Category: Highly Recommended by Powerpopaholic

Spirit Kid and Khalid Hanifi

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Spirit Kid “Happiness” EP
This is the a solid follow up EP to his 2010 debut, a burst of joyous guitars and dense harmonies on the opening title track is sure to wake you up. This moves seamlessly into “That Kind Of Man” with a bit more muscle, along the lines of The Posies. My favorite track is the “Sir Robert The Brave” it’s bouncy beat and ever shifting chords, that recall Cherry Twister and The Velvet Crush. The Rickenbacker acoustic ballad “Fool To Fall” is another charmer. “Down A River” is also a gem similar in style to Apples in Stereo. Overall, it’s exemplary power pop of the first order and one of the best EPs of the year.

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Khalid Hanifi “A Brief Respite From Shooting Fish In A Barrel”
Hanifi has a melodic gift  and here he makes a political statement. He gives us his take on a military contractor’s bravado on the opener “Free The World To Death” done in slow shuffle, similar to Randy Newman. It’s a political protest of how bringing democracy to Afganistan is a “soul crushing screw” to the natives. Next “The Splendor of Empire” has a relaxed melody that charms, and the biting lyrics “There’s class warfare alright/But it’s the rich that’s making war.”

You may not like his politics, but Hanifi is one of the best weavers of lyric and catchy melody since Andy Partidge. Another gem about the lowly 99% is “Whose idea was that?” and the jangle pop on “Hog Futures” leads to a bouncy chorus. It ends with a garage rocker “Give Them What They Want.” But this is a real serious album dealing with corruption, war and inequality – not really cheery pop stuff. But so well done, you take the medicine with the sweet melody.

CD Baby | Amazon

Surf School Dropouts and Jeff Larson

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Surf School Dropouts “Summer is a State of Mind”
Mid-summer and another Beach Boys clone is revealed by the light of the sun, and the title track says it all. These four guys from Denmark are worshippers of those Wilsonesque harmonies and hooks, Amen.

“Baby, I Long to be Yours” continues the Pet Sounds parade, in fact the compositions and lyrics are so close, only the vocals give away that these aren’t the real Beach Boys. The Dropouts also recall The Zombies on “We’ll Follow The Sun” and those lovely harmonies soak every inch of “Beach Bound.” And things are broken up nicely by the ballad “The Road Ahead Of Me.”  My only critique here is that the vocals are pretty innocuous, the lead singer doesn’t really stand out enough, compared to the others. Highly recommended to fans of First Class, Jan and Dean, The Sunrays and  lovers of 60’s surfer pop.

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Jeff Larson “The World Over”
If you grew up listening to the Southern California soft rock, then Jeff Larson’s newest is pretty essential listening. With willful consistency Larson gets together with his buddies Gerry Beckley and Dewey Bunnell (America) once again and he records those gentle strums and sun-soaked melodies.

What makes this album stand out is the chemistry between Larson and the backing vocalist Jeddrah Schmit, the daughter of The Eagles bassist Timothy B.Schmit. Her solid assist on “Your Way Back Home” and “One Good Lie” make these laid back tunes extra special. The only curve ball is the country twang on “Point Of Rising.” The songs are all radio friendly for most AOR and even we get a sweet ending in “Reason To Be Near You” with Jeffrey Foskett of Brian Wilson Band doing the backing vocals. A real charmer of an album that engages you, even when you thought you’ve heard it all before.

CD Baby | Amazon

The Sunny Boys “FreebOObin”

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Italian import The Sunny Boys are a punk pop band cut from the same cloth as Bowling For Soup. Playing the part of the eternal optimist on “Brian and Bubblegums” its full of quick harmonies, fast tempo and is a ready made TV show theme.

The dizzy pace and overly sweet melodies make this the ultimate musical sugar high, fans of Sexy Heroes and Ocean Grove will love “Shauni has a Boyfriend” and “Double Whammy.” The latter is like a Beach Boys tune on speed. The heavier guitar riffs come out on “Summer in Punkadise” and “Backstage Boom Boom” but the harmonies remain light. Every song here is a charmer, “Surfin'” once again is the California dream of Brian Wilson updated for todays’ modern pop audience. The lack of any ballads does tend to exhaust the listener – but the true enthusiasm and lack of cynicism make up for this. A perfect album for the beach if you are tired of listening to those old men.

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Mike Viola “Acousto De Perfecto”

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If you were a big fan of last year’s Electro De Perfecto,  then Mike Viola’s newest is the perfect “bonus disc” companion to it. It’s got half new songs and half stripped down interpretations. The opener “Secret Radio” is a love letter to fans,”for people like you. Who keep it turned on. for people like you. I’ve been singing to all along.” The album is sparsely constructed with the help of LA-based violists Eric Summer and Kate Reddish. The string arrangements are clean and simple, lending warmth to Viola’s unmistakable croon.

“Happy & Normal” benefits from the plucked strings and its melody is a mantra of frustration that sticks to your brain. “Primary Care” is an even more personal song that  is part confessional, part therapy. One of the best tracks here is “I’m Your Dog” a perfect 2 minute ode to unconditional love that rivals anything Stevie Wonder ever wrote. The previously released material from Electro De Perfecto also works well, especially “El Mundo De Perfecto” with the lines “It’s been a bad day for the whipping boy…” sounding even more poignant than the original. The album creates a soft intimate atmosphere that’s a real treat for Viola’s fans.

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The What Gives and The DB’s

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The What Gives “The What Gives”
A “lost” album from the late 90’s is finally released. The band is Jon Harrison on guitar and keyboards, Bret Dillingham on Drums and Stephen Naron on Bass.  Echos of vintage Lemonheads and Adam Marsland are the template here on “The Boy With The Tambourine Heart.” You’ll also hear some Db’s influence on the next few tracks, “Summer Everywhere” is a pretty solid single, and the catchy “When You Drop Dead” is a bit like a They Might Be Giants single, with a juicy jangle solo between choruses. More standouts include “Erin Grey” and “Burn Me Down.” It fizzles out on the last few tracks, but it’s worth adding to your collection for sure.

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The DB’s “Falling Off The Sky”
As you might have already heard, Holsapple and Stamey got together and put together a proper DB’s album after almost 30 years. And you can hear they didn’t miss a beat on the opener  “That Time Is Gone” and the hook filled “Before We Were Born.” Like Shoes, these guys are 80’s power pop royalty and deserve kudos for giving us a heck of an impressive comeback. But these guys aren’t twenty year olds anymore, as the opening lyrics state “You better wake up, wake up, wake up, That time is gone.”

A wistful maturity has always been part of Stamey and Holsapple’s recent work, and its evidenced in the duo’s ballad “Far Away and Long Ago.” After those initial rocking tunes, the skillful melodies and slower tempos take over, as “Send Me Something Real” has a great chiming guitar lead. Comparisons to REM are apt on the jangle filled rhythms of “World To Cry” and “Collide-oOo-Scope” with it’s sweet chorus. Several songs here are simply average (“She Won’t Drive In The Rain Anymore”) but it doesn’t take away from the great stuff. Enjoy these comeback albums, they don’t happen that often.