By Jan 
The top prize for October goes to Fontaines D.C., a band that strikes a chord with both young and old! After “Where Is Gone”, “Tongue” and “Marianne”, it is now surely the turn of “Japan” (#1) to become the fourth obvious single from the album Dopamine. The song immediately stands out as the most melodic track on the album.
Just below the top spot, the ’80s and ’90s are making a massive comeback, represented respectively by Morten Harket of A-ha fame (#2), the comeback of our northern neighbours Fatal Flowers (#3), the androgynous presence of Placebo’s Brian Molko (#4), and the ever-present Waterboys (#5). I never thought that the ancient traditional song “Greensleeves” would ever make it into one of my charts, but Mike Scott and company have pulled it off!
This month, I was surprised myself by the number of downtempo tracks in the list (some of which might even be considered sleep-inducing by certain listeners). It all started with “If I Ever See Your Face Again” (#2), by the Scandinavian bard, and “Greensleeves” (#5) by the Scottish-Irish Waterboys. But Neil Young (#7), Passenger (#9), Brandon Flowers (#11) and Jonas Winterland (#20) also seem to have trouble getting the BPM off the starting blocks!
Six Belgian acts in the October chart is another pleasant surprise. It kicks off with Girls in Hawaii (#15), closely followed by Wouter Thijssen (#17) and PYO ft The Haunted Youth (#18). The aforementioned Jonas Winterland cuts the list in half at number 20.
Finally, congratulations to Sharp Cookies for their second single, “Always On” (#32), which has yet to appear on YouTube. That is why, for the time being, we have put their debut single “Surrender”, released four years ago, in the spotlight on that channel. West Flemish rap artist Flip Kowlier (#35) completes the line-up of local talent.
October is usually a month with plenty of exposure, and this year is no exception! No fewer than 22 fresh, and slightly less fresh, tracks piled up on the sidelines.
The artists: Boo Radleys / David Byrne ft Daniel Pemberton / Erasure / Fenne Lily / Guido Belcanto, whose rendition of “El Bandido” just failed to win me over / Heather Nova / nose-pinching Jake Bugg / James Blunt (believe it or not!) / J. Bernardt / Kings of Leon / Meltheads / Morrissey / Ozark Henry / Peter Gabriel / Portugal. The Man / Tramhaus / Bettie Serveert / Eels / Everlast / Johnny Stage ft Chris Spedding / Brian Fallon ft Brandon Flowers, and finally Phil Lynott, whose version of “Dirty Old Town” narrowly missed the cut this month.
(Jan VH)
Playlist
1 – Fontaines D.C. – Japan
2 – Morten Harket – If I Ever See Your Face Again
3 – Fatal Flowers – I’m Alright Now
4 – Placebo – Helen Keller
5 – Waterboys – Greensleeves
6 – Fat Dog – Snakes
7 – Neil Young & The Chrome Hearts – Day After Day
8 – Gary Calamar ft Robyn Hitchcock – Who Are We Gonna Be Today?
9 – Passenger – Ghosts
10 – Rolling Stones – You Know I’m No Good
11 – Brandon Flowers ft Felice County Fair – Days of the Years
12 – Palaye Royale – Lost in Translation
13 – Bruce Cockburn – Four Strong Winds
14 – The Fall – Colonel’s Retreat
15 – Girls in Hawaii – Drifting in the Summer Rain
16 – Jayhawks – Sanctuary Park
17 – Wouter Thijssen – Broer
18 – PYO ft The Haunted Youth – Midnight Sunlight
19 – Echo & The Bunnymen – Can’t Be Sold
20 – Jonas Winterland – Families Meet Een Barst
21 – Dinosaur Jr. – Walk Me Back
22 – Kasabian – Soulmate
23 – Teenage Fanclub – I Do Not Dare to Dream
24 – L7 – Loma Linda
25 – Johnny Marr – Beyond the Rain
26 – The Clockworks – Masquerade
27 – Westside Cowboy – Paperchains
28 – The Church – Sky and Hill
29 – Greta Van Fleet – Heya
30 – Warhaus – One Day
31 – Smashing Pumpkins – Black Stars
32 – Sharp Cookies – Always On
33 – Yesteban ft Peter Doherty – Grab
34 – Richard Thompson – Pauper’s Grave
35 – Flip Kowlier – Geldboom
36 – Ben Vaughn ft Deer Tick – Rain Songs
37 – U2 – The Greatest Show on Earth
38 – Mogwai ft Iggy Pop – Underground
39 – Blondie – Spectral Eyes
40 – Temper Trap (War Child Australia) – Wide Open Road