Congrats to Glassnote’s Michael Starr for having a huge week with 40+ adds on GROUPLOVE's “Hello,” which easily takes Most Added honors! Other winners enjoying a strong add day include Columbia’s Lisa Sonkinwith Hozier’s “Eat Your Young,” as well as Thirty Tigers’ Mike DePippa with Smashing Pumpkins’ “Spellbinding.” Warner’s Rob Goldklang continues to close out Mike Shinoda’s “In My Head” f/Kailee Morgue, and Hollywood’s Buddy Deal is off and running with Little Image’s “Out of My Mind.”
Who is the most important band today in Modern Rock? This could make for a pretty good debate. I believe it’s Tame Impala. It’s the sum of all parts for me. Tame Impala—who I would say is only currently matched by The 1975—sells out shows all over the world and are key headliners on all music festivals.
At Alt radio, they are getting the attention that they truly deserve right now. “The Less I Know the Better,” the band’s biggest song with over a billion streams, has been enjoying a renaissance for the last six months with all the major stations playing in heavy rotation. Initially released in 2015, the track never got its due but thankfully is now. Their first Alt hit was “Elephant,” which was a Top 10 success in 2013. 2020’s The Slow Rush gave us “Lost in Yesterday,” which peaked at #2 in 2020, and “Is It True.” How did they break so wide open? I believe it was the music festivals, especially that 2016 window. The band is that good.
Right now, they are featured on Gorillaz’s latest hit, “New Gold” (Warner), which is a #1 contender. Their new song, “Wings of Time,” led by Virgin’s Marni Halpern and Marisa DiFrisco, took #1 Most Added honors this week and is headed to more greatness. I am loving every minute of this because I know bands like Tame Impala make Alternative radio better in real time.
In other Alt news, did you happen to catch Dirty Hit’s The 1975 on Saturday Night Live last week? The band played two songs from their latest release, Being Funny in a Foreign Language. The first one was their top 10 hit, “I’m In Love With You,” followed by “Oh Caroline,” which has been in rotation at KROQ Los Angeles for a couple months now. It also got added nationwide at the Audacy chain. If you want to see the band this summer, they will be one of the headliners at Lollapalooza and Outside Lands.
Speaking of Lollapalooza, they’ve got a strong lineup taking place in Chicago the weekend of August 3rd. Some of the headliners include Billie Eilish, Red Hot Chili Peppers, ODESZA, Lana Del Rey and, of course, The 1975. Other acts that I can’t wait to see include Noah Kahan, The Backseat Lovers, beabadoobee, Jean Dawson, Rosa Linnand many more. If I could convince someone to do just one thing, it would be to go to at least one music festival a year and see what’s going on. It’s that important to watch what’s happening with the people who are streaming music. I find Lolla to be a perfect place to see a lot in a short amount of time. If you go, make sure you have great shoes or sneaks because you will do a lot of walking between all the stages.
On the record front:
Many congrats to Warner’s Rob Goldklang for guiding Linkin Park’s “Lost” to their 12th #1! I don’t see many records challenging this one anytime soon and it could very well get a 10-week (or longer) run in the top spot. Nick Petropoulos and his Arista team are enjoying Beach Weather’s “Sex, Drugs, etc …” strong hold in the Top 5 some 30+ weeks after its release. Columbia’s Lisa Sonkin has Rosa Linn’s “Snap” on the Top 10 doorstop as I write this column. Depeche Mode’s new single, “Ghosts Again,” is also getting closer to the Top 10 as they start their world tour this week. I was lucky enough to see a small sample of their live show at the band’s dress rehearsal last week here in L.A. The only word that comes to mind is iconic.
Meanwhile, beabadoobee’s “the perfect pair” approaches the Top 15. Bea starts her spring tour here in the States opening some dates for one of the world’s biggest artists, Taylor Swift. Mike Shinoda’s new offering, “In My Head” f/Kailee Morgue (Warner), looks destined for Top 10 success and beyond. And one of my new favorite songs is Lovejoy’s “Call Me What You Like.” AWAL’s Dave Lombardi quickly has this buzzing band already approaching the Top 25 with a forthcoming sold-out U.S. spring tour.
Also, it was super cool to see New West’s “Those Eyes,” led by Republic’s Amanda Dobbins and Drew Hauser,pick up a Audacy chain add this week. I’ve been listening to it on KROQ for a while now and it sounds great in their mix! Hollywood’s Buddy Deal, who has been killing it with S-Curve’s The Moss, has a new record to get your attention with Little Image’s “Out of My Mind,” which is iHeart’s new On the Verge act. And over at Glassnote, Michael Starr launches Grouplove’s “Hello,” which will easily be the most added track next week.
Warner’s Rob Goldklang continues rolling with Linkin Park’s “Lost” at #1. Columbia’s Lisa Sonkin has Depeche Mode’s “Ghosts Again” and Rosa Linn’s “Snap” knocking on the Top 10 door, while Dirty Hit’s beabadoobee approaches the Top 15 with “the perfect pair.” Warner also has Mike Shinoda’s “In My Head” f/Kailee Morgue quickly hitting the Top 25, and Virgin’s Marisa DiFrisco and Marni Halpern see a nice Top 30 chart debut with Tame Impala’s “Wings of Time.”
Virgin’s Marni Halpern and Marisa DiFrisco score Most Added honors this week with Tame Impala’s “Wings of Time.” Also enjoying a great add week is New West’s “Those Eyes,” led by Republic’s Amanda Dobbins and Drew Hauser. Warner’s Rob Goldklang keeps rolling with Mike Shinoda’s “In My Head” f/Kailee Morgueand Gorillaz’s “New Gold” f/Tame Impala & Bootie Brown, while Glassnote’s Michael Starr impresses with Phoenix’s “After Midnight.”
Check out The 1975 on SNL this past week performing "Oh Caroline." This is really strong!!
MUSIC DISCOVERY
When I started doing National Alt promotion a long time ago, the concept of getting songs going was somewhat simple. The West Coast played the lead actor role. It usually got going by KROQ-Los Angeles first and then spread from Seattle to San Diego. There were a few East Coast stations that you could go to, but the West Coast was paramount. This is how Music Discovery got rolling back then.
The West Coast had the cool record stores, the indie magazines and the venues. Even growing up in Rochester, NY I was able to find a couple of places where I could buy all my 12-inch imports of my favorite bands—New Order, The Cure, Depeche Mode and The Cult. My kids didn’t get that experience. What’s better I ask? Having Spotify and or Apple Music at your fingertips or going to your local store hoping they’ve heard of a new band called the Bronski Beat? I don’t know that answer. I was always on the music discovery search. I was fascinated seeing how bands like Tears for Fears—who were so huge in the U.K. but still unknown to America audience—would break in the States. I was ahead of the curve as most of these artists were already happening elsewhere but being a DJ at a local club was amazing. I was playing all of these incredible songs months before the local radio stations. It was a major rush.
Nowadays, the roles have all been reversed. Everyone is on a level playing field. It doesn’t matter if you are in Fort Wayne, IN or L.A. The internet is the great equalizer. Everyone has the same access right away and there are no delays with information. The thing is… music discovery is very much still alive and well.
It’s wonderful to see a new generation of artists break out. If a new artist is selling thousands of tickets somewhere or streaming a million in a week, let’s make friends with it. I highly doubt we are going to see many artists break when they are 40 years old. The vast majority of the classic rock we hear today were all started by a bunch of 24-year-olds. I can’t wait to see what this generation of 24-year-olds are going to do! Here are a few on the Alt chart or about to be a part of the conversation.
Lovejoy’s “Call Me What You Like” (AWAL)
Formed in 2021, the British indie outfit Lovejoy—made up of Wilbur, Ash, Mark & Joe—already count more than 700m global streams and a colossal 30m fans across their social media. They are the renaissance of your favorite noughties band, harnessing a love affair with cheeky, satirical social commentary and overdriven, treble-topped guitars. Their storytelling and colloquial lyrics speak truthfully to their young, internet-crazed fans and helps navigate them through their complicated adolescence: from first loves to social agitation.
beabadoobee’s “the perfect pair” (Dirty Hit)
Born in the Philippines and raised in London, Beatrice Laus began recording music as beabadoobee in 2017. At just 23 years old, she has two acclaimed albums and five sonically diverse EPs under her belt, while also receiving BRIT Award and BBC Sound of nominations as well as won NME’s 2020 Radar award. She has accumulated 4.6b streams worldwide and has a 3m+ social reach. Beabadoobee has toured globally, supporting the likes of The 1975, Halsey and Clairo, and in 2022 played at festivals around the world, including Coachella, Glastonbury, Summer Sonic, Reading and Leeds and many more.
The Moss’ “Insomnia” (S-Curve/Hollywood)
This Utah-via-Hawaii group was born on the shores of Oahu in 2015, as teenage buddies Tyke James(vocals/guitar) and Addison Sharp (guitar) picked up gigs serenading diners at local taco trucks in between surf sessions. Naturally, their songs took shape in the spirit of the island, imbued with the joyfulness and breeziness of reggae culture yet cut with the introspection and communal spirit of mainland indie acts like Pinegrove and Cage the Elephant. No matter how listeners choose to interact with The Moss’s music, the band just hopes they feel something. It’s that kinetic relationship between band and audience that makes their live performances so compelling.
Letdown.’s “Crying in the Shower” (Big Loud)
Letdown. may have started as a pandemic project for Blake Coddington, but the Chicago/Nashville-based rocker is in a very different place in 2023. Having spent the last three years cultivating a fervent fanbase through a number of single releases and emerging as a striking live act—finally bringing his music into the physical lives of his online fans across several sold-out, headlining shows this past year— Coddington is rapidly growing his presence away from the Internet for the first time in Letdown.
New West’s “Those Eyes” (Republic)
Four individuals. One vision. Endless possibilities meet New West. Toronto-based “collective” is comprised of Kala Wita, Vella, Ben Key and Noel West. Their very first release, “Those Eyes,” with its lush lo-fi acoustic guitar, dreamy piano and lullaby melody, popped off on TikTok. It then translated to the streaming platforms where it has clocked in nearly 150m streams on Spotify.
Check out Beabadoobee's (Dirty Hit) "The Perfect Pair" armed with 75M Streams is now Top 20 at Alt and AAA! Bea heads back to the states next week starting her Spring tour opening for Taylor Swift in Las Vegas!
It’s all about Warner’s Rob Goldklang as Linkin Park’s “Lost” enjoys another week at #1. This will have a lengthy run at the top spot. Warner also has Gorillaz’s “New Gold” f/Tame Impala & Bootie Brown bursting into the Top 10, while Mike Shinoda’s “In My Head” f/Kailee Morgue gets an impressive Top 30 chart debut. Other moves include Dirty Hit’s beabadoobee with “the perfect pair” approaching the Top 15, while Jackie Kajzer & John DiMaio at Better Noise take Dirty Heads’ “Rescue Me” Top 25 this week and Republic’s Amanda Dobbins and Drew Hauser have a nice debut with New West’s “Those Eyes.”
