Due out August 18th, Raconteur and power pop rocker Brendan Benson returns. And here is a real treat with a full preview of his new album on npr.org. It’s sounds great, so add it to the list of things you “must hear” this month.
Major Label Monday Reviews
Plenty of great new power pop albums have emerged on major labels recently. They are all excellent and too important to ignore.
Wilco “Wilco”
On the seventh disc Wilco seems to have found its sweet spot with more recent albums, the songs are both gentle and melodic. The self titled track (“Wilco, the song”) is a love letter to all of Tweedy’s fans. And it journeys from the subtle introspection (“Country Disappeared”) to mid tempo love songs (“I’ll Fight”). A great example of the old experimental sound is the building chords of “Bull Black Nova.” But for pop fans nothing comes close to the beauty of “You Never Know” and the awesome “Sunny Feeling” which recall the Summerteeth era. Finally a Wilco album that needs no apologies – just praise.
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Cheap Trick “The Latest”
The godfathers of power pop continue to show why they are masters of the genre, from the opening chords of “When The Lights Go Out” you’ll be sold. Robin Zander’s vocals are as strong as ever, and the band sounds exactly the way fans have come to expect. Another high-powered gem, “Miss Tomorrow” is classic Trick, and “Sick Man Of Europe” is a louder punkier tune that holds it’s own with bands like Jet and The Hives. Plenty of hooks and overall much better than 2005’s Rockford. In fact this album stands out as one of the best Cheap Trick records in many, many years.
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Silversun Pickups “Swoon”
One of the most underrated releases this year, the band combines the ethereal textures of Arcade Fire and the mesmerizing vocals and melodies of Smashing Pumpkins. “There’s No Secrets This Year” starts a majestic journey into fuzz guitars and orchestral strings. “Panic Switch” is comparable to Propellerheads and the catchy pop of “Substitution” are hard to ignore. The bass leads the listener across this multi-layered production that will capture your attention for sure. The slower tunes tend to blend in a bit, but this is meant to be heard as an album, not a bunch of singles.
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Sugar Ray “Music for Cougars”
Opening with a forgettable hip hop remake of The Everly Brothers “Girls are Made To Love,” Mark McGrath makes pop that your mom can play in the car stereo. In fact Mark has the hots for your mom with “She’s Got The (Woo-Hoo)” and it recalls the laid back sound of the hit “Someday.” Thankfully the commercial sound gives way to some catchy music as “When We Were Young” is a hand-clapping gem. The latter half of the album does a great job, as the excellent guitar riffs of “Going Nowhere,” faux country ballad of “Love 101,” and “Morning Sun” will get you singing. This is fun, lightweight music made for the beach. Play this and have a cold one.
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Green Day
“21st Century Breakdown”
Probably the most anticipated release this summer. It will be hard to top the Grammy winning “American Idiot” – but it does follow a similar thematic template. In fact, they continue to split the album between their punk roots and fully embraced hook-filled power pop melodies. These guys just get better with each album, and they continue the winning streak here. “21st Century Breakdown” goes all Sweet and Queen with driving guitars, and “Know Your Enemy” is classic Green Day pop. There are plenty of piano and sweeping guitar ballads like “Before The Lobotomy” the wonderfully Beatlesque “Last Night On Earth” — and I openly wonder if an Extreme/Green Day tour wouldn’t be the greatest ever. Plenty to love here as almost every song shines with those patented speedy riffs set to a full blown rock opera. Most likely the best major label release this year.
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Vinyl Candy "Land"
Southern California’s Vinyl Candy has followed up the stellar “Pacific Ocean Park”with another rock and roll gem. The quartet here is Jim Leber, Matt Corey, Michael “WessC” Wessner, and Justin “JD” Brinsfield. The band has a distinct mid 70’s-era rock sound that mines influences like Queen, Bay City Rollers and Todd Rundgren pretty effectively. This album is also best compared to Imperial Drag with rock guitars paving the way for sticky pop sweetness. Opening with summery melody of “I’ll Be Fine (Part 1)” it has the reverb heavy guitars and Moog synths supporting the chiming harmonies in the chorus. The song moves seamlessly to “Fan Club History” with a Kiss-like ferocity in dense rock guitars and a heavy synth solo. “Chasing Time” is an fine mid-tempo pop example with a heavenly chorus and thick bass lines. “Gasoline & Tangerines” is another gem that tells more of the narrative of a life and possible death on the road. It can get close to the edge when all the varied loud sounds drown out the hooks (“Learn How To Fly”), but this is few and far between. “StarStruck” really comes closest to that Imperial Drag stabbing synth sound. The group has awesome vocal chemistry here, especially on the highlight “Want It So Bad.” The album ends with a slow “pub” version of the opener in “I’ll Be Fine (Part 2).” The theme of the album is the story of a rock star named “Land” and his rise to fame and ruin. It took a few listens to get the full linear story, but it flows nicely. Certainly this album should put Vinyl Candy on the rise to fame for sure.
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Listen to “Chasing Time”
Listen to “Gasoline & Tangerines”
Dave Caruso "Elizabeth Parker" EP
Dave Caruso is an independent alternative-pop songwriter from Trenton, Michigan. Armed with keyboard, guitar, bass and drums, Dave has been performing for over 30 years with his band “Caruso” during the 80’s and with this more recent EP he gets to strut his solo stuff. He sounds similar to Cliff Hillis, Michael Carpenter and Mark Bacino, with sunny chiming guitar melodies that are instantly catchy and accessible. The songcraft is top notch, a perfect example is the Elvis Costello sounding title track “Elizabeth Parker”. The next gem is “I Can’t Be On Time,” a finely tuned slice of 80’s styled power pop. the bossa nova ballad “If I Died Today” and strong guitar riffs of “Letter To My Ex” round out the album. If you enjoy any of the artists above, then this is excellent addition to your music collection. I would hope Dave will continue to record and a full length is on the way soon.
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Charles Ramsey "Good Morning & Good Night"
Charles Ramsey’s second album has plenty of great songs, and it’s opening title track evokes those bright melodic Burt Bacharach-Hal David hits of the 70’s, and resembles current contemporaries, Brent Cash and Adrian Whitehead. But after this great opening track, it settles into a more folk-pop mode with the acoustic guitar similar to Harry Chapin or Cat Stevens with “Things Could Be Different.” Ramsey has a rich mid-tone vocal here that wavers on the higher register at times, but the plaintive “Odelia” is a perfect example of where his vocal range belongs. Lower profile pop ballads make up the bulk of the album with “The See & Be Seen Scene” bringing to mind a Philadelphia version of Billy Joel. The only return to the Brill building pop sound is the brilliant “My Lost Days” which resembles Michael Brown (Left Banke, Stories) with a masterful hook, melody and a gorgeous key change in the chorus. The slow but steady “When Forgetfulness or Sleep Has Gone” makes best use of the full orchestra backdrop, although his vocal limitations are on full display here. If you like classical 70’s pop and folk this is a welcome addition to your album collection.
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