UK Midweek Charts Roundup - Thursday 23rd Sept

Welcome to Thursday’s chart update, where the top three is still anybody’s game! Bruno Mars maintains his lead at #1, as predicted, whilst Taio Cruz is still holding strong at #2. However, Emma’s Imagination has been pushed out of the top three but a certain Miss Perry with her ‘Teenage Dream’ obviously catching more people’s imagination than...well...you get the jist...

The Script keep their place at the end of the top five, followed by Alex Burke whose tears are most likely still drip dropping down low, much like her single. Eminem has a spot at #7, whilst Shontelle keeps a steady position at #8. Finally, Alex Guadino has cracked the top 10 with his single ‘I’m In Love.’

Climbing up the chart and heading for the top 10 are Enrique and Nicole’s duet ‘Heartbeat’ which is released next week, (Review on its way...) and Charice and Iyaz’s collaboration ‘Pyramid.’

See you soon ;-)

Charice ft. Iyaz - Pyramid

New comer Charice, brought to fame by the Philippine show 'Star King' launches her debut single 'Pyramid' this week, a comfortable but safe song featuring rapper Iyaz.


Harbouring a fairly average beat throughout the track, things get off to a slow start. Charice's vocals are fairly gentle as she croons about the consistently generic ideas of love standing the test of time etc etc, and it would seem that she is far more able to hit the lower notes of the song perfectly, whilst as we move up the scale it feels a little screechy.


Iyaz's contribution shows that he really doesn't have much versatility, his sample could literally be cut from any other of his own tracks and nobody would know any different. Furthermore, although it is almost definitely through no fault of his own, his lyrics are essentially corny and make this track seem as though it is almost exclusively aimed at the young teen market.


Once Charice and Iyaz's vocals are combined, they create quite a nice blend and I find the effect to be chilled, perhaps something you would hear as background music. However, the very basis of the track itself, the idea of their love resembling a pyramid, only goes so far before it becomes almost painfully tedious. It would seem that the lyricist has attempted to be original by creating this story but has tried too hard and the end result is laborious and somewhat vapid.


Charice goes all out in the finale of the track, really displaying her vocal range and showing real effort, which marginally saves this song and is what is likely to have landed her a role in hit TV series 'Glee.' Charice deserves to do well, but either way, thanks her her new TV role even if this single bombs it isn't the last we've seen of the Philippine songstress.


7/10 - Just lacking Spice :-(

Iyaz - So Big

Oh Iyaz...Iyaz, Iyaz, Iyaz...after his huge smash 'Replay' it seemed that we were on to the next big thing with this pop-come-r'n'b artist who could drop a killer hook. Now onto his third offering, however, and it would appear that Iyaz is becoming nothing less than predictable.


As with many US stars, Iyaz chooses to sing about how his love being 'So Big,' (Something to compensate for hmmm?) towards his girlfriend in this track, as well as the clichéd lines of how he loves to "...party it up, so big, spend it up, so big..." in the manner of a whole host of other egocentric US r'n'b stars.


The chorus sounds like a generic Ne-Yo leftover, essentially forgettable despite its feeble efforts to be a catchy number. Perhaps better production could have saved this song from being so mind-numbingly dull, a more upbeat tempo to suit the lyrics may have worked wonders, but for a song claiming to describe the passion felt for his partner the song lacks just that - passion of any kind.


The song seems more suited to being an album track than an actual release, especially now that the fire of 'Replay' would appear to be spent. There's no conviction to 'So Big,' although after a couple of listens the chorus may linger in your mind, it definitely won't me "...stuck on replay" for long.


4/10 - Ice :-(