The Slingsby Hornets "Whatever Happened To…" (Includes Bonus EP "Knee Deep In Glitter")

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Jon Paul Allen has graced us with another Slingsby Hornets album. That means it’ll ooze glam guitar and thickly arranged melodic rock. Opening with pomp and majestic orchestral synths, “Way Of The World” is almost like Trevor Horn meets The Sneetches, with layers upon layers of jangle, upon a layer of dense rock guitars. Jon has dialed up the Brian May meter up to “11” here as those chiming guitars are front and center on the next track, “Rock N Roll Love Letter” and is the one of the best songs here. It’s dense and well suited to the slick production, so Queen fans will want to get this album for sure. The Hornets album still has plenty of covers, with the over-produced touch that makes T-Rex’s “Children of The Revolution” a lot of great fun, although Jon’s vocal gets buried here. Unfortunately, it doesn’t always work as well with the ballads, “Flying Tonight” and the Cars-like “The Long Way Home” plods along and could use a lighter production touch. This is done much better with the heartfelt “This Song,” and the best cover here is the spacey “Suspension,” the theme from the old Buck Rogers TV show (Jon exposes his geek cred here)! What’s extra cool here is the bonus EP “Knee Deep In Glitter” – the songs here really shine, as Jon lets his Glam flag fly and does Abba’s “Does Your Mother Know” in the style of Sweet. The other tracks here are excellent, from strutting guitars on “My Coo Ca Choo” to the awesome slick version of Cliff Richard’s “Devil Woman.” With only 5 originals, the covers here make this 2 disc combo worth the wait.  

Slingsby Hornets website | My Space | CD Baby | Not Lame | Kool Kat

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All Day Sucker "The Big Pretend"

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All Day Sucker is a band with a big California sound that grabs it’s influences from several places, but is more a great melodic rock than power pop album. The big opener “Life In The Passing lane” is a bit like The Red Hot Chili Peppers and Weezer combined. The very Rundgrenesque “Santa Ana” is another great song with a big chorus and hook that won’t let you go. “The Picture (That Took Me)” is a catchy song with a laid back Sugar Ray-like feel and a vocal performance that bringing to mind Elvis Costello. Core members, singer Morty Coyle and keyboardist Jordan Summers gives us an inspired take on the sounds of sophisticated classic rock with both muscle and heart. The guitars of “Land of Canyons” rip through the chorus like banshee – it’s another great rocker along the lines of Guns N’ Roses early work. “Strange Orbits” is a piano ballad with a little Elton John and ELO, and Coyle’s vocals here really soar. The latter half of the album sags a little but, it still has a few catchy fresh surprises with “Riddles and Rain” and the funky “The Man (From The Big Pretend).” The concept of the album, is a series of life’s observations in modern LA. Blessed with great songs, sharp chops, a cunning attitude and a mature sense of self, All Day Sucker is ready to venture into the seen-it-all music scene and emerge as a fresh, clever and unique musical presence.

All Day Sucker website | My Space | CD Baby | Not Lame

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CJ Grogan "newsongtwo"

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I met CJ Grogran at IPO New York and foud his set pretty good, so afterwards his agent gave me a copy of his CD “newsongtwo.” Co-Produced by Kurt Reil of The Gripweeds, who plays drums on the tracks here as well, Grogan has the talent that carries a lot of these classic rock and roll styled songs. There are hints of The Beatles, Smithereens, The Gripweeds, and even Bob Mould in his influences. The album spans many different moods and approaches. A great example is “Go” with expansive guitar and organ that builds to it’s dense chorus of gentle harmony and swirling guitar melody. Vocally he’s a bit like Steve Winwood and he pounds the piano keys and bares his emotions on “Thrashing Doves,” but the mood lightens on the pop tribute “Bacharach” where the classical pop piano contrasts well with his mellow vocal, and with the horns here it’s reminiscent of Terry Kath-era Chicago. I appreciate the wonderful contemplative acoustic guitar and sitar on “Fall Down on Me,” as opposed to the hard rock sound of “Colourblind” which sounds less distinctive here. So what follows on the album is some nice memorable tracks (“Painted Line”) followed by artistic wanderings (“The Once In A While” and “NewSongtoo”) and then some straight forward power pop (“Turning The Beat”). So you have an album that has a bit of everything, like a box of Whitman Chocolates – you’re never sure what you’ll get; either something soft and sweet or dark and nutty (jeez! enough with the candy metaphors). More often than not you’re enjoying the precise musicianship and melodic touches of brilliance on display.

CJ Grogan Site | My Space | Not Lame

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Adam Marsland interviewed for Powerpopaholic

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Recently described in SPIN magazine as “a high-energy cross between Brian Wilson, Paul Stanley, and Elton John,” Adam Marsland has had one of the more prolific and intriguing music careers of the last 10 years. He’s shared studio space with Weezer, and performed with legendary bands, The Wondermints and The Negro Problem. Most power pop fans are familar with his first band, Cockeyed Ghost and more recently Adam Marsland’s Chaos Band. I was pleased to get a long interview with him. Check out the interview here or click on the Artist Interviews button on the right.

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The Orion Experience & The Western States Motel EP

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The Orion Experience
“Heartbreaker EP”
Sometimes a power pop group really has that special “something” that makes them take off in the mainstream press. I saw this last year with The Orion Experience’s debut and at IPO in 2007. Well now even Perez Hilton is jumping on the bandwagon. This dazzling EP shows the band maturing in both songwriting and musicianship, while still coasting on renewed interest in “Obsessed With You” from the last album. The new tracks, “Nice Guys Finish Last” has a Blondie meets Green Day catchy melodic riff, sure to be a radio hit if the major stations had a clue. “Heartbreaker” is a little Scissor Sisters-like doo wop that just makes you want to dance. “Sugar” is a great post-Halloween track that literally lists all the goodies “that are all no good for me” with those chunky sweet guitar riffs and as this band raises it’s profile it’ll be nice to see where the next album takes us. In the meantime, this EP is a nice sticky treat. 

Orion Experience Site | CD Baby

The Western States Motel
“Painted Birds Flying In The Orange Mirror Sun EP”
Songwriter Carl Jordan knows his way around a tune. For fans of the Elliot Smith, The Beta Band, and The Shins his is modern pop manna from heaven. Impeccable melodies and instrumentation lead each track. Unlike other solo soft spoken dry vocalists like Jeremy Messersmith or Dion Read, Jordan doesn’t let his anxieties show through in the songwriting and the delivery is very matter of fact. Even if the song is an ode to our worldly problems like “Oh World” he states “I don’t wanna turn down my stereo, it’s taken me places, some are new, some I know.” Each song has a memorable hook and highlights are “Stampede” and “Trans Am” each with a sparkling guitar strum and multi-tracked vocal. In any case, it’s made me want to investigate his earlier album on CD Baby. Jordan is an awesome talent that should not be missed, so check out this EP.

My Space | e music | Itunes | CD Baby (first album here)

Note: Rob Bonfiglio review posted on The Rock and Roll Report.

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