The Davenports "Why The Great Gallop?"

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It’s been a long time since we’ve heard from Brooklyn’s The Davenports. But the new album finally arrives and it’s worth the wait. Lead by frontman Scott Klass he deftly filled the album with terrific hooks and clever lyrical stories, similar in style to Fountains of Wayne. The guitar heaviness of the past albums have given way to quirky character studies and great percussion. “Christopher Starts” has a generous helping of inner monologue and infectious beat. Lots of fast paced tunes are at the albums start, and they don’t seem to be related at first. By time I got to the handclaps and tambourine chorus in “Don’t Cry Mary” a story begins to emerge.

This is an excellent album, where every song advances the narrative point of view. Anxiety and paranoia are on display on “Something’s Gonna Get Us” with typewriter sound effects and “You Can’t Drink Anymore” has an impressive guitar lead. The crux of the album seems to be “Figure Me Out,” a strong piano melody with full strings backing Scott’s vocal. The confessional tone of the story is framed out by each song. For me it took a few listens to appreciate the details in each melodic track, not everything here is instantly sticky and the tempo on a few tunes are too similar. But there’s no filler here either, overall it’s not too early to add this to my “best of 2011” list.

Band’s Site | Amazon

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Hardcore Lounge, The Villas and The Rocketboys

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Hardcore Lounge “Dance Of My Life”
Some bands just don’t fit neatly into a music category. Chris and Wes Johnson from Charlotte, NC have a background with The Johnson Family Singers. The band plays in a classical pop ensemble, with a variety of instruments and players including Mary Massie (flute, keyboards), Marco Heeter (bass) and Marlon Young (drums). The clean production work showcases what could be lounge pop with an avant guarde twist. I liked the brassy “Holiday” and quirky “Super Sized” – not power pop for sure, but you may enjoy it if labels aren’t that important to your musical experience.
MySpace | CD Baby

The Villas “Jamie” EP
This Austin band’s got spunk and loves loud melodic pop, in the Weezer vein. Lead singer Jonathan Berry snarles out every tune, with a crunchy guitar by Bryan Winter. But as much as they try, the band still has a long way to go and the rough harmonies don’t quiet cut it. The acoustic “Fading In My Mind” brings to mind those old Stones ballads, and I liked this tune the best. 
Villas Music | Bandcamp

The Rocketboys “Wellwisher” EP
Another Austin, TX band creates moody pop with anthemic arrangements, lead singer Brandon Kinder kind of recalls Sting if he was part of Coldplay. “Narrow Space” opens with strong drum fills, floating synth strings and Kinder’s strong croon takes over. The band has already begun writing its second full-length, which will be out by summer 2011 and feature a bucket of brand new songs from the six-piece group.
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Vinnie Zummo "Ringo"

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Wonderful single and tribute to the world’s greatest drummer. This is part of Vinnie Zummo’s “Swinging Guitar Sounds of Young America” check it out on CD Baby. He’s got a volume 2 out now as well.

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Eric Crugnale and Miami Dan

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Eric Crugnale “Carol Was Here”
Local Long Islander Eric Crugnale is a pleasant revelation on the scene, a long time session man with other excellent artists (Kevin Bents, Andrew Fortier) who set out solo. Eric’s smooth singer songwriter sound compares well to David Mead or Brian Estepa. The title track has bits of Brian Wilson and Burt Bacharach wrapped in the main melody and hooked me right away.

“Can’t Take My Eyes Off You” is catchy and bouncy guitar pop of the first order, and another big highlight is “I’m So Glad” with it’s 70’s soft pop falsetto. “What We Deserve” is a grand orchestral pop number, with full strings and horns and “Never Thought” recalls Mike Viola’s blend of pop beat and earnest vocal treatment. The album has a few timid compositions, but most of the songs here are brilliant and it ends on the great Michael Carpenteresque “Old Enought To Know” Just add it belatedly to my 2010’s “top ten” pile.

CD Baby | Amazon | Kool Kat Musik

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Miami Dan and The Hayes Street Band “Star Of The Beach”
Miami Dan Yoe channels an East Coast Al Jardine perfectly on his opening title track, and the excellent backing harmonies by The Hayes Street Band prove an effective Beach Boys facsimile. Add to this a cadre of musicians including ex-BB David Marks, session favorite Probyn Gregory and you’ve got a winner. The musical themes are adult, but it’s all about the sand and surf on “No Fear.” A bouncy “Look East Again” is a joyful look back on memories of a young relationship. The beautiful piano ballad “Time To Move On” is a memorable duet with Katey Randall’s strong vocals.

The storytelling aspect here is great on “1944,” a bio of WWII veteran. Unfortunately it takes a hard right turn on “Age of Deception” and the politically charged “Take Back America” which are good songs but belong on a John Rich album. The last 5 tracks are remixes by Chris Hicks. I have to praise the craftsmanship and attention to detail in both the songwriting and extensive liner notes here as well. This is no doubt an effective adult pop album that deserves repeat listens.

CD Baby | Amazon

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The Sorrows and Shalini

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The Sorrows“Bad Times Good Times”
During the IPO festival my friend Dave “The Boogieman” raved about The Sorrows and but I didn’t really get around to listening to it until recently. To put it mildly, I was blown away by what is the definition of a “lost” power pop classic. Frontman Arthur Alexander brings elements of The Beatles, The Who and The Kinks to this sonic delight. Almost every one of the albums songs are pure pop perfection, lead by the guitar assault of the title track. Rather than name my favorite songs, I’ll just say this stands alongside The Beat, The Poppees and The Plimsouls as best of breed early 80’s NYC power pop. The songs are taken from The Sorrows long out-of-print albums, and thanks to BOMP records they sound better than ever. So much interest was generated by this album that Alexander is putting together a new album. Finding this shiny pop treasure will make your day.

Shalini “Magnetic North” EP
Singer/guitarist, Shalini Chatterjee is a songstress with a sound shaped by an aural diet of early rock, Motown, and ’80s art-rock. Whether as part of a band, such as ’90s San Francisco college radio darlings, Vinyl Devotion, or as a solo artist, Shalini’s main focus is making energetic, inspired, and fun rock songs. Read the review at The Rock and Roll Report.

UPDATE: I got a few facts wrong in the Shalini review: Mitch Easter and Don Dixon suggested Shalini from her FIRST name (not last) and she played bass in a band called KIssyfish (87-90) not Vinyl Devotion. Sorry for the mixup.

MySpace | CD Baby 

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