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deadcactuswalking · 1 month

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REVIEWING THE CHARTS: 23/03/2024 (V of BTS and... Mark Knopfler?)

It’s a short week, largely to prepare for what chaos should be coming the next, but right at the top, Benson Boone clenches his first ever #1 with “Beautiful Things”. I know pretty much no-one who cares about pop music on a deeper level likes this song, but hey, if I’m the only person happy about this other than Booner Boy himself, I’ll take it. Welcome back to REVIEWING THE CHARTS!

Rundown

Given our few new songs, we also only have a handful of notable dropouts to start with, so we’ll bid adieu to the small but decent selection of “Could You be Loved” by Bob Marley & The Wailers, “Angel Numbers / Ten Toes” by Chris Brown, “My Love Mine All Mine” by Mitski and finally, “Disconnect” by Becky Hill and Chase & Status.

As for what’s back, we see returns for “Asking” by Sonny Fodera and MK featuring Clementine Douglas at #73 and, sigh, “Someone You Loved” by Lewis Capaldi at #68, and then a spattering of gains. Our most notable boosts are for “if u think i’m pretty” by Artemas at #59, “Wasted Youth” by goddard. and Cat Burns at #58, “We Ain’t Here for Long” by Nathan Dawe at #55, “Happier” by The Blessed Madonna featuring Clementine Douglas at #54, “Thank You (Not So Bad)” by a bestiary of enemies to good taste at #50, “Green & Gold” by Rudimental and Skepsis featuring Charlotte Plank and Riko Dan at #43, “Birds in the Sky” by NewEra at #34, “Never Lose Me” by Flo Milli surging high and fast up to #23 thanks to her releasing an album that includes a pretty great remix of the song featuring Cardi B and SZA, and then “Austin” by Dasha at #15, “Lovers in a Past Life” by Calvin Harris and Rag’n’Bone Man at #14 and finally, making his way into the top 10 for the first time, “Scared to Start” by Michael Marcagi at #10.

Our top five this week consists of “End of Beginning” by Djo at #5, “Lose Control” by Teddy Swims at #4, “TEXAS HOLD ‘EM” by Beyoncé at #3, “we can’t be friends (wait for your love)” by Ariana Grande at a new peak of #2 off of the debut, that could grab a week at the top soon, and of course, Benny Boone at #1. Now for our four new songs, which feel like names picked out of a hat and placed onto the chart.

New Entries

#60 - “Been Like This” - Meghan Trainor and T-Pain

Produced by Gian Stone and Grant Boutin

This is a joke, right? Or a soundtrack to a reality television competition, or daytime talk show? T-Pain has grown into his role as wholesome cuddly media figure surprisingly well and a collaboration with Meghan Trainor, whilst demonic, seems to be the best way to seal that position, with this being the lead single for her next album… Timeless. Well, that’s one thing to call your music. Mean jokes aside, hey, T-Pain is here so at least there’ll be some genuine, not as obnoxious charisma? Well, first of all, it’s electro swing, so my first instinct is to step away from my laptop, keel over and die, especially when Meghan starts to singing about how she keeps it juicy and then eventually that she’s “still that bitch”, as if she was ever that bitch to begin with. There’s something so cynical about Trainor’s vocals that I didn’t notice just the true extent of until T-Pain came in with an infectious call-and-response and weirdly-mixed but fun-extruding harmonies that almost would convince me on the entire song if he didn’t have to play to Meghan’s lack of personality, especially when placed against each other in the bridge. T-Pain can sell this as some goofy cartoon clown, but it probably wouldn’t charted without Ms. Trainor, who brings pretty much nothing to the song other than taking it a tad too seriously, despite the fact that there’s no reason, lyrically, for this to even be a duet. Also, Meghan, I’m not sure you can even sing the line about GRAMMYs in T-Pain’s verse on the account of you only have one.

#52 - “Never be Lonely” - Jax Jones and Zoe Wees

Produced by Jax Jones, Mark Ralph, Neave Applebaum and Tom Demac

I actually really like Jax Jones’ producer tag, it’s cute and rhythmic, has a little stutter to it. It’s nice. I have to say more than that, don’t I? I have to acknowledge Zoe Wees’ voice being misued and manipulated to just sounding characterless, I have to acknowledge how this heavily interpolates the drop from “Rhythm is a Dancer” by Snap!, one of the best Eurodance songs ever despite some… regrettable lines. It spent six weeks at #1 in 1992, blocking off Jimmy Nails, Freddie Mercury, Luther Vandross, Janet Jackson and of course, “Ebenezer Goode” by the Shamen from the top spot, before reappearing in remixed form in 2003 and 2008, reaching the top 40 again both times. “Never be Lonely” doesn’t work as an update of the song because of completely different lyrical content that I actually hate, asking someone to tell her how it feels that she’ll always be there for them, it’s really patronising and weird. It doesn’t work as a reimagining or reinterpretation because it goes for the same tone, and doesn’t adopt or adapt any of the original lyrical conceits. The one thing it does have is a Cascada remix. Yes, that Cascada. I have no idea why, but it exists.

#18 - “Going Home” (Theme from Local Hero) - Mark Knopfler’s Guitar Heroes

Produced by Guy Fletcher

Oh, so I guess this episode really will get as serious as cancer. This one might take a while to explain. So in 1983, Bill Forsyth wrote and directed Local Hero, a highly-acclaimed comedy drama that is actually former US Vice President Al Gore’s favourite film. Its soundtrack features a five-minute instrumental piece known as the “Theme of the Local Hero”. I’ve never seen the film so I don’t know how exactly it appears or makes sense within its narrative but I do know it has far transcended its origin. “Going Home” was the first single in Mark Knopfler’s solo career and has become a staple in both his and his band’s live performances, as well as becoming another theme, now for Knopfler’s home football team, Newcastle United. It’s probably the most lukewarm take of all time to say that “Going Home” is a beautiful piece, it honestly gives me goosebumps from its transcendent new-age introduction and excellently distant sax from Michael Brecker, that eventually transform into a very 80s-sounding but still profoundly triumphant jam that emulates the feeling of a journey in the UK pretty well. Maybe that’s what the film’s about, I don’t know. It peaked at #56 in 1983, whilst Bonnie Tyler’s “Total Eclipse of the Heart” was #1 - good week for rock epics, I guess.

If you know Knopfler from anything, it’s likely his band Dire Straits, one of the few important British rock bands that hit #1 in the States and never back over here on the islands - their #1 is of course “Money for Nothing”. The legacy of Dire Straits is not something tangible for me or that I’ve ever really understood, their sound was varied and evolved through what was ultimately a very short career. They’re not a legendary act but are still big names and incredibly well-connected, especially Knopfler, who has played and produced extensively for many artists and soundtracks. In January, Knopfler sold over 100 of his guitar and amp equipment at auction and in March, he’s compiled a charity ensemble to cover “Going Home” in support of cancer awareness.

Its status as a charity single is the only possible explanation for why this nearly 10 minute instrumental piece even touched the charts let alone the top 20, but it is stuffed with big names, from rock icons like Brian May, RIngo Starr and Joan Jett and newer cats like Sam Fender and Orianthi to genuine oddballs like Keiji Haino and head-scratching inclusions like, uh, Brad Paisley, who I will only ever remember for “Accidental Racist”. There are over 60 musicians on this record and damn near all of them contributed through their guitar playing, other than Ringo on drums, The Who’s Roger Daltrey on my favourite, the harmonica (that you can barely hear at times - Daltrey’s harmonica should be put to better use), and a few others. You can tell that Fletcher and Knopfler did their best job to try and collate recordings that were clearly from different times, places, equipment set-ups and audio qualities, but this is still basically a meandering pile of guitar overdubs that lasts longer than some full EPs and doesn’t really let you register any single guitarist as them playing. The collectiveness of it may just be the point, to show a united front against cancer or what have you, and there’s definitely a lot to appreciate if you’re an in-depth fan of guitar playing or a guitarist yourself, of which I’m not. I will admit, this is genuinely impressively easy to sit through for how lengthy it is, largely because of the dexterity on display, the fact that the melody of the original “Going Home”, even when developed on in the many ways it is within this piece, is still so infectious, and also because it comes out of not just cynical philanthropy but a genuine passion for the guitar as an instrument. The cover art is a Sgt. Peppers parody of the musicians standing in front of a famous guitar shop in London, and the wide array of musicians from a lot of different genres, eras and even techniques shows how wide and universal this feels an appreciation of the guitar… but I’ll say what my dad always said about Dire Straits (because, really, dads are the only people with viable Dire Straits opinions): “it all becomes much of a muchness.” My favourite of theirs is “Walk of Life” by the way, it’s so goofy. Love it.

#14 - “FRI(END)S” - V

Produced by Connor McDonough and Riley McDonough

V is the latest of the BTS boys to release a solo English single, seemingly leading towards a solo career like Jung Kook, with credits stacked full of Anglophone pop songwriters and production from the McDonough brothers that results in a very serviceable pop song that I’m not sure would get much attention outside of the fact that it’s a BTS member, hence why sales jacked this one’s chart position up so high. It’s not a bad little song at all, in fact I like the distorted guitar lick and the amount of emotion V shows in his vocals despite all the effects, he has a real unique texture against the slodgier indie drums and the infectious bed of harmonies in the pre-chorus. The one way I could see this getting big organically would be that fun albeit gimmicky chorus that makes this an anti-climactic friend zone anthem, though the gimmick wears off after the second time and doesn’t really develop into anything new in the second chorus other than some pretty gross, reverb-drenched spectacle. I usually wouldn’t give this manufactured bedroom pop much more of the time of day but there’s not much in the way of obnoxious performance or toxic lyrics here, it’s just that it really could be any other vaguely bitter male singer’s song. The first most obvious comparison is Joji due to their vocal textures, but Charlie Puth or Lauv could have easily made this work too, though probably not as well as V does here, especially not Puth. God, that would be horrible. Thank God for BTS that this song was never offered to Puth (not that he’d accept a song he didn’t spend 20 hours writing and producing himself, of course). Ugh, enough Puth talk, let’s end the episode.

Conclusion

God, this was not a great week, huh? Even if I’m not fussed about the new version, the composition of “Going Home” makes Mark Knopfler and friends get a lock for Honourable Mention, and it really does end up as the song with the most - if not the only - human passion in this selection. Worst of the Week goes to Meghan Trainor, surprise, surprise, for “Been Like This” with T-Pain, and that’s all. Future, Shakira, O-Rod, Tyla, Hozier, Headie One, Artemas, Cardi B, Lil Nas X, Bryson Tiller, they could all hypothetically show up next week and it would be a big one, so prepare for that and who knows what else? It’s 2024, anything can chart. As for now, thank you for reading, rest in peace to Cola Boyy but we go on and I’ll see you next week!

#uk singles chart #pop music #song reviews #mark knopfler #guitar heroes #dire straits #v #jax jones #zoe wees #cascada #meghan trainor #t-pain

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my-chaos-radio · 2 months

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Release: June 16, 2017

Lyrics:

All my ladies

(What you, what you gon' do?)

All my ladies

Wind to the left, sway to the right

Drop it down low and take it back high (who?)

Bitch, I don't need introduction (why?)

Follow my simple instruction

Wind to the left, sway to the right

Drop it down low and take it back high (who?)

Bitch, I don't need introduction (why?)

Follow my simple instruction

You see me I do what I gotta do, oh yeah

On the guest list, no need to queue, oh yeah

Me and my crew, we got the juice, oh yeah

So come here, let me mentor you, well

Some say I'm bossy 'cause I am the boss

Buy anything, I don't care what it cost

Stacked like casino, Armani, Moschino

If you're The Supreme, then I'm Diana Ross

All my ladies

Wind to the left, sway to the right

Drop it down low and take it back high (who?)

Bitch, I don't need introduction (why?)

Follow my simple instruction

Wind to the left, sway to the right

Drop it down low and take it back high (who?)

Bitch, I don't need introduction (why?)

Follow my simple instruction

report to the dance floor when I say, oh yeah

(Step two) tell mom you'll be out 'til late, oh yeah

(Step three) pull up your bumper, cock up your waist, oh yeah

(Step four) grab somebody, now face to face, and say

Say that you're bossy 'cause you are the boss

Buy anything, you don't care what it costs

Stacked like casino, Armani, Moschino

If you're The Supreme, then I'm Diana Ross

All my ladies

Wind to the left, sway to the right

Drop it down low and take it back high (who?)

Bitch, I don't need introduction (why?)

Follow my simple instruction

Wind to the left, sway to the right

Drop it down low and take it back high (who?)

Bitch, I don't need introduction (why?)

Follow my simple instruction

Yo, see me 'av everyting what you want, put it pon me

The Dona the realest star 'cause she don't play

They say I'm loco, di way me do me ting

Gyal haffi back up, back up pon it

Gyal haffi stack up, stack up pon it

(All my ladies) bad gyal, bad gyal

'Nuff a dey ting, 'nuff a dey ting, say enough a dey ting

Bad gyal, bad gyal

Mashin' up di ting, mash up di ting pon him

Say that you're bossy 'cause you are the boss

Buy anything, you don't care what it costs

Stacked like casino, Armani, Moschino

If you're The Supreme, then I'm Diana Ross

All my ladies

Wind to the left, sway to the right

Drop it down low and take it back high (who?)

Bitch, I don't need introduction (why?)

Follow my simple instruction

Wind to the left, sway to the right

Drop it down low and take it back high (who?)

Bitch, I don't need introduction (why?)

Follow my simple instruction (who? Why?)

Songwriter:

Bitch, I don't need introduction

Follow my simple instruction (who? Why?)

Bitch, I don't need introduction

Follow my simple instruction

Demi Lovato / Uzoechi Emenike / Stephanie Allen / Timucin Aluo

SongFacts:

👉📖

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aestheticjunkyard · 10 months

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#kylie minogue #jax jones #padam padam #music #remix

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scarlettwritesfluff · 4 months

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December Day 31

All deaths by Temple on this list are not canon Temple had 5 unknown Freelancer Victims so we picked at random

All deaths by The Meta on this list are not canon The Meta had 3 unknown freelancer victims so I picked at random

All deaths by Tex on this list are not canon Tex has a few unknown freelancer victims but we don't have a number so I chose four at random

The Numbers didn't seem right for MIA so let's add 5 more freelancers KIA Chosen at random

All Pronouns Chosen At Random

#red vs blue #Jax Jones #rvb #December

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iammistressofmyfate · 5 months

Note

100 for spotify wrapped pls 👀🎶

Hi friend! Thanks for the ask!

#100 is I Got U by Duke Dumont, Jax Jones

#spotify #spotify wrapped #music #ask game #asks answered #i got you by duke dumont #jax jones

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worldmusicandcinema · 1 year

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Jax Jones, Calum Scott - Whistle

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#jax jones #calum scott #whistle #singers #music #Youtube

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p1325 · 1 year

Video

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Here's the list of the singers I used: -Selena Gomez, Miley Cyrus, Demi Lovato, Kesha, Ariana Grande, Doja Cat -Taylor Swift, Dove Cameron, Sofia Carson, Sabrina Carpenter, Britney Spears -Christina Aguilera, Mariah Carey, Shakira, Jennifer Lopez, Hailee Steinfeld -Hilary Duff, Dua Lipa, Tinashe, Bebe Rexha, Ashley Tisdale, Kelly Clarkson -Ava Max, Kylie Minogue, Lady Gaga, Madonna, Rita Ora, Rina Sawayama -Charli XCX, Vanessa Hudgens, P!nk, Rosalia, Billie Eilish, Chloe x Halle -Beyoncé, BLACKPINK, Brandy, Janet Jackson, Mabel, Little Mix, Lizzo -Sabrina Carpenter, Normani, Kim Petras, Gwen Stefani, Ellie Goulding -Kelly Rowland, Katy Perry, Ari Lennox, Zara Larsson, Anne-Marie

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Song: This Is Real (feat. Selena Gomez & Ella Henderson)

Artist: Jax Jones

#jax jones #pop #pop music #selena gomez #remix #ella henderson #edm #dance #music #music video #video

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pettybourgeoiz · 2 years

Audio

✰Bourgeoiz Music Discovery✰

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sytycdinternational · 1 year

Video

SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE USA SEASON 17 // Top 12 Group / "Instruction (feat. Demi Lovato & Stefflon Don)" — Jax Jones / Pop Jazz / Choreography by Brian Friedman / Finale

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myvinylplaylist · 2 years

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Pokémon 25: The Album (2021)

Target Exclusive Limited Edition Red & White Two Tone Vinyl

Comes with poster & exclusive stickers

Capitol Records

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songstuckinmahead · 19 hours

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#music #songs #jax jones #bebe rexha #jax jones snacks

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deadcactuswalking · 6 months

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REVIEWING THE CHARTS: 11/11/2023 (Olivia Rodrigo, Jax Jones/D.O.D/Ina Wroldsen, The Kid LAROI)

Welp, with a ton of sales and some actually good streaming traction, the Beatles have done it. With their supposedly final single, they now have 18 #1s, the second most of anybody charting only second to Elvis. It’s their first #1 since 1969, “Now and Then” surging up to the top spot this week. So what about the rest? Well, welcome back to REVIEWING THE CHARTS!

Rundown

It should be no surprise that “Now and Then” hit #1. They sold 78,000 units - a lot of it being physical copies - which naturally stomps on the usual sales figures we get nowadays. They set all kinds of chart-span records, including gap between #1 singles, and whilst it’s far from the only story this week, it is pretty great to have a genuine chart moment much like the Christmas #1 where the average person may actually give a damn about the chart. Now that you’re interested, here’s what’s on the chart, our notable dropouts - songs exiting from the UK Top 75 after five weeks in the region or a peak in the top 40. This week, we say farewell to all the Halloween-related re-entries and debuts - probably not worth listening here, just make five guesses and check last week’s episode, you’re probably correct - and then it’s just “ONE MORE TIME” by blink-182, “bad idea right?” by Olivia Rodrigo, “Bittersweet Goodbye” by Issey Cross and “Kill Bill” by SZA, it’s not exactly a week for big losses.

This is also one of those weeks where we do see resurgences of old songs, with “Bad Habits” by Ed Sheeran back at #74, as well as the return for “Iris” by the Goo Goo Dolls at #67. This is its first time in the top 75 since 2014, and it has a bit of a bizarre run in general. It charted at #50 on release, died almost immediately, came back the next year at #26 before soon drifting back away. With the introduction of digital sales and eventually streaming, however, “Iris” has won out, going in and out of the charts for 100+ weeks since 2006. It peaked at #3 after a performance on The X Factor in 2011 pushed its sales up, which meant it was competing with Sak Noel’s “Loca People” and Maroon 5’s “Moves Like Jagger”. Elsewhere, we see gains for “Everywhere” by Fleetwood Mac at #61, “Someone You Loved” by Lewis Capaldi at #58, “As it Was” by Harry Styles at #57, “Another Love” by Tom Odell at #51 and the earliest defrosting of the Christmas hits ever, with “All I Want for Christmas is You” by Mariah Carey at #40 and “Last Christmas” by Wham! at #37. Therefore, Christmas rules need a reminder: I will not discuss Christmas gains past the top five unless they are entering the top 75 for the first time that year in that week. It means the rundowns get a lot less tedious during the holiday season.

To be fair, we have some more contemporary gains, like “MONEY ON THE DASH” by Elley Duhé and Whethan at #63, “Black Friday” by Tom Odell at #54, “Dance the Night” by Dua Lipa, “Would You (go to bed with me?)” by Campbell and Alcemist at #29, and “On My Love” by Zara Larsson and David Guetta at #22. Additionally, Jung Kook’s solo debut album GOLDEN debuts at #3 on the albums chart, thus we see gains for “3D” featuring Jack Harlow at #45 and a re-entry for “Seven” featuring Latto at #35, alongside a new single in the top 10 which we’ll talk about later, standing right next to Taylor Swift swapping out “Slut!” for “Cruel Summer” returning at #7, and speaking of the top 10…

The top five this week consists of “Water” by Tyla back up to #5 with Tate McRae’s “greedy” at #4, Taylor Swift’s “Is it Over Now?” holding on at #3, “Prada” by casso, RAYE and D-Block Europe at #2 and of course the Fab Four at the very top. Now for our pretty scarce but vaguely interesting batch of new songs, though I say the term “new” a bit loosely.

NEW ARRIVALS

#75 - “The Night We Met” - Lord Huron

Produced by Ben Schneider

Okay, so we have another weird chart run here. This song by California indie rock band Lord Huron was originally released in 2015 - which is soon, terrifyingly, near a decade ago - and did not make much noise until it was featured on the soundtrack to Selena Gomez-backed polarising Netflix show 13 Reasons Why in 2017, the year in which this song actually charted below the top 75 for a brief couple weeks. The year after, a remix featuring Phoebe Bridgers of boygenius was featured in the soundtrack for the show’s second season, and gave the song a bit of a third wind… and now it’s back for a fourth because God knows why, probably TikTok because the show is long cancelled. Thankfully this constant slow-burn of a chart run is for a song that is genuinely very good, going for a slightly retro-sounding guitar lick with the haunting doo-wop vocal lead-in, for a song about losing the spark and connection of a relationship and just desperately wanting to recapture - or honestly, escape - the initial moments. I wish the lead vocalist would really get into it a bit more as whilst his fried devastation is effective, I’d like to hear a real belt considering the desperate melodrama of these lyrics. It’s also not the bets co-ordinated-sounding chorus in the world, isn’t really that impactful, and the mix can feel a bit compressed, but as a song, the qualities are there, and I think it lacking a bridge or real climax is by design. It’s the closer of the album after all, and I’m not about to complain about something that could be corrected by listening to the full record. I prefer the Bridgers version, primarily because of how a female perspective in the second verse just touches a better note for me, I don’t exactly know why. It doesn’t make any major differences to the composition so either will work, and if it ends up sticking around, it’s far from the worst indie pop track to have lying around at the bottom of the charts. Isn’t that right, Vance Joy?

#66 - “Brilliant Mind” - Blanco

Produced by Jensmuller

We’ve seen UK rapper Blanco, specifically accompanied by Central Cee, and he didn’t make much of an impression then, though the song wasn’t bad. Here he is backed with what may be one of the best drill beats I’ve heard this year, if it counts as one, applying the rhythms to a club bounce and some African-influenced blocky percussion, as Zelda-sounding flutes ring off in the background and as soon as Blanco starts rapping, a warm sax joins the mix, adding a lot of richer potency to otherwise standard flexing and violence, though the rhyme schemes and flows are on point, and Blanco has a fantastic delivery to sell all of this. I find the lack of ad-libs for the most part really interesting too, it makes the song feel a lot more self-interested, inward-looking rather than flexing on the audience, where each thing he’s grateful for in his life has the added caveat of what should have happened or what eventually does happen to defy the purpose and meaning of it, like when his old gang friends hop the gated fence he has up. It’s a shame that the name of the song comes from a corny sex pun in the hook because there really is a lot to this one, and I think a better outro would seal it for me, but as this there’s still a lot of quality here, especially in the production and that frankly fantastic second verse, for me to call this a pretty excellent example of where British hip hop could be going. Check this out.

#41 - “BLEED” - The Kid LAROI

Produced by Billy Walsh, Omer Fedi, Blake Slatkin and The Kid LAROI

So The Mid LAROI has slowly been drip-feeding songs from the new album he just released this week, and whilst rap is still an influence, LAROI is moving further into the pop rock direction Post Malone kind of took, which makes complete sense for LAROI considering he is some kind of amalgamation of Posty, Bieber and Juice WRLD, with the only thing that really makes him all too recognisable being his hate-it-or-love-it voice. Now I love “WHAT JUST HAPPENED”, but that’s not the single that charted this week. Instead, we have “BLEED”, which just goes for a similar indie pop-influenced acoustic rock sound, except more familiar and laidback than what the other single went for. It’s not bad at all, even if LAROI’s rawer lead vocal take seems a tad detached from the backing harmonies. I do quite actually like that interplay - or more accurately counterplay - on the chorus, where LAROI’s vocal inflections seem particularly dejected when he’s not going for a half-rap angst. The soaring backdrop makes this a pretty solid track, even if perhaps a one-note one that doesn’t go for much more than the one cool trick it saves for the second verse, that being the fast-pace build-up with the distorted guitar and synth flutters sliding in, but it doesn’t lead up to all that great of a final chorus, especially since some of the extra layers are stuck in the back of the mix or only in the left channel. There’s a good song here, but it’s not really fully realised and I don’t think it’ll ever be a great one.

#28 - “Won’t Forget You” - Jax Jones, D.O.D and Ina Wroldsen featuring The Blackout Crew

Produced by Jax Jones, D.O.D and Mitch Jones

Part of me perhaps optimistically hopes that D.O.D will offset some of Jax Jones’ copy-and-paste house-pop genericism by a lot trying a little, and we have Ina Wroldsen - who you probably heard on Jones’ older hit “Breathe” - on the meaningless vocals, so it’s not exactly a good sign, but hey, it’s not awful. Wroldsen sounds frankly terrible but the Euro-trance revival is still in full effect and that slightly jerkier take on the beeping trance synths is actually a bit of a cool, different touch amidst the rest of the oddly drowned-out atmospherics that Wroldsen is mixed way over. It was probably D.O.D’s idea but that’s not important, it’s still there… but it loses its novelty past the first drop. It’s an earworm for sure, though and for whatever reason, the Official Charts Company credits “The Blackout Crew” here for the less-streamed “donk edit”, which is basically the song sped-up and with comical rapping over the drop. Welcome back, Blackout Crew, you haven’t charted since you “Put a Donk on It” in 2008, and you haven’t gotten any better in those 15 years, but it’s still… just delightful. In fact their style of comical EDM-rap they introduced with that classic novelty single is probably more influential than I’d like to admit nowadays. I’d like to see them collaborate with some of the people that clearly take influence from them, like Kak Hatt or, uh, the “give me some time, I’ll have that Rover” guy. Yeah, that would work.

#18 - “Can’t Catch Me Now” (from The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes) - Olivia Rodrigo

Produced by Dan Nigro

Welp, there’s a new Hunger Games, and Lorde isn’t hip with the young-adult demographic anymore so guess who’s back? This seems to act as a semi-motivational semi-revenge track that makes many direct references - albeit through metaphors and imagery you could absolutely apply to, say, a breakup - to the film’s plot, or at least seems to. Rodrigo plays a powerful woman responding to mistreatment by just being everywhere and having whoever wronged her constantly reminded me of O-Rod, without them being able to “catch” her. It’s a cool idea for a song, but perhaps not an acoustic ballad? Rodrigo doesn’t feel like she’s signifying much power here, even if the acoustic guitars sound a lot richer this time around and the harmonies are pretty gorgeous as one would expect. For an acoustic Olivia Rodrigo ballad, it’s actually up there quality-wise, even if just for the swell and for the lack of annoying wordiness that is a bit of an O-Rod trademark at this point. The haunting strings do a pretty good job at feeling surrounding and particularly enclosing, giving a ghostly essence to the reverb and echo on Rodrigo’s “oohs” in the post-chorus. In fact, the bridge kind of seals it: her performance is fantastic, the initial hit is great, but then it repeats as a mantra, gaining swell but losing most of its steam. Unlike LAROI’s ballad from earlier, there IS a great song here, somewhere, but the structure of it - and perhaps my lack of connection of the franchise - doesn’t do it as many favours for me. I can see it growing on me or really being a fan favourite but for now, I just think it’s pretty good.

#6 - “Standing Next to You” - Jung Kook

Produced by watt and Cirkut

I’m still yet to be impressed by BTS solo work and whilst Jung Kook is somewhat close - he definitely has the charisma of a pop star - I feel like he ends up losing me just in the songs department, as they really end up being a competent version of a mostly competently-written song with a fun performance, and nothing more. They’re so fine-tuned and well-done it makes me forget that he was at some point a K-pop singer, and that’s definitely true for this one that just throws 80s synth funk grooves, harmonies and disjointed blasts of horns and bass at you, to convince that there’s some kind of bombast. But I’m honestly not convinced: it’s trying a lot, trying to make some kind of epic, but it doesn’t have a lot of the guts. One of the big lines in the chorus is “it’s deep like DNA” and the wham line it drops on is just a stuttered, kind of weakly-sold “take off”. There’s also just not a lot lyrically here at all, and I mean that in quite literal terms of how many unique words there are. It’s not bad, it’s just a nothing burger.

Conclusion

And sadly, on a decent week, that’s enough to get Worst of the Week. I probably have to clarify given it’s Jung Kook that I have absolutely nothing against the boys, just I’m not a fan of the song. I can’t sincerely give out a Dishonourable Mention so I’ll tie the Honourable Mention between “The Night We Met” by Lord Huron, specifically the version featuring Phoebe Bridgers, and Olivia Rodrigo for “Can’t Catch Me Now”, whilst Best of the Week goes to, surprisingly enough, Blanco for “Brilliant Mind”. I guess, keep it up, man. As for what’s on the horizon, we’ll be in festive season soon enough, but maybe PinkPantheress will give us something less confectionery to chew on in the interim? I don’t know. Regardless, thank you for reading and I’ll see you next week!

#uk singles chart #song review #pop music #jung kook #olivia rodrigo #the kid laroi #blanco #lord huron #phoebe bridgers #jax jones #ina wroldsen #d.o.d #blackout crew

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my-chaos-radio · 9 months

Text

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Release: July 7, 2023

Lyrics:

It's just me and my six-string, throw it all in a car

When you're starting from nothing, anywhere but here is far

'Cause I'm caught in a dead end, I been cut up with doubt

But I'm bleeding ambition, that's my only way

Outta my hometown, I could show you 'round

'Cause I'm still proud of where I start

Now I understand my life's in my hands

I've only got one plan, just me and my guitar

Pack up my dreams and go, go somewhere far from home

I'm gonna be a star, just me and my guitar

Get out this neighborhood, big dreams of Hollywood

I know that I'll go far, just me and my guitar

Yeah-yeah-yeah, yeah-yeah-yeah

I know that I'll go far, just me and my guitar

Yeah-yeah-yeah, yeah-yeah-yeah

I know that I'll go far, just me and my guitar

I'm on my way

There's nothing that can stop me now, hear my music playing loud

Nothing has changed

It's still me and my guitar, I'm still singing from my heart

Left my mom and dad, dreams were all I had

Now the boy don turn star

Now I understand my life's in my hands

I only get one plan, just me and my guitar

Pack up my dreams and go, go somewhere far from home

I'm gonna be a star, just me and my guitar

Get out this neighborhood, big dreams of Hollywood

I know that I'll go far, just me and my guitar

Songwriter:

Yeah-yeah-yeah, yeah-yeah-yeah

I know that I'll go far, just me and my guitar

Yeah-yeah-yeah, yeah-yeah-yeah

I know that I'll go far, just me and my guitar

Max Wolfgang / Timucin Lam / Siba / Koda / Yasmin Moosavi / Adedamola Adefolahan / Gez O Connel

SongFacts:

The top-trending English DJ and record producer comes through with this super exciting song tagged, Me And My Guitar. This is his debut single for the year 2023, as he joins the host of other top-notch British music entertainers who have already submitted to the mainstream.

The production credits of this record, 'Me and My Guitar', goes to two talented music producers, Neave Applebaum & SIBA. With the production of top-notch skills, they created an extraordinary instrumental, hat elevates the song to new heights.

What makes this soundtrack even more special is the presence of a Nigerian renowned superstar who has collaborated with Jax Jones to create an extraordinary musical experience called, Fireboy DML. He really added a unique flavor to this song that will leave its listeners in awe.

Timucin Lam, known professionally as Jax Jones, is an English DJ, songwriter, record producer, and remixer. He rose to fame in 2014 by featuring on Duke Dumont's number-one single "I Got U". Meanwhile, 'Me And My Guitar', starring Fireboy DML is a must-have in your playlist.

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