Highly Recommended by Powerpopaholic Archives - Page 298 of 340

Canadian Invasion "Three Cheers For The Invisible Hand"

January 22, 2009July 6, 2024 powerpopaholic

So what is so special about a band called “Canadian Invasion” that isn’t even from Canada? Well it’s a tight Philly group lead by Andy Paul better known as Andy Canadian (okay I get it now). This is really sweet power pop with punch along the lines of REM, Teenage Fanclub or The Well Wishers. It opens with the jangle riffs of “Pop Magic Fantastical Masterpiece” full of gently breathed harmonies in the chorus. Fans of My Brother Woody and The Thrills will find a lot to like here. The lyrics and song titles are lots of fun too, a prime example is “Standing On The Shoulders Of The Carcass Of John Mayer.” The gentle flow of some songs like “Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow” have just enough melody and guitar licks to make very enjoyable listening. Every song here is a winner, with tempo changing from the very Fountains of Wayne-like “How To Build A Jetback” to the Americana pop twang of “The Last Time I Went To Church.” A great album that got me digging for more on the band’s earlier efforts. No invisible cheers for this one — just full throated “Hip Hip Hooray!” for Canadian Invasion. Right now the new album is only on Amazon or MySpace.

My Space | Lala (Blame the Robots ep) | CD Baby (Songs For The Atco Ghost) | Amazon

Listen to “”Three Cheers for the Invisible Hand”

Roger Joseph Manning Jr. "Catnip Dynamite"

January 21, 2009July 6, 2024 powerpopaholic

The wait is over. And now US residents can finally get Roger Joseph Manning Jr.’s “Catnip Dynamite” on February 3rd. Most are familiar with Roger’s work through such original group endeavors as Jellyfish, Imperial Drag, The Moog Cookbook and TV Eyes. Roger has also assisted artists like Beck and Air both in the studio and in live performances. He has worked as a keyboardist, vocalist, arranger and songwriter in a more behind the scenes capacity with hundreds of other artists. Since his first album “Land Of Pure Imagination” 2 years ago, all of power pop fandom has been hanging onto Roger’s every note. Let’s face it, this is an easy review for me. Without trying to fall over myself in praise — it’s pretty much what fans have come to expect from Roger. Highly detailed pop compositions that hook into your brain from the opening riffs on “The Quickening” to the Moog keyboards on the bouncy single “Down In Front.” Unlike the last effort, there is more of an effort to rock here and approach each pop song with surgical precision that lasts longer than 3 minutes. There is also less flowery pop (a la Carpenters) and more groovy psyche rock with lot of progressive organ flourishes peeking out behind the melodies. You can hear Strawberry Alarm Clock all over “Imaginary Friend” for example. Every track has it’s own unique flavor, and that’s part of the joy in exploring this album. The storytelling element is expanded here on most tracks (i.e. ” Haunted Henry” and “Drive Thru Girl”) with the sound effects adding to the atmosphere too. Toward the albums end, it gets very proggy and preachy a la Tony Banks-era Genesis on “Survival Machine.” The album ends with several live tracks from Japan. Listen to the entire album streaming from Oglio Records. Right now Newbury Comics has a pre-order special with autographed CDs. I expect other vendors (Not Lame, Kool Kat Musik, etc.) will shortly follow in February. If you couldn’t afford the Japanese CD last year, you have no excuse now. This is a “must have” for any music collection.

My Space | RJM Website | Newbury Comics

Harvey Barham "City Of Champions"

January 19, 2009July 6, 2024 powerpopaholic

City of Champions is the first solo album from co-founder of the venerable Gentlemen Losers, Harvey Barham. It is a themed album about life in Duncanville, TX and it opens at “3 a.m. in Duncanville” with a great opening melodic riff and a sound similar to Gary Louris (of The Jayhawks). Barham’s vocals are low, but effective here. It goes through a description of the struggling area, where “all the girls are virgins/ all the boys are nerds” – it’s ain’t Lake Woebegon, folks. The liner notes chronicle the transformation of the suburbs from a utopia to a bit of a disaster area. The alt.country slices of life on “My Sweet Tragedy” and “Main Street” are great songs with hook filled choruses and colorful lyrics. And this is where Barham excels – my favorite song here “Some Are Just Happy” is a sharp critique of Texas life sung with sweetness and smooth guitar. The weary ballad “Nothin’ I Do” is a total resignation of everything, even admitting “you’re tired of this tune” which is a bit of Wilco bleakness and ELO violins that recall “Mr. Kingdom” a little. I kinda dug this one a lot too – it’s so damn honest. The latter half of this album also recalls The Honeydogs, as the songs get more into the town’s disintegration (“Tired Of This Town”), but it ends with the slightly hopeful “Little One.” Every song here is well written and the arrangements are superb. The albums dark undercurrent can get oppressive at times, but that’s the general theme here. The website is impressive too, as the city of Duncanville, TX is layed out in detail with sample streaming tracks for each “news” item listed. You have to remember this is about an album about life in this small Texas community. It could be any town in America now, even yours. So listen up.

My Space | City of Champions | CD Baby

Chris English "Dreamtown"

January 12, 2009July 6, 2024 powerpopaholic

An experienced musician and active commercial producer, Chris English weaves a lush sonic tapestry on “Dreamtown.” The sound is reminiscent of Colin Moulding of XTC with a dash of Peter Gabriel prog folk. Opening with the REM-like title track, Chris makes it clear he uses the harmonic elements of both electric and acoustic guitars, with delicate female vocal harmony in the background. A bit of electric folk pop is evident in “I Can See Everything” and the lovely follow up “Autumn” sounds like it came off XTC’s Mummer. These sweet delicate tones are made for perfect relaxed listening. “Without You” also seduces the listener with wonderful harmonies and chord changes here. Occasionally a bit of Alan Parsons styled AOR shows up (“Downtime” and “The Letter”) but it fails to make much of an impression. Another highlight is “I Can Take It” with it’s smooth piano chords and layered melody. Later in the album the songs pick up tempo, with the Beach Boys-like “Summer Revisited” and “Sunshine Routine” – I just wish Chris’ vocals were stronger here, as they float above the melodies, like having two sets of backing vocals. The epic ending track “God Is In The Silence” is a great celestial ballad with some Dark Side Of The Moon production techniques. Jeff Larson, Andrew Gold and Jeffrey Foskett fans will want to pick this one up for sure. If you enjoy highly textured baroque pop, you will love Chris English.

My Space | CD Baby | Kool Kat Musik

The Ragamuffins of Love "Wise Up"

January 11, 2009July 6, 2024 powerpopaholic

Are you looking for a group that knows how to rock with a sense of humor? The Ragamuffins of Love played at IPO this year and have the musical chops to show off on the opener “Kiss Those Good Times Goodbye.” Sung and played by the likes of Eff Dupp, Amadou Schbag, Kaye Seurat and Saul Goode. I think Bart Simpson will be calling Moe’s bar looking for these guys for sure. Eff (aka Sandy McKnight) has a slurred quality to the vocals that recall Joe Walsh or Randy Newman a bit. The riffs and melodies here are no joke though. The next song, “Tangerine” get into your head pretty well, and the “Plastic Yellow Raincoat” is a great song here in the Elvis Costello vein. The skinny tie jangle pop of “Julie Fashion Queen” will bring sweet memories to many power pop fans of the 80’s. More highlights here include “All Broken Hearted Lovers,” and the Pete Townshend’s gin soaked “It’s Not True.” Eff then lets the band go for a metal/punk intro sound on “I Want My Money Back.” The intro doesn’t match the song that well here. Overall, the production is a slightly uneven, and the backing vocals aren’t that good, but the songwriting and musicianship is solid gold here. I only expect improvement from these guys. Fans of The Kinks, Elvis Costello and Buddy Love will love this stuff. I wised up, you should too.

My Space | CD Baby | Emusic