This is the final countdown of 2011, so it's nice that this week's Top 10 of the Billboard Rock Songs chart features some new blood. We've got two debuts as well as some tracks that are moving up and down the chart. Plus, two veteran bands show their clout by landing not one but two tunes in the Top 10. Here's a hint: One of them just got voted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
10. Avenged Sevenfold - "Buried Alive"
Photo courtesy Total Assault.
It's been more than a year since Avenged Sevenfold's most recent album, Nightmare, came out, but it keeps spinning off hit singles. This week, "Buried Alive" cracks the Top 10, landing at No. 10.
9. Red Hot Chili Peppers - "Monarchy of Roses"
Photo courtesy Warner Bros.
The week's highest debut comes from Red Hot Chili Peppers. "Monarch of Roses" is the opening track off I'm With You, and it bolts onto our chart at No. 9. The band will kick off their U.S. tour on January 20.
8. Red Hot Chili Peppers - "The Adventures of Rain Dance Maggie"
Photo courtesy Warner Bros.
The Peppers make another appearance on our countdown at No. 8. "The Adventures of Rain Dance Maggie" had been No. 1 for eight weeks back in late summer, but this week it sits at No. 8 for a third straight week.
7. Seether - "Tonight"
Photo courtesy Wind-Up.
"Tonight" falls to No. 7 after two weeks at No. 6. That may be a bummer for Seether, but the band got some good news recently when it was announced that Billboard declared the group's "Country Song" the Active Rock Song of the Year. Plus, Seether were selected as the year's No. 1 Active Rock Artist, as well as the No. 1 Heritage Rock Artist of 2011.
6. Foo Fighters - "These Days"
Photo courtesy RCA.
"These Days" hasn't rocketed up the charts like Foo Fighters' two previous singles, "Rope" and "Walk," but it's making steady progress. This week, the Wasting Light hit moves up a notch to No. 6.
5. Foo Fighters - "Walk"
Photo courtesy RCA.
Speaking of "Walk," it takes a bit of a tumble, falling two spots to No. 5. Still, don't feel too sad for "Walk": It ended up as the No. 3 Rock Song of 2011, according to Billboard and Nielsen BDS. (What was No. 1? Why, Foo Fighters' "Rope," of course, which was at No. 1 for 20 weeks.)
4. Coldplay - "Paradise"
Photo courtesy Capitol.
Holding down the No. 4 spot for a fourth week in a row is "Paradise" from Coldplay. The Mylo Xyloto cut reached as high as No. 3 on our countdown, although it did reach No. 1 on the Alternative Songs chart.
3. Chevelle - "Face to the Floor"
Photo courtesy MSO.
Hats off to Chevelle. The band, who just released Hats Off to the Bull, have this week's highest climber. "Face to the Floor" leaps up two places to No. 3, making it very possible Chevelle could be the chart's champion in the near future.
2. Bush - "The Sound of Winter"
Photo: Jason Kempin/Getty Images.
One of the signs of the popularity of a rock song is that even when its No. 1 reign ends, it stays high on the chart for weeks afterward. Such is the case with Bush's "The Sound of Winter," which after sitting atop our countdown for five weeks is at No. 2 for a second straight week.
1. The Black Keys - "Lonely Boy"
Photo: Jason Merritt/Getty Images.
"Lonely Boy" is No. 1 on the Rock Songs countdown for a second week in a row. The single, off El Camino, also ended up ranking very highly on my list of 2011's best rock songs.
