Don Lee “Fool to Even Care”
Don Lee is singer/songwriter who deserves a big following among power pop enthusiasts. He’s got a vocal style uncannily like Glenn Tilbrook (Squeeze) and driving guitar chords to go with the sophisticated pop songcraft. Opening with “How Do You Play?” it’s a fast paced and catchy single. Several gems follow, “Getting Together” is a sweet double tracked vocal against a easy guitar strum, and a swaggering chorus. Alina Zimmerman adds her teasing vocal in the his/her duet “Pay Your Love In Full” with Don’s short but blistering guitar solo. “Never That Far” is another angular gem, with shifting tones in the melody. The ballads are good too, “Leave Me The Light On” adds a little bongo and flamenco flavoring to a superb pop song. The album never stays in a single mood, but it slowly runs out of steam until “The Lawn” and “Get Out Of My Way” revive things with its chord play and vocal enthusiasm. Melodic rock fans will also definitely want to explore his back catalog. It’s no wonder Don was voted Best Rock/Pop/Blues Act at the Jersey Acoustic Music (JAM) Awards this year.

Grand Atlantic “Constellations”
This New Zealand band gave us a taste of the heavier Britpop sound when they released the single “Poison To The Vine” earlier this year. Like a combo of The Doves and Oasis, Grand Atlantic has slowly moved away from their power pop roots, to a heavier rock and shoegazer style. The band still has a knack for pop melody on “Carved From Stone” as it’s a strong opener. “Searchlights” is another confident tune that struts it’s blistering guitars with gleeful abandon. Lead honcho Phil Usher adds a touch of spacey pysche-pop with the title track, and on the droning ballad “Mountains Too Steep” he finds his inner Bono. “Little Traps” is my favorite track here, with it’s layered guitar work and epic vocals. Kinda makes the old Oasis look like wussies, huh? However after the driving “Fresh Ideas In Home Security” it drifts off into less memorable stuff toward the albums end. But it still is a great album in my book, and this band also sounds ready to hit the big time with this album. It ups the ante for both fans and critics of How We Survive. Get this one and feel the rush!

Right away you get the feeling Somerdale spent a lot of time with old school power pop and rock records. The trio consists of Chuck Penza (bass), James Caputo (guitar) and JJ Fennimore (drums) and the opening track “That’s Over Now” sounds like it fell off a classic Raspberries album. The band has the ability to channel its influences with stunning accuracy. “Bent On Napalm” has a bluesy riff similar to the Stones “Street Fighting Man” as Caputo belts away.  The bands approach is similar to 70’s influenced retro outfit Vinyl Candy, but with much less glam and a stronger songwriting approach. And it boasts two good singers, as Penza and Caputo share the lead duties.

You gotta love the beautiful opening chords and harmonies on “Sugar Valley, CA” as the chorus recalls The Bryds and Sloan. The guitar gets even heavier with the handclaps and cymbal on “We Are All Together.” It brings to mind KISS minus the makeup and with an even catchier chorus. The nicely timed ballad “Like A Rainbow” is Penza’s best moment as it recalls classic Frampton. It has a few misses (“If I Knew The Words” and “Oklahoma”) but includes a good cover of The Left Banke’s hit “Walk Away Renee”  and a very Bay City Rollers-ish “Best I Can.” Overall, there is more than enough here to recommend to melodic rock enthusiasts.