US Chart Roundup: Phillip Phillips Has A Classy Week

Just when you thought the Top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100 couldn't get any more stagnant, positions 1 through 9 remain the same this week as they were last. This means Gotye and Kimbra's "Somebody That I Used To Know" is #1 for a seventh week, thus making it the longest-running chart-topper of the year to date. (Kimbra's debut LP Vows debuts at #14 this week on the Top 200.)

The song that dropped out of the Top 10 is Train's "Drive By", which gets bumped from #10 to #12 by the debut of American Idol winner Phillip Phillips and his coronation song "Home." This marks the first time an Idol champ has landed a winner's song in the Top 10 since David Cook hit #3 with "The Time Of My Life" in 2008. Absolutely thrilling stuff.

Elsewhere, Ellie Goulding cracks the Top 20 and moves up to #17 with "Lights," while David Guetta and Sia's "Titanium" climbs to #25.

And that, folks, is that.

The U.S. Top 10:

1. "Somebody That I Used To Know" - Gotye feat. Kimbra *7 weeks*
2. "Call Me Maybe" - Carly Rae Jepsen
3. "Payphone" - Maroon 5 feat. Wiz Khalifa
4. "We Are Young" - fun. feat. Janelle Monae
5. "Starships" - Nicki Minaj
6. "Wild Ones" - Flo Rida feat. Sia
7. "What Makes You Beautiful" - One Direction
8. "Glad you Came" - The Wanted
9. "Boyfriend" - Justin Bieber
10. "Home" - Phillip Phillips *new*

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I Wrote About Carly Rae Jepsen For CNN

Being the person who broke "Call Me Maybe" in America (Justin Bieber who?), naturally I was asked to write about Carly Rae Jepsen for CNN.

You can read all about it here.

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Florence + The Machine's "Spectrum" Video & Calvin Harris Remix

We all know Florence Welch is a bit of a drama queen, and this is no more evident than on Ceremonials track "Spectrum", which finds her wailing out "say my name" atop an insistent thumping of drums.

Adding to the over-the-topness of the song is the music video, which was co-directed by David LaChapelle and John Byrne. Here Flo shrieks and twirls in a multi-layered wig (?) with sexy ballet dancers, wears a gold disco suit and has glowing rocks shining betwixt her thighs.



Equally as delightful is the lyric video for the song, which features a remix of "Spectrum" by Calvin Harris.



Sexxxy.

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It's Scissor Sisters' "Baby Come Home" Video

I'm not the biggest Scissor Sisters fan in the world, but for the most part I've enjoyed a large part of their output over the past eight years, and have even caught them live three or four times. That said, I really liked "Only The Horses," the Calvin Harris-produced lead single off new album Magic Hour, which is out now.

I came to realize I was in the minority with my affection for the tune, however, and so now comes the band's second single off the LP, "Baby Come Home." Nothing groundbreaking here, but it'll no doubt please the fans of the Scissters' signature sound.

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Saint Etienne's New Album Out In US Today

Saint Etienne's eighth, and arguably best, album of their 21-year career, Words And Music By Saint Etienne, was released today in the US. My two-disc import copy arrived from Amazon UK in the mail.

Dare I say it, this is probably the best album of the year so far.

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Happy Birthday, Kylie Minogue!

Kylie turned 44 today. Here she is on the UK version of The Voice the other night performing new single "Timebomb". This broad was given genes from the gods.

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UK Chart Roundup: Saint Etienne Land Highest Album Debut In 14 Years

First, the UK singles: The Wanted debut at #2 with "Chasing The Sun", recorded for their self-titled  US EP, thus marking their sixth Top 10 single in the boy band's home country. Another debut that fares pretty decently (considering it was released just two days prior to the chart being published) is Kylie Minogue's "Timebomb", which enters at #31. It's her highest position on the UK chart since "Get Outta My Way" made it to #12 in 2010. Elsewhere, Kylie's pals Scissor Sisters drop from #12 to #22 with "Only The Horses."

That brings us to Saint Etienne and their new LP Words And Music By Saint Etienne, which debuts on the UK album chart at #26. That's not a spectacular position by any means, but considering the declining chart peaks of their last three offerings — Sound Of Water (2000, #33), Finisterre (2002, #55) and Tales From Turnpike House (2005, #72) — I'm sure the band will take it.

The Et's most recent album to place higher on the UK album chart was 1998's Good Humour, which reached #18.

The UK Top 10:

1. "We Are Young" - fun. feat. Janelle Monae *1 week*
2. "Chasing The Sun" - The Wanted *new*
3. "Call Me Maybe" - Carly Rae Jepsen
4. "R.I.P." - Rita Ora feat. Tinie Tempah
5. "Too Close" - Alex Clare
6. "Where Have You Been" - Rihanna
7. "Picking Up The Pieces" - Paloma Faith *new*
8. "Drive By" - Train
9. "Somebody That I Used To Know" - Gotye feat. Kimbra
10. "Young" - Tulisa

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Kylie Minogue's "Timebomb" Video Premieres, Single On Sale Worldwide

Kylie Minogue has always been best when keeping things simple, and when she just goes about doing her thing — sexy dance-pop. And when she gets it right, she makes it look effortless.

A great example: her new single "Timebomb", released to commemorate her 25th year in the music business. The video, directed by Christian Larson, is a colorful stunner that conjures up memories of both Madonna's "Ray Of Light" and Kylie's own "Come Into My World".



I absolutely love this. No fancy dance routine. No pressure to have a hit single. Just Kylie having a blast...by being Kylie.

The "Timebomb" single and video were made available worldwide today on iTunes.

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Kylie Minogue "Timebomb": Hear The Full Song

Holy f***! There's a new Kylie Minogue single called "Timebomb," and it just leaked! (Guess now we know what that ticking time bomb — duh — was for on her site this week).

The tune has been slapped up on the Australian iTunes store as a preview, but here 'tis in full:



I need to sit with this jam for a bit, but upon first listen I like it. Very robotic.

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US Chart Roundup: Carly Rae Jepsen Is Going To Do You In, Justin Bieber

With Gotye and Kimbra's "Somebody That I Used To Know" now tying fun. and Janelle Monae's run at #1 with "We Are Young" — six weeks, the longest of any single in 2012 so far — the rest of the Top 10 is pretty much locked in place.

I say pretty much because one of the only movers is Carly Rae Jepsen, and she has now crept up to #2 with "Call Me Maybe". The song is quite literally a phenomenon (I won't take all the credit), and its track to the top of the Hot 100 is no doubt irreversible at this point. ("Call Me Maybe" is currently just under American Idol winner Phillip Phillips' "Home" on the iTunes download chart.) We'll just act like that woeful Billboard Music Awards performance never happened.

So woe is Justin Bieber, who "signed" Carly Rae for US distribution. (Whatever that means — I'm so sure Bieber sat there in his office, smoking a cigar in his three-piece suit after having drawn up papers and lorded over Jepsen while she scrawled on the dotted line with a trembling wrist.) Yes, America's sweetheart (Justin, not Carly Rae) has yet to chart a single higher than #2, and even that one, "Boyfriend", only stayed there for one week.

Jepsen is now on board to open for Bieber on his upcoming North American tour, but I can see what's happening here. This is going to be one of those cases where the fresh-faced opening act quickly eclipses the big enchilada. A star is born. Bieber's voice has changed. He's old hat. They only want you when you're 17. Carly Rae will thank you, Justin, with a hug then a shove down the stairs. You are a whore, darlin'.

And with that, Carly Rae will walk away from the wrapped tour, not even looking over her shoulder, absently telling Justin to call her maybe. Then she'll have her assistant's assistant change her digits. Meanwhile, her lawyers will have just completed the work on extracting her from her contract with Bieb and his manager.

Or, then again, maybe she'll just be a one-hit wonder who's stripping in Reno within two years.

Don't stop Beliebin'.

The U.S. Top 10:

1. "Somebody That I Used To Know" - Gotye feat. Kimbra *6 weeks*
2. "Call Me Maybe" - Carly Rae Jepsen
3. "Payphone" - Maroon 5 feat. Wiz Khalifa
4. "We Are Young" - fun. feat. Janelle Monae
5. "Starships" - Nicki Minaj
6. "Wild Ones" - Flo Rida feat. Sia
7. "What Makes You Beautiful" - One Direction
8. "Glad you Came" - The Wanted
9. "Boyfriend" - Justin Bieber
10. "Drive By" - Train

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Phillip Phillips Won 'American Idol' Season 11

Excellent! I was wondering who the next person to be dropped from a label deal a year after signing was going to be.

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William Orbit Remixes Chris Brown's "Don't Wake Me Up"

Chris Brown makes me want to projectile vomit onto the wall, but William Orbit's remix of "Don't Wake Me Up" is too fantastic to not post. Just block out the whole singing part.

This is kind of what you were expecting MDNA to sound like, right?

PLAYER REMOVED BECAUSE IT WAS TOO SEXY FOR RECORD LABELS

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'X Factor' Winner Matt Cardle Dropped By Label

Remember 2010 X Factor winner Matt Cardle? Don't feel bad if you don't, because even the folks at his own label in the UK, Columbia, were apparently looking over their roster, uttered, "Who the hell is this?!?" and decided to axe him.

His X Factor winner's song "When We Collide" was the biggest-selling single of 2010, but the Gary Barlow-penned "Run For Your Life" caused people to take the title seriously — it charted at #6 then fucked right off the chart.

Says Matt: "I have parted ways with columbia records, we were heading in different directions, big news coming soon.... so excited! : ) love you all xx"

Aw. xx, BB.

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Kylie Minogue Is Going To Explode On Friday

There's a ticking time bomb (hey, that would be a great name for a song title) on Kylie Minogue's official site that's set to go off on Friday. And let's hope that when it does, it's not more of this 25th anniversary live orchestral Abbey Road shenanigans.

Best case scenario: it's the unveiling of a new single. Worst case scenario: it's something to do with that "new" Best Of Kylie Minogue hits package that has absolutely nothing new on it (out June 19).

The mind, it boggles, chyldryn.

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Shadow Dancing

I've been on a total Gibb spiral since the passing of Bee Gees' member Robin Gibb on Sunday. And it's caused me to to go back and find a new appreciation for the many wondrous jams of Andy Gibb.

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2012 Billboard Music Awards: The "Winners"

I'm not sure how many Billboard Music Awards Adele won (somewhere around 12) last night, because I stopped counting around six. Regardless, she was a no-show at the Vegas shindig. Unfortunately, LMFAO were on hand to not only perform, but to pick up the 67 awards they won.

Oh, well. Here's The Wanted doing "Chasing The Sun" and "Glad You Came." Below that is the full list of winners from the awards show.


2012 BILLBOARD MUSIC AWARD WINNERS


TOP ARTIST: Adele
TOP FEMALE ARTIST: Adele
TOP DUO OR GROUP: LMFAO
TOP MALE ARTIST: Lil Wayne
TOP NEW ARTIST: Wiz Khalifa
WOMAN OF THE YEAR: Taylor Swift
TOP HOT 100 ARTIST: Adele
HOT 100 SONG OF THE YEAR: LMFAO, “Party Rock Anthem”
TOP BILLBOARD 200 ARTIST: Adele
TOP BILLBOARD 200 ALBUM: Adele, 21
TOP DIGITAL SONGS ARTIST: Adele
SOCIAL ARTIST: Justin Bieber
SPOTLIGHT AWARD: Katy Perry
TOP STREAMING ARTIST: Rihanna
TOP STREAMING SONG (VIDEO): Nicki Minaj, “Super Bass”
TOP STREAMING SONG (AUDIO): Adele, “Rolling In The Deep”
TOP DIGITAL MEDIA ARTIST: Adele
TOP DIGITAL SONG: LMFAO, “Party Rock Anthem”
TOP RADIO SONGS ARTIST: Adele
TOP RADIO SONG: Pitbull, “Give Me Everything”
R&B ARTIST OF THE YEAR: Chris Brown
TOP R&B SONG: Kelly Rowland feat. Lil Wayne, “Motivation”
TOP R&B ALBUM: Beyonce, 4
TOP POP ARTIST: Adele
TOP POP ALBUM: Adele, 21
TOP POP SONG: LMFAO, “Party Rock Anthem”
TOP RAP ARTIST: Lil Wayne
TOP RAP SONG: LMFAO, “Party Rock Anthem”
TOP RAP ALBUM: Lil Wayne, Tha Carter IV
TOP COUNTRY ARTIST: Lady Antebellum
TOP COUNTRY ALBUM: Jason Aldean, My Kinda Party

TOP COUNTRY SONG: Jason Aldean, “Dirt Road Anthem”
TOP ROCK ARTIST: Coldplay
TOP ROCK SONG: Foster The People, “Pumped Up Kicks”
TOP ROCK ALBUM: Coldplay, Mylo Xyloto
TOP ALTERNATIVE ARTIST: Coldplay
TOP ALTERNATIVE SONG: Adele, “Rolling In The Deep”
TOP ALTERNATIVE ALBUM: Coldplay, Mylo Xyloto
TOP LATIN ARTIST: Shakira
TOP LATIN SONG: Don Omar & Lucenzo,  ”Danza Kuduro”
TOP LATIN ALBUM: Romeo Santos, Formula: Vol. 1
TOP DANCE ARTIST: Lady Gaga
TOP DANCE SONG: LMFAO, “Party Rock Anthem”
TOP DANCE ALBUM: Lady Gaga, Born This Way
TOP TOURING ACT: U2
TOP CHRISTIAN ARTIST: Casting Crowns
TOP CHRISTIAN SONG: Laura Story, “Blessings”
TOP CHRISTIAN ALBUM: Casting Crowns, Come To The Well
BILLBOARD ICON AWARD: Stevie Wonder
MILLENNIUM AWARD: Whitney Houston (accepted by Bobbi Kristina Brown)
BATTLE OF THE BANDS: Patent Pending

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Carly Rae Jepsen Butchers "Call Me Maybe" At The 2012 Billboard Music Awards

And so the world's love affair ends.

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Natasha Bedingfield's Tribute To Donna Summer Cut Short At Billboard Music Awards

One of the reasons I was most curious to watch the Billboard Music Awards last night was to see how the show would pay tribute to Donna Summer, who died last week, if at all. Turns out they did, and Natasha Bedingfield was tapped to belt out "Last Dance" at the Las Vegas shindig.

She sounded great, but producers cut to a commercial just when Natasha was getting to the good part of the song. That was definitely one of the more tacky parts of the evening. (And there were several — not the least of which were every time LMFAO won an award).

Anyway, here are 30 seconds of Natasha doing Donna:

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UK Chart Roundup: Scissor Sisters Have A So-So Week With "Only The Horses"

The quality of The Saturdays' music output pretty much nose-dived to shit levels and has stayed that way after their promising first album, so it's disheartening to see that "30 Days," the lead single off the stripper pack's upcoming fourth album, charted higher this week in the UK (#7) than new Scissor Sisters jam "Only The Horses" (#12).

Yeah, I know — the Internet has collectively torn the Calvin Harris-produced "Only The Horses" to pieces. But you can all just kiss my classy butt. This is the Scissters' best single in ages, if you ask me, and it's far better than "Fire With Fire", that horrific lead single off their last album.

Alas, the band's chart fortunes seem to have faded, as "Only The Horses" is (so far) their highest placing single in the UK since "Fire With Fire" made it to #11 in 2010. And they haven't landed a song in the Top 10 since "I Don't Feel Like Dancing" topped the chart nearly six years ago.

Over on the album chart, Keane remain at #1 with Strangeland for a second week, while Garbage's self-released Not Your Kind Of People — their first LP in seven years — debuts at #10. Meanwhile, A-ha member Morten Harket enters at #37 with his latest solo album Out Of My Hands, which contains the Pet Shop Boys composition "Listening".



"Listening" might grow on me. (To be honest, I've only listened to it once or twice since it surfaced last month.) Sounds a bit like PSBs' "I Get Along" on the chorus, no?

The UK Top 10:

1. "R.I.P." - Rita Ora feat. Tinie Tempah *2 weeks*
2. "We Are Young" - fun. feat. Janelle Monae
3. "Call Me Maybe" - Carly Rae Jepsen
4. "Too Close" - Alex Clare
5. "Young" - Tulisa
6. "Where Have You Been" - Rihanna
7. "30 Days" - The Saturdays *new*
8. "Drive By" - Train
9. "Oliver Twist" - D'banji *new*
10. "Somebody That I Used To Know" - Gotye feat. Kimbra

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My Donna Summer Youth, Way After Disco Sucked

I'll just come out and say it: Donna Summer's passing at the age of 63 yesterday has affected me way more than Whitney Houston's death in February. To be completely honest, I had no emotional investment in Whitney. Her music in the mid-to-late 1980s was so bland and saccharine to me. It just wasn't sexy.

Of course, I say this, and my introduction to Donna Summer really came with her 1989 Another Place And Time album — the one produced by Stock Aitken Waterman. The one with "This Time I Know It's For Real". Now that was a jam.

I had just turned 15 when that song was released, and, really, it opened up the floodgate for my high school friend Becky and I to delve deep into all the disco music we missed out on (by being toddlers) from the previous decade. "MacArthur Park". "Last Dance". "Hot Stuff". "On The Radio". And this was at least three years before disco became retro-cool again in the early-'90s. Disco still sucked. We were cheesy. But it was a lot of fun.

One particular memory is of Becky and I being in her green Volvo, driving through the downtown parking lot behind the public library one Friday night in early 1992, where all the metalheads hung out. We drove through the lot, circled back around and did it again repeatedly, all the while blasting Donna Summer and Bee Gees and Sylvester. We were wearing sunglasses and trashy velour suits we'd bought at the Salvation Army.

Some kids got wasted on the weekends. We chose to find those kids and give them a shock to the system with disco. Like I said, we were cheesy.

I will say one thing — discovering this clip of a 1975 performance of "Love To Love You Baby" was the highlight of yesterday. It's all about the main backup dancer dude.



So thanks making boring teenage life in the suburbs into fun times, Donna. Your music is truly timeless.

I wrote these on Idolator yesterday:
* Donna Summer Dead At 63
* Donna Summer: 7 Great Music Moments 

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US Chart Roundup: Gotye Still Rules, Train Climbs And The Wanted Sink

Gotye and Kimbra rack up a fifth straight week atop the Billboard Hot 100 with "Somebody That I Used To Know", which puts the song just behind "We Are Young" by fun. and Janelle Monae as far as the most weeks spent at #1 this year (six). And unfortunately for both of these tunes, they've now reached the point where I want to take a baseball bat and smash the radio every time each of them come on (which, really, is like every two minutes).

Meanwhile, Kelly Clarkson's "Stronger" — another one I never want to hear again in my life — finally drops out of the Top 10, making way for Train's "Drive By" to zip up to the #10 position.

Elsewhere, Calvin Harris' "Feel So Close" is stuck at #12 yet again, Adele's "Rumour Has It" is still at #16, Rihanna's "Where Have You Been" jumps 11 rungs to #18, Karmin's "Brokenhearted" cracks the Top 20 (at #20) and Ellie Goulding's "Lights" moves up to #26. A bit further down, David Guetta and Sia's "Titanium", a previous #1 single in the UK, is up to #46.

Over on the Top 200 album chart, where Carrie Underwood's Blown Away is #1 for a second week, Keane's Strangeland debuts at #17, while Nicki Minaj's Roman Reloaded drops out of the Top 20 (at #21) in its sixth week, The Wanted flop all the way down to #61 in their third week on the chart with their self-titled EP and Madonna's MDNA sinks to #71 in its seventh week.

At this point people aren't even going to realize which album Madge is touring for by the time her tour hits America.

The U.S. Top 10:

1. "Somebody That I Used To Know" - Gotye feat. Kimbra *5 weeks*
2. "Payphone" - Maroon 5 feat. Wiz Khalifa
3. "We Are Young" - fun. feat. Janelle Monae
4. "Call Me Maybe" - Carly Rae Jepsen
5. "Wild Ones" - Flo Rida feat. Sia
6. "Starships" - Nicki Minaj
7. "What Makes You Beautiful" - One Direction
8. "Glad you Came" - The Wanted
9. "Boyfriend" - Justin Bieber
10. "Drive By" - Train

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Sixpence None The Richer Are Back After A Decade With New Single "Radio"

Well, okay — Sixpence None The Richer have technically been back since 2008, when original members Leigh Nash and Matt Slocum reunited to record a new album...which was supposed to come out in 2010...and then 2011....and now it's this year.

Lost In Transition, the band's (now a duo) first LP in ten years, is due out on August 7. Here's first single "Radio":



It's no "Kiss Me", of course. But pleasant enough.

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There's A Really Good Song On Owl City's 'Shooting Star' EP Called "Take It All Away"

Owl City released a new EP called Shooting Star yesterday. I know, I know — you want to roll your eyes, right? But there's actually a pretty decent song on the four-track set that's worth a listen or two (or 12 or 17).

Here's "Take It All Away":



I like this jam. His songs always sound like summertime up in the clouds to me. But this one sounds like summertime in the clouds with a rainbow of fruit flavors shining out of a unicorn's budissy. Even though "Take It All Away" is lyrically about, you know, breaking up and all that.

Owl City's album All Things Bright And Beautiful didn't exactly get the world hooting (Get it? Owls? Hooting? HA.....) when it was released last summer, so now Adam (his real name) Young is working with people like Stargate on his new album. "Take It All Away" was co-produced by Young and KoOol Kojack. (Not sure that extra "O" was necessary, but there you go.)

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Calvin Harris & Ne-Yo's "Let's Go" Video: They Clearly Want You To Drink Pepsi...And Dance

There's really not much more to say about this vid. Lots of Pepsi product placement in the globe-trotting clip for Calvin Harris and Ne-Yo's "Let's Go", and some dancing (toward the end). The artists in question are barely present here, visually, FYI.

I've been a fan of Calvin's from the get-go, and I dig this song enough, though it does play like a retread of Rihanna's "We Found Love" (and isn't nearly as catchy as the Harris-produced "Call My Name" by Cheryl Cole).

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UK Chart Roundup: Keane Can Still Manage To Score A #1 Album

Rihanna-esque bimbette Rita Ora lands at #1 on the UK chart this week with her official debut single "R.I.P." It's her second trip to the top in 2012, following her feature on DJ Fresh's "Hot Right Now." Ora's "R.I.P." is now the 10th single to top the UK chart this year, and it's the fifth new #1 in five weeks.

Unfortunately, the rest of the singles roundup is a total drag, so we'll turn to the album chart, where Keane's Strangeland has become the band's fourth studio album to hit #1 (and their fifth release to do so, if we include their 2010 EP Night Train).

So far, the band has yet to produce a hit single from the album. "Silenced By The Night" reached the lackluster height of #46, but, truth be told, Keane's last Top 20 hit came in 2006 when "Nothing In My Way" peaked at #19.

I'm actually listening to Strangeland for the first time right now. The band has been criticized for returning to the sound of their first two albums (i.e. when they were hugely successful), but I imagine that's what their fans want.

Really, it's not bad. Not exceptional by any means, but not bad at all.

The UK Top 10:

1. "R.I.P." - Rita Ora feat. Tinie Tempah *new* *1 week*
2. "Young" - Tulisa
3. "Call Me Maybe" - Carly Rae Jepsen
4. "Too Close" - Alex Clare
5. "We Are Young" - fun. feat. Janelle Monae
6. "Drive By" - Train
7. "Live My Life" - Far East Movement feat. Justin Bieber *new*
8. "Where Have You Been" - Rihanna
9. "Somebody That I Used To Know" - Gotye feat. Kimbra
10. "Laserlight" - Jessie J feat. David Guetta

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US Chart Roundup: 'MDNA' RIP

The Billboard Hot 100 is pretty flat this week, as once again there are no new songs in the Top 10, and Rihanna's "Where Have You Been" zipping into the Top 40 (from #78 to #29) is about the only single action worth mentioning.

And over on the Top 200, where Carrie Underwood's Blown Away is the #1 album, let's face it — Madonna MDNA Death Watch has become quite an event. In its sixth week on the chart, Ye Olde Madgepyre's LP has dropped to #65.

So is "Turn Up The Radio" really getting a single release? And a music video? All has been quiet on that front, no? Perhaps it's going to be another quickly-thrown-together clip of live footage from the tour? Guaranteed hit!

That broad needs to just quit being so cheap, pay Quentin Tarantino a bucket of cash to direct a crazy "Gang Bang" video where she goes batshit, oh-so-subtly flies back to England with a machine gun and mows down every dude who looks like her ex-husband, and then bid this album adieu. It would be the classy thing to do. And who knows, maybe half a decade from now, people will look back and say, you know what, we didn't give MDNA a chance — that was some hot trash.

Yeah, or maybe Madonna peaked with Ray Of Light 14 years ago, had a lucky blip on the radar again with Confessions and that's that.

On a final note, I've been on the road since the weekend, so sorry it's been quiet around here this week. All will return to sexy this coming weekend.

The U.S. Top 10:

1. "Somebody That I Used To Know" - Gotye feat. Kimbra *4 weeks*
2. "We Are Young" - fun. feat. Janelle Monae
3. "Payphone" - Maroon 5 feat. Wiz Khalifa
4. "Call Me Maybe" - Carly Rae Jepsen
5. "Wild Ones" - Flo Rida feat. Sia
6. "Glad you Came" - The Wanted
7. "Starships" - Nicki Minaj
8. "Boyfriend" - Justin Bieber
9. "What Makes You Beautiful" - One Direction
10. "Stronger (What Doesn't Kill You)" - Kelly Clarkson

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It's Nelly Furtado's "Big Hoops (Bigger The Better)" Music Video

I will admit that Nelly Furtado's new single "Big Hoops (Bigger The Better)" is a complete disappointment after the total jams she put out with Timbaland six years ago, like "Promiscuous", "Maneater" and "Say It Right". It's pretty much devoid of any hook.

But something about the video, which features her walking on eight-foot stilts through downtown Los Angeles and hanging out with Native American hoop dancers, makes me like the song slightly more.



Only slightly.

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UK Chart Roundup: Sex Tape Star Tulisa Is #1

Sex tape star Tulisa has topped wig-snatching Canadian Carly Rae Jepsen on the UK single chart with her ultra-generic dance track "Young." Even I was getting tired of seeing "Call Me Maybe" at #1, but who knew being an Internet porn queen could be so influential with music buyers?



Meanwhile, Cover Drive have followed up the addictive, Rihanna-ripping "Twilight" with the not-quite-as-good, Black Eyed Peas knockoff "Sparks", which debuts at #4. The song is kind of "Just Can't Get Enough" Lite — but even that description implies that it's better than it is.



Over on the UK album chart, Marina And The Diamonds' Electra Heart enters at #1.

The UK Top 10:

1. "Young" - Tulisa *new* *1 week*
2. "Call Me Maybe" - Carly Rae Jepsen
3. "We Are Young" - fun. feat. Janelle Monae
4. "Sparks" - Cover Drive *new*
5. "Too Close" - Alex Clare 
6. "Let's Go" - Calvin Harris feat. Ne-Yo
7. "Drive By" - Train
8. "Laserlight" - Jessie J feat. David Guetta
9. "Starships" - Nicki Minaj
10. "Somebody That I Used To Know" - Gotye feat. Kimbra

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Saint Etienne "I've Got Your Music" Video Submission

Saint Etienne are asking fans to email in short clips of themselves holding up one of their favorite 12” records for possible inclusion in their upcoming “I’ve Got Your Music” video. This is the one I turned in.

Here's the example video they posted on YouTube, featuring some hot-ass dude.



And here's the video I turned in this morning. (Just pretend it's hot-ass dude's face.)

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US Chart Roundup: Ellie Goulding & The Rest Of The Brits

Fourteen months after her album Lights was released in the US, and over two years after it first dropped in her home country, UK electro-pop broad Ellie Goulding finally lands her first Top 40 hit on the Billboard Hot 100, with title song "Lights." The song slides up nine positions this week to #40.

A quick survey of the rest of the Brits in the upper reaches of the chart finds The Wanted back up one to #4 with "Glad You Came", and their boy band rivals One Direction down to #9 with "What Makes You Beautiful." Guess calling Christina Aguilera a bitch has its pluses?

Scottish stud Calvin Harris is at #13 with "Feel So Close," a song he just can't seem to get in the Top 10 (it previously peaked at #12), while Adele's latest single "Rumour Has It" is lodged at #16 for another week. Meanwhile, Calvin and Ne-Yo's "Let's Go" debuts at #89.



As for the the Top 10 itself, the songs remain the same but just shuffle slightly. If you're on Carly Rae Jepsen Watch, she now has a Top 5 hit.

And over on the Top 200 album chart, if you're on Madonna MDNA Death Watch, the LP has dropped out of the Top 40 in its fifth week, and is currently clinging to #45.

Whatever. I still say there are a few jams on there.

The U.S. Top 10:

1. "Somebody That I Used To Know" - Gotye feat. Kimbra *3 weeks*
2. "We Are Young" - fun. feat. Janelle Monae
3. "Payphone" - Maroon 5 feat. Wiz Khalifa
4. "Glad you Came" - The Wanted
5. "Call Me Maybe" - Carly Rae Jepsen
6. "Wild Ones" - Flo Rida feat. Sia
7. "Boyfriend" - Justin Bieber
8. "Starships" - Nicki Minaj
9. "What Makes You Beautiful" - One Direction
10. "Stronger (What Doesn't Kill You)" - Kelly Clarkson

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Cheryl Cole Grinds On The Concrete Of Los Angeles In Her "Call My Name" Video

Cheryl Cole plays the role of what appears to be a hooker with bad taste in clothing in her "Call My Name" video. (Or maybe this is actually a documentary?) She basically slinks around in a reservoir tunnel in her leopard print thong, showing off her tattooed thighs and ass, then she meets up with a crew of dudes and engages in a smoke and mirrors dance sequence that would make Britney Spears proud.

All that said, I absolutely love this Calvin Harris-produced jam, and I can actually see it opening the door for the American success Cheryl has been craving.



Thankfully there wasn't a rapper tacked onto "Call My Name," though. That would have been really desperate.

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College & Electric Youth's "A Real Hero" From 'Drive' Nominated For MTV Movie Award

College featuring Electric Youth's "A Real Hero" from the Drive soundtrack — i.e. one of the best songs from 2011 from the best movie of 2011 — has been nominated for an MTV Movie Award in the Best Music category. (That's Electric Youth up above.)

If you're not up to speed on this song, or the movie, get your skull checked and listen below. "A Real Hero" has seriously been on every playlist and mix I've made since seeing Drive in September.



Then hop in your car, drive to the nearest movie rental place (if one still exists) or Neflix this hot trash.

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