HRD Radio Report – Week Ending 3/3/18

 HRD Radio Report – Week Ending 3/3/18

Every Tuesday on HardRockDaddy.com.  The HRD Radio Report digs deeper into the weekly Active Rock charts, providing commentary, reviews, recommendations and predictions.  It also features opinion pieces on chart action and the music business in general. The following is the Active Rock Mediabase Chart for the week ending 3/3/18. All exclusive HRD content is featured below the chart:

CHART	CHART	ARTIST	SONG TITLE	RADIO
POSITION	POSITION			SPINS
THIS WEEK	LAST WEEK
1	1	PAPA ROACH	“Born For Greatness”	1860
2	3	GRETA VAN FLEET	“Safari Song”	1847
3	2	POP EVIL	“Waking Lions”	1830
4	5	BREAKING BENJAMIN	“Red Cold River”	1447
5	4	METALLICA	“Spit Out The Bone”	1363
6	7	THREE DAYS GRACE	“The Mountain”	1311
7	6	STONE TEMPLE PILOTS	“Meadow”	1143
8	11	FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH	“Gone Away”	1136
9	10	NOTHING MORE	“Do You Really Want It?”	1098
10	8	ROYAL BLOOD	“I Only Lie When I Love You”	889
11	15	RISE AGAINST	“House On Fire”	878
12	14	IN THIS MOMENT	“Roots”	820
13	16	I PREVAIL	“Lifelines”	784
14	13	ASKING ALEXANDRIA	“Into The Fire”	784
15	17	RED SUN RISING	“Deathwish”	739
16	18	BAD WOLVES	“Zombie”	676
17	19	THEORY OF A DEADMAN	“Straight Jacket”	591
18	20	JONATHAN DAVIS	“What It Is”	573
19	21	FOZZY	“Painless”	490
20	23	A PERFECT CIRCLE	“The Doomed”	475
21	26	MUSE	“Thought Contagion”	451
22	27	JUDAS PRIEST	“Lightning Strike”	363
23	22	BUSH	“This Is War”	307
24	24	AVATAR	“The King Wants You”	293
25	0	GODSMACK	“Bulletproof”	282
26	29	MYLES KENNEDY	“Year Of The Tiger”	276
27	28	A DAY TO REMEMBER	“Same About You”	268
28	31	DOROTHY	“Flawless”	253
29	30	CHRIS STAPLETON	“Midnight Train To Memphis”	232
30	32	OF MICE & MEN	“Money”	207
31	35	DED	“Hate Me”	199
32	25	RED	“Still Alive”	197
33	34	BLACK VEIL BRIDES	“The Last One”	185
34	37	FROM ASHES TO NEW	“Crazy”	172
35	33	FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH	“Trouble”	166
36	39	SHAMAHN’S HARVEST	“The Devil In Our Wake”	151
37	38	IMAGINE DRAGONS	“Whatever It Takes”	149
38	36	DEADSET SOCIETY	“Automatic”	130
39	45	MARILYN MANSON	“Tattooed In Reverse”	119
40	43	MESSER	“Make This Life”	116
41	42	ZERO THEOREM	“Area”	115
42	44	KILLERS	“Run For Cover”	102
43	64	TRIVIUM	“Endless Night”	92
44	46	FEVER 333	“Walking In My Shoes”	80
45	47	JOSH TODD & THE CONFLICT	“Story Of My Life”	60
46	49	MACHINE HEAD	“Bastards”	54
47	48	JIBE	“Release”	54
48	52	THE OUTFIT	“Soldier Boy”	53
49	51	JACOB CADE	“What’s Your Problem?!”	51
50	73	BLACK MAP	“Let Me Out’	49

 

 

PUBLISHER’S PICK OF THE WEEK (By Adam Waldman)

GODSMACK – “Bulletproof”

When you have a voice as distinct as Sully Erna’s, it doesn’t matter what songwriting changes you make.  “Bulletproof” – Godsmack’s latest single from their upcoming April release – is a perfect example of a different kind of song still maintaining a signature sound.

There is a certain expectation when you hear that a new Godsmack record is coming out.  Because “Bulletproof” is something of a deviation from the norm, I’ve seen some mixed reviews by fans who were anxiously awaiting new material from the band.  Although I loved the song from the first listen, my recommendation to fans would be to give “Bulletproof” several listens before passing judgment.  Ironically, the song is about putting up a wall to protect yourself from those who prey on your vulnerabilities.

Discussing the material on Godsmack’s upcoming album – When Legends Rise – Erna stated…

“I wanted to stretch my wings out even further to use all the experiences I’ve had with writing different types of music over the years and applying that to find a way to introduce a newer, fresher, more mature sound, but still maintaining the power of Godsmack.”

Is “Bulletproof” a more mature sound?  Unquestionably, but with bands as good as Godsmack, this type of evolution should be embraced.  To ask them to only do more of what they’ve been doing for years is a disservice to both the band and the fans.  This song builds upon the foundation that Godsmack has laid over the years, and infuses it with some big hooks and an infectious melody.  It’s already one of the best songs of 2018.

Making its debut in the #25 position this week on the Active Rock chart shows that “Bulletproof” is already gaining traction.  It would be surprising if this song isn’t battling for the #1 spot in the not-too-distant future.

 

 

PUBLISHER’S PREDICTIONS (By Adam Waldman)

If recent history has shown us anything, it’s that there can be unpredictability at the top.  Just when it looks like a song has peaked after a week of declining spins, the trend reverses.  That being said, I was wrong to count out Greta Van Fleet last week after they declined while Papa Roach and Pop Evil increased.  The trend can certainly reverse again, but usually once a #1 song starts to decline, their reign on top is coming to an end.  Based on this week’s trend, it’s a virtual lock that Papa Roach will be dethroned next week by either Greta Van Fleet or Pop Evil.  The duo is separated by only 17 spins, so it’s anyone’s guess which one emerges on top next week.
 

 

HRD SPIN CONTROL (by Adam Waldman and Jon Loveless)

Each week, we will share the songs that we think should be added to rotations, alongside the songs that we feel should be dropped from rotations, either because they are a bad fit for the format, or because they have run their course and it’s time for a new single from the artist.

SPIN IT…

BLACK LABEL SOCIETY – “A Love Unreal”

WAYLAND – “Ghost”

FACING FIRE – “Filthy Life”

THE LAZYS – “Nothing But Trouble”

BOBAFLEX – “Lights Out”

ANOTHER LOST YEAR – “Call It Like It Is”

HEAVEN & EARTH – “Hard to Kill”

BLACK WATER RISING – “The Payback”

 

DROP IT…

Imagine Dragons – “Whatever It Takes”

The Fever 333 – “Walking In My Shoes”

Muse – “Thought Contagion”

Bush – “This Is War”

Chris Stapleton – “Midnight Train To Memphis”

Royal Blood – “I Only Lie When I Love You”

Marilyn Manson – “Tattooed In Reverse”

The Outfit – “Soldier Boy”

 

 

THE BREAKDOWN (by Jon Loveless)

NOTABLE CHART MOVEMENT

Five Finger Death Punch makes it two-for-two for Top Ten singles from their Greatest Hits package…

Fozzy leads a pair of new arrivals in the Top 20…

Definitely a warm reception for new music from Godsmack, which headlines three new entrants in the Top 30…

The final two spots of the Top 40 are taken by ascending tracks from Marilyn Manson and Messer…

Overshadowed somewhat by the high debut in the middle of the chart this week, four other songs make their Top 50 debut, including the next single from Trivium.
 

 

THREE UP & THREE DOWN

RISING
Five Finger Death Punch – “Gone Away”
Bad Wolves – “Zombie”
Muse – “Thought Contagion”

 

FALLING
Stone Temple Pilots – “Meadow”
Royal Blood – “I Only Lie When I Love You”
Bush – “This Is War”
 

 

 TRENDS AND OBSERVATIONS

Perseverance pays off for a pair of songs this week near the bottom of the published chart.  The Outfit and Jacob Cade both make their Top 50 debuts with new songs, but on some stations, the songs aren’t exactly “new.”  Both “Soldier Boy” and “What’s Your Problem” have been getting airplay in numerous places – albeit in relatively low amounts – since around Thanksgiving.  Now, as Easter approaches, the songs both break through the ceiling a bit.   The slow ascent creates a new challenge for both record promoters and reporting stations alike:  how to keep those initial spins long enough to gain additional believers for a climb.   However, the early adopting stations have to be wary of going too long on songs that they’ve already given their audiences months to hear.  It’s one of the toughest situations for actual decision makers at the station level.  On one hand, you’re happy to see a song you believed in having some success, while at the same time, your primary objective has to be doing what’s best for your station and your audience.   It’s a tricky proposition all around when support is strung out in this fashion.

 

WRAP-UP

That’s all for this week.  Tune in to HardRockDaddy.com every Tuesday for the HRD Radio Report. \m/