Category: Highly Recommended by Powerpopaholic

Jeremy Messersmith “Heart Murmurs”

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I’ve followed Minneapolis singer-songwriter Jeremy Messersmith’s musical career from way back, and each new album shows improvement and growth, but now with Heart Murmurs I can say he’s hit his stride. Like Elliot Smith, Messersmith’s always been a master of melancholy melodies. But here he gives us an album that’s thematically well rounded about every aspect of heartbreak, from beginning to end. The glorious sound is to imagine Paul Simon as the leader of Coldplay.

Starting with “It’s Only Dancing,” about the tension of that first dance at a prom, the dense chords echo through your head. Next the single “Tourniquet” is an awesome earworm that lingers long enough for you to sing along. Sung with wistful elegance, “Steve” is told from the perspective of the best friend with a secret crush. “Ghost” is another heavy beat gem about leaving the past behind, contrast that with the acoustic desperation of “I Want To Be Your One Night Stand.” Each song builds with great atmosphere, “Bubblin'” and “Hitman” are another perfect tandem of mature orchestrated pop (my favorites here).

Producer Andy Thompson helps keep the arrangements clean and crisp, and accented with orchestral instrumentation that rounds out each mini drama. Overall, a creative triumph that deserves a spot on my top ten album list for 2014. If this doesn’t get the name of Jeremy Messersmith out there to the ears of the hoi polloi I don’t know what will.

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The Harmalators and Dott

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The Harmalators “Sweet As A Flower”
From Santa Rosa, California the twin brothers Marlon Kay (bass guitar) and Norman Kay (lead guitar, keyboards) have a sound based on classic power pop influences like the Beach Boys, Ramones and Traveling Wilburys. Opening with the rousing organ theme “Tell Me Love Me” it has a bit of 50’s styled echo and a catchy chorus. Next “She Brings Out The Best In Me” is another good simply written mid-tempo melody.

However the lyrics could use some work, like “Is She Real” which has a chorus that simply repeats the title over and over. In the case of “Real Good Music,” the harmonies are very much in the Brian Wilson style and it makes up for the sparse wordplay. The title track “Sweet As A Flower” has the brothers harmony synced up, but the last track “I Am With You All The Way” is a pretty loose performance (almost too loose). I liked the music, and hope The Harmalators continue their musical development.


Thistime Records (Japan) | Itunes | Amazon

 

Dott “Swoon”
Dott are from Galway, Ireland and play happy, harmony-driven garage pop. The band is led by songwriter Anna McCarthy (vocals/guitar) with Laura Finnegan (bass/vocals) Miriam Donohue (guitar/vocals) and Tony Higgins (drums).  McCarthy creates a  great impression with the hook-filled “Small Pony,” sounding very much like a modern update of the early ’60s girl groups (The Shangri-Las or The Ronettes). The simple guitar-bass-drum instrumentation with those harmonies are extremely effective.

“Rain Day” is another highlight, with a rich harmony-filled chorus, and the slow guitar strum and vocal phrasing of “TEFL” is similar to The Mamas and The Papas. The up-beat party atmosphere of “Leave Tonight” and “Start All Over” is just infectious, with some surf music influence similar to Laurie Biagini. And darker compositions like “Cherry Blossom” mix those sunny vocals with a Nancy Sinatra “Boots Are Made For Walking” attitude. No filler here as each song delivers. Highly Recommended.

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Magic Brothers and Andy Klingensmith

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Magic Brothers “The Magic Line”
Another gem from the UK that needs to be discovered; The Magic Brothers are Daniel “Woody” Woodgate and his younger brother, Nick. Both were part of the legendary UK band Madness (Woody, the drummer and Nick, wrote songs) but they let their power pop freak flag fly here. “Always Be With You” starts us off as richly dense melody that recalls both ELO and Madness with blaring horns and “Ooh La La” harmonies.

“You Don’t Have To Hide Your Love Away”is a lovely mid-tempo ballad that’s pitch perfect and the atmospheric “The River” has a pristine guitar solo after the main chorus. Many songs looks back on childhood, and the melodic tone is similar to Supertramp or Squeeze. “Tysea Hill” and “Smile” are also great tracks amongst many good ones. Each song is a vignette that fits neatly alongside one another. Technically this is a 2013 UK release, but seeing how it’s gotten little press here I’ll count it as my first top ten candidate for 2014, because I believe in the power of Magic (Brothers).

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Andy Klingensmith “Bright Again” EP
The soft baroque sounds of Andy Klingensmith are back. “Bright Again” starts with simple guitar, Jay Gummert on woodwinds and Riley Smith on drums, it starts as a light folk anthem that builds nicely to a harmonious pop crescendo. “No Control” and “Oh Miss No Name” boasts even better harmonies, following a template similar to Crosby, Stills & Nash or The Lovin’ Spoonfuls. Then the simple slow “The Parade” floats in like a lost Simon and Garfunkel classic. There is definitely a growth spurt musically here, as Andy’s compositions and harmonies gradually get more complex — and I can’t wait for the next stage. Another bonus is that this album is on Bandcamp as a “Name-Your-Price” point. Enjoy.

CD Baby | Amazon

Brendan Benson and Glenn Robinson

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Brendan Benson “You Were Right”
On the tail end of 2013 Raconteur and power pop stalwart Brendan Benson turned in his sixth album, an amalgam of singles and unreleased tracks. Benson turned a corner musically with What Kind Of World the year before and “matured” in a sense but You Were Right shows Benson can still knock out minor chord masterpieces will skill. “It’s Your Choice” and “As of Tonight” are terrific songs that match the best in his catalog. His country roots influences are still apparent on the snappy “Diamond” and “Long Term Goal” speaks to the motivation “Have you got a long term goal? Or is it only Rock and Roll you live for?”

This is a solid album without filler and with enough stylistic variety to merit multiple replays. A lot of fun to listen to in a “not-so-serious” way, including the Kinks-ian “Swallow You Whole” and fatalistic “She’s Trying to Poison Me.” My favorites here are “The Fritz” with its dream-like harmonies, Beatlesque guitar and the Stone-sy “Red White and Blues.” This definitely would’ve placed somewhere in my top ten last year.

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Glenn Robinson “Modern Mistakes”
Robinson is a one man wrecking crew from Rhode Island. Opening with a furious riff-tastic melody on “The Worst,” Robinson compares well with Green Day or The Figgs. Its an album meant to played loud, with just enough hooks to keep you humming along.

One of the best power pop songs here is “Wavelength,” its the classic melody/verse combo lead by Robinson’s rough vocal. Other highlights include the punk pop mastery of “Outta My Head” and “Tambourine” could’ve been a track on Kurt Baker’s last album. All the songs are short and sweet; you may get worn out by track ten, but its a sweet ride while it lasts. Fans of Hot Nun and Foo Fighters will also dig this one. Highly Recommended.

Bandcamp | Kool Kat Musik | Amazon

Cheap Star and Dream Boys

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Cheap Star “Rosetta Stone” EP
This musical link to both Big Star and The Posies is lead by French native Remi Vaissiere (vocals/guitars) and his super-star band: Brian Young (Fountains of Wayne) on drums, Jon Auer (Posies) on guitar, and Ken Stringfellow (Posies) on bass/keyboards/vocals.

This third EP is very much like the earlier efforts. The Gram Parsons cover “A Song For You” and country-styled “On The Other Side” are superb low key ballads that don’t draw too much attention, and the energy level pushes up with the catchy chorus of “Kelly Slayer.” The guitars start to crunch on “Live Without It” but are careful not to overwhelm the lead vocal. The instrumentation here is also excellent and nothing here feels like filler. While its very palatable and will please most fans, the music will not make you forget those early Posies hits either. The band dedicated this EP to the  memory of Scott Miller from the Loud Family and Game Theory. Amen.

CD Baby | Kool Kat Musik | Amazon

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Dream Boys “Dream Boys”
Dream Boys is an L.A. band with the right combination of West Coast indie attitude and 80’s jangle pop. Lead by Glasgow born Wallace Meek, his jangle-tastic approach also recalls Paisley Underground greats like The La’s, Three O’Clock and Dream Syndicate. The swirling chords are positively hypnotic on the catchy “Born Yesterday” and “Through and Through.”

Most of the songs here follow that rhythmic pattern, but the vocal harmonies are a highlight on “Holding Pattern” that bring to mind The Ocean Blue. No throwaway tracks here, and the quality of musicianship is consistently excellent. Some may find the lack of stylistic variety a little dull, but the Dream Boys really do craft a psychedelic experience that few bands can match. Highly recommended.

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