Popdudes “Maximum Rock Stupidity”
This is a bonus CD for buyers of the John Borack penned “Shake Some Action 2.0” book and its a nice mix of classic power pop covers and a few originals. The Popdudes, are essentially author John Borack and Michael Simmons with several high profile guests: Robbie Rist, Michael Carpenter, Kenny Howes, and Torbjörn Petersson. Borack and Simmons know what makes great power pop, and they bring their “A” game to originals like “Joe Sincere.” I wish there were more than a handful here.
The band does a crack job with Cheap Trick, McCartney, ELO, Matthew Sweet and many others. While several covers are faithful, I like the ones that are slightly off-center; like Kenny Howes version of Abba’s “Waterloo” done as a hard rocker. I also love that they go for a few deep cuts, like George Harrison’s “Ding Dong, Ding Dong” or Walter Egan’s “Magnet and Steel,” an outtake from the Drink a Toast To Innocence compilation. Highly Recommended.
Populuxe “Lumiere”
Brooklyn based Populuxe is vocalist/writer Rob Shapiro, drummer/percussionist Mark Pardy, bassist Mike Mallory and several studio musicians over the years. They bring together a creative soundscape, which gets influences from XTC, Paul Westerberg, Steely Dan and more.
The band’s attitude is shaded with darkness on the opener “Lady Liberty” and it felt like a lost David Bowie track. Next, the brilliantly written “Garage Sale” is a closer match to Black Sea-era XTC, and its a highlight with its quirky percussion and dense chorus. It then mellows out on the bongos and strums of “Schoolyard” before it takes a weird turn on the 8-minute opus “How Long’s It Gonna Take,” with little jazzy guitar elements. At first annoying, I found myself singing the chorus. “Behind Enemy Lines” and “Beat It, Eric” are both built from solid bass and drum structure, with angular guitar leads. After a few spins, I really liked it, as it reminded me of the band Sugarplastic in spots. But there are no hooks to draw you in right away, so while the arrangements are really good you need time for this one to grow on you. Check it out.
