Category: Highly Recommended by Powerpopaholic

My goodness, how this event has grown since I first reported James Deem’s popcast in January. The sponsor list is deep now and the concert looks to be a huge success – great job, James. I had the opportunity to listen to the Compilation CD which has tracks from every artist to appear on the show. It’s actually odd hearing the opening track “It Stands to Reason” by James Deem with lyrics, as I’m now used to it being a “theme” for the pop cast radio show. All the tracks here are good and some are exclusive to this set. My favorites are “Obvious” by The Saving Graces, “Brenna, You!” by Frank Royster,  and “Pretend” by Crisis. Other noteable tracks are the Pete Ham-like “Candy” by Steve Caraway and Spongetones-like “Tell Me What You See” by Barry Holdship. Other songs range from the aggressive punk pop of The Stellas to the folkie pop of Chad Mackey. Actually nothing too “southern” sounding – although a few tracks like “Let it Go” by U-Phonik have that REM style jangle and others do flirt with the DBs-styled “Chapel Hill” sound, especially power pop favorite Andy Bopp of Myracle Brah. It would’ve been really cool to get P.Hux in this set. “Careless Love” by Lindy Dobbins is the lone female vocal here, so at the next fest I would encourage a few more female artists (not such an easy task with this genre). Like an IPO compilation, you may not like everything here, but the ratio of good tracks are higher than average, and at ten bucks it’s a really good value for 27 tracks of kick ass pop music. Get this collection only at The Charlotte Pop Fest web site, and those who pre-order the CD will also get instant access to a digital download of the entire CD in MP3 format plus bonus tracks by the remaining artists performing at the event that are not on the CD.

Charlotte Pop Fest Website

Visit this page if you want to learn a little bit about the history of North Carolina Music Scene

“Gallimaufry” is defined by the dictionary as “a hodgepodge; jumble; confused medley.” This is an odd assortment of twee pop gems from Bob Vickers produced by fellow Orange Peels alum Allen Clapp. The other Vickers brother, Rob is the alter ego of Bob, but hey I won’t frown on this case of schizophrenia as long as it delivers music like this. The title sure is appropriate here, as it mixes all those great power pop influences in a stew that gives you totally unique sound. The opener “Blues For Frankie Valli” is a sweet bluegrass ballad in tribute to the legend. “What She Does” is a jangle and twang guitar twister of a pop song, with a smooth echoed chorus. “Things Slowly Change” is the best Harry Nilsson track he never wrote. Next comes “We’re Gonna Get Along Fine” – a Dylanesque vocal and guitar strum lead this wonderful track, and of course, a harmonica joins in. “English Rose” and “Top of The Stairs” are very similar to the Orange Peels work, with great guitar jangle and hummable hooks. Another gem is the piano ballad “Magic Like That” which is an awesome mix of Brian Wilson and Randy Newman-like lyrics. The end track “Record Collection Blues” is a cute Vaudeville ukulele which lists Vickers entire music library – all on an old mono Victrola. The melange of melodies are performed and engineered to perfection. No bad tracks here – if you think you’ve heard it all, get The Vickers Bros. and listen with headphones! Only at Kool Kat Musik and Parasol so far.

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Garfield’s Birthday has nothing to do with a fat orange cat, but a prime example of british power pop. The album “Let Them Eat Cake” starts with the excellent single “Molly’s Eyes” complete with reverb and melodic hooks that remind me of early Teenage Fanclub with Belle and Sebastian doing vocals. The group was formed by brothers Shane and Simon Felton, who have slowly been gaining acclaim over the years from Wales to Liverpool. The pop stylings also recall a bit of The Shoes and The Cosmic Rough Riders. The excellent “Take A Ride” is a nice Hollies-styled tune updated for the times. This is followed by the Byrds-Beatles combo of “We Know Your Name.” Lots of classic Rickenbacker guitar sounds surround this release. “You Should Know Better By Now” has lovely gentle harmonies of the boys that compare nicely to The Everly Brothers. Every track here is pretty good and the album picks up tempo at the end with the funky psyche-pop of “Sugar Pop.” A wonderful album any way you slice it.

Garfield’s Birthday web site | My Space | Kool Kat Musik