Category: Power Pop Concerts

Concert Connection: IPO and Roger Hodgson

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It’s that busy time of year and IPO is in New York this week. It started Wednesday and continues on this weekend at Bar Matchless, 57 Manhattan Ave @ Driggs Ave, Brooklyn. Don’t miss the fun and fellowship of like minded power pop bands: Eric Frisch, George Usher and Lisa Burns, Bubble, The Modulators, The GO-NY, The Pomps, Milkshake Jones, Joey Kelly (of Buddy Love), Adam Randy, Gianni Paci, The Thigh Highs, Tim Lee 3, Tenterhooks, Josh Fix, Morty Shallman, Gail George, Dave Rave, Sonny Lee & The Layovers, The Lannie Flowers Band, London Egg, Rorie Kelly, Zombies Of The Stratosphere, Oberon Rose, The Turnback, The Peaces, Joe Caravella (of The Reign), Jana Peri, The Rousers, The Anderson Council, and The Q. For showtimes visit the IPO Facebook page — we will review the concerts next week.

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Roger Hodgson (Supertramp)  returns to New York!

Accompanied by a four-piece band, Roger Hodgson continues to perform all his hits he wrote and later recorded with Supertramp. Enduring rock standards such as “Breakfast in America,” “Give a Little Bit,” “Take the Long Way Home,” “The Logical Song,” “Dreamer,” “It’s Raining Again,” “School,” and “Fool’s Overture” are all part of the show. This year marks the 40th Anniversary of “Crime of the Century,” released in September 1974 and Hodgson’s song, “Dreamer,” became Supertramp’s first international runaway hit, driving the album to the top of the charts. Roger will be at The Paramount in Huntington, NY on Tuesday, November 11. For more info visit the Paramount!

Roger Hodgson Returns!

powerpopaholic

Roger Hodgson, legendary vocalist and singer-songwriter from Supertramp, is heading back to North America for a series of fall dates. Following extensive tours of Europe and South America, Hodgson kicks off his North American tour on Nov. 4th in Wabash, Indiana. See concert dates here.

Hodgson co-founded the progressive rock band Supertramp in 1969 and was with them for 14 years. He helped define a generation of progressive rock and wrote and sang Supertramp’s globally successful and enduring anthems such as “Breakfast in America,” “Give a Little Bit,” “Take the Long Way Home,” “The Logical Song,” “Dreamer,” “It’s Raining Again,” “School,” and “Fool’s Overture” – songs that helped the band sell well over 60 million albums.

I reviewed Roger’s last tour here. It’ll be nice to see him again!

Live Concert Albums: Lannie Flowers and The Sharp Things

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Lannie Flowers “Live in NYC”
I’ve been a huge advocate for Texas popster Lannie Flowers over the years, and his new live concert album is perfect for fans. It selects songs from the current discography, and in a live setting has that spontaneity and energy that the studio tracks lack, improving each song like “Come On Girl” and “Give Me A Chance” as well as a great cover of Big Star’s “Back Of A Car.” The set was recorded at The Trash Bar in Brooklyn on November 19, and the band is really tight here. This is also the closest thing to a Lannie Flowers “Greatest Hits” LP, so if you’ve never listened before this is an excellent place to start.

CD Baby | Amazon

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The Sharp Things “Live At Galapagos Art Space ”
Perry Serpa’s orchestral pop creation The Sharp Things was crammed onto the small stage at Brooklyn’s Galapagos Art Space last September.  The live environment allows all the players to add even more personality to the sprawling musical epics and detailed arrangements. The great thing about this concert is most of it is posted on You Tube. The performances have a warmth seldom seen and its highly recommended. Check out the excellent “Goodbye To Golders Green” and “An Ocean Part Deux.”

Bandcamp | Amazon

Concert Review: The Bell House Power Pop Festival

Barry Dreyfus
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One didn’t need Mr. Peabody’s Wayback Machine this past weekend if one yearned to return to the heyday of 70’s power pop. One merely had to purchase a weekend pass to The Bell House’s 1st Power Pop Festival (May 9 & 10). For one glorious weekend, we all were transported back to 1978 watching legendary 70’s power pop stars Dwight Twilley, Shoes, Pezband and Paul Collins. The iconic music mag Trouser Press promoted the shows and brought back to NYC these legendary bands, 3 of which haven’t played in the city for decades.

Friday night opened with the Pezband’s original lineup (Mimi Betinis, Mick Rain & John Pazdan). They mixed classic Pezband (“Stop! Wait A Minute”, ” Baby, It’s Cold Outside”, “Please Be Somewhere Tonight”) with well-chosen covers (“Not Fade Away” and “Hippy Hippy Shake”) all with meaty hooks and well-crafted, punchy songs they proved to be a truly potent musical force still.  Dwight Twilley was next and he still has one of the most recognizable voices of all the 70’s power poppers and aided by 20/20 mainstay Ron Flynt on bass (and harmonies), Twilley had the sell-out crowd galvanized from the start. Pulling tracks primarily off his first 5 albums, Dwight’s set displayed the full range of his influences, melding rockabilly, British harmonies and basic ol’ rock n’ roll.

On Saturday it was time for Paul Collins to haul out a treasure trove of iconic songs from his vast catalog. He played earlier chestnuts like “Rock and Roll Girl,”as well as later gems like “Ribbon Of Gold”. And to cap off an already stunning weekend were power pop pioneers Shoes. From the first notes of opener “Head Vs. Heart” you could hear the excitement and joy from the crowd  soaking it all in like a sponge. After the show the throng staggered out into the rain of a late Saturday night feeling nothing but elation; protected by nothing more than the lingering melodies and memories of a weekend in Brooklyn in May of 2014.

Concert Review by Barry Dreyfus | Photos by Joanna Ente

Concert Review: Cavestomp! The Garage Rock Festacular

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One of the coolest radio shows on the planet is Little Steven’s Underground Garage and they frequently feature great power pop on the show. Many of these artists receive the accolades “Coolest Song” or a spot in his yearly top ten — and at this occassion several played live at The Rock Shop in Brooklyn (site of our Power Popaholic Fest). The show continues Sunday night (4/27) at the Mercury Lounge (NYC), so you still have time to see this great show.

Hosted by Handsome Dick Manitoba of The Dictators, and one of my favorite veteran bands The Jellybricks opened things up. They did a great set of songs from their new album Youngstown Tuneup, one of my favorites this year. The follow up with John and Brittany, that’s John Faye (IKE, The Caulfields) and Brittany Rotondo served up a grunge covered set of sour sweetness. The dynamic duo were then followed by Palmyra Delran, and she totally rocked the house down. Finally The Connection took the stage, they were in my top ten last year and they did not disappoint onstage. Overall, it was an amazing night of music!