Category: Singles Only

Top O’ the Power Pop Premieres: The Bishop’s Daredevil Stunt Club and more

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The Bishop’s Daredevil Stunt Club’s new single gets a premiere exclusively on Power Popaholic! “Hold You Up” is the first single from the band’s upcoming album Please Stand By, to be released later this year. The rhythm guitar crunches along in a Weezer-like direction, as the lead riff digs its hooks in you. Add some handclaps and jangle, and there you have it  – a super power-pop single.

The Afterglows, Sam Cook-Parrott (Radiator Hospital) and Michael Cantor (The Goodbye Party) make sweet harmonies for the lovelorn, comparisons to the Everly Brothers and Beach Boys are inevitable. A great FREE download.

A brilliant 4-song EP by Scott Robertson, mixed and mastered by Nick Bertling just deserves to be heard. Each song hooks you immediately.

Holy crap, I’m in love with Jane Lane’s music. A self-taught guitarist, Jane Lane (aka Sophie Negrini) reminds me of a poppier version of Suzanne Vega mixed with Nina Gordon and the new EP will draw you into her sun-drenched, bittersweet POV.

This duo, The Creachies just trolls people like me, using “powerpop” in the LP title. Sounds like The B-52s meets The Cars, with some sweet tunes here; Check out “Rats” and “Skylar’s Hot Glue Gun.” Definitely worth exploring.

The UniBoys aren’t just some retro-wannabees, they are the real deal. Reza Matin, Noah Nash, Artie Fitch, and Michael Cipolletti are channeling classic power pop from The Shoes, The Beat, and others they’re killing it. Very much in the mold of Italy’s Radio Days. Just listen to “On Your Lovin’ Mind” and check out the very cool retro TV spot.

Winter Singles, Freebies & EPs: The Nobility, Whelligan, Brad Marino, Rigbi, Bloody Norah, Ryan Allen, Jay Byham, You’re Among Friends, Rum Bar Records

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I waited long enough to restart all my singles reviews, so now it’s time to separate the wheat from the chaff. Nashville’s The Nobility has been leaking singles for nearly a year, so we have the newest share with “No Doubts” bringing to mind a western-themed 10cc, and London’s Whelligan and their single “In Our Name” is full of orchestral majesty and it also merits further study. Brad Marino fresh off his great 2021 LP, is back to banging out great power pop with “Girl, I Want You.” More appropriate to this bleak winter landscape is Rigbi’s emotional “I’m a Mess In Winter” as the sparse beginning opens up to a rich arrangement. Bloody Norah has a great reverb rock sound with harmonies on its single “Shooting Star,” so keep your eyes out for more, like the single “Joy.” Bloody damn good too.

As for EPs, the reliable Ryan Allen moves to a retro power-pop sound for I’m Not Mean, full of echoing vocals, and layered guitars; check out “Count With Me,” and the excellent “Cut Your Teeth.” Jay Byham is a Pennsylvania-based singer-songwriter with a bouncy acoustic “Tick Tock,” classic rocker “Just A Matter of Time,” and the gentle ballad “The Only One,” it’s a solid debut that deserves many repeats on your player.  As for Freebies; Cleveland, Ohio’s You’re Among Friends take a very laid back approach on this new release, “Here in the Middle of the Pack” is like a stoner Spin Doctors tune and the melodic funk of “You Know What You Want” will appeal to NRBQ fans. Rum Bar Records has a loaded sampler as a Freebie too, get a ton of bang for your buck and you’ll discover a rocker or two.

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EPs and Freebies




January Singles and EPs: Pete Donnelly, The Lunar Laugh, Mom Friend, Ex Norwegian, Amoeba Teen, Timmy Sean, The Roxies, J Prozac

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New year, new music.

EPs: We open things with Pete Donnelly (The Figgs) a truly inspired catchy opener “Anthem of Time” that waves its melodic flag high. Then”Play Music” feels a bit closer to NRBQ (they’ve rubbed off on him.) Midwest wonders The Lunar Laugh delivers a FREEBIE of requested covers, tracks by The Talking Heads, The Bangles, and The Smiths are sparse but quite lovely. The band shines doing a deep, deep Beach Boys cut “Somewhere in Japan” and makes it their own.

I heard the music of Mom Friend two years ago, but this time Atlanta-based Emily Backus has raised her game. A combination of post-me-too-feminism and fuzz guitar make “Oooh” and “Scared” early standouts. The heartbroken melody of “Luke Danes” is very moving, and the swooning “Idea” has a great hook. Keep it up the great music, Emily! Roger Houdaille (Ex-Norwegian)has once again picked an obscure artist to cover. This time it’s Brit-rockers Roger Chapman and Charlie Whitney (The Streetwalkers, Family). It sounds great, and encourages me to discover another “lost” artist!

Singles: Amoeba Teen starts the year with twanging “January,” a very impressive composition (check out that middle eight!) and Timmy Sean gets his Elvis on with a FREEBIE cover of “That’s All Right.” A Berlin band signed in Spain and the USA, The Roxies give us a frenetic rhythm and energetic punk-pop. J Prozac is the latest Rum Bar artist to rip the packaging off his “Building Blocks,” and it’s a wonderful thing.

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Holiday Videos and singles: The Kut, Kai Danzberg, Librarians With Hickeys, The Incurables, Ken Sharp, Radio Days, The Weeklings

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So I let loose the flow of Christmas music again! We start with a re-release The Kut‘s Christmas Single “Waiting for Christmas,” while the reliable Kai Danzberg has two great singles; firstly the jingle-jangling “Making It Shine” and then the energetic “Could’ve Been You” featuring Andy Patchell (and it’s a FREEBIE!) Next, we deck the halls with Librarians With Hickeys and The Incurables, courtesy of Big Stir Records where you’ll find more goodies. Two more new singles are out; Ken Sharp‘s “Mr. Sun” seems to channel the late Davy Jones and Italy’s power-pop powerhouse Radio Days returns with “Mercy Baby” and “1998.” Both are impressive singles, and how could we forget  Lefty, Rocky, Zeek and Smokestack (aka The Weeklings) with “Christmas Day” which has an Elvis Costello/Beatle vibe! Enjoy. We have 3 more weeks of last-minute reviews before our year-end countdown!







Holiday Singles, Freebies and EPs: David Woodard, Geoff Palmer, The JAC, The Peppermint Kicks, and Vista Blue

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After a hearty Thanksgiving, and an early Hanukkah this year – it’s now a countdown to Christmas. That means an overflow of Christmas music has started hitting my inbox. Thankfully, we have plenty of new tunes from a variety of artists (and more to come!) Enjoy!