Jim Basnight with The Rockinghams and The Moberlys

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Jim Basnight remains a rock and roll survivor, from his days with The Moberlys in the ’80s, to The Rockinghams in the ’90s to today. Last year Power Popaholic released the full-length LP Jokers, Idols, and Misfits with our digital distribution on Bandcamp. This year Jim has gone back to his archives and re-released his original albums with those bands. These releases have been remastered and include never-before-released bonus tracks. Enjoy!

Jim Basnight with The Rockinghams

Jim Basnight with The Rockinghams “Makin’ Bacon”

While in Seattle, Jim Basnight teamed up with Criss Crass (Muffs) and Jack Hanan (Seattle’s Cowboys) to form this fun trio in 1992. Originally released on Not Lame Records in 1999 after the band broke up, its stage shows had a reputation for being pretty wild, and it’s easy to see why.

Opening with “Middle of the Night” has a grunge-fueled riff that sets the mood, “dancing to your favorite song” and the party has started. Bouncy punk-pop of “Need A Car,” “Played A Trick” and the jangling gem “Ho Chi Minh” show just how good this band was together. The songwriting feels immediate and the riffs and vocals are loose, on “More Than One Way” you get a hint of what they sounded live on stage. Basnight struts around and howls approval on “Lattes,” and impresses the groupies looking for a “Rock and Roll Girlfriend.” This release includes some rare tracks like “Ripple In The Bag,” “Miss America,” and “Python Boogaloo.” Highly Recommended.

Bandcamp

Jim Basnight and The Moberlys

Jim Basnight and The Moberlys “Seattle – New York – Los Angeles”

This 1995 Moberlys compilation (now updated and remastered) gathers many songs from the band’s career in the ’80s and is an underappreciated gem that still sounds timeless today. Influenced by The Byrds, The Raspberries, and The Rolling Stones (to name a few) they combine roots rock, garage rock, and new wave pop in a unique melange. The band changed line-up through each of the cities mentioned in the title, but Basnight was the constant.

“I Wanna Be Yours” recalls the sharp pop of The Pointed Sticks, while “Rest Up”  is a tight song that brings to mind both The Byrds and R.E.M. and on the ballad “Lose Me” Jim does his best Jagger-like vocal. The band successfully does roots-country on “Aint it Funny” and “Elma,” but can still do pop gems like “Summertime Again” and “She Always Smiled” with ease.  “Tonight” feels like Tom Petty, and “Your Fool” is a bouncy new wave radio hit.  This kind of musical variety was rarely done back then, and it’s more impressive that each genre is handled so well. No filler at all, and an important document of this “lost” power pop band. Highly Recommended.

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Brent Windler and Scott Warren

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Brent Windler

Brent Windler “New Morning Howl”

Kansas City musician Brent Windler (Sons of Great Dane) explores an expansive sound in his new solo album. With a nod to alt-country influences and Brian Wilson-styled harmonies, this is an atmospheric slice of Americana that sounds great. Most impressive is the opener “Around The Bend,” a shimmering melody that immediately sticks to your head, and it’s the album’s shining high point. The follow-up “My Josephine” is a sweet mid-tempo ballad that features echoing slide guitar notes across elegant strings that build to a dense wall-of-sound coda. Brent gets even more intimate with cascading harmonies over acoustics on “Spanish Jasmine.” And that expansive lushness is also shown on the instrumental “Can You Sleep Tonight Under Lightning Bug Skies.”

The strings, harmonies, and atmospheric textures on the title track, and a few others make for pleasant listening, but the lack of hooks on the album’s second half is concerning. A comparison to the Beach Boys Sunflower-era is the strumming majesty of “Empathy and Those Forgotten Victories” and the final song “In My Daze” puts it all together with another epic track. Overall enough here to get a high recommendation. Listen with nice noise-canceling headphones for the best results.

Amazon | Kool Kat Musik | Goldstar Recordings (Bandwear)

Scott Warren

Scott Warren “Shadow Bands”

Is that Colorado singer-songwriter Scott Warren or is it Liam Gallagher? Adding a touch of Beatle-influenced psychedelia, the opener “Press Reset On The World” blends a little “I Am The Walrus,” a little Oasis strut, and thickly layered rhythm section into a bold statement that really rocks. Warren is joined by Brian Young and Mark Crozer (The Jesus and Mary Chain) who support Scott’s perfectly fuzzy riffs. The upbeat “Left Out Of The Joke” has an almost glam feel, with the chugging riff and laid-back vibe.

Warren slows the pace on “Bury It Down” about the pain of Covid isolation, “I don’t look so bad, but I feel run down” with a sunny refrain, it’s another gem. The mood gradually sours even more on “Regret” punctuated by smooth guitar riffs. And those riffs take the lead on “Chemical Trails” with a trippy lyric and psych-pop rhythm. “In The Devil’s Key” slowly marches with menace and brilliantly grooves along with dissonant chords. The ballads are contemplative and emotional, “She Walked Away From It” being the better example. No real duds here, even the acoustic instrumental “Winter Spring” is like peeling back an onion. Overall, a terrific album that gets better with each listen. It makes my top ten list for 2021. Highly Recommended.

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The Power Popaholic Interview: The Aerovons

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Tom Hartman of The Aerovons

Aaron talks to Tom Hartman, lead singer-songwriter of the “lost” band The Aerovons. We discuss the band’s history, getting signed to The Beatles label Parlophone Records in 1969, recording at Abbey Road Studios, and what it was like at that time. Plus we discuss how “Resurrection” and “A Little More” finally got released nearly 50 years later! The video “Swinging London” recalls those fascinating days when The Aerovons were almost destined for stardom.

August Singles: Ex-Norwegian, Ezrat, The Dowling Poole, Bagful of Beez, Tommy Lorente, Mo Troper, I Was King

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Summer is slowly fading, but we have plenty of good music. Ex-Norwegian is back with an eclectic single “Thot Patrol” which combines so many sounds, it defies categorization. Ezrat presents a light indie-pop that floats on by a bed of synths. The Dowling Poole lays it all down with a bombastic rocker backed by lush orchestral strings about fiddling through the apocalypse. Getting tripper is the melodic stylings of Bagful of Bees “Syco” which brings to mind XTC and I’ll be happy to hear the rest of this LP soon. French rocker Tommy Lorente finds a sweet guitar hook in the sparse reggae beat on “A Mes Yeux.” Mo Troper still has some acoustic demos from Natural Beauty and it sounds great, so check it out. We started with an “Ex,” so let’s end with a real Norwegian band I Was A King, who sounds damn good with those jangling pop hooks, hear “happy.”







Bleu and Pseudonym

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Bleu

Bleu “Six Tape”

Bleu McAuley returns with another much-anticipated studio album. Of course, Bleu remains inspired by ELO, Prince, Dire Straits, and Carl Carlton(!) but ever since 2013’s “To Hell With You,” he’s gravitated more towards hip hop and disco influences than power pop. That mentioned, the album is a full on mash-up of styles, and Bleu approaches it with the same enthusiasm and skilled production work as past albums.

The fun begins with the single “I Wanna Write You a Symphony,” a great self-deprecating ballad that goes down a winding musical path. “A Crazy Life” is bold hip-hop-influenced tune with a deep beat and a catchy chorus. But where is the power pop? Well, Bleu can still rock better than most with the fantastic “Baby By Your Side” guaranteed to give goosebumps with its ELO-styled bridge. Also the enthusiastic “Love You So” blends old and new pop to great effect.

Included is the acoustic gem “Kid Someday” and “Snakes” piano melody channels Randy Newman. Not everything here works, but enough does to merit highly recommended status. One thing Bleu does well, he offers lots of bonuses and collectibles for fans, but this is a pricey album at $27, so newcomers may want to start with earlier efforts.

Bandcamp


Pseudonym

Pseudonym “Before The Monsters Came”

San Franciscan Paul Desjarlais continues his journey of trippy pop with Pseudonym. While it starts slowly, Pseudonym ramps up and crafts a psych-pop gem comparable with Elephant 6 bands, like Olivia Tremor Control. Recorded during the pandemic lockdown, Paul is helped by a crew known by their pseudonyms; Cliff Notes, Waylan Solo, Gil Gulible, and Dr. Rhythm.

“Anonymous Sources” weaves vocal harmonies and buzzing guitar riffs, across a layered chorus. “Tell Me” is another brilliant tune about confiding in losing out. While it gets trippy beats on “Shadows in the Rain,” Paul is at his best when the hooks take hold like on “Astronaut” where the dry lyric “having a space heater doesn’t make you an astronaut” sticks in your brain. The textures on “Stare Down” and “Thought you would know” are both fuzzier than a peach and work well with the compositions. Overall, a highly recommended album, that’s also at a “name-your-price” point. So get it now!

Bandcamp