Lyn Saga and The Real Numbers

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Lyn Saga “Venice”
Recently I got a huge pile of new music from female power pop artists, Lyn Saga being the first. The melodic pop and percussive “The Day We Met” starts us off and charms with its multi-tracked vocal chorus. She is an accomplished guitarist too, as her solid guitar riffs lead the way on “I Believe” and “I Didn’t Mean To.”

Her clear vocals play both the pop princess and bad-girl rocker. “Life Is But A Dream” is a Weezer-styled tune and it impressed me the most with its loud riffs and hook filled chorus. “The Only One” brings back memories of Liz Phair with its slow, sparse opening turning into a hand clapping rocker. A touch of Shangri-Las nostalgia guides “Stay,” its also super catchy and invites repeat listens. Its hard to find anything here that’s even mediocre, but its short a real ballad to break up things. The title track is another feel good tale about leaving the 9 to 5 and heading for the California Beach. Exceptional power pop that deserves a spot on my top ten for 2013 list.

CD Baby | Amazon
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The Real Numbers “1-2-3-4-5” EP
San Francisco musicians, Dave Ambrose and Lawrence Grodeska share a love of melody and guitar hooks, so it didn’t take too long to follow up their debut,  and this one is lots of fun. The title track sets the mood, and its catchy sing-by-the-numbers chorus will appeal to the inner kid in you. “Godzilla Girl” is another standout track with a driving bass line thanks to Chuck Lindo, a harmony laden chorus, and the added sound effects are bonus. “Daphne” is a jazzy pop departure, a sad song that’s sung with earnest optimism. “The Wiggle” is an ode to a favorite bike route to Golden Gate Park, but it’s cheery approach is like “The Wiggles,” so your kids will enjoy it too. No real filler here, overall a well-crafted slice of power pop – so pick it up!

The Pinecones and The Saltshakers

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The Pinecones “Ooh!”
After I heard the opening track on this 70’s styled rock band, I exclaimed the title and made an effort to listen to more of “Gloomy Monday.”  Then the the light harmonies of “Its Always On Her Mind” recall late-era Hollies, with a rousing chorus and hand claps. The jangle magic comes back on “Kimberly Keeps” with singers Paul Linklater and Brent Randall doing an effective contrasting lead vocal. Sometimes the lyrics are a bit simplistic, like on “She’s So Confident” but it sounds so damn cool, like The Grass Roots playing Herman’s Hermits.

The band starts to move backwards in time, and “Come On Back” is a psychedelic 60’s gem, and then Linklater channels Gilbert O’Sullivan perfectly on “That’s The Way I Wanna Do It.” If you are a fan of this early lite rock style, The Pinecones will fit your music collection like a glove. Each track is expertly performed, the only fault being it doesn’t distinguish itself enough from the era it emulates. But I suspect the retro-lovin’ audiophile will be very forgiving.


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The Saltshakers “Change The Channel” EP
Milwaukee indie rockers have lost that rough edge and are a now finely tuned band with excellent singles. The melodies are driven by crunchy guitars and a hook-filled chorus on the opener “Change The Channel” and the shredding on “Triple Word Whore” is another gem. Then we get an even richer sound on the mid-tempo “Astrology” and that’s it. Short and sweet, but I admire a band that goes for quality over quantity as they did the same thing last year with the Halley EP. Both EPs are highly recommended.

CD Baby | Amazon

Jackdaw4 “Dissecticide”

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I found out that Jackdaw4 was calling it quits last month, and with the sadness there was the anticipation of the band wanting to leave on a high note. When I think about the bands discography, they are the closest thing we have left to a UK version of Jellyfish. Head honcho Willie Dowling throws everything and the kitchen sink into this one, and its really compelling. “Abagail’s Last Hurrah” is a fast and furious melody with crunchy guitars and awesome harmonies.  “Coming Up For Air” ups the tempo and is a sweet rock anthem that Jeff Lynne would approve of.

“Foundations” is where Willie lets his venom out, not unlike Nuno Bettencourt (Extreme) or Bryan Scary. This dark theme is continued on “Life’s a Celebration For The Few,” an ultra cynical lament about todays ubiquitous technology. “Melanoma” is a dramatic ballad about that “God-shaped hole in your life.”  This leads to the big hook on “Ministry of Fools,” with Queen-like guitar flourishes. Like 10cc, you’ll get wild shifts in tone and melody as heard in “Why Don’t You Come and See Me When She’s Not Around.” Each track hits it right — and it makes for a great power pop experience. It makes my top ten list for 2013, and if you want to get the Jackdaw4 concert experience, checkout Live (Before Dead?).

Brass Bed and The President Lincoln

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Brass Bed “The Secret Will Keep You”
Louisiana based band Brass Bed’s new album The Secret Will Keep You mixes ambient streams with its pop song craft. “Cold Chicory” is ringing echo filled garage tune with dissonant creepy backing sounds. There are many layers to each song here, “Please Don’t Go” has a harsh noisy opening but sweet melody lies underneath – and that’s the template here.

The standout “How To Live In A Bad Dream” marries these contrasts in the best way. Another gem “Back and Forth” is one of those depressing stories of loneliness set to a bouncy beat. The hooks here make each dark vision accessible, even on the slower songs like “I Guess I’ll Just Sing.” The hazy last track “Have To Be Fine” drifts along, but makes its impact. The patient listener is rewarded here, so let it grow on you.

Amazon | Bandcamp

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The President Lincoln “The Sinking of The President Lincoln”
Named after an early 20th century ocean-liner, and like the journeys of the great ship itself, the songs of The President Lincoln are all over the map. Written and performed by Alex Maws, his nasal approach reminds me immediately of Anton Barbeau. The opener “A Year in Photographs” is good alt. rock anthem with an Americana styled rhythm.

“This Could Be Our Country”and “Middle Distance,” feel like lyrically dense speeches set to music. The bluesy “Things We Don’t Talk About,” a duet with Stephanie Morgan that details an office affair is the albums best track. It unfolds like a scene from musical drama, and builds to a beautiful crescendo. Unfortunately, the other songs lack both drama or the hooks to sustain interest for long. Let’s hope TPL resurfaces with a bit more consistency.