Despite ’30 Days’ being some kind of emotional ode to long distance love aches, you won’t catch The Saturdays sporting windswept tears or looking all sombre by the pool side in this video.
Instead, here comes the next sensible option: speed dating in an American diner with loads of cute boys who look like they could all either be on the Glee extras list or the next Gym Class Heroes video.
The name of the game is simple. It’s written on the damn board above the counter, “Speed dating – find your soulmate in 30 dates or less”.
But rather than cleverly playing up the inherently cheesy story line like Sophie Ellis-Bextor did in ‘I Won’t Change You’, these girls frustratingly dawdle about looking pedestrian, dashing from one corner of the diner to the next – all the while barely managing to convey any sense of commitment to the production.
The Saturdays haven’t always bothered with eye-popping choreography or fashion forward visual presentations but I feel like with this video, they really were resting their heels on my last nerve.
Perhaps it was the stagnant, predominantly close ups to mid-shots that frustrated me. I think they were trying to make it look like it wasn’t just Una who was exempt from a full body shot. Every single one of them had to be framed in a similar way for consistency.
On top of that, they set 90% of the shots in this cramped diner, giving the viewers a dull aching sense of claustrophobia. Fuck, I sound like Mama Lim at a house inspection. Something about the feng shui up in here just ain’t right.
Mollie King, shanté you stay.
The rest of you basic bitches can sashay away. Especially Rochelle and that unflattering new hair colour that makes her look like a haggard old piece from Basketball Wives. Gurl, that is not the look.
I am particularly pleased with the multiple angles of elegant face Ms Mollie is serving in ’30 Days’. I feel like she was the only one here who looked like she knew exactly how and when to tilt it for the camera.
Una’s bumpgate.
I mean, what a load of rubbish about editing out her baby bump. They had you gagging at the 45 second mark when all five girls were shown running to the counter with Una strategically hidden at the back – making it look like it took four grown ass women to cover her belly.
‘What a farce’, you thought.
Then fast forward to a later part of the clip, we see her caressing her belly from behind the table. You can’t say none of this was planned on – Una talking about editing out her baby bump from the video to the way the shots were sequenced?
If this was fuckery foisted by a more well-known diva, I’m sure there’d be more people caring and clutching their pearls in disgust.
Watch The Saturdays‘ ’30 Days’ music video:
Footnotes:
The Saturdays will release ’30 Days’ on 13 May in the UK. By then most astute pop music listeners would’ve moved on to bigger and better things like new releases by Marina & The Diamonds, Sam Sparro and Scissor Sisters. Good luck, gurls.
Forget about the actual song because I think it’d be far more interesting to see how them Saturdays‘ fans are gonna keep stanning for a passing-grade song that won’t be released until mid-fucking-May. That’s longer than a 30-day wait, y’guys. Get me my pocketbook, I’m outta here.
Like it or not, ’30 Days’ comes loaded with a bit of pressure on the mostly on-point British girlband. After a collective clutching of pearls when their album On Your Radar flopped in November, this is the all important next step to reaffirm The Saturdays‘ status as one of England’s leading girl groups.
“30 days” is not enough to get “all fired up” about.
’30 Days’ strategically catapults the ladies back into the nondescript dance beats that made them relevant with ‘All Fired Up’. However, there’s something frustratingly pedestrian about ’30 Days’ that you’re either gonna be able to get over in the first few listens or condemn it to hell.
If you did a cross-examination of ’30 Days’ and its next of kin ‘All Fired Up’, you’ll probably find that one lacks what the other track has.
This new jam brings some emotionally pertinent lyrics – and y’all know how I live for dance ballads – which directly contrasts the repetitive, throwaway lines of ‘All Fired Up’. However, ’30 Days’ doesn’t quite have the spark and wall-to-wall hooks of ‘All Fired Up’.
It was obvious that ‘All Fired Up’ could get away with slapping on one-dimensional club beats because the mish-mash of melodies and hooks more than compensated for it.
The problem with ’30 Days’ is that you’ve really heard it all after the 1:20 mark. However, I am happy to debate over cocktails whether the jet whoosh at 0:13 and 2:28 is a mild stroke of genius or not.
Listen to The Saturdays‘ brand new single ’30 Days’:
The music video is expected to drop soon but don’t expect to clock Una Healy‘s baby bump. The young yummy mummy has apparently ordered for the bump to be edited out of the clip because she feels it’s not relevant any more now that she has given birth.
Gurl, please. I know of plenty of women who have been in that situation and they’re not airbrushing any baby bumps out. It’s not a question of relevance, it’s a question of whether her bump’s getting in the way of the band’s youthful party girl image.
Update – how is this post travelling for value? Here comes the Max Sanna and Steve Pitron remix of ’30 Days’:
Footnotes:
’30 Days’ will be released on 13 May in the UK. The single comes with a b-side ‘Turn Myself In’ and the iTunes EP also packs in a remix of ’30 Days’ and a thrilling karaoke version.
Pre-ordering it will get you a Saturdays-only version of their album track ‘The Way You Watch Me’, which originally featured Travie McCoy and was supposed to be the girls’ fourth single from this era.
It’s just past midnight and I’ve been compiling this post for the past four hours non-stop. It’s somewhat understandable that I want to just drop dead now to the sound of Madonna‘s ‘Gang Bang’ on repeat and never wake up again.
This week’s Chart Feed is one for the history books – especially if you’re the world’s biggest boyband of the moment: One Direction. Their legendary storming of the US Billboard charts makes them the first ever British band to have their first album go #1 in the States.
Elsewhere, Katy Perry blasts to #1 on the UK charts and we also look ahead to new releases by The Saturdays, Scissor Sisters and Calvin Harris.
“There shouldn’t be much to report on this week’s Chart Feed because Beyoncé had her baby and nothing else would be on the news, right?” Sometimes I feel like my little brother is the only one who gets the way the world should be run.
On this week’s Chart Feed, the festive season’s definitely been canned now with Michael Bublé‘s career-defining Christmas album freefalling out of the Top 20 everywhere. We all knew it would come to this. Meanwhile, Empress Adele returns to top the US and UK album charts and comes closer to breaking more records, Kelly Clarkson discounts her way back up the charts, and I have a fit over the new Will Young, The Saturdays and Rebecca Ferguson single choices.
Let me guess, you’re checking to see if I’ve slotted Sugababes‘ ‘Freedom’ or Natalie Bassingthwaighte‘s ‘All We Have’ in the Top 20 Songs of 2011.
So sorry to disappoint but this isn’t the It’s Not Right But It’s Okay list. This is the premium VIP lounge, y’guys. That velvet rope don’t go up for any basic bitch peddling a half decent tune sung with fuck all conviction.
I am looking for songs that have not only connected with me on an emotional level but also earned snaps for interesting musical execution. These ten tracks have all reached out and broken me down with either a killer melody and fierce production, or soul-touching lyrics.
The sonic soundscape represented in the #20 – #11 list varies from Brunswick-style indie to ferocious K-pop and even a touch of gospel. Variety is the spice of life, children. And I’m here for quality pop of all musical persuasions.
Reece Mastin‘s ‘Good Night’ checks off its second week on top of our ARIA singles chart, now clocking over 70,000 sales to become one of the fastest selling singles here this year. ‘Good Night’ is unsurprisingly also the biggest gainer on our Aussie airplay chart (between 24 to 30 November), rising to #23.
Guy Sebastian‘s ‘Don’t Worry Be Happy’ improves on last week’s debut, now rising to #4 on the ARIA chart in its second week. Probably thanks to some decent radio rotation too. ‘Don’t Worry Be Happy’ leaps from #54 to #27 on the Australian airplay chart.
Adele has the biggest selling music DVD in Australia this week with Live at Royal Albert Hall debuting on top of the charts, beating off two other new tour DVD releases: Lady Gaga‘s Monster Ball Tour (#2) and Kylie‘s Aphrodite Les Folies (#3). I suppose someone should mention that Britney‘s Femme Fatale tour DVD arrived at #8? Such a non-factor.
Over in the UK, Kylie‘s Aphrodite Les Folies Live in London debuts at #72 on the album charts. It should show up on the DVD charts next week.
Watch Adele performing ‘Turning Tables’ live at The Royal Albert Hall:
Hilltop Hoods featuring Sia‘s ‘I Love It’ is the biggest new single in Australia this week, debuting at #18. It is also the second most added new song to local radios. This is now Sia‘s second appearance in the ARIA Top 20 this year, following her other smash guest appearance ‘Titanium’ with David Guetta.
Jessica Mauboy and Stan Walker‘s redundant ballad ‘Galaxy’ sits at #20 on the ARIA Top 50 and registers the biggest drop on the Australian airplay chart in the last week, sinking from #17 to #31. The song has strangely appeared on the UK release schedule with a tentative 12 December launch date. Meanwhile, Stan‘s new album Let The Music Play worringly drops from #18 to #27 in its second week here.
Kelly Clarkson‘s ‘What Doesn’t Kill You (Stronger)’ leaps to #44 on our ARIA singles chart this week, while its predecessor ‘Mr Know It All’ falls to #29. All these lesser songs need to take note and move out of the way too. Kelly‘s hit album Stronger falls to #20 in its sixth week here.
Lana Del Rey‘s ‘Video Games’ breaks into a new peak of #56 on our ARIA charts. The gospel of Del Rey continues to spread across Europe – in fact, ‘Video Games’ is currently reigning in the iTunes Top 10 in Germany, Austria and the Netherlands.
Watch Lana perform ‘Blue Jeans’ – a track featured on her ‘Video Games’ EP:
One Direction has the biggest selling new album in Australia this week with Up All Night making a strong debut at #5, simultaneously certifying gold sales of 35,000 copies shipped.
Olly Murs finally gets a UK #1 album with In Case You Didn’t Know debuting on top, selling 148,000 copies in its first week. His first album Olly Murs arrived at roughly the same time last year but only managed to sell 108,000 copies to debut at #2. Well done, you.
Take That’s Progress Live album enters at #12 in the UK this week, making sure Gary Barlow‘s not left penniless this Christmas while his X Factor cohorts all manage chart appearances. Progress Live remains as the biggest selling music DVD in the UK for the second week in a row, keeping Adele‘s Live At Royal Hall from claiming the throne.
Watch Take That performing one of my faves ‘Kidz’ live on their Progress tour:
Joe McElderry‘s Classic Christmas album debuts at #15 in the UK this week. This time next year, Craig Colton will be doing the same.
N-Dubz‘s Greatest Hits debuts at a humble #38 this week. It was such a pointless cash grab to coincide with Tulisa‘s X Factor gig and Dappy’s recent solo success. Tulisa‘s own solo album’s not slated for release until the first quarter of next year.
Kelly Rowland‘s Here I Am (International Version) cops a red-faced flop in the UK this week, entering at #56 despite all the promo she’s put in during the week including a mini concert for BBC 1Xtra – which was an utter hot mess, by the way. The album turns up at #23 on the UK digital charts, which doesn’t look too bad I guess. Kelendria‘s current single ‘Down For Whatever’ drops to #9 there while the sexy American urban smash ‘Lay It On Me’ starts charting at #81 in the UK.
Here I Am has a slight chance of faring better in its second week, especially after today’s X Factor performance. Look, I really don’t think it’s gonna significantly turn fortunes around for the diva but kudos for trying anyway.
Watch Ms Kelly turn out a medley performance of ‘When Love Takes Over/Down For Whatever’ on UK X Factor:
The Saturdays‘ On Your Radar sinks from its disappointing #23 debut to #53 this week. It’s officially a success of Sweet 7 proportions now, am I right – guys? The pop quintet has just kicked off their All Fired Up tour so with any luck, this should support sales a little.
X Factor Finalists‘ woeful charity single ‘Wishing On A Star’ did go #1 after all, making this the fourth consecutive year where the show has slapped a benefit release on top of the charts.
Jessie J‘s defining ballad ‘Who You Are’ races from #37 to #8 this week, thanks to her performance on the UK X Factor and not to mention a complimentary warble by axed contestant Misha B.
Rebecca Ferguson‘s debut album Heaven arrives in UK storefronts today and it’ll be interesting to see where it ends up given the lukewarm chart response to ‘Nothing’s Real But Love’. The slow-burning single does a death drop from #10 to #30 this week.
Emeli Sandé‘s second solo single ‘Daddy’ debuts at #21 this week, obviously gonna be a hard match for ‘Heaven’s peak at #2. The flawless singer/songwriter will drop her debut album Our Version of Events on 6 February.
Watch Emeli‘s video for ‘Daddy’:
Beyoncé‘s ‘Love On Top’ flies to #28 in the UK this week, making this Queen Bey‘s 19th solo Top 30 smash in the country. The last closest reach she had was with ‘Countdown’ just a few weeks ago, peaking at #35.
Michael Buble‘s Christmas album squeezes to the #1 spot on the US Billboard 200 with a marginal 0.18% lead over Nickelback‘s Here and Now, which debuted at #2. This is said to be the closest race to the top since November 2007.
Christmas is Buble‘s third US #1 album and with 227,000 copies sold, this is actually the biggest weekly sales he’s ever clocked. I’m thinking he’s gonna be doing seasonal records more often now. Interestingly enough with Justin Bieber‘s Under The Mistletoe and Michael Buble‘s Christmas going #1, 2011 is now the first year to yield two US #1 Christmas albums since 1957, when Elvis and Bing Crosby scaled such heights.
Watch Michael Buble recording ‘All I Want For Christmas Is You’:
Nickelback‘s Here and Now is the band’s third consecutive album to make the US top two. Although, the opening week sales don’t quite match that of 2005′s All The Right Reasons (325,000) and 2008′s Dark Horse (326,000).
Rihanna‘s Talk That Talk debuts at #3 in the US, nabbing 197,000 first week sales. Last year’s blockbuster album Loud managed to debut at #2 with 207,000 copies sold. Over at the singles bar, ‘We Found Love’ continues to reign on top of the US Billboard Hot 100 while ‘Talk That Talk’ becomes the biggest new single in the country, debuting at #31. Elsewhere, ‘You Da One’ drops from #14 to #22 while ‘Where Have You Been’ cracks the Top 100 at #65.
In the UK, Talk That Talk drops to #3 in its second week. The pull downwards is also reflected on the singles chart with ‘We Found Love’ slipping to #3 and ‘You Da One’ dipping one spot to #40. The more drastic drops were felt by album tracks: ‘Talk That Talk’ (#25 to #47) and ‘Where Have You Been’ (#61 to #94).
Here in Australia, ’We Found Love’ is still securely seated in the ARIA Top 5 while its predecessor ‘You Da One’ ascends to a new peak of #31. Its other sister tracks ‘Where Have You Been’ and ‘Talk That Talk’ drop to #63 and #73 respectively, while the new album slides to #7 in its second week. Talk That Talk has now been certified gold sales for shipments of 35,000 copies in Australia.
Listen to Rihanna‘s fierce as fuck ‘Cockiness (Love It)’:
Lady Gaga‘s Monster Ball Tour at Madison Square Garden is the biggest selling music DVD in the US, debuting straight at #1 ahead of two other major titles out in the same week: Britney‘s The Femme Fatale Tour (#2) and Beyoncé‘s Live at Roseland (#3).
A Very Gaga Holiday EP debuts at #52 on the US Billboard 200 while Born This Way – The Remix enters at a lowly #105. Over at the singles chart, ‘You and I’ sits at #29 while ‘Marry The Night’ ascends from #97 to #59.
In the UK, Born This Way – The Remix debuts at #77 while ’Marry The Night’ edges to a new peak of #16. Here in Australia, Born This Way – The Remix debuts at #62 on our ARIA charts but ’Marry The Night’ has yet to return to our ARIA Top 100.
Watch the hilarious Cooking with Gaga segment on Alan Carr‘s Chatty Man:
will.i.am‘s new single ‘T.H.E. (The Hardest Ever)’ featuring Mick Jagger and Jennifer Lopez debuts at #36 on the US Billboard Hot 100, selling 70,000 first week downloads. Meanwhile here in Australia, ‘T.H.E.’ enters our ARIA charts at #68. The Black Eyed Peas frontman’s last solo hit here was last year’s ‘Check It Out’ (featuring Nicki Minaj), which made #21.
Monica‘s new ballad ‘Until It’s Gone’ moves up to a new peak of #26 on the US R&B/Hip Hop charts. There hasn’t been as much of a buzz with this new era for Mo so let’s hope things pick up in the new year. Her seventh studio album New Life is slated for a 21 February release in the States.
Selena Gomez & The Scene‘s ‘Love You Like A Love Song’ finally tops the US Billboard Dance/Club play charts with Beyoncé‘s ‘Countdown’ closing in at #2. Shout out to these key risers: Wynter Gordon‘s amazing ‘Buy My Love’ (#7), Nervo‘s ‘We’re All No One’ (#8) and Katy Perry‘s ‘The One That Got Away’ (#13).
X Factor Australia winner Reece Mastin snatched wigs all the way to the top of the ARIAs this week with his debut single ‘Good Night’. It was reported that ‘Good Night’ managed to sell one copy every 2.7 seconds on Wednesday alone – easily clocking 32,000 sales in the first 24 hours.
Reece‘s debut album – featuring studio recordings of 10 songs he covered on the show – will drop on 9 December. Knowingly missing from the mix is the much-detested cover of ‘All By Myself’. Reece Mastin – the album – is currently charting at #60 on our Aussie iTunes based on pre-orders alone.
Guy Sebastian‘s ‘Don’t Worry Be Happy’ is the second biggest new single on the ARIA charts – winding up at #7. The X Factor judge was positioned at #2 on our iTunes charts for a few days, behind his apprentice Reece.
Watch Guy‘s brilliant new video ‘Don’t Worry Be Happy’:
Israel Cruz‘s ‘Party Up’ rises to #33, somehow resurrecting after looking like it was destined to be another home grown crunk’n'b flop. The Aussie producer – who has crafted numbers for the likes of Jessica Mauboy, Elen Levon and Scarlett Belle – last appeared in the Top 50 seven years ago with ‘Old Skool Luv’.
Ricki-Lee‘s ‘Raining Diamonds’ plummets from #19 to #36, clocking only one week in the ARIA Top 20. Be very fucking worried. The slamming dance/pop epic managed to rise to #23 on the Australian airplay chart in the last week – evidently not enough to sustain interest.
The forthcoming ‘Raining Diamonds’ video sees our girl channeling some kind of Sasha Fierce/Barbarella realness – watch the behind the scenes before the full production premieres hopefully sometime during the week:
Rihanna‘s Talk That Talk debuts at #5 in Australia, sending three new tracks to our ARIA Top 100 in its wake – ‘You Da One’ (#41), the frenetic future club smash ‘Where Have You Been’ (#46) and ‘Talk That Talk’ (#61). The project’s lead single ‘We Found Love’ sits at #4 and is still the most played song on Aussie radios.
Over in the UK, Talk That Talk debuts at #1 – racking up over 160,000 opening week sales to become one of the fastest selling albums there this year. Just so you know, TTT crossed north of 100,000 copies in the first three days alone. RiRi also has four tracks in the UK Top 75 this week – ‘We Found Love’ (still at #1), ‘Talk That Talk (#25), ‘You Da One’ (#39), ‘Where Have You Been’ (#61).
Over in America, Talk That Talk is slated to debut at #3 or #4 this week with predicted sales between 200,000 – 210,000 copies. ’We Found Love’ is still the most downloaded song in the country while its follow up ‘You Da One’ debuts at #9 on the US Billboard Digital Songs chart, selling 124,000 copies.
Listen to Rihanna‘s slamming ‘Where Have You Been’:
Katy Perry‘s ‘The One That Got Away’ slowly edges up to #32 on our ARIA charts. The driving pop ballad drops from #20 to #29 on our Australian airplay charts in the last week. Meanwhile over the States, ‘The One That Got Away’ cracks the Top 10, making Teenage Dream now the first album in 17 years to spawn six Top 10 smashes.
The last record holder was Janet Jackson‘s Janet circa 1994. Note: only seven albums in music history have snatched six or more US Top 10 hits. Janet‘s Rhythm Nation was the first album by a female artist to do so.
Lady Gaga‘s ‘Marry The Night’ drops out of our ARIA Top 100 altogether this week. Gag! No radio support, no video out, and various competing Gaga releases all continue to undermind this single’s potential.
Over in the UK, ‘Marry The Night’ stalls at #18 while her brand new Born This Way remix album debuts at #77. Looking at the UK iTunes store now, A Very Gaga Holiday EP sits comfortably at #18 on its first day out. There’s no way this ho’s gonna go through the festive season without making a dollar or two.
Over in the US, ‘Marry The Night’ re-enters the US Billboard Hot 100 at #97 – thanks in some small way to radio pick up and general awareness. ‘Marry The Night’ is the most played new song on US airwaves, debuting at #65 on the airplay charts.
Watch Glam Ma Monster perform ‘Marry The Night’ for A Very Gaga Thanksgiving:
Kelly Clarkson‘s ‘What Doesn’t Kill You (Stronger)’ is making a killing already on the Australian airplay charts – leaping from #49 to #21. The future smash is currently placed at #42 on our Aussie iTunes charts. Over in the States, ‘WDKY’ re-enters the US Billboard Hot 100 at #99 and on the digital charts at #64. She needs to stop flogging ‘Mr Know It All’ and just go to town on this one already.
Other notable new singles buzzing about our Aussie iTunes include: will.i.am featuring Jennifer Lopez and Mick Jagger‘s ‘T.H.E.’ (#62) and Cher Lloyd‘s summer-correct ‘With Ur Love’ (#63).
Kylie Minogue‘s Ultimate Kylie compilation shoots up to a breathtaking #95 on the Aussie iTunes chart while Aphrodite – Les Folies Live in London sits at #169 after her defining induction into the ARIA Hall of Fame. No other Kylie albums have returned to the Top 200 in light of all this publicity. Let’s hope her stunning Aphrodite – Les Folies Live in London DVD racks up some serious sales because that tour was just fucking everything. The Aphrodite Live in London album is currently charting at #85 on UK iTunes.
Watch Kylie perform ‘Love At First Sight/Can’t Fight The Feeling’:
Stan Walker‘s Let The Music Play debuts at #18, making it the biggest new Aussie album on the charts this week. Not that there’s much competition – sorry David Campbell. Stan‘s album has done well to stand up in the Top 20 given that ‘Light It Up’ flopped and all he’s got to represent is that ballad borrowed from Jessica Mauboy‘s album.
Dolly Parton‘s new album Better Day debuts at #29 in Australia this week, supported by her recent tour around the country, which included some dates up in some proper country area. I honestly can’t go back far enough to tell you when was the last time the defining music legend had a Top 50 ARIA hit but let’s just say, it’s the first time this century.
Olly Murs‘ new single ‘Dance With Me Tonight’ debuts at #2 in the UK this week, suffering the ultimate cock block by Rihanna‘s ‘We Found Love’. In the first three days on sale, the spunky X Factor star managed to surpass RiRi‘s ‘We Found Love’ by 2,000 copies – but by the end of Thursday, ‘We Found Love’ had pulled up worryingly close at just 49 units away from overtaking Olly. Come weekend, look what happened.
Olly‘s sophomore album In Case You Didn’t Know is currently charting at #2 on the UK iTunes store on its first day out. Check out the dapper man performing ‘Dance With Me Tonight’ on UK X Factor with The Muppets:
Kelendria Trene Rowland, welcome back to the muhfuggin’ UK charts. ‘Down For Whatever’ enters at #6 this week, becoming the former-DC glamazon’s sixth solo Top 10 hit in the region. She’ll be engaging in some serious promo this week to flog the international edition of Here I Am which features her two huge dance collabos: ‘When Love Takes Over’ (with David Guetta) and ‘What A Feeling’ (with Alex Gaudino). Here I Am (International Edition) is currently charting at #26 on UK iTunes on its first day out.
Meanwhile across the Atlantic, Kelendria‘s ‘Lay It On Me’ can probably be written off as a certified flop. The summer radio ready smash sinks to #77 on the US R&B/Hip Hop charts, unable to even scale the Top 30 following ‘Motivation’‘s surprise #1 reign just a few months ago.
Rebecca Ferguson‘s gorgeous debut single ‘Nothing’s Real But Love’ enters at #10 on the UK charts this week. No, it isn’t crash hot by any major label pop star’s standards but I have a really soft spot for the girl. My mind, body and spirit is completely ready for her album Heaven, which arrives next Monday in the UK.
Watch Rebecca‘s charming interview on This Morning and performance of ‘Nothing’s Real But Love’:
One Direction‘s Up All Night debuts at #2 in the UK this week, managing 138,000 opening week sales. The lads’ single ‘Gotta Be You’ does a death drop from its #3 debut last week to #16.
Here in Australia, the physical copy of Up All Night is going at retail outlets for $13 – certainly an enticing offer given that they’re only really known for one very new hit single at the moment. The album is currently placed at #9 on Aussie iTunes. Over on our ARIA Top 100, ‘What Makes You Beautiful’ rises to #8 this week while its b-side ‘Na Na Na’ has astonishingly made it at #84.
The Saturdays‘ On Your Radar shockingly debuts at #23 on the UK charts this week, making it the girls’ first album to completely miss the Top 10. Fuck, I know the album wasn’t that great but surely it deserved more than this epic floppage? Regardless of the results, On Your Radar has surprisingly been quietly released on Aussie iTunes – making this the first Saturdays album to reach our shores since Chasing Lights. I need to lie down.
Pixie Lott continues the flow of British pop flops with Young Foolish Happy plummeting from #18 to #42 in its second week. Her underappreciated new single ‘What Do You Take Me For’ sinks from #20 to #42. Pixie‘s label has swung into damage control, bringing forward the third single – ‘Kiss The Stars’ – for a 26 December release. Here in Australia, I guess Pixie‘s Young Foolish Happy is doing alright to even be seen at #165 on our Aussie iTunes chart.
Watch Pixie flog ‘What Do You Take Me For’ on Loose Women:
The X Factor Finalists 2011‘s charity single ‘Wishing On A Star’ is surprisingly reigning at #1 on the UK iTunes chart right now on its first day out. Surprising reception given how shit it is but also altogether unsurprising given the involvement of JLS and One Direction.
Drake scores the third largest opening week album sales of 2011 with Take Care pushing 631,000 copies to debut at #1 on the US Billboard 200. It’s a sizable improvement on Drake‘s 2010 smash Thank Me Later, which managed 447,000 first week sales to also debut at #1.
Adele‘s 21 clocks its 39th consecutive week in the US Billboard 200 Top 5 bracket, making history as the longest time an album has remained in the Top 5 since its debut. The last record holder was Michael Jackson‘s legendary 1987 album Bad, which clocked 38 weeks.
Watch Adele perform ‘Turning Tables’ live at Royal Albert Hall:
Glee‘s The Christmas Album, Vol. 2 debuts at #6 in the US Billboard 200 at #6, pulling 71,000 opening week sales. Talk about a significant drop compared to the cast’s first Christmas album, which debuted at #8 with 161,000 first week sales last year.
Elsewhere, the Glee cast’s A-grade mash up of Adele‘s ‘Rumour Has It/ Someone Like You’ debuts at #5 on the US Billboard Digital Songs chart, racking up 160,000 downloads. This is now Glee‘s fifth largest weekly sales figure for any of their singles. ‘Rumour Has It/ Someone Like You’ is only bettered by ‘Teenage Dream’ (214,000), ‘Loser Like Me’ (one of two originals written for the cast – 210,000), ‘Forget You’ (192,000) and ‘Don’t Stop Believin” (177,000).
Mariah Carey continues to bathe in gold this lucrative Christmas season. Her classic ‘All I Want For Christmas’ is currently covered in three albums in the US Billboard Top 10 – Michael Buble‘s seasonal record (#2), Bieber‘s Under The Mistletoe (#5) and Glee‘s newest Christmas album (#6).
Selena Gomez & The Scene‘s ‘Love You Like A Love Song’ still has some unbelievable mileage left in it. The single rises to #46 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and the A-level remixes soar to #2 on the dance/club play chart.
Watch the stunning video for Selena‘s next single ‘Hit The Lights’:
Other notable new entries on the dance/club play chart include Taio Cruz and Flo Rida‘s ‘Hangover’ (the biggest debut at #33), Florence + The Machine‘s ‘Shake It Out’ (entering at #45) and Flo Rida‘s ‘Good Feeling’ (opening at #46).
