Fastball "Little White Lies"

Fastball was formed in 1994 by native Texans Joey Shuffield and Miles Zuniga along with So-Cal transplant Tony Scalzo. After “The Way” was released in 1998, Fastball moved to the big time and has been putting out quality albums ever since. After a four year break, Little White Lies is released today. One thing the band has kept up is the knack for coming up with great hooks that don’t leave your head. “All I Was Looking For Was You” is a textbook example of melodic rock with immediately accessible riffs and hand claps. The sweet harmonies are as tight as ever on “Always/Never” and showcases the bands mellower side. Another standout “The Malcontent (The Modern World)” is very reminiscent of “The Way” in song structure, and the lyrics are a scathing comment on the rock star life. The other tracks here are also fully engaging, including the title track “Little White Lies” and the European flavored “Angelie.” My favorite track here is the awesome instrumentation and arrangements on “Mono to Stereo” guaranteed to get your head moving to the beat. The approaches slightly change from track to track and keep things moving well, “She’s Got the Rain” is another gem, lead with a great piano rhythm. The band loosens up even more as the album moves forward, for example the part Stones, part Dylan-like “We’ll Always Have Paris” is rousing bar room guitar romp, with some nice harmony accents. This is a refreshing release that fans of Fastball will cherish, as well as newer fans that aren’t familiar with them. So yes, this is a highly enjoyable and recommended addition to your ipod playlist.

Spinning Lucy "The Everything Pill"

Philadelphia’s Spinning Lucy got me hooked with the dramatic melody of the opener “Star Sign” and it shows the debut of a tight rock band with great talent. Vocalist Will Roberts leads the band from track to track without sounding cliche or having the tracks wallow in self pity. The bands sound is comparable to the Gin Blossoms meet The Rembrandts with a touch of Jimmy Eat World. The songs are all well performed with a matter-of-fact upbeat approach despite the dark subject matter. It took a few listens to see the themes of death and regret in songs like “Digging Up Bones” and “Hello.” The serious lyrics and wonderfully crisp hooks make “Lions” a real winner here. The band’s take on love to loss and back again in “Crowning” and “Ghost In You” puts them a step above most catchy rock bands. The latter songs lyrics speak of acceptance with lines like, “If you forgive the monsters in me/then I’ll forgive the ghosts in you.” The adventurous story in “Goldilocks” doesn’t seem to keep pace with the melody, although the guitar break is really nice here. The arrangements are a little too even handed in places without giving the listener a hook to hang to on “Letting You Down” and the faux orchestral “Flavor Of The Weak” can get a bit pretentious, but the hidden instrumental track at the end is a nice finish. With a little more concentration on hooks, this band should continue to prosper. Keep your eyes on these guys, as they could break out big time with this album.

New Jeff Larson project in the works.

This is a project mainly consisting of new songs produced and written by Gerry Beckley (America). The album title and release date is TBD. Special guests include Dewey (Bunnell), Rusty Young, Jeff Foskett and others. Give a listen to this work in progress… I always look forward to a Jeff Larson release.

My Space | Jeff’s website

El Goodo "Feel So Fine"


Today, Welsh pop wizards, El Goodo‘s video for the single, “Feel so Fine,” hits the web. See the album review here. Filmed at an old Welsh abbey ruins site in the valleys of West Wales outside of Port Talbot, the birthplace of Anthony Hopkins and the city that inspired Bladerunner, the video was costumed by Marigold Costuming whose other claims to fame are costuming for Dr. Who and the Welsh Opera. It was directed by Mie Sorensen, who has worked for MTV, Nickelodeon and VH1. Unfortunately, while filming, an El Goodo member accidently caused a fire which interrupted the last parts of filming and almost burned down remaining parts of the abbey. The police were called by a local farmer and subsequently Miss Sorensen spent the night in the Neath jail under suspicion of arson. Luckily, no serious damage was done, and hopefully all charges will soon be dropped. Talk about getting burned!

The Office "Mecca" FREE ALBUM DOWNLOAD

I’ve always been a fans of Chicago’s Office and it’s catchy indie pop sound. Band leader Scott Mason recently gave us pop fans a gift — their new album as a free download. And oh yes, it well worth the effort. Mecca has a steady rhythm and swaggering guitar riffs blended with a thick synth gloss. I like to think of them as Sparks meets The Shins. The songs start off on the Queen influenced “Sticky Dew” with a great chorus and it just gets better from there. You can’t beat the chiming genius of “Enter Me, Exit You,” where melodic multi tracking bliss and a big beat are just awesome ear candy. In Scott’s Blog he gives us the raw tracks on how he built this album’s signature song. This is a fascinating listen with all the parts broken out (so you musicians take note). The other songs are all really good too, (no filler here) and at this price I will not complain. This is a great follow up to the sound of “Q&A” from a few years ago, and Mason’s band just gets better the more I hear it. Fans of Queen, 10cc and  The Minus Five will simply go spastic over this manna from The Office. You have no reason NOT to get this one.