Category: Highly Recommended by Powerpopaholic

Bye Bye Blackbirds and The Toms

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Bye Bye Blackbirds “Fixed Hearts”
Rainbow Quartz recent pick up is this Oakland band we reviewed way back, and they sound better than ever. “Elizabeth Park” sounds like Tom Petty playing with The Spongetones, it’s a snappy jangle filled melody that impresses.  The followup. “Open A Light” continues the warm feeling, with some sweet guitar chord shifts on this mid-tempo gem. The country beat makes “Jack Frost” a bit like Gary Louris (Jayhawks) with a Beatlesque twist – its my favorite track here. Another good song is “Every Night At Noon” with a Nilsson-like break between the chorus. Almost every song is decent here, but some just are flat out great like “Through The Clouds” with its harmonies and California rhythms. Overall a highly enjoyable album, listen to it streaming over at the band’s website.

 Amazon | Bye Bye Blackbirds Site

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The Toms “s/t”
This release was previously a true rarity and lost classic that commanded sky high prices on ebay. The album was lost in 1979, and faded away to the cut-out bins in New Jersey record stores. Rediscovered by the power pop crowd later on it got instant fame and acclaim as a cult musical nugget. In an effort to get his old music out, Tom Marolda (aka The Toms) released this album as a download on CD Baby, but if you prefer a hard copy Amazon has a few. For those who don’t know, Marolda made this album in DIY fashion (recording in the basement) using old reel-to-reel equipment. The songs are fun, infectious and some sound like old lost Beatle tunes (“The Door“) for the 70’s New Wave crowd. Not Lame carried this CD for a few years and it would sell out pretty fast, so if you never got it – here it is.

CD Baby | Amazon

Wiretree and The Moorelands Project EP

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Wiretree “Make Up”
After two great albums, Wiretree have continued to dazzle with Make Up. In a departure from their previous efforts, the album was recorded with very few overdubs, capturing a “live” performance feel. The music moves towards a more earnest and raw rock approach, with less indie-pop elements.

With Kevin Peroni’s solid vocal performance on the opening title track, it immediately puts you into a “the zone,”with an equal blends of solid guitar melody and harmony. On “Broken Foot,” the fast paced guitar riffs and a excellent drum beat through the chorus “You better run…” raises the bar again. The band reaches its pop apex with “Tiny Hearts” and “Tonight” will make many feel that the band is the heir to indie rock legacy of The New Pornographers. “The Shore” is a pop gem that channels Green Day and Iggy Pop in equal doses here. The atmospheric and solid songwriting puts “MTH” on the next level of greatness, and at this point I think the band is just too good to remain a “best kept secret” in Austin, TX.

The album ends with the soothing ballad “Josephine,” parts Pernice Brothers and Wilco crooning harmony with nice lap guitar accents.  Overall a brilliant and immensely satisfying album that should not be missed. One of the contenders for power pop album of the year easily!

CD Baby | Amazon | KoolKat Musik

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Moorelands Project “The Trip” EP
The Moorelands Project is the brainchild of production duo Mike “Kraz” Krasnowski and Mike “Greener” Greenwood. The duo describe their sound as Rock Hop and Roll, with a complex melodic spin. This certainly is different, as “The Trip” boasts pastoral elements of XTC or Martin Newell. But the band goes all over the place with tracks like “A Song For P” and the bluesy “Few More Times” and unfortunately the rapping elements on other tracks are practically unlistenable. Pick and choose here, and with an e-mail the album is free, so you can’t really go wrong.

CD Baby | Free Download with e-mail

Army Navy "The Last Place"

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In 2009 this L.A. based band with a very English sound made it’s debut to much acclaim and support among music’s  hoi pollio. With comfortable nods to 80s and 90s power pop, lead singer and songwriter Justin Kennedy impressed many with excellent songwriting and ear pleasing melodies. Now comes the sophomore album, and with so few well-known bands flying the power pop banner, its great to hear that Kennedy and the band are continuing to bring a new generation of fans to the genre.

Read the full review of Army Navy’s “The Last Place” here.

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Fountains of Wayne "Sky Full Of Holes"

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Fountains of Wayne have returned and its powerhouse songwriting duo of Chris Collingwood and Adam Schlesinger are in fine form this summer. I cannot name a band that does a better job at mixing descriptive character studies with irresistible melodies. They run out of the gate with “The Summer Place” a delicious theme punctuated by a western-style riff after the chorus. Next comes the hilarious “Richie and Ruben,” a true FOW classic that begs to be sung along to.

The band seems more energized here, they don’t seem to be following any musical trend and are very comfortable in their hook-filled skins. Every song sticks, but exceptional songs included here are “Someone’s Gonna Break Your Heart” and “A Dip In The Ocean” full of fast paced rhythms and the ever shimmering tambourine. It’s hard to argue that this isn’t the best FOW album since the classic Welcome Interstate Managers. It shift gears slightly towards the albums middle with the country shuffle of “A Road Song” and “Workingman’s Hands.” And ends with the slow dances of “Firelight Waltz” and the solemn “Cemetery Guns.” Honestly, did you expect anything less? Neither did I.

iTunes | Amazon

The Krayolas "Tipsy Topsy Turvy"

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The  Krayolas Mexican Merseybeat continue to impress with Tipsy Topsy Turvy. Hector Saldana turns up the dial to “11” with the Dylanesque “Genuine” letting us know he bleeds San Antonio sangre. The familiar jangle on “Gonna Walk Down” is more what we expect from the band with great buzzing guitar breaks along its rolling rhythm. But this album has noticeably less light pop and more serious western blues influences than past works.

The blue collar do-wop on “Smile Away” is much like McCartney’s back-to-basics approach and a great homage to my one of my favorite Canadian pop stars, “Gordon Lightfoot” where we learn that “they don’t make ’em like that anymore.” Gordon’s influence continues on the gentle ballad “Does She Know.” A series of good mid-tempo songs are sprinkled in the albums second half that deal with immigration and economic issues, “Front Page News,” “The Working People” and “1070 (I’m Your Dirty Mexican).” Another gem is the bouncy “Twenty Miles,” with its gentle organ melody and steady bass line. The slow horns on “Love Is Gonna Getcha” is Saldana’s attempt at Marvin Gaye and a few nice diversions toward the albums end (“Louie’s Song”) make this a colorful addition to your Krayolas box.

CD Baby | Amazon