Coventry’s fave jangle band is back. Sort of. Spanish power pop label Elefant has spread the news that they are readying a new collection of The Primitives’ singles and rarities entitled Let’s Go Round Again: Second Wave Singles & Rarities 2011-2025. The package promises to be a double album, available on vinyl and other formats. A preview of what will be included is available for pre-ordering online but precisely what is new or culled from one-off specialty albums or b-sides will require a Primitives-ologist to decipher. Suffice to say it will be full to brimming with jangle goodness. On the unreleased material front so far all we know is that it will include two versions of a mysterious track entitled “Sweet Sister Sorrow.”
As soon as this 45 got going I knew it was there, that Primitives magic. The instrumentation is retro sparkling, Thorn’s vocal is dolly bird pristine, and tune is jangle catchy. The alternate take “Sweet Sister Sorrow (Symphonic Dream Pop Version)” is lighter, more acoustic, with a vocal that is simultaneously more expansive and airy. It so reminds me of Sandie Shaw in her late 1960s Pye Records heyday. But I’m still left with questions. Is this a new song from the band? Or something shelved from way back in the day? Looks like we’ll have to wait for the full package to arrive March 7 and perhaps comb the liner notes for details. Another whole month you say? No matter. When I’ve got a new Primitives song to play (again and again) the world is just a little bit brighter.
You can find this new song (both versions), preview the soon-to-be released collection, and revisit a whole lot of the band’s great new millennium revival stuff at the their bandcamp lair and website.
Early into our new year and new records are breaking out everywhere. Today we’ve got some old favourites and highly anticipated debuts to get our heads around.
Victor Ramirez’s Ramirez Exposure project is like a carefully assembled time capsule of sixties sonic riffs. On this latest LP For the Love of Things Invisible everything feels familiar, from the Beatlesque/Beach Boys trills adorning the opening title track to the sunshine pop aura of “Beneath the Sun” with its Zombies-like lilt. There’s a touch of baroque pop weaved throughout. I mean, check out the madrigal-ish keyboard that launches “I Don’t Get It” only to segue into a more happy-go-lucky pop feel. By contrast “Long Way to Go” is folk rock in both its demeanor and metre. Ramirez covers two songs from his sometime collaborator Marc Jonson and the shift in mood and sonic sensibility is notable. “Ended” is lyrically stark, emotionally dark and moving while “Love Radiates Around” builds a lush Dion-esque intensity that just sounds 1960s classic. Closing cut “What’s Tonight on Utopia TV” is a sonic pastiche kind of instrumental that practically simmers in its focused intensity. The seven tracks here clock in at just 21 minutes – barely more than an EP, just shy of a proper LP – but fully delivering on fun.
On album number 15 Dropkick strip things back to their Primary Colours and that means loads of jangle, lush harmony vocals, and sweet sweet melodies. Opening cut “Left Behind” jolts to a start like a TV show flickering on halfway through but you easily get caught up, so recognizable are the essential elements of Dropkick songcraft. Immediately you’re in the Dropkick zone, recalling just how great it is to be here. “Snowflake adds a little more grit to the guitar mix, buffeting everything with a subtle organ sonic underlay. Title track “Primary Colours” comes on like the probable hit single with so many great melodic twists and turns. And then there’s “Dreams Expire” featuring the lush jangle vibe Dropkick is justly known for. Not that this album doesn’t vary the pitch. The Alan Shields penned and sung “Highs and Lows” almost sounds like a different but still pretty good band. “Till It Goes Away” puts Alan up front vocally with group leader Andrew Taylor on harmony, shifting the band’s sound in a distinctive way. “Misunderstandings” has a poignant undercurrent, perfectly framed in jangly guitars and Taylor’s sweetly understated vocal. Taylor scopes this down significantly on “Too Much of the Same,” a song with a spare, lilting kind of Springsteen-esque acoustic introspection. The band end things with “Waiting for the Rain,” proof that those routine Teenage Fanclub comparisons are still spot on.
Rich Chance is a showman whose experience writing for films has clearly given his tunes a cinematic shock quality, one part Queen, another part Friends of Mr. Cairo. Now decades into multiple musical careers he delivers his first LP Robot Spider Zombie Dog and it’s a stunner, rich in melodic quirks, inventive production, and clever lyrics. “Dizzy” is the slow-burn introduction to the show, building an intensity that gives you a hint of what is to come. From there the program divides between mannered pop whimsy and more straightforward pop hits. “Picture Show” exudes the laconic ease of Randy Newman with a touch of Rupert Holmes. “Pantomime” also kicks off very Newman but then adds a layer of pop hooks that take things somewhere else. “Get On” sounds like a show tune where the spotlit protagonist is constantly joined onstage by a dancing chorus. “On the Monday” is so Randy Newman, making the complex sound deceptively simple. By contrast, “Schlong” is more Manhattan Transfer-worthy jazzy pop. Yet Chance is not merely a frustrated Broadway song and dance man. He’s got serious poprock chops. “Azalea Close” is clearly the sizzling should-be hit single, a triumph of staged song pacing sure to get your heart racing. But “Angelina” is also a pretty special piece of radio-good pop perfection. I hear the imprint of a host of chart-makers here. “Darjeeling” sounds like a cross between Hall and Oates and the Steve Miller Band to me while “You” is the essence of a classic 1980s synth pop song. “Joker Like Me” brings these two pop tendencies together, a bit Billy Joel stage and show with a chorus that says ‘play me radio, I really could be a hit!’ Trust me, you’ll want to make room on your playlist for Rich Chance. Robot Spider Zombie Dog is both ‘kick up your heels’ and ‘don’t touch that dial’ good.
Never mind film at 11, you’ve got all the deets you need to follow up on these breaking stories. Hit the hyper-links and take all the time you need to interview these sources for yourself.
Photo courtesy of Jessica aka zaza23 Flikr collection.
Ever since they popped up on my radar with their wickedly cutting “Hotline Psychic” I’ve been loving just about everything coming from New York City’s Strange Neighbors. Their songwriting manages to work up a double whammy of sardonic lyrical wordplay combined with perfectly executed melodic hooks. Every. Damn. Time. Their latest single is no exception. “Influencer” relentlessly mocks the empty commercial influencer culture that offers ‘help’ at every turn for just a tiny bite of your attention economy. It might sound preachy if it weren’t so damn hummable. Really Strange Neighbors are masters at the hit-you-in-the-face hooky chorus. You thought you were enjoying the set up and the verses but the chorus takes things to a whole new level. There’s something about Aiden’s lead vocal (alternating with Zach in parts here) here that adds a ‘unreliable narrator jolt to the proceedings. The zing isn’t obvious and, for some listeners, may take time to sting. But it’s there.
If you like what you hear here (and heard on past releases) there’s good news in the shape of a whole new Strange Neighbors album due out soon. I can’t wait to fall under its influence.
What’s playing across our spectrum? More hooks, more jangle, more mellifluous melodies – the usual, in other words. Today’s should-be radio sample has got sly riffs, coy lyrics and even a certain cinematic allure.
The early, more rough-house pop sound of Burgess Meredith sounds like it has been put through a Beatles filter and what has come out on their latest LP Person Hat is very Abbey Road with a dash of seventies solo Paul McCartney. I mean, LP opener “Nowhere” is so Macca it hurts. In a good way. Actually, the whole sonic vibe of this record oozes various Beatle-isms. It’s there in the ominous orchestration backing “Somewhere to Start,” the distinctive Mellotron keyboard underpinning “Becca Song,” or the oh-so-Beatles background vocals balancing the sparse acoustic guitar on “Heart Strings.” I’m not saying it’s all Paul here. “Life Love” strikes a more White Album Lennon note. You may also hear a lot of Beatles interpreters like ELO on cuts like “Blue Reign.” Then again “Hit the Road” seems very Apples in Stereo to these ears. I think the sleeper hit on this record is “Love Knows.” It is one of those subtle ear worms that gets stuck in your head the more you hear it. I also really like the ambition driving “The Children Can Tell” with its pop, folksy and sing-along elements blending seamlessly.
Philadelphia’s Log Flume sound like a power pop band that aged out of the punk scene but couldn’t quite quit that baby. The effect is sometimes like a pop singer playing in front a sound system turned up way loud. It’s wonderfully dissonant and fun on tracks like “Elevator Up,” “OMIT” and the poppy “DB Cooper.” Other tracks like “Rom Pom Pom” have that SMWRS slick, alluring indie poprock sound. By contrast “On the Spaceship” has a rough and ready sheen, a touch of slacker vibe that says ‘we can nail this’ but sometimes we like things a bit looser. But where I think this band is going can be found on songs like “Angel’s Flight,” “December’s Ending” and “Simple Friend.” The latter transitions out of the dissonant sound to more of an accent on melody. Then “Angel’s Flight” bends your ear with solid melodic hooks throughout. But the standout should-be hit single is undoubtedly “December’s Friend.” This one is just so poppy good. Another delight is “Twist” which builds the tune out of a complex lead guitar hook that just keeps looping in the background until a chorus breaks out of nowhere. The album title is Splash Hit and that captures a lot about this group: fun, unpretentious and willing to throw out hooks like kids cannon-balling from the diving board.
When The Rockyts launched in 2020 they were barely post adolescent but that didn’t limit them acing a driving beat group revival sound worthy of a dark sweaty night at The Cavern. On their debut album Come On And Dance they showed they had 1965 down. The question was, where would they go next? 1966? Or somewhere more unpredictable? Last year’s release of Parkwood Manor has provided some answers. The record now sees the band reduced to a solo act built around the group’s creative force Jeremy Abboud who writes, plays and produces everything here. I must say the results are surprising though not startling. Abboud shifts to that slick pop new wave feel that took signature elements of the Beatles sound in exciting new directions. Tracks like “I Get High” and “Without You” utilize Cars-like muted guitar and vocals to good effect. There is a sonic consistency to the performances of tracks like “Another One Like You,” “You and I” and “Falling.” Abboud adds some grit to his vocals here while maintaining solid melodic hooks. There are contributions that offer a softer pop take, echoing a lighter 1960s feel, and here I’m thinking of tracks like “I Don’t Know Why It’s Killing Me,” “Everywhere” and “You Were My Love.” Altogether Parkwood Manor is an impressive second effort from a young talent who is really just getting started.
Given what you see here it’s clear that poprock productivity remains strong. Really there’s no reason you can’t get the hooks you need going forward. Just tune in here to re-up your supply.
Jeremy Messersmith is a delightful fellow, I’m sure. His albums are full of whimsy, wordplay and good feeling, even in the face of disappointment. In 2017 he released an album of 11 Obscenely Optimistic Songs For Ukulele, solidifying his reputation as a more highly produced Jonathan Richman. The guy even wrote a song about Tatooine, called “Tatooine” of course. To get a deep dish of just what he can dish out order up 2018’s Late Stage Capitalism. It’s a hookfest with songs defending Mondays, fast times in Minnesota, and the fact there are no superheroes in Cleveland. But I digress. We are here to spotlight a recent-ish 45 where he expresses his desire to end up a clue in one of the world’s most famous puzzles. And he managed to make it hummable. In “The New York Times Crossword Puzzle” Messersmith spills it, how there is no low he won’t sink to, no level of selling out he won’t consider to get of one those clue spots next to the grid.
We are sooo long overdue for a new Jeremy Messersmith album. Why not encourage the guy by giving this song a listen, a like, whatever your social media uses to acknowledge someone’s existence. Or catch up on Messersmith’s back catalogue. You won’t go wrong there, it’s a storehouse of smiles usable for any occasion.
Damn I miss Fountains of Wayne. A friend sent me their 1996 debut knowing I was snowed under with a new career path and from there they joined a small coterie of my very favourite bands. They didn’t put out a lot of records but I cherish each one. The group’s main songwriters also produced some great solo stuff, Adam Schleshinger with Ivy and host of other projects and Chris Collingwood with Look Park. Schleshinger sadly passed away in 2020 but lately I’ve been wondering if there isn’t something I’ve missed from Collingwood. It’s been eight years or so since his Look Park project debuted. Surely he’s worked up a tune or two since then? A search on the ole interweb didn’t turn up much, though I did come across mention of his short-lived Gay Potatoes indie supergroup and a live performance from 2000. From what I can tell, group members included Collingwood, Gentle Hen’s Henning Ohlenbusch and Phillip B. Price of The Maggies and Winterpills. So if I can’t have a new Collingwood or Look Park record at least I can get a few degrees closer by exploring these projects and collaborators.
Let’s start with the Gay Potatoes show. It’s a fun, ramshackle affair, apparently the band’s first live appearance. The song line-up reflects that fact there are three songwriters and singers in the group. Show opener “Another Right Time” definitely captures the band’s power poppy energy. Price’s “Ballad of Frank Strange” and Collingwood’s future FOW tune “Hung Up On You” are also highlights.
From there exploring Price and Ohlenbusch’s work is a research project all on its own. Price has 12 solo albums, as well as 8 with The Maggies and 7 with his Winterpills project. Ohlenbusch has an equally daunting musical resume. This is going to a very random sampling of their accomplishments. Though you don’t have wade very far into The Maggies second and third albums to see the kinship with Collingwood. Tracks like “Be My Guest” and “Long Dark See You” from 2000’s Cryptic Valentine have a very Bangles meets FOW vibe while “Covering Me Up” and “Everybody’s Golden Age” from 2001’s Breakfast at Belreck’s are akin to Collingwood’s more pop country stylings. Price’s solo work and Winterpills catalogue lean more into his textured folk sound and away from power pop, though the 2002 solo track “Please Don’t Change” is certainly FOW-adjacent.
Meanwhile Ohlenbusch has put out some great eclectic and electric Simon and Garfunkel worthy tracks as Gentle Hen. His solo work steers in both folky and poppy directions at times too. You can get a taste of this on “V66” from his now unavailable Henning’s School for the Dead album or “A Machine to Break Your Heart” from 2006’s Looks Like I’m Tall or “Amélie” from 2011’s Henning Goes to the Movies. But check out his Gentle Hen track “She’s Got It Bad” from 2018’s Be Nice to Everyone, you’d swear it was a FOW deep cut you’d overlooked.
Do fabulously creative people just give up being creative? In my dreams Collingwood is still crafting his trademark tune-age, just waiting to spring them on us as a delightful surprise. But if we can’t have more FOW or Collingwood solo material we can’t go wrong digging deep into work from melodic compatriots like Price and Ohlenbusch.
Another year, another load of really good albums. Creativity was off the charts in 2024, in both senses unfortunately. But banish despair, here at Poprock Record we make up our own charts, shining light on a deserving collection of should-be stars. Here’s our list of 25 must-have albums from the past year and, trust me, you’ll find plenty of variety within our self-imposed parameters of poppy rock. You’ve got jangle (Ducks Ltd.), gender (Day Dreams) and heartbreak (Tamar Berk). There’s retro (Terry Anderson), metro (Super 8) and fun (Scoopski). We’ve got artists singing in Spanish (Star Trip) and wide variety of accents from the British Isles (the list would be too long). And so much more.
The envelope please, here are Poprock Record’s 25 must have LPs from 2024:
Day Ricardo’s Day Dreems project was groundbreaking in so many ways, lyrically touching on gender, the body, ADHD, oppressive nostalgia and more, while musically mashing up hints of Squeeze, Crowded House and the Beatles into their own distinctive voice. It’s a most worthy choice to sit at #1. But close behind Tamar Berk wowed us with yet another winning collection of introspective yet downright hooky numbers. Brent Seavers, now there’s a guy who knows how to pack an LP full of highly listenable tunes. I mean, he does it again and again. I could go on … and do in the original posts hyperlinked above.
The EP format continues to offer artists a creative outlet that falls somewhere between the noble single and a more herculean long-playing effort. True for some it may amount to little more than a glorified single with additional alternative versions, demos and live cuts (not that I’m complaining). But for others it’s a carefully curated musical statement in its own right. I think our cast of 6 must-have EPs from 2024 lean more in the latter direction:
I deliberately leave legacy artists – i.e. those that gained conventional chart success and still benefit from that or have a major label sponsor – off my yearly lists. They don’t really need any push from me. But I do love a lot of those acts and it is great to see them still putting out solid creative works. So here’s a legacy artist shout out to some notable releases in 2024:
I’m a non-recovering Beatlemaniac, it’s true. I’m always on the lookout for some fun and creative riffs on the Fabs. This year Nick Frater blew away the competition with the further development of his Rutles project, a riff on a riff on the Beatles. So meta! Thus our best riff on the Beatles this year is:
Last year I singled out The Flashcubes for their amazing Pop Masters album. It was one where they covered a host of new wave era classics with members of the original bands. This year their spin-off band The Half Cubes produced their own version of that project with equally impressive results. You see where this is going. This year’s special award of awesome poprock meritgoes to:
As I wrote in the original review, “Pop Treasures is a monster of a collection” that is ‘lovingly relentless’ in its coverage of 1970s and 1980s hit-makers and indie darlings. It’s a hits package worthy of K-Tel, and that is high praise coming from someone who lived through the seventies. So many great songs here, including our #1 most inventive cover for 2024 “Make You Cry.” Treat yourself, this is a guaranteed good time.
Album fans, the form is in safe hands if the releases from this past year are anything to go by. Sure the kids may not be into them the way their 1960s through 1990s peers were but they’ll have something to dip into when they get older.
Time to rev up our annual Poprock Record should-be hit singles list of songs we’ve featured at some point during 2024. Let’s be honest up front, we barely scratched the surface of all that was going on out there music-wise, even within the confines of our own narrowly defined genre (what I’ve been calling poppy rock). As I peek at the lists of other melodic rock taste-makers I see loads of great acts I somehow missed out on. Oh well. There’s only so much needle-dropping your scribe can do. From what we did manage to cover I just want to take this space to remind you of some stand-out tracks. So today we single out 50 should-be hit singles from 2024, songs that deserve another shot at chart glory. Click on the hyperlinks to hear each of the songs and read the original write ups.
Drumroll please, here are Poprock Record’s top 50 should-be hit singles from 2024:
Music blogger extraordinaire Eclectic Music Lover put me on to Won Phreely’s captivating single and I was hooked. Both Real Estate and Used struck me as mining that elegant Shins brand of manicured poprock. Lo Fi Ho Hum grabbed my attention with his quirky, amusing video but his melody lingered long after. Tamar Berk just goes from strength to strength in her songwriting and you can hear it here. I could go on. This is a list bursting with jangle and heartbreak – and hooks, of course.
Next up, Poprock Record’s most inventive covers from 2023:
The covers just keep on coming and I’m fine with that. Poprock veterans The Half Cubes gave us a double album of carefully curated pop hits from the past but it was their cover of The Sighs’ signature song that really floored me. Georgia’s Mattiel could sing the phone book and keep most people happy but her cover of Terri Gibbs’ 1981 hit is nothing short of transformative. Then there’s Super Ratones doing Fountains of Wayne. Lovely and timely.
It’s been a tough year. It’s been a year full of great songs. We’ll certainly need more of the latter in the days ahead and Poprock Record with be there to bring you more should-be hits. So click on the links above to remind yourself how good 2024 was and make sure to visit the artists and wave a little cash in their direction.
… and you should too. I mean, what choice have we got? There’s darkness on the doorstep while all that national and international chaos from last year looks like it’s getting renewed for another season. We are going to have to look for the light a little closer to home, person to person, on the streets where we live. There’s a lot in The Rifles most recent long player Love Your Neighbour that speaks to our present moment that bears reflecting on.
Ok, so with lyrics like “don’t cry your heart out cause nobody cares” perhaps opening cut “The Kids Won’t Stop” doesn’t sound like the motivational music I’m supposed to be offering to kick off the new year. But stick with me for a moment – there is some a real-world optimism going on here. The point of the song as I read it is that whatever you may be thinking about what is going on in the world the adults in the room are just going to have get up and get on it with it because our kids are going to need us regardless. All delivered with a whimsical, driving, sometimes dance-able emphasis. Moving on, “Days of Our Lives” has the jaunty feel of a 1982 era Madness tune and who doesn’t need a bit of that? Then “Mr. Sunflower” is where the album title appears in the lyrics, with a message that says ‘share a little love with the world’ and you might just get some back. It’s the leap of faith that makes humanity possible.
I hope it’s coming through just how great this new Rifles album is. I only discovered them in 2016 with their Big Life album. From there I travelled backwards through their solid back catalogue, impressed by their social commentary and relentless hookiness. It seemed to me like they took up where The Jam left off, with flashes of Billy Bragg here and there. So waiting for this new album to arrive seemed like an eternity. But Love Your Neighbour is as good as anything they’ve put out. I love how tracks like “There is My Heart” seem propelled by a deft use of mellotron sounding keyboards. Or how songs like “Out for the Weekend” clearly are meant to devolve into a raucous singalong at the band’s shows or your Friday night party. “Money Go Round” is pretty timely, turning everyone’s economic crisis into a dance vamp, complete with ringing cash register. And you don’t get a much more ‘new years’ sentiment than “Starting Monday” where the singer promises to start ‘turning my life around’ after just ‘one more for the road.’ It’s an idler of a tune that becomes a rollicking pop banger in the chorus.
Maybe we can’t change the world in quite the way we would like but we can change the station, put out a different message, and in that small way contribute something positive. The Rifles sound like they’ve started down that path already and I’m all for following.
Back for round two of this year’s year-end record round-up. These misplaced but not forgotten submissions are now getting their due, just before the year times out.
Our first three contributors are not afraid to boost their signal to get the hooks across. Speed Circuit grind out some big chords on their LP Survey the Damage but lurking beneath all the distortion are some fine tunes. Take “Lucky Breaks” as an example. Appearing half way through the record, the song wears its hooks on its sleeve. “Maybe Another Time” even starts with just an acoustic guitar before fattening up the sound with a jangle rock backing. “Emotional Support Dog” perfectly marries the band’s grungy rock vibe with an unerring sense of melody. And then there’s the fab should-be hit single “Swept Away” which hits all the marks with its super-charged guitar hooks and handclaps. At first listen, Vancouver’s Jupiter Motel appear to exude a 1980s guitar rawk feel on their recent self-titled EP, offset by some power pop vocals. The mix of mad guitar riffing and vocal laying all over “Summer Kids” gives you the picture. Then “Fast Forward and Rewind” is more of a pop tune, overlaid with a Blue Oyster Cults sense of guitar menace. By the time we get to “Playing With Ghosts” we now hear a jangle band, effortlessly knocking out an AM radio hit. It’s an effective mix of pop and rawk touches throughout this all-too-brief EP. Moving a bit south Seattle Washington’s Sleeping Bag set the amps back to 11 on Beam Me Up. Opening cut “Jay’s Jam” has a Swervedriver kind of guitar dissonance going on but that gives way to something more stripped back on “Troll 3.” From there the band shifts back and forth, cranking distorted guitar chords on one track and then dropping them out in favour of a more vocal melody focus on the next. For instance, compare the simmering guitar dissonance of “Jokin’” with the laid-back acoustic guitar and chorused-vocal treatment on “Life.” Love the driving, almost propulsive feel of the instrumental “Splish.”
In the presser for the latest John Sally Ride LP Melomaniacs we learn that the album title is a real word meaning ‘an individual with an excessive or abnormal attraction to music.’ These days anyone still trying to make a go of making music (or writing about those who do) would probably fit that description. Taking a gander at the song titles here, this is a serious clever-bunny concept at work. Songwriter John Dunbar has gotten inside the head of every music super fan with lyrics that bring to life Nick Hornby’s characters from his novel High Fidelity. It’s all here – enmity towards bands you don’t love (“The Band I Can’t Stand”), the anticipation for your fave band’s new album (“Their New Album”), the ritual of sitting with the album’s inner sleeve lyrics sheet while listening (“The Lyric Sheet”), as well the omniscient observer shining light on the madness of record collecting (“His Record Collection”). But this isn’t just a gimmick concept because the songs stand up as compositions. “The Only Man She Ever Loved” has a late 1960s ominous pop vibe while “The Lyric Sheet” sounds like it marries the Moody Blues with Squeeze. But my fave is the driving, jaunty pop tune “Music(I/F)an.”
The cover of Pleased to Meet You from Joy Buzzer riffs on the Replacements but what appears on the inside draws strongly from the Beatles playbook. I mean, listen to how the band lean in to some pretty fab group vocals on “You’d Be Surprised.” I will grant that the beat group influence here might reflect more how 1980s indie bands took it up. Tracks like “Jeanette,” “All These Yesterdays” and “You Don’t Even Know My Name” step on the power pop pedal with an emphasis reminiscent of The Tearaways. “Vicki Loves a Garden” reminds me of how artists like Costello or Tilbrook wield Beatles influences. But for something more indie, both “Judy, Judy, Judy” and “Peggy’s House” have that 1980s ambience. Kingdom of Mustang offer up more than a hint of Lennon opening Glad Days with “More Than They Deserve.” From there the Mersey influences are more muted, held in abeyance to serve this great collection of songs. See how title track “Glad Days” throws out a low-key melody with the subtlety of someone like Marshall Crenshaw. “Say Hey to Blue” is an another example of this band’s understated approach to songwriting. Things start out pretty easy going, only to kick up a few gears in the chorus and bridge. “All You’ve Got To Do is Love” is another come-from-behind wonder, sneaking up on you with its winning hooks. On the other hand, “Not the Special Girl” wears its Merseybeat group influences a bit more on its sleeve. With 14 tracks, there’s a lot to love here.
The presser for The Lost Days debut album In the Store describes duo members Tony Molina and Sarah Rose Janko bonding over Bill Fox and the Bryds and you can really hear it on the opening tracks “Gonna Have to Tell You” and “Half the Time” respectively. Jangly DIY could be a shorthand to describe the ten songs here but there’s a sophistication to these deceptively low key and fleeting efforts (eight clock in at less than 90 seconds). Each contribution echoes some bright star of lofi pop, whether Elliott Smith or those acoustic numbers on the Beatles White Album. Or listen to how the duo work up a full band Abbey Road sound on title track “In The Store.” Personally I love the instrumental “Outro” with its Jon Brion keyboards and lovely guitar work. Drew Neely and the Heroes take us in a different direction with their recent long-player Inner State. “Quit Calling Me” is an epic pop romp, flashing a bit of Queen and a very timely sentiment. The song almost seems comic but cast against the rest of the material here it also fits with the album’s more serious themes of alienation and struggle. “Friday Afternoon” captures that moment of freedom from work, despite knowing it’ll be coming back around Monday morning. A lot of the record has an early 1980s soft rock sheen, though tracks often break out bit in the chorus, like “Find My Way Back Home.”
With Eager to Please Munster Germany act Neon Bone channel so many interesting, sometimes seemingly contradictory influences. There’s punk, a raft of 1950s derived song styles, plenty of Ramones for sure, and much more. Sometimes the songs are just classic pop punk ear candy, like “Girl I’m Getting Used to You,” “I Wanna Know,” and “Pull the Other One.” Others put a frenetic energy into what are essentially standard 1950s song structures. I mean, dial down the distortion and “Dreams” could easily be crooned by some brill-creamed heartthrob. It’s there again on “Sometimes” and definitely on the rollicking “Don’t Fall in Love with Her,” the latter taking a classic 1950s song style and punking it up just a little. Yet I think I like the songs where the band don’t quite sound so much like anyone else, as on “But When You’re Alone.” Back to the Bryds and a load of ringing guitars on this year’s LP from The Junior League, Our Broadcast Day. This band takes the influences and makes them their own, as evident on the soaring opening cut “Two Ways to Go.” Part of it is the strength of the songwriting. “Let’s Hear It for the Dead” sets out a country motif but then moves in different directions. “The Whiskey Talking” sounds like an mid-1980s English guitar band. Or check out that alluring low rumble guitar opening “The Me and Them.” Talk about drawing you in. There are departures too, like the soulful, name-dropping piano ballad “1973 Nervous Breakdown.” Love the jangle closer ”This Concludes Our Broadcast Day.”
Have I missed somebody? Absolutely. And for that, apologies to all the great acts I somehow overlooked this year. Just put me on your radar for the coming 365 days.
Top photo is a drawing by Kasiq Jungwoo Lee, a Seoul Korea-based artist, designer and illustrator who has worked extensively in fashion and commercial media projects. This image is taken from their KasiQ Junwoo Flikr collection.
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