Weekend Freebies and Kai Danzberg’s “Euphoria” is coming!

Cleveland, Ohio band You’re Among Friends has a good sampler here. “Name-your-price” download.

Ballard is always a mixed bag, but I dig the Kinks-like “Tracksuit Man.”

Support Dana and Carl’s Rock and Roll Radio with this Kinks tribute album

Kai Danzberg’s “Euphoria” is coming! But he needs your help.

One of the best young power-pop artist to emerge in the past five years has been Germany’s Kai Danzberg. I’ve really enjoyed his last albums Not Only Sunshine and Pop Up Radio. The new Euphoria is a 7-track-EP full of brand new songs. This CD will be limited to only 200 copies click on the link below to reserve your copy!

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Singles: Kai Danzberg, Chris Church, Ex Norwegian, The Cheap Cassettes, Oscar Tango and Amoeba Teen


A freshly minted follow up to Kai’s new LP Not Only Sunshine – get it at Big Stir Records


A Freebie! Chris Church’s single is very much a lost 70s-styled gem

This is a super fun single with its acapella beat, rock rhythm, and innocent lyric.

The Ramones-like chords and handclaps are awesome here.

Toronto band Oscar Tango is the brainchild of Ryan Farley, and this is a 4-song EP featuring classic power pop guitar.
Amoeba Teen (Stourbridge UK) new A-Side “Suit & Tie” is a supercharged preview of the band’s upcoming Medium Wave album, and the B-Side “Caught in the Middle” is a completely exclusive release from the same sessions as the album. “Suit & Tie” delivers power and never stops!
Get it at Big Stir Records

Kai Danzberg and Mothboxer

Kai Danzberg

Kai Danzberg “Not Only Sunshine”

It was right around this time last year German musician Kai Danzberg introduced us to the infectious Pop-Up Radio, and with a new year, we have a new album. With Not Only Sunshine Kai is more consistent in his style, as the primary influences are Jeff Lynne (ELO) and Roger J. Manning Jr. (Jellyfish). He also has several collaborations with a variety of experienced power pop talent.

The cinematic intro (title track) is a simple multi-tracked hymn that leads into the sunshine-fueled “My Beautiful Day” with Dana Countryman. This is the sole burst of pure pop happiness, with its Beach Boys-styled harmonies. “Nothing In My Head” with David Myhr is a worthy follow-up, with a sweet hook in the chorus. From there the LP slowly sinks into the sadness of love lost, as “Turn Away” is a beautifully rendered power ballad on par with Jellyfish (and Roger J. Manning Jr. contributes). While the atmospherics are effective, the next several songs don’t reach the highs of those before it. But on his own Kai still delivers excellent music as “Help” is a big highlight, and the personal “Empty Room” is a sweet reflection on childhood with some nice acoustic guitar work. Other highlights include “Where Can I Sleep” and “Let Me Know,” a duet with Lisa Mychols that borrows its intro riff from Cheap Trick! Kai continues to grow as an artist, and I highly recommend this album. Bravo!

Amazon


Mothboxer

Mothboxer “Open Sky”

Production wizard & master of ceremonies Dave Ody expands the Mothboxer sound to include orchestral and progressive genres. “Sunshine Sound” is a slowly expansive epic that combines Pink Floyd, John Lennon and 1969-era Beach Boys into something akin to The Beta Band. This vaguely familiar setting has its trippy moments on “Got To Wake You Up” to “Better When It Rains,” with low chords and brass flourishes. “We Could Be Right” goes in many directions at once, but still feels cohesive with odd drum fills and Move-like guitar progressions.

The gem here is “Million Miles Away” with its hidden hook in the piano chords and harmonies. Ody manages to make something unique out of the familiar, and even with four minute plus indulgences it never feels like filler. Another good comparison would be the first time I listened to Electric Light Orchestra’s “No Answer,” and hearing those lumbering melodies by Roy Wood. Especially on the finale “Yesterdays Are Tomorrow.” Highly Recommended.

Amazon

More Christmas Presents: Thrift Store Halo, The Morning Line, Michael Simmons, Kai Danzberg, Geoff Palmer, Richard Turegon

Tis the season for even more lovely holiday singles. But there’s more — a great compilation album by Geoff Palmer (The Connection) and a full covers album by the prolific Richard Turgeon. And both are FREE downloads for a limited time!




Get the single here.


Singles and EPs: Kai Danzberg, Leafy Seadragon, Jollys, Tad Overbaugh, Air For Ants, Winston-Salem

Kai Danzberg (he knows all the right people) teams up with the queen of power pop Lisa Mychols for this awesome single.


Leafy Seadragon is like Florence + The Machine meeting Captain & Tennille, and the odd result is created by Allen Clapp (The Orange Peels) with Alison Faith Levy and Ray Newkirk. Very interesting!

The Jollys are a thick bass reverb-drenched rock group that sounds like you are literally in the garage inhaling the fumes. Great stuff here and it’s a FREE download.

Tad Overbaugh & the Late Arrivals are a 5-piece, heartland inspired, Rock ‘n’ Roll band from Boston, MA. Mixing their rock and classic country influences, driving down that highway of Americana, Alt-Country, and Southern-accented power-pop. Check out this FREE download!

We loved “Did You Know You’re Gold,” from Air for Ants. The remaining songs on their new EP Once Again with Feeling kind of wander around a bit, but we also really enjoyed “The Loner” and the gorgeous epic “CLG.” Excellent mood music. Amazon

Winston-Salem is a UK-based band in the proud tradition of classic folk-rock, power pop & alt-rock Americana. Think R.E.M mixed with a little Tom Petty. Single is out on Amazon