Over the past 21 years, these Canadian-alternative rockers have scored eight Juno Awards, multiple Grammy nominations, and sold more than 14 million albums worldwide with hits including “Pince Me” and “One Week!” Guess who? It’s the Barenaked Ladies! As you may already know, they recently performed for the Radio City Music Hall crowd in NYC with special guests Ben Kweller and Angel Taylor! Check out exclusive front-row photos from the show here.
JP Jones & Chrissie Hynde. The Powerpopaholic Interview
I got a rare treat and interviewed rock and roll hall of famer Chrissie Hynde (Pretenders) and JP Jones (Grace) who have been been touring together as JP, Chrissie & The Fairground Boys in support of their new album “Fidelity!” The album has been met with near universal acclaim, and I’m no different in singing it’s praises.
We dish about how they met in Cuba, produced the album and formed their own record label, including past rumors of a Chrissie Hynde solo album are put to rest. It’s 14 minutes streaming, so enjoy…
Listen to a few tracks from “Fidelity!” below. Highlights include “If You Let Me” and the bouncy title track. The albums theme of lust, love and frustration is thick with authenticity and excellent songwriting.
Amazon | itunes
International Pop Overthrow "Vol. 13"
Once again, David Bash’s labor of love comes together on IPO Vol.13 featuring a mind numbing 66 songs dedicated to the newest and best power pop from around the globe. This being a 3 disc affair, I’ll try to highlight my favorites off of each disc. But overall this year’s crop is a considerable improvement from last year, where Mr. Bash has decidedly pushed the boundaries of what power pop sounds like. Including a solid representation by female power poppers.
Disc 1 features a pile of notable tracks, The Royalites “Bring It On” is a great riff-driven song and the Beatlesque track “Rain Parade” by Mayflower will have you humming along. Deadbeat Poets contribute a stellar Kinks like track “People These Days” and The James Clark Institute contributes a jangle-filled “Splinter In The Soul.”
Disc 2 gets a bit heavier with a classic rock styled “What are We Gonna Do?” By the Stanleys and Rob Bonfiglio’s excellent “How To Mend A Heart.” A pair of energetic tracks are Popgun’s “All Messed Up” and “All Systems Go”by Smash Fashion. Tiny Volcano contributes a catchy piano melody with “Emily” and we are treated to Buddy Love’s greatest and newest single “Crying Town.”
Disc 3 starts with Zoe Scott’s “Hard Habit,” a radio worthy hit single that arguably deserves major media attention. Unconventional sounding rockers in “Gilded Frankenstein” by Hijinx and “Please Operator” by Pounders are interesting, but a gorgeous mid-tempo “I Want It Anyway” by The Afternoons recalls Gerry and The Pacemakers. The driving tempo and guitars of The Wags “Just Keep Movin’ On” will encourage repeat listens. A few novelty tracks here and there (like Cosmo Topper’s “Hippy Christmas”) keep the mood playful between the “serious” tracks. Every year Mr. Bash discovers power pop gold nuggets throughout the IPO festivals and this year is no exception. Keep mining Dave, and we’ll keep our ears glued to the headphones.
My Space | Not Lame Records | Amazon
Power Pop Music Legend Ray Davies’ Collaboration With The Killers: Dead On Arrival
Last October, the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame had its 25th Anniversary
Concert in New York City. The highlight of the night for Power Pop
music fans was seeing Kinks frontman Ray Davies preform live with
Metallica. After the show, whilst mingling backstage, Davies began
putting together ideas for a collaboration project. The concept was to
recruit a stellar cast of musicians to collaborate on re-recording a
handful of the Kinks’ Power Pop masterpieces.
For almost a year now, rumors have been floating around the Power Pop music forums speculating on who will be joining Mr. Davies in the
studio and what Power Pop classics are going to be revamped on this
record. Some have been confirmed, some have been denied, and in the case of Vegas based quartet The Killers, confirmed and denied. Even the press has reported falsities on the topic.
Last February, numerous online music journals were reporting that
Power Pop music group The Killers were in the studio with Davies
collaborating on a track for the collection. Unfortunately, late last
week this report was retracted by several sources. Although the track
was recorded, it is not certain why the track will not end up on the
final product and once again rumors and speculation are floating
around on what lead to this track’s demise.
As of now, Davies’ collaborators consist of Bruce Springsteen, Billy
Corgan (The Smashing Pumpkins), Spoon, Frank Black (The Pixies),
Mumford & Sons, Amy MacDonald, Paloma Faith, and the late Power Pop music icon Alex Chilton (Big Star, Box Tops).
The release date of the Davies collaboration is still set for sometime
in 2010. A song list has yet to be confirmed and despite The Killers’
absence, this has become one of the most anticipated Power Pop music releases of the year.
About the author: James Mowery is a computer geek that writes about
technology and related topics. To read more blog posts by him, go to
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Circe Link and The Cinnamon Fuzz
Circe Link and the Discount Candy Family Band “California Kid”
Although she has put out several albums under her own name I found very little information on Circe Link. Produced and assisted by Christian Nesmith (yes, son of The Monkees guitarist Michael) so you know this group has experience right out of the gate. Circe’s got a strong blues-pop vocal approach, much like Sheryl Crow or Natalie Imbruglia. This works great on the fantastic opener “Salvation” with it’s bar room piano melody. “Random Acts of Kindness” is a sweet mid-tempo song with country guitar flourishes and great lyrical message. Things get trippy fast on psychedelic “Getting High (On Your Own Supply).” Clearly the main influence on the majority of tracks is blues-rock like The Allman Brothers and Tom Petty. Lots of acoustic strumming pop with a slight country feel and the title track is a good example. The best track here is the easy going “Shangriladeeda Farm” with a tight beat and catchy chorus. Another standout is “Tiger Swami” with Circe’s beautiful multi-tracked vocal harmonies and guitar rhythm by Nesmith. A great roots rock album that definitely grows on you after a few listens.
The Cinnamon Fuzz “Cruise of The Century”EP
Remember the 80’s? I lived through that era. This Boston band has passing musical resemblance to Duran Duran and Orchestral Maneuvers in The Dark on the first few tracks. But that’s just the start, as the band goes into power pop territory with heavy guitar riffs on “Now I Know” and the slinky Depeche Mode meets Bryan Scary styled “Strangers.” This EP is available at a “pay-what-you-like” price from Bandcamp. I would encourage the band to continue on the power pop path, as the production and musicianship is top notch and Jonah Burstein vocals remind me of both Dave Gahan (Depeche Mode) and Andrew Eldritch (Sisters of Mercy) simultaneously. 