And then there's the music factor. Is there time enough to listen to some new music in between all this hustle and bustle? Plus Christmas music too. You don't really get into the spirit until you've heard your favorite holiday carol or pop offering. Along with my 100+ SNS currents list on my iPod, I have about 200 songs of the season loaded up as well. Where do you possibly get some time to listen to it all? And of course, the holidays are enhanced with new music released this season. Some things that you'll remember years down the road and you'll say "hey, that's from the year I did this...." and so on.
This is week three of the holiday season, of five, as far as SNS is concerned. And there are six songs of the season on the SNS 100, all of them originals (except for Straight No Chaser's "Nutcracker"). I like the crop of songs this year. Two of them debut this week on the list, coincidentally by the two artists who had the best showing last year.
Tom Corea, who fronted the studio ensemble The Hounds of Winter for several winter and holiday albums, has released a new set with his touring band, Bad Attitude. The set is called Christmas With An Attitude, and the single is an original called "Merry Christmas Anyway", the top debut at #52. I briefly mentioned this last week, but this is an awesome record. If you're in the mood for an uptempo rocking song, this is for you. Kind of an early Eric Clapton feel to it, it's a good time song. And it doesn't sound like anything else you've heard before. A winner. The band has been around since the 1980's, and plays clubs in the Central Jersey area. Definitely check them out.
The other new holiday song is the annual single by The Killers, who hit #1 last year with "I Feel It In My Bones". This year's offering is "Christmas In L.A.", entering at #71. Unlike the prior year song, this is more in the vein of The Eagles or Jackson Browne (the cover art for this single is based on the Eagles' Hotel California set.. It's a sentimental tale of a person "trapped" in the warmth of LA and wishing they were back east. Not as immediate as their recent two songs (including 2011's "The Cowboys' Christmas Ball"), but worthy nonetheless. Worth a shot.
AMONG THE DEBUTS: This week I added "Dirty Paws" by the Iceland band Of Mountains and Men. This is another cut from their debut, the fourth single; the other three made the SNS top 50. Again, the male-female harmonies are in full evident. A bit somber, mid-tempo, it's still a great effect. You can't help not feeling good about their music. I've grown a bit tired of Eminem over the years and haven't really paid attention to him, but I've noticed his new song "The Monster", featuring Rihanna, is at #2 on the Billboard charts. The last song by the veteran rapper "Love the Way You Lie" also featured Rihanna and made my top 20 back in 2010. It may be an odd paring, but these two artists work well together. It's the backing track that drives this song and makes Eminem's rapping very palatable. The trade off between rap and singing puts a special flair to this record. I like it. Finally, Capital Cities' follow-up to their top-10-and-still-rising "Safe and Sound" is Kangaroo Court, another accessible effort from the band. A rhythmic effort for them, this danceable song is very infectious. I really don't know why I passed on this band the first time, but they have two winners. Some very good music which no doubt will come to the forefront when 2014 rolls around.
FINALLY: Barring any other tasks that need to be done, there should be two more blogs for the year. Time to think about what your favorite songs of the year are. I'll be putting together my top 100 of the year based on the lists I made this year. Also, alternative radio station WEQX in Manchester VT will be counting down their top 102.7 songs of the year. If you go on their website, you can vote for your favorite songs which will influence the station's countdown.
Scenes 'n' Soundwaves 100
December 8, 2013
|
This Week
|
Last Week
|
ARTIST-Title
|
Weeks on List
|
|
1
|
1
|
NUMBER ONE:
LORDE
"Royals"
Album: Pure Heroine
(2 weeks at #1)
|
16
|
|
2
|
3
|
Wild Belle - Backslider
|
6
|
|
3
|
2
|
Field Mouse - How Do You Know
|
18
|
|
4
|
5
|
Terraplane Sun - Get Me Golden
|
19
|
|
5
|
9
|
Fitz and the Tantrums - The Walker
|
6
|
|
6
|
4
|
Cage the Elephant - Come A Little Closer
|
17
|
|
7
|
6
|
Fitz and the Tantrums - Keeping Our Eyes Out
|
15
|
|
8
|
10
|
Capital Cities - Safe and Sound
|
18
|
|
9
|
7
|
Man Man - Head On
|
18
|
|
10
|
8
|
Golden Void - Rise to the Out of Reach
|
17
|
|
11
|
15
|
San Cisco - Fred Astaire
|
9
|
|
12
|
24
|
TOP 20 IMPACT OF THE WEEK:
CATE LE BON
"Are You With Me Now"
Album: Mug Museum
|
5
|
|
13
|
13
|
Those Darlins - Optimist
|
9
|
|
14
|
26
|
Shannon Marsyada Trio - What You Do To Me
|
5
|
|
15
|
17
|
Paul Czekaj - Wheels On Fire
|
5
|
|
16
|
16
|
Avicii - Wake Me Up
|
13
|
|
17
|
22
|
Cold War Kids - Lost That Easy
|
9
|
|
18
|
11
|
Portugal. The Man - Purple Yellow Red & Blue
|
23
|
|
19
|
18
|
The Satelliters - Where Do We Go
|
13
|
|
20
|
20
|
Florence + the Machine - Spectrum (Say My Name)
|
16
|
|
21
|
12
|
The Veils - Another Night on Earth
|
15
|
|
22
|
14
|
Wild Belle - Keep You
|
39
|
|
23
|
19
|
Zedd f. Foxes - Clarify
|
13
|
|
24
|
33
|
Haim - Forever
|
5
|
|
25
|
27
|
Taylor Centers - Alibi
|
11
|
|
26
|
21
|
Emiliana Torrini -Speed of Dark
|
7
|
|
27
|
39
|
Caveman - Shut You Down
|
3
|
|
28
|
43
|
Young the Giant - It's About Time
|
3
|
|
29
|
36
|
King Tuff - Sun Medallion
|
7
|
|
30
|
30
|
Lady Gaga - Applause
|
15
|
|
31
|
48
|
Tired Pony - All Things All At Once
|
4
|
|
32
|
31
|
Emeli Sande - My Kind of Love
|
11
|
|
33
|
25
|
Arcade Fire - Reflektor
|
13
|
|
34
|
28
|
Smith Westerns - Varsity
|
11
|
|
35
|
38
|
Ylvis - The Fox (What Does the Fox Say?)
|
4
|
|
36
|
42
|
Phosphorescent - Ride On/Right On
|
7
|
|
37
|
41
|
Eagulls - Nerve Endings
|
7
|
|
38
|
32
|
Phillip Phillips - Where We Came From
|
11
|
|
39
|
29
|
Panic! at the Disco - Miss Jackson
|
9
|
|
40
|
72
|
Kelly Clarkson - Underneath The Tree
|
3
|
|
41
|
23
|
Foals - My Number
|
22
|
|
42
|
58
|
Straight No Chaser - Nutcracker
|
3
|
|
43
|
96
|
MOVER OF THE WEEK:
PAUL CZEKAJ
"Christmas Is Forever"
(Single Only)
|
2
|
|
44
|
40
|
Coldplay - Atlas
|
9
|
|
45
|
35
|
Fitz and the Tantrums - Out of My League
|
42
|
|
46
|
50
|
Man Man - Pyramids
|
3
|
|
47
|
47
|
The Joy Formidable - Silent Treatment
|
6
|
|
48
|
46
|
Of Montreal - Fugitive Air
|
6
|
|
49
|
44
|
The Killers - Shot At the Night
|
9
|
|
50
|
49
|
Hands - The Game is Changing Us
|
13
|
|
51
|
55
|
Cut Copy - We Are Explorers
|
3
|
|
52
|
----
|
TOP DEBUT:
BAD ATTITUDE
"Merry Christmas Anyway"
Album: Christmas With An Attitude
|
1
|
|
53
|
57
|
Valerie June - You Can't Be Told
|
4
|
|
54
|
37
|
Matthew Koma - One Night
|
17
|
|
55
|
53
|
Bastille - Pompeii
|
7
|
|
56
|
56
|
Jagwar Ma - Come Save Me
|
5
|
|
57
|
34
|
Tame Impala - Elephant
|
24
|
|
58
|
66
|
Twin Forks - Cross My Mind
|
4
|
|
59
|
63
|
The Colourist - Little Games
|
5
|
|
60
|
52
|
Passenger - Let Her Go
|
20
|
|
61
|
97
|
Broken Bells - Holding On For Life
|
2
|
|
62
|
71
|
The Fray - Love Don't Die
|
4
|
|
63
|
60
|
OneRepublic - Counting Stars
|
18
|
|
64
|
67
|
Pearl Jam - Sirens
|
7
|
|
65
|
69
|
Holy Ghost - Okay
|
4
|
|
66
|
79
|
New Politics - Tonight You're Perfect
|
2
|
|
67
|
54
|
Bonnie McKee - American Girl
|
11
|
|
68
|
75
|
Alt J - Tesselate
|
3
|
|
69
|
86
|
Portugal. the Man - Modern Jesus
|
2
|
|
70
|
99
|
All Tme Low - Fool's Holiday
|
2
|
|
71
|
----
|
The Killers - Christmas in L.A.
|
1
|
|
72
|
51
|
Brent Dennen - Wild Child
|
11
|
|
73
|
62
|
Taylor Swift f. Ed Sheeran - Everything Has Changed
|
11
|
|
74
|
95
|
Lorde - Team
|
2
|
|
75
|
45
|
Robin Thicke f. T.I. & Pharrel Williams - Blurred Lines
|
20
|
|
76
|
65
|
J Roddy Wilson and the Business - Heavy Bells
|
11
|
|
77
|
74
|
The Head and the Heart - Shake
|
5
|
|
78
|
61
|
Wig Party - She Figured It Out
|
13
|
|
79
|
81
|
Imagine Dragons - Demons
|
12
|
|
80
|
85
|
Katy Perry - Unconditinally
|
2
|
|
81
|
91
|
Miley Cyrus - Wrecking Ball
|
2
|
|
82
|
59
|
Franz Ferdinand - Right Action
|
20
|
|
83
|
92
|
Kings of Leon - Temple
|
2
|
|
84
|
80
|
Plain White T's - The Giving Tree
|
4
|
|
85
|
84
|
John Mayer - Wildfire
|
4
|
|
86
|
----
|
Arctic Monkeys - Do I Wanna Know
|
1
|
|
87
|
70
|
Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros - Better Days
|
18
|
|
88
|
77
|
Sara Bareilles - Brave
|
26
|
|
89
|
88
|
Goo Goo Dolls - Come to Me
|
3
|
|
90
|
89
|
Twenty-one Pilots - House of Gold
|
3
|
|
91
|
90
|
The So So Glos - Lost Weekend
|
3
|
|
92
|
----
|
Of Monsters and Men - Dirty Paws
|
1
|
|
93
|
83
|
Leila Hegazy - Mirror Mirror
|
34
|
|
94
|
----
|
Jack Johnson - Radiate
|
1
|
|
95
|
----
|
Eminem f. Rihanna - The Monster
|
1
|
|
96
|
98
|
Daughtry - Waiting For Superman
|
2
|
|
97
|
----
|
Capital Cities - Kangaroo Court
|
1
|
|
98
|
64
|
Katy Perry - Roar
|
17
|
|
99
|
94
|
White Denim - Pretty Green
|
5
|
|
100
|
RE ENTRY
|
James Blunt - Bonfire Heart
|
2
|
TREMORS:
101. Lucius - Turn It Around
102. Mind Spiders, The Steady
103. The Airborne Toxic Event, Hell and Back
104. St. Lucia, Elevate
105. Thirty Seconds to Mars, City of Angels
106. Maroon 5, Lucky Strike
107. Pixies, Indie Cindy
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