Sandy McKnight‘s follow-up to last year’s San Fernando Beat EP continues his string of “shoulda-been” hit songs with Fernando Perdomo. If you’re looking for DIY rock and roll, look no further than Beebe Gallini and Brad Marino. Beebe’s got a rough garage sound, but it’s chock full of hooks, and Brad’s sound is vintage gold, similar to The Rolling Stones. Going back in time further, Vanilla ’66 is an instrumental album for a 1960’s movie that never existed, retro pop fans can bask in the fluorescent glow of nostalgia. Will there be another Austin Powers movie? We got the soundtrack.
Jon Klages new single “1133 Ave. of the Americas (For Enoch Light),” is a subtle jazzy tribute to his grandfather, akin to Harry Nilsson in its brilliant simplicity and a great mood setter. UK artist Barton Hartshorn has a new single, “Listen For A Change,” and it recalls Prefab Sprout and early Style Council. Very nice.
Glasgow native Joe Kane (aka The Poppermost) follows up his single from November with a smashing EP pulled out of the 1964 – 1965 Merseybeat era. “Well I Will” nails that early Moptop style, but “Laziest Fella In The Realm” is more like Freddie and The Dreamers, and the catchy “In & Out” is another winner. Excellent retro-pop that’s highly recommended.
Dutch power poppers Tommy & The Rockets do several simple three-chord gems as part of twofer with the band Psychotic Youth. Punchy songs that recall Kurt Baker and The Connection in approach are primarily covers, and my faves are The Jags “Back of My Hand and Chris Montez’s “Some Kind of Fun.” Check it out!
Peaces is a quartet from Germany. Love the opening heavy jangle of the title track and even though the vocals are a bit lacking, the spirit is there on “40 Days & 40 Nights.” A sweet rock song about Harry Potter’s wizard school is lamented on “Sorcerers Get All the Girls.” This is a band that deserves to be heard.
Stephen’s Shore is a band from Stockholm, Sweden with a dreamy jangle not unlike Dropkick with a bit more laidback attitude. “Skogen” and “Up To No Good” have a sound akin to the moody late 60s folk-pop of Scott McKenzie. Worth checking out for sure.
While this collection was created and released over the months of 2020, it’s a great selection of music to have complete in one album. “Talk To Me” the bouncy pop single (with Orbis Max) has echoes of the late ’80s in the rhythm. Another great collaboration is “Tuesday’s World” with the queen of power pop Lisa Mychols, featuring interwoven male-female harmonies in each verse. They bump up the tempo on the Star Trek inspired “Planet of Love.”
Emperor Penguin has proven to be a formidable talent, with a stylistic bend towards the ’60s psych-pop in many cases, like the jangling “Maserati” or the gentle harmonies in the wonderfully melodic “Hell in a Handcart.” Other than a lite synth track at the end, there isn’t a note of filler here and it’s a highly recommended album.
Aberdeen-based psych-pop band The Vapour Trails are a talented group of musicians whose style emulates The Byrds, The Hollies, and Buffalo Springfield. The first few songs of this EP are loaded with hooks, “Tommy’s Tune” is just an infectious melody that sticks very quickly. “Underneath Tomorrow” and “That’ll Do It” has excellent guitar work, and fans of The Grip Weeds and Outrageous Cherry will love it. “Autumn & Spring” and “Good Morning Maudlin Town” have a lighter pop touch, all produced, mixed, and mastered by Nick Bertling. Fans of retro pop should check this out. Highly Recommended.
Matt Wilczynski’s musical collective (aka The Hard Way) is made up of Matt on vocals, guitar, bass, keyboard, and drums with a rotating cast of musicians and friends to round out the sound – which takes influences from The Beatles, Cheap Trick, Aerosmith, and The Doobie Brothers.
It’s the meticulous craftsmanship and production that you will notice right away. The opener “Walls & Bridges” starts with a slide guitar intro and Matt’s soulful vocal, then the Beatlesque harmonies in the chorus hit you. The guitar solo is Duane Allman-like in approach and simply great. “Note To Self” adds a smooth backing vocal chorus with a piano verse, and some impressive songwriting. “Open Cage” and the instrumental “Worm Underground” adds some of that Joe Perry-styled hard rock sound, and with the latter track, it’s got some funky keys and horns. “Sunshine” is an acoustic blend in the Doobie Brothers tradition and I’m proud to list this as a top ten EP for 2021. It was even reviewed by Ben Folds! In his words “Excellence everywhere…” Super Highly Recommended.
The Airport 77s embody the classic power pop spirit of 20/20, Pezband, and The Knack with a modern spin; “When you’re kissing on me do you think of James McAvoy?” is a great tune that simply rocks with both attitude and desperation. “I mean, I get it — he rocks your world…” implores lead singer Andy Sullivan.
The anthemic “All The Way” has a touch of Cheap Trick in its DNA and it’s all about making that special moment memorable. A good cover of the Bram Tchaikovsky hit “Girl of My Dreams” fits right in with the band’s style. “Bad Mom!” is another highlight, with a jagged new wave rhythm, great bass line, and lyrics that obsess about that MILF in the PTA. The band really delivers lyrically and musically. Highly recommended.
Punk pop stalwarts The Cheep Cassettes recalls The Buzzcocks and Ramones, with its catchy garage riffs and rough-hewn vocals courtesy of lead songwriter Charles Matthews. The title track bobs along with gusto, and a fantastic guitar break before the final verse. “Only Lovers” and “Lil Bit Everyday” are great in-your-face tunes that stick, especially the latter, with a great hook in the chorus. As a bonus, we get some live tracks including The Replacements “Valentine.” Highly Recommended.
Those ex-Jellyfish boys (Roger Joseph Manning Jr., Tim Smith, and Eric Dover) are back! After the highly anticipated and well-received Threesome Vol.1, the band’s follow up is more of the same. Opening with the spacey “Do You Feel Better?” with sweet mellotron chords, and multi-tracked psych-pop effects it fits with that Jellyfish style beautifully.
“Sovereignty Blues” marches forward with its ELO-styled flourishes and bombastic percussion about the local news and the stress it causes. “The Dream That Took Me Over” is a little Roxy Music mixed with Howard Jones, and is the only soft tune here. The ending “Snollygoster Goon” is once again, throwing everything and the kitchen sink into the production. All the bells and whistles are here, but its more like The Dowling Poole than Jellyfish. No matter, as its all in good fun and this EP is highly recommended.
Still digging out of 2020. I enjoy this month because I get to see all the other bloggers’ lists and compare. I know there are always a couple of gems out there I missed. I already have some new music for 2021, but first I will try to review some of the LPs that missed thelist. In the meantime, enjoy this last pack of 2020 singles:
