MIND YOUR MANNERS: The arrival of a new Pearl Jam single is always an event, especially after the band scored three hit songs on their last CD Backspacer, which they self-released. Dennis Blair is holding the reins this time, with “Mind Your Manners” commandeering the #1 Most Added spot, and already Top 20 after a few days of airplay. If you wanted to see the band this Friday in Chicago at Wrigley Field, you’d be s.o.l, since every available seat in the 42,000 capacity stadium is gone, not to mention being the fastest-selling concert in the venue’s history. To my ears, the new single sounds like a cross between Motorhead and X, both estimable influences, I might add. Playing new music from Pearl Jam is irrefutable. Their career longevity and the exponential growth of the band’s touring business reflects well on the Modern Rock format. Regardless of which way the musical pendulum swings at any given moment, Pearl Jam remains a consistent and meaningful favorite for your audience…. Like celebrity deaths, big records tend to show up in groups of three. The new Franz Ferdinand single “Right Action” arrived two weeks ago on Domino Records, and it’s already Top 30 and being hailed as the band’s BEST SONG since “Take Me Out.” “Right Action” is up-tempo, boisterous, exuberant, and sounds DISTINCTLY like Franz Ferdinand. The band is taping Live at Letterman next week, with Conan and radio promo to follow in LA at the end of the month. If you need the single, contact me or call Kris Gillespie at Domino. The third and possibly most-anticipated song of the summer will have arrived by the time you read this: Kings of Leon’s “Supersoaker,” which both Ted and I can attest is a one-listen SMASH (even if we asked Bill Burrs to play it for us four times in a row). There isn’t a station that won’t play this song…. It was announced that the new Arcade Fire album is coming out on Merge on October 29. More will be revealed soon (if you could see my face, I’m grinning like a lunatic)…. What is the one aspect of your job that is most important to you? I would expect that “keeping it” is the first-and-foremost answer. Ok, so what are the priorities after? Money? Title? Ego? For me, I want to have a hand in breaking bands, and radio is still the BEST way to reach a wider audience. I’m aware that I have no discernible skills, at least none that are marketable (unless there’s a sudden need for a former college radio geek that can name nearly any tune in four notes). Didn’t think so. My most profound thoughts are swiped from the lyrics of others, most often Todd Rundgren’s. Music is the power greater than myself that has propelled me through my life and (thankfully) my career. I spent my childhood with an ear glued to the radio: WABC, WEEX, WSAN, WPLJ, WNEW, until my years programming WOBC (also known as “college,” although I’m not sure I ever attended a single class). I’ve been lucky to surround myself with like-minded peers and colleagues, who would also associate a song or a band with key events in their lives. If we aren’t passionate about what we do, there are infinitely easier and less time-consuming ways to make a buck. It also helps to be “right” on occasion, or our efforts are futile. And yes, this is where I include my requisite Tame Impala mention, since there hasn’t been a column since KROQ added “Elephant.” And now, fingers crossed, the song at least feels like a Top 10 hit. For the past two weeks, “Elephant” has placed in the Top 3 on KROQ’s Furious Five at Nine, including twice at #1 (not that I’m keeping track), and the individual station call-out across the board is propelling the song to Power rotation. So when a PD tells me that they won’t play the record for reasons BEYOND my control, because of something that happened months before I was involved, I can’t help but take it personally because it means I’m failing this band. Every station counts. Every spin counts. Every fan counts. This PD’s decision has no impact on my career, but this isn’t about me, it’s about the band, whose music clearly is having an impact at radio. I refuse to accept that this can’t be resolved… SONG TO HEAR: Hanni El Khatib’s “Family” b/w “Penny” (a double-A side single!)