Category: Highly Recommended by Powerpopaholic

Eric Barao “Eric Barao”

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Eric Barao is a singer/songwriter from Massachuettes with quite the pedigree. Co-founder of The Cautions, he’s been part of Air Traffic Controller and L.E.O.  That last band was run by powerpop icon Bleu, and he produces Eric’s debut along with Ducky Carlisle… so hold on to your hat.

Opening with the mid-tempo “One Holiday” its very much like Jason Falkner lite. The descending piano chords run into a hard pause before the hooky chorus, and the follow up “Trying Too Hard” slows down to a ballad tempo, and the melody is just amazing. Bleu’s fingerprints are all over “New Earth,” one of those Jellyfish-ELO styled flourish-filled songs sure to stick in your head. Another standout is the ballad “In Love With A Broken Heart,” a beautifully written song about “lessons learned too late.”

One track that seems to have life beyond the LP is “To All You Guys” about overcoming bullying – its an inspiration for any kid dealing with social challenges. The light airy “Running In Place” is highlighted by sunny background harmonies. The ending tracks “She Needs Air” and “Sugar and Cream” are full of bright pop atmospherics that highlight Eric’s vocal range. And despite rarely having any quick tempos, the songwriting and performances keep things from getting dull. Being a soft-rock album, the guitars play a minor role and the keyboards are the main force here. So without any duds amongst the ten tracks, this definitely stands as a contender for my top ten list for 2013.

Amazon | CD Baby

Poster Boy “Melody”

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A big thanks to Bill Kopp for finding this trio from Budapest, Hungary last year. Poster Boy has both Brit-pop and Motown influences on its debut LP. The title track has a Beatlesque quality with dual Rickenbacker guitars and harmonies (and its my favorite tune here).

The band then gives us a completely different sound, alt. pop more like the Shins with the soft “Pale Blue Eyes.” The hook filled chorus of “Portland Head Light” adds a little Superdrag meets Pearl Jam. It then shifts gears again with the fast-paced hand claps of “Traction” and goes into a soulful lounge-pop tune with “It’s Over.” In each case the song is fine on its own, but it feels like a collection of singles rather than a cohesive album. The stylistic shifts also make it tough to pin down a distinctive sound for the band, which may or may not be a problem. Either way you should applaud the excellent musicianship here, highly recommended.

Amazon | Jigsaw Records | Bandcamp

The Krayolas and Pop Interludes

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Krayolas

The Krayolas “Canicas/Marbles”
 Once again the San Antonio power pop of Hector Saldana returns, and each time the band impresses me. Canicas starts with “Tony Tormenta” a simple guitar ballad about a drug lord no one will mourn. Both “Canicas” and “Lala la Lala” boast bright hum along melodies with organ and accordion, full of childhood nostalgia followed by a great cover of  The Ramones’ “I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend.” The T-Rex bass line of  “La Inundacion de Piedras Negras” creeps along making it a cool highlight. The slow “Lazy Afternoon” sounds exactly like it’s supposed to, and best of all this album is a FREE download from Amazon. If you don’t get it, you are truly loco, mi amigo.

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Pop Interludes “Manhattan Charade”
Pop Interludes is a collaboration between songwriter/musician Dino De Angelis and lyricist Peter Morley. Simple synth keyboard pop with little melodic hooks. De Angelis is a man of many talents, a biomedical researcher, culinary teacher and talented musician – but vocally he is merely passable here, doing a flat kind of speak-singing.  The bands’ sound is not unlike Jeff Boller’s project The Simple Carnival or XTC’s Colin Moulding, with its dynamic compositions. The bouncy “It’s Over” adds a guitar as harmonies overlay with the main melody. “Talkin’ About Sunshine” has a spacey echo with its sugary lyric. Morley’s narrative fits the music well, but occasionally feels forced (“This Masquerade”). Some tunes take a few verses to build, but are worth it – recommended tracks are “Addition,”  “Invisible,” and “Transforming.”

CD Baby | Amazon

Freebie Fridays! Keith and The Dead Girls

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Keith Klingensmith and the TM Collective “Free!”
Keith runs Futureman Records, a collection of awesome power pop gems from the past, and he’s a pretty fine musician to boot. With his band the TM Collective, he will feed your need for free music. Yes this collection of covers is 100% free to download and the nineteen song run from the easily recognizable Beach Boys “Let Him Run Wild” to the more obscure “Jesus Follows Lisa Home” by the What Gives. My fave is the rarely covered Rutles tune “Cheese and Onions.” Enjoy this collection and check out all the releases Keith curates.


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The Dead Girls “Fade In/Fade Out”
I was impressed with the Dead Girls EP last year, so this full length LP builds on it. Lead singer Cameron Hawk has a sound a bit like Wire mixed with Weezer on “Never Erased.” The terrific riffs and harmonies on “Naysayer” kicks it up a notch and the band builds a good atmosphere on the slow building “Find Your Way Back To Me (Oh My Soul)”  – it will have you missing Alex Chilton all over again. No filler here, each track is quality, more highlights include “Under Siege,”  the amazing “Scare You”  and epic “I Feel You”  which is equal parts Led Zeppelin and Oasis. I hear a lot of stuff, and this is the best free album I’ve heard all year. Get it!

French Power Pop? Oui! Mondrian and Julien Pras

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Mondrian “Isn’t It Fun”
Melodic alt. pop from France starts out pretty unassuming with the light harmonies on “Paris,” but the “Last Breakfast On Planet Surf” delves into classic Kinks styled narrative and beat. The quirky electro folk of “LHG” and “Rise and Fall of A Golden Boy” show a willingness to experiment, and lead singer Roman Oswald sounds similar to Pete Brewis of Field Music. You have some terrific compositions, like the dual tracked banjos and flute on “Love, A Collision” and the synth textured “A Kiss A Day.” Itunes only has the band’s EP, but that has the exclusive tracks “Whippersnapper” and a live collaboration with the legendary Van Dyke Parks “Sail Away Lady.”

Bandcamp | Itunes | Facebook


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Julien Pras “Shady Hollow Circus”
Julien Pras is one of those gifted French songwriters, singing in perfect English with a striking similarity to Elliott Smith especially on the opener “Seven More Hours.” The intricate guitar and melancholy of “Angel of Mercy” is positively mesmerizing.

Pras’ soft and melodious voice drifts through each tune effortlessly. It fades into the psychedelic “Radio Silence” and the next several tracks have highly stylized arrangements with orchestral touches, much like 10cc’s Original Soundtrack or Dynamo Bliss’ debut. But with many tracks over the four minute mark the LP starts to lose its immediacy. A final highlight is “Join The Dots” before it once again jumps into the abyss of the slow progressive melodies of “Daily Battles” and “Watchman Blues.” Although at this point the LP will only reward patient listeners, you should find a darkened room with some good headphones and just enjoy the trip.

Amazon  | Facebook | Bandcamp