After a rather tumultuous last week, I am keeping it brief (well, at least that was the original intention) and a bit earlier in the week as I will be away for a few days.
Listening to the songs which have been occupying my top ten these days, and especially the top 5, I have found that music is pretty much fun to listen to again. Well, I probably shouldn't use the term "again" since they are my top songs, they must be good in the first place to get that high, right? But I am once again convinced that if you search hard enough, and not trust what you hear on the radio, you will find some great music. Sometimes you do research, but with me, increasingly, it seems that much of it just falls on your lap, like this week's Top Debut. But more on that later.
Scroll down and you'll see my latest SNS 100, which doubles as my "currents" playlist on my iTunes library as well as on my iPod. That's right, it's how I get my music, not via streaming, and not on my phone, either. It's pretty much something I've often envisioned going way back to the days of vinyl, cassettes and CD's. People may frown on mp3 files (they say that some pertinent sound is lost is the translation to digital), but the fact you can order the songs in any sequence, or let them play randomly if so desired, is perfect for me. With a Bluetooth hooked up with my iPod, as well as an iPod hooked to my car's sound system, and, with nine thousand songs on it, I can pretty much listen to anything I wish.
I've found myself, in recent days, listening and re-listening to my top five songs, and if you look below you'll see why. In fact the top ten is very competitive, with eight of the ten songs "bulleted". In case you don't know what that means, it's music industry jargon for a song that is gaining significantly on the chart. Over the years, it's meant anything from an increase in chart position, sales, amount of airplay, or in my case, a significant number of "points" I assign a song when compared with the previous week. In fact, the two songs in that upper echelon that don't have one, also gain, but not enough for a bullet.
And the reception from others to Emily MacMahon's "Only Us" has been so overwhelming that it garners another increase and maintains the top spot for a second week. But not to be outdone, England's Tinkers Lane, with "Honey Honey", keeps pace, still #2 but both songs seem to be breaking away from the rest of the pack. It's a toss up which song will hold the top spot next week, but both of them are worthy.
Jade Bird holds at the number 3 spot after garnering three weeks at #1 and gains some points back that it lost last week. It's still an awesome song which I am not yet tired of, and the song is stubborn enough to not move downward in the next few weeks. But, if it does, it will be because of six strong songs after it: David F. Porfirio's catchy yet groove-filled instrumental "That Night on Bergenline Avenue", Aaron Fraser's "Over You", Kings of Leon's "The Bandit" (still the Triple-A number one this week), Frances Forever's "Space Girl", Bryan Hansen Band's "Waiting For Tomorrow", and Surfer Blood's "Parkland (Into the Silence)". All these songs are strong, but unable to move up (or in one case, even forced down a notch), because of the competition.
In contrast, positions 11 to 20 seem like a vast wasteland with no bulleting songs. A few move up slightly, even though they're losing points. I had warned about a let down after the above mentioned songs have moved up, but now that seems to be filling in as there are worthy songs bulleting upwards below #20; in fact, two very strong debuts could conceivably enter that region next week.
 |
| Anna Lavigne, a singer-songwriter from Scotland, releases her debut solo album, Angels in Sandshoes, featuring Every Kind of Heaven which is Top Debut this week. |
And strong debuts they are. Heading the list of adds is "Every Kind of Heaven" by the Scottish-born Anna Lavigne. This past week, apparently my blog (which was shared over in the UK) caught her eye and e-mailed me inviting to check out her new, debut album Angels in Sandshoes. Well, after listening to this album, my first reaction is WOW. While her voice is unmistakably Scottish, the styles on this set reflect different styles, genres and moods. The track I am featuring is "Every Kind of Heaven" which enters at #48. It such a positive sound and outlook on life, to make a better tomorrow. It's so positive I have gotten misty-eyed after listening to it. It's a sound of promise and all of us could really use.
Some other great tracks on the album include "Dare to Dream" which has somewhat of an Americana (!) and Western texture to it, contrasting with her awesome voice; "Seashore Roses", which harkens back to sounds like "The Girl from Ipanema"...imagine yourself in the tropics with this one. "Dance the Last Goodbye" is full of ambience and has a sixties Petula Clark/ Lesley Gore vibe to it; "La demise de la bise", as the title suggests is partly sung in French. "Cigarette" has an intro that reminds me a bit of Donovan's "Atlantis"; it has a mysterious vibe to it, "I Love the Way You Move" has flashes of the rockabilly era of the late 1950's; finally, a "A Life of Her Own" is another heartful ballad, that is an excellent closer to this fantastic album.
Anna has spent many years touring and recording in the UK as part of bands such as The Young Ones, before taking a break to raise two sons, and spent some time as a tour manager and voice artist. Helping out with her immensely is Martin Stephenson, who is a veteran performer in the UK; his band Martin Stephenson and the Daintees, has been a fixture in the UK music scene since the early 1980's, and whose band's sound encompassed many of the styles that make up Anna's album. Anna met Martin five years ago and the collaboration clicked to the point where Anna decided to record again. She co-wrote many of the songs on the Daintees' 2017 album Bayswater Road. For Angels in Sandshoes, Martin produced, co-wrote and provides background vocals and provided much of the backing instrumentation here. Stephenson had also worked with Tinkers Lane with a few songs as well.
As of this writing, Angels in Sandshoes isn't available on Amazon or iTunes, but can be accessed and purchased/streamed via Bandcamp, with this link: Angels In Sandshoes | Anna Lavigne | Martin Stephenson (bandcamp.com)
FLEETING: The other high debut, like "Every Kind of Heaven" was another I wasn't expecting, although unlike Anna Lavigne, I know this band rather well. Fleet Foxes follow their top 10 blog hit (and top 3 Triple-A) "Can I Believe You" with "Sunblind". Unlike the prior song, "Sunblind" hasn't (yet) gotten airplay, so I figure I'd add it, keep it for a few weeks and let go of it. I'm not sure why I thought this, after all "Mykonos", from their eponymous 2008 debut, landed in the #3 slot on my Top 100 of 2009 list; "Grown Ocean" from their 2011 second album Helplessness Blues landed at #13 on that year's chart.
 |
| Fleet Foxes debut with "Sunblind" off their current album Shore. |
Well, after about thirty seconds, I thought my initial hunches were correct: Good song, but nothing to get excited about. Well, shortly thereafter I was proved wrong, and the longer I listened, the more awe I was with this song. The band's noted ambience started taking hold. Robin Pecknold's vocals blend in with all this but rises above, while still easy-going. and just grabs you in the heart. The chorus "I'm going out for the weekend / I'm gonna borrow a Martin or Gibson" just gets to me. When the song is finished it's like you are on such a natural high and the only way to go is down after that...talk about withdrawal symptoms! Warning: Be careful not to listen too much too soon. I'm not sure if I'll get tired of this song after a few plays, but plan on a rapid rise next week.
There are other debuts, of course. The Neighbourhood returns with "Stargazing". The Newbury Park, California band who reached my top 5 in 2017 with "24/7" has a rather dreamy, but driving and moving outing this time around, one you can really groove to. Foo Fighters follow up "Shame Shame" with "Waiting on a War", also from their latest set Medicine at Midnight. Definitely the Foo Fighters sound on this one; the song is already a hit on Triple-A (#4 there this week) which escalates towards the end. Should top the blog performance of "Shame Shame".
Next is Michigander's "Let Down" another top 10 Triple-A hit. Michigander is from....yes...Michigan (Kalamazoo) and is a project of Jason Singer, and has been around since 2014. This is definitely a good, alt-rock song, perhaps on the mainstream-ish side but soulful and busy. Definitely worthy. I also explore another from Jerseyan Phoebe Ryan's first full length set for "Fantasy". It's in the pop style she is noted for, but it rises above much of what's out there now. I can see myself grooving to this one. Finally, we have another from Nathaniel Rateliff, "Redemption". It's a song from a current movie, Palmer which stars Justin Timberlake. A slow, rather bluesy and soulful outing. One viewer of the video noted that this sounds like a cross between Chris Stapleton and Van Morrison. That seems to be an accurate assessment. It should easily top the recent "Time Stands".
CORRECTIONS AND UPDATES: Last week, I mentioned that Emily MacMahon joined Leila and Omnia Hegazy as the only ones to hit #1 on my blog as solo and part of a band. I inadvertently left out Shannon Marsyada, who grabbed the top rung back in 2014 as part of the Shannon Marsyada Trio with "What You Do To Me", and then solo with 2019's "The Message".
Several weeks back, when I added kjband's "Rock Star", I noted that it had an unknown male voice on the song (normally it's either Ken Johnston, or a female voice). Seems that Ken has finally updated his website and thus we know now that it is Peter McColloch, and the song itself was intended as a "self-portrait" of Ken, a Jersey artist. This project has released a new album Portraits which contains the song, as well as others that he previously released as stand-alone singles including his 2015 blog debut "Man of Few Words" as well as "Evergreen Girl". This week, "Rock Star" moves up a notch to #42 with a bullet.
Scenes ‘n’ Soundwaves 100 Playlist
February 28, 2021
|
This Week |
Last
Week |
ARTIST-Title |
Weeks
on List |
|
1 |
1 |
NUMBER ONE:  "Only Us" (Single Only) (2 weeks at #1) |
9 |
|
2 |
2 |
9 |
|
|
3 |
3 |
15 |
|
|
4 |
4 |
6 |
|
|
5 |
5 |
8 |
|
|
6 |
8 |
6 |
|
|
7 |
6 |
6 |
|
|
8 |
11 |
7 |
|
|
9 |
10 |
14 |
|
|
10 |
14 |
8 |
|
|
11 |
12 |
12 |
|
|
12 |
15 |
9 |
|
|
13 |
9 |
16 |
|
|
14 |
7 |
8 |
|
|
15 |
20 |
13 |
|
|
16 |
13 |
15 |
|
|
17 |
18 |
10 |
|
|
18 |
16 |
20 |
|
|
19 |
21 |
TOP 20 IMPACT OF THE WEEK:  "The Road" (Single Only) |
11 |
|
20 |
24 |
9 |
|
|
21 |
17 |
11 |
|
|
22 |
29 |
6 |
|
|
23 |
23 |
9 |
|
|
24 |
22 |
12 |
|
|
25 |
28 |
7 |
|
|
26 |
31 |
5 |
|
|
27 |
19 |
14 |
|
|
28 |
32 |
7 |
|
|
29 |
30 |
8 |
|
|
30 |
34 |
5 |
|
|
31 |
27 |
24 |
|
|
32 |
48 |
3 |
|
|
33 |
42 |
4 |
|
|
34 |
25 |
10 |
|
|
35 |
26 |
16 |
|
|
36 |
44 |
4 |
|
|
37 |
41 |
6 |
|
|
38 |
38 |
9 |
|
|
39 |
40 |
7 |
|
|
40 |
52 |
3 |
|
|
41 |
33 |
15 |
|
|
42 |
43 |
8 |
|
|
43 |
37 |
19 |
|
|
44 |
39 |
18 |
|
|
45 |
46 |
7 |
|
|
46 |
45 |
8 |
|
|
47 |
50 |
6 |
|
|
48 |
--- |
TOP DEBUT:  Album: Angels in sandshoes |
1 |
|
49 |
36 |
17 |
|
|
50 |
35 |
15 |
|
|
51 |
--- |
1 |
|
|
52 |
55 |
3 |
|
|
53 |
53 |
5 |
|
|
54 |
54 |
5 |
|
|
55 |
81 |
MOVER OF THE WEEK:  "Doomsday" Album: Nocturnal (EP) |
2 |
|
56 |
49 |
12 |
|
|
57 |
47 |
8 |
|
|
58 |
51 |
32 |
|
|
59 |
60 |
3 |
|
|
60 |
58 |
4 |
|
|
61 |
68 |
2 |
|
|
62 |
61 |
5 |
|
|
63 |
57 |
6 |
|
|
64 |
75 |
2 |
|
|
65 |
71 |
4 |
|
|
66 |
64 |
3 |
|
|
67 |
67 |
5 |
|
|
68 |
59 |
25 |
|
|
69 |
77 |
2 |
|
|
70 |
56 |
16 |
|
|
71 |
63 |
6 |
|
|
72 |
69 |
Black Coffee ft. Maxine Ashley and Sun El Musician - You Need Me |
4 |
|
73 |
79 |
3 |
|
|
74 |
82 |
2 |
|
|
75 |
87 |
2 |
|
|
76 |
62 |
9 |
|
|
77 |
70 |
6 |
|
|
78 |
66 |
26 |
|
|
79 |
83 |
2 |
|
|
80 |
90 |
2 |
|
|
81 |
91 |
2 |
|
|
82 |
--- |
1 |
|
|
83 |
--- |
1 |
|
|
84 |
86 |
4 |
|
|
85 |
--- |
1 |
|
|
86 |
--- |
1 |
|
|
87 |
89 |
3 |
|
|
88 |
--- |
1 |
|
|
89 |
65 |
18 |
|
|
90 |
88 |
5 |
|
|
91 |
78 |
19 |
|
|
92 |
95 |
41 |
|
|
93 |
74 |
15 |
|
|
94 |
72 |
18 |
|
|
95 |
73 |
13 |
|
|
96 |
84 |
16 |
|
|
97 |
76 |
21 |
|
|
98 |
80 |
17 |
|
|
99 |
85 |
16 |
|
|
100 |
92 |
8 |
|
|
Songs with the greatest increase in
favorite points over the prior week. ●
Songs with
25 or more plays on iTunes/iPods ▲ Songs with 50 or more plays.
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