Dan Israel and Ward White

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Dan Israel

Dan Israel “Social Distance Anxiety Disorder”

A follow up to last year’s Social Media Anxiety Disorder Minnesota musician Dan Israel continues to develop insightful rock that sticks in your head. It’s slow going on the weary “Wit’s End,” but it picks up quickly with the spirited “Bewildered,” which is like a Tom Petty – Bruce Springsteen hybrid. Even better is the power pop of “Bustin’ Out,” with its distinct organ lead it’s my favorite song on this short LP.

The style of Bob Dylan is clearly part of Dan’s vocal approach, and it’s best shown on “Don’t Think They’ll Say.” The self-conscious lyrics and solid hooks on “Little Bit Of Your Love” make it another winner. Next, “Something For Pain” is a rocker that recalls something Joe Walsh or NRBQ used to write. There are only nine tracks and not everything here sticks, but it shows that Dan has plenty of gas in the tank. A good companion album to last year’s LP, It’s definitely music that deserves to be heard.

Bandcamp


Ward White

Ward White “Leonard at the Audit”

Los Angeles based art-rocker Ward White is an acquired taste, but it’s a gourmet meal best enjoyed in deliberate sound bites. I’ve often compared his croon to a lighter version of David Bowie, but that’s just a starting point. Leonard at the Audit is easily his most ambitious work. The concept is something about Leonard Cohen’s 1960’s-era dalliance with Scientology. 

Starting with the industrial “Bubble & Squeak,” it describes a soul-crushing day at work, “another shift another accident” and the oppressive story is punctuated by those deep synth-bass notes, and it’s pure brilliance. “Ice Capades” is another winner with it’s jangling texture in the chorus, intricate baroque arrangement, and sweet guitar solo. “Edmund Fitzgerald Is a Wreck” is a near-perfect tune of the suffering protagonist who “didn’t need to be alone.” On”Try Me” it shows Ward at his most cynical and vocally dynamic. The lyrics are acidic poetry that paints the stories just right, reminding me of Warren Zevon. Take your time with this one, it’s definitely highly recommended.

Bandcamp

Freebies and EPs: The Turnback, Nick Lowe, Brad Marino, Brian Mello, You’re Among Friends, Nick Bertling, Portable Radio, The Amplifier Heads

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The Turnback had these three songs recently re-mastered by Grammy® Award-Winning mastering engineer Brian “Big Bass” Gardner (Foo Fighters, RUSH, Eminem, David Bowie, Cheap Trick). They are a FREE download and the band just asks for you to give a tip to the next essential worker you come in contact with (grocery clerk, fast-food worker, etc.). Now is the time we all need to be there for each other and PLAY IT FORWARD!

The masterful Nick Lowe returns with another EP, delivering pleasing pop gems in a timeless fashion.

Brad Marino (The Connection) is back in fine form with “False Alarm” and “At Night.” Guitar pop the way it should be, plus a cover of the Hoodoo Gurus classic, “What’s My Scene?” Get it at Kool Kat Musik

Brian Mello, the guitarist with The Morning Line, has a very unique EP out. It starts out like a spacey Western with “Landscape With Ruins” and stays kind of mellow until the riff-heavy gem “Adios.” A real grower here, so check it out.

You’re Among Friends, plays out like a fun jam in someone’s basement studio. Love the funk melody on “Once the Toothpaste is Out of the Tube.” More terrific casual rock, like “Just Keep Being Nice” make this a great FREE album to chill with.

Nick Bertling heads out to the audio twilight zone and gives us a personal work that seems to channel Todd Rundgren. Love those harmonies on “Perhaps” and the retro synth on “Mall Dreams ’87.” Another grower you need to live with.

Manchester UK pop band Portable Radio has a neat retro style and great harmonies. “Great In The Sun” and “Flight Home” remind me of the Cowsills.

JUST IN! Boston’s The Amplifier Heads are led by vocalist, guitarist, and songwriter Sal Baglio (The Stompers). This is a real treat, as he channels mid-period XTC. Fans of similar bands (like The Sun Sawed In Half) will LOVE this.

Singles: The Cudas, Ryan Allen, Empty City Squares, Mike Daly, The James Rocket, The Starbems, Chris Church, Vanilla, Richard Turgeon

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A boatload of great new singles! Check these out… and some are FREE downloads!

This is some great power pop hero worship with strong riffs. The Cudas deserve kudos for this!

Fresh after working with Nick Puinti on his new LP, Ryan Allen gets to work on his own music for a cause. 100% of the proceeds for downloading these songs will go to the Black Lives Matter movement.

New Jersey band Empty City Squares describes a world that is spinning off its axis thanks to COVID-19. The band also has a single out exclusively with Big Stir Records called “Parmenides” which is quite good.

Mike Daly is releasing a somber song for these troubled times. A bit depressing, but “I guess this is my life now, I hope that it lasts.”

NY based The James Rocket does it all right; wearing a mask, washing your hands, social distancing, and getting freakin’ frustrated with the whole thing,

Japanese power-pop-punk band The Starbems are part Knack and part Ramones. This single kicks ass all over the place.
Frank Burns was a band in the mid-90s that existed just long enough to record two songs. North Carolina’s Chris Church was part of that effort and delivers these rare artifacts. But why name your band after the most annoying character from M.A.S.H.?

Jayson Jarmon from Vanilla has a knack for tasty power pop. I love both the catchy “Easy As Pi” and the Western-styled pop of “Easy.”


West coast rocker Richard Turgeon keeps cranking out material for his new upcoming LP.

It’s Karma It’s Cool and 2nd Grade

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It's Karma It's Cool

It’s Karma It’s Cool “Woke Up In Hollywood”

Last year Lincoln UK band It’s Karma It’s Cool delivered a quirky fun EP full of energy led by vocalist Jim Styring (The Popdogs). Now we’ve got a full-length follow-up that demands attention. Joining Styring is Danny Krash (drums), Martyn Bewick (guitars + more), and Mikey Barraclough (bass) with guest spots from Rex Broome (The Armoires), Lannie Flowers and Brian Barry (Flaming Cortinas.)

Opening with “Our Love Is An Amplifier” it brings to mind Anton Barbeau with its quick synth patterns, strong percussion, and catchy chorus. It then goes to a false ending, before it picks up even more stream. Both “Back In `78” and the title track wistfully look at a rocker’s career with its ups and downs as Jim sings “It’s not how far you’ve traveled, it’s the distance left to go.” Those guitar riffs are an integral part of the power-pop gem “The Girl Who Gave You Everything” thanks to Lannie Flowers and “Healer’s Leap” has those great jangling chords, and harmonica, as “the hipsters turn themselves around!” Next, “Sunflowers” is another keeper with great guitar textures, vocal harmonies, and Danny’s key drumming. Not everything works (“New Age Eve”) but enough does, and this is a very solid debut. Check it out.

Kool Kat Musik


2nd Grade

2nd Grade “Hit to Hit”

Are 24 tracks of music too much to handle at once? Not at all. 2nd Grade’s songs are so short, it’s like they were made for a second grader with ADD; most songs no longer than a minute. Lead singer-songwriter Peter Gill is like a mix of Adam Schlesinger and Robert Pollard (Guided By Voices) in that he throws his emotions and feelings to the wall to see what sticks, and when it does stick it’s ultimately great DIY bedroom pop.

Opening with a fuzzy surf-rocker “W-2” about how annoying it is to do your taxes – it has a single chorus and then it’s gone. “Trigger Finger” is a handclapping gem about a “punk rock world” and “Velodrome” is like a mini Fountains of Wayne tune. The songs are funny and/or heartbreaking – and best of all, the good ones have killer hooks. But the short length of the songs are both a blessing and a curse, luckily we get a few tunes that really stand out like, “When You Were My Sharona” a nostalgic gem that looks back and the Big Star-like vulnerability of  “My Bike” and “You’re So Cool.” If you remove the wheat from the chaff, you’ll really enjoy this album. It’s music that deserves to be heard.

Amazon (vinyl)