Category: Top Ten of 2022 Candidate

The Airport 77s and The Smithereens

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The Airport 77s

The Airport 77s “We Realize You Have a Choice”

After a year of teasers, videos, and singles, The Airport 77s finally released their full-length album, and I’m glad to say it was worth the wait. The trio consists of guitarist Andy Sullivan, bassist Chuck Dolan, and drummer John Kelly. From the opening riffs of “One Good Thing About Summer,” you’ll hear a compelling combination of The Who, The Cars, and even T-Rex.

The band really delivers lyrically and musically. “Birthday Girl” has a great party spirit, and “Losers Win” has a fun descriptive lyric set to a Raspberries-like riff. The band rocks out on the fast-paced “The Way She Moves,” and goes full bore 1980s with the synth-driven “Bad Together.” Stylistically it moves from the glam-styled guitars on “The Illustrated Book of Cupid” to the Rubinoos-like power pop of “All Torn Up Over Tina.” Not a note of filler here and it makes my top ten list for best power pop album of 2022. Highly recommended, so don’t miss it.

Amazon | Kool Kat Musik

The Smithereens

The Smithereens “The Lost Album”

It’s been nearly 5 years since the passing of Smithereens lead singer Pat Dinizio, but the band has remained a fan favorite and continues to play at venues, often in tribute to his distinct songwriting skills. Originally recorded back in 1993, after the New Jersey quartet found themselves dropped by Capitol Records, and before they signed with RCA. It’s a time capsule for the band, and surely a “lost” treasure by fans.

As an album, it does feel more like a group of clean demos. The band admits the album is “80 percent finished and rough mixed.” The trademark guitar sound that exemplifies the Smithereens is not always there, but you can imagine it there in songs like “Everyday World” and “Pretty Little Lies.” In fact, you do have plenty of potential hits here including “Out of This World,” “A World Apart,” and “Face The World With Pride.” Other tracks aren’t filler, but just don’t stick as well. Fans will surely love this, and that’s who this album is for. A great addition to the band’s catalog.

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The Sun Sawed in 1/2 and Tony Molina

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The Sun Sawed in 1/2

The Sun Sawed in 1/2 “ Triptych”

Sun Sawed in 1/2 is a St. Louis band founded by brothers Ken Rose (bass) and Tim Rose (lead guitar) with vocalist Doug Bobenhouse. They road the resurgence of power pop popularity in the late ’90s (with the standout of 1997’s Fizzy Lift) and are often compared to Jellyfish, The Posies, and XTC.

They are back after a 9-year break with a series of digital-only EPs (Beaches In Bali, Sirens, and Before The Fall) now compiled into a 20-song set called Triptych. The band is in fine form overall, with many ideas and hooks stuffed into each song, like the opener “Dried Cherry Blossoms,” with its hand-clapping chorus, and “Soft Away” with its dreamy harmonies. Sometimes the music follows dramatic winding paths, like “Sirens” and “Call For A Good Time.” Some songs are more immediate than others, highlights include “Twist of Lemon” and the atmospheric epic “The Cool Ivory Wonderful.” They also don’t stick to a single template (“Too High Strung,” “Sitting In A Tree”) as they stylistically shift things often. Overall, an excellent collection – highly recommended.

Kool Kat Musik



Tony Molina

Tony Molina “In the Fade”

Songs that last less than a minute or so get viewed as filler and can be perceived as lacking the scope or power of longer songs, but it’s a current trend I’m seeing more of with our micro-sized attention spans. The Beatles’ “Her Majesty” count as a hit in this category, and artists like 2nd Grade, Ryan Allen, Mo Troper, and Nick Frater have done albums full of it. But writing excellent music which doesn’t break the minute mark is a skill in and of itself. West Bay native Tony Molina has made it his mission to excel in this niche.

Molina has been doing this since 2014, perfecting his Beatlesque bedroom melodies and fuzzy jams. His newest In the Fade, is very much a concept album about leaving a relationship from different points of view. “The Last Time” has a low fuzz and bouncy rhythm similar to Weezer, “Leave This Town” and “Burn Everyone” effectively channels Teenage Fanclub. “Years Ago pt. 2” is a lovely closing melody, and each song works to effectively support the entire collection. The short phrases are well written and begs multiple repeat plays. Super Highly Recommended.

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Maple Mars and The Bishop’s Daredevil Stunt Club

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The Vague Ideas

Maple Mars “Someone’s Got To Listen”

Maple Mars has been at the nexus of power pop and psychedelic rock, and Someone’s Got To Listen finds Rick Hromadka and his able crew (Steve Berns, Ron Pak, and Joe Giddings) bringing the hooks on then opener “Useless Information,” with a timely warning that we are “moving in the wrong direction.” Then the epic psych-pop, “Gliding” offers grand themes with stadium-sized sound. This approach is also on the expansive 5-minute “Silver Craft.” But Rick can still craft tasty power pop melodies and “Anchors Aweigh” is another great tune.

It gets trippier with “Someone Take The Wheel,” the gurgling reverb contrasts perfectly with the harmonies and the central themes of reflection and transition are beautifully done in “Crooked Smile.” While Hromadka hasn’t approached Maple Mars in ten years, the time away has made the music that much better as a group effort. Songs tend to linger, like the apocalyptic vision of “Goodbye California,” and add to this not a single bad track here. Many thanks to the premiere label Big Stir Records for getting this done. Highly Recommended and an easy pick for my 2022 top ten list.

Big Stir Records | Amazon | Kool Kat Musik

The Bishop's Daredevil Stunt Club

The Bishop’s Daredevil Stunt Club “Please Stand By”

Chicago’s Bishop’s Daredevil Stunt Club delivers the follow-up to 2019’s End Over End. The Cheap Trick influence remains strong here, “Pony Up” has several nicely layered riffs, but feels repetitive. “Hold You Up” and “Silverball” fare much better, with building verses and more fine guitar work. “The Lift” is another highlight, reminding me a little of Extreme. The band certainly knows how to rock, and “Fifty Foot Woman” brings those heavy riffs to the forefront.

However, it does lack the pop hooks, until we get to “Tremor Control II” which also adds some Cars-like synths. This was my favorite song here, and even though “Joni, It’s Not Like That” has an interesting melody, it’s a bit obscure to write about Happy Days characters nowadays. The tone and influences start to shift with “What They’re After.” It starts out fine and goes off into guitar solo indulgence towards the end. The songs also tend to overstay their welcome (most clocking in at over 4:00 minutes). ”Bah Bah Bah” is over 7 minutes long, and while its technically proficient, the suite isn’t that memorable. Overall not a bad album, but you may want to start with End Over End first.

Amazon | Kool Kat Musik

The 1957 Tail-Fin Fiasco and Dave Scarbrough

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The 1957 Tail-Fin Fiasco

The 1957 Tail-Fin Fiasco “Don’t Go Anywhere”

It’s way too lazy to simply say that Essex, UK musicians David Myers and Malcolm Moore are a Steely Dan cover band that’s outgrown their main influence. But The 1957 Tail-Fin Fiasco has that ’70s sophisticated, distinctive sound, and they drive that car along many roads here.

Starting the bouncy rocker “Reno’s Electric Stairs” it’s a catchy gem that adds a touch of jazzy organ behind the guitars. “Here All Week” is an impressive mantra that describes a transition from Miami to Vegas. The band takes a left turn into They Might Be Giants territory with the witty “J is for Genius.” Not a bit of filler and its unpredictable melodies (“Horses & Courses”) are matched with smooth Steely-style lounge production (“Best Bitters.”) The quirky arrangements and cheeky lyrics are similar to XTC or David Bowie. Originally a download only in 2021, this release is now on CD at Kool Kat Musik. Highly Recommended.

Kool Kat Musik | Amazon

Dave Scarbrough

Dave Scarbrough “Happy Ever After”

Newcomer from Sioux Falls, South Dakota Dave Scarbrough knows his power pop. His debut Happy Ever After hits the sweet spot right away on the rocker “Catherine.” He’s a power-pop fan with influences from The Raspberries and Cheap Trick, to The Cars and Squeeze. And collecting these gems is a true labor of love for the genre. But what Dave does is make these songs work, “Take My Hand” is a brilliant rocker, “Wachet Auf” has great melodic chord shifts and his vocal is both strong and sincere. The title track is just as strong, with a sticky rhythm, and builds the narrative carefully with layered strings full of emotion.

“As Far As I Know” bounces along with confidence similar to Elvis Costello, the album’s first half is so strong, that the ballad “The Coming Good” is when we coast a bit — but not for long.  The second half picks up with “Runaround” and the jangling “Hilary” and doesn’t let up. This is an album that needs to be heard and savored. Makes my top ten list for 2022, and the best debut I’ve heard this year so far. Don’t pass it by.

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Amoeba Teen and James Booth & The Return

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Amoeba Teen

Amoeba Teen “Amoeba Teen”

Amoeba Teen has had plenty of time to refine their sound and they’ve leapfrogged their last release 2019’s Medium Wave in a big way. The band; Mark Britton on guitar, Simon Muttitt on bass, Mike Turner on guitar, and Carl Bayliss on drums had the goal of capturing the excitement of their live performances. They’ve done a terrific job. The band splits the vocal duties and it gives each song a distinct sound and feel.

The Pink Floydian opening to “Mainstream” is the calm before the storm that approaches, as the guitar-horns blare out with a strutting glam approach that hooks you right away, not unlike Jellyfish. The party continues with “Just Not That Into You” and the Weezer-meets-Cars vibe of“New Material World.” The influences are perfectly balanced here, as is the Teenage Fanclub layered jangle of “ A Good Reason Why” and it culminates in the Fastball vibe of “January,” with its steel pedal accents. The understated “Putting The Kids Through College” perfectly describes the anxiety of middle age, and reminds me of 10cc with its strong layered instrumentation. It then cranks up the riff to “11” on rockers “Barlight Crawl,” and “King Of The Cut,” with its “Helter Skelter” styled riffs. Behind from the slick production and catchy choruses are solid lyrical stories. Overall, you won’t get bored and not a note of filler. Highly Recommended and makes my top ten nominee list for 2022.

Amazon | Big Stir Records



James Booth and the Return

James Booth & The Return “Postcards From The New Frontier”

James Booth and The Return delivers a sprawling combination of power pop and progressive rock, created by fan-fave Fernando Perdomo and James Booth. Truthfully, it’s heavier on the prog and classic rock side, as the opener “All That I Can Never Be” draws influences from Jefferson Airplane, and The Smiths. The guitar attack of “No Friend Of Narnia” recalls Rush and early Black Sabbath, and James’ high vocal melds well with the thick instrumentation. Often solid rhythmic beginnings like “Heartbreak Hill,” rest on the catchy bass lines, and the impressive “Message For The King” gets moving with the handclaps and buzzing riffs. The hooks really work well on songs like “The Afterimage of Love,” a psych-pop gem that deals with “the one who got away.” 

Other songs (mostly on the album’s second half) don’t stick as well as the others. The hazy sitar in “Asgardia, Take My Hand” seems to stretch out the jam, as with the 7-minute long “Every shade of Emerald.” But there are a few goodies here; “Stardeath” and “I Nowhere You’ve Been” with the latter’s Queen-like guitar break rounding out the memorable tunes. Perdomo and Booth make a formidable pair, and fans of classic rock will warm to this album quickly. Check it out. 

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