New Picks of the Week October 10, 2010

Did we really need another alternative rock band from Orange County, California? Well, apparently iTunes thought we did. They have made the single of the week “The Ballad Of You And I” by Melee it’s free tune of the week. And I have to say that they’ve stumbled upon something really good. There is some musical talent here. Good songwriting. Good guitar work, nice background vocal hook with some syncopation that is very cool. Cool string stabs on the second verse and some nice piano reverb all contribute to a song that I think could catch on. Plus, you gotta feel good for this band which has been releasing albums for over a decade now and had a #1 hit in Japan in 2007 with “Built To Last”.


I guess it’s alternative rock week in Rock-It! My second pick of the week comes from Arizona rock outfit Jimmy Eat World who came out with their brand new album “Invented” this week. The album debuted high on the Billboard chart and has a great single on it called “Stop”. Actually, there are a ton of good songs on the album, but I like this one best because it builds up to a high energy rock tune with good female backup vocals and a subtly soft beginning. Great pop rock workmanship doesn’t hurt either. Way to go guys!

When people ask me who my favorite pop artist of all time is, the answer is usually Phil Collins. And it is for so many reasons. Probably the number one reason though is that he is truly a musical genius. His latest album goes one step further to proving that. Here is a rock star who has dabbled in virtually every area of rock during his 40-plus year career in the business. And now he is doing a Motown cover album. It’s interesting to find out that Phil was a huge Motown fan growing up but because of the quick rise of Genesis, he never got to play in a band that covered Motown or that played in that style. Well, now he is finally getting his opportunity. Way to go Phil. You are one of my musical idols. Thanks for continuing to make great music!

Chart Highlights:

One of my past new picks of the week has reached the #1 spot on the pop chart this week. The 25-year old newcomer, Bruno Mars makes it three weeks on top of the chart this week with “Just The Way You Are”. It tops Bruno’s former chart peak of #4 when he was featured on Travie McCoy’s “Billionaire” earlier this year.

The big move in the Top 10 for the second week in a row is Far*East Movement’s “Like A G6” featuring Cataracs & Dev. The song leaps from 6-2 a week after leaping from 10-6. Also making a big move just below the Top 10 is Neon Trees up from 22-15 with “Animal”.

This is a tough fact to believe. This week the Glee Cast passes the Beatles for most Top 100 hits ever by a group in the rock era. Of course we live in a different era where the Glee Cast is able to put an average of five new songs on the chart every week at which time they quickly drop off. Don’t look for them to pass the Beatles any time soon when it comes to most Top 10 hits or #1 songs by a group. This week Glee debuts at #16 with a cover of Britney Spears‘ “Toxic” and #26 with their version of Paramore’s “The Only Exception”. Ironically, Paramore’s version is back to back with the Glee version at #25 this week. Thanks to the Glee version, the song makes a huge 57-25 move this week. It peaked earlier this year at #19.

There are two non-Glee debuts this week as well. Lil Wayne is back with a new album and a new single at #17 called “Gonorrhea” featuring Drake. And The Ready Set bows at #38 with “Love Like Woe”.

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