SINGIN' THE BLUES: Blues can mean many things, even many genres to people. There of course are the straight, hardcore blues, as delivered by the greats like Muddy Waters, Robert Johnson, and John Lee Hooker, just to name three. Then there is "Rhythm & Blues", or R&B, adding some pop, soul and uptempo rhythmic flair to the proceedings; that genre has been, and still is, one of the dominant ones of pop culture over the past sixty-plus years, and was a very important influence in the development of rock 'n' roll.
And then there's blues-rock, which in rock circles are referred to as Blues but we know what it means. Extended jams, slow downtempo portions, improvisation. Many of the classic rock bands did it: The Allman Brothers Band, Santana, Led Zeppelin, just to name three were proficient. But it never went away after that coming-of-age period in rock. Later on we had Stevie Ray Vaughan, Jeff Healey and others keeping it alive.
Now, you may thing, blues, along with its parent, rock, has gone away. But like rock, it hasn't...it just stepped underground. A look at my top 20 this week and I think you'll agree with me that its alive and well.
Just start with my current favorite song, "Weight of Love", by the Black Keys, now in its fourth week atop of my SNS 100. A long song with several mood shifts, laid back at times but excellent guitar work. I listen to this song and I feel like up somewhere in the mountains, camping or doing something outdoors. I am still not tired of this song and I can easily include it along some classic jams like "Whipping Post", "Samba Pa Ti" and "Cold Shot".
Holding at #2 is '"What Kind of Man" by Florence + the Machine. While not really a pure blues-rock outing, Florence Welch sings with much emotion is a setting that is more rock than blues but I think you can get where I am coming from.
Jumping from #9 to #5 is "Don't Wanna Fight" by Alabama Shakes. Now THAT is a blues song, and although it doesn't compare to some of their other songs (most notably, "Heartbreaker" from their last set, or "Gimme All Your Love" which won't be available until the new album Sound & Color comes out on April 21) as this is a bit more rhythmic, but c'mon, this band is almost single-handedly carrying on the blues torch. Brittany Howard has that voice about here that harkens back to Janis Joplin, but is unique in her own way. One just needs to see her perform (as she did recently on Saturday Night Live or David Letterman) to be convinced of that.
Flying into the top 20 this week is "Dust" by Omnia Hegazy. While Omnia's voice is understated compared to Howard's, this is blues-rock all the way. The guitar work just supplements the mood and texture of this piece; even the chugging mid-tempo halfway through in the blues vein. I really hope the Staten Island native catches on; as I mentioned a couple weeks back, whether you call it blues or rock, this is a real gem.
Finally, at #16 is Hozier's "Angel of Small Death and the Codiene Scene". After hearing "Take Me To Church", his massive hit, many times, one tends to think of him as a pop artist, in spite of his brooding stance in that song and its presence on the top of the Rock chart for months. And although the new one isn't the new single, rock stations picked this as the follow-up. One can just listen to the guitars and vocals at the start of this one to know that this qualifies. It has its rocking moments, followed by quiet, introspective interludes. And yes, it qualifies as blues rock.
And just outside the top 20 lies Corinne Bailey Rae's cover of Paul McCartney's "Bluebird". You can make a case for a blues aspect of her singing as well, although one can be made for jazz as well. The blues will never go away.
TENNIS, ANYONE: I had trouble adding some new stuff that I like this week. As I am still on a several-week backlog, some songs which probably dropped off everyone's radar. After listening to some of them, I wasn't really turned on too much. Some I had to, as they were popular in rock circles (Robert Delong's "Long Way Down", and "Hollow Moon" by Awolnation, for example), some because they were bands that I've loved in the past ("Coming For You" by the Offspring) and some by bands recently acquainted with via this blog "California Nights" by Best Coast.
Then I thought about artists that had big "hits" on my blog a few years ago and that I hadn't heard from since. Often, I had to seek these bands out in the first place, without being on any radio station playlist, or those that had one song and disappeared. I was running down my year-end list for 2012, since, you would think that bands would be releasing follow-ups by now. So I checked out Wild Belle, Veronica Falls and Grizzly Bear. Nope, no new releases. How about The Rapture, the New York band that put out a great album, 2011's In the Grace of Your Love, and the #3 song of 2012, "How Deep Is Your Love". Well it appears they split up, going the way of Vivian Girls and Avi Buffalo. Damn!
Then I thought about the duo Tennis, which topped my blog list for two weeks in early 2012 with "Origins". It was one of the memorable songs I listened to on my friend Anthony Joseph's ski weekend at Lake Placid that winter. So I Googled this band. Seems they put out a new album in September of last year, Ritual in Repeat, as well as a single, "I'm Callin'". Though not quite as immediate in its first listen as "Origins", it is good enough to be my top debut this week at #77. It's got a cool pop hook to it. With someone of an electronic feel at times, especially with the keyboards, even hits of Madonna and Fleetwood Mac to it as well. But the trick is not to compare any one thing to it. Just listen to the song and it will give you a good-timey feel to it. As I did with the recent Raveonettes song, sometimes checking the Internet to see if a band has released any new material is the way to go. Even alt-rock stations can't play everything. Definitely recommended.
Best Coast is three-for-three is blog top 10 hits, so adding their new song, "California Nights" is a must. No, it's not the Lesley Gore hit from 1967, nor Sweet's follow-up to "Love Is Like Oxygen" eleven years later. The LA duo, which once had Ali Koehler of Vivian Girls' drum for them on their 2012 tour, will release their new set, named after the title track. It's their typical lo-fi pop-rock, not as melodic as their top 5 "Something in the Way" but has the same aura. This one would probably take a few more listens to really appreciate, but their track record here speaks for itself. The album will be released in May. The song debuts at #89.
With Mark Ronson spending a 12th week at number one on the national charts with "Uptown Funk", which features Bruno Mars (and moves up to #4, now threatening to top my chart as well), rock stations have been playing another track, "Daffodils" which features Kevin Parker on vocals. I had wondered what it sounded like. Well, fans of "Uptown Funk" as well as more rock-oriented enthusiasts will both be happy. Beginning with a funk-ish beat a la his hit, it's more of a straight-ahead rhythmic jaunt that you can really dance to. But you can listen as well although you can't help not tapping your feet. It has enough rock sensibility (a nice guitar break in the middle of the song) to please latter-day fans of that genre. To me, it is more palatable then "Funk" but then again, as I mentioned last week, you just can escape that song. But to me, this is much more infectious. Both songs are from the Uptown Special set. It comes in at #94.
Duos seem to rule the roost this week; aside from Tennis, Best Coast (and I guess you can call Ronson and Parker a duo on that song as well), In the Valley Below, arrive at #97 with "Peaches", getting alt-rock airplay. The members, one male and one female, hail from Michigan and Tennessee. The song is a mid-tempo, sometimes haunting, sometimes just straight-ahead pop-rock, worth a few spins.
MOVING UP BACKWARDS: There is a logjam and has been, in the 30's and 40's of my chart during the last few weeks, with a couple of songs staying in place, while earning a "bullet" (indicating that the song is still significantly growing on me as it moves up my chart). Two songs, "Red River" by the Launderettes, and "Man of Few Words" by Kjband, stay in place while still earning bullets. But Kelly Clarkson's "Heartbreak Song" becomes the first song to move backwards while bulleting. I added bullets a couple months back to indicate that these songs are still growing on me; without them, it appears that it had peaked. These three songs are still alive as well.
Scenes ‘n’ Soundwaves 100
March 22,
2015
| This Week | Last Week | ARTIST-Title | Weeks on List |
| 1 | 1 | NUMBER ONE:
THE BLACK KEYS
"Weight of Love"
Album: Turn Blue
(4 weeks at #1)
|
7 |
| 2 | 2 | Florence + the Machine - What Kind of Man | 6 |
| 3 | 3 | Belle and Sebastian - The Party Line | 7 |
| 4 | 6 | Mark Ronson f. Bruno Mars - Uptown Funk | 9 |
| 5 | 9 | Alabama Shakes - Don't Wanna Fight | 5 |
| 6 | 5 | White Arrows - We Can't Ever Die | 9 |
| 7 | 7 | Calvin Harris f. John Newman - Blame | 9 |
| 8 | 4 | The Raveonettes - Killer in the Streets | 11 |
| 9 | 11 | Ariana Grande - Love Me Harder | 10 |
| 10 | 8 | Foster the People - Are You What You Want To Be | 15 |
| 11 | 12 | The Kooks - Bad Habit | 8 |
| 12 | 24 | TOP 20 IMPACT OF THE WEEK:
OMNIA HEGAZY
"Dust"
(Single Only)
|
3 |
| 13 | 10 | Lucius - Hey, Doreen | 13 |
| 14 | 18 | Future Islands - Seasons (Waiting On You) | 8 |
| 15 | 19 | Waters - I Feel Everything | 12 |
| 16 | 20 | Hozier - Angel of Small Death and the Codiene Scene | 6 |
| 17 | 14 | Meghan Trainor - Lips are Movin' | 10 |
| 18 | 16 | Foxygen - Cosmic Vibrations | 10 |
| 19 | 15 | St. Paul and the Broken Bones - Call Me | 17 |
| 20 | 21 | Taylor Centers - Wild | 7 |
| 21 | 23 | Phoebe Ryan - Mine | 7 |
| 22 | 22 | Alvvays - Archie Marry Me | 10 |
| 23 | 17 | Fall Out Boy - Centuries | 9 |
| 24 | 30 | Modest Mouse - Lampshades on Fire | 7 |
| 25 | 31 | Sir Sly - You Haunt Me | 7 |
| 26 | 33 | Ellie Goulding - Love Me Like You Do | 6 |
| 27 | 45 | Corinne Bailey Rae - Bluebird | 5 |
| 28 | 28 | Launderettes - Red River | 8 |
| 29 | 46 | Jungle - Busy Earnin' | 3 |
| 30 | 13 | Cage the Elephant - Cigarette Daydreams | 15 |
| 31 | 26 | Fitz and the Tantrums - Fools Gold | 18 |
| 32 | 29 | TV on the Radio - Happy Idiot | 10 |
| 33 | 32 | Kelly Clarkson - Heartbreak Song | 6 |
| 34 | 27 | Catfish & the Bottlemen - Kathleen | 10 |
| 35 | 37 | The Big Takeover - Dolphins | 5 |
| 36 | 36 | Kjband - Man of Few Words | 9 |
| 37 | 38 | Maroon 5 - Sugar | 4 |
| 38 | 25 | Fremont - All That I Needed | 11 |
| 39 | 35 | The Big Takeover - Children of the Rhythm● | 21 |
| 40 | 40 | Interpol - My Desire | 9 |
| 41 | 42 | Stater-Kinney - Bury Our Friends | 12 |
| 42 | 39 | Hozier - Take Me To Church● | 29 |
| 43 | 48 | Fitz and the Tantrums - 6AM● | 27 |
| 44 | 51 | The Drums - I Can't Pretend | 5 |
| 45 | 34 | Cold War Kids - All This Could Be Yours | 14 |
| 46 | 41 | The Decemberists - Make You Better | 17 |
| 47 | 58 | Django Django - First Light | 4 |
| 48 | 85 | MOVER OF THE WEEK:
KONGOS
"I Want to Know"
Album: Lunatic
|
2 |
| 49 | 43 | Arctic Monkeys - R U Mine● | 26 |
| 50 | 59 | Alice Russell - Breakdown | 4 |
| 51 | 47 | The Black Keys - Gotta Get Away | 14 |
| 52 | 60 | The Mowglis - Through the Dark | 4 |
| 53 | 61 | Glass Animals - Gooey | 5 |
| 54 | 62 | Rihanna, Kanye West, Paul McCartney - FourFive Seconds | 3 |
| 55 | 55 | Yelawolf- Till It's Gone | 9 |
| 56 | 57 | Lana Del Rey - Shades of Cool | 15 |
| 57 | 50 | The Fresh & Onlys - Animal of One | 25 |
| 58 | 49 | Vivian Girls - Take It As It Comes● | 27 |
| 59 | 44 | Wizards of Winter - Gales of December | 13 |
| 60 | 54 | The Orwells - The Righteous One | 14 |
| 61 | 67 | Madonna - Living For Love | 3 |
| 62 | 79 | Avi Buffalo - Think It's Gonna Happen Again | 2 |
| 63 | 68 | Death Cab for Cutie - Black Sun | 4 |
| 64 | 66 | Jungle - Time | 25 |
| 65 | 52 | Meghan Trainor - All About that Bass | 18 |
| 66 | 65 | Deers - Bamboo | 9 |
| 67 | 75 | The Wombats - Greek Tragedy | 4 |
| 68 | 77 | The Griswolds - If You Wanna Stay | 4 |
| 69 | 71 | Ed Sheeran - Think Out Loud | 5 |
| 70 | 83 | George Ezra - Budapest | 7 |
| 71 | 56 | Taylor Swift - Shake It Off | 16 |
| 72 | 76 | Blondfire - Waves | 6 |
| 73 | 82 | Zella Day - Hypnotic | 3 |
| 74 | 53 | Colony House - Silhouettes | 17 |
| 75 | 74 | Shakey Graves - Dearly Departed | 12 |
| 76 | 69 | Yast - Heart of Steel | 16 |
| 77 | --- | TOP DEBUT:
TENNIS
"I'm Callin'"
Album: Ritual In Repeat
|
1 |
| 78 | 81 | SomeKindaWonderful - Reverse● | 33 |
| 79 | 88 | Locksley - Let It Ride | 2 |
| 80 | 70 | Brick + Mortar - Hollow Tune | 8 |
| 81 | 92 | Courtney Barnett - Pedestrian At Best | 2 |
| 82 | 73 | Maroon 5 - Animals | 14 |
| 83 | 64 | Foxygen - How Can You Really? | 18 |
| 84 | 84 | My Goodness - Cold Feel Killer | 5 |
| 85 | 91 | Vance Joy - Mess Is Mine | 3 |
| 86 | 63 | Kendrick Lamarr - I | 11 |
| 87 | 95 | Christina Perri - The Words | 2 |
| 88 | 96 | The New Basement Tapes - Kansas City | 3 |
| 89 | --- | Best Coast - California Nights | 1 |
| 90 | 72 | SomeKindaWonderful - California Love | 15 |
| 91 | 80 | Sam Smith - I'm Not the Only One | 9 |
| 92 | 87 | U2 - Every Breaking Wave | 4 |
| 93 | 94 | Matt & Kim - Get It | 3 |
| 94 | --- | Mark Ronson f. Kevin Parker - Daffodils | 1 |
| 95 | 99 | Houndmouth - Sedona | 2 |
| 96 | 100 | Walk the Moon - Shut Up & Dance | 2 |
| 97 | --- | In the Valley Below - Peaches | 1 |
| 98 | 78 | Christina Perri - Burning Gold | 11 |
| 99 | 89 | Taylor Swift - Blank Space | 7 |
| 100 | 93 | Milky Chance - Flash Junk Mind | 5 |
Tremors:
| 101 | 98 | Linus Young - Fun In the Sun |
| 102 | Offspring - Coming For You | |
| 103 | 101 | Harts - Red & Blue |
| 104 | 102 | Bush - Man on the Run |
| 105 | Awolnation - Hollow Moon | |
| 106 | Robert LeLong - Long Way Down |
|
|
Songs
with the greatest increase in favorite points over the prior week.
● Songs
with 25 or more plays on my iPod.
▲ Songs with 50 or more plays on my iPod.
