The First of 2012: It's (still) Lonely At the Top (Music Review week of 1/2/2012)

First up, Happy New Year to all of you.   As you may know, I was planning on giving my weekly music blog a rest after 2011 had ended.    Then of course, there was the great reception that I got with my posts of my Christmas song countdown, and then my Top 100 of 2011 (which I will re-post in list form as well as talk about the trends of the year gone by).    And I did have some people encourage me not to give up the blog.    I'll tell you what I'll do.    This year, I created a new Facebook page, named appropriately enough, "Scenes 'n' Soundwaves" after the blog of course.    This will be my new home for posting the link to this blog as well as post my new music (including my #1, and all the various "awards"), as well as the occasional countdown.    I may occasionally post some oldies here as well, if I'm recalling the Billboard chart of a certain week and year, or count down my top songs of a particular year.    Fun, "stray" oldies I will continue to post on my regular Facebook wall.     Whether I continue this blog on a weekly basis will depend on whether the LIKES on my new page will increase.    We will sit back and wait on that one.   In the meantime, it's on with the new.


The first number one of the new year is one that already took that designation a month ago:  "Lonely Boy", by The Black Keys.   It hit the top back on December 5th, only to be replaced by R.E.M. on the 12th and Ellie Goulding's "Lights" on my last chart on December 19th.     Those three songs were way ahead of the pack, but it appears now that the Keys have the upper hand.   And it makes sense:  The song is entrenched on top of the Alternative and Triple-A chart.    It's struggling on the Hot 100 in the 60's there, but the continued prejudice towards rock music continues to be felt there.  

Aside from that action, the big mover into the top 10, is Adele's "One And Only".   It appears that the artist of the year of 2011 is starting 2012 in the same way.    Her 21 set went back to the top spot for the first time in several months, and last week garnered her third top 10 pop hit with "Set Fire To the Rain", which currently sits in the #8 postion.    For me, this is her 5th top 10 here on SnS, and frankly she shows no signs of slowing up.    Reports abound that she is recovering nicely from her throat surgery, so expect to see her up and performing very soon.

The other big mover into the Top 20, is Rachel Allyn's "Ain't No Fun", which jumps 28-11, knocking on the door to a fifth consecutive top 10.  Katy Perry also makes a good jump, as she goes for her record-breaking 6th Billboard #1, with "The One That Got Away", sitting at #3 on that chart.  Foster the People's "Don't Stop" advancing, and even The Kook's "Junk of the Heart", last year's #4 song, still resurging, coming back in the upper echelon at #18.    Finally, Scars on 45's 'Heart On Fire', enters at #20.

It's been a while since I've listened intently to many of the new songs, so I won't be able to offer any in depth reviews yet, but the songs I added this week range from familiar follow-ups to an interesting new artist, namely Katie Herzig. Her The Waking Sleep is her current set, released in 2011.  "Free My Mind" is the song I'm featuring, entering at #90.

My Pick of the Week is not a single, but seems to be much talked about lately, "Breaking The Chains of Love" by Fitz and the Tantrums, as they go for their fifth top 10 from "Picking Up the Pieces".    A bit more uptempo and funkier than the other tracks I've featured, it enters at #58.  It is followed by "Broken Bottles" by Silversun Pickups at #69.  The California quartet had my #2 song of 2009 with "Panic Switch" from that year's album "Swoon".   This track is from a forthcoming album, yet to be titled, due in the spring.     The third highest entry is "Tomorrow" by The Cranberries, the Irish girl band known for early 1990's classics like "Linger" and "Zombie".   This seems to be a nice, catchy try at a comeback.


Scenes 'n' Soundwaves 100 for Week of January 2, 2012:

 

This Week	Last Week	ARTIST-Title	Weeks on List
1	3	THE BLACK KEYS "Lonely Boy" Album: El Camino (2 weeks at #1)	9
2	1	Ellie Goulding - Lights	13
3	2	R.E.M. - We All Go Back To Where We Belong	8
4	5	Red Hot Chili Peppers - Monarchy and Roses	9
5	4	Real Estate - It's Real	11
6	9	Graffiti6 - Free	9
7	7	Phantogram - Don't Move	10
8	6	Mayer Hawthorne - The Walk	12
9	16	Adele - One and Only	6
10	10	Blitzen Trapper - Love the Way You Walk Away	14
11	28	TOP 20 IMPACT OF THE WEEK:     RACHEL ALLYN "Ain't No Fun" (Single Only)	3
12	8	Grace Potter & the Nocturnals - Naughty, Naughty Children	6
13	19	Katy Perry - The One That Got Away	10
14	20	Foster the People - Don't Stop	9
15	18	Fleet Foxes - Lorelai	8
16	12	Florence + the Machine - Shake It Out	11
17	13	Dum Dum Girls - Coming Down	14
18	21	The Kooks - Junk of the Heart	25
19	11	Sleeper Agent- That's My Baby	12
20	29	Scars on 45 - Heart on Fire	15

21	33	The Knux - Razorblade	7
22	17	Death Cab For Cutie - Stay Young Go Dancing	21
23	30	Kathleen Edwards - Change the Sheets	9
24	27	Warren Haynes - River's Gonna Rise	7
25	14	Sarah Jean - Hometown	15
26	22	The Big Troubles - She Smiles for Pictures	10
27	43	Omnia- Change This Place	3
28	15	Omnia - What's Become of Us?	14
29	23	Two Door Cinema Club - Undercover Martyn	10
30	24	Carolina Liar - Drown	17
31	31	Florence + the Machine - What the Water Gave Me	19
32	32	Portugal. The Man - So American	8
33	34	Zac Brown Band - Keep Me In Mind	11
34	63	MOVER OF THE WEEK:     LANA DEL REY "Video Games" Album: Born To Die	3
35	25	The Killers - The Cowboys Christmas Ball	5
36	26	Adele - I'll Be Waiting	16
37	41	Adele - Love Song	6
38	55	Lady Gaga - Marry the Night	3
39	47	Atlas Sound - The Shakes	4
40	35	Sallie Ford & the Sound Outside - I Swear	19
41	37	Dawes - Time Spent in Los Angeles	13
42	62	Wilco - Dawned On Me	2
43	38	Beirut - Santa Fe	14
44	57	Death Cab for Cutie - Home Is A Fire	4
45	36	Kasabian - Days Are Forgotten	11
46	54	Expensive Looks - Nothing More	5
47	42	Martin Solvag & Dragonette - Hello	10
48	48	St. Vincent - Cruel	14
49	49	Clap Your Hands Say Yeah - Maniac	8
50	45	Joy Formidable - A Heavy Abacus	8
51	66	The Kooks - How'd You Like That	2
52	46	Blink-182 - Up All Night	10
53	44	Paul Czekaj - My Home New Jersey	15
54	53	Civil Wars - Tracks in the Snow	4
55	61	Fun f. Jarelli Monee - We Are Young	5
56	51	Man Man - Knuckle Down	17
57	59	Funeral Party - NYC Moves to the Sound of LA	12
58	----	TOP DEBUT:     FITZ AND THE TANTRUMS "Breaking The Chains of Love" Album: Pickin' Up The Pieces	1
59	82	M83 - Midnight City	4
60	60	Fitz and the Tantrums - Pickin' Up the Pieces	22
61	71	Deer Tick - Let's All Go To the Bar	5
62	78	Sharon Van Etten - Serpents	3
63	68	Mumford & Sons - Winter Winds	5
64	70	First Aid Kit - Lion's Roar	8
65	56	Faith Hill - Come Home	7
66	39	Grace Potter & the Nocturnals - Please Come Home For Christmas	6
67	58	Fruit Bats - Tangle and Ray	13
68	83	Grouplove - Tongue Tied	3
69	----	Silversun Pickups - Broken Bottles	1
70	77	Rachel Yamagata - Starlight	6
71	67	Wilco - I Might	23
72	----	The Cranberries - Tomorrow	1
73	52	Haley Reinhart & Casey Abrhams - Baby It's Cold Outside	4
74	64	Best Coast - Our Deal	16
75	40	Michael Buble - It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas	4
76	80	Rihanna - We Found Love	8
77	81	Adele - Set Fire To the Rain	25
78	91	Of Monsters and Men - Little Talks	2
79	65	The Big Troubles - Bite Yr Tongue	20
80	50	Michael Buble - All I Want For Christmas Is You	5
81	73	Rachel Allyn - Lovely Lily	19
82	90	Mastodon - Curl of the Burl	3
83	76	Cage the Elephant - Aberdeen	18
84	75	Foo Fighters - These Days	12
85	88	Plan B- Love Goes Down	27
86	96	Bombay Bicycle Club - Shuffle	6
87	74	Bush - The Sound of Winter	21
88	87	Duran Duran - Leave A Light On	13
89	98	Mates of Estate - Maracas	2
90	----	Katie Herzig - Free My Mind	1
91	69	Kelly Clarkson - I'll Be Home For Christmas	2
92	79	Anna Calvi - Blackout	20
93	72	Snow Patrol - Called Out In the Dark	16
94	86	Awolnation - Not Your Fault	9
95	89	Thom Sebastian & the Hounds of Winter - Not Broken	18
96	----	Outasight - Tonight Is the Night	1
97	84	Sara Bareilles - Gonna Get Over You	12
98	95	Ladytron - White Elephant	8
99	85	Coldplay - Paradise	16
100	----	Snow Patrol - New York	1