Finding the Rhythm

Anyone who follows this blog (is there enough here to follow?) will notice that I’ve not been blogging lately. It’s not for lack of desire, but as I said in my last post a month ago, I’ve been extraordinarily busy, both in my day job, as well as on the music front. Literally every spare moment is over-committed by about 2x or 3x, so if something can slip, it’s likely to.

In any case, even the chart updates have been suffering, but I did get everything current this morning. I also did a little coding recently to allow everyone to see past charts. Because the charts are housed in a database, even when I don’t post one for a certain week, you’ll find it in the list anyhow because its data is still entered either way. So while I missed the 7/18 chart posting, you can go back and see what it would have been had I expressly posted it. 

Let’s quickly go over some highlights:

• New York’s Destination X holds the #1 spot with Little Secret, which has been a favorite track of mine for a few weeks now, and one that audiences really, really like as well. With the great vocals of Lisa Molina (also New York-based, but at one point a fellow Denver resident), and a great lyrical sentiment, this track really shines.
• CAPP Records snags #2 with week with DJ Skillmaster’s Summertime. While some have referred to this as a “novelty track,” I disagree with that assessment, and so do audiences I play for. It’s absolutely true that this track is a little non-traditional, weaving-in sound bites and dubs alongside the vocal, but I think that’s what gives it its unique shine, frankly. The mainstream Jason Matthew mix is my favorite, but the edgier Dany Wild treatments (there are two of them) are great for harder-edged sets.
• Spanish producer Ercola holds #3 with Every Word, featuring the amazing and intoxicating vocals of Daniella. This one is a real crowd favorite, and I get very frequent requests to play it. Here too, a really strong lyric contributes to why this song works so well.
• Beyoncé’s little sister Solange is at #9 this week with another favorite from the filter house realm, I Decided. Catchy lyrics and great production, along with Solange Knowles’ soulful voice make this track work really well, especially given that classic disco house/filter house treatment by Freemasons (in the Freemasons mix, obviously; there are also mixes out as well).
• One anomaly of my charting approach is that requests can end-up bringing a track onto the chart that probably doesn’t otherwise belong there, witness #24, Matt Darey’s Beautiful Day. This was my #1 song of 2007, and for whatever reason, people have been requesting it again lately… Enough that it re-emerged on the chart as a new entry this week.

No other real surprises on the chart this week. We’ll see what next week brings. And I am working on some new, more conversational blog entries as time allows, so expect to see something soon. Thanks for checking-in.

Wes