1. Linkin Park - “Waiting For The End”
At first, I was just grateful they finally made a midtempo power ballad song that departed from the “In The End”/”Numb”/”What I’ve Done” formula, then I realized how cleverly structured it is, and that the beat is quietly, unassumingly the most convincing attempt at hip hop production the band has ever managed.

2. Keri Hilson - “Pretty Girl Rock”
I heard this on the radio a few days ago and it just grabbed me instantly and felt like the best thing I’ve heard in a minute. Keri’s first album was alright but given that its 2 biggest hits were driven by famous guests, it feels like she still has some work to do about establishing her own personality and her own swag, and all these recent singles like this and “Breaking Point” and “The Way You Love Me” and the really slept on international hit “I Like” are encouraging me to anticipate her second album and see her come into her own.

3. Ciara - “Gimmie Dat”
As much I hated “Ride” and was skeptical of this whole project and a lot of my friends’ enthusiasm for it, with “Speechless” and now “Gimmie Dat” I’ve now loved two consecutive singles off this Ciara album, if it ever comes out. And this one’s a total polar opposite from the last one, Tricky Stewart giving Ciara one of the most amped up, hyper beats she’s ever gotten, which in her hands feels like “1, 2 Step” or “Lose Control” on steroid, and no The-Dream in sight to fill it with some inane attempt at a hook.

4. Soundgarden - “Black Rain”
It makes a kind of sense that a year after Pearl Jam had a rock radio hit with an outtake from their 1991 breakthrough album, their bros in Soundgarden have done the same. I’m way more into the Superunknown era than the Badmotorfinger era this song is from, but I still dig that sound, they were a great band that whole time anyway. Also fun to see them perform it on Conan’s new show the other night, I’m getting really impatient for the Soundgarden to actually tour and do some east coast shows, they got way too much attention for this reunion to do only 2 shows.

5. Ludacris f/ Lil Scrappy - “Everybody Drunk”
This was always a standout on Battle Of The Sexes, nice to finally see it be a single, although obviously it’s not getting nearly as much attention as those songs with Minaj and Trey Songz did. 8Ball’s voice should really be sampled for hooks more often.

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