Author: powerpopaholic

Grace Basement "Gunmetal Gray"

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St. Louis’ Grace Basement is led by multi-instrumentalist Kevin Buckley who has quite a knack for writing concise pop gems. It’s pretty evident from the opening track “There He Goes” that the harmonies and chord minor changes are very infectious, and the addition of fiddle backing is an added bonus. The dance hall influenced melody of “Tilly Lingers” is another catchy gem along the lines of Harry Nilsson and XTC. Unlike the solo approach of the debut album New Sense, Buckley is assisted by guitarist Ben Phillips, bassist Mike Zapf and drummer Sean Price – it gives the entire album fuller sound. The smart pop sound avoids being too quirky — like Jon Brion or Ben Kweller without the over indulgent dramatics. The urbane arrangements at the albums mid point (like “Why Would I Wait For Another?” and “Warships”) come closer to the latter-era Camper Van Beethoven or Whiskeytown. The mature acoustic guitar on “Highway” is meticulously constructed and “Golden Bell” has a wonderful melody and weary vocal that brings to mind Scott McCaughey (Minus Five) or Ryan Adams. The album ends with the orchestral flourishes of “Land of Endless Change,” a fitting finale of Beach Boys styled vocal harmony, guitar and strings. This LP is a high watermark in the bands development and it’s most definitely worth adding to your pop collection.

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The Saltshakers "Lights Out"

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Chad Curtis of The Saltshakers has created a more garage-styled follow up to the Up All Night LP. With the addition of guitarist Nick Woods (Box Social) and bassist Jamie Owart the band still has that high energy sugar shot that pop fans expect and admire. Similar to Weezer or The Buzzcocks in tone and relentless pace, it blasts through the catchy opener “Please Don’t Walk Away” so well it sounds effortless. The songs are deceptively simple but full of great hooks, and a great example is “This World Can Wear Us Down” with a killer rhythm guitar riff. And it channels a bit of The Replacements manic spirit on “West Coast.” Some songs don’t quite hit the same high points (“Bedhead”) but are performed with an uninhibited charm. Chad remarked that this is “Pop music with more guts,” and it’s hard to argue against songs that make instant 3-minute concert themes like “Take You With Me.” However, it would have helped to have a ballad or another mid-tempo number like “Too Early To Tell” to give listeners some space to appreciate the fast pop-rock tunes, which can wear you down after a while. On the other hand, this is an album you can roll down the windows to and turn it up loud as the wind blows through your hair.

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International Pop Overthrow "Vol. 12"

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As the last note ends in IPO New York, I wanted to listen to the latest compilation, David Bash’s International Pop Overthrow Vol.12. This year the bands are more varied and less constricted by genre orthodoxy and this makes for a better and more representative group of power pop bands. There are 3CDs full of 70 bands and 70 songs, so I’ll pick out some of my favorite tracks here.


Disc#1: Starting with a bang is expected and it delivers with The Syrups‘ “Miss I Don’t Understand.” The band picks up the mantle of the melodic Chris Breetveld (Breetles) with catchy exuberance. Another winner is the fast rhythms of The Humbugs “One More Day.” What would a pop compilation be without some hero worship in a novelty song? The Help Desk become total sycophants with “The Jellyfish Song” in that category. While we’re on that subject, The Tearaways “Under The Bus” grabs George Harrison’s “The Word” and makes good use of it’s Beatlesque riffs. A gentler combination of Beatles and Byrds are on The Starfire Band‘s “Thank You Much.” Disc#2: Very strong “Rubber Sole” by The Mayflowers are just perfect here, and the rich contrasts of mid-tempo melody and “Mean Mr. Mustard” piano in “Pictures of A Masquerade” by Ralph Covert & The Bad Examples make it a keeper too. Great female pop is represented by both Lisa Mycols (“Heart Beats In Stereo”) and Soundserif (“Happy Since I Resigned”). The Leftovers‘ “Telephone Operator” channels classic Elvis Costello pretty well and Clockwise‘s “Boomtown” gets into a Joe Jackson meets The Jam groove. And if you want a Smithereens/Who approach then Steven Deal‘s “Valentine” fits the bill. Disc#3: Two legends of power pop (KC Bowman & Andrea Perry) join together to make an awesome tune in “Sorting Out The Rules” that would make XTC proud. The superior vocals of Philip Vandermost make “Again and Again” work beyond the average pop song here. And once again Laurie Biagini fills our Beach Boys needs with “Another Old Lazy Lyin‘ On The Beach Afternoon.” This last disc also concentrates on progressive power pop from Steven Lawrenson (“Ordinary”) and the 80’s influences of The Mayberry, The Romeo Flynns and Buddy Love take up a big chunk of time here.

Bottom line: Take a chance on this set and I’m sure you’ll “discover” a new favorite band or two as most of the tracks here are really very good. Getting this compilation is also a quick way to becoming an expert in this genre (aka a power popaholic). Only a limited supply is pressed, so it’s a collectible item as well.

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power pop reviews, power pop and rock and roll opinions. Power pop and even more power pop and rock and roll.

Paul McCartney Shows in December. Tickets are available.

powerpopaholic

I will be reviewing IPO in New York tonight, but what else is there left to say about Paul McCartney? Former Beatle and knight of realm, the likely lad from Liverpool remains the iconic star of his generation. Possessing one of the great voices in rock ‘n roll, a magnetic stage presence and boundless energy, Sir Paul is a master showman and there are few greater thrills in live music than being at a Paul McCartney show. Paul McCartney tickets are always in high demand as the ex-Beatle takes his hit filled set-list on the road again for a series of sure to be sell-out dates. Paul had finished his American concert tour this past summer, but that doesn’t mean he’s finished. Early December you can get concert tickets to shows through 5 different European countries.

So if you’re living in or visiting Germany, Holland, France, Ireland or England next month, why not get your hands on some Paul McCartney Tickets?

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John Shaughnessy "Re-occuring Dream"

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You can’t peg John Shaughnessy’s acoustic-based power pop to one specific style, but you can listen in rapt attention to the great quality of the songwriting and melodies here. Assisted by Smash Palace’s Stephen Butler and IKE’s Brett Talley, John creates a wonderful organic sound that is naturally rhythmic and hopeful, influenced by classic 70’s artists and the Beatles. The opening title track is a fun folk-pop guitar tune with a double tracked vocal, and the follow up “Feeling’ Good Again” is a classic power pop tune with a jangley upbeat tempo. “In The Morning” brought back visions of Gordon Lightfoot to mind for me. Shaughnessy’s multi-faceted approach may be jarring at times, going from slow folk themes (“Don’t Let Go”) to early 80’s styled pop rock (“Dorothy Reminds Me”). The countrified Beatles meets Harry Chapin of “Chasing The Wind” is a delightful spiritual gem and my favorite here. These are all good songs here, each one is anchored by John’s steady vocal and professional musicianship. I look forward to more from Shaughnessy.

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