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This is Edition 496

Chart Chat is updated every week usually on a Tuesday

Radio Index

United Kingdom Radio station guide.
 (Listen while you surf)

Their only other appearance at the top came back in 2003 with ‘Where Is The Love’ which featured a guest appearance from Justin Timberlake on backing vocals. Since then they have added a further six top ten hits with their most recent being ‘Pump It’ in 2006.  Both Will.i.am and Fergie have carved out successful solo careers and some doubted as to whether we would see the group unite for another album. Their new album ‘The E.N.D.’ (Energy Never Dies) is due for release this Summer and is likely to spawn some further hit singles for the band.  They are also opening for U2 on their US tour.  

Few acts can have received as much pre release hype as Little Boots who releases her new single ‘New In Town’ this week.  She won the BBC Sound Of 2009 vote which has meant she is viewed by critics to be the “one to watch” in the coming year.  This week sees her play the Evolution Festival in Newcastle and an iTunes Live From London set along with the Wychwood festival in Cheltenham . The single is available across 7”, 12” and CD formats and is taken from her debut album ‘Hands’ which hits the shops next month. The 7” features a new mix from Franz Ferdinand singer Alex Kapranos while the 12” has the Drop The Lime Remix, the Golden Filter Remix, the A1 Bassline and the Den Haan Remix.  It could well challenge for the top spot next Sunday afternoon.  

Crystal Stilts are an American rock band from New York who release their new single ‘Love Is A Wave’ this week. It is released on a 7” vinyl format and comes backed with the track ‘Sugarbaby’. It’s the follow up to their ‘Departure’ single which was released earlier this year. The band was formed in 2003 as a duo of Brad Hargett and JB Townsend before expanding to become a five piece. They subsequently signed to Slumberland Records in the US and Angular Recording Corporation in Europe . They are due to perform a number of gigs across Europe this week including London , Paris and Barcelona . Despite being together close on six years the band are still searching for that elusive hit single but unfortunately I don’t think this will be the one to give it to them.

Hard to believe but Cornershop have been going since 1992. Their big moment came in 1998 when the Norman Cook remix of their single ‘Brimful Of Asha’ took them to the top spot, and their last top forty hit came in 2002 with ‘Lessons Learned From Rocky I to Rocky III’.  Now they are back with a sixth studio album entitled ‘Cornering The Market’ and from it comes the single ‘The Roll Off Characteristics (Of History In The Making)’. It is released on 7” vinyl only and the b side to the track is an etch by NYCs Jeffrey Lewis depicting the Jaganath who can circumference the world in just five steps. The band have a short tour planned for July taking in Manchester , London , Bristol , Birmingham and Liverpool .  The track is accompanied by a video directed by Prashant Bhargava.

Jem (full name Jemma Griffiths) is a 33 year old Welsh singer who burst onto the music scene way back in 2004 with her debut album ‘Finally Woken’.  It made the top ten and yielded three top forty hits in the shape of ‘They’, ‘Just A Ride’ and ‘Wish I’. Four years later saw her release the follow up album ‘Down To Earth’ but since its September release it has failed to make any inroads into the charts peaking at no.64 in the UK and no.43 in the US. Her career was however boosted by the inclusion of her song ‘It’s Amazing’ on the Soundtrack to the Sex In The City movie. Her latest single is entitled ‘And So I Pray’ and is the third single to be lifted from that album. It comes released on 7” vinyl with the b side being the Starry Sky Acoustic Mix of the main track.

Kevin Rudolf announced his arrival on the music scene with his massive hit ‘Let It Rock’ single which managed to make the top five in a number of different countries including the UK, the US and Canada. Although relatively unknown in his own right, he has worked with various artists including Nelly Furtado and Justin Timberlake. He featured on Nas’s single ‘In Your Face’ and co-wrote / produced Cobra Starship’s single ‘I Make Good Girls Go Bad’. Now comes the follow up to ‘Let It Rock’ entitled ‘Welcome To The World’ and it is taken from his album ‘In The City’. In the US the single features rapper Rick Ross but in the UK the record company have gone with the version that features Kid Cudi who himself has recently tasted top three success with his ‘Day N Nite’ single.

Howling Bells release their new single this week entitled ‘Digitial Hearts’.  It comes released on 7” vinyl with the bonus track being ‘Stories 2’. It is lifted from their second studio album ‘Radio Wars’ and is the follow up to their recent single ‘Cities Burning Down’. The album was produced by Dan Grech-Maguerat who engineered records alongside producer Nigel Godrich by artists including Air, Paul McCartney and Radiohead. The band are currently in the middle supporting Coldplay on the North American leg of their US tour with this week seeing them play gigs in New Jersey, New York and Pensylvania.  They have also provided support to The Killers and Placebo on their recent European tours. They hail from Sydney , Australia and have been together as a band since 2004. 

You Me At Six release their new single ‘Finders Keepers’ on CD format this week.  It comes with the bonus track ‘Sugar, We’re Goin’ Down’. The band are a five piece who formed in 2004 and hail from Surrey . The single is taken from their ‘Take Off Your Colours’ album which has so far yielded four singles although none have made the top forty. Their highest charting single to date was ‘Jealous Minds Think Alike’ that made no.100. First time around the album graced the top thirty and now it is about to get a re-release in the middle of June.  The reissue incorporates three new tracks including the single, ‘Sweet Feet’ and ‘All Your Fault’. The band are currently confirmed for the Download festival and will also be putting in an appearance on the Vans Warped Tour.

Thirty one year old American singer Cass McCombs releases his new single ‘Dreams Come True Girl’ this week.  It’s the first single to be taken from his forthcoming ‘Catacombs’; album on Domino Records which is his fourth full studio recording to date.  It is released on 7” vinyl and comes backed with the track ‘Minimum Wage’. His first release came back in 2002 with his Monitor Records EP ‘Not The Way’ He won great critical acclaim for his 2003 album ‘A’ while his 2007 release ‘Dropping The Writ’ was named one of the best of that year by Amazon.com. This single opens the new album with other confirmed tracks being ‘Lionkiller Got Married’ and ‘My Sister, My Spouse’.  McCombs will never be a singles artist and is unlikely to chart with this.

Also released this week are ‘Too Many Man’ by Boy Better Know, ‘Broken By The Wheel’ by Crazy Arm, ‘Fixin’ To Thrill’ by Dragonette, ‘Over The Hills’ by James Yuill, ‘Whirring’ by The Joy Formidable, ‘Heartbreak’ by Magistrates, ‘Baby Come Back Now’ by Mica Paris, ‘Young Adult Friction’ by Pains Of Being Pure At Heart, ‘For An Angel ‘09’ by Paul Van Dyk, ‘Stuck With Each Other’ by Shontelle featuring Akon, ‘I’ll Be There’ by Stunt, ‘Crying’ by TV On The Radio and ‘Untouched’ by The Veronicas.  Download releases this week include ‘Release Me’ by Agnes, ‘Pattern Of My Life’ by Annie Lennox, ‘Roses’ by Eddi Reader, ‘Wendy Wonders’ by Eugene McGuinness, ‘Blame It’ by Jamie Foxx featuring T-Pain, ‘Ella Elle La’ by Kate Ryan, ‘No Stress’ by Laurent Wolf, ‘Armed With Love’ by Luigi Masi, ‘Baby I’m A Fool’ by Melody Gardot, ‘The Planets Bend Between Us’ by Snow Patrol, ‘Go Then Bye’ by Speech Debelle,

‘Teardrops On My Guitar’ by Taylor Swift and ‘Welcome To England’ by Tori Amos.  

Don’t forget to stop by next week when artists releasing new singles look set to include Kasabian, Kelly Clarkson, Pet Shop Boys and Placebo.  Until then have yourself a good week.

JHME Music Correspondent