Call this one, “slipped through the cracks” – as Powerpop Station blog found this one I missed. Any Version of Me is a mystery man from Paris, France. I am not fluent in French, but his music speaks volumes. “The Good Old Days” seems to me a seamless blend of Brian Wilson and Gilbert O’Sullivan with a touch of Colin Blunstone (Zombies). The touchstone here is Pet Sounds/Abbey Road production (using vintage instruments), with “More” it also recalls a gentle late 60’s songwriting style that touches pop greatness. The vocal on the lonely ballad “Tonight” has a soaring falsetto that makes it work similar to Eric Carmen doing Ziggy Stardust. The next several tracks wander into Herman’s Hermits territory, which isn’t a bad thing, but it fails to generate the excitement of the earlier tracks. “Something’s Gonna Happen” is a fun baroque sixties throwback a la The Parade, but the next track “Take Some Time” is a well written and original Beatlesque gem. And the ending track, “All I Will Keep From You” even ends with a Beach Boys multi-part harmony fade out. Some fans may think this album too derivative (which is true) but it has enough original songwriting to carry it through to highly recommended status. The entire album is streaming below and on the Any Version Of Me web site he is giving visitors a FREE single download “Don’t Fall My Friend.” Now that’s just smart marketing.
Category: Highly Recommended by Powerpopaholic
The Kavanaghs "The Kavanaghs" Demo Download
The Kavanaghs are a brand new band from Rosario City, Argentina. Formed in early 2006, they’re now preparing the release of their first album. Band members are: Tiago Galindez (lead vocals, bass guitar, pianos), Alejandro Pin (lead vocals, rythm guitars) Diego Vázquez (lead guitars, backing vocals), Julio Leidi (drums, percussion and backing vocals). Both Eric Carmen and Jim Bonfanti from the Raspberries who wrote the liner notes for the upcoming album said about the Kavanaghs: “The Beatles, Badfinger and Raspberries fans will love this band!! This guys really wear their influences well. Catchy melodies and great harmonies are still alive. It’s a pleasure to hear their songs!!”
I got this over the weekend and already other blogs have been promoting it, so this is my turn to spread the word. The music certainly is excellent. You really hear the Badfinger harmonies and McCartney styled bass on “The Wrong side of the Way.” The Hudson Bros. styled piano and bass combinations are great on “Friday on My Mind” (no relation to the Easybeats). Although the South American accents come through a little, “English Town” is a wonderful song with nice horns and piano work similar to The Kinks “Drivin.” Some maudlin moments like “Goodbye Chris” are redeemed by the rocking Beatlesque “Cat in Town.” The production is a bit sparse, but that’s okay for this preview. My favorite here is the subtle and hook filled “All The Time,” but there are plenty of great songs here like “It Seems That I’m Not Getting Things Quite Right” with it’s Zombies/Association vibe. I hope to hear more from this band that shares the same geek love of power pop groups I have. Please support this band when the final mix comes out. Best of luck, Tiago!
My Space | Kavanaghs Site | Download Demo Album
Canadian Invasion "Three Cheers For The Invisible Hand"
So what is so special about a band called “Canadian Invasion” that isn’t even from Canada? Well it’s a tight Philly group lead by Andy Paul better known as Andy Canadian (okay I get it now). This is really sweet power pop with punch along the lines of REM, Teenage Fanclub or The Well Wishers. It opens with the jangle riffs of “Pop Magic Fantastical Masterpiece” full of gently breathed harmonies in the chorus. Fans of My Brother Woody and The Thrills will find a lot to like here. The lyrics and song titles are lots of fun too, a prime example is “Standing On The Shoulders Of The Carcass Of John Mayer.” The gentle flow of some songs like “Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow” have just enough melody and guitar licks to make very enjoyable listening. Every song here is a winner, with tempo changing from the very Fountains of Wayne-like “How To Build A Jetback” to the Americana pop twang of “The Last Time I Went To Church.” A great album that got me digging for more on the band’s earlier efforts. No invisible cheers for this one — just full throated “Hip Hip Hooray!” for Canadian Invasion. Right now the new album is only on Amazon or MySpace.
My Space | Lala (Blame the Robots ep) | CD Baby (Songs For The Atco Ghost) | Amazon
Listen to “”Three Cheers for the Invisible Hand”
Roger Joseph Manning Jr. "Catnip Dynamite"
The wait is over. And now US residents can finally get Roger Joseph Manning Jr.’s “Catnip Dynamite” on February 3rd. Most are familiar with Roger’s work through such original group endeavors as Jellyfish, Imperial Drag, The Moog Cookbook and TV Eyes. Roger has also assisted artists like Beck and Air both in the studio and in live performances. He has worked as a keyboardist, vocalist, arranger and songwriter in a more behind the scenes capacity with hundreds of other artists. Since his first album “Land Of Pure Imagination” 2 years ago, all of power pop fandom has been hanging onto Roger’s every note. Let’s face it, this is an easy review for me. Without trying to fall over myself in praise — it’s pretty much what fans have come to expect from Roger. Highly detailed pop compositions that hook into your brain from the opening riffs on “The Quickening” to the Moog keyboards on the bouncy single “Down In Front.” Unlike the last effort, there is more of an effort to rock here and approach each pop song with surgical precision that lasts longer than 3 minutes. There is also less flowery pop (a la Carpenters) and more groovy psyche rock with lot of progressive organ flourishes peeking out behind the melodies. You can hear Strawberry Alarm Clock all over “Imaginary Friend” for example. Every track has it’s own unique flavor, and that’s part of the joy in exploring this album. The storytelling element is expanded here on most tracks (i.e. ” Haunted Henry” and “Drive Thru Girl”) with the sound effects adding to the atmosphere too. Toward the albums end, it gets very proggy and preachy a la Tony Banks-era Genesis on “Survival Machine.” The album ends with several live tracks from Japan. Listen to the entire album streaming from Oglio Records. Right now Newbury Comics has a pre-order special with autographed CDs. I expect other vendors (Not Lame, Kool Kat Musik, etc.) will shortly follow in February. If you couldn’t afford the Japanese CD last year, you have no excuse now. This is a “must have” for any music collection.
My Space | RJM Website | Newbury Comics
Harvey Barham "City Of Champions"
City of Champions is the first solo album from co-founder of the venerable Gentlemen Losers, Harvey Barham. It is a themed album about life in Duncanville, TX and it opens at “3 a.m. in Duncanville” with a great opening melodic riff and a sound similar to Gary Louris (of The Jayhawks). Barham’s vocals are low, but effective here. It goes through a description of the struggling area, where “all the girls are virgins/ all the boys are nerds” – it’s ain’t Lake Woebegon, folks. The liner notes chronicle the transformation of the suburbs from a utopia to a bit of a disaster area. The alt.country slices of life on “My Sweet Tragedy” and “Main Street” are great songs with hook filled choruses and colorful lyrics. And this is where Barham excels – my favorite song here “Some Are Just Happy” is a sharp critique of Texas life sung with sweetness and smooth guitar. The weary ballad “Nothin’ I Do” is a total resignation of everything, even admitting “you’re tired of this tune” which is a bit of Wilco bleakness and ELO violins that recall “Mr. Kingdom” a little. I kinda dug this one a lot too – it’s so damn honest. The latter half of this album also recalls The Honeydogs, as the songs get more into the town’s disintegration (“Tired Of This Town”), but it ends with the slightly hopeful “Little One.” Every song here is well written and the arrangements are superb. The albums dark undercurrent can get oppressive at times, but that’s the general theme here. The website is impressive too, as the city of Duncanville, TX is layed out in detail with sample streaming tracks for each “news” item listed. You have to remember this is about an album about life in this small Texas community. It could be any town in America now, even yours. So listen up.
My Space | City of Champions | CD Baby