Alternative chart action

[Matt4319]

I've never seen the bottom of the chart this competitive. The #48 song (Thursday) has over 500 spins. :o Every song in the top 50 could be over 400by the end of the week, assuming nothing goes recurrent (and I have no idea if any is supposed to or not).

The White Stripes might just make it back to #7 after all. Smile Empty Soul is losing even more than the Stripes, and has fallen to #8.

"Meant to Live" is becoming a bona fide hit; it's up to #21 and +86. It might have to get help from the Ataris, 311, AND Chevelle to make the top 20 next week though; P.O.D. is sure to hit the top 20, and the Strokes might too.

What's with all these freefalls lately? The Ataris were down over 400 at one point, the Foo Fighters go 26-off in two weeks, and now 311, Rancid, and Limp Bizkit are all down over 300. The Foo Fighters are still losing over 50% per week.

My guess is P.O.D. will have the next #1, but it'll take about 7 more weeks.

[Tayzlor]

I don't think P.O.D. will hit number one. "Will You" just isn't that strong of a song, all I can see is about a #5 appearance. If this was released about a month ago it would've had a legitimate chance at that top slot when there was no strong contenders for the number one position...much like it is now. But in the next three weeks or so new songs from blink-182, Puddle Of Mudd, Hoobastank, and Korn will be out there likely to vie for the number one. On the other hand, I'd like to see the new Phantom Planet song top the chart... ;)

[Miguelín]

Tayzlor said:

On the other hand, I'd like to see the new Phantom Planet song top the chart... ;)

That will be very very difficult... but it could be great.

Hoobastank and Korn won't hit #1... and think they won't make either the top 10. P.O.D. by now it's the more likely for the next #1 (or maybe Nickelback)

[Keith3000]

Yeah, I wouldn't mind if "Someday" reaches the top; I'm really starting to feel that song.

I'd love it, though, if Korn gets another #1. I've loved that band since day one.

[Tayzlor]

"Someday" sounds like someone held a gun to Chad Kroeger's head and told him to write a catchy single. It just sounds really awkward.

It'd be great to see Dashboard Confessional and the White Stripes (THBB) get another surge and make their way up there, or whatever stops another Linkin Park number one...or possibly another Trapt number one.

[halo19]

After such cynicism of the new Stripes single, so far it's gone up 15-11*, and the #6 greatest gainer. I kind of thought something like this would happen, seeing as every time a White Stripes song looks done, it's not. It's gaining more than Trapt

Jane's Addiction are real close to entering with "True Nature". It's a cool song, so I hope it does something.

R.E.M. still aren't on :(

Looks like despite being "the Smooth Criminal band", Alien Ant Farm will enter with "Glow". I heard it a couple times. It's okay, but nothing special.

Wow, huge drop for Rancid! Even bigger of a drop of Limp Bizkit, but I'm glad it flopped just as I predicted.

It took a long time for the format to suddenly get rid of "Think Twice", too. I'm mad at the drop that Thrice have though, that song is *so* good.

"Hands Down" is personally deserving of a #1. It's the only exclusive alternative song in the Top 10, and the only real exciting one, too. "Seven Nation Army" is good, but that one's been on forever.

311 are still making huge drops. Now they go down 10-18. Many good bands are losing so many spins.

Chevelle need to go recurrent soon.

P.O.D.'s gain is deserving; their best in a long time.

Radiohead "Go To Sleep" this week, looking done. At least that song was bigger than "Knives Out", despite the latter being a lot better.

Dave Matthews is also at an undeserving peak. It's not radio-friendly enough like Trapts of the world, so it won't do anything. Surprise there.
That's all for now...

[iceman]

Nice and slow upward movement for Switchfoot, definitely deserves top 10. How long has it been on the chart now?

[Matt4319]

iceman said:

Nice and slow upward movement for Switchfoot, definitely deserves top 10. How long has it been on the chart now?

I think this will be their 12th week.

[Nicholas2.0]

The whole problem is, there is next to nothing interesting going on in rock music right now. And since we're between trends, radio is extremely reluctant to whole-heartedly support anything that isn't a sure bet. So that's why we have these January singles clogging upper reaches of the chart, because to radio programmers, nothing better is coming along to knock it out. I mentioned this in the report card topic, but in the past few weeks, I've realized that music in general has gotten so much worse in the past 3-6 months. It's nauseating. I won't even turn on Memphis radio right now, because in a conservative radio market like Memphis, I'm not gonna hear anything that isn't already in the Top 20. And almost all of those songs I've heard ad nauseum all year, so why should I bother?

"So Far Away" is a soggy, dead-horse beating power ballad.

"Faint" is inferior to the Hybrid Theory singles.

"Weak and Powerless" is just that for an APC single, but it's one of the few commercial-sounding tracks on the new record.

"Show Me How to Live" is just as by-numbers as "Cochise."

"Someday" is a pop song.

"Going Under" is a little old now.

"Bottom of a Bottle" sounds corporate and is now stale.

"Seven Nation Army" should've fallen off 10-15 weeks ago.

"Hands Down" is whiny, and lyrically is too detailed, with a few irritating patches.

"Creatures" is on its way out, but let's face it, it wasn't a fantastic 311 single to begin with. The album won't pick it up with other singles, and despite breaking their fall with "Amber," 311 will, yet again, continue their overall decline in quality and relevance.

"Serenity" is looking pretty good, but it's not worth the Top 5.

"Still Frame" is pretty crappy.

Don't even get me started on "Headstrong." Do you realize that after this week, it's just 4 weeks shy of a f***ing year on the chart? That's simply appalling. It wouldn't be nearly as offensive if the song were a lot better and weren't the inaugural hit by a johnny-come-lately new-metal band, which is totally useless in 2003. "Headstrong" isn't even bad, it's just worn out its welcome half its life span ago.

"The Boys of Summer" is too old, and its novelty as a cover, let's face it, works against it.

If radio were fresher, "The Hardest Button to Button" wouldn't be anywhere near the placement it's at now. And I'm so sick of White Stripe glorification.

"Falls on Me" is a career-killing pop song.

"The Leaving Song Pt. II" obviously deserves to be #1 for the duration of all this chart reluctance and uncertainty. ;)

Don't get me started on Three Days Grace. And unlike "Headstrong," I will not talk about it anyway.

Thank god "Send the Pain Below" is just about off, but "Closure" seems to be getting more of a sluggish start than it deserves, especially in this radio climate.

Rancid don't deserve this. They deserve to be locked in at #2 behind AFI, but this is better than I ever could've expected another Rancid song to ever perform, so we'll see what's next for them.

I've seen Jet's video exactly once so far and wasn't impressed, but I'm surprised that a garage-esque band is just bounding up the charts with absolutely no prior hype from the magazines.

"Liberate" is fine with me, but this is definitely not as good as the previous two. I'm surprised at it's longevity, personally, but it might as well stick around, considering it's still probably better than 75% of the chart.

"Try Honesty" isn't exactly original, but it sounds better than most of the chart right now, except for the song's bridge, which frankly, sucks. I can't see a song like this doing better than #19, but considering all the dinosaurs and crap on the chart right now, it might as well do better than that.

It took a little longer, but if radio's gonna shun "St. Anger," then it sure as sh** better shun "Eat You Alive." This is so not career-redeeming quality. And sadly, I don't think a cover of the Who's "Behind Blue Eyes" is gonna cut it, either. At this stage in their game, that's just too weird of a career move.

I don't remember the Switchfoot song off-hand, but in addition to their awful band name, this song just isn't format-busting caliber. (Hey, I remember that much.)

The bottom is falling out from under "Just Because" at a very unfair rate. With all the dinosaurs at the top, this is just as deserving of sticking around while rock radio gets its sh** together.

Haven't heard the new Strokes yet, but forced hype never lasts.

Thrice, radio climate considered, should be lingering around the Top 10 with a song like this. Why this topped out at #25 is beyond me.

Let's see if Eve 6 have what it takes to sustain their career a little longer with the second single.

"Here Without You" is a pop song that Alternative radio should be turning its back on, coldly.

Considering its lackluster quality, I'm surprised "Did My Time" stuck around this long. It certainly pales in comparison to "Alone I Break" and "Thoughtless."

"Stacy's Mom" is a lame, shiny pop song that would be absent from the chart (and hit status in general), were it not the arguable first commercial song written about a MILF.

I haven't heard Yellowcard much (or recently), but I remember it being even more generic pop-punk.

Cold need to bust everyone out of the way with this. I don't know why it's getting such a relatively slow start on the heels of their first genuine hit song, which is actually a lot weaker than this one.

Sevendust have the absolute worst single of their career. In fact, this doesn't even deserve to be on the Alternative chart.

Brand New aren't anything special worth putting in heavy rotation. Neither are Thursday, for that matter.

Radiohead have arguably the weakest single of their career. This wasn't even worth putting into the Top 40.

I dislike the Dave Matthews song very much.

After two sleeper hits that ended up putting respectable life into post-grunge music, Seether drop the ball with this piece of crap.

Considering the rest of the chart and that it's better than "Faint," shoot, go on and give Linkin Park another #1 with "Numb." What the hell do I care at this point.

Haven't heard the new Hot Hot Heat yet.

I'm surprised BRMC even charted. Another band long on hype and short on delivery.

I can completely understand why it will never get there, but OutKast might as well go to #1 with "Hey Ya!"

I don't remember Story of the Year's song, but they'll never pull off a successful commercial career.

"I Am the Highway" was released surprisingly soon and makes for a boring single. But most of those Audioslave songs are pretty interchangeable, so I don't know what a better choice would've been, since "Shadow on the Sun" is too long to be successful without a butchering radio edit.

I'd totally understand if "Frantic" came up just short of the Top 20, but the song is worth a lot more than this.

"The Only," in an effort to stay relevant, is dangerously close to being disposable pop-metal, with strong sense of melody and everything. And this we're not used to with Static-X.

P.O.D.'s song is a little weak and aside from "Youth of the Nation," they never were all that great to begin with, now that I've fully digested the Satellite album and been totally unimpressed with any single before it.

And this is a song-by-song explanation of why I feel rock radio has been so disappointing lately.

[pookie]

damn Nick! Don't you have anything else to add? hahaha

i think somewhere in there i read older songs are better than the new songs, if so, i agree. There's a great station you can hear online, i think its in Utah maybe? That plays great old alternative songs. I forgot the link but if I find it i'll post it.

I've mostly been listening to my U2 and Sundays albums lately.

Oh and I like headstrong, haha. There's somethin kinda cool about it i can't explain, i dunno, its kinda fun, so much stuff sounds the same, it has something to it i guess.

[SyrupBoy]

Pookie said:

Oh and I like headstrong, haha. There's somethin kinda cool about it i can't explain, i dunno, its kinda fun, so much stuff sounds the same, it has something to it i guess.

I think it's the dumbed down Jonny Greenwood-esque guitar riff at the end of each chorus. That's what made the song stand out to me at first...even though it started grating on me after only 2 listens.

[arebomb]

Nicholas2.0--You are a bitter man, aren't you?

[Nicholas2.0]

I'm not a bitter guy at all. It's just I feel passionately about music, so when the quality of rock takes a downward slide and nothing notable comes up to fill the void, and I keep hearing the same old songs everytime I turn on the radio, instead of songs 21-50, it frustrates me. And after realizing recently how unbearable the Top 50 has become in the past few months, I was like a steam valve that needed to be released. So that's why I didn't mince many words while discussing all 50 songs. Why isn't there any good, new rock music coming out? Too often this year, bands have been returning with lackluster new material. And there haven't been many *new* bands worth looking into, either.

[crash46]

I was thinking earlier today about how now would be a perfect time for new albums by Jimmy and System. God they'd own the airwaves and I just couldn't see them taking it up the ass like so many other bands recently have. Unfortunately, from what I've heard, it'll probably be another year or so before those albums are set to drop.

[hamjerzee]

The bottom of the chart might be competitive, but the top 20 is nothing short of boring, especially the top 5. It's been the usual suspects: Staind #1, Linkin Park 2, APC 3, Nickelback 4 and ountdown based on this stuff, and it's no wonder nobody listents to it: the same songs are at the same places every week.

Also, when was the last week Trapt wasn't in the top 50 w/ Headstrong? Was I born already (That's 1988)?