Category: Highly Recommended by Powerpopaholic

The Jellyfish has long been considered an iconic power pop group for the ninties, and each of the groups members have met with varied degrees of success. Fans have slavishly followed the careers of Jason Falkner, Andy Strumer and Roger Manning Jr. over the years. One other member of that group was Eric Dover, guitarist during the “Split Milk” era. After joining Manning in the celebrated group Imperial Drag, Eric has performed with guitar gods: Alice Cooper, Gibly Clarke, Slim Jim Phantom, Brian May, Eddie Van Halen and many others over the years.

Well now Eric’s new persona is simply called “Sextus” and his new album “Stranger than Fiction” is poised to drop in February. The albums complex arrangements took nearly 10 years to complete, with most songs being demo’ed extensively. He has also contributed to the Jellyfish Tribute “Sensory Lullabies” with the tune “That is Why.”

So is it worth the wait? Well mostly yes. The guitar work is outstanding and is reminicent of Imperial Drag for sure. I felt the album builds up a bit too slowly, albeit dramatically. The opening intro, brings to mind heavier guitar rock of Steve Hackett or even Yngwie Malmsteen. The point being, you play this music loud. “Wild To Make You Mine” is the most Imperial Drag-like, full of intricate guitar flourishes and layered solos and vocals. This can backfire a bit on “Mystery of O” which sounds like a mashup of both Queen and The Propellerheads. It’s not bad, but so dense with sonic detail, we lose the vocals and melody at times. Mid way through the album it hits it’s stride with the awesome “On The Freak Side” and becomes a real R-rated adventure with “Tricki Tina.” The gems are sprinkled throughout with “Break of Morning” and the raunchy “Ballmi” (Yes, it’s exactly what you think it is). The lyrical wordplay here would make even Prince blush. So overall, Sextus lives up to his name (don’t play this around the kiddies) and fans of Jellyfish, or Imperial Drag will lick it up. Right now it’s only available as a vinyl, but expect wide distribution next month.

Dramapants Records Homepage | My Space

I still have a pile of reviews to finish before the holidays and then I find this gem. Whoa kids, it doesn’t get any better than legally FREE power pop. And even better if the music is really good. Thank you Paul Kelly for this wonderful gift. The Martial Arts are a Glasglow Scottish band with a very Dbs meets Kinks vibe and the songs have great hooks and guitar work. ‘Your Sinclair’ evokes of 60s pop, 70s new wave and 80s indie – with a few moments of intense guitar abuse thrown in for good measure. The opener “Murry & Audree” has great glam energy and has the early Weezer meets Rubinoos type of feeling. The vocals on “Don’t Want To Talk” remind me a bit of Alex Chilton from his Big Star days. The intensity of “Mod Val” will have you thinking this track was meant for the latest Hives album. The perfect Ray Davies-like storytelling of “Frost” will get your toes tapping and head bobbing. To find such jaw dropping quality is not to be missed- so stop reading this post and get it. UPDATE: The Martial Arts have contacted me and are extending this offer of this free download to Monday January 7th. ENJOY!

My Space | Download album in .rar format or .zip format | alternate link

Listen to “Don’t Want to Talk”

Murry & Audree video, Directed by Gregor Mackay

I got a cool tip a month or two ago about this band when I was finishing reviews about The Mother Hips. Well unfortunately it took too long to get to because it’s a pleasant surprise. Y33BA is a Brooklyn based band that gets to the very roots of great lo-fi pop. Starting with “I took a Deep Breath” lead singer Josh Westfal’s vocals resemble Lou Reed of the Velvet Underground. A ton of indie bands try to emulate the Velvets and often sound horrible. Y33BA not only does the sound right, but they have a unique spin on the approach that bring in powerful melodies and excellent lyrics. Hell, even Rolling Stone’s noticed it as one of David Fricke’s picks. As the album continues, “Psycho On Your Side” is a fun bouncy slice of rock similar to The Mother Hips and Wilco, with complimentary dissonant sounds trailing the main melody. The balladry is also engaging and my favorite track is “Town and Country” which sounds as good as anything Jeff Tweedy could perform, if not better. By the time we get to “Once I Dreamed The Future” it picks up some energy and continues to encourage repeat listens. The ballad “So you say you want love?” channels classic Big Star’s 3rd album as well with a gorgeous melodic chorus including Josh and an uncredited female vocal. The offbeat and semi-instrumental “Every time I see Your Broken Face” is just as compelling as it is unpredictable. All twelve tracks have merit and you can buy the album from them directly off the My Space page.

Your 33 Black Angels Page | My Space

Listen to “Sue”

Sparkwood is one of a rare few bands that take the Jellyfish power pop model to the next level. As their last two album, the bands love of Jellyfish, Queen, ELO and Beach Boys shine through each track here. I would consider “Kaleidoscopism” the best release yet. You know it’s going to be special when you hear vocalist Bart Padar’s multitrack a capella Beach Boys inspired intro “Welcome”- the rest of the parts were arranged and performed by Joel Nesvadba and Jonathan Nesvadba, Sparkwood’s bass player. Thus begins pure ear candy so sweet, the cavities may rot your brain. Enough cannot be said about guitarist Mark Doroba, who channels Brian May perfectly in each tune. The bouncy and playful “Ooh Sha La” leads to the Squeeze-meets-Queen “Losing my Mind.” The following tune, “Bop Bop Song” could be a children’s theme song, and my only problem here is that it seems lyrics were not written for it and a lot of “la la las” and “ba ba ba’s” placed instead. Things slow down a bit by the end of the album, but everything here shines. Included is four bonus tracks with demos and a perfectly good cover of Queen’s “Good Old Fashioned Lover Boy.” In some songs the mixing is a bit uneven and I feel Bart’s vocals get lost on a few tracks. The harmonies are really ingenious and catchy and that’s what great pop is all about. I could wax poetic on every track this album has even more, but you get the idea. This is a Japan only release right now, so the only place you can get it is from the Sparkwood site. I’m sure it will arrive in the US soon at the usual vendors. For those who cannot wait: Tasukete!

The Sparkwood Site | My Space

FYI: I have a handful of albums that need to be reviewed and then on 12/24 the First Annual Powerpopaholic Album Poll begins!