The ever amiable Don Valentine runs the shop over at I Don’t Hear a Single. I’m often over there, trying to keep up with Don’s prodigious productivity given his penchant for almost daily album reviews and a regular offering of singles on his ‘Listening To This Week’ playlist. But, inevitably, I end up having to pay close attention to his annual Top 100 Albums listing because I miss so much. Now Don and I don’t have exactly the same tastes but there is a lot of overlap.  If I had to reduce things to Beatles albums I’d say we both love melodic rock but I’m a bit more Rubber Soul to Don’s Revolver. Not surprisingly then I found a whole lot to love on his list that I think warrants some attention here.

San Diego’s Swive tout their alt rock cred, layered with male/female harmony vocals. The vibe is eerie, like a clean stab at nineties grunge. “Something” starts things off with a dissonant edge while “Race Car” rides its psychedelic guitar right into 1969. But as an album Stereophonic Stylings Volume One is really a variety store of musical choice. I love how “Bad Tendencies” pivots into a very different world of sound, adding some sweet twee to the vocal mix. By contrast, “Wire” has the anguished vocal pull of any random Guster song. My take on “Dead But Free” is that it wouldn’t be out of place as a B52s deep cut while “Second Floor” radiates a bit of Neko Case in full Furnace Room Lullaby form. Swive are really doing some stylish rock and roll here. The Kynd are the kind of band you’re sure you’ve heard before. And maybe you did. Shining briefly in the 1990s the band were MIA for decades until they resurfaced with some new material a few years back. Last year they released a new long-player Timelines but the title really should have been Timeless, the sound is so simultaneously 1966, 1984, and 2010. Listen to how “Workshy” exudes such a glorious Oasis reverby drive or the way “Saturn Eyes” evokes a mid-period REM feel. I feel the organ is the subtle star of this album on tracks like “Whispers and Tones” and “Spitfire Summer.” And then there’s the Badfinger pop buoyancy on “Song For Baby.” Timelines confirms The Kynd as the great lost Britpop band, back to reclaim their place in the pantheon.

Cherry Fez may come from Abington Township, Pennsylvania but the atmosphere shrouding Honeycomb Tearoom seems more London circa 1979, with a dash of folk rock and light jangle sprinkled in places. The former is captured best in opening cut “Her Metro Card” where a new wave arrangement melds to some nice jangle with a vocal reminiscent of Ed Ryan. From there things go very 1965 on “It’s Not Me, It’s You” while “Something Died” ambles along with a Rubber Soul-like metre. Another nifty jaunt of melody and clever lyrics gets captured on “Books That No One Read.” By contrast “It Wasn’t Meant To Be” has that pastoral 1970s English folk scene feel. Another band on a return ticket from the 1980s is London’s Cult Figures. Their album of new material Between US and Heaven is a strong collection. “Mr. Producer” sounds so indie poprock smooth – the single definitely. But title track “Between and Us and Heaven” comes a close second for hookyness. Then “Devotion” spools out with a Cure-like melodic intrigue. I also really like “Sitting Target,” which reminds me a bit of Fastball.

I think I was initially drawn to The Housing Crisis for the name if only because it was refreshing to see pop culture admit it’s a thing. Lyrically the band go easy on social commentary but it’s there. “Enough to Take Me Home” has got some particularly tart asides for a hazy, easygoing pop melody:

I don’t want to be a rockstar
I’m standing still when I’m singing and playing guitar
And I don’t want a thrilling memoir
I’m not courageous and my parents aren’t famous so I’m not making it very far

Mostly the mood on Astral Apartments is poppy indie singer-songwriter with folk-ish touches. Imagine Ben Folds pouring his mournful energy into playing acoustic guitar. Opening track “Better Weather” alternates between a more rock demeanor and reducing everything to just guitar and voice. I love how “Changes in the Shape of the Earth” balances the light with more dire tones. “Wonders of the Station Wagon” adds some tasty Super Mario sound effects to good musical effect. But for a change “Every Day (There’s a New Day Coming)” has a slowly seductive, meditative quality. LA’s The World Famous are a rock band that know their way around a clever melodic hook and their album Totally Famous offers them up aplenty. “Everyday Fear” steps on the lead guitar hook pedal and launches the record in a great rocking register. “Nobody in LA” adds a sweet, hush-like quality to the vocals that changes the vibe. Changing things up, “Delinquents” combines banging rhythm guitar chords and tasty licks in a must-dance number, with a nice acoustic guitar drop out in the middle. “Heartburst” adds an almost country-ish wash over its basic power pop structure. “Candy Clouds” sounds like a single to me with its soaring FOW melody amid chugging rhythm guitar chords, though “Hollywood Pawn” is the song that really leapt out at me from this album as maximum rotation radio friendly.

Is it wrong to pick up a book because of its cover? Only if you never open it up. Turnstyle’s graphic design on their 2023 album Citizens’ Handbook made me pause. These guys know how to package their wares in an eye-catching way. And why not, given how stylish these 10 quirky tunes are? At base, this record is edgy guitar poprock. But each song offering adds some extra sly element that expands its impact. Opening song and current single “Robots Working” rumbles its rhythm guitar low in the gut before developing its tune in a way that rides the line between art rock and a catchy chart contribution. “Plain and Simple” is anything but, layering in hooks and dissonant asides in a very pleasant tension. Then you have a track like “East 21^st Street” kicking off in experimental mode only to settle into a hypnotic groove. The rest of the record is replete with delightful pop song workouts. Personal fave: I love the dirty guitar pop simplicity of “Band Shirt.”

Don works hard so the rest of us don’t have to. Thanks Don for immeasurably broadening my circle of possible poprock gems. Get on over to I Don’t Hear a Single to see for yourself.

Photo courtesy Kevin Dooley Flikr collection.