Category: Power Pop Review

Sometimes with Lane Steinberg, it’s a box of chocolates. You’re never really sure what you’ll get. On his third solo album “Passion and Faith”, you mix equal parts John Lennon, Adrian Belew, Anton Barbeau and Brazilian progressive. The juxtaposition of Lane’s pop songs and four covers of songs by the Clube da Esquina songwriters from 70’s era Minas Gerais, Brazil, all sung by Lane in their native Portuguese makes for a strange brew. At one point someone thought I had two different albums playing at once. The Brazilian songs aside, Lane’s echoing vocals and guitar in “What Do I Do With The Rest Of My Life?” works well as a light psyche pop song with strange effects (babies crying) in the background. The sweet sound of “Happy Holidaze” has a bit of hushed XTC anglo-pop, next “How Insensitive” plays like a psychedelic, droning Sisters of Mercy goth pop with a mash-up of two different rhythms. “Christmas In Peru” is a casual, Rundgren-like coffee house ditty. Then we travel to a British music hall in “Why Can’t People Just Talk about the Weather?” But the centerpiece of the album, however, is a 21-minute jam of the Grateful Dead’s “Dark Star” with Lane playing all the instruments himself, recreating the Dead’s golden era with uncanny accuracy, yet in his own personal style. This will be a challenge to most listeners expecting clean, familiar power pop and although I appreciate much of the Brazilian songs, they don’t match up well against the anglo-pop stuff here. The parts here work better than the sum, but the musicianship is so absorbing, I wouldn’t pass this one up. 

After doing the entire “Meet the Beatles” cover album, The Smithereens decided to make a proper, all-out studio version of one of the albums that inspired their rock dreams of becoming a band in the first place for this 40th anniversary tribute. The Who’s unique sound will never be duplicated, but then again neither will The Smithereens’ sound that has made them enduring rock icons over the past 25 plus years. The result is part Who, part Smithereens. It sounds really good instrumentally as usual, and it works well. But Pat DiNizio’s vocal limitations are clear when compared to Roger Daltry (listen to “I’m Free” to see what I mean).

Listen to The Smithereens play The Who’s “Tommy”

Just finished a discussion about Power Pop on Blog Talk Radio. I was a bit nervous, but I had loads of fun talking about power pop groups, the Tinted Windows and whether The Jonas Brothers are power pop (they are not).

Rob Stuart is a man with a mission. Also known as Broken Promise Keeper, he wants to deliver some “ice cold pop” to your ears. If I had to make a direct comparison, Broken Promise Keeper sounds very much like cult pop favorite Anton Barbeau. It’s fair to say Ice Cold Pop begins with a confident bounce and jangle filled riffs of “Directions.” The song has some elements of mid eighties production, similar to early REM or The Shoes sound, so fans of this style will be sure to enjoy it. The driving piano chords of “Worship From Afar” sparks a great song with beautiful cascading harmonies in the chorus. The tracks here are full of rich effortless hooks, especially on my favorite track, “Kristine.” The next song “I Blame James” is a interesting lament on how all his childhood heroes (James Dean, James Bond, etc.) are setting an example that he can’t follow. The quick bass and rhythm guitars of “Look Out Hollywood” recall early Joe Jackson quite a bit. Stuarts vocal is serviceable when the songwriting and arrangements are clicking, but at certain points, the DIY nature of the production poke through (“Fake It”). Some tracks seem to be workman efforts, like “Amusement Park Lover” and “Once” but don’t quite have strong enough hooks. The album ends strongly with the gentle acoustic gems “Secret” and “Goodbye.” For most pop fans this one is worth the effort to track down and listen to.

Philadelphia’s Spinning Lucy got me hooked with the dramatic melody of the opener “Star Sign” and it shows the debut of a tight rock band with great talent. Vocalist Will Roberts leads the band from track to track without sounding cliche or having the tracks wallow in self pity. The bands sound is comparable to the Gin Blossoms meet The Rembrandts with a touch of Jimmy Eat World. The songs are all well performed with a matter-of-fact upbeat approach despite the dark subject matter. It took a few listens to see the themes of death and regret in songs like “Digging Up Bones” and “Hello.” The serious lyrics and wonderfully crisp hooks make “Lions” a real winner here. The band’s take on love to loss and back again in “Crowning” and “Ghost In You” puts them a step above most catchy rock bands. The latter songs lyrics speak of acceptance with lines like, “If you forgive the monsters in me/then I’ll forgive the ghosts in you.” The adventurous story in “Goldilocks” doesn’t seem to keep pace with the melody, although the guitar break is really nice here. The arrangements are a little too even handed in places without giving the listener a hook to hang to on “Letting You Down” and the faux orchestral “Flavor Of The Weak” can get a bit pretentious, but the hidden instrumental track at the end is a nice finish. With a little more concentration on hooks, this band should continue to prosper. Keep your eyes on these guys, as they could break out big time with this album.