Deer Park Avenue “Stop and Go”
A pair of Californian sisters (Sarah and Stephanie Snyder) named the band for a street they lived on during childhood in Long Island, NY. The duo performs a combination of melodic rock and pop  (fans of Jana Perri take note) – the harder rock stuff  starts off first with “Hey Maria” full of driving guitar chords and a strong chorus. More subtle is the mid tempo “Darkness Hides Me” as it slowly builds, getting louder as the mood and lyric become more defiant.

“Millionaire” is another slow builder but with a strong drum section, a bit like an 80’s arena power ballad with shouts of “Hey! Hey!” in the chorus background and “Over Again” recalls the heavy pop guitars of Tonic or The Goo Goo Dolls with sweet female vocals.”Waiting For You” is another good rocker with a nice charging set of  power pop riffs. A good debut, sometimes I felt the girls sweet vocal style may be better suited to country that rock, but that contrast is also what kept me listening.

Bubble Gum Orchestra “Out Of This World” 
Some say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, if that’s the case then Michael Laine Hildebrandt (aka Bubble Gum Orchestra) worships the ground Jeff Lynne walks upon. Everything from the cover art to the lyrics are related to all things Electric Light Orchestra (ELO). I will admit that such slavish devotion will turn off some listeners, but if you forgive this the first single “Night In Shangri-la” is quite good, with a catchy chorus that name drops several ELO songs. Next, “Lights Over London” has a bouncy rhythm and it’s a good follow up.

Unfortunately the next few songs tend to drag along, with long effects laden intros and synth breaks that slow the album’s momentum. In technical terms alone, it’s quite an achievement — but the album is so in thrall to ELO it precludes any chance of  Hildebrandt imposing his own identity on the material. If you are an ELO fanatic however, then this may find a place in your music collection.

Holmes “Covers” 
When it comes to cover tunes, I feel unless you approach it with a unique POV you may as well listen to the original song. There are numerous horrible examples of Beatles covers out there that I wish I never heard. On the other hand when covers are done right I really appreciate the artists style. Good recent examples are from Michael Carpenter and Matthew Sweet.  I would definitely add Holmes (aka Roy Shakked) to this list. The range of covers he has chosen here is truly eclectic, from Ice Cube to ELO. Opening with “It Was A Good Day,” I hardly recognized it, because it was played as a sunny pop tune. In many cases, the style performed is the direct opposite of how it was written (Depeche Mode’s “Wrong” using a bluesy guitar riff or Elvis “Don’t Be Cruel” as a slow ballad) and in the process makes them like Holmes originals. This opens up the song writing to a totally new interpretation, and my favorites here are “That’s All (Genesis),” Why Didn’t You Call Me (Macy Gray)” and a totally cool a capella version of ELO’s “Mr. Blue Sky.” This is a fun collection that’s highly recommended.

London Egg “In The Beginning…”
Here is a Brooklyn band with a real fetish for 60’s and 70’s Brit-rock. This is a decidedly lo-fi debut but it’s got lots of potential, like The Troggs doing power pop with fuzzy chords everywhere. “Richocet Beloved” is an early highlight, very much like Oasis. Unfortunately for every impressive track like the exciting Mod tune “Everyone But You” you get an underbaked demo like “Sister Deatmeat.” You have to give the band credit for a good effort on songs like “Sunnyside Gardens Park” with it’s garage rock atheistic and pysche-pop atmosphere. But despite this effort, the sound quality may turn off some listeners. With no label or distribution, the album is only released to fans who send an e-mail with “I WANT SOME LONDON EGG!” in the subject line. I was told that the band is working on a new album using modern recording techniques. Let’s hope they get a proper album out soon, they deserve it.