When I last left Jamie Hoover and company it was a celebratory return to form, with “Too Clever By Half”. The Spongetones are one of the few, great power pop bands from the early 80’s that have outlasted almost everyone else. This time the band jams with a terrific opener “All the Loving” and it’s full of jangle and strum that harkens back to their Beatlesque traditions. And like your favorite comfort food, it’s easy to lap up. But Jamie hasn’t lost the ability to take things in other directions, with “Inevitable You” a sweet mid-tempo ballad about longevity in a relationship (with a band mate or spouse). A more grizzled take on the band’s future comes across on “It Can’t Go On Forever” and the bouncy “Lost Weekend” continues the jangle party. Certain songs have a slightly more adult progressive feel, similar to The Pillbugs on “Where Ya Gonna Go” with it’s speedy baseline lead and the folk pop of “Propeller Flights.” Even a venture into the blues with “Tough Love” show us that it’s not all sweet pop, similar in style to the Fab Four’s “I Want You (She’s So Heavy).” Even though everything here isn’t as accessible as the last album, the grand melodies of songs like “Too Unlikely Two” with it’s dual guitar solo are a joy to behold. There is plenty here for the long time ‘Tones fan, like the Monkees’ guitar rythyms of “Karma Depleted,” the hummable “Pick That Up For A Song,” and sparkling Rickenbacker on “She’ll Be Gone.”  With such an eclectic mix of styles here, you understand why they called this one “Scrambled Eggs.” As long as Jamie and the boys are cooking, I’ll order this special anytime.

Saturday, April 18 marks the second annual “Record Store Day” at independent record stores throughout the US and the rest of the world, a day that retailers hope will draw loyal and new customers to celebrate the indie record store and all that it has to offer. Vendor sales are all over the place — so check them out.

Kool Kat Musik

• 10% off our entire Power Pop/Alt Country Online Store CD catalog (Does NOT include April 20 New Releases)
• 10% discount on vinyl, magazines, and DVDs
• 25% off our entire “Used CD” inventory

CD Baby

With all the bad news out there, it’s good to see some optimism from Adam Levy and his band The Honeydogs with their new mini-album, “Sunshine Committee.” While it’s not full of sugar, it does offer a less gloomy outlook than the previous effort “Amygdala.” Bassist Trent Norton contributes some great baselines to the opening title track and it works in tandem with Levy’s guitar. Add to this the rich horn section comprised of new members Matt Darling and Steven Kung that bring the group back to it’s rootsy sound. “Fiber Optic Paramour” is a cool story about how an online romance fails to fulfill happiness. The band channels Revolver-era Beatles perfectly on “Balaclava” and we get pretty funky a la Lenny Kravitz or Sly Stone on the laid back “Stash.” There are enough influences here to spread things around and Levy does a great job arranging the material with the assistance of his crew and if you want even more Levy you can check out his kids album Bunny Clogs on e-music. While not the revelation of “10,000 Years,” this album sort of falls short of a full length and is too long for an EP — either way it’s welcome news for pop fans.