album "Red" and yeah you can kind of tell the song is an off cut for Taylor Swift with the lyrics (kind of a step back from '1989' given that she was young at the time) but given Jennifer Nettles really is an impressive vocallist, this song does sound better than it had any right to be especially with Taylor only singing backing vocals. Not expecting this to be a hit but would welcome it if it does happen. Decent song.

Rating: 7/10




Song: 2002
Artist: Anne-Marie



Just me or is Anne-Marie becoming one of those frustrating artists who you know is capable of better than what she releases and her new single '2002' is a case in point an instantly dated song making references to songs that don't come from the year 2002 eg: Britney Spears 1999 hit "Baby, One More Time" and its all set to the same guitar riff that doesn't change or do anything different, it's all very clunky so I'll pass on this and hope it doesn't become a hit.


Rating 4/10


Song: No Tears Left to Cry
Artist: Ariana Grande



I am not going to go into the whole thing to do with the awful events in Manchester and how this song deals with it and the whole debate over whether or not it should have been a ballad because I'd rather talk about how much fun this song is and it's about freaking time we got a song that was pure fun on the charts, heck, "No Tears Left to Cry" is a jam in many ways that is reminiscent of late 80s early 90s Janet Jackson (Look up "Runaway" and you'll get what I am talking about). I really enjoyed this and hope it's a mega hit for her.


Rating: 9/10


Best of the Week: "No Tears Left to Cry" by Ariana Grande

Worst: "2002" by Anne-Marie


No New Music Friday review for releases on Friday 25th April, not all that interesting a week. Check out "Time" by Gretta Ray amd "Brooklyn in Summer" by Aloe Blacc.

Next week:
"The Way I Am" by Charlie Puth (he has released pretty much half of his album "VoiceNotes" now)
"Bloom" by Troye Sivan (Out May 3)
"Hunger" by Florence and The Machine (Out May 3)
"You Can Cry" by Marshmello, Juicy J feat. James Arthur
"Jump" by Julia Michaels
"Accelerate" by Christina Aguilera

Beyond that who knows!

New Music Friday Review: Returns aplenty with Zayn, Amy Shark and more

Let's not muck around because it was a busy, busy week.

Song: Ferrari
Artist Bebe Rexha


I have to be honest here, I have never been impressed by Bebe Rexha as a vocalist, her vocals don't grab my attention instantly like Lorde or even Adele do and her hit with Florida Georgia Line "Meant To Be" is just one of those songs that really is just mediocre at best so can her new single from forthcoming album "Expectations" change my mind.

Honestly, this isn't all that bad but I am not sure it's something that I'll remember with Rexha's vocals almost straining on the chorus. The instrumentation is closer to rock than anything else, still I doubt I am going to remember it in the long term.


Rating: 6/10


Song: Let Me
Artist: Zayn



The lead single from Zayn's forthcoming second album (reportedly will be released in June) and it's a straight up sex jam right from the opening line "Sweet baby, our sex has meaning / Know this time you'll stay 'til the morning" and I have to say that for once the instrumentation is actually really kind of sexy and fits the mood of the song which is surprising given there's a long list of supposed 'sex songs' that miss the mark for being actually sexy in terms of the instrumentation. It's decent. Nice one, Zayn.


Rating: 7/10



Song: Sky Full of Song
Artist: Florence and the Machine


Here's another return and a much welcome one at that with Florence and the Machine dropping a new single and yet again this song is pretty darn great mainly because it's a little more understated than a lot of Florence and the Machine's work in the past because Florence Welch really doesn't belt like she has in the past, her voice is strident but it comes across so beautifully here in a song dealing with a questionable relationship and it's effects on others. Good job!

Rating: 8/10


Song: Cry Pretty
Artist:Carrie Underwood



So Carrie Underwood is back with her first single from her sixth album of the same name and "Cry Pretty" is something of a country rock epic with Underwood really showing her ability to let loose when the opportunity calls in a song about how we can all fake certain things in life, we can't fake feeling vulnerable and that it is okay to cry. It's not going to chart on the ARIA Singles chart unfortunately because for some reason only bro country and faux country seem to be hits but PLEASE check this song out!



Song: I Said Hi
Artist: Amy Shark



I have to admit I have been pretty excited all year about potential new music from Amy Shark and I am delighted to say "I Said Hi" is a fantastic song, a kiss off song to those that ignored her talent (their loss quite honestly) and yet again Amy is brutally honest in her lyrics and the guitars and other instrumentation sound stunning, this is actually better than "Adore" if you ask me.

Rating: 9/10


Best: Only giving out best of the week because there's no real bad songs. "I Said Hi" by Amy Shark gets the honours.

Next week: New music from Ariana Grande, Liam Payne teams up with Latin music star J Balvin and Khalid teams up with rising star Billie Eilish

New Music Friday Review: Calvin Harris and Dua Lipa disappoint.

So I am going to combine the last two weeks of New Music Friday into the one blog entry because the 30th April New Music Friday contained little that was likely to going to break into the charts so I am going to combine the big releases from that week with some of the big releases from the past week which include new music from Cavin Harris feat. Dua Lipa and Sabrina Claudo working with Khalid.

Let's begin though with the return of The Weeknd

Song: Call Out My Name
Artist: The Weeknd





Ugh. The Weeknd at his most turgid and...well kind of boring...in a song allegedly aimed at Selena Gomez with instrumentation sounding like previous Weeknd songs that being "The Hills". Put it this way this isn't all that bad but it's not all that good either and judging by the fact that its already falling away on streaming and sales, people have already begun to forget this song exists.


Rating: 5/10


Song: One Kiss
Artists: Calvin Harris, Dua Lipa



Calvin Harris made some of the best music in 2017 with his funk stylings but unfortunately with "Nuh Ready, Nuh Ready" with PARTYNEXTDOOR was generic EDM song that sucked and I feared that Harris had slipped back to generic EDM banger mode so were my fears founded when he teamed up with one of the leading young female artists in the world, Dua :Lipa?

Unfortunately I think so, One Kiss is not at all a good song and it could have been so much better. Dua Lipa's voice sounds so thin as she's trying to sing against all the production, it's just not at all befitting a combination where the song should have been a whole lot better than this. I'm hitting fast forward on this.

Rating: 4/10


Song: Don't Let Me Down
Artists: Sabrina Claudio, Khalid



Finally getting to a song with a bit of quality but before I go into the song, if you don't know who Sabrina Claudio is an American singer/songwriter who was first discovered on Soundcloud and has been on the scene since 2016 but hasn't really had any notable success in Australia however that might all be about to change because Khalid is on fire with having hit songs right (just look at "Love Lies" with Normani), this song is really quite good.

Yeah, there's a really nice chemistry between Khalid and Claudio which given the song's content needs to be there, it's a passionate love song laden with synths and a dancehall chorus but you know what? For what it is, it's a pretty great song.


Rating: 8/10



Song: Be Careful
Artist: Cardi B



Cardi B is probably one of the biggest break out stars of the US rap scene in the last year or so, that said her highest charting hit in Australia has been with Bruno Mars on his song "Finesse" and "Bodak Yellow" charted in the high 30s for a few weeks but success for Cardi has been limited however "Be Careful" is the latest single from her recently released album "Invasion of Privacy" and honestly it's not a good song for one thing the instrumentation doesn't suit the song at all and she doesn't sound good trying to be more melodic.

Rating: 5/10


Best: "Don't Let Me Down" by Sabrina Claudio feat. Khalid
Worst: "One Kiss" by Calvin Harris and Dua Lipa


Next week:
"I Said Hi" by Amy Shark
"Let Me" by Zayn
Two new songs from Bebe Rexha
Nicki Minaj drops two new singles
Carrie Underwood drops new single "Cry Pretty"

New Music Friday Review: It's All in Shawn Mendes

New Music Friday was dominated by the return of Shawn Mendes and I did briefly consider the idea that I would do what I did for Taylor Swift's lead off single from "Reputation" but I decided against doing that and I'll explain why when I talk about one of the two new songs Mendes released.

Anyway other than Shawn Mendes,we've also got a David Guetta collaboration with Sia (Yes, ANOTHER one), the return of Jesse McCartney and the return of Snow Patrol.


Song: Flames
Artists; David Guetta, Sia




It's not really a surprise that Sia is collaborating with David Guetta, they have now collaborated SEVEN times in the past couple of years and I have to be honest, I have never really cared for any of their collaborations, "Titanium" might be about the best of them...I guess. There's now a new collaboration called "Flames" and I am sorry this is just drab, it's not anything all that special. This partnership needs some new ideas if you ask me cause YAWN!.


Rating: 4/10


Song: Better with You
Artist: Jesse McCartney



The heartthrob every teenage girl back in the late 2000s was gushing over before Justin Bieber came along, you might remember "Beautiful Soul", that song spent 4 weeks at number 1 in 2005 and I absolutely couldn't stand that song  but this time McCartney is back with an acoustic guitar song called "Better With You" that has some electronica elements to the chorus and to honest I like of like it, it suits McCartney's vocal tone and he sounds really genuine. It's alright.


Rating: 7/10



Song: Don't Give in
Artist: Snow Patrol



I have never really been strongly into Snow Patrol but I did like their past number 1 hit "Chasing Cars" and "Hands Open" was a really catchy song so I thought I'd check out the lead off single from the new album Wildness and it turns out "Don't Give In" is a kind of choppy pop rock song. It's not bad actually, it was originally supposed to be for a friend of lead singer's Gary Lightbody who was going through a hard time but it turned to be about writing Snow Patrol's fifth album! It's not a bad song at all. Nice work.


Rating: 8/10


And now we come to the big one...


Song: In My Blood
Artist: Shawn Mendes





So Shawn Mendes is back with two new songs but I am only going to review in "In My Blood" here.

So "In My Blood" is the lead single from Shaun's upcoming third album and I have to say its very much leaning close to Kings of Leon with the guitars and Mendes attempts to put a growl into his voice in a song all about anxiety and you know what? Lyrically I get that as well, there are times I want to give up and throw something at the wall but can't for whatever reason. I like this song a lot for the sentiment. I think the biggest issue is that I don't really have a lot to say about it hence I held off on doing the blog entry for the one song.


Rating: 8/10



Best of the week: Probably "In My Blood" by Shawn Mendes
Worst of the week: "Flames" by David Guetta and Sia

Next week: The Weeknd and Cardi B.

New Music Friday Review: 9th and 16th March.

Two New Music Fridays to do because I missed the one for the 9th March so we're going to begin with four songs from the 9th March New Music Friday playlist including Australia's entry in the Eurovision Song Contest (I cannot believe we haven't worn out our welcome in that competition yet) and the latest from Kylie Minogue.

Let's begin with our Eurovision Song Contest entry, shall we?

Song: We Got Love
Artist: Jessica Mauboy





She was the interval act at Eurovision a couple of years ago and now Jessica Mauboy will again participate at Eurovision this time as a contestant with the song "We Got Love" - a pop song pretty much tailor made and targeted for Eurovision, seriously, it's like they looked like at the formula for Dami Im's success with "Sound of Silence" and went "EUREKA" because "We Got Love" plays directly from a formula and yeah I do like it in the sense that will be a better live song than the recording.


Rating: 7/10


Song; Stop Me From Falling
Artist: Kylie Minogue



The latest single from Kylie Minogue's upcoming album "Golden" and we get a more blatantly country song that is more than reminiscent of Dolly Parton and recent Miley Cyrus but like with "Dancing", "Stop Me from Falling" retains a lot of that Kylie sparkle which makes this song a pretty damn good to sing and dance along to. Hopefully radio falls in love with the song because yeah, it's pretty darn great.


Rating; 8/10


Song: Sanctify
Artist: Years and Years




You may remember Years and Years for their 2015 top ten smash "King" which peaked at number 9 on the ARIA singles chart, a song that really wasn't a fan of myself but their new single "Sanctify" is a massive improvement on "King" with it sounding very influenced by India or at least sections of Bollywood. I enjoyed it quite honestly. Good job.


Rating: 8/10


Song: There's A Reason
Artist: Wet



Wet are a two member indie pop group based in Brooklyn New York with "There's a Reason" being the lead off single from their second album and quite honestly, this a nice straight forward pop song but I cannot help thinking that the song could have done with a change up but otherwise it's a nice easy to listen to song.

Rating: 7/10



Best of the week (March 9th): "Sanctify" by Years and Years.
Worst: Not sure there was anything egregiously bad to give out a worst of the week


Now onto March 16th and we begin with the return of Kygo,

Song: Remind Me to Forget
Artists: Kygo, Miguel



It's not often I am reminded of Sam Smith but Miguel's really soulful delivery especially on the verses, it's one of the things I admire about Kygo's production on his songs, he knows how to use the instrumentation to best suit the vocalist be it Miguel or Selena Gomez. Only thing that I am finding a bit off about this song is that breakdown which kind of sucks.

Rating: 7/10



Song: Done for Me
Artists: Charlie Puth, Kehlani



The latest single from Charlie Puth's delayed second album VoiceNotes with Puth turning up a modern disco with the help of Kehlani (an artist who I have never been a strong fan of) for a song that is about a relationship where Puth question what his partner has done for him when he is giving everything for her and Kehlani plays the part of the girlfriend. Honestly the groove here is pretty tight and would be fun to dance to. I kind of like it.


Rating: 8/10



Song: Everybody Hates Me
Artist: The Chainsmokers



I am convinced that every single song by The Chainsmokers is beginning to sound alike in some ways eg: the drop on this song and their single with Coldplay "Something Just Like This" sound very similar. This song is apparently about Andrew Taggart's feelings of loneliess and self criticism. Look to be blunt this song sucks and judging by the diminishing returns The Chainsmokers have seen this year, the public have finally woken up.


Rating: 3/10


Song: Alien
Artists: Sabrina Carpenter, Jonas Blue


So Sabrina Carpenter is back and this time she has teamed up with Jonas Blue for a new single and I have to be honest here, I am not convinced that this is the best work either artist has done. Sabrina sounds kind of checked out on the song but it's still good...it's better than that dreck from The Chainsmokers.


Rating 6/10


Best: "Remnd Me to Forget" by Kygo and Miguel
Worst: "Everybody Hates Me" by The Chainsmokers.

New Music Friday March 23rd:

Snow Patrol, Shawn Mendes and more

New Music Friday: Meghan Trainor is back

Look, let's just get stuck into this week's New Music Friday Review without going through a whole preamble cause I got to be honest, it was a tough week for new music last week which saw the returns of Meghan Trainor and DJ Khaled, Khaled bringing along three big name stars in the world of hip hop and R 'n' B along for the ride so I suspect I might well either be pleasantly surprised or getting on board the conga line of suck.

Song: No Excuses 

Artist: Meghan Trainor

So the woman, who many put at the top of their worst hit songs of 2016 lists for "Me Too" and quite rightly so that song was insufferable each and every way you looked at it, is back with a brand new single called "No Excuses" and I have to say the song is growing on me in terms of the instrumentation, it's definitely got that instrumental appeal about it but the lyrics are the problem with this song as per usual with a Meghan Trainor song which are nauseatingly repetitive especially into the chorus until Meghan sings "Your mama raised you better than that, huh!" and the verses really don't tell a story of how this guy is 'disrespecting' her and the "huh!" noise is not at all flattering.

So really it's an instrumental improvement overall. 

Rating: 5/10. I'm sticking with Aretha when I want a 'respect anthem'

Song: Top Off 

Artists: DJ Khaled, Future, Jay Z, Beyonce

Oh boy, I wasn't at all looking forward to writing about this song because it the simple and purest language, I can effectively say this is the WORST song DJ Khaled has ever released. Future sounds like he was having an off day so phoned it in while Beyonce strangely tries rap comes off sounding worse for the effort, Jay Z maybe fares the best but when the most interesting take aways from this song are Beyonce calling out Tiffany Haddish and Kim Kardashian and joining Jay Z in calling for the release of Meek Mill from jail in amidst bragging over their immense wealth, it's really not much of a song at all.

Rating: 2/10

Song: Golden Age

Artist: Fergus James

This song was an oasis in a desert of crap and any wonder it's so good when Mark Lizzotte was one of the co-writers on 'Golden Age" but firstly to explain who Fergus James is, he is an 18 year old from Sydney who is currently getting plenty of attention courtesy of Triple J's Unearthed and cites Vance Joy as one of his influences.

Well I'll say this for Fergus, this song is better than a large majority of Vance Joy's last album, "Golden Age" on piano, synths and percussion but it's done really well and has this absolutely anthemic chorus. This should be a hit but knowing how Australia has kind of rejected music by Aussie artists in recent years I don't hold out much hope

Rating: 9/10

Song: Ballroom

Artist: Jack River

Look, I really don't have much to say about this song except that it is fantastic and that Jack River needs a lot more mainstream recognition. Please give this woman a chance.


Rating: 8/10


Best of the week: In a terrible week for new music, "Golden Age" by Fergus James gets the best

Worst of the week: "Top Off" by DJ Khaled featuring Jay Z, Beyonce and Future


Next  New Music Friday Review:

Jessica Mauboy's song that she will be taking to Lisbon for Eurovision

New Music Friday: 23rd February: 5SOS become The New Chainsmokers, Janelle Monae kicks butt

So this week was strange...there was plenty of quality though! Just we got plenty of crap as well. 5 Seconds of Summer are back with a change of direction, Janelle Monae returns and Post Malone teams up with Ty Dollar $ign for "Psycho"


Song: Want You Back
Artists: 5 Seconds of Summer







It's been awhile between releases for 5 Seconds of Summer with "Want You Back" being the lead off single from their as yet untitled third album and they've elected to go down more of a pop route instead of sticking to their pop/punk roots which in a sense is fine because pop/punk isn't where the money is plus if you saw the playlist they put together citing their influences for their new album (yikes) then I suspect you would realize that this change has been coming.

So what did we get with "Want You Back"? A quite unremarkable song bearing a mix of all the hallmarks of The Chainsmokers at their self aggrandising worst and Maroon 5 at their most sterile which is is odd for a song about unrequited love and how he is struggling to get over this girl who he has made clear he wants back with the all basic as hell lyrics. I suspect even 5 Seconds of Summer fans were disappointed that this load of nonsense is the lead off single.


Rating; 4/10



Title: Psycho
Artists: Post Malone,Ty Dolla $ign






Post Malone had a fantastic 2017 which came as a shock to many people, he had his first major hit with "Rockstar" and with the streaming numbers that "Psycho" is accruing, this looks like doing better than "Rockstar"...just a pity that in terms of quality "Psycho" isn't all that good, the same now extremely done to death by the numbers trap beat with your standard luxury rap bring about women, cars and jewellery that has been done to death since 2014. Pass


Rating: 4.5/10


Song: Make Me Feel
Artist: Janelle Monae




So much like CHVRCHES, I have pretty much slept on Janelle Monae and it turns out I slept on something pretty special because "Make Me Feel" is a groove infected R 'n' B funk song that harks back to the 80s and Janelle is just owning it. Makes it all the more special that late Prince assisted in the writing of this song because you can hear the Prince influence all over this song. I love it and I hope it becomes a smash hit.



Rating: 9/10


Song: White Flag
Artist: Bishop Briggs



Another artist who I wish I'd listened to before I came across "White Flag" is Bishop Briggs because this song is a dark anthemic rock song with verses that build into this absolutely crushing chorus. This song comes from her forthcoming album 'Church of Scars" and after listening to this song, I am kind of keen on hearing that album cause this song kicks arse.

Rating: 8/10



Song: Next to Me
Artist: Imagine Dragons





So I really didn't like either single from Evolve, "Believer" wore my patience in record time and "Thunder" wound up pretty high on my worst songs of 2017 list as it turns out "Next To Me" isn't on the standard edition of Evolve and it's no wonder because this song is substantially better than a lot of that album but it is a slow burn sort of song and I can imagine that not everyone is going to love it instantly.

Rating: 7/10


Best of the Week: "Make Me Feel" by Janelle Monae.

Worst: "Want You Back" by 5 Seconds of Summer


Coming up in the next edition of New Music Friday Review

Oh lordy, Meghan Trainor is back with "No Excuses", DJ Khaled also returns teaming with Jay Z, Beyonce and Future for "Top Off"

New Music Friday Review 16th February: Delta's Back

New Music Friday last week was weird because we really got a couple of big releases but beyond that it was pretty quiet, what we did get was new Delta Goodrem, Khalid teaming up with Normani from 5th Harmony and a new single from Lauv.

Let's begin with the return of Delta Goodrem though, shall we?

Song: Think About You

Artist: Delta Goodrem.

Delta Goodrem is back and she's getting her sexy on, oh yep, make no mistake "Think About You" is RAUNCHY so much so the song has attracted some overseas attention to the point of going viral. As for the song itself, well its definitely a step or more in a new direction for Delta, the lyrics about thinking about a guy being naked when looking at him definitely make this song fit for the 50 Shades soundtrack but hey, I don't mind the song lyrically.

The only thing I would say I am not crazy about the production, another song that sacrifices melody for beats which kind of kills the song a little for me, I still like it as a Delta fan though.

Rating: 7/10




Song: Love Lies
Artists: Khalid, Normani



One of the break out stars of 2017, Khalid collaborating with the best singer from 5th Harmony, Normani, for a song from the soundtrack of a new film called "Love, Simon" the sound track of said film is being curated by Jack Antonoff who played a major role in the creation of Lorde's "Melodrama (my favourite album of 2017)  so I was interested in whatever Khalid and Normani were going to offer up with 'Love Lies"

"Love Lies" could well be one of my favourite songs of the year, I am not kidding, I love the gentle guitar at the beginning and Khalid and Normani have an engaging chemistry that oozes all over this track. Normani just delivers on her vocals, this song should be a bonafide hit in Australia given how many hits we've already given Khalid, this deserves to be huge.


Rating: 9/10


Song: Church
Artist: Alison Wonderland



Alison Wonderland is another artist I keep saying I am going to get into but I never do so I snatched up the opportunity to give her a chance with "Church" and really, this is a good pop song that won't get the attention it deserves. "Church" is an electronic pop song that just snaps in all the good places. Nice work!


Rating: 8/10



Song: Getting Over You
Artist: Lauv



So Lauv is desperately trying to follow up the success of "I Like Me Better" and I got to say I am not overly convinced. Lauv doesn't have the strongest singing voice and reminds me in a painful way of Charlie Puth in the chorus of "Attention"...not got the intensity the song requires which is a pity because the production is awesome in that it sounds similar to that of songs on Taylor Swift's album '1989'


Rating; 4/10

Other songs to check out:

"Volcanic Love" by The Aces
"Vincent" by Ellie Goulding (it's a cover of Don McLean's song and it is lovely)
"Heart to Break" by Kim Petras
"In the Air" by DMAs (Sounds like an extension of Crowded House's "Together Alone" album in some ways)



Best of the Week: "Love Lies" by Khalid and Normani
Worst of the week: "Getting over You" by Lauv (it's really not that bad of a song)

Next week: 5 Seconds of Summer with "Want You Back",  Post Malone teams up with Ty Dollar $ign for "Psycho" and Imagine Dragons with a song that wasn't on "Evolve" originally.

New Music Friday Review: 9th February

New Music Friday last night provided us with new Calvin Harris and the return of Australian singer song writer Missy Higgins. All up it was a pretty decent week overall all bar one song that was REALLY disappointing.


Song: Nuh Ready Nuh Ready
Artists: Calvin Harris, PARTYNEXTDOOR




I was dreading this especially the minute Calvin Harris announced that the "Funk Wav Bounces" era was over and that dread feeling got worse when he announced he had collaborated with PARTYNEXTDOOR who was a guest on Zayn's "Still Got Time" back in 2016 for this song with a title that continued to give me a terrible feeling in the pit of my stomache but anyway how is the song?

Honestly I think its a regression back to the club banger days from Harris, "Nuh Ready Nuh Ready" plays on Latin tinged tropical house vibes while PARTYNEXTDOOR taking inspiration from Drake's fake Carribbean accent on his More Life playlist album and the Young Thug school of slurring his words. This isn't a good song at all. Give me "Slide" and "Feels" over this.

Rating: 4/10



Song: Wild Love
Artist: James Bay


You might remember James Bay for songs like "Back to the River" or "Let It Go", well, Bay has returned with a new single called "Wild Love" and I have to say as a bit of a James Bay fan, I was really looking forward to the lead off single from James Bay's second album until I heard the song and was overwhelmingly disappointed..."Wild Love" turns up the synths and reverb which almost see James Bay's vocals lost in the process, the chorus is ridiculously cliched. Also the love mentioned in this song isn't very wild or even remotely crazy. Ugh, so so disappointing, James, you are better than this!


Rating: 3/10


Song: FRIENDS
Artists: Marshmello, Anne-Marie





After the success of both "Silence" with Khalid and "Wolves" with Selena Gomez, Marshmello has teamed up with Anne-Marie for "FRIENDS", only unlike "Silence" and "Wolves, Marshmello has dumped the trap vibes for this song and I have to say this song is much more likeable for it, Anne-Marie is a perfect fit for this song, the only thing I don't like about this song is the choppy gang like sounds over the chorus but overall nice job by both Marshmello and Anne-Marie

Rating: 7/10



Song: Futon Couch
Artist: Missy Higgins


Missy Higgins is back with a brand new single that is as pop as it gets blending piano and synth for a song about meeting her now husband in Broome/ meeting the one and Missy just has so much charisma to make this song work. It's not a sappy love song thankfully. I legit hope this is a massive hir.

Rating: 8/10


Best: It's easy this week, "Futon Couch" by Missy Higgins

Worst: "Wild Love" by James Bay.

Next week:

Delta Goodrem is back with a new single called  "Think About You", Khalid's teamed up with 5th Harmony's Normani Kordei for a soundtrack single and Lauv returns.


If you want to catch up on what else I have been listening to of late, check out my songs of 2018 playlist, it has new songs added to it every single week.

New Music Friday Review: 2nd February

So New Music Friday last week provided little in the way of big names releasing new music but there were plenty of gems just off mainstream and one from a well known Australian rock band but we'll begin wtth the newest for CHVRCHES


Song: Get Out
Artist: CHVRCHES




Truth is I have slept on CHVRCHES not through any fault of the band but through my own, when they dropped their last album, I was barely into music that wasn't either Crowded House or appearing on the ARIA Charts so hence I missed out on hearing the electronic pop vibes of a band who have a solid following and sit just outside the mainstream so I wasn't about let an opportunity to find out what I had missed with CHVRCHES when they dropped a new single called "Get Out" so how is the song?
Honestly, it's a pretty great electro pop song that kind of sounds like Paramore in some ways and the whole song is pretty tight as a package, only thing I'd say is maybe the vocals are little far back in the mix at points but otherwise a terrific pop song that I hope does well for them.


Rating: 8/10


Song: Savior
Artists: Iggy Azalea, Quavo




Oh man, I am not sure why I even want to write about this song especially as Iggy Azalea's star has faded A LOT to the point where the two songs she released last year both tanked (Glad "Mo Bounce" because that song was absolutely terrible) and she's teamed up with a member of Migos, Quavo who quite frankly is getting to a point of overexposure.so why bother checking out "Savior"?

Curiosity got the better of me and to be honest apart from a pretty average interpolation of a middle of the road Lisa Stansfield song, Iggy does pretty well here with her flow  and most of her bars do connect...at least for me and the beat isn't all that bad but yet again Quavo just adds absolutely NOTHING to this song. would rather "Savior" just be an Iggy Azalea tune but none the less, it's okay without being great.

Rating: 6/10


Song: Mistake
Artist: Middle Kids




I have wanted to talk about Sydney alternative/indie rock band Middle Kids for awhile now so this new single of theirs seems like the perfect opportunity and given what we got with "Never Start", I was expecting something quite similar and I wasn't disappointed, the guitar line in this song is epic and the vocals on the verses bring a flavour that is similar to that of London Grammar except I would argue is better and that chorus brings plenty of summer vibes. Well played, Middle Kids!


Rating: 9/10


Song: Tonight
Artist: Baby Animals




Yes, 1990s Australian rock group Baby Animals are back with the first single off a brand new EP due out later this year and Baby Animals fans can relax safe in the knowledge that "Tonight" is very much a typical Baby Animals song complete with explosive hook and verses. Don't be put off by the intro which is very different to anything I've heard Baby Animals do but it still works well within the confines of the song


Rating: 8/10


Best of the week: "Mistake" b Middle Kids

Worst of the week: Most of "Culture II" by Migos, seriously, an hour and 45 minutes of typical trap bragging about cars, crime, jewellery, stealing other mens girlfriends is not interesting or even remotely engaging.


New Music Friday 9th February Review:
Missy Higgins, Calvin Harris teams up with PARTYNEXTDOOR, Marshmello with Anne-Marie and James Bay returns.


If you want to check out what my playlist of my favourite songs so far this year, here's my "Delicious Songs of 2018" playlist from Spotify.





"Hits Elsewhere in the World" and "ARIA Chart top ten/Chart Review" coming up soon.

New Music Friday Review: 26th January.

Sorry this is so late, truth is I have been really lazy and New Music Friday last week really wasn't anything to get overly excited about, sure, Justin Timberlake brought in one of my favourite country artists Chris Stapleton for a collaboration on JT's new album, and there's a strange collaboration between country singer Maren Morris with EDM stars Zedd and Grey and also Lady Gaga.


Song: Say Something
Artists: Justin Timberlake, Chris Stapleton




Part of me is annoyed that it's taken Chris Stapleton collaborating with Justin Timberlake for Stapleton to have any kind of mainstream currency on the Australian singles chart given Stapleton's back catalog includes the incredible "Parachute" from the album "Traveller" o "Second One to Know" from "From a Room Volime 1' both of which are still better than this song. Oh sure, the song is okay with it's more acoustic Latin than Americana/roots vibe in the production and the harmonies between Timberlake and Stapleton are alright, it's okay without really being anything great.


Rating: 6/10


 Song: Joanne (Where Do You Think You're Goin'?) - Piano version
Artist: Lady Gaga



Lady Gaga is finally bringing down the curtain on the Joanne era with a piano version of the title track and really for all the attention seeking loud and kind obnoxious pop songs she has done, this might well be the best thing she has ever done, a tribute to her Aunt Joanne that is deeply emotional and played completely from the point of view of Lady Gaga's family with the production with just a piano and acoustic elements with Lady Gaga's voice bringing the emotion. Nice job from Gaga and Mark Ronson.


Rating: 8/10



Song: The Middle
Artists: Maren Morris, Zedd, Grey




Zedd has a habit of collaborating with mostly female pop singers with his most successful collab being "Stay" with Alessia Cara which spent some time in the ARIA singles chart top ten last year and I have to say that the least impressive thing about this song is that Zedd repeats the formula for "Stay" with the similar ticking sound etc to make "The Middle" sound perilously close to "Stay" part 2 except trading Alessia Cara for country singer Maren Morris. None of this awful production is Maren's fault, she is doing her level best to sell the song but I think I'll stick with "My Church" and Maren's collab with Niall Horan "Seeing Blind".

Rating: 5/10. Maren Morris singing is literally the best thing about this and saved it from lower.



Song: Perfect
Artists: Topic, Ally Brooke



For those who aren't familiar with the name Ally Brooke, she is a member of Fifth Harmony, this song is her second venture outside of the Fifth Harmony environment, she's teamed up with German DJ Topic who in 2016 scored a top 20 hit with "Home" featuring Nico Santos, so how is "Perfect"? Honestly it's your stereotypical EDM love song with Brooke singing about her partner telling her she's perfect every time she's feeling "not really worth it", the lyrics are kind of cute but the production isn't any different to what I hear from a Marshmello or Zedd song


Rating: 6/10. It's okay but it's not great by any measure.


Best of the week: I am giving this to Lady Gaga for "Joanne (Where do You think You're Goin')". That song connected for me


Worst of the Week: I hate myself for doing this because I adore Maren Morris but "The Middle" by Maren, Zedd and Gray is getting basically for being 2nd part of a previous hit song.


Next New Music Friday review:
"Savior" by Iggy Azalea feat Quavo (as if there hasn't been enough Migos related material around lately)
"Wasted" by Peking Duk
"Mistakes' by Middle Kids
"Tonight" by Baby Animals

See you soon for ARIA top ten/chart review and "A Hit Somewhere Else in the World"