Category: Power Pop Review

So you’ve never heard of Stackridge? Well if you’re not from the UK you are forgiven. The Anglophilic progressive pop band began to great fanfare in 1971, were predicted to be bigger than Genesis and even had an very well reviewed LP produced by George Martin right after his Beatles tenure ended (Man In A Bowler Hat). Then by 1975, they fell off the public’s radar. I never heard about them till recently, and after listening to the back catalog, it’s like the discovering a missing link between 10cc, Klaatu and Protocol Harem. Needless to say, if you like any of those bands, you can dig deep here. For those power pop fans who question the inclusion of a progressive band here just give a listen to “Dangerous Bacon,” and I guarantee you’ll be hooked. But, today these old codgers have a brand new album for you to hear. A Victory For Common Sense has most of the what fans expect. Well orchestrated rock and pop, starts off with “Boots and Shoes” a standard melodic rock tune that’s crafted with an ear towards contemporary audiences, that then bathes itself in anglo-slice-of-life nostalgia on “The Old Country.” A real gem here is “Red Squirrel” with it’s Badfinger-like guitar riffs and steady bass rhythm. The folk ballad “North St. Grand” slows the albums pacing a bit, but a few other tracks poke through some of the serious prog noodling, like the wonderful “Lost and Found” and the ethereal gem “Cheese and Ham.” It ends on a ponderous unwieldy jam with “The Day The World Stopped Turning.” While it doesn’t touch the glory of the early 70’s albums, it comes pretty darn close in spots. For most long time UK fans this more than enough to celebrate.

The Parallax Project is a loose collective of musicians centered around lead vocalist/guitarist Michael Giblin. On his new album I Hate Girls he does a fine job with the opening track “All The Same,” full of Revolver-styled rhythm and a workman-like effort in the chorus. Much like Squeeze meets Elvis Costello, “The Day After Tomorrow” is has a compelling lyrical story that leads to a catchy chorus with guitar and organ breaks, “it’s all about singing a brand new song” he intones. “It’s So Easy” will remind people of Phil Seymour with it’s sunny sound and understated beat. The title track and it’s follow up “Waiting To Pull The Trigger” are similar to more recent Glen Tilbrook efforts, with some nice guitar solo work on the latter track. Some of the tracks are a little too understated (“Half”) and although very easy on the ears, Michael need to push those hooks to the next level to be a bit more memorable. By the albums mid point things loosen up and sound better for it. A big highlight here is the energetic “Coming Around” which reflects Michael’s time spent touring, hanging, and recording with The Plimsouls. “You And Me” is another fun tune. All capped off with a very cool cover of Martha and The Vandella’s “Needle In A Haystack.” Kool Kat Musik has a special offer on this one with a bonus disc of 11 pop favorites from The Kinks, XTC, ELO and more performed by The Parallax Project.

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The Fate Lions “Good Enough For You”
The Fate Lions are a musical quartet lead by singer/songwriter Jason Manriquez. The band has a low key indie pop sound that recalls early REM and The Lemonheads, as well as that sleepy Beta Band vibe. Opening up with a fade-in on “Seen It All” is a good start with a catchy rhythm guitar riff that builds to a multi-tracked chorus. The rumbling “Astronaut” is a solid tune that reminds me of Cracker’s “Teen Angst” quite a bit. The 80 and 90’s styled shine is all over the album and there is no denying the bands melodic storytelling ability on “Calendar Girls.” It would help a little if Jason’s vocal was a bit more forceful, but another highlight is the bouncy “Starsign.” The albums theme is a bit melancholy, but the beat never slows to a crawl. Even when a song loses it’s way, like on “The Queen Himself” – the instrumental solos are so good, it keeps things compelling. The lush arrangements keep you hooked all the way through the album, as there isn’t any filler here. The North Texas sound permeates the songs pretty strongly on the albums second half, especially on “Ride The Artifact”. So is it “Good Enough For You?” — if you’re not too demanding here, it definitely is.

Kram “Mix Tape”
Mark Maher of the Australian band Spiderbait, has gone solo under the name of Kram. I heard the impressive single “Silk Suits” and thought this was the second coming of Jet or Rob Zombie. Unfortunately, it was a perfect case for bait and switch in pop music. It turns out “Mix Tape” is a mix of different songs, using different genres of music. So there is a fast rock song, a slow soul tune, a blues jam, etc. Kram’s vocals are perfect for a balls-out rockers like “Good Love” and “Silk Suits.” The other genres don’t fair as well, but few other tracks like “She’s My Girl” and “Long Cold Night” are merely good. The songwriting style on the rest of the album is painfully mediocre, so naturally here I would cherry pick the above mentioned tracks if it gets over to iTunes at some future point. That said – “Good Love” and “Silk Suits” are awesome riff heavy ear candy!

As a band matures, you can hear a specific direction. Ohio natives First In Space had a decent debut re-released this summer and this new follow up sets the trio (Dolus McCormick, Johhny Stanec, and drummer Beau Basement)on a more commercial power pop sound. The clean guitar work and rich chorus of “Goddamn Shame” recall the best tendencies of The Gin Blossoms and alt-rockers Cracker. On “It’s All Gone To Hell” the vocals of Dolus McCormick really shine here. It’s the consistent guitar work that also wins you over as “Take It Away” is my favorite here, where the bridge builds, and builds to a harmony filled chorus. The tracks are all good, so no filler here – although it slows down the tempo on “In My Dreams,” it picks right back up with tough layered guitar riffs on “Stuck Around You” and stays on an even keel through all ten tracks. The mid-western flavor of tracks like “Down On Me” and high energy harmonies between McCormick and Stanec on “Taking Over” recall the Rembrandts at their most aggressive and melodic. Keep your eye on First In Space, as they continue to produce first-rate power pop.