The Power Popaholic Interview: Kurt Reil of The Grip Weeds

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Kurt Reil of The Grip Weeds

I have a long-overdue chat with Kurt Reil, singer, songwriter, and drummer of the power-pop favorite band The Grip Weeds. I first interviewed Kurt back in 2017, so it was great to catch up with him right after a performance at New York’s IPO festival in November 2021. We talk about the band’s new album of covers “DiG” and what he’s been up to at The House of Vibes production studio.

The Power Popaholic Top 25 EPs of 2021

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The EP has become the format of choice for many bands opting to leave the Long Player format for good.  Even Roger Joesph Manning Jr. (Lickerish Quartet, Jellyfish) has made it known for a while that his LP days are over and done when it comes to new music. My list of EPs is extensive this year, and to qualify your EP had to be anywhere from three to nine songs. Only two songs are considered a single (A/B side) and ten or more is an LP by my definition. Like the LPs, my cup runneth over with choices this year.

  1. The Hard Way “New to You”
  2. Roller Disco Combo “The Sun After The Rain”
  3. Bryan Estepa “Back to The Middle”
  4. The Lickerish Quartet “Threesome, Vol. 2”
  5. David Myhr “And Now This”
  6. BPM Collective “Catastrophe Girl”
  7. Chirs Church “Triple Play Single”
  8. Everet Almond’s Greeting From Anton
  9. The Feeders – Kerchoo
  10. Richard Turgeon “Campfire Songs”
  11. Nolan Potter “Music Is Dead”
  12. The Pre-Amps “Four by Four”
  13. The Poppermost “A Piece of The Poppermost”
  14. The Dowling Poole “The Trump Chronicles”
  15. The Blendours “Go On Vacation”
  16. Believe it, It’s Easy “Believe it, It’s Easy” 
  17. Daryl Bean “Mr. Strangelove”
  18. Rich Williams “Ordinary Person”
  19. David Woodard “Butterfly Effect”
  20. Sandy McKnight and Fernando Perdomo “San Fernando Blitz”
  21. The Listening Post “Sad Babbles”
  22. Beachwood Sparks “Sandbox Sessions”
  23. Alex Dominish “Small Batch (Shandy)”
  24. The Cheap Cassettes “See Her In Action!”
  25. The Checkered Hearts “Joystick”

The Power Popaholic Top 25 Albums of 2021 + More

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  1. Nick Frater “Earworms”
  2. Sorrows “Love Too Late …the real album”
  3. The Brothers Steve “Dose”
  4. The Legal Matters “Chapter Three”
  5. Wanderlust “All A View”
  6. Dolour “Televangelist”
  7. The Red Locusts “The Red Locusts”
  8. Nelson Bragg “Gratitude Blues”
  9. Andy Bopp “AB”
  10. Scott Warren “Shadow Bands”
  11. Radio Days “Rave On!”
  12. Oscar Lang “Chew The Scenery”
  13. Ryan Hamilton “1221”
  14. Matthew Sweet “Catspaw”
  15. Bleu “Six Tape”
  16. The Armoires “Incognito”
  17. Underwater Sunshine “Suckertree”
  18. The Easy Button “Lost On Purpose”
  19. Brad Marino “Looking For Trouble”
  20. Silvertwin “Silvertwin”
  21. Smash Palace “21”
  22. Kris Rodgers and the Dirty Gems “Still Dirty”
  23. Novelty Island “How Are You Coping With This Century?”
  24. Richie Mayer “The Inn of Temporary Happiness”
  25. Diamond Hands “Thank You”

With more time in the studio or at home, artists wrote and recorded even more than in 2020. Many power pop bands chose to stretch out of their traditional boundaries this year (Wanderlust, The Legal Matters, Bleu, The Armoires), while others stick to the tried-and-true melodic style and method. Great new artists debuted this year (Oscar Lang, Novelty Island, Silvertwin) and older artists refined their sound to perfection (Sorrows, The Brothers Steve, Andy Bopp).

The best of the rest… I actually ranked the next best 25 this year. I did not include compilations or live shows (with the exception of The Krayolas and The Weeklings) but there will be another list for that soon.

  1. David Brookings “Mania at the Talent Show”
  2. The Boys With Perpetual Nervousness “Songs From Another Life”
  3. Dana Countryman “Pop Scrapbook”
  4. Caper Clowns “Abdicate The Throne”
  5. Francis Lung “Miracle”
  6. Iain Hornal “Fly Away Home”
  7. Brent Windler “New Morning Howl”
  8. Geoff Palmer “Charts & Graphs”
  9. The Aerovons “A Little More”
  10. Lovebreakers “Primary Colours”
  11. Watts “Shady Rock and Rollers”
  12. Aaron Lee Tasjan “Tasjan! Tasjan! Tasjan!”
  13. Cheap Trick “In Another World”
  14. The Mergers “Three Apples In The Orange Grove”
  15. Caddy “Detours and Dead Ends Vol. 1”
  16. Jon Flynn “Citrus”
  17. Star Collector “Game Day”
  18. Jay Gonzalez “Back to the Hive”
  19. The Krayolas “Savage Young Krayolas”
  20. The Gold Needles “What’s Tomorrow Ever Done for You?”
  21. Ryan Allen “What A Rip!”
  22. The Laissez Fairs “Curiosity Killed The Laissez Fairs”
  23. Emperor Penguin “Corporation Pop!”
  24. Ramirez Exposure “Exit Times”
  25. The Weeklings “In Their Own Write”

Power Popaholic TOP 25 Radio Show will be aired on 11L Radio New York International on Sunday, January 2, 2022, at 8:30 pm. It will feature songs from the TOP 25 album list.

LISTEN on GRITS Radio: http://169.61.85.22/grits
(works on cell phones & computers)

Looking toward 2022

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We’ve got a lot of great music to look forward to in 2022. The group Walcot was formed in Chicago several years back and band leader Asher George is now based in Charlotte, NC. The debut single “Dreamin’ Away” is from the upcoming Songs for the Disenfranchised EP. The timeless hook draws you into its easy-going melody.

Maple Mars teases us with “Goodbye California” an upcoming single from the new 2022 album coming from Big Stir Records.


Speaking of Big Stir — they are now the dominant label in this genre, and they offer a huge FREE download of music from this past year in a worthy retrospective.

Rum Bar Records also is giving us a preview of 2022 with The Dirty Truckers. The blue-collar rockers return to the bar for another round with their highly anticipated brand new full-length in 2022. But here is a three-shot sampler EP.

Any way you look at it 2022 looks to be an even bigger year for power pop and rock n’ roll.

Lovebreakers, Ryan Hamilton, The Armoires

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Lovebreakers “Primary Colours”

The debut album of Lovebreakers is a rare positive social commentary on 2021, and its opener “Eye Roller” is a brilliant slice of Brit-pop. Like a more power-pop version of Oasis, this Birmingham, UK group has a lot going for it. Lead singer/guitarist Jack Perry wrote “Family Man” written about one of his best friends who just started his own family. Overall a lot of fun, danceable rock like “I Will Love Life” and the title track are perfect examples of this optimistic vibe. While it could’ve had more stylistic variety, this is an above-average debut. Highly Recommended.

Apple Music


Ryan Hamilton

Ryan Hamilton “1221”

I was a bit subdued when I heard the first song here was a cover of The Spin Doctors “How Could You Want Him (When You Know You Could Have Me)?”  Fortunately, Ryan goes back to the power-pop approach of his debut, with lots of fine originals like “Deja Vu I Love You” and “Satellite.” The catchy verses of “Shots Fired” and “Big Man” will stick in your head, and his bittersweet look at the younger generation with “Babies” is just as memorable. Nearly every song hits the mark and the LP will get consideration for the top ten list for sure. Super Highly Recommended.

Amazon


The Armoires

The Armoires “Incognito”

The Armoires are a collective of musicians anchored by the duo of Christina Bulbenko and Rex Broome. And this album was the most challenging album I’ve had the pleasure to listen to all year. It started as a “secret project” where the band released a series of singles under fictitious band names but culminated as an 18 track juggernaut. The diverse direction of styles and covers made this an unexpected joy to dig into.

The compelling cover of John Cale’s “Paris 1919,”  sounds like a combination of The Move and ABBA. The quirky nature of “I Say We Take Off And Nuke The Site From Orbit” is a prog melody with nice violin touches, and then it becomes a country hoedown on “Bagfoot Run,” before the epic folk ballad “Homebound” describes the need to move. A huge standout is 20/20’s cover “The Night I Heard a Scream” with killer harmonies akin to Fleetwood Mac. But after the covers, the originals are just as compelling. “Ohma, Bring Your Light Into This Place,” “Magenta Moon,” and “Great Distances” are the real gems here. Normally several covers would disqualify an album from reaching my top ten, but there are always exceptions. This is one of them. Super Highly Recommended.

Amazon