Macklemore (3) - Week of March 23, 2013

Wheeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  We’ve been waiting awhile for something like this to transpire.  It’s been hard, I know.  Before we get on to this week’s Fresh 45, here’s a list of all the songs we’re saying good-bye to this week.

• Justin Timberlake Ft. Jay-Z - Suit and Tie
• Maroon 5 - One More Night
• Skylar Grey Ft. Eminem - C'mon Let Me Ride
• Redfoo - Bring Out the Bottles
• Sam and the Womp - Bom Bom
• Justin Bieber Ft. Nicki Minaj - Beauty and a Beat

The Countdown: 

1. Macklemore Ft. Ryan Lewis - Thrift Shop (#1) [Third Week at #1]

2. Ke$ha - C'mon (#6)

3. Of Monsters and Men - Little Talks (#9)

4. Swedish House Mafia - Don't You Worry Child (#3)

5. The Script Ft. will.i.am - Hall of Fame (#7)

6. Olly Murs - Troublemaker (#5)

7. Fall Out Boy - My Songs Know What You Did In the Dark (Light 'em Up) (#14)

8. Calvin Harris Ft. Florence Welch - Sweet Nothing (#10)

9. fun. - Carry On (#18)

10. Pitbull Ft. Christina Aguilera - Feel This Moment (#12)

11. Lumineers - Ho Hey (#2)

12. Demi Lovato - Heart Attack (#17)

13. Maroon 5 - Daylight (#13)

14. Macklemore Ft. Ryan Lewis - Can't Hold Us (DEBUT)

15. Hot Chelle Rae - Hung Up (#16)

16. Bruno Mars - When I Was Your Man (#15)

17. Milan & Phoenix - Istanbul (Not Constantinople) (#19)

18. Taylor Swift - 22 (#31)

19. Passion Pit - Take a Walk (#22)

20. Pink - Try (#11)

21. Icona Pop - I Love It (#30)

22. Kelly Clarkson - Catch My Breath (#4)

23. Little Mix - Wings (#23)

24. Mumford & Sons - I Will Wait (#40)

25. Cher Lloyd - With Ur Love (#26)

26. Cee Lo Green - Only You (#21)

27. Imagine Dragons - It's Time (#20)

28. Chiddy Bang - Happening (#32)

29. Britt Nicole - Gold (#33)

30. Bruno Mars - Locked Out of Heaven (#27)

31. One Direction - Kiss You (#8)

32. MKTO - Thank You (DEBUT)

33. fun. - Some Nights (#36)

34. will.i.am Ft Britney Spears - Scream and Shout (#41)

35. Awolnation - Sail (DEBUT)

36. Ke$ha - Die Young (#35)

37. DJ Pauly D Ft. Jay Sean - Back to Love (DEBUT)

38. Emeli Sande - Next to Me (#24)

39. Taylor Swift - I Knew You Were Trouble (#44)

40. Krewella - Alive (DEBUT)

41. Maroon 5 feat. Wiz Khalifa- Payphone (#42)

42. Nelly - Hey Porsche (#28)

43. Muse - Madness (DEBUT)

44. September - Hands Up (#34)

45. Phil Phillips - Home (#38)

Biggest DDDDRRRRROOOOOPPPPP!!!!!....of the week: One Direction – Kiss You (-23)

Biggest Jump of the Week: Mumford & Sons – I Will Wait (+16)

In aggregate, it’s hard not to be impressed by this week’s new entrant class.  It would have been setting the bar too high (not to mention downright cruel) to expect Macklemore and Ryan Lewis to surpass Thrift Shop, but the beauty of producing a song that good is that you have plenty of room to regress and still wind up with quality.  Can’t Hold Us debuted all the way up at #14.  Macklemore is arguably more impressive in this song, but they don’t come close to achieving the possibly once-in-a-career hook of Thrift Shop.  I don’t have much to say about long-time Hit-Bound veteran MKTO – Thank You other than 1) I like it and 2) It’s…well…a long-time Hit-Bound veteran.

Muse – Madness makes Thank You look like it only did two tours on Hit-Bound.  I plugged for Madness to get promoted to the countdown during the week of Christmas (yikes), and its March 23^rd debut gives it possibly the longest Hit-Bound tenure ever, though I don’t keep data on that.  It’s probably no coincidence that it debuted the week of March Madness, considering that it was the theme song for this year’s tournament.  Oh, and ma-ma-ma-ma-ma-ma-ma-ma-mad-mad-mad will get in your head like crazy.  The debut was long awaited and deserved, and Spyder Harrison even acknowledged as such, inserting a “FINALLY” before his announcement of the debut. 

The last time we checked in on DJ Pauly D, he was toiling away on Hit-Bound with his hilarious-but-terrible single, Beat Dat Beat.  This time, he was a little more successful, teaming up with Jay Sean to produce the decidedly above-average Back to Love.  It helps immensely that Pauly D doesn’t have to carry the vocals this time around, but it’s not the singing that makes this song as good as it is, it’s the music behind it.  I’m pretty impressed, and frankly shocked, that our favorite Jersey Shore loudmouth created this.

I am not quite sure why I enjoy Awolnation – Sail as much as I do.  There’s very few words in the song and it’s quite odd for pop music.  There’s just something about the pacing and the way the word “Sail” is sung spoken that sucks me in.  We’ll leave it at that.  Krewella (de Vil???) burst onto the scene to answer my cry for more energy on the countdown, and her song, Alive is a pretty damn good solution to that particular problem, thank you very much.

Hamblurber and Fries

- Wow, look at that Top 5!  Ke$ha – C’mon becomes the latest horse on the #2 carousel, making the Top 5 on the countdown as good as it’s ever been.

- The debut of the superior Alive renders September – Hands Up somewhat obsolete, and it looks like there was some recognition of that in this week’s voting, bouncing Hands Up down to #44.  It might not be around long.

- Call me crazy, but I don’t think we’ve seen the last of Maroon 5 – One More Night

- Maroon 5 – Payphone just hit its 11-monthiversary on the countdown this past weekend…..can it be the first song to last a full year???

- fun. – Carry On just entered the Top 10 for the first time, and knowing the general enthusiasm for fun., I don’t see it leaving anytime soon.

- Sorting out my Editor’s Picks is going to be interesting over the next few weeks….I really don’t know what to do with this infusion of good songs that really don’t notably outrank each other (though I’d argue Can’t Hold Us) is a clear notch below the other debuts.

- If anyone has any wicked sweet blurb-isms for me to incorporate into my weekly installments, please feel free to share.  You may see your idea in a future edition of the countdown review!

Editor’s Picks – Top 5 Songs

1) Muse – Madness

2) Ke$ha – C’mon

3) DJ Pauly D Ft. Jay Sean – Back to Love

4) Taylor Swift – 22

5) Demi Lovato – Heart Attack

Macklemore (2) - Week of March 16, 2013

Good.  Thrift Shop isn’t a one-and-done, unlike New Mexico.  Before we get on to this week’s Fresh 45, here’s a list of all the songs we’re saying good-bye to this week:

• Alicia Keys - Girl on Fire

1. Macklemore Ft. Ryan Lewis - Thrift Shop (#1) [Second Week at #1]

2. Lumineers - Ho Hey (#10)

3. Swedish House Mafia - Don't You Worry Child (#3)

4. Kelly Clarkson - Catch My Breath (#2)

5. Olly Murs - Troublemaker (#9)

6. Ke$ha - C'mon (#22)

7. The Script Ft. will.i.am - Hall of Fame (#8)

8. One Direction - Kiss You (#7)

9. Of Monsters and Men - Little Talks (#4)

10. Calvin Harris Ft. Florence Welch - Sweet Nothing (#19)

11. Pink - Try (#18)

12. Pitbull Ft. Christina Aguilera - Feel This Moment (#11)

13. Maroon 5 - Daylight (#6)

14. Fall Out Boy - My Songs Know What You Did In the Dark (Light 'em Up) (#16)

15. Bruno Mars - When I Was Your Man (#21)

16. Hot Chelle Rae - Hung Up (#14)

17. Demi Lovato - Heart Attack (#36)

18. fun. - Carry On (#20)

19. Milan & Phoenix - Istanbul (Not Constantinople) (#23)

20. Imagine Dragons - It's Time (#12)

21. Cee Lo Green - Only You (#13)

22. Passion Pit - Take a Walk (#32)

23. Little Mix - Wings (#29)

24. Emeli Sande - Next to Me (#30)

25. Justin Timberlake Ft. Jay-Z - Suit and Tie (#27)

26. Cher Lloyd - With Ur Love (#26)

27. Bruno Mars - Locked Out of Heaven (#35)

28. Nelly - Hey Porsche (#17)

29. Maroon 5 - One More Night (#28)

30. Icona Pop - I Love It (#37)

31. Taylor Swift - 22 (DEBUT)

32. Chiddy Bang - Happening (#25)

33. Britt Nicole - Gold (#24)

34. September - Hands Up (#31)

35. Ke$ha - Die Young (#44)

36. fun. - Some Nights (#34)

37. Skylar Grey Ft. Eminem - C'mon Let Me Ride (#15)

38. Phil Phillips - Home (#42)

39. Redfoo - Bring Out the Bottles (#39)

40. Mumford & Sons - I Will Wait (#40)

41. will.i.am Ft Britney Spears - Scream and Shout (#33)

42. Maroon 5 feat. Wiz Khalifa- Payphone (#38)

43. Sam and the Womp - Bom Bom (#43)

44. Taylor Swift - I Knew You Were Trouble (#5)

45. Justin Bieber Ft. Nicki Minaj - Beauty and a Beat (#45)

Biggest DDDDDRRRROOOPPPP!!!!!...of the week: Taylor Swift – I Knew You Were Trouble (-39)

Biggest Jump of the Week: Demi Lovato – Heart Attack (+19)

One new song this week; it’s from Taylor Swift, and it’s called 22.  “I don’t know about you, but I’m feelin’ 22” is frequently repeated in this song.  That feeling must be simply overwhelming for a 22-year old*.  Nonetheless, 22 is an enjoyable, upbeat song that has every reason to rank among the countdown’s better songs.  It’s a bit of a breath of fresh air now in these down-months for the countdown.

Revenge of the Blurbs

- I don’t know about you, but I’ve been listening to a good amount of Hits-1 this week and am very excited about the prospects for this upcoming weekend’s countdown.  There’s at least a couple winners that are locks to debut this weekend, with the prospect of more.  Things might be turning around sooner rather than later.

- Practically Weekly Ke$ha - C’mon Update: Woohoo!  Top-10 now!  I’ve felt like this one has had #1 potential since its debuted, but the countdown performance has been lacking.  Time will tell, I suppose.

- The large and sudden drop for Taylor Swift – I Knew You Were Trouble gives hope to the notion that we might not have to hear far, far more of that song than we need to.

- New to the list of “auto-change-stations” songs is Calvin Harris Ft. Florence Welch – Sweet Nothing.  I wasn’t lying when it debuted and I said that it doesn’t suck, because it most certainly doesn’t.  However, there’s next to no hook to keep me interested.  Now that it’s in the top 10, I worry that it’ll be around for awhile.

- If you haven’t heard it before, I invite you all to listen to Milan & Phoenix – Istanbul (not Constantinople) and assess the plausibility that something that sounds like that is the 19^th most popular song in the country.

- Emeli Sande – Next to Me debuted on October 20^th and just hit its high-water mark on the countdown of #24.  Talk about a true grinder.

*She’s 23 now, but was 22 when she wrote the song.

Editor’s Picks – Top 5 Songs

1) Ke$ha – C’mon

2) Macklemore Ft. Ryan Lewis – Thrift Shop

3) Taylor Swift – 22

4) Passion Pit – Take a Walk

5) Demi Lovato – Heart Attack

Macklemore - Week of March 9, 2013

Poppin’ tags, yo.  The return of premium quality to the #1 spot on the countdown has rejuvenated my interest, despite the ongoing weak playlist.  Before we get on to this week’s Fresh 45, here’s a list of all the songs we’re saying good-bye to this week.

• Neon Trees Ft. Kaskade - Lessons In Love (DTHNOBx2)
• Owl City Ft. Carly Rae Jepsen - Good Time

The Countdown:

1. Macklemore Ft. Ryan Lewis - Thrift Shop (#7) [First Week at #1]

2. Kelly Clarkson - Catch My Breath (#14)

3. Swedish House Mafia - Don't You Worry Child (#2)

4. Of Monsters and Men - Little Talks (#12)

5. Taylor Swift - I Knew You Were Trouble (#4)

6. Maroon 5 - Daylight (#1)

7. One Direction - Kiss You (#11)

8. The Script Ft. will.i.am - Hall of Fame (#3)

9. Olly Murs - Troublemaker (#5)

10. Lumineers - Ho Hey (#8)

11. Pitbull Ft. Christina Aguilera - Feel This Moment (#22)

12. Imagine Dragons - It's Time (#10)

13. Cee Lo Green - Only You (#18)

14. Hot Chelle Rae - Hung Up (#15)

15. Skylar Grey Ft. Eminem - C'mon Let Me Ride (#13)

16. Fall Out Boy - My Songs Know What You Did In the Dark (Light 'em Up) (#17)

17. Nelly - Hey Porsche (#20)

18. Pink - Try (#6)

19. Calvin Harris Ft. Florence Welch - Sweet Nothing (#16)

20. fun. - Carry On (#19)

21. Bruno Mars - When I Was Your Man (#25)

22. Ke$ha - C'mon (#9)

23. Milan & Phoenix - Istanbul (Not Constantinople) (#32)

24. Britt Nicole - Gold (#21)

25. Chiddy Bang - Happening (#30)

26. Cher Lloyd - With Ur Love (#29)

27. Justin Timberlake Ft. Jay-Z - Suit and Tie (#28)

28. Maroon 5 - One More Night (#23)

29. Little Mix - Wings (#26)

30. Emeli Sande - Next to Me (#33)

31. September - Hands Up (#34)

32. Passion Pit - Take a Walk (#31)

33. will.i.am Ft Britney Spears - Scream and Shout (#24)

34. fun. - Some Nights (#38)

35. Bruno Mars - Locked Out of Heaven (#37)

36. Demi Lovato - Heart Attack (DEBUT)

37. Icona Pop - I Love It (DEBUT)

38. Maroon 5 feat. Wiz Khalifa- Payphone (#35)

39. Redfoo - Bring Out the Bottles (#41)

40. Mumford & Sons - I Will Wait (#27)

41. Alicia Keys - Girl on Fire (#43)

42. Phil Phillips - Home (#40)

43. Sam and the Womp - Bom Bom (#39)

44. Ke$ha - Die Young (#42)

45. Justin Bieber Ft. Nicki Minaj - Beauty and a Beat (#45)

Biggest DDDDRRRROOOPPPPPPP!!!!.....of the week: Tie between Ke$ha – C’mon and Mumford & Sons – I Will Wait (-13)

Biggest Jump of the Week: Kelly Clarkson – Catch My Breath (+12)

This week, we have a debut from the theme song to the critically acclaimed* reality series Snooki & Jwowww, Icona Pop – I Love It.  That it’s the theme song for a television show in the middle of its second season should give you an idea of how “new” it is, and the lack of freshness combined with the lack of awesomeness makes this a debut that’s met with a resounding “meh”.  The other debut, Demi Lovato – Heart Attack, is far from the best that we’ve heard from Demi Lovato, so it fits right in with the rest of the recent debuts.  I give it a little bit of an extra boost though, because as pop singers go, Demi Lovato has pretty excellent range when it comes to hitting high notes, and that aspect of her signing is front and center in Heart Attack.

* shut up

Blurb Your Enthusiasm

- How about that Top 4, huh?  For all the complaining I’ve done lately about this countdown, that’s pretty awesome.

- Kelly Clarkson – Catch My Breath is the latest horse on the #2 carousel.  The turnover in that slot of the countdown lately is pretty unprecedented.

- After this week’s drop, perhaps Mumford & Sons – I Will Wait will have a short tenure, which is only desirable in the sense that that song should have debuted months ago.

- I’ll drop a plug here for a song that I’d really like to do a tour on Hit-Bound, M83 – Steve McQueen.  I thought it was really obscure until I heard it played at a breakfast place I was eating at, so maybe it’s got the pull needed to air on Hits-1, especially given that M83 has precedent in the form of Midnight City (precedent seems to be a big deal in getting Hits-1 to give new music a shot).  I’d recommend going over to the Hits-1 homepage and requesting this.  I’m afraid to do it on the Hits-1 Facebook page for fear of being informed that “that song does not count”.

- In the absence of new, impact talent, my Editor’s Picks are going to continue to be largely unchanged.  Sorry.

Editor’s Picks – Top 5 Songs

1) Ke$ha – C’mon

2) Macklemore Ft. Ryan Lewis – Thrift Shop

3) Passion Pit – Take a Walk

4) Kelly Clarkson – Catch My Breath

5) Of Monsters and Men – Little Talks

Maroon 5 - Week of March 2, 2013

Heh.  So now Daylight is #1.  I don’t think anyone saw that coming.  Before we get on to this week’s Fresh 45, here’s a list of all the songs we’re saying good-bye to this week.

• Carly Rae Jepsen - Call Me Maybe

The Countdown:

1. Maroon 5 - Daylight (#6) [First Week at #1]

2. Swedish House Mafia - Don't You Worry Child (#5)

3. The Script Ft. will.i.am - Hall of Fame (#8)

4. Taylor Swift - I Knew You Were Trouble (#1)

5. Olly Murs - Troublemaker (#14)

6. Pink - Try (#7)

7. Macklemore Ft. Ryan Lewis - Thrift Shop (#3)

8. Lumineers - Ho Hey (#12)

9. Ke$ha - C'mon (#15)

10. Imagine Dragons - It's Time (#10)

11. One Direction - Kiss You (#11)

12. Of Monsters and Men - Little Talks (#12)

13. Skylar Grey Ft. Eminem - C'mon Let Me Ride (#21)

14. Kelly Clarkson - Catch My Breath (#4)

15. Hot Chelle Rae - Hung Up (#20)

16. Calvin Harris Ft. Florence Welch - Sweet Nothing (#17)

17. Fall Out Boy - My Songs Know What You Did In the Dark (Light 'em Up) (#22)

18. Cee Lo Green - Only You (#30)

19. fun. - Carry On (#16)

20. Nelly - Hey Porsche (#13)

21. Britt Nicole - Gold (#26)

22. Pitbull Ft. Christina Aguilera - Feel This Moment (#25)

23. Maroon 5 - One More Night (#18)

24. will.i.am Ft Britney Spears - Scream and Shout (#19)

25. Bruno Mars - When I Was Your Man (#39)

26. Little Mix - Wings (#28)

27. Mumford & Sons - I Will Wait (#33)

28. Justin Timberlake Ft. Jay-Z - Suit and Tie (#23)

29. Cher Lloyd - With Ur Love (#24)

30. Chiddy Bang - Happening (#34)

31. Passion Pit - Take a Walk (#27)

32. Milan & Phoenix - Istanbul (Not Constantinople) (#40)

33. Emeli Sande - Next to Me (#35)

34. September - Hands Up (#38)

35. Maroon 5 feat. Wiz Khalifa- Payphone (#37)

36. Owl City Ft. Carly Rae Jepsen - Good Time (#45)

37. Bruno Mars - Locked Out of Heaven (#9)

38. fun. - Some Nights (#41)

39. Sam and the Womp - Bom Bom (#44)

40. Phil Phillips - Home (#29)

41. Redfoo - Bring Out the Bottles (#32)

42. Ke$ha - Die Young (#43)

43. Alicia Keys - Girl on Fire (#42)

44. Neon Trees Ft. Kaskade - Lessons In Love (RE-ENTRY)

45. Justin Bieber Ft. Nicki Minaj - Beauty and a Beat (#36)

Biggest DDDDDRRRRROOOOOPPPP!!!!!.....of the week: Bruno Mars – Locked Out of Heaven (-28)

Biggest Jump of the Week: Bruno Mars – When I Was Your Man (+14)

There’s no new stuff this week because Neon Trees Ft. Kaskade – Lessons In Love was resurrected.

Plastic Blurbgery

- As far as I can recall, this is the first time the same artist was responsible for the week’s Biggest Jump and Biggest DDDDDRRRRROOOOOPPPP!!!!!

- During at least one iteration of the weekend countdown, there was a DJ mistake in which fun. – Carry On aired at both the #16 and #19 slots, effectively deleting Calvin Harris Ft. Florence Welch – Sweet Nothing from the playlist. 

- Ke$ha – C’mon finally made its much-anticipated Top 10 debut.  Hopefully it’ll stick

- Maybe it’s just because it’s new and different, but Chiddy Bang – Happening has grown on me a little bit since we last met.

- Of Monsters and Men – Little Talks hanging out at #2 last week looks like it might have just been a lightning/bottle situation that won’t repeat itself.

- As you may have gathered, I’m superlatively disappointed by the lack of new stuff.  It’s getting tough to listen to Hits-1 with a playlist this weak.  The only silver lining continues to be that the better songs are concentrated near the top of the countdown.  I like to come into these each week at least a bit interested, but we’re regressing into late-2011 levels of blarghitude here.

Editor’s Picks – Top 5 Songs

1) Ke$ha – C’mon

2) Passion Pit – Take a Walk

3) Macklemore Ft. Ryan Lewis – Thrift Shop

4) Kelly Clarkson – Catch My Breath

5) Of Monsters and Men – Little Talks

Taylor Swift (4) - Week of February 23, 2013

One of the only things mitigating this disappointing week on the countdown is that Spyder Harrison hosted it as opposed to a guest, and it’s appreciated more than usual the week following a guest host.  Before we get on to this week’s Fresh 45, here’s a list of all the songs we’re saying good-bye to this week.

• Paper Route - You and I
• Neon Trees Ft. Kaskade - Lessons in Love
• One Direction - Live While We're Young (DTHNOBx2)
• Pitbull - Don't Stop the Party
• The Ready Set - Give Me Your Hand
• JTX - Seven Day Weekend

The Countdown:

1. Taylor Swift - I Knew You Were Trouble (#1) [Fourth Week at #1]

2. Of Monsters and Men - Little Talks (#15)

3. Macklemore Ft. Ryan Lewis - Thrift Shop (#2)

4. Kelly Clarkson - Catch My Breath (#11)

5. Swedish House Mafia - Don't You Worry Child (#4)

6. Maroon 5 - Daylight (#29)

7. Pink - Try (#13)

8. The Script Ft. will.i.am - Hall of Fame (#22)

9. Bruno Mars - Locked Out of Heaven (#6)

10. Imagine Dragons - It's Time (#9)

11. One Direction - Kiss You (#16)

12. Lumineers - Ho Hey (#3)

13. Nelly - Hey Porsche (#14)

14. Olly Murs - Troublemaker (#12)

15. Ke$ha - C'mon (#19)

16. fun. - Carry On (#26)

17. Calvin Harris Ft. Florence Welch - Sweet Nothing (#23)

18. Maroon 5 - One More Night (#5)

19. will.i.am Ft Britney Spears - Scream and Shout (#10)

20. Hot Chelle Rae - Hung Up (#20)

21. Skylar Grey Ft. Eminem - C'mon Let Me Ride (#21)

22. Fall Out Boy - My Songs Know What You Did In the Dark (Light 'em Up) (#17)

23. Justin Timberlake Ft. Jay-Z - Suit and Tie (#18)

24. Cher Lloyd - With Ur Love (#25)

25. Pitbull Ft. Christina Aguilera - Feel This Moment (DEBUT)

26. Britt Nicole - Gold (#28)

27. Passion Pit - Take a Walk (#24)

28. Little Mix - Wings (#30)

29. Phil Phillips - Home (#7)

30. Cee Lo Green - Only You (DEBUT)

31. Carly Rae Jepsen- Call Me Maybe (#45)

32. Redfoo - Bring Out the Bottles (#27)

33. Mumford & Sons - I Will Wait (DEBUT)

34. Chiddy Bang - Happening (DEBUT)

35. Emeli Sande - Next to Me (#36)

36. Justin Bieber Ft. Nicki Minaj - Beauty and a Beat (#37)

37. Maroon 5 feat. Wiz Khalifa- Payphone (#40)

38. September - Heads Up (DEBUT)

39. Bruno Mars - When I Was Your Man (#34)

40. Milan & Phoenix - Istanbul (Not Constantinople) (DEBUT)

41. fun. - Some Nights (#38)

42. Alicia Keys - Girl on Fire (#39)

43. Ke$ha - Die Young (#8)

44. Sam and the Womp - Bom Bom (#43)

45. Owl City Ft. Carly Rae Jepsen - Good Time (#32)

Biggest DDDDDDRRRROOOOOPPPPP!!!!....of the week: Ke$ha – Die Young (-35)

Biggest Jump of the Week: Maroon 5 – Daylight (+23)

Pitbull and Christina Aguilera teamed up for a new debut called Feel This Moment.  By now, I shouldn’t even have to explain to you how that turned out.  There is absolutely no excuse that Hits-1 can give for allowing Mumford & Sons – I Will Wait to debut on the countdown on February 23, 2013.  The song came out in September, was all over the place in October and November, jumped onto HitBound sometime in December I want to say, and then after sitting on HitBound for 2+ months (I think), it finally jumped onto the countdown long after it’s gone stale.  I don’t care if the song is good (it is), there’s no reason to introduce an old song that’s been played like crazy on other Sirius stations for many months as “ear poppin’ new music”.

“Hey, what the world really needs is a remake of Istanbul (Not Constantinople) by They Might Be Giants” ~ Nobody.  Milan & Phoenix did it anyway.  They Might Be Giants, whatever your feelings on the band, is a super-unique group and it’s insane for anyone to think that they could remake one of their weird songs and do it well, let alone better than they did.  Cee Lo Green is back with Only You, and it’s surprisingly not offensive in any way from an auditory perspective.  If the countdown were in better shape right now, I’d be plenty satisfied with this debut, but Only You is just going to be kind of there, more standard filler until something better comes along.

The top new entrant is September – Heads Up, which gives the countdown a much-needed breath of energy.  Long-term it’s going to be stuck in the good-not-great category, but for the time being, I’m happy it’s around.  I’ve mentioned before that I’m not a huge fan of Chiddy Bang, but I thing Happening is a workable countdown song.  I enjoy the upbeat tempo and that they employ the services of someone else’s voice to sing a high-pitched chorus, similar to Mind Your Manners (which I was also OK with).

Best Blurbs in a Supporting Role

- Hits-1 must have gotten the wake-up call that no one knows what the hell Paper Route – You and I is.  That wasn’t a very long tenure.  Decent song, though.

- The biggest news this week is probably that Of Monsters and Men – Little Talks came from kind of out of nowhere to be the latest participant in the “#2 spot carousel”.  This is sort of a silver lining for this week’s countdown, as Little Talks has been one of the best songs around for the past several months.

- Though I am very disappointed by the new entrants, at least I won’t be losing sleep over anything that was kicked off this week.

- Actually, now that I really look at it, the Top 10 is pretty solid in aggregate for a week that I’m deeming a disappointment.  I obviously have harped on my problems with #1 and #9 quite a bit, but other than those two, I’m a fan of all the other songs in the Top 10.  This doesn’t happen too often.

- Pretty concerned that Passion Pit – Take a Walk is going to stagnate and just disappear one of these weeks.  It deserves better than that, especially in this era of not-great music.

Editor’s Picks – Top 5 Songs

1) Ke$ha – C’mon

2) Passion Pit – Take a Walk

3) Macklemore Ft. Ryan Lewis – Thrift Shop

4) Kelly Clarkson – Catch My Breath

5) Of Monsters and Men – Little Talks

Taylor Swift (3) - Week of February 16, 2013

Quite possibly the most bizarre guest-host for the countdown ever this past weekend….Al Roker!  Before we get on to this week’s Fresh 45, here’s a list of all the songs we’re saying good-bye to this week.

• Flo Rida - I Cry

The Countdown: 

1. Taylor Swift - I Knew You Were Trouble (#1) [Third Week at #1]

2. Macklemore Ft. Ryan Lewis - Thrift Shop (#12)

3. Lumineers - Ho Hey (#2)

4. Swedish House Mafia - Don't You Worry Child (#8)

5. Maroon 5 - One More Night (#44)

6. Bruno Mars - Locked Out of Heaven (#33)

7. Phil Phillips - Home (#9)

8. Ke$ha - Die Young (#3)

9. Imagine Dragons - It's Time (RE-ENTRY)

10. will.i.am Ft Britney Spears - Scream and Shout (#6)

11. Kelly Clarkson - Catch My Breath (#7)

12. Olly Murs - Troublemaker (#13)

13. Pink - Try (#5)

14. Nelly - Hey Porsche (#10)

15. Of Monsters and Men - Little Talks (#11)

16. One Direction - Kiss You (#19)

17. Fall Out Boy - My Songs Know What You Did In the Dark (Light 'em Up) (#28)

18. Justin Timberlake Ft. Jay-Z - Suit and Tie (#14)

19. Ke$ha - C'mon (#24)

20. Hot Chelle Rae - Hung Up (#30)

21. Skylar Grey Ft. Eminem - C'mon Let Me Ride (#20)

22. The Script Ft. will.i.am - Hall of Fame (#4)

23. Calvin Harris Ft. Florence Welch - Sweet Nothing (#18)

24. Passion Pit - Take a Walk (#21)

25. Cher Lloyd - With Ur Love (#37)

26. fun. - Carry On (#35)

27. Redfoo - Bring Out the Bottles (#16)

28. Britt Nicole - Gold (#27)

29. Maroon 5 - Daylight (#15)

30. Little Mix - Wings (#39)

31. Paper Route - You and I (#25)

32. Owl City Ft. Carly Rae Jepsen - Good Time (#34)

33. Neon Trees Ft. Kaskade - Lessons In Love (#23)

34. Bruno Mars – When I Was Your Man (#42)

35. One Direction - Live While We're Young (#41)

36. Emeli Sande - Next to Me (#38)

37. Justin Bieber Ft. Nicki Minaj - Beauty and a Beat (#26)

38. fun. - Some Nights (#17)

39. Alicia Keys - Girl on Fire (#29)

40. Maroon 5 feat. Wiz Khalifa- Payphone (#32)

41. Pitbull - Don't Stop The Party (#31)

42. The Ready Set - Give Me Your Hand (#43)

43. Sam and the Womp - Bom Bom (#22)

44. JTX - Seven Day Weekend (#40)

45. Carly Rae Jepsen- Call Me Maybe (#45)

Biggest DDDDRRRROOOOPPP!!!!!....of the week: Tie between fun. – Some Nights and Sam and the Womp – Bom Bom (-21)

Biggest Jump of the Week: Maroon 5 – One More Night (+39)

There isn’t any new music to discuss this week, but plenty of moving and shaking on our list of familiar 45 songs……

Blurbgistics

- The heavy airplay of Imagine Dragons – It’s Time during the week did not escape my notice following getting kicked off the countdown the previous weekend, and sure enough, it’s back for a 2nd farewell tour…..and it’s all the way up at #9.  Guess it was too soon to let go….

- The biggest story this week is the ascension of Macklemore Ft. Ryan Lewis – Thrift Shop to the #2 spot.  Unlike the rest of the random rotating cast of recent #2s, I could actually see this one having a shot at taking over the top spot from Taylor Swift.  Ummm…..now, please.

- Not all the news this week was quite so rosy.  For some reason, Bruno Mars – Locked Out of Heaven and Maroon 5 – One More Night ascended from the dregs of the countdown rankings to the Top 10.  I hope that this technical difficulty is fixed before next week’s countdown.

- Another thing that did not escape my notice is the heavy airplay of Hit-Bound songs over the course of the past week.  There may not have been anything new this week, but I’d expect some turnover a-comin’.

- I want to apologize for something that I mentioned last week, as I was mistaken.  I had declared Little Mix – Wings as the worst new entrant from last week, but it has not yet reached instant-station-change status, whereas Bruno Mars – When I Was Your Man absolutely has, further evidence that catchy-but-potentially-obnoxious should always triumph over boring.  Sorry for the egregious error, everyone.

- I have to confess my disappointment with the countdown thus far in 2013.  There have been very few game changers and a plethora of mediocrity.  I’m really hoping for some out-of-nowhere help to fix things, but it’s been difficult to keep my radio tuned to Hits-1 these past few weeks.

Editor’s Picks – Top 5 Songs

1) Ke$ha – C’mon

2) Passion Pit – Take a Walk

3) Kelly Clarkson – Catch My Breath

4) Macklemore Ft. Ryan Lewis – Thrift Shop

5) I dunno….Imagine Dragons – It’s Time???  Who gives a damn…..

Taylor Swift (2) - Week of February 9, 2013

How ‘bout them Grammys, eh?  Congratulations to fun. and Gotye for taking home some serious hardware.  Before we get on to this week’s Fresh 45, here’s a list of all the songs we’re saying good-bye to this week.

• Imagine Dragons - It's Time (DTHNOBx2)
• One Direction - Little Things
• OneRepublic - Feel Again
• Conor Maynard Ft. Ne-Yo - Turn Around
• Carly Rae Jepsen - This Kiss
• Josh Baze - She's Gold

The Countdown:

1. Taylor Swift - I Knew You Were Trouble (#1) [Second Week at #1]

2. Lumineers - Ho Hey (#4)

3. Ke$ha - Die Young (#5)

4. The Script Ft. will.i.am - Hall of Fame (#8)

5. Pink - Try (#3)

6. will.i.am Ft Britney Spears - Scream and Shout (#20)

7. Kelly Clarkson - Catch My Breath (#13)

8. Swedish House Mafia - Don't You Worry Child (#2)

9. Phil Phillips - Home (#31)

10. Nelly - Hey Porsche (#35)

11. Of Monsters and Men - Little Talks (#12)

12. Macklemore Ft. Ryan Lewis - Thrift Shop (#18)

13. Olly Murs - Troublemaker (#11)

14. Justin Timberlake Ft. Jay-Z - Suit and Tie (#9)

15. Maroon 5 - Daylight (#10)

16. Redfoo - Bring Out the Bottles (#24)

17. fun. - Some Nights (#6)

18. Calvin Harris Ft. Florence Welch - Sweet Nothing (#26)

19. One Direction - Kiss You (#21)

20. Skylar Grey Ft. Eminem - C'mon Let Me Ride (#42)

21. Passion Pit - Take a Walk (#19)

22. Sam and the Womp - Bom Bom (#30)

23. Neon Trees Ft. Kaskade - Lessons In Love (#22)

24. Ke$ha - C'mon (#17)

25. Paper Route - You and I (#36)

26. Justin Bieber Ft. Nicki Minaj - Beauty and a Beat (#14)

27. Britt Nicole - Gold (#39)

28. Fall Out Boy - My Songs Know What You Did In the Dark (Light 'em Up) (DEBUT)

29. Alicia Keys - Girl on Fire (#28)

30. Hot Chelle Rae - Hung Up (DEBUT)

31. Pitbull - Don't Stop The Party (#7)

32. Maroon 5 feat. Wiz Khalifa- Payphone (#41)

33. Bruno Mars - Locked Out of Heaven (#6)

34. Owl City Ft. Carly Rae Jepsen - Good Time (#23)

35. fun. - Carry On (DEBUT)

36. Flo Rida - I Cry (#37)

37. Cher Lloyd - With Ur Love (DEBUT)

38. Emeli Sande - Next to Me (#25)

39. Little Mix - Wings (DEBUT)

40. JTX - Seven Day Weekend (#33)

41. One Direction - Live While We're Young (#45)

42. Bruno Mars - If I Was Your Man (DEBUT)

43. The Ready Set - Give Me Your Hand (#27)

44. Maroon 5 - One More Night (#29)

45. Carly Rae Jepsen- Call Me Maybe (#32)

Biggest DDDDDRRRRROOOPPPP!!!...of the week: Pitbull – Don’t Stop the Party (-24)

Biggest Jump of the Week: Nelly – Hey Porsche (+25)

Lots of newbies composing the bottom half of this week’s countdown.  I suppose the countdown gods frowned upon my hope that we wouldn’t see another Bruno Mars song in the Top 10 for a long time, because despite the continued plummeting of Locked Out of Heaven, we got a debut from If I Was Your Man.  Basically, he traded in his usual “annoying” for “straight-up boring”, which is laughably a pretty significant upgrade.  It was a long shot, but Bruno Mars managed to come out with only the second worst debut of the week.  Uh…..bravo?

The worst debut of the week?  Little Mix – Wings.  I don’t want to bludgeon it too bad, because initially, it’s reasonably catchy.  Heck, I sort of like it right now, but I can say with 95% certainty that I’m going to be hating this song like mad in 2 weeks.  One of the Hits-1 DJs mentioned that Little Mix was going to be like the next One Direction, which is horrendously offensive to One Direction.  On this week’s edition of “Cher Lloyd makes notably strange music”, we tackle With Ur Love.  I can’t remember if his part is cut out or not in the version Hits-1 plays, but the song features Mike Posner (remember him?) with such interesting lyrics as “First date, first base / Second date, second base”.  With Ur Love doesn’t really change underlying rhythm mid-song, and rhythm is its best asset, similar to Want U Back.  It’s a pleasurable enough listen, but without any high points, it’s an also-ran in the pop music universe.

Someone needs to step in and write Hot Chelle Rae’s music for them (and if someone is already being paid to do this….good lord).  Hung Up is their newest awfully-written song.  Tonight Tonight and especially I Like It Like That had obnoxious tendencies with increased exposures.  Since Hung Up is basically no different, I imagine it’ll go the same route.  After the initial honeymoon period where it gets its due as a catchy, fresh new song, of course.  Unlike Justin Timberlake, the countdown return of ZOMG Fall Out Boy!!!!!!!! was a little bit more deserved.  Debuting with the longest name of any song in recent memory, it’s My Songs Know What You Did in the Dark (Light ‘em Up). Patrick Stump sounds like he hasn’t missed a beat since the old days.

This week’s best new entrant is fun. – Carry On.  My initial reactions to We Are Young, Some Nights, and Carry On were all pretty positive.  Unfortunately, We Are Young and Some Nights were absolutely pulverized to death by Hits-1 to the point where I automatically change the station on both.  One might say this is par for the course for pop music, but that certainly isn’t necessarily the case for the songs I most fondly look back on when they’ve run their course.  Carry On is a very uplifting song, and I’m a huge fan for the moment, but I’m afraid with this track record, any excitement I have over a fun. song is going to be tempered until they put one out that can withstand the test of excessive airplay over a 6-month span.  Or one that gets DTHNOBbed quickly.

Blurbie Dolls

- Rough exit for Imagine Dragons – It’s Time, falling off from all the way up at #15.  I hope this isn’t the end….::sniff::

- will.i.am Ft. Britney Spears – Scream and Shout is now in the Top 10, which marks the official nadir of western civilization.

- Speaking of new entrants to the Top 10.  Nelly – Hey Porsche made it there on just its second countdown week, and Phil Phillips – Home now finds itself up there.  I have a confession to make about Phil Phillips – Home.  I don’t like it.  When it first hopped onto the countdown I thought it was a good song that I didn’t fully appreciate at first glance, but then those feelings deteriorated into “it’s just kinda there”.  And songs that are “just kinda there” are not ones that you want repeated with high frequency on a pop music station.

- I’ll reiterate because I can.  Paper Route – You and I, that song that has a mere 63k hits on YouTube, is the 25^th biggest song in North America according to this countdown.  I don’t forsee “wutchuwants” becoming an official measuring stick utilized by Billboard anytime soon.

Editors Picks – Top 5 Songs

1) Ke$ha – C’mon

2) Passion Pit – Take a Walk

3) Kelly Clarkson – Catch My Breath

4) Macklemore Ft. Ryan Lewis – Thrift Shop

5) fun. – Carry On