Category: Power Pop Review

Bowling For Soup started out as a group of snot-nosed young ‘uns doing punky power pop anthems like “1985,” which compares to the Fountains of Wayne classic “Stacy’s Mom” from way back in 2003. The band has always been about rambunctious fun, never taking itself seriously.

The band knows all the ingredients needed for a pop hit, and “S-S-S-Saturday” comes pretty darn close. It’s got the required riffs and hooks that will have you singing along. But on other tracks, it starts to resemble self-parody, as I really thought “Here’s Your Freakin Song” was something from Weird Al Yankovic. Other tracks seem to follow the formula, but without a musical hook in the chorus it tends to be forgettable, like “Girls In America.”

The problem here may be a lack of any kind of musical growth. It seems these guys have fallen into the same trap as Smash Mouth, doling out disposable pop for the fan base, content that they are good at what they do. The trick is how to keep things exciting without growing stale, and they hint at this with “Turbulence.” The band just needs to start singing about what’s relevant to its life instead of trying to market to Disney’s core audience. But despite this, fans will enjoy “Fishin’ For Woos,” and if you’re looking for a summer party soundtrack, it fits the bill perfectly.

Article first published as Music Review: Bowling For Soup – Fishin’ For Woos on Blogcritics.

bowlingforsoup.com | Amazon

Jamaica “No Problem”
You’ve got to give this new Paris-based duo credit for creating a several new dance floor classics, each with a clean hook that manages to recall both Prince and ELO in equal doses. Guitarist-vocalists Antoine Hilaire and Flo Lyonnet combine the irresistible beat and riff in “I Think I Like U2” with deft precision. Another winner “Short and Entertaining” has an 80’s styled halting riff and throws plenty of sonic effects into the mix, but the crown jewel here is “Jericho” with it’s fuzz guitar-strut that leads to a robotic chorus and a minor chord shift.

“Gentleman” continues the party, but not all these tracks take hold, and some feel a little too similar to each other (“Junior”) to make them stand out. A few more hooks and we’ve got a real winner, but for now this is a sweet summer album with plenty of electronica influenced beats and blistering Brian May guitar licks to help shake yer booty at the BBQ.

Spindrift “Classic Soundtracks Vol.1”
L.A. pop band Spindrift puts together a concept album of what your favorite movie soundtrack collection should sound like. Mostly instrumental, you’ll notice is the album is obsessed with western themes and Ennio Morricone. But fans of twangy guitar and noir psychedelics will ultimately be charmed. Some compelling gems include “Space Vixens Theme” and “When I Was Free.”

You feel that if Quentin Tarantino ever wanted some theme music, he’d find it here. “Theme from Ghost Patrol” has just enough twang and spooky effects to make it feel like a lost track from Southern Culture on The Skids.  The instrumentation here is excellent, so when vocals do appear, like on “Red Relection” they don’t distract. For fans of Duane Eddy and Link Wray and this is a “must get” album.

A group of accomplished studio vets from Australia recorded this debut album and had it mastered at Abbey Road Studios. Fallon Cush is fronted by Steve Smith, and joined by Scott Aplin (keyboards,) Matt Galvin (lead guitar,) Bill Gibson (bass) and drummers Josh Schuberth and Bert Thomson. Smith has a cadence similar to Tom Petty and/or Mike Viola and the album displays an easy-going pop jangle on most songs.

“Tiny Town” starts things out as a mid-tempo rocker and I hear a little Dylan meets McCartney on the brilliant “Over Me” with a solid guitar solo in the break. Another gem is the majestic ballad “The Trouble with a Moonlit Night” that Sir Paul would approve of. The production is full and clean, and stylistically matches well except the faux-Elvis Costello like “Where You Been.” The strong guitar strums of “Dog Day Afternoon” leads you down a wonderful melodic path and its my favorite track on the album. It ends with “Disintegrate,” a dramatic guitar and organ jam that fades off in the final minutes.  Influences from The Beatles and Byrds are most prominent, and that’s a real good thing for lovers of classic rock. A very rewarding and mesmerizing listen.

My Space | CD Baby

“The Trouble With A Moonlit Night” by Fallon Cush

Kip Boardman “The Long Weight”
Raised in the northeast on a healthy diet of Jimmy Webb and Rolling Stones, Kip Boardman is a longtime guitar player with style similar to Harry Nillson or Paul Simon. Starting with “All Fall Down” it’s all a low key affair, with sparse guitar arrangements.

The horns and female choral accents on “Runnin’ Right” is like discovering a lost Stevie Wonder-Steely Dan collaboration. “How Could We Guess” is another standout here, along with piano ballads like “Wonderin'” and “This Too Shall Pass.” The songs have a fine Randy Newman styled narrative, but it’s all a bit too laid back for me. Like a gentle summers day, it may be perfectly relaxing or put you to sleep. Definitely worth exploring though.

KipBoardman.com | CD Baby | Amazon | Itunes

Alan Bernhoft “Beatlesque Three”
As a Beatles tribute band, Alan Bernhoft has become quite a cottage industry amongst the fans of the Liverpool legends. After the first two volumes concentrate on the Beatles career before 1966, we move on in time with ‘Beatlesque 3’.

It gingerly starts with “Sunny Sky,” a Rubber Soul styled number and the choruses here are a bit more challenging. This works better on “Everybody Smiles” where Alan does his best Ringo vocal imitation. “Civilization” has a Lennon styled vocal that mimics “Mind Games” and we then move into the Mystery Tour era with a string of verbs that describe how “Bored” our singer is. Alan hits his stride here, and other standouts include “Miss Vonnie” and the Pepperish “Colliding Circles.”

Ari Shine has racked up plenty of miles on the road, opening for artists like Rhett Miller, John Doe, Hugh Cornwell of the Stranglers, Redd Kross, Silversun Pickups, the Donnas, Liam Finn and many others. Ari’s new album is  a product of this experience. “All I’ve Got Is Love” is polished single that incorporates a a strong melody line with power chords aplenty. “Against The Night” and “It’s A Go” are also well produced and slick, but don’t resonate as well as the opener. It gets better with the slow building “Here With Me” as he clearly states “…Everything I need is here with me.” Another standout here is the thrilling “One Silver Morning” with it’s energetic beat akin to Golden Earring’s “Radar Love.” But here it’s updated with Shine’s earthy vocals and swirling guitar riffs.

Little touches on “Better Any day” and “Refuge In You” pull it above standard material here, however the remaining songs fail to approach the intensity of “One Silver Morning.” Overall a good album, but you get the sense that Ari maybe tries too hard on some of the more commercial sounding tracks. Where he shines is on openly melodic stuff like the bonus track “Ship In A Bottle.”