Here is a really cool band from Minneapolis. Sounding like a rowdy, uber-macho version of the Barenaked Ladies, The Hard Left have a really good album on it’s hands. The opener, “Who’s she gonna turn to” is like a lost Smithereens tune. “Take it out on me” is a great song that really hits the aggressive Smithereens vibe. The rest of the album stays loud and fast – sometimes loses a bit of focus by the end, when they jam out a bit too much and start to morph into Southern Culture on The Skids on the songs “Lost Not Found” and “Sad, Soft and Sleepy”. Not that there is anything wrong with that – but guys, can I get a ballad in here to break things up? Utimately this is a really good EP consiting of eight hard rockin’ tracks. It’s even better if you’ve overdosed on caffine. You can listen to the whole thing streaming on the band’s site. You can buy it at NotLame.com and KoolKat Music

Formed in 2001, Tilly and the Wall are an outgrowth of a Conor “Bright Eyes” Obert project. They sound alot like Of Montreal with a combo of boy/girl harmonies and hand claps. “Bad Education” is a highlight here. With a flamenco melody and heavy tap stomping, it sounds great. Occassionally the melodies remind me of a mix not unlike Banarama meets Kate Bush on a few tunes. The ballads here are very dark lyrically “Love Song” being a perfect example. This is an album that needs to be heard more than one time for the pop tunes to stick. “Sing Along Songs” is another tap-happy tune. With “Black and Blue” there is a feeling of triumph and joy in this song. If you remember the 1989 band Red Box and the album “The Circle and the Square” – well I was totally reminded of this. (Good luck finding that out-of-print gem, you can hear a sample of it here). Sometimes, the foot-stomping gets a little played out and this brand of indie pop may not be for everyone, but not much else comes out of Omaha. Visit the band’s website or the myspace page. On sale at Amazon.com

The Oohs are a group of veteran musicians who do a great job putting together MOR-styled power pop. They borrow liberally from The Beatles, Todd Rundgren, and the Beach Boys to come up with original songs. The whole Llama theme is a bit like Andrew Gold’s “The Fraternal Order of the All,” although the songs don’t really follow a strict “concept album” sequence. The song “Pretty” is a great Beatlesque teaser that literally pulls riffs and melodies from several Beatle songs. This opening gives way to a varied group of different styled rock tunes. “I will love” is an excellent Utopia-styled song complete with a cascading chorus. Occasionally, the band tends to veer in to a Vegas-styled lounge act in the song “More than meets the eye.” Another great song, and my favorite is “To Be in Love” – it rivals the best of Doug Powell’s work. Just about all the songs on Llamalamp are good, but something is missing on a few tunes. Brian Curtis does the heavy lifting here (singing, songwriting, engineering), but my biggest complaint here is the mixing. Some vocals sound like they are recorded in a tunnel. Other vocal performances just don’t work as well as others (i.e. “What have you done with my girl” could have been better). That takes nothing away from awesome songwriting and musicianship here. If you like power pop you won’t let this album pass you by. You can get this album at notlame.com, cdbaby or itunes

Although it was in the news, I don’t think enough people have seen it. A fire destroyed the home of rocker Question Mark, who with his band, the Mysterians, had a No. 1 hit in 1966 with “96 Tears.” The singer lost 40 years worth of memorabilia, including a gold record award and an organ believed to have belonged to Pink Floyd. Question Mark had lived in the Flint, Mich. home for nearly four decades. He didn’t have insurance. Locals are now trying to organize a benefit concert.