Personally I loved his single from 2006 “Bethamphetamine (Pretty Pretty)” shown above with everyone’s favorite Rubinoos copycat Avril Lavigne as the lead character.. So how’s about a FREE MP3 album download?
Butch Walker (Marvelous Three) made a concert album of last year’s tour. And for a limited time, he is posting it FREE on his website. My guess is he is on the side of the DIY new model with a URL featured in the banner below. Click on it to go to his website for the download.
Stagecoach are a group of lads from Surrey with a love of Shins, Ryan Adams and Wilco and they do a fine job on the EP “School Day” – It’s a cool group of tunes that also follow a theme with a distinct jangle and energy – don’t miss “Come Find Me in the Library.” The sound and mixing is superior to most bands out there. I predict great things for these guys, as they sound excellent. A great debut — let’s hear more! You can also see the video here!
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The Janglemen certainly live up to their name and the album “Tearjerker and 9 others” offers listeners classic Roger McGuinn Rickenbacker guitar strum and catchy melody. You can’t get more “jangle” than this. Fans of Jamie Hoover, Bobby Sutliff, and even early Elvis Costello will enjoy this. The vocals are loose and the band has a punk swagger, so this is not a tribute band, but something different. “New and Different Ways” is a autobiographical track that even includes a dog bark in the chorus! If you ever wanted to hear a mix of Paul Westerberg and The Monkees – pick this one up!
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The Romeros are a classic rock n’ roll band, that models itself after The Flaming Groovies and The Ramones. The sonic assault is catchy, especially on “Tonight” with scratchy vocals by Mike Vanderbilt. They have played at IPO Chicago last year and made a really good impression. These guys have a good start, but need some polishing before they really hit it big. Get the EP “Cooler than your Boyfriend” and crank it up at your next backyard party.
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Sean Ashby is one of Toronto’s most successful musicians, being a leading member for the band Jack Tripper and also as a long-time guitarist in Sarah McLachlan’s band. His new solo “Brass and Gold” is produced with help of Todd Fancey (member of The New Pornographers) and several others. The opening riff of “Dreamin” has the melodic riffs and guitar overdubs that remind one of Brian Ray playing the guitar with John Cougar Mellencamp doing the vocals. Stylistically, Sean jumps around from muscular rock of “This Machine” to gentle ballads (“Brass And Gold,” “Nova Girl”). But the big hooks here in “Star 98” and “Gone” are so thick, they beg to be played loud, with a cutting buzz saw sound like Heart’s “Barracuda”. The song “Baby Yes” takes the same style down a notch. Not all the ballads work for me (“All I Need” tries to be Coldplay a bit too much) but when they hit the mark, with “Paper Tiger” it’s like the second coming of Mark Oliver Everett. The album finale “Come to Me” evokes a Lou Reed ballad and fades out. This is a strong eclectic debut that would be welcome in your collection.
Sean Ashby’s Site | My Space | Itunes
A nice overview article on one of the classic Swedish power pop bands –The Merrymakers. It’s also chock full of embedded Mp3s to listen to in case you’ve never heard of them (Shame on you!) Good job, Will.
Andy Lehman begins “Landline” with the haunting “I Don’t Think of Love” which utilizes a heavy echo and synths, emulating the Doves a bit. The melodic multi-tracked chorus tells you this isn’t the usual pop rock. The vocal stylings are closest to a young Lindsey Buckingham with a bit of Weezer thrown in. “Time to Go” is a better representation of Andy’s unique style of power pop. The layered vocals flow together in a stream of self-conscious lyrics. His humor and simple melodic sense makes “Summertime” a lot of fun to listen to – I almost expected more goofiness here to match the melody. Things get mellower as the album continues forward and although beautiful, “Lovely and Magic” almost lulls you to sleep. Some of the other ballads don’t do much either however, a good epic ballad here is “Lightning Fell” with a dramatic ending worthy of Oasis, and is my favorite track here. If you like your wall of sound with a bit of melancholy,”Ghost” fits the bill nicely as well. Overall a good debut with some ipod worthy tunes.
My Space | CD Baby