Tag Archives: Nick Piunti

Instant replay: David Brookings, The Rallies, The Legal Matters, and Nick Piunti

22 Friday May 2026

Posted by in Poprock Themepark

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , ,

There are bands that get an instant add to our ongoing playlist whenever they put something out. They’re that reliable. Today’s crew offer some prime examples.

Ten albums in and David Brookings continues to deliver the goods in his distinctly American Beatlesque way. It says something about his vision and consistent songwriting that, despite a changing cast of backing characters, Encore has that recognizable Brookings and his Average Lookings sound. You can take in all the elements on “Richmond at Night” where a Micheal Penn kind of melodic intensity combines with an alluring rhythm to really draw you in. Then “Coldwater Canyon” updates an early 1960s song structure with some contemporary indie rock sheen, something we hear again later on “My Last Little Shred of Youth.” “It’s Giving Cringe” operates with a nice guitar lick that runs throughout a very pleasant pop number. But the obvious should-be hit single is undoubtedly “Where Did I Go Right” with its solid hooks. This one definitely says lather, rinse, and repeat. The album contains a number of offhand reflections on being a musical artist at this particular moment but goes into detail about the arbitrary nature of fame and being discovered on “The Van Gogh Plan.” Brookings also throws in the pretty stand-alone single “Shelby” to sweeten the package.

The Rallies are a ‘feel good’ band who know how to wield jangly guitars and harmony vocals to good effect. Album #4 No Better Time confirms this with plenty of soaring, uplifting tunes. Opening cut “This Time” lays out the Rallies musical formula clearly with sparkling guitar lines and layers of gorgeous vocals. Then “I Believe” is the hooky radio-ready single, taking off with a great singalong swing. You can practically feel “Comes and Goes” has a buoyant skip to its step. This is an album oozing positivity while giving nods to a number of rock and roll’s glorious forebears. “Be With You” has got some great Beatlesque changes in the song structure. “Notice Me” is practically propelled forward by the jangle guitar work. “You Set Me Free” even adds an element of sixties Monkees-in-garage mode to the band’s sonic mix. “Not So Much Anymore” is another strong power pop entry, with a killer organ underlay. LP closer “If Only” strips things back to very essence of The Rallies, a basic accompaniment and the band’s riveting, plaintive vocals. Trust me, No Better Time is the shot in the arm you’ve been looking for.

Lost at sea, shipwrecked on some island, whatever. As long as I’ve got a copy of Lost At Sea, the new album from The Legal Matters, I’ll be fine. The band is an amazing combination of individual talents – Keith Klingensmith, Andy Reed, and Chris Richards – that gel with the sonic sophistication of acts like The Spongetones or The Flashcubes. The overall aura here is a tight 1970s power pop vibe, equal parts Badfinger and Big Star. The album’s stylistic ambitions are readily apparent from the opening cut “Everybody Knows.” These are big and bold pop hooks. On “The Message” I hear faint echoes of The Beach Boys lurking somewhere in the background. But the dominant feature throughout the record are the carefully chosen lead guitar tones. Check out the atmospheric guitar lines colouring “Shake This Feeling,” the noir-ish guitar shading on “Temporary Thing,” or the spacey otherworldly guitar work on “It Doesn’t Matter.” “Let Me Explain” wields the guitar like a paintbrush to fill all the spaces of the tune. By contrast, “Stuck With Me” puts its gorgeous harmony vocals up front. There’s also some great psychedelic pop moments here on songs like the XTC-ish “Marching On” and “The Exit Signs.” “Slow Down” gears things down in a recognizably Big Star register. Altogether, Lost At Sea offers up a pretty smooth ride.

Sans his Complicated Men backing band, Nick Piunti heads out Solo…ish on his new long-player. Andy Reed from The Legal Matters produced and played on this record with help from Donny Brown from The Verve Pipe. The results are a slight departure from Piunti’s usual fare, at times more spare and gritty or conjuring up surprising new sonic elements. He still sounds like a cross between Bryan Adams and Tom Petty to me (and what’s not to like about that?) and that works well with the material he’s assembled here. Opening track “Big in Madrid” echoes the songwriting chops of artists like Mike Viola. A strong start but somewhat supplanted by the striking shift in aural sensibility that comes with the next contribution “Break Even.” Here the song’s interesting vocal melds dynamically with its distinctive guitar hooks. From there the album turns in a more heartland direction on “One Dimensional” and “Darken My Days.” I also get a strong Bryan Adams feel from “Vacant Heart” and “Peripheral.” “Handshake Deal” sounds like the radio-ready single to me, though “Bruises and Bandages” offers up a more mellow kind of should-be AM staple. For polished pop sheen, look no further than “Better Songs,” another should-be hit single.

You can cash in on these reliable acts with the hyperlinks above. They are ready for immediate playlist addition.

Photo courtesy Thomas Hawk Flikr collection.

Songs for a summer soiree

14 Sunday Jul 2024

Posted by in Poprock Themepark

≈ 5 Comments

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Clinking glasses beneath a dusky summer sky. You need music for that. Definitely. Here’s a curated list of party-approved poppy rock numbers suitable for friends, fading sunshine and a night full of stars.

LA’s The Dreambots thread some 1980s jangly guitar throughout their debut single “Tightrope” but that’s almost a distraction compared to the subtle earworm this melody turns out to be. The song’s main guitar tone reminds me of Steve Addabbo’s distinctive sound on Suzanne Vega’s self-titled debut LP back in 1985 but here it serves a totally different kind of tune. Repeated listening will just lead to further repeated listenings. Strange Neighbors were one of my fave finds of 2023. Their single (“Hotline Psychic”) and EP (Party of None) were number one on both my year-end singles and EP charts. They were that good. Some might say there’s nowhere to go from there but one listen to the band’s new single “Tell All Your Friends” and you’d know that’s wrong. The striking guitar lines, the harmony vocals, the build-up to a great killer chorus: this is the stuff of greatness. The internet is allowing a lot of old bands that didn’t quite make it to relaunch, if not for the big time then at least a smidgeon of the attention economy. The Hollywood Stars got a few record deals in the 1970s but never took off. Now fifty years later they’ve got a new album Starstruck. I’m really digging the Stonesy/Springsteen swagger of “Walking With an Angel.” Montreal’s The Wesleys also present as a contradiction. So much of their self-titled debut album almost leaps out of the speakers with high degree of rock and roll ferocity and menace. And then there’s “A Lot To Lose,” a gentle, almost languid jangle affair that floats a dreamy vocal over everything. Ever reliable guitar pop-meister 65MPH is back again with “Again.” This time the crashing guitars have a Bond-esque intrigue and Jam-worthy Paul Weller vocal attack.

New Jersey’s Sad About Girls is having a very productive 2024, releasing their third EP of the year Sad To Go in May. There’s some slow meditative material here and then there are songs that really cook. Like “Expect To Lose” with its ripping lead guitar lines and magnetically hooky chorus. “We Didn’t Do Anything Last Year” is another winner with its Everything But The Girl flavour. Another band with two really hot tracks on their most recent album is Melbourne’s Lava Fangs. From Sub Auroram “Photograph” really lands in the Jayhawks ballpark while “Lost For Words” motors along shifting its melodic attack in the most delightful ways. Nick Piunti delivers his signature refreshingly old-fashioned poppy rock and roll on his new one-off single with The Complicated Men, “Bottle It.” Attractively packaged and performed with a Bryan Adams easygoing feel. Most of The Twins of Franklin album This Life is a folky Americana excursion, delivered with a First Aid Kit freshness. But “Life By Design” is something else. The propulsive acoustic rhythm guitar keeps things thrumming on this song, only to be elevated by the electric shock vocal harmonies in the chorus. The title track from George Marinelli’s recent hybrid greatest hits/new material mega-album Except Always has to vie for attention with 25 other songs. But it’s got some notable features, like a Stones rhythm guitar sound and chorus hook that really delivers.

Papa Schmapa main man Joe DelVecchio put me on to a new project he’s got going and the vibe is so NRBQ it could be mistaken for those Louisville sloggers. The new band is SidePlay and the song I can’t get enough of is “Hit the Road Mac.” It’s got boogie and an old man kind of cool. Little Roger has got a ticklish question to put in his recent single “Does Susie Like Boys?” It’s the kind of query that could easily go wrong fast but Roger’s whole delivery seems supportive. The guitars here are so 1970s AM radio while the vocal reminds me of Billy Bremner in his more tender moments. Out of the blue former Irish band The Fireflys frontman Barry J. Walsh pops up with his first solo effort in decades “Rescue Me.” The song is a distillation of essential 1960s sounds: swinging London, Merseybeat, some pop psychedelia, and more. Let there be more is all I can say. Everything about Gary Kaluza’s single “On the Waterfront” says ‘classic’ – from the Silencers/Simple Minds guitar tone, to the stentorian singing from what sounds like the back of an empty echoey church, to the video with its Bogey and Bergman imagery. It’s not a new song but a very worthy re-release for sure. Perennial 1990s throwback Richard Turgeon swore he would take some time off from the last half decade’s punishing schedule of constantly writing and releasing new singles, albums and covers. But just seven months after this last album he’s back with a new single “This is the Last Song (I Write For You).”  What can I say? It’s reliably Turgeon great! And I highly doubt it won’t be followed by more good tunes to come in the days ahead.

SidePlay – Hit the Road Mac

Jon Hyde’s new album The Sad Lights is solidly in Americana territory, neither poppy nor rocky for the most part. But title track “The Sad Lights” swerves a bit into our lane with a very hum-able melody that ambles along with a peculiar but captivating charm. I love the mood that The Chris Vandalay Project strike on their new single “Better Than Before.” The synth suggests late night, a bit of indirect lighting, and some serious introspecting going on. The overall sound really reminds me of Liverpool’s Black from the 1980s. Cal Rifkin return with a single named for every power pop fan’s fave commercially unsuccessful supergroup, “Big Star.” The song’s connection to that Memphis combo is both lyrical and sonic, popping up in the tune’s narrative and overall jangly sound. And the song’s arrangement is outasight. Kurt Hagardorn has an exciting new project that concentrates his poppy rocky tendencies even more than his exemplary solo efforts. His new band is The High Elves and their debut single “Thirsty and Blue” is full of 1970s Steve Miller guitar tone and a killer rhythm guitar swing. It’s impossible not to hip sway within listening distance of this song. More please! The latest outing from The Bret Tobias Set is positively mercurial in its instrumental choices. “Fait Accompli” has got shoe-gazey vocals, slashes of reverby guitar, and an organ timbre straight out of a Vincent Price horror movie. And that is a very good combo.

When they’re not busy turning out great tunes for Starbelly Dennis Schocket and Cliff Hillis also like to put out duo numbers. Their newest is a sweet walk down melody lane boasting a title that gives away its inspiration. “For Everly” could be a certain brothers act circa 1965 or something more modern, say a nice deep cut from one of those Don Dixon and Marti Jones albums.

Your summer soiree is practically ready for guests with a song list like this on standby. You just have to strike up the bands.

Photo courtesy Tom Magliery Flikr collection.

Late September singles

28 Tuesday Sep 2021

Posted by in Poprock Themepark

≈ 4 Comments

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

The rush of fall is upon us with nary a wayward summer breeze to distract us. I guess we’ll just have to turn to this rash of singles to get us through. Here are acts old and new, famous and not so well known, in a variety of poprock styles. Something to tickle every fancy.

Besides having an election, Norway is in my newsfeed because Oslo’s I Was a King have got a new album out. Entitled Grand Hotel, the record steers between spare Brydsian folk numbers and good old fashioned Teenage Fanclub guitar pop songs. The latter spirit strongly guides “Song for the Dead,” the obvious stand out single for me. Former Lucksmiths member Mark Monnone’s latest vehicle is Monnone Alone, though he does get help from a rotating cast of musical characters. His latest release Stay Foggy has a looser feel than this previous longplayer, the more raucus Summer of the Mosquito. It hits me with a summer beach party kinda vibe. I love the early 1960s throwback shuffle of “The Silos.” But my feature track is “Pepper Jar” with its lovely low key jangle and subtle vocals hooks. The long wait for a new album from the fabulously talented Bleu is finally over with the arrival of Six Tape. The record brings together songs released over the past year (like the fantastic “I Want to Write You a Symphony”) as well as tunes originally intended for other projects. The end result does not disappoint. Listeners looking for his trademark larger-than-life ELO-meets-Queen reinvented sound, look no further than the wonderfully over the top “Baby By Your Side.” But I’m featuring something from the more subtle side of Bleu, the playfully acoustic-ish “Kid Someday.” Now I know I highlighted The Orion Experience recently but I can’t resist their brand new single, “Lemon Boy.” The song is a cover of indie artist Cavetown but in TOE’s clutches the track becomes a perfect slice of “Teddy Boy” era McCartney, with just a hint of Chumbawumba’s softer acoustic wistfulness, particularly in the combination of male and female voices. It’s a teaser from a promised new album from the band – I can’t wait! Champaign Illinois’ Nectar are often described as pop-punk but I just hear a great bunch of guitars and some beguilingly melodic vocal turns. As a single “Fishy” has a great driving, droney guitar sound, sometimes drifting into Swervedriver territory but then correcting back to some strong hooks in the chorus. Ok, the song was actually a 2020 release but it has been a 2021 experience for me.

The Orion Experience – Lemon Boy

“For a Moment” is the second advance single from Chicago band The Webstirs soon-to-be-released self-titled sixth album. It’s a solid piece of poprock, in line with their glorious past efforts but with a few new twists, like the engaging and original keyboard sound. Despite taking a long break in the middle of their career this song suggest they are back better than ever. Also from Chicago, Dan Rico and I go way back. He was one of the first truly independent artists I wrote about. Then as now I appreciate his artistic dexterity, his ability to mix styles but somehow always remain unmistakably Rico. Over the past year he’s been working up singles for a new album and right now I’m digging “Rose Gold,” a lightly swinging bit of old rock and roll/indie pastiche with slight punky delivery. Sydney Australia’s The Forresters are also working their way towards a new album, dropping singles on a regular basis. “The Tightrope” has all the magical elements this band excels at: plenty of guitar jangle, an endearing Americana vocal style, and those oh so uplifting hooks. I love the spooky ‘ah’ background vocals filling in the sound as well as the late arrival horn section. The Mommyheads are a smart person’s smart band. “Amnesia Collective” from their recent album Age of Isolation is no exception to this rule. Biting social commentary is delivered with a smooth late Beatles pop sheen, melodically buoyant amid carefully calibrated instrumental surprises and a vocal reminiscent of Freddie Mercury in his more subdued playful moods. Boston’s Ward Hayden and the Outliers (formerly Girls, Guns and Glory) sound geographically misplaced, offering up a more southern Americana feel on their releases, like “Nothing to Do (For Real This Time)” from their recent record Free County. There’s more than a little of that 1980s western feel I recall from bands like True West and Rank and File and that’s why I like’em.

Am I only one who hears a bit of Tracy Thorn with Lydia Loveless? There’s something in her heartfelt, urgent delivery that really hits me like Everything but the Girl’s songstress. Check out “Let’s Make Out” to see if I’m on to something or just lost it. This song is also evidence of how labels like ‘alt country’ just don’t capture the exquisite synthesis that is Loveless’ oeuvre.  The recent revival of The Suncharms is confirmed as a undeniably good thing with “Dream of a Time Machine” from their recent LP Distant Lights. It’s all the usual shoe-gazey goodness you’ve come to expect, disciplined by a solid hooky guitar lead line threaded throughout the tune. Nashville’s Keats offer up a bunch of great rollicking rock and roll tunes on The Saturday Night Shocker. My choice selection from the record is “Look At Us Now,” a track that brims with chord changes sounding somewhat like BTO meets Bad Company. Detroit’s Nick Piunti is back with uber cool new single, a driving bit of new wave retro with a vocal that is acid-drenched like Bryan Adams or Tom Cochrane entitled “Heart Inside Your Head.” The keyboards on this baby are outasite, expertly running up against a wall of chugging rhythm guitars. All of which leads me to say, where is the new album? I was into The Vaccines long before they became pandemic cool and they have never failed me. The new album is entitled Back in Love City and I am definitely feeling the love for my choice of single, “Heart Land.” The track is a chord-filled re-declaration of love for all things America, e.g. ‘milkshakes and fries,’ ‘favourite bands and Spiderman,’ ‘Easy Rider and Kerouac,’ etc. Post-Trump America may have some worldwide making up to do but not with this band. With rumbly lead guitar lines and dreamy vocals, this is a 5 star enjoyable single.

The Vaccines – Heart Land

On Rich Arithmetic’s new stand-alone single “You Are Always Right” there so many hints of rock and roll’s glory days, like the very Beatles-y song structure covered over with light jangle and a shoe-gazey folk rock vocal. It’s a sound that a whole lot of 1980s indie artists spent much time imitating. But Rich makes it his own. And check out B-side “Up To You,” it’s pretty sweet too. Jim Basnight has pulled a full album out of his musical bag of tricks, remixing tracks to freshen their appeal. Altogether Makin’ Bacon is 17 tracks full, with plenty of straight-up, unadorned rock and roll. I’m really liking “Ho Chi Minh” with its tasty guitar lead line and unrelenting background vocal ‘ah’s buffeting the lead vocal. The Ruen Brothers sound so retro country meets early rock and roll, except when they don’t. Case in point, recent single “Cookies and Cream” is a full on melody blast, where a contemporary production vibe accents their usual Blue Velvet sonic palate. The single is a bouncy bit of fun, like combining Johnny Rivers with Wham! From London to New Jersey we return to The Front Bottoms who have been drip releasing some singles lately, like the trippy “Voodoo Magic.” It sounds like classic TFB, with a soaring guitar lead line and slick melodic vocal. Somehow I missed the band’s 2020 album, In Sickeness & In Flames – check out the fab “Montgomery Forever” as homework. Dave Nachmanoff and Richard Rossi recently worked together on the superb John Wicks tribute album. Now they’re back at it, collaborating on a new project called Rumble Strip and an accompanying EP, Let’s Roll. As the liner notes suggest, the effort walks a line between Americana and power pop with an easy, well worn confidence. My choice cut is the organ-drenched “Checkin’ Out,” a breezy number with flashes of Dire Straits and pub rock. But frankly, I’m also partial to Rockpile-ish “Adam West” and the amusing vamp that is “Uber Driver.”  Really, the whole EP is a winner.

Ruen Brothers – Cookies and Cream
The Front Bottoms – Voodoo Magic

Twenty tunes to cap off your September. Now you’ve got a playlist to gather those leaves by. Click on the artist names indulge yourself just a little bit more.

‘Today, I’m five!’ A Poprock Record retrospective

04 Friday Sep 2020

Posted by in Poprock Themepark, Uncategorized

≈ 12 Comments

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

It’s been five years since I embarked on this mad journey: to write a music blog. I dithered over the decision to start one for a number of months. There’s nothing more pathetic than to start something with maximum fanfare and enthusiasm, only to have it flame out a half dozen posts later. The questions I had to ask myself were: (a) was there enough of ‘my kind’ of music to regularly post about, and (b) could I sustain the effort to get regular posts up on the blog? Well here’s the proof. In five years I’ve managed to produce 347 blogs posts. I’ve written more than 170,000 words about poprock tunes. And, most importantly, I’ve featured almost 1000 different artists. Guess the answers to (a) and (b) are both a resounding yes!

I think the biggest reason this blog thing has worked out for me is that it is such a great outlet for being creative and having fun with something that has always been pretty central to my life: music. I love doing all the mock serious regular features (e.g. Breaking news, Around the Dial, Should be a hit single) and coming up with goofy themes as a way to feature different artists (e.g. “Telephonic Poprock,” “Summer’s Coming,” and the Cover me! series. Sometimes I’ve pushed the posts in more serious directions (“Is That So Gay,” “Campaigning for Hooks,” and “Pandemic Poprock“) but only if the melodies and hooks were there in abundance. The blog has also allowed me to pay tribute to my musical heroes (Buddy Holly, The Beatles, The Zombies, Elvis Costello, Nick Lowe, Marshall Crenshaw, Suzanne Vega, Aimee Mann). But, as regular readers know, such luminaries mostly appear as reference points to better help people get of a sense of what all these new acts are doing.

If you’ve just tuned in, I’m not assigning the past five years of posts as homework. Instead, I offer today’s anniversary post as a retrospective of what’s been happening here. I reviewed all 347 posts to pick out some choice examples of the range of styles I can cram under the rubrik of ‘poprock’. It wasn’t easy! My first go round produced a list of 118 songs. When I converted that to a playlist I got the number down to 81 tracks. Ack! Still too many. So I’ve broken things down into themes. This is not a ‘greatest hits’ or ‘best of’ Poprock Record. I’ve left out a lot of acts I really love. It’s just a representative sample of what goes on here, to borrow some lingo from my day job. Click on the highlighted band names to go to the original posts on the blog.

Let’s start by recognizing that not all that appears here is new. The blog has allowed me to explore a huge number of acts I’ve missed over the years, particularly in the 1990s when my new day job (academe) took over my life. I can’t believe I somehow missed great bands like Fire Town and the Soul Engines with their incredible guitar hooks. The Sighs “Make You Cry” is a pretty perfect poprock single. I knew about Billy Cowsills’ Blue Northern but had never heard of his later group, the Blue Shadows. And Eugene Edwards’ sole solo release, My Favorite Revolution, is a must add for any melodic rock and roll fan.

Fire Town – She Reminds Me of You
Soul Engines – Just Another Day
The Sighs – Make You Cry
Eugene Edwards – Congratulations My Darling

There have been acts that appeared again and again on the blog, my ‘old reliables’ as I might call them. These are performers I can pretty much carve out space in the queue for whenever I hear a new release is on the way. Gregory Pepper is probably my most covered artist. I love his quirky, always hooky, sometimes touching efforts. Ezra Furman was another great find who has an unerring knack of placing a memorable hook at the centre of whatever he’s doing, whether it’s retro 1950s pop or a punkish political ode. I discovered Jeremy Fisher long before the blog but I’ve used it to feature his work, old and new. He’s like a new wave Paul Simon with great videos. Edward O’Connell only has two albums, but they are reliably good. We really need a third. Mo Troper always delivers something wonderfully weird but still melodic and ‘can’t get it out of your head’ good. Finally, Jeremy Messersmith’s records regularly encompass big vision but he doles it out in memorable should-be hit singles.

Edward O’Connell – The End of the Line

Jeremy Messersmith – Fast Times in Minnesota

In my world of poprock, while any instrument goes, the electric guitar is arguably pretty central. Some bands really know how to ride a guitar-driven song right into your head. Jeff Shelton’s Well Wishers excel at putting the guitar up front. “Feeling Fine” is practically a ‘how to’ example of killer guitar-dominant poprock. The David James Situation and The Format are no slouches either. Jangle is a related field of guitar poprock and takes a number of forms, from the 1960s-inflected Byrds sound of The Vapour Trails to the more jaunty bubblegum feel of The Lolas “We’re Going Down to the Boathouse.” Jangle also usually features pretty addictive harmony vocals, showcased below in Propeller’s “Summer Arrives.”

David James Situation – I Should Know

The Format – Wait Wait Wait

As the original and defining decade of poprock (in my view), the 1960s sound continues to be mined by new artists. Daisy House have few rivals in nailing the late 1960s California poprock vibe, sounding like time travelers from San Francisco’s 1968 club scene. Space Dingus have got The Monkees feel down. Both Shadow Show and The On and Ons gives us that rockier pop sound of the mid 1960s, with the latter delivering killer lead guitar hooks. By contrast, both Cut Worms and The Young Veins offer a candy-coated pop sound more akin to The Cyrkle and Simon and Garfunkel.

The On and Ons – Before Our Eyes
The Young Veins – Cape Town

I’m a sucker for shivery harmony vocals so they’ve been featured regularly on the blog. One of Jenny Lewis’ side projects is the one-off album from Jenny and Johnny, I’m Having Fun Now. Aptly named, the record gently rocks and delivers amazing vocals. The Secret Sisters offer up a punchy tune where the harmony vocals seal the hooky deal. The Carousels “Call Along the Coast” has a big sound the rides a wave of harmony vocalizing and Beatlesque guitar work. Meanwhile Scotland’s Dropkick corner the market on delightful lilting songcraft on “Dog and Cat.” The blog sometimes shades into retro country and folk territory. Bomabil are an eccentric outfit who stretch our sense of song but never drop the melody.  The Top Boost are pretty new wave but on “Tell Me That You’re Mine” they’re channeling Bakersfield via the Beatles 65. The Fruit Bats put the banjo upfront in “Humbug Mountain,” where it belongs. Gerry Cinnamon is like Scotland’s Billy Bragg and he shows what you can do with just an acoustic guitar and a Springsteen harmonica.

Jenny and Johnny – Scissor Runner
The Secret Sisters – Black and Blue
The Carousels – Call Along the Coast

Gerry Cinnamon – What Have You Done

I’m proud to say that the blog has sometimes strayed off the beaten path of conventional poprock into more eccentric territory with bands that are smart and quirky and not afraid to lodge a hook in a more complex setting. Tally Hall pretty much define this approach. So ‘out there’ but still so good melodically. Chris Staples and Hayden offer up more low key, moody tunes but they still have a strong melodic grab. Overlord take clever to a new level, like a grad school version of They Might Be Giants. Coach Hop is just funny and hooky with his unabashed ode to liking Taylor Swift.

Tally Hall – Sacred Beast

Overlord – The Song That Saved the World


After the 1960s the new wave era is the renaissance of poprock for me with its combination of hooky guitars, harmony vocals, and melody-driven rock and roll. Screen Test capture this ambience perfectly on “Notes from Trevor” with a chorus that really delivers. The Enlows drive the guitar hook right into your head on the dance-madness single “Without Your Love.” Billy Sullivan epitomizes the reinvention of 1960s elements that occurred in the 1980s, well embodied in “Everywhere I Go.” Another strong theme in the blog has been the “I Get Mail” feature, populated largely by DIY songsters who write me about their garage or basement recorded releases. It is inspiring to hear from so many people doing their thing and getting it out there, especially when it is generally really good. Daveit Ferris is a DIY workaholic with an amazing range of song and recording styles. “Immeasurable” is a good illustration of his genius, with a banjo-driven chorus that always makes me smile. Mondello is practically the classic indie artist movie script, struggling to get an album out after 20 years. But then his follow up single, “My Girl Goes By,” is gold!

Screen Test – Notes from Trevor

Billy Sullivan – Everywhere I Go
Daveit Ferris – Immeasurable


I want to leave you with a two-four of should-be hits from Poprock Record. These songs are all quality cuts, grade A poprock with melodies and harmonies and hooks to spare. Some of these songs leave me panting, they’re so good. I kicked off the blog back in 2015 with Family of Year and I still think “Make You Mine” is a textbook should-be AM radio hit. Sunday Sun channel The Beatles through a 1980s song filter, in the very best way. Sitcom Neighbor’s “Tourist Attraction” is a delightful earworm affliction. Wyatt Blair has somehow boiled down the essential formula of a 1960s-influenced poprock hit. Wyatt Funderburk understands how to assemble the perfect melody-driven single. And so on. Get your clicking finger warmed up and you’ll be introduced to the essence of Poprock Record in 24 melodious increments.

Family of the Year – Make You Mine

Ex Cops – James

Sitcom Neighbor – Tourist Attraction
The Primary 5 – Mailman
Daisy – I Just Don’t Believe It


One thing I didn’t anticipate was all the great people I’d come in contact with writing a music blog. Thanks to all the bands, record labels, and readers who have responded so positively to what I’ve been doing here. A special thanks to Best Indie Songs, Tim at Powerpopulist and Don at I Don’t Hear a Single for their advice over the years and to my friends Rob at Swizzle and Dale at The View from Here for encouraging me to do this.

This post features pics from my poprock-postered 1985-7 apartment in Vancouver’s West End. Just $285 a month, all inclusive. No wonder I could buy so many records.

Poprock Record’s 20 must-have LPs for 2018

08 Tuesday Jan 2019

Posted by in Poprock Themepark

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

screen shot 2019-01-08 at 9.43.06 pmI’m not really an album guy. Particularly now in our ‘download-any-song-you-want-era’. I grew up on compilation albums and AM radio. It was all singles, singles singles: a new sound every three minutes. A whole album is just a vinyl horizon for my needle dropping. But I have to say this year I got hooked on more than a few long players. What grabbed me? I could say it was the songwriting, a coherent sonic palette, the performative ingenuity, etc. But hey, who am I kidding? It was mostly the hooks. Fair warning: there is considerable overlap of artists here with my should-be hit singles list (duh) but not entirely. Bottom line: you won’t go wrong putting your cash down on these LPs in toto.

So, here are Poprock Record’s 20 must-have LPs for 2018:

  1. Aaron Lee Tasjan Karma for Cheap
  2. Daisy House Bon Voyage
  3. Ruler Winning Star Champion
  4. The Spindles Past and Present
  5. Starbelly Four
  6. Nick Piunti Temporary High
  7. Jeremy Messersmith Late Stage Capitalism
  8. Henry Chadwick Marlin Fisher
  9. Car City Car City
  10. Bill Lloyd Working the Long Game
  11. Freedom Fry Classic
  12. The Spook School Could It Be Different?
  13. Oberon Rose Tell Me About It
  14. Richard Turgeon Lost Angeles
  15. Extra Arms Headacher
  16. Vegas with Randolph Legs and Luggage
  17. The Tearaways Anthems and Lullabies
  18. Paul Collins Out of My Head
  19. The Smittens City Rock Dove
  20. Summer Magic Sharks and Other Dangers

Best ‘best of’ compilation: KC Bowman Important with a Capital I; Best covers album: Tommy and Rockets I Wanna Be Covered; Special merit award: Super 8 T-T-Technicolour Melodies, Turn Around Or …, HI LO

screen shot 2019-01-08 at 10.24.27 pmEdging out Daisy House’s fantastic Bon Voyage by a hair, my number one album for 2018 is Aaron Lee Tasjan’s Karma for Cheap. The more I listened to this record, the more I loved the songs and the performances. There is something extraordinary in just how Tasjan combines his elements. He’s got rumbly guitar, he’s got jangly guitar. His vocals run the gamut from Tom Petty-solid to Roy Orbison-aching tenderness. There’s not a weak cut here, but pay special attention to subtle hooky vocal interplay on “Heart Slows Down,” or the driving guitar hook behind “End of the Day,” or the touching “Dream Dreamer.” You won’t steer wrong with his back catalogue either, particularly 2016’s Silver Tears! There is so much I could say about all 20 albums but frankly the music speaks for itself. Click the links to go directly to the band’s bandcamp, Facebook or webpages.

screen shot 2019-01-08 at 10.25.36 pmOne final word: I had to single out Super 8’s stupendous triple album accomplishment this year for special attention. After a two-decade career in rock and roll that can only be described as cinematic in its litany of seeming breakthroughs, bad luck, record company shenanigans and some bandmate’s bad faith, these albums are a vindication of his resolve to stick with music. Each record is finely crafted portrait of late 1960s summertime sunshine poprock. Your time machine back to 1968 is ready for boarding! Just hit play.

Let’s make 2019 another great year for poprock – buy these albums, get out to some concerts, and tell your friends about these great finds.

Poprock Record’s should-be hit singles of 2018

03 Thursday Jan 2019

Posted by in Should be a Hit Single

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

screen shot 2019-01-03 at 12.43.02 pm2018 was a freakin’ fantastic year for poprock! How do I know? Every year-end I put together a playlist of tunes released that year. In 2016 it consisted of 58 songs clocking in at just over 3 hours. By 2017 that list expanded to 98 songs running over 5 hours. This year the list exploded to 175 songs going on for over 9 hours! My list of should-be hit singles had to expand to a top 50 just to accommodate all this talent. Hit the links below to find each artist as featured in my original blog post this past year or to go to their bandcamp or Facebook page if I didn’t write them up.

So, without further ado, here is Poprock Record’s should-be hit singles for 2018:

  1. Daisy House “Open Your Eyes”
  2. Oberon Rose “No Stranger”
  3. Ruler “Unhindered Pace”
  4. William Duke “Carole and the Silver Screen”
  5. Aaron Lee Tasjan “End of the Day”
  6. Car City “(Don’t) Give Up On Love”
  7. Greg Pope “Forget About You”
  8. Modern Space “Flip for It”
  9. Summer Magic “Attraction Corridors”
  10. Bill Lloyd “Satellite”
  11. Arthur Alexander “I’ll Get Your Love Someday”
  12. The Spindles “I Want My Baby Back”
  13. Starbelly “Lay Low”
  14. The Essex Green “Sloane Ranger”
  15. Michael Simmons “No More Girls”
  16. Astral Drive “Summer of ‘76”
  17. Caddy “Miracle Turn”
  18. Danny Wilkerson “How She Lost Heart”
  19. Bird Streets “Betting on the Sun”
  20. David James Situation “I Should Know”
  21. Ben Talmi “Chances”
  22. Nick Piunti “No Return”
  23. Michael Slawter “Summer’s Kind”
  24. Henry Chadwick “I Can Stick Around”
  25. Cupid’s Carnival “She Don’t Care”
  26. Super 8 “Your Love is my Blanket”
  27. Jeremy Messersmith “Monday, You’re Not So Bad”
  28. Freedom Fry “Past Lives”
  29. Cape Cartel “More”
  30. Gentle Hen “She’s Got It”
  31. Daniel Romano “Anyone’s Arms”
  32. Hurry “Waiting for You”
  33. J. Eastman and the Drunk Uncles “No Political Agenda”
  34. The Connection “The Girl is Trouble”
  35. Even “Out of the Woods”
  36. The Tearaways “I Could Love You Forever”
  37. Richard Turgeon “Look Away”
  38. Dot Dash “Unfair Weather”
  39. Brad Peterson “Whispering”
  40. Rob Bonfiglio “Passenger Seat”
  41. The Maureens “20 years for the Company”
  42. Extra Arms “Why I Run”
  43. Wiretree “Rainy Corner”
  44. Jim Shorts “James Tailored”
  45. Vegas with Randolph “Women in Airports”
  46. Billy & Dolly “Everything is Off”
  47. The Wellgreen “Take What You Get”
  48. Glen Robinson “Get You Down”
  49. Sofa City Sweetheart “Stop the Thinking”
  50. Wyatt Blair “Gotta Get Away”

For the second year running Daisy House tops my list of should-be hit singles. I have simply run out of superlatives to describe the musical genius of this band. Great songwriting, a killer 1960s vibe, flawless production and performance – it just doesn’t get any better than this. Do yourself a favour and head over to Bandcamp to download their whole catalogue. Oberon Rose came a close second with what must be one of the coolest singles rolled out this year. Ruler ruled my playlist for a good part of 2018, with “Unhindered Place” just one of the great songs on his album. I love the way William Duke’s guitar sounds like a jangle waterfall on his hooky masterpiece “Carole and Silver Screen.” And Aaron Lee Tasjan is a real find – so many possible selections – but more on that with my upcoming ‘20 must-have LPs for 2018’ post. I could go on … (but click on the links to get the full story).

I hope you enjoy these fifty songs enough to click on over to some of the artists’ web real estate and help them along career-wise. 2019 promises to be another hungry year for many of these mostly struggling artists – so do your part: buy their music and go see them live when they come to your town.

Everbody’s talking ‘bout: Danny Wilkerson, Bird Streets, Nick Piunti, Rob Bonfiglio, and Caddy

03 Monday Sep 2018

Posted by in Poprock Themepark

≈ 6 Comments

Tags

, , , ,

RJAll the power pop blogs are talking at me. I don’t hear every word they’re saying but it’s hard not to catch the drift. They’re pretty bonkers over this crew of performers and for good reason. They pop rock!  Today I play catch up on some pretty superior tune-age. What’s fun in the ever-so-slightly competitive world of blogging is seeing who puts up what and when. Early adopters are cool! But even when we post the same things – and why not? It’s all about supporting the music – it’s fun to notice how we don’t necessarily highlight the same songs. Here I’ve tried to shine a light on some different cuts from these new albums.

Like Danny Wilkerson. His self-titled solo debut is chock full of should-be hits but my ear got caught on “How She Lost My Heart” with its subtle Beatle and Badfinger-isms. And it’s just a great catchy tune!How She Lost My Heart

Another project burning up the power pop blogosphere is Bird Streets, which brings together John Brodeur and Jason Falkner in a truly winning combination. Bloggers and radio programmers have hit upon “Betting on the Sun” as the break out hit single and it’s hard not to agree. But here again I’m drawn to the more unusual “Thanks for Calling” with its bevy of unexpected hooks tucked in here and there.

In the ‘he keeps getting better and better’ category, Nick Piunti’s new album Temporary High is a treat, kinda like Mike Viola meets Tom Petty. This guy puts pop and rock together like a pro! Again, I’m hard pressed to single out just one song. The opening title track blasts out of the gate with ‘hit’ written all over it, the guitar and organ on “You Invented Hell” are exquisite, while “If This Was Right” strikes the more mellow melodic sweet spots. But I’ve settled on “No Return” which I think would not sound out of place on a Marshall Crenshaw or Mike Viola album. I’ve always been a sucker for the more sibilant, chimey, melody-drenched material.

A record I was really looking forward to was Rob Bonfiglio’s Trouble Again and it does not disappoint. Bonfiglio is a master of the compressed late 1970s poprock sound, evident in the hit single-ish “Passenger Seat.” But don’t overlook “Tears” which channels a bit of ELO and 10CC. Really, the whole record is eminently listenable.Tears

Rounding things out on this post is a selection from Caddy’s Ten Times Four. The ear is naturally drawn to the crashy, bouncy crunch of opening track “Miracle Turn” with its ear worm worthy hooks. Yet I found myself seduced by the more midtempo, Teenage Fanclub-ish elegance of “Reverie.”Reverie

Summer’s officially over but you can go where the sun’s still shining, courtesy these tunes. Give these new albums from Danny Wilkerson, Bird Streets, Nick Piunti, Rob Bonfiglio, and Caddy a spin and tell me you’re not sailing on a summer breeze.