The Satellite Program is a power pop-alt country styled group with real DIY spirit and feel to the music. Some really great guitar noodling and melodies that sound like a marriage of The Old 97’s and The Greatful Dead meets Kenny Howes. More than a few tunes are shining through here, notable are “Coin-Op Proxy” and “Inside Man.” Singer/songwriter Mark Malone does a good job of adding some feeling to his lyrics and it complements the guitar work nicely. My favorite here is “Wipeout by Decree” an energy filled song with hot licks that Enuff Znuff would envy. However I found many of the ballads a bit unrefined and not really doing it for me other than the song “Rollaway.” The song “Polychrome” starts out okay and evolves into a real mess as well. But there are still plenty of worthy tracks here like “Bed of Roses in the Snow” and if you like you can listen to the album streaming and judge for yourself.

CD Baby | Not Lame

Here is another overlooked gem from 2005. Tally Hall is a group of young musical prodigies from Michigan. The keyboardist Andrew Horowitz won the 2004 John Lennon Scholarship Competition, presented by Yoko Ono and BMI, for writing “Good Day.” Since then, with the support of the uber-popular www.albinoblacksheep.com, Tally Hall’s music and related videos have attracted an unprecedented amount of internet attention.They sound like a mix of Barenaked Ladies and They Might Be Giants in places and do a fine job of mixing choirs, strings, brass and multiple influences from Beach Boys to Beastie Boys. The production has a nice clean sheen to it all, like a 10cc album. They do a great job on songs like “Greener” and “Apathy” that has even a bit of early Weezer thrown in. Of course, there are some silly Zappa-TMBG styled songs like “The Whole World and You.” The best part here for us power popaholics is that the CD is as cheap as a cup of coffee! Get a used copy on Amazon.com for about three bucks!

Listen to “Good Day”

Sean O’Hagan continues to develop his Brian Wilson-lite style. “Can Cladders” is the sixth LP from the High Llamas and it has some female vocals similar to 2003’s “Beet Maize and Corn”. The lush, orchestral swirls make for pleasant pastoral listening, alot like Sondre Lerche’s recent efforts. O’Hagan’s vocals seem to flow into songs and sounds great on “Winter’s Day”. I have to say no one today uses a Banjo and Harp for better melodic effect than him. I would call this a return to proper form, without all the electronic noodling that plagued 1998’s “Cold and Bouncy”and 1999’s “Snowbug”. The album doen’t quite reach the highs of earlier efforts, and often repeating sections of the melodic choruses can get a bit tiresome. But aside from that this is a solid release that will please most fans and let’s others know there’s still a place in the public consciousness for baroque, string-laden orchestral pop. Listen to “Old Spring Town” to hear one of the album’s high points. It’s for sale on emusic and you can also visit the High Llamas Web Site and lots of other places.

Listen to “Bacaroo”

Listen to “The Old Spring Town”

Listen to “Sailing Bells”