Author: powerpopaholic

Bracket “Hold Your Applause”

powerpopaholic

Bracket is a rock band from Forestville, California that gives us power pop in the tradition of Superdrag, Extreme and Sugarbomb or more simply put, Bracket combines buzzsaw punk guitar with heavenly harmonies. The band has been around since the early ’90s consisting of lead vocalist and guitarist Marty Gregori, bassist and backing vocalist Zack Charlos, drummer Ray Castro and guitarist and backing vocalist Angelo Celli. The arrangements have a rich baroque feel, performed with an aggressive guitar attack at the forefront – a trick few bands can do convincingly.

It grows on you like moss, starting with the vocal multi-tracked “Not A Pear” the brilliant harmonies and ukelele strum coming forward. “Caving In” and “The Light” have catchy melodies led by a riff attack in each chorus. “She’s My Eraser” adds a Jellyfish-like composition to the mix. The bands range is also impressive, “Mandy Lynn” is at its most romantic while “The Opportunist” is a fast paced punk effort. However the album is best represented by the pensive, layered songs like “My Phantom Limb” being my favorite highlight. The latter half gets a bit more influence from The Beach Boys Smile-era with “Daddy-in-Law” and “A Striking Disappearance.” Then “Gone” and “Habit” are epic musical journeys along the lines of Queen or Lollipop Factory. The songs seamlessly blend into each other, almost to a fault. But if you liked any of the bands I mentioned above, then Hold Your Applause is required listening. Highly Recommended.

CD Baby | Amazon

Concert Review: Power Popaholic Fest – Day 2

powerpopaholic

[cycloneslider id=”power-popaholic-fest-day-2″]

Review by Barry Dreyfus | Photos courtesy of Tom Parisi and Elizabeth Racz

Having decided that one day of incredible power pop wasn’t sufficient, Day 2 picked up right about where they left off. Opening the 2nd night was Paul Bertolino, whose sophisticated take on pop harkens to Bachrach/David and a Cali sunshine feel. His voice showed power and versatility and the band, augmented by a great horn player, created a rich that layered sound. Eric Barao followed and wowed the crowd with a set of songs that ranged through a number of tempos and some songs had nice psych-pop touches.

Chris Richards & The Subtractions traveled the farthest to play this night and yet came out stormin’ with dual jangly guitars and big thumping rhythm. Playing songs from throughout their decade together (and greatest hits album Decayed), they sure showed Brooklyn what we’ve been missing. Nick Piunti (on rhythm guitar) played 2 tunes from his acclaimed CD and we were also treated to a Legal Matters song. The next artist hadn’t appeared for years on stage but the overwhelming success of Obscuriousity pushed Stephen Lawrenson to take the act on the road. And the crowd could not have been more pleased. Terse guitar leads and beautiful harmonies from his band mates added the right amount of embellishment.

If anybody’s energy was wavering NYC’s neo-mod whirlwind of sound, London Egg alleviated that by delivering a blistering set of ultra-crunchy power pop. Fleshed out with a new drummer and rhythm guitarist their focused intensity gained more “swing” and bounce to go with the thunder. A fast and furious cover of Nancy Sinatra’s “These Boots Are Made For Walking” had everyone on their feet as Powerpopaholic Fest 2014 wound down. It was a weekend of music that needed to be heard and anyone here can attest to that. Power-pop mission accomplished!

Back in Stock! The Power Pop Tee Shirt

powerpopaholic
If you were at Power Popahoplic Fest then you already knew we have the best tee shirts ever. They sold out at our merch booth, but you can still get one! Its an exclusive design you can get nowhere else. Click here and get your shirt today!
Boogieman_shirt
DJ Dave “The Boogieman” with his classic POWER POP tee in heather grey, shows off to Lisa Mychols.
Mychols_Tee
Lisa just had to get one too. The queen of Power Pop is ready to hit the stage!

The Cherry Drops and Leanne Kingwell

powerpopaholic
The Cherry Drops

The Cherry Drops “Everything’s Groovy”

Who knew you could mix Garage and Bubblegum pop with seamless precision?  The Cherry Drops have done this making a themed album that combines every 1960s power pop influence you can name. Like the Archies-styled cartoon cover the LP begins rather harmlessly with “Pop, Pop (Til You Drop),” but then shortly veers into the garage with the hand-clapping “Little Girl.” The next tune, “Outta Sight” was voted “coolest song” by Little Steven for good reason. It features a strong beat with some great layered riffs and a wicked dueling guitar solo at the break (cool, indeed!).

And its not just music, but pop culture that’s celebrated. “Shlemiel, Shlemazel, Hasenpfeffer Incorporated” is a blazing  punk surf theme, that’s a tribute to 70’s TV show “Laverne & Shirley.” The Beach Boys influenced “Summertime Is A State of Mind” soothes, and a crisp cover of The Raspberries “I Wanna Be With You” excites. In fact you’ll hear lots of familiar influences buried in the music, and its not all retro, “Let’s Bug Out” is like Weezer meets Jan & Dean and “Surfer Slut” combines Dick Dale and The B-52’s. The bottom line of all this is pure power pop fun. Highly Recommended.

Amazon

[su_spacer size=”30″]

 

Leanne Kingwell

Leanne Kingwell “Choking on Halos”

Aussie rocker Leanne Kingwell wrote “Choking On Halos” in Melbourne and recorded it in Hollywood over a period of two years. And she’s not your typical pop diva. In fact she’s the anti-diva, with influences rooted in The Clash, Nirvana, and My Chemical Romance. Starting on “This High” a dense bed of guitars form below the melody and allow Leanne’s rasp to come to the forefront. “Saviour” is a defiant but smoky approach that gives the song almost a gothic atmosphere. “Sunshine” is a pretty cool single filled with sex-filled lyrical metaphors, and think Sinead O Connor meets Romeo Void with a Pixies fetish on the title track.

Recommended tracks also include cool “My Flag On The Moon,” plus the dynamic dance tunes “Kickin” and “Slingshot.” If you are looking for pop with a deep dark edge, Leanne has you covered.

CD Baby | Amazon

Rob Bonfiglio “Freeway”

powerpopaholic
Rob Bonfiglio

On his third LP, the veteran musician (guitarist/songwriter/producer with multi-platinum pop act Wilson Philips; guitarist & co-conspirator for former RCA power-pop band Wanderlust) still knows how to create joyous power pop, like the opener “Lonely World” by contrasting the sweet chorus with the isolating lyrics “What is love, what is wealth, when you’re all by yourself?”

This effort has a more laid back California feel than previous albums, using more contemporary pop rhythms with rich melodies. “Almost Blue” is a smooth Eagles-like tune with some great slide work in the break. “I am Tomorrow” is another great song with a simple pop beat that builds into a complex tapestry of melody with sharp backing harmonies. “Beautiful” has a good mix of chord shifts and dramatic romantic lyrics. The pop craftsmanship here can’t be discounted, it’s absolutely gorgeous. Not that Rob has forgotten how to rock, “Best Plans Never Made” is an excellent rocker with a nod to Ringo and Paul, catchy swagger and the dense guitar outro.

The album goes through adult themes like hope, forgiveness and the frustrations of life and love. Bonfiglio’s pop sensibility is similar to Andrew Gold with the bouncy “Under The Gun” and the sunny “Golden State” with its sunny, deliberate tempo and some heavenly harmonies very reminiscent of Bob’s famous father-in-law. Overall a low pressure album that hits all the right notes, even with the slight instrumental “Prelude”and it makes my year end list for 2014.

Amazon | CD Baby