Dave Birk “Speed Queen Mystery Date”
Minneapolis, MN based Dave Birk’s self funded debut is a lot of bouncy melodious fun right from the opening notes of “Hey Jody.”  Influences are squarely in the Gin Blossoms meets Fountains of Wayne arena. With earnest vocals, the early gem is “Roller Coaster of Love, Hate and Tenderness” with a wicked guitar solo during the break, and lyrics about “the never-ending test” of romance.

It kinda jumps into faux funk with “Love and Devotion,” and then a touching slow ballad “My Sleeping Beauty.” But then we enter FOW-land with the title track and “All Things Retro” with a ton of pop culture references. The remaining tracks just as fresh, especially “Country Music 101″ with a dead-on instruction of how to write a hit country song. A great debut!

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The Honey Wilders “Singles for Singles” 
This San Jose band sure loves 70′s classic rock, just listen to the Big Star riffs on “Life In Stereo” and the catchy melody on “Summertime” which recalls Tom Petty. It’s got sound alike tracks for Led Zeppelin (“Sugar Mama,”) Thin Lizzy (“”Geneva Ave.”) and The Stones (“Sweet Alice”). The remain tracks all have that instantly recognizable guitar sound, like of like a cross between Mick Ronson and Slash. And while highly derivative, its also enjoyable fun, like a classic mix tape from that era.

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Paul Bertolino “Where The Buildings Hit The Sky”
Paul is a behind-the-scenes musician’s musician from Berkeley, CA and a skilled singer songwriter that will appeal to fans of Eric Matthews, Elliot Smith and Ben Wilkins. The 70′s styled opener and title track is certainly impressive with rich horns and bass riffs supporting the melody.

Lovers of gentle baroque pop along the lines of Burt Bacharach and Van Dyke Parks will flip for “Union Square.” Paul mixes some psyche-pop guitar and harmonies on the wonderful chorus of “The Green Bridge.” More gems include the snappy “See Me Now” with its lyrical love of New York City, and the sunny “Clinton Hill.” Retro pop fans rejoice! The release is through Bandcamp only.

Boice “How To Be An Adult”
Boice is certainly not your average power pop act, as African Americans rarely enter this genre. Brooklyn based Boice-Terrel Allen balances his influences (McCartney, Costello, Morrisey) with considerable skill on his opener “Itchy Boyz.” His lack of vocal range on “(That’s) The Sound” is made up by solid melody, skillful harmonies and song composition.

“Everybody Loves A Comeback” almost reminds me of Stew & The Negro Problem with dark narratives, and a twisted melody line.  At 15 tracks in total, it’s hit and miss – with most of the good stuff early on. And despite the racy BDSM cover image, this album is quite tame. The songs become progressively more “easy listening” on the deeper tracks, with some variety in the 50′s style mid-tempo “Wake Up! (Here’s The Part)” and the inspirational pep talk “Anchor Song (For Mary).”

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Click here to view the video on YouTube.

The Bowers “Odds or Evens”
This Melbourne Australian band from gives us a real hidden gem. The tight riffs and vocals of Phil Gionfriddo make ”Time Is Mine” a winner, and his cadence reminds me of Ed Rolland (Collective Soul). Taking a cue from 60′s Mod, the thumping beat and Byrdsian psyche-pop gives us “Going To Love Me Now.” This is near perfect garage pop with the harmonies, farfisa organ, driving riffs and wailing lead retro enthusiasts will cherish. It loses a little steam towards the end with the droning title track, but it’s worth uncovering for sure.
Bandcamp only

The Stanleys “Always” EP
Another Aussie export, The Stanleys are a quartet that draws from classic 70′s bands like The Raspberries and Sweet with modern rock techniques similar to Weezer. Then you throw in studio wizards like Ken Stringfellow (REM, The Posies) and Michael Carpenter, and it’s a pretty impressive debut here. The hooks are strong on “Always” and “Kid’s Gonna Rock” and the sound is comparable to Vinyl Candy. Enjoy!
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Smash Fashion “Blame it on Brandy/Marionette” EP
LA based dandies led by Roger Deering and supported by veteran musicians, have a glam meets power pop sound. The thundering drums and crisp guitar riffs on “Brandy” demand attention. It’s a lot of fun, and the b-side “Marionette” is just as infectious with some great Brian May styled guitar solo work between the main verses. The band has a back catalog worth investigating, and I’ll be looking forward to the new full length LP.
SmashFashionMusic.com | CD Baby

Nelson Bragg has spent the last several years recording and touring extensively as percussionist and vocalist for Brian Wilson’s touring band, and now the current Beach Boys reunion. On this new album, he works with a stellar cast of musicians including Probyn Gregory and Anny Celsi of The Brian Wilson Band. Unlike 2007′s Day Into Night, Bragg’s compositions are bigger and supported by lusher, richer orchestration. The sound is like a soothing blend of The Byrds, Posies and Dan Fogelberg (with a touch of Beach Boys too). The acapella harmonies usher in “You Could Believe” and we’re treated to a superb jangle filled melody. “What She’s Done To Him” is solid West Coast styled pop with horns accenting each verse. Nelson also covers “Baby Let Your Hair Grow Long” from Brain Wilson’s first solo LP, with a relaxed island feel, dense harmonies in the bridge and horns in the break. The tone of “Steel Derrick 1979″ is more along the lines of Gordon Lightfoot and the epic “Let The Cruel World Go” is a piano ballad of the highest order, with a full string accompaniment.

“She Used To Love Me” is my favorite song on the album, with multiple guitar tracks and a sitar lead it recalls latter era Hollies or Beau Brummels. The pastoral twang of “Tyme and Tyde Agree” is another gem of a duet with co-writer Anny Celsi. The Celtic feel of the “Everything I Want To Be” is beautiful, but the instrumentation overshadows the melody here. Overall highly recommended and the production and mastering is done with the audiophile in mind. It’s streaming on his site, so don’t miss this one!

Click here to view the video on YouTube.

Bee Gees member Robin Gibb lost his battle with cancer Sunday at the age of 62. Yeah I was never a disco dude as a boy, but I later appreciated The Bee Gees and what they did accomplish. Like another recently deceased member of the disco era, Donna Summer, the Bee Gees are often remembered as the leaders of a musical “fad” and not great musicians. Its so not true. They were prolific songwriters with harmonies that rivaled The Beach Boys. Even in my “disco hater” days I considered them the masters of the romantic ballad. Only Elvis Presley, The Beatles, Michael Jackson, Garth Brooks and Paul McCartney have outsold the Bee Gees. Listen to the 1969 album Odessa and you’ll hear what I mean. For the whole enchilada listen to The Ultimate Bee Gees.

For those looking for Bill Lloyd to return to the power pop genre, as he did with Set To Pop and Standing On The Shoulders of Giants, the wait is over. The new album Boy King Of Tokyo boasts the strongest tracks I’ve heard from Lloyd, starting with the title track about his years as a “gaijin brat” in Japan, with its trademark jangle and solid hook. The chiming riffs of “Buy On Credit” and the solid harmonies on “Let It Slide” are classic Lloyd. Fans of classic influences like Dave Edmunds, Byrds, and McCartney will just eat this up. The stories here are great too, especially “Com Trol” a humorous, but true tale of corporate rock and selling out.

Bill sounds like he’s having fun on the bar room drawl of “Home Jeeves” with it’s twang and beat similar to “Jumpin’ Jack Flash.” The passion of power pop fans are best described on “The Best Record Ever Made,” and its my favorite here, all about that infectious hook. The country roots tracks are great too, notably the magical “Chet’s Right Hand, Man” done in the Chet Atkins guitar style. No duds, and even the slower tracks like “Where Nobody Cares At All” are full of personality. No reason this shouldn’t be part of my “best of” 2012 list.

Click here to view the video on YouTube.

Click here to view the video on YouTube.

Normally I don’t have time to post only videos on the home page anymore, and I just add them to the Power Popaholic video jukebox. But I thought this was so inventive and well done, I added it today. The Spinto Band, on top of creating some of the most adventurous pop music going, is well known for their incredible music videos and the new one for “The Living Things” won’t disappoint! Created by the talented animator Phil Davis, the video is a combination of hand drawn animation and pixilation. All of the roughly 2,000 drawings in the animation were created frame-by-frame by Davis over the course of 20 months. Can you spare three minutes to watch the beautiful results of almost two year’s worth of one man’s work? Sure you can.

I would like to jump on my soapbox for a moment and say that for every “washed up” old rocker trying to extend the 15 minutes of fame (Bow Wow Wow) there are honest-to-God talented musicians who need to be heard again and fans who’ve missed them. Because the reunion isn’t a train wreck, they get little or no attention from the press and that’s a crime in my opinion. Thankfully a few oldies bands are still makin’ music I want to listen to (The Beach Boys, DB’s) and maybe we can find a few more. Okay, rant over.

Pilot was one of the best power pop bands in the 70′s era, lead by the #1 single “Magic.” Written and sung by David Paton, it’s an enduring classic and I’m happy to say Paton still has the goods when it comes to catchy singles. Under The Sun is a return to form, although Paton’s done great work with the Japanese power pop band Beagle Hat. Here it’s more adult oriented contemporary pop, and it starts out with the low key “Under The Sun” which sounds like Paul McCartney’s answer to Nilsson’s “Coconut.”  The minimal jazz of “I’m No Liar” and slick pop of “I Wanna Be With You” are okay, but feel formulaic. The real gems are “Don’t Touch Me” and the gorgeous melody of “All For You.” Like Sir Paul, David pours out his experiences with compelling melodies, like the world weary “Go Find Yourself.” The bonus tracks of Pilot’s “Magic” and “Just A Smile” are newly recorded and still sound fresh today. Overall a worthy addition to Paton (and Pilot’s) discography.

Click here to view the video on YouTube.

I was lucky enough to get a chance to interview Kevin Martin, lead singer/songwriter of Candlebox whose album I reviewed last week. Unfortunately I had audio problems with this one, so I transcribed it on the interview page. Check it out, as Kevin really opens up about his experiences on tour and in the studio.