This Blue Heaven is female-fronted power pop band and similar in spirit to Kelly Jones and Aimee Mann. The Boston based band has a vibrant bounce on it’s opener “Bliss,” where front woman MacKenzie Outlund intones “You better enjoy this.” The next song, “But As Hard as You Try” is a more adult oriented pop rich in it’s production and MacKenzie’s vocal soars here. Guitarist Stu Dietz puts his signature guitar sound on each tune, especially on the riff heavy “Any Other Way.” Aaron Rosenthal adds swirling synth and piano to the mix, with help from Mark Desrosiers (bass) and Brandon Erdos (drums). Stylistically melodic pop like “Future World” delivers hooks as strong as Aimee Mann’s best work, and this one is my favorite track. The distinctive synths and driving beat of “My Disgrace” is another winner. MacKenzie and Stu have a strong enough vocal chemistry to try a few sweet duet diversions like “That Summer” and “Insomnia.” But it’s the shimmering pop tracks like “As Ever As Always” that will win you over. The group’s latest project Spinning and Shining, a five-song EP produced by Paul Q. Kolderie (Radiohead, Pixies), has released just recently (free single below) and is highly recommended.
My Space | Amazon | FREE Single “Nova Love” | Itunes