Plenty of breaking news to report on from the melodious rock front – long overdue releases, surprisingly polished new acts, and the return of reliable favourites. Put down that remote! These are the music stories you need know about.
Songsmith/producer extraordinaire Bleu has finally graced us with a new album and it is a staggering accomplishment, a rich mediation on friendship, aging and death. The record’s title might sound Python-esque but Sargeant Pepper Grinder is anything but joking. Opening cut and title track “Sargeant Pepper Grinder” kicks things off riffing only slightly on its obvious Beatles inspiration, referring obliquely to someone, a producer or fellow musician, that forms a returning reference point for songs throughout the record. Said missing friend is referenced again in song #2 “Start a Band” which signals both a mood and stylistic change, the taut musical vibe a throwback to the poppy rock sound of earlier Blue recordings like Redhead. “This Song Won’t Sell” shifts again, its dissonant pop melody perfectly framing its frustrated lyrical content. “Where the Colors Bleed” acknowledges how time can make us re-evaluate our approach to life while firmly taking us into Beatlesque/ELO territory musically. “Scootch” returns the focus to another missing friend who ‘woulda liked this song. But he’s dead.’ Instead of a dour reflection, the track sounds like a celebration of someone that still feels present. The songs here go back and forth between remembrance of those past and how death forces us to re-evaluate ourselves. Both “Shiny Dimes” and “The Last Sign of the Magic Dead” reflect on missing people, with various degrees of operatic intensity (definitely more on the latter). Meanwhile “Deathbed,” “In the Red” and “I’m Not Dead” are all about what death means, both in the future and in the here-and-now. However, each deploys a unique musical attack, the first with a Randy Newman-ish tenderness, the second enveloped in breezy AM pop single, and the last with a John Waite “Missing You” buoyancy. Things wrap with a return to the opening theme, sort of, with “S.P.G. Reprise. Here the tune gets a serious performance enhancement via a full band workout that sounds a lot of like Todd Rundgren’s Utopia. But the finale also includes an undisclosed extra. Tucked in past 30 seconds of inner groove silence is a hidden, extra mini-track “No Longer Goodbyes.” Less than a minute long, the song is a smile-inducing positive send off for the album’s themes. In the end, Sargeant Pepper Grinder is a positive rumination about loss and what can be gained by taking the seriously.
Preston UK’s The Cases sound every bit the fresh young things they are on their debut EP Mr Penny and new stand-alone single “Don’t Lose Your Nerve.” The title track of the EP is bright and poppy, very much in the British guitar pop tradition. “The Curse” strikes a more laid back, jazzy feel, at least initially, adding a bit more rhythm guitar heft near the half way mark. “She Said” is something different again with a distinct rhythm guitar backdrop reminiscent of other recent English guitar groups like Arkayla and The Guest List. “Romantic” is more a ballad, a lament for love lost, though the lead guitar does let loose near the end. By contrast, the band’s new single is a bit more rocking, both in pacing and lead guitar work. “Don’t Lose Your Nerve” must be the live crowd favourite as a crowd can really get dancing to this one.
Turning on Deadbeat Beat’s new album From Here to Ohio it’s hard not to conjure up the glory days of 1980s American indie jangle, e.g. REM, Let’s Active, Beat Happening, etc. The record also offers the most coherent and consistent sonic palate the group has ever worked with. Perhaps taking seven years between releases has allowed them to really hone what they are doing stylistically. Whatever the reasons, I’m loving it. “Peach Suite” sets the tone with non-stop jangle and a vocal drone that harkens back to the sunshine sixties. ‘I’m on the edge of a total nervous breakdown …’ is the lyrical opener for “Dying On That Hill.” Hm, tell me more. The feel of the tune is almost a ping-ponging loping rhythm. “Pink Dust” has a bit more muscle in its delivery while “Mellow” offers up deliciously overlapping vocal parts. Meanwhile, “Heaven” embarks with what sounds like The Cure in fine form. Not everything here leans on the jangle pedal with equal force. Both “Straight Friends” and “Atmospheric River” turn the sparkle down, focusing more on a straight up melody. I love the interesting keyboard effects sprinkled throughout this album, e.g. “Pic Gal.” Should-be hit single? Definitely “Butchertown.” Seven years is a long time to wait for such a great album. Welcome back Deadbeat Beat!
Regardless of when Steve Robinson and Ed Woltil release their albums they tend to arrive like an extra installment of summer. Their new LP Temporary Sun is no exception. Though perhaps more mixed stylistically than previous efforts, the overall effect is bright and light (with the occasional more serious dip into relationships and politics). The basic package is on display right from the start with “I Won’t Let Go” featuring acoustic guitars, harmony vocals, and a distinctive lead guitar riff. Sometimes the acoustic guitars are more to the front of the mix, as on “Take Two If You Want One.” Very folk rock. At others points they frame a broader mix of instruments, as is clear on “Learn You By Heart” and “When We Were Kings.” “Strange Orchestra (Everyone’s a Song)” ups the rock quotient, moving into Beatlesque territory. “Junk Drawer Heart” and “Perfect Day” fall into a more XTC register. And then there are the outliers. “Famous Last Words” is a lush, classic sounding ballad while “The Man With The Interrupted Heart” comes off as some mad, unrestrained fun. The album ends on more serious notes, with “Mourning Mothers” tackling war while “Squint” takes up relationship challenges. Fleeting or not, Temporary Sun shines brightly.
We don’t handle weather and sports, just getting the melody headlines down is enough work. You can follow up on these leads on your own time by hitting the headliner hyperlinks above.
Photo courtesy Thomas Hawk Flikr collection.
2019 had plenty of jangle, hooks, harmonies and melody to spare. From an initial list of over 200 songs I’ve managed to whittle my should-be hit single list to just 50 chart toppers for this year. Man, it was hard. Because I only post music I like this whole exercise is a bit like choosing your favourite child. Well, IMHO, the 50 songs featured here all have a strong earwormy quality to them. But let me know if you agree or disagree! Hit the links below to find each artist as featured in my original blog post this past year.
Here’s a whack of artists that power up their poprock in creative and original ways. The melody meter is registering hooks that are off the charts!
Detroit’s Deadbeat Beat are hard to pin down. At times they sound like a punky Shins or maybe the Velvet Underground covering the Beach Boys. Detroit Metro Times writer Jeff Milo boils down the Deadbeat Beat sound as 
It is so great to have Birmingham, Alabama’s Lolas back with a new record, A Dozen or Seven Tapestries, and it’s another winner. Bandleader and songwriter Tim Boykin has consistently delivered the goods when it comes to hook-laden songs dosed with chimey guitar and reverbed-up vocals and they are here in abundance. The record’s opening cut and title track “A Dozen or Seven Tapestries” gives it all away: hooky guitar lines and shimmering vocal harmonies everywhere. Boykin does change things up in terms of song styles, channeling mid 1960s American poprock on “Dj Girl” or an updated Merseybeat vibe on “Lightning Mountain (NSFW)” or even a Steve Miller Band sound on “Assailant.” You can dip in anywhere on this record and find a melodic treat. Personally, I’m loving the low key jangly “Wish You Were Loud Enough” and the more straight-up barrel-ahead poprock blast of “You’d Go Without Nothing.”
Philadephia PA’s Big Nothing has been described as a ‘90’s influenced indie supergroup’ (Rolling Stone) but all I hear are great songs and a muscular, crunchy poprock sound. Their debut album is Chris and it’s 32 minutes of sonically pleasing songcraft. Sometimes a bit heavy (“Always Prepared”), sometimes sparkling with an easygoing jangle (“Carried Away”), the record typically delivers a taut yet melodically-rich sound, apparent on tracks like “Waste My Time” and “Real Name.” But one of my faves is “Untitled” with its almost country rock and live-to-tape feel. “Honey” is another standout track, changing things up stylistically and tempo-wise. Overall, Chris delivers a great batch of songs that amount to an impressive debut.
Nashua, New Hampshire, population 86,000, is responsible for our next band, Perspective, A Lovely Hand to Hold. There must be something in the water in Nashua because this band is wonderfully weird, both strikingly original songwriters and performers. The band describe themselves on their Facebook page as an ‘indie/emo/math rock/whatever your mom calls it band.’ So, no help there. Here’s what I hear on Lousy, the group’s new (third) album: swooping fattened up vocals and unique hooks, with just a touch of jazz sensibility, particularly on tracks like “One Wrong Turn” and “Subject to Change.” But then check out the straight up poprock hooks all over “The Gang Goes On Tour” – bliss! The record does have some challenging avant garde moments but spending a bit of time with songs like “Those Few Words” and “Your Own World” ultimately pays melodic dividends. From a mainstream poprock point of view, Perspective, A Lovely Hand to Hold are more than a bit out there. But, like Nashua, ultimately worth the trip.
Poprock Record 