Tag: Bryan Estepa
October EPs: Bryan Estepa, Four By Four, The Small Breed, Kurt Baker, Drew Beskin and more
Great new music – Bryan Estepa teased us with the single “Back To The Middle” and now the entire EP is here, and it’s all killer, no filler – tasty bittersweet pop. The Pre-Amps of Madrid, Spain bring the bright pop with harmonies and horns on “Four By Four,” its classic Byrds/Beatles influences played to perfection. But if you really want to go retro, check out The Small Breed in the tradition of New Colony Six. Meanwhile, Kurt Baker is back from Spain and has been releasing a group of singles (which together make a great EP) that proves he hasn’t lost his power-pop chops. Drew Beskin released a terrific LP this past summer, and now he’s got some excellent Halloween singles too. Speaking of October, it leads to a great freebie – Rum Bar Records newest sampler. Like Halloween candy, it’s sweet, crunchy, and maybe has a razor blade hidden in it 😜 .
September Singles: Ward White, Kurt Baker, It’s Karma It’s Cool, Death Party Playground, Bryan Estepa, Mom, The Well Wishers
With the fall comes a brand-new premiere single “Dirty Clouds” from LA crooner Ward White, from his upcoming album The Tender Age. The gentle chords give way to space-themed resignation assisted by a terrific guitar break. Kurt Baker is also back with a tight pop track that reminds me a bit of Rick Springfield, meanwhile, It’s Karma It’s Cool gives us a frantic vocal and crunchy punk guitar on “Coffee Cup Circles.” If you love that old-school ’70s rock then check out Death Party Playground, but if you crave a more singer-songwriter vibe, you can’t get much better than Bryan Estepa. Swedish band Mom gives us a nice freebie; a collection of covers and a highlight is Marshall Crenshaw’s “There She Goes Again.” Finally, Jeff Shelton (The Well Wishers) donates his guitar crunchiness to California Community Foundation’s Wildfire Relief Fund for this sweet track, a worthy song for a worthy cause.
What I Missed: Bryan Estepa and Identical Suns
Editor’s note: It happens every year. I miss several releases from 2019. Some are high on other bloggers lists, some I just forgot to review (Doh!) and others just seem to slip through the cracks for a variety of reasons. This week I will review a few of these remaining 2019 albums.
Bryan Estepa “Sometimes I Just Don’t Know”
The venerable Australian singer-songwriter Bryan Estepa delivers a stark, emotional album that earned Absolute PowerPop blog’s #1 album spot. Estepa has always tackled serious adult subjects, and the first track “I’m Not Ready For This” is all about dealing with a serious health crisis. Bryan’s strong vocals are filled with empathy that sets the tone of the album. While the music is more adult-oriented pop than power pop, you do get catchy and melodic songs like “Drawn Like Magnets.”
Dealing with doubt, fear and how your loved one gives you the strength to go on is also a central theme. “Rattled and Rolled” and “Another Kind of Madness” deal with these strong emotions and the tight compositions keep it compelling. The lyrics will resonate with the patient listener, “Granted” is some of the best advice a song can give. It would be too easy to turn this somber subject matter into a depressing album, but Estepa fights through these feelings with conviction. I will concede this would have made it in my top 20, and thus a highly recommended listen.
Identical Suns “Week Minded”
This Ohio band led by Rene Rodriguez, Todd Stanton, and Andrew Stanton does a good job of creating pop eclecticism with a sense of fun. Taking influences from Mike Viola, NRBQ, and The Beach Boys, it starts with the bouncy “Saving It Up For Sunday” that goes through a typical week in the life. The themes alternate from happy to sad and the lead vocalist duties shift from song to song (with mixed results).
So we get the slow lounge ballad “She Makes Me Happy” followed by the hopeful pop of “Maybe Next Time.” Next, we get some slow faux Jimmy Buffet on “Wanted Man,” but things again pickup with the uptempo “Halfway There.” The highlight of the album is “Miss Her Reminiscing” with great lead guitar and the tender “Silence in The Room” is another beautiful gem about dealing with the loss of a loved one. Check it out, it’s music that deserves to be heard.
Friday Night Singles: Krga, Vegas With Randolph, Peter Baldrachi, S.A. Reyners, Bryan Estepa
Ryan Krga (vocals, 6-string acoustic guitar) gives us this very Big Star-ish single. and it’s a FREEBIE too, so it gets very high marks. Also, get his “Testament” EP.
I have really missed Peter Balderachi. It’s been a few months since his Change. Hope this leads to a new LP, its a great richly melodic rock single.
S.A. Reyners is our “Man On The Scene” and he makes a good impression with this energetic single. The B-side “Jinx” is also pretty catchy.
The venerable Bryan Estepa has a talent for putting emotional anxiety to music. Thank goodness for that.