But they say, never live in the past. Memories are nice, but making new memories are even better. And there should be corresponding new music to enjoy as well. Now mind you, the recent pop climate left much to be desire, but if you seek out some obscure music, you shall be rewarded. In the summer of 2010, my friend Brian Sniatkowski was posting new alternative music as his "song of the week". There was some (few, but some) good pop music around, plus some fantastic alternative rock. The Black Keys, a band I loved that never got airplay a few years earlier, captured my fancy with their new song "Tighten Up". That enough was the impetus to do something about it. But around the same time, we were following an aspiring county/rock singer named Rachel Allyn who we saw several times in the summer of 1990, and thought she had talent. Thus, my blog was born...it would be talking about my current favorite, plus references to my tastes of the past. Alternative rock, a favorite genre of mine since the 1980's would be the primary focus, with doses of current pop (to serve as an indication of the times, after all, an era IS defined by its popular songs), some new music by classic artists, local things, and some other genres as well (country was well-represented).
But where does the music come from? That was a good question, since the metro New York/New Jersey area was never known for cutting edge new music (well, not since the free-form days of WNEW-FM) on the commercial side of the dial. Sure there was WFUV, as well as the Albany/Manchester Vermont based WEQX to draw inspiration from. But, thanks to sites like iTunes and Amazon.com, you can actually preview a song before you actually purchase it. I was on my way.
So it's four years later, and I'm still going it (in spite of wavering a bit earlier this summer, letting things slip into hiatus of sorts). I thought I'd share my current sources of being introduced and obtaining new music:
1. Billboard
Billboard magazine has been the definitive source of music since the beginning. It's charts are considered the bible as to how a song or album did, popularity wise. Since back in the late sixties, when my Mom worked at Ampeg in Linden NJ (a company that produced musical amplifiers and instruments) , I would follow the music trade publications, knowing what was popular and wasn't. She'd bring me back copies of Record World, Cash Box and Billboard. When she lost her job in 1972, no worries...I subscribed to Record World until it folded in 1982, when I switched to Billboard. I had a subscription to that magazine until 2003 when the back issues were engulfing my closet in my apartment. In the mid and late 2000's, there was a free site, Radio & Records, another trade, which had charts for pop and all genres, which is how I got my music. But once Billboard bought it out, I lost access. Today, I have an online subscription, and once again, access to what is popular. The charts I look at the most are, in order of frequency)::
- Alternative
- Triple-A (Adult album alternative)
- Adult Top 40
- Hot 100
I will occasionally look at country, and in season, the Holiday charts.
2. WEQX
WEQX is an alternative rock radio station based in Manchester Vermont. It has had the same format since 1984. I first discovered this station in 1993 when I had a share in a ski house with friends up in Mount Snow, VT. As there were other alt-music fans in the house with me, that station was on frequently, and for the next eleven years, it became the soundtrack every winter. Most of the memories form that era came from this station. I rarely get up there these years, but their website (weqx.com) streams music, and more importantly has a playlist of current songs. I will dram from that playlist.
3. WFUV's The Alternate Side
If radio with commercials isn't your cup of tea, then check out WFUV, a college radio station based in Fordam University. It's a free-form station, and many of the DJ's were once on WNEW-FM. It's an eclectic mix of music, but one of the features of the station is "The Alternate Side", a series of program playing the best new alternative rock and Triple A-oriented music. They have a weekly top 20 list. At one time it was the twenty most played albums, but most recently it has turned into the twenty most played tracks, enabling me to highlight the current single and emphasis tracks from an artists latest album.
4. Sirius XM Satellite Radio
This is my newest source for music. I bought a new car in April, and it came with a free, four month trail of Siriux XM. There are music channels for every music lover out there, from the Big Band sound of the 1940's to the current day, and every era and genre in between. Finally, with the "Alt-Nation" and "Sirius XMU" channels, I actually have current music to listen to. In addition, Alt-Nation has a "top 18" survey, which they count down; their list is also on line. I draw from that list as well.
5. Friends' Posts
Many of my friends on Facebook have posted new music, The most frequent, of course is Brian Sniatkowski's "Song of the Week" that he continues to the present day. His tastes are much in line with mine, and many of his selections aren't on any chart or radio playlists that were described above. But several others have posted recent songs, that I have taken note of. Among my friends who have posted new songs and/or artists, have been Meg Hunsicker (she and her daughter personally know Matthew Koma, who has produced and engineered several hit songs in recent years), Elizabeth Sullivan, John Piacentini (he introduced me to Anna Calvi and Tame Impala), Gail Cacciarelli Bradley, and several others.
6. Get-togethers
Going to friend's houses, they often have music playing. Most of it, of course, is older stuff, but many involve current artists as well. Two examples of this on my currernt SNS 100 are "Take It As It Comes", by Vivian Girls, which I heard at a get-together at friend Alan Corso's back in early July, and most recently "Heartbreaker", by Alabama Shakes which came over the speakers at my wife's friend's house last weekend. You can thank the "Soundhound" app for identifying those songs. That is one of the apps you can download on your smartphone and then hold it up to a sound source and it will identify the song! Both are a few years' vintage, but I never heard them, thus I can add them to my "currents" list.
7. Television
Awards shows, variety shows, and music competition reality shows all feature artists performing their current hits. If I happen to be watching, and I see a performance, if I like the song, I will pursue it further. This would be the greatest chance of a pop or country song making my currents list.
8. Festivals and Clubs
From time to time, I will attend a music festival or check out a performance at a club or other public place. Chances are there will be a live performance taking place, and is a good way to discover some new, obscure talent that really should be noticed. Beginning with Rachel Allyn who has gone from playing bars around Lake Hopatcong to venues on the Jersey Shore, Atlantic City and yes, even opening for big name country acts, and onwards to other discovered artists like Shannon Marsyada, E'lissa Jones, Mac Talla Mor, and most recently The Big Takeover, at places like the Rosendale Street Festival in New York state, Maplewoodstock (Maplewood NJ), or at the recent WNTI Stage even in Columbia NJ.
9. Friends
I am lucky to know people who perform, or have friends and relatives who do. I have been blessed to be introduced to acts like The Hounds of Winter, Leila and Omnia Hegazy, Paul Czekaj and others. And I will do my best to get the word out about them.
SPEAKING OF FESTIVALS: The weekend of August 15 through 17th marked the 45th anniversary of perhaps the most important music festival of all time, Woodstock. Taking place on a dairy farm in White Lake, in the town of Bethel, NY, close to half a million young people converged onto the grounds to participate in "three days of peace, love and music. Perhaps not coincidentally, there seemed to be slew of music festivals going on this particular weekend, as posted on Facebook my many friends. I myself, went to the WNTI Stage festival, a three day event taking place at the Lyons Club pavilion along Route 46 in Columbia, NJ. I had joined friends Stephen Harris, Rene Marinich, and Barbara and Tim Roth, on a Saturday afternoon for some great times and music. A couple bands stood out, including the jammin Rob Lanza Blues Band, and I will report on this on my next blog. Marshall Crenshew was the headliner on Saturday evening. Of course, the music is the main draw, but the food, the beer, just getting your lawn chair, plopping down and taking it all in is a big part of it as well. The festival was sponsored by college radio station WNTI (91.9 FM) out of Centenary College in Hackettstown. The festival rose from the ashes of the old Delaware Riverfest, which originated across the street.
NEW AND NOTEWORTHY: This week, I add the follow-ups to my recent #1's by the Black Keys and MS MRm "Turn Blue" and "No Trace". Neither of these songs have been charting on Alternative (I'm surprised that the Key's song hasn't yet). Both of these songs will not disappoint fans of these duos. The MS MR song had some powerful vocals by Lizzy Plapinger, a bit more dramatic than "Think of You" (and certainly their alt-rock hit "Hurricane"). A worthy choice. Meanwhile, the Black Keys again do not disappoint with "Turn Blue", the title track from their current album. This one is a bit subdued than "Fever", almost a bluesy feeling to it, an almost dreamy pop feeling to it. As stated above, it has not charted alternative as of yet, but is a fixture on the Triple-A charts, which I can understand giving it's sophisticated sound. I love both of these follow-ups and will be playing this prominently. The Keys have the debut at #55 with MS MR right behind at #69.
The Drums are known to my blog readers for their SNS top 10 hit, "Let's Go Surfing", from 2010. That song was from that year's self-titled debut album; a sophomore album late 2011's Portemento, yielded the SNS top 40 song "Money". This one, the debut off their third effort, Encyclopedia, due next month, is "Magic Mountain", which is an almost surreal feel for the Brooklyn NY duo. A lot seems to be going on there. A few listens will determine whether one will like or dislike this one.
ALSO: Some other debuts of note: The Satelliters are no strangers to my blog, their retro-garage sound has graced my playlists over the last couple of years. Except that their releases are pretty much haphazard....you hear one thing about a release but you can't find it anywhere, then months later it pops up mysteriously. The song I added "I Said Yeah Yeah Yeah" was released last year when I was desperately looking for some new material. This one, obviously a nod to The Beatles, actually combines their sixties garage sound with more contemporary styles.
Alabama Shakes is another band that I got to know very well through my blog. "I Ain't the Same" and "Hang Lose" were major songs from my blog; both featured from their 2012 set Boys & Girls. "Hold On", their most successful track, also hit my SNS 100. But , at a recent get-together, this really cool, bluesy songs comes on, and, like I did with the Vivian Girls, I used my SoundHound app to figure out who it was. That soulful voice of Brittney Howard, really comes through on this one, also from that 2012 album. Never too late to give this one a try. Love this.
Right behind the Shakes at #78 is the new one by White Fence, "Like That". Who are White Fence, you say. Interesting, because they had a #1 song on my blog in the spring of 2012, "I Am Not A Game". It was a duet with Ty Segall. They are on their own, and if you liked that song, this one has a similar feel to it. Finally, Grouplove debuts with "I'm With You", their strongest effort since "Tongue Tied".
Finally, I just want to mention that Brick+Mortar's 'Locked In A Cage", finally hits the top 20 after 28 weeks. The duo hails from Toms River, NJ, and is part of the current scene at Asbury Park. And coincidentally, it was at my "chill day" last month that this song for some reason went through my head. It has spent much of its blog chart life in the lower reaches until that revelation; it has taken off here. The song had landed in the bottom rung of Billboard's Alternative chart, but it's a hit here on my blog.
Scenes 'n' Soundwaves 100
August 10 - 17, 2014
NEW AND NOTEWORTHY: This week, I add the follow-ups to my recent #1's by the Black Keys and MS MRm "Turn Blue" and "No Trace". Neither of these songs have been charting on Alternative (I'm surprised that the Key's song hasn't yet). Both of these songs will not disappoint fans of these duos. The MS MR song had some powerful vocals by Lizzy Plapinger, a bit more dramatic than "Think of You" (and certainly their alt-rock hit "Hurricane"). A worthy choice. Meanwhile, the Black Keys again do not disappoint with "Turn Blue", the title track from their current album. This one is a bit subdued than "Fever", almost a bluesy feeling to it, an almost dreamy pop feeling to it. As stated above, it has not charted alternative as of yet, but is a fixture on the Triple-A charts, which I can understand giving it's sophisticated sound. I love both of these follow-ups and will be playing this prominently. The Keys have the debut at #55 with MS MR right behind at #69.
The Drums are known to my blog readers for their SNS top 10 hit, "Let's Go Surfing", from 2010. That song was from that year's self-titled debut album; a sophomore album late 2011's Portemento, yielded the SNS top 40 song "Money". This one, the debut off their third effort, Encyclopedia, due next month, is "Magic Mountain", which is an almost surreal feel for the Brooklyn NY duo. A lot seems to be going on there. A few listens will determine whether one will like or dislike this one.
ALSO: Some other debuts of note: The Satelliters are no strangers to my blog, their retro-garage sound has graced my playlists over the last couple of years. Except that their releases are pretty much haphazard....you hear one thing about a release but you can't find it anywhere, then months later it pops up mysteriously. The song I added "I Said Yeah Yeah Yeah" was released last year when I was desperately looking for some new material. This one, obviously a nod to The Beatles, actually combines their sixties garage sound with more contemporary styles.
Alabama Shakes is another band that I got to know very well through my blog. "I Ain't the Same" and "Hang Lose" were major songs from my blog; both featured from their 2012 set Boys & Girls. "Hold On", their most successful track, also hit my SNS 100. But , at a recent get-together, this really cool, bluesy songs comes on, and, like I did with the Vivian Girls, I used my SoundHound app to figure out who it was. That soulful voice of Brittney Howard, really comes through on this one, also from that 2012 album. Never too late to give this one a try. Love this.
Right behind the Shakes at #78 is the new one by White Fence, "Like That". Who are White Fence, you say. Interesting, because they had a #1 song on my blog in the spring of 2012, "I Am Not A Game". It was a duet with Ty Segall. They are on their own, and if you liked that song, this one has a similar feel to it. Finally, Grouplove debuts with "I'm With You", their strongest effort since "Tongue Tied".
Finally, I just want to mention that Brick+Mortar's 'Locked In A Cage", finally hits the top 20 after 28 weeks. The duo hails from Toms River, NJ, and is part of the current scene at Asbury Park. And coincidentally, it was at my "chill day" last month that this song for some reason went through my head. It has spent much of its blog chart life in the lower reaches until that revelation; it has taken off here. The song had landed in the bottom rung of Billboard's Alternative chart, but it's a hit here on my blog.
Scenes 'n' Soundwaves 100
August 10 - 17, 2014
.
This Week
|
Last Week
|
ARTIST-Title
|
Weeks on List
|
1
|
1
|
NUMBER ONE:
FOSTER THE PEOPLE
"Best Friend"
Album: Supermodel
(3 weeks at #1)
|
13
|
2
|
3
|
SomeKindaWonderful - Reverse
|
15
|
3
|
6
|
Calvin Harris - Summer
|
13
|
4
|
10
|
Fitz and the Tantrums - 6AM
|
9
|
5
|
2
|
MS MR - Think of You
|
19
|
6
|
4
|
The Hounds of Winter - Amy's World
|
19
|
7
|
8
|
Terraplane Sun - You Never Know
|
17
|
8
|
9
|
Lily Allen - Hard Out Here
|
15
|
9
|
19
|
Vivian Girls - Take It As It Comes
|
9
|
10
|
5
|
Mac DeMarco - Chamber of Reflection
|
17
|
11
|
12
|
Hozier - Take Me To Church
|
11
|
12
|
13
|
Tacocat - Bridge to Hawaii
|
11
|
13
|
16
|
Avi Buffalo - So What
|
9
|
14
|
7
|
The Black Keys - Fever
|
19
|
15
|
14
|
Jack White - Lazeretto
|
17
|
16
|
11
|
Anna Calvi - Eliza
|
13
|
17
|
15
|
Broken Bells - No Matter What You're Told
|
19
|
18
|
17
|
Lykke Li - No Rest of the Wicked
|
15
|
19
|
26
|
TOP 20 IMPACT OF THE WEEK:
BRICK + MORTAR
"Locked In A Cage"
Album: Bangs (EP)
|
28
|
20
|
23
|
Vampire Weekend - Step
|
9
|
.
21
|
22
|
Maroon 5 - Maps
|
9
|
22
|
21
|
Lana Del Rey - West Coast
|
15
|
23
|
18
|
Junior Prom - Sheila Put the Knife Down
|
19
|
24
|
28
|
Afghan Whigs - Algiers
|
21
|
25
|
30
|
The Fresh & Onlys - Animal of One
|
7
|
26
|
46
|
MOVER OF THE WEEK:
THE BIG TAKEOVER
"Children of the Rhythm"
Album: Children of the Rhythm
|
3
|
27
|
20
|
Lucius - Turn It Around
|
34
|
28
|
24
|
Arctic Monkeys - Why'd You Only Call Me When You're High
|
17
|
29
|
33
|
Rachel Allyn - Restless Times Call for Reckless Measures
|
9
|
30
|
31
|
Damien Jurado - Silver Timothy
|
19
|
31
|
27
|
Kongos - Come With Me Now
|
28
|
32
|
34
|
Jessica Lea Mayfield - I Wanna Love You
|
7
|
33
|
36
|
The Orwells - Who Needs You
|
13
|
34
|
25
|
Boyce Avenue - I'll Be the One
|
17
|
35
|
53
|
Strand of Oaks - Goshen '97
|
5
|
36
|
29
|
Foster the People - Coming of Age
|
30
|
37
|
38
|
Dirty Heads - My Sweet Summer
|
11
|
38
|
62
|
Phantogram - Black Out Days
|
3
|
39
|
39
|
Ray LaMontagna - Supernova
|
11
|
40
|
52
|
Dum Dum Girls - Rimbaud Eyes
|
5
|
41
|
40
|
Nico & Vinz - Am I Wrong
|
13
|
42
|
41
|
Lorde - Glory and Gore
|
11
|
43
|
43
|
Caveman - In the City
|
9
|
44
|
59
|
The Kooks - Around Town
|
5
|
45
|
58
|
Weird Al Yankovic - Word Crimes
|
3
|
46
|
32
|
Kings of Leon - Temple
|
36
|
47
|
56
|
Sam Roberts Band - Shapesifters
|
5
|
48
|
71
|
Train - Angel In Blue Jeans
|
3
|
49
|
42
|
Man Man - Loot My Body
|
11
|
50
|
55
|
Young the Giant - Mind Over Matter
|
5
|
51
|
81
|
The Gaslight Anthem - Get Hurt
|
3
|
52
|
45
|
Band of Skulls - Hoochie Coochie
|
17
|
53
|
54
|
OK Go - The Writing's on the Wall
|
7
|
54
|
35
|
Pharrell Williams - Happy
|
25
|
55
|
----
|
TOP DEBUT:
THE BLACK KEYS
"Turn Blue"
Album: Turn Blue
|
1
|
56
|
64
|
Jenny Lewis - Just One of the Guys
|
7
|
57
|
37
|
No - Leave the Door Wide Open
|
21
|
58
|
73
|
Royal Bangs - Better Run
|
5
|
59
|
47
|
Fitz and the Tantrums - The Walker
|
40
|
60
|
66
|
Phillip Phillips - Reging Fire
|
9
|
61
|
70
|
Spoon - Do You
|
5
|
62
|
76
|
The Shins - So Now What
|
5
|
63
|
84
|
Linkin Park - Until It's Gone
|
3
|
64
|
48
|
Kings of Leon - Wait For Me
|
15
|
65
|
80
|
Sam Smith - Stay With Me
|
9
|
66
|
75
|
Meg Myers - Desire
|
7
|
67
|
79
|
Jungle - Time
|
7
|
68
|
72
|
Idina Menzel - Let It Go
|
15
|
69
|
----
|
MS MR - No Trace
|
1
|
70
|
49
|
Chromeo - Jealous
|
19
|
71
|
78
|
Kongos - I'm Only Joking
|
7
|
72
|
----
|
The Drums - Magic Mountain
|
1
|
73
|
90
|
Better Than Ezra - Crazy Lady
|
3
|
74
|
----
|
The Satelliters - I Said Yeah Yeah Yeah
|
1
|
75
|
63
|
Bear Hands - Giants
|
25
|
76
|
65
|
The Neighbourhood - Let It Go
|
11
|
77
|
----
|
Alabama Shakes - Heartbreaker
|
1
|
78
|
----
|
White Fence - Like That
|
1
|
79
|
89
|
Horse Thief - Devil
|
5
|
80
|
----
|
The Eeries - Cool Kid
|
1
|
81
|
44
|
Phantogram - Nothing But Trouble
|
13
|
82
|
57
|
Young the Giant - It's About Time
|
37
|
83
|
87
|
Broods - Bridges
|
7
|
84
|
88
|
David Gray - Back in the World
|
5
|
85
|
61
|
Bleachers - I Wanna Get Better
|
21
|
86
|
51
|
Zedd f. Hayley Williams - Stay the Night
|
30
|
87
|
91
|
Conor Oberst - Zigzagging Towards Delight
|
3
|
88
|
92
|
ZZ Ward - Last Love Song
|
3
|
89
|
----
|
Grouplove - I'm With You
|
1
|
90
|
50
|
Young the Giant - Crystallized
|
19
|
91
|
74
|
Rachel Allyn- Triggerman
|
28
|
92
|
95
|
Milky Chance - Stolen Dance
|
7
|
93
|
60
|
Hospitality - Going Out
|
28
|
94
|
67
|
Cage the Elephant - Take It or Leave It
|
23
|
95
|
94
|
Vance Joy - Riptide
|
30
|
96
|
----
|
The Griswolds - Beware the Dog
|
1
|
97
|
98
|
Iggy Azalea - Fancy
|
5
|
98
|
99
|
Rise Against - I Don't Want to Be Here Anymore
|
3
|
99
|
85
|
Tired Pony - All Things All At Once
|
38
|
100
|
97
|
Slaptop - Sunrise
|
5
|
.
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