Sunrise Highway and Rob Cantor

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Sunrise Highway “Windows”
The familiar guitar jangle and harmonies return from Sunrise Highway on the title track “Windows.” Very much like America or Jeff Larson on the opener, but the band then takes a harder turn after this. “Breathe” gets crunchier, and more psychedelic – a good comparison would be The Pillbugs. “Peter Pan” takes this further with heavy chords leading the way about never growing old, and the follow up “Foreverland” fits in perfectly with those Rickenbacker riffs “join me in Foreverland and leave your worries behind.” The dense shimmering guitars here also remind me of the Orange Peels, with its layered combination of melody and sound.

Lead singer Jerry Rio doesn’t shy away from controversial subjects either. The band describes the life of a musician in “Giving It All Away” from building a website for the band, promoting your music and figuring out “who’s gonna have to pay.” Note that some of these tracks a have been living as singles on YouTube for a while. There is a serious rant in “QE Forever,” a mid-tempo ballad about Federal Reserve monetary policy. Not everything here sticks, but this is a solid sophomore LP with a big 14 tracks. Highly recommended.

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Rob Cantor “Not A Trampoline”
Remember Tally Hall? The band has been inactive for a couple years, but vocalist Rob Cantor has returned to create a catchy album that shares some of that Tally Hall magic. While the lead track “Ghost” is low key dance pop, it leads to the wonderful “Old Bike” with a slow build to harmony drenched chorus. Then the catchy single “Garden of Eden” mixes a solid riff and synth rhythm. It kinda goes all over the map with modern pop, salsa, ballads and such, keeping things unpredictable.

The electronic pop of “The Rendezvous” includes a duet with Madi Diaz, and the quirky melody of “I’m Gonna Win” features monster guitar riffs. Hip hop beats contrast the subdued vocals on “Flamingo” and the delicate melody of “Perfect” with its building three-part harmonies push this into highly recommended territory.

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Album Previews: Skeleton Staff and The Dowling Pool

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It’s been a long wait, but we finally get a new track from Skeleton Staff. The main message is this: Stop worrying about imperfections we can’t change and just get on with enjoying life. Buy it on Bandcamp for a buck. Likely this is the first single to a new album on the way. I guess this can tide me over.

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I wondered what would become of Willie Dowling after the break-up of Jackdaw4, but I didn’t have to wait very long. The Dowling Poole is a new band formed by singer-songwriters and multi-instrumentalists Willie Dowling (ex Honeycrack/Jackdaw4) and Jon Poole (ex Cardiacs). Influenced by pop masters such as XTC, Blur, 10CC, The Kinks, The Beatles and more, The Dowling Poole debut album Bleak Strategies will be released this summer. You can pre-order this one from Pledge Music.

Tommy Lorente and The Y Axes

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Tommy Lorente “Un cruel manque de tendresse”
It’s rare I hear a power pop musician from France, but Tommy Lorente is a genuine talent. Coming across like a French version of Kurt Baker, the album title translates to “A severe lack of tenderness,” and it bursts forth with a great opener “Ma Dose de Toi.” A little bit of Elvis Costello and Rockpile go a long way to making this a fun listen.

The caveat is that the entire album is sung in French, but even if you don’t comprendre les mots you’ll enjoy the hand clapping, toe tapping “Mirabelle” and sweet strums of “Quelque Part.”  Another highlight is “Katerine,” with its catchy main guitar riff and cowbell beat. No duds here and the production is clean with heavy percussion and horns underneath those riffs. Highly Recommended.

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The Y Axes “Sunglasses and Solar Flairs”
San Francisco Y Axes fall along the lines of ’90s indie pop, so fans of The Primitives or The Sugarcubes will enjoy the bright vocals of lead singer Alexi Belchere on the opening track “Sunglasses.” The lush synth textures mixed with sharp rhythm guitar on “Nothing With You” make this a highlight. But my favorite track here is “Green To Gold” with its textured dance beats and layered chorus.

A little of the Y Axes goes a long way, so more generic tracks like “Loop Machine” and “Rivers” don’t stick despite the slick production work. “Chemicals” is an almost-hit, with its anthem-like chorus that rescues the song. “Artax” is another notable guitar/synth combo with Alexi’s chirping vocal. Give it a try for only $5 on Bandcamp.

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Palmyra Delran and Jimmy Jax Pinchak Band

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Palmyra Delran “You Are What You Absorb”
I was introduced to Palmyra during The Cavestomp Festival last month, and was really impressed, so I picked up her CD. Palmyra takes some elements of garage, power pop to deliver perfect party rock. Her sound is part Debbie Harry with a psychedelic spin, she’s been a member of The Friggs and Pink Slip Daddy – and she’s caught the attention of Little Steven Van Zandt.

“You’re My Brian Jones” was a No. 1 song for Underground Garage’s 2012 list, and it certainly is a catchy gem. But there is so much more here, “Shy Boy” has that great bass reverb and multi-tracked chorus and the high energy on “Lies For You” make it a signature power pop tune. There is enough echoes of the past here, recalling The Animals and The Shangri-Las on “Never To Be Back Again” and “Someday Soon.” Delran keeps things fresh on each song here, using pig latin and bongos on “Sunny Day” and the mid-tempo charmer “Back To You” has some nice string accents. Highly Reccomended!

CD Baby | Amazon

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Jimmy Jax Pinchak Band “Make It Better”
Lots of actors try expanding their resume by becoming musician. Unless you have a Disney pedigree, the road is uphill and very steep. Jimmy Jax Pinchak (recently seen as Peter Wiggin from Ender’s Game) is one of those rare actors who actually have solid musical skills to go with the good looks. His new album “Make It Better.” was mastered by Grammy award winner Erick Labson and contains great influences (The Beatles, Cream, The Blues Breakers).

The opening track “There is More” is a muscular rock track with a sweet guitar hook. Pinchak’s deep vocal reminded me a little of his main inspiration, Johnny Lang with “On The Run” and the guitar stylings on most of the album are straight forward blues-rock. Standouts include covers of Tommy James “Draggin’ The Line” and Santana’s “Soul Sacrifice.”

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Verskotzi and John Dunbar

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Verskotzi “Lemon Heart”
This came out under my radar last year, but I’m glad I found Joey Verskotzi’s debut now. A young singer-songwriter with terrific vocals and an aggressive power pop sound. “Luck” is solid evidence that he’s got potential with a great guitar hook in the chorus, and the echoing guitar strums of “Brain Rack” is another gem about obsession. “Heartless Songs” is pretty good analysis of the state of soulless corporate rock, as he sings”Doin’ it wrong. Slavin’ away to heartless songs.”  “8th Street Train” is another excellent rocker with a infectious beat and “Honey” is jangle-lead pop single that’s gotten some airplay.

Occasionally we get examples of Joey’s vocal range on the folky “Burnt Yuppies” and crooning “Blue,” both demonstrate his vocal skills and smoldering sex appeal. Holly Hansen of Zoo Animal lends her vocal support on the track “Abandoned Love” and although it loses a little steam at the end, there is more than enough here to have me highly recommend this album.

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John Dunbar “Third Guessing”
New York musician John Dunbar was the man behind the Rutles-esque tribute to The Kinks called The Kunks, and this is his third solo LP. Dunbar has immersed himself into 60’s era singer-songwriter folk rock with some nice Byrdsian guitar flourishes on “Putting An End To What Hasn’t Yet Begun.” The lyrics address doubts and self examinations on “Strangers Will Tell You The Truth.” The Turtles-like “Consider It Considered” is another standout — it sounds both apprehensive and compelling.

The sparse instrumentation occasionally works against the songs for example “Sullenly” takes its time taking about depression and regret, but doesn’t build any atmosphere with its light guitar strums and “Reagan/Fagen” is an annoying couplet that sounds really forced. What stood out for me is the psychedelic “Longing For What Never Was” with a message to you aging hippies out there “Watch out for what nostalgia does… You’re longing for what never was.” While some tracks just don’t have the compelling hooks, this does provide some interesting therapy for fans of P.F. Sloan. Give it a try on Bandcamp.

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