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| From | "whit" <whitsbrain@whitsbrain.com> |
| Subject | Re: My 2007 favorites |
| Date | Sat, 12 Jan 2008 08:15:41 -0600 |
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2007 was a good year largely because I found the Audities list and have
really enjoyed it. I also want to give a nod of thanks to Bruce at Not
Lame, Jay at Popbang.com, the folks at Pandora.com and others for continuing
to do what they do with such dedication in getting the music out there.
Here are my favorite releases of 2007:
1. Everybody Else--"Everybody Else".This is an absolute killer debut
that will thrill fans of Marvelous 3, The Knack and even Squeeze. I have
had this one playing in my car, iPod, PC, actually everywhere I've gone
since I picked it up many months ago. It's an upbeat, melodic, hook-heavy
good time without a weak tune to be found anywhere. This is no jangle rock,
its punchy party rock.
2. Fountains of Wayne-"Traffic and Weather".If I only had enough cash
to buy one Fountains of Wayne CD, it would be this one. Everything this
band does is gold but after to listening to all of FOW's albums habitually
since they began doing their thing, Traffic and Weather is the most
consistently catchy and exciting of them all. This one is packed with great
songs, "Someone To Love", "Yolanda Hayes", "This Better Be Good", "Strapped
For Cash", "Revolving Dora", "I-95".geez, its just loaded! Smart and
sing-along Power Pop gets no better than this.
3. Cartel-"Cartel".I've been as loose with the definition of "What is
Power Pop?" as anyone and this album is more emo-pop if it has to be
categorized. But there's something immediately gratifying about listening
to this Cartel release. Naturally, there are plenty of slamming, crunchy
power chords to be found but its more entertaining and enjoyable because of
the presence of some mid-tempo and different songs that allow this talented
group to stretch out and really separate themselves from the emo-pop crowd.
4. Bleu-"Happy Birthday".The super-talented Bleu released Happy
Birthday to iTunes (maybe other outlets, too) back in July. Its an
eight-song compilation of tunes that he has apparently written about friends
for their birthdays. As strange of a concept as that seems to be, the proof
that it works is evident in a wildly varied collection of winning numbers.
My favorites are the lo-fi "Ducky" which is complete with great lines like
"he's so cool/he's a Frigidaire" or how about "if I'm a Spock/He's a Captain
Kirk/The opposite of suck/That's our Duck". Next up is "Alex" which is a
Utopia-era Rundgren, keyboard-driven rocker. If you like Bleu, there's no
way that you won't be entertained by Happy Birthday.
5. Maroon 5-"It Won't Be Soon Before Long".Sure this is all over the
radio and its major-label, but its Stevie Wonder/Jamiroquai/Dag flavored
funky-rock that deserves the airplay it gets. These guys really put
together a solid record that easily out grooves their debut. Personal
favorites include "Can't Stop", "If I Never See Your Face Again" and "Makes
Me Wonder". Maroon 5 manages to satisfy their Alternative cred while
continuing to expand their mainstream appeal. The number of current bands
that have accomplished this are few and far between.
6. Catchpenny-"From Where You Are".Minneapolis-based Catchpenny open
up their terrific debut with an all-out rocker titled "Tell Me Tomorrow" and
it's a great way to set the stage for the hooky choruses and two-part
harmonies to be heard all over this one. There's nothing fancy about
Catchpenny. The songs here are tight and with any justice would be playing
all over the airwaves. From Where You Are is a radio-ready wonder,
reminiscent of All-American Rejects, Owsley and American Hi-Fi.
7. Ed James-"In The 21st Century". Thrill to the Power Pop sounds of
the 21st Century courtesy of Ed James. Ed starts our journey with the
effortlessly tuneful "Out Of This Town", a crunchy, chugging power-chorded
beast. It's followed by the pretty, Posies-meets-PFR wonder of harmony
called "She's The One". "Girl Gone Bad" is a marvel, it's as if Ed hired
Andy Sturmer to front Adrian Belew and The Bears. "Miss Polly" is massively
catchy with it's doot-doot backing vocals and clever, ultra-fun lyrics.
Recollections of the '80s come rushing back to us when we hear the
Utopia-flavored pop on display when listening to "And When She Smiles".
Now...keep in mind, I've only covered the first five tracks! This is truly
a must have release that solidifies Ed James' status as a major Power Pop
player.
8. Dug Pinnick-"Strum Sum Up".The lead singer of the mighty rock gods
King's X steps away for a solo effort here and it's a hard-hitting, funky
punch to the gut. Pinnick has always had the best voice in rock (think
Hendrix/Sly Stone) and its just one of the many highlights to be found on
this release. Honestly, this is not Power Pop but its got harmonies, big,
tuneful guitars and is so melodic it's a crime to try to cram into a genre.
This is just great stuff! Why Pinnick and King's X are not one of the
biggest bands on the planet continues to baffle me.
9. Class Three Overbite-"Rendezvous". Bradley Jendza and Mike Elgert
(whose Days Gone By release made my "Best of 2006" list) absolutely astound
here with Rendezvous, an album jam-packed with pop/rock goodness.
Rendezvous is a blast to listen to as its loaded with great songs of varied
styles, all wonderfully executed and expertly performed and arranged. Check
out the disco-flavored title track, the Queen meets Jellyfish-like sweetness
of "No Good Rotten" and the riff-heavy 70's guitar rock of "Milkshake".
Prepare to be knocked out by this one!
10. Holmes-"Stop Go". Singer/Songwriter/Producer Roy Shakked is Holmes and
his latest release Stop Go is a refreshing cross-section of musical genres.
Holmes serves up punchy Rock, tuneful Power Pop and even smooth R&B with the
help of top-notch musicians the likes of Lyle Workman and Brett Simons. It
doesn't get much more fun than the title track, which delivers exactly what
its title promises. The whistle-along melodic treat that is "Another Week"
recalls other tune-masters like Bleu and The Argument. "Five Days A Week"
is a smooth Power Pop ride right out of the Joe Jackson songbook. You've
probably heard Holmes already as his music has been featured on many
television shows and album compilations. Chances are you'll be hearing a
lot more of him everywhere else very soon.
11. Rick Altizer-"Scripture Memories - Pop Symphonies".Maybe this is a
controversial choice but it's a tuneful one. Altizer has created a very
original collection of Jellyfish/Beatlesque sounding songs that's lyrics
reflect Altizer's commitment to his faith. I recall reading that his goal
was to put Bible verses to tunes as a way for others to remember scripture
readings. This may not be everyone's cup of tea because of the decidedly
Christian themes throughout, but I happen to believe its fun and beautiful
music.
12. Collective Soul-"Afterwords".Collective Soul is a band of survivors.
They came to the forefront during the peak of the Grunge era and have been
putting out consistently riff-heavy music ever since. Their new CD
Afterwords reinforces this once more. It is a tightly weaved run through
moods and hooks and riffs. Ed Roland and crew are a tight, polished and
talented group; in fact, they're as professional of a rock outfit as there
is in the business today. Check out tracks like "Hollywood", New Vibration"
and "All That I Know" for perfect demonstrations of this fact.
13. Foo Fighters-"Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace".Not much needs to be
said about the Foo Fighters other than they are a great mainstream rock band
that you don't have to be embarrassed to appreciate. Their new album is
more top-notch, power rock with attitude and energy. Plus, most of their
songs are very melodic listens. Echoes. is a fast starter, the first five
tunes are as strong as anything they've written in a long time.
14. Finger Eleven-"Them vs. You vs. Me".A departure from their heavier
self-titled 2003 CD, Them vs. You vs. Me is an impressive step in a new
direction for this band. There are a couple of great rock tracks planted
right at the start of this album. "Falling On" is a sweet rocker with a
great baseline and an even better little guitar riff. The practically
falsetto vocals of the chorus is catchy as hell, too. "Paralyzer" is a
surprisingly bouncy dance track that my kid says is big with the kids at
school. Ah, perhaps there is hope for today's youth after all.
15. Fall Out Boy-"Infinity On High". The Pop/Punk genre has evolved to the
point where it's mass-market acceptance has loaded it with a lot of bands
that frankly don't deserve the airplay (or sales, for that matter) that they
receive. However, to my ears, Fall Out Boy is not one of these bands.
Listening to Infinity On High has made me aware that they deserve to be
elevated to the elite class of bands within the Pop/Punk genre. In my
opinion, it's time to mention Fall Out Boy in the same breath as the genre's
respected acts like My Chemical Romance, Green Day and All-American Rejects.
Infinity On High signals an evolution in their music. They're often
experimenting here and it's a welcome step toward maturity and well-deserved
respect.
16. Spoon-"Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga".It looks like this new one by Spoon is pretty
popular and I'll have to go along with that mindset. This is definitely the
catchiest and poppiest Spoon release to date. Sometimes the sparseness or
"space" within a Spoon tune is a wonder to behold. This is especially
evident in danceable numbers like "Don't You Evah" and "Finer Feelings".
"Don't Make Me A Target" and "Rhthm & Soul" are also standouts here.
17. Ken Andrews-"Secrets of the Lost Satellite".The main man behind such
fine bands as Failure, On and Year of the Rabbit goes solo with this new
collection of mid-tempo, mood heavy music. Andrews makes some incredible
noise, not just on this new release but with everything he does. The
instruments, his vocals, everything; it all really envelops the listener in
so many different tones and strange harmonies. Secrets of the Lost
Satellite is another fine example of this. Again, this is nowhere near
Power Pop, but its interesting and rewarding music.
18. The Ditchflowers-"Carried Away". Tampa-based Ditchflowers have mixed
sharp melodies, thoughtful lyrics and wonderful production into a pleasing
package titled Carried Away. Ed Woltil and Brian Merrill head up this
talented cast of musicians who offer songs of longing, faith and getting
older into tuneful tales of intrigue. The Ditchflowers have excelled here,
merging sophisticated pop not unlike Steely Dan and XTC with the
straight-ahead rock of artists like The Smithereens and The Kinks. The
songs "Home Away From Home" and "All The Time In The World" feature pretty
pop that fit in seamlessly with country-flavored tracks like "Since I Met
You" and "Walkin' Back".
19. The Alice Rose-"Phonographic Memory". Purveyors of fine Pop should be
quite overwhelmed with The Alice Rose, an exciting quintet out of Austin,
Texas. They have managed to assemble a collection of fresh and bright music
with not a trace of filler to be found anywhere. The Alice Rose has
certainly taken cues from bands like The Beatles, Jellyfish and Squeeze, but
they have used these influences to create something original. Phonographic
Memory sets the melodic mood from the very start with "Light Up", a
guitar-based mid-tempo rocker that mixes Gish-era Smashing Pumpkins with Ed
Kowalczyk (Live) sounding vocals. "Ocean" is a smooth Gin
Blossoms-meets-Squeeze tune, that's jacked up by a grungy guitar solo backed
by ever so tastefully slight harmonies. The album wraps up with the full-on
chugging "This Night", a song that could have led off the album much less
closed it. It's proof positive that Phonographic Memory is loaded.
20. Wiretree-"Bouldin". Wiretree is a great new project from singer,
songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Kevin Peroni. This full-length winner
melds a variety of influences with an acoustically-based sound to form an
instantly enjoyable, bright and catchy listening experience. I've heard
Wiretree's sound compared to The Smithereens, Tom Petty and Brendan Benson.
But I also hear Dear 23-era Posies and early (i.e. good) Goo Goo Dolls.
This is really an exciting new Indie Pop release!
-Whit
-----Original Message-----
From: audities-owner@smoe.org [mailto:audities-owner@smoe.org] On Behalf Of
Brian Keane
Sent: Friday, January 11, 2008 8:21 PM
To: audities@smoe.org
Subject: My 2007 favorites
This is my "top 20+" with a few extra thrown in, on the chance I
accidentally included some 2006 releases.
1. Nicole Atkins - Neptune City
2. Winterpills - The Light Divides
3. Bruce Springsteen - Magic
4. Kelly Willis - Translated From Love
5. Fountains of Wayne - Traffic and Weather
6. Sarah Borges & Broken Singles - Diamonds in the Dark
7. Ian Hunter - Shrunken Heads
8. The Pipettes - We Are The Pipettes
9. John Hoskinson - Pancho Fantastico
10. The Pearlfishers - Up With the larks
11. Icecream Hands - The good china
12. Ray Davies - Working Man's Cafe
13. Mitch Easter - Dynamico
14. Steve Barton - Flicker of Time
15. Ash Avenue - And Then We Ignite
16. Apples In Stereo - New Magnetic Wonder
17. Farrah - Cut Out and Keep
18. The New Pornographers - Challengers
19. Nick Lowe - At My Age
20. Future Clouds And Radar
21. Graham Parker - Don't Tell Columbus
22. Angie Heaton - The Rumor Mill
23. The Trolleyvox - Your Secret Safe/Luzerne
Brian
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