Justine & The Unclean and Shed Seven

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Justine and the Unclean

Justine and the Unclean “Get Unclean”

Former members of Boston band Malachite, Justine Covault (lead vocalist) and Janet Egan King (bass) are the main force behind The Unclean with the addition of Charles Hansen (Tom Baker & the Snakes) on lead guitar and Jim Janota’s pounding drums. It’s bar room power pop with some punk overtones, and like most of the Rum Bar Records roster, it features big hooks and loud anthems suitable for the arena rock crowd.

“Bring Me Fire” is starts us out with a dense guitar rhythm, and you’ll hear many influences from Heart, to Missing Persons and The Buzzcocks. Covault’s vocals are very distinctive and while not as quirky as Dale Bozzio she has a more aggressive approach as best heard on “Love Got Me Into This Mess.” There is also a slight twang to the hard country-rock “I’m in Love With You, Jackass,” which is both catchy and full of attitude. The harmonies of Justine and Janet shine on the Ramones-like “Passive Aggressive Baby.” Across the album, we get many solid songs with no filler anywhere but a ballad somewhere would’ve been a nice break from all those fast tempos. A great debut that deserves to be heard.

Kool Kat Musik


Shed Seven

Shed Seven “Instant Pleasures”

Old school Brit-poppers Shed Seven race to grab the Brit-pop crown from the late Oasis with a hard-rocking sound 16 years after they disbanded. Make no mistake, this is a glossy studio rocker with all the bells, whistles, and the kitchen sink to jack up the band’s long forgotten mojo.

The opener “Room In My House” has that thick swagger, energetic guitars and the theatrical “Yeah, yeah, yeahs” sure to win over the unconverted. “Nothing To Live Down” is another sing along gem, but from that point things get spotty. “It’s Not Easy” and, “Said I’m Sorry” are more reflective and veer closer to pure pop. Overall, the album is hit or miss with its remaining songs. I liked the nostalgic “Better Days” but the dance-rock of “Enemies and Friends” left me flat. Another gem is “Star Crossed Lovers,” but the faux Maroon Five “People Will Talk” show that Shed Seven won’t supplant the Gallagher brothers at this point in time. However, Brit-pop fans should check this one out.

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Happy New Year from Power Popaholic

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I wanted to give a hearty thanks for visiting our little corner of the internet and hope it aids in your music discovery. Keep in mind, our Top 25 for 2017 will be out the end of this week. David Bash’s top list is also something to look forward to after New Year rings in. Overall this was a good year for power pop as the majority of music that falls into this genre expanded from soft pop across the spectrum to hard rock. Less fell into that traditional, Beatlesque bucket directly and if that makes power pop an arbitrary category for your music, so be it.

Thanks to all the artists who created this year, thanks to all the Facebook groups I follow; Power Pop Rock, No Hipsters Allowed, Audities, Power Pop Action, and Powerpopalooza. Also a huge thanks to Dave “The Boogieman” and Johnny Lightning for promoting the site on 11L Radio New York International. Looking forward to a good 2018!

– Aaron

Lucille Furs and The Mylars

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NOTE: There is still a huge pile of music to review as the year ends, and as usual, I have fallen behind, so likely I will continue to review 2017 releases well into January. The top 25 list will be coming out approximately the first weekend of the new year.

Gorilla

Lucille Furs “Lucille Furs”

Chicago band Lucille Furs is a pure retro 60’s band in the mold of The Strawberry Alarm Clock, New Colony Six and The Left Banke. “The Fawn of The Teal Deer” is very much like a Zombies tune, with its harpsichord melody and strong charting chorus, and while the initial sound and style are familiar, the band’s compositions are original and unique.

The subtle “Pink Noise” is another highlight that jumps out with tight harmonies and a strong bassline. Things mellow a bit with “Sunset Moon,” its layered melody chased by a Spanish guitar counter rhythm, but the band is at its most baroque on the psyche-pop gem “Our Lady Of Perpetual Frustration.”  Then the style shifts a bit on “Alabaster Crayon” sounding like an early Three Dog Night hit. Additional standouts include the Kinksian “Please, Give Her This Letter” with a swirling coda, and the final track “Between Us Two/ I Saw You,” chock full of 12-string guitar riffs. Overall a wonderful little retro discovery and Highly Recommended.

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The Mylars

The Mylars “Melody Records”

The Mylars are a super-charged rock and roll outfit founded by vocalist/guitarist Danny Roselle (ex-Crash Moderns) and long-time collaborator, vocalist/bassist Quig. The Mylars clearly have the musical chops and crisp production to get some major label attention. The band has many influences and crosses the line from pub rockers to arena rockers often, so fans of The Goo Goo Dolls or The Gin Blossoms might enjoy them too.

“Forever Done” has the crunch and infectious choral melodies that gets your attention right away.  It all clicks with the solid swaggering riff of “What Do You Got To Lose,” along with the anthemic songwriting on “Shine” make it another great single. The bombastic layered guitars lay it on nice and thick for an updated cover of The Cars “Let’s Go,” and I didn’t miss the synths one bit. The chugging rhythm of “Betty, Buddy & Me” reminded me of Fountains of Wayne a little, and since you’ve got two main singer/songwriters the music never gets predictable or stale. While most of the music is straight melodic rock and roll, the ending “Home To You” is a pure power pop gem with handclaps and a great hook in the chorus. No filler here, all killer and it slips into my top ten consideration for 2017 albums of the year.

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Merry Christmas from Power Popaholic!

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Scott McCaughey delivers a sack load of great Christmas music with his group, The Minus 5, a rotating line-up of musician friends. Tons of guest stars; Ben Gibbard (Death Cab for Cutie), Peter Buck, Mike Mills, The Posies, Colin Meloy (The Decemberists), Chuck Prophet, M. Ward, Tammy Ealom (Dressy Bessy), to name a few.

Looking for something a little less traditional? Justin & The Cosmics gives us a Christmas doo-wop that reminded me of Zappa meeting up with Mojo Nixon for an egg nog.

One of my favorites, Spirit Kid has a song about the jolly fellow in red. This isn’t new, but it is still a FREE download.

Pop Etc. is a young band (formerly The Morning Benders) originally from Berkeley, California, later based in Brooklyn, New York. They have a great sound, perfect harmonies and best of all this EP is a FREE download

Comedy legend/banjo player Steve Martin and the Steep Canyon Rangers deliver this funny holiday single “Strangest Christmas Yet.” I sure hope it replaces this worn out tune I constantly hear at the shopping mall.

 

Holiday Gift Guide: Cheap Trick and The Searchers

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Cheap Trick

Cheap Trick “Christmas Christmas”

Like an Energizer bunny, Cheap Trick has been firing on all cylinders this year with a new album and now it’s first ever Christmas album! Needless to say, this one is a real holiday gem with a combination of new and old songs. Robin Zander can belt it out unlike anyone else on  “I Wish It Could Be Christmas Every Day.”

As with most things CT, you get ringing guitars and a full production. A good mix of slower numbers (“Please Come Home For Christmas”) balance out the hard rocking crowd-pleasers (“Run Run Rudolph”). The only missteps are an odd remake of The Kinks “Father Christmas,” (the slower tempo just doesn’t work) and “Our Father Of Life” which sounded like filler. Otherwise a great soundtrack for your holiday.

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The Searchers

The Searchers “Another Night: The Sire Recordings 1979-1981”

During the British Invasion, there was another Liverpool band topping the charts not named The Beatles. The Searchers had 11 Top 40 hits between 1963 and 1966 in the UK, with “Needles And Pins,” “Sweets For My Sweet,” “Don’t Throw Our Love Away”  and the US hit “Love Potion No. 9.” By the end of the decade, they toured Europe but never faded away. The band continued to develop musically, change personnel and eventually signed with Sire Records in 1979 for a revival. This was a rare case of an “oldies” band re-tooling to a new generation successfully.

“Hearts in Her Eyes,” (written by The Records’ Will Birch and John Wicks) was a vibrant new sound that still maintained the Searchers trademark harmonies. The band showcased this sound on the Sire recordings, as they covered many great bands (Big Star, Duck Deluxe, Tom Petty) and originals. “Feeling Fine,” is a lost link between those Merseybeat days and 80’s power pop, with its jangling chords, harmonies and catchy as hell chorus. Fans of supergroup Rockpile (with Dave Edmunds and Nick Lowe) will really enjoy this collection, as the guitar work and even vocals make The Searchers very comparable. The music has no filler either, as most of the songs have a timeless quality with little of the cliched overproduction from the era. Fans of 80’s power pop will love this and its highly recommended. Thanks for the Christmas gift, Omnivore Records!

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