Twostepcub's New Music Roundup 11/19/22...

 

 

Hey folks it's time for my weekly choices of the songs making their debut on the various singles charts in Billboard magazine as well as the British Official Charts. It's another sort of quiet week, dominated unfortunately with the execrable new Drake and 21 Savage album, but here's the nuggets I found among the rest of the pack making debuts this week.

 

"Die For You" - Joji

from the album Smithereens (2022)

Billboard Hot 100 debut: #53

 

 Japanese singer/songwriter delivers a second helping of loss from love that is haunting and beautiful and almost makes me forgive him for making the "Harlem Shake" a thing in his Filthy Frank days.

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"My Mind & Me" - Selena Gomez

from the single (2022)

Billboard Hot 100 debut: #83

Selena bares her soul in this song from her documentary expose, and while her voice is as frail as always, it works better in this somber material. My eyebrow is raised though, in the six songwriter credits on here (though Selena is one of them). 

 

"Never Gonna Not Dance Again" - Pink

from the album Trustfall (2023)

Billboard Adult Top-40 Airplay debut: #16

Billboard Adult Contemporary Airplay debut: #22

 

 After trying her best to deliver us some really good meaty material (her "Irrelevant" was brilliant), Pink needs to pay the bills, and promote her tour and album, and here we have the fluffiest of pop confections with Max Martin and Shellback adding a forklift full of Swedish cheese that emulates Justin Timberlake's "Can't Fight The Feeling" as a role model. But it's fun, she slips in the F-word, and I gotta give her one of these. I'm hopeful the album will have more thoughtful songs to balance it.

 

"Die For You" - The Weeknd

from the album Starboy (2016)

Billboard Adult Top-40 Airplay debut: #35

 

 

Yes, another "Die For You" this week - but this one is from two albums ago in his catalog that got a viral bump from the TikTok app. It's a worthy song for a revival though, as its smooth yet scary atmosphere winds through my ears.

"Million Dollar Baby" - Ava Max

from the album Diamonds & Dancefloors (2023)

Billboard Adult Top-40 Airplay debut: #40

Dance-pop singer really tries to follow the Gaga path with another taste from her upcoming sophomore effort, with even the "Ma Ma Ma Ma"'s aping "Poker Face" on the title here. Still, a fun little bop to keep the Peloton rolling.

"Did I Make You Up?" - half-alive

from the album Conditions Of A Punk (2022)

Billboard Alternative Rock Airplay debut: #40

The southern California trio is back with another bit of proof that their music video game is on point. 

"Just Before The Morning" - Local Natives

from the single (2022)

Billboard Adult Alternative Airplay (Triple-A) debut: #35

Another Cali act, this one is dreamlike in its demeanor, as they celebrate the dawn.

"Better Thangs" - Ciara featuring Summer Walker

from the single (2022)

Billboard Adult R&B Airplay debut: #28

 

 R&B veteran Ciara and current star in the house Summer Walker join up to kiss their men off over a neo-Miami Bass beat.

"10:35" - Tiesto featuring Tate McRae

from the album Drive (2023)

Billboard Dance/Electronic Songs debut: #8

Dutch DJ/producer legend continues his revival streak with another slice of Lithuanian house music featuring pop singer/dancer McRae.

"Show Me" - John Summit featuring Hannah Boleyn

from the single (2022)

Billboard Dance/Electronic Songs debut: #50

This hypnotic tribal EDM track is elevated by Hannah's bluesy voice.

"I Drink Wine" - Adele

from the album 30 (2021)

British Airplay debut: #23

It seems like everyone has forgotten about Adele's latest opus; it's a shame as this highlight deserves a wider audience.

"Body Paint" - Arctic Monkeys

from the album The Car (2022)

British Airplay debut: #40

The British band's full dive into art-rock won't be fully appreciated until years from now, but this song has the right combination of grace and emotion to capture radio listeners.

"I'm A Mess" - Avril Lavigne featuring YUNGBLUD

from the album Love Sux (2022)

British Sales debut: #28

The old and new generations of "pop-punk" get together for this tale of not being able to let go that works surprisingly well. 

And there you have it. It is a rather light week, quality wise. Any favorites? I'll be back tomorrow with my picks of the albums debuting on the charts. Ciao!