I Don't Hear A Single Best 100 Albums Of 2025 : 51- 60

The IDHAS Best Albums Of 2025 reaches the halfway point.

 

51 Glowbox - Bland Ambition      IDHAS Review

52 Fib - Heavy Lifting      IDHAS Review

53 Cream Soda - Serving You      IDHAS Review

54 Dropkick - Primary Colours      IDHAS Review

55 The Convenience - Like Cartoon Vampires      IDHAS Review

56 Soft Hearted Scientists - The Phantom Of Canton     IDHAS Review

57 Melin Melyn - Mill On The Hill    IDHAS Review

58   Iain Hornal - Return To The Magic Kingdom    IDHAS Review

59 This Will Destroy Your Ears - Funland     IDHAS Review

60 The Easys - Feeling 101     IDHAS Review

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Glowbox - Bland Ambition

 

Boston's Glowbox are back and get a large hoo and indeed rah, It has been a while since late 2021's Your Call Is Very Important To Us. You can read my review of that album here. After three singles in the interfering years, that fine album now has accompaniment.

Bland Ambition was released last Friday in a low key release. But now you know about it, you can listen and shout about it all over the stratosphere. You can expect big riffs, killer choruses and exhilarating solos. The band do Power Pop so well, but there are other areas that the quartet excel at.

The blast in with No Place Like Nowhere is pure Power Pop and the whole listen does feel more Power Pop adjacent than its predecessor, but there are still big footmarks in 90s Indie Rock and College Rock, particularly on Should Have Known.

There is also a venture into 70s UK Glam Rock with the all together now of Doesn't Mean That Much and that works beautifully. Wait And See also demonstrates again, how comfortable the band are in laid back melodic Pop Rock.

The Closer, Horizon, underlines the ease in that genre, a little West Coast in places, with great vocal harmonies, but with 70s Pop Rock at its heart. Joke's On You gets more Classic Rock. In Your Orbit is again classic Pop Rock.

The stand out though for me, something that may come as no surprise to you, is the wonderful Philosophy 21A. Psych Pop of the highest order that even adds a blistering solo and also adds a hint of Prog. Glowbox dish up a crackerjack of an album that will delight you with its variety.

You can listen to and buy the album here.

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Glowbox - Your Call Is Very Important To Us

 

Just before I started the Best of 2021, I posted about 10 wonderful albums that wouldn't appear because I'd run out of Review time. I did say that I'd get around to reviews and here's the first. Putting on my best Patrick Swayze voice, no one should put Glowbox in a corner.

People occasionally ask what Pop Rock is. I suppose it consists of albums that branch out away from the Power Pop template, slightly noisier affairs without ever venturing into plank spanking, not afraid of Guitar solos, but ensuring they fit in with the song. Maybe bordering on AOR without the banality and having the ability and versatility to branch into other genres.

That description just about sums up this Boston quartet. There's a lot of Guitar on show here, but none of it is in your face, all of it is wonderfully melodic, restrained even and the Guitar Solos never outstay their welcome, splendid though they are. 

If others pick up on the glory of Your Call Is Very Important To Us, I expect some slightly lazy Cheap Trick comparisons and you can find them if you search hard enough, but Glowbox are less shouty and far more varied. They inhabit a world somewhere between the UK Pop Rock of the late 70's, even a bit Brit Pop and a more West Coast Jangle Rock.

That Jangle is particularly rife on Don't Give Up On Me. but elsewhere Comfort Zone is straight ahead Not Lame Territory. Lonely Little World borders on West Coast Country Rock, yet Here We Go Again has more than a hint of Psych Pop.

Here are 10 songs that are all as chipper and joyful as each other. Special Mention though should be given to the closer, Test Of Time, the nearest the band get to Power Pop and the storming Jazz Town which is a killer of a song. Glowbox have fashioned up a melodic gem of an album. Highly Recommended!

You can listen to and buy the album here.

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Ten Wonderful Albums From 2021

 

The above photo is not my collection, although if you listened to Tez Cain, she would tell you that it is something like this. It is more a reference to the amount of albums, I Don't Hear A Single gets in to review. You may have noticed the self created hype about the upcoming IDHAS Best 100 Albums of 2021.

That starts tomorrow with 81 - 90 and 91 - 100. It was so difficult deciding what did and didn't make it as it has been such a great year for the type of music that we like. So the rule of having to have been reviewed on I Don't Hear A Single in 2021 had to be stuck to.

With this in mind, I noticed 10 albums that I should have reviewed and just ran out of time. These ten, there fore will not be in the Best 100, but are albums that could and probably would've been in it, if that time hadn't evaporated.

I thought of reviewing them and delaying the Best Of. However, IDHAS is traditionally one of few that publish the Best Of Year in January and reviewing them now would have meant the best 100 being published in February, which seemed too late.

So I will assure the artists and inform readers and listeners that these ten albums will be reviewed in February. Each of these albums is a cracking listen and I hope you can find the time to give them a whirl / spin / stream or whatever you kids do.

Nelson Bragg - Gratitude Blues     Link

Wanderlust - All A View     Link

The RG's - Your Head On A Stick     Link

The Parlophonics - A Day In The Life     Link

Ed Ryan - Don't Follow Where They Lead     Link

Well Wishers - Spare Parts     Link

Scott Gagner - BloodMoon    Link

West Coast Music Club - Take A Deep Breath     Link

Glowbox - Your Call Is Very Important To Us     Link

Papa Schmapa - Where Are You Now     Link

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I Don't Hear A Single Albums Of The Year 2018 : 51-60

2018 has been a fantastic year for the type of music that we like. It's been difficult to get these choices down to 100. I'm also not a believer in saying one album is better than another. Most of the time you are comparing Apples To Oranges. I'm not a Top 10 person, I just think what's the point.

However, for the first time last year, I did a Top 50, normally I just say what my favourite album of the year is. I've simply done it again, because those five posts of last year were so popular and the aim of this Blog is to get exposure (and Sales) for the artists.

As I said the standard this year is incredibly high, so much so that I've extended the choice to 100 albums. There is no meaning or judgement on an album that is Number 1, Number 100 or not on the list. Anything that I review on here, mention on Social Media or play on the Radio Show is as highly recommended.

For each album, I've posted a song from it and a link to the IDHAS Review if applicable.


No 51 : The On and Ons - Welcome Aboard      IDHAS Review here.

No 52 : Odd Robot - Amnesiatic     IDHAS Review here.







No 53 : Half Man Half Biscuit - No One Cares About Your Creative Hub So Get Your Fuckin' Hedge Cut

No 54 : The Amazing - In Transit 






No 55 : Rob Clarke and The Wooltones - Big Night 







No 56 : Glowbox - Fossil Few       IDHAS Review here.







No 57 : Extra Arms - Headacher







No 58 : Big Sunset - Big Sunset      IDHAS Review here.

No 59 : Michael Simmons - First Days of Summer







No 60 : Valley Lodge - Fog Machine 







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Five 2018 Albums That You Should Own Part 2

Zombies Of The Stratosphere's fourth album is as great as you'd expect. New York duo, Jeff Hoffman and Arthur Smith excel in Pop Rock Territory. They tell you that their Record Collections are great and who is anyone to argue on hearing this.

The Physical Kids encompasses all that is great from the 60's to the 80's. Nite Wok is wonderfully meandering, A Minor Glam Rock, Winterman, 70's So Cal. All 12 songs are Easy Listening, built on great riffs and memorable choruses. An absolute joy to listen to.

Wisconsin's Car City offer up a poptastic 9 song debut. Jason Lemke's songs jangle chirpily around his bitter sweet lyrics. Think Housemartins in approach, indeed Hopeless is very Paul Heaton like. Hardest to believe is the US connection as Car City sound so English or more relevant UK.

These songs could hail from late Eighties Glasgow or late Seventies New Wave. The jingle is ace and the songs are so damn catchy. Hangman could be from the Liverpool Brit Pop revival. (Don't) Give Up On Love is Merseybeat in spirit. Challenger comes over all Psych Folk and Soul Jam is like Michael Stipe fronting The Searchers.

You can listen and buy the album from the band's bandcamp page, tagged earlier here. You can also buy the album on vinyl, a format it deserves, here.

Boston quartet, Glowbox, offer up their second album. It travels through Power Pop, Prog and Psych Pop although it's base is very much Classic Rock. Fossil Fuel is a wonderfully rounded album, beautifully produced and ready for all your Air Guitar moments.

From the AOR of No Connection, through the Psych Pop of Moonstone and the Light Prog of The Decoy, there is just no let up. Rolling It Over is Pure Mod Pop, Home Movies has a Cheap Trick jangle. What Did You Get Done Today reminds me a lot of Vegas With Randolph. Anodyne borders on Heavy Metal and what a Guitar Solo!

This is an album that should be listened to loud with a beer in your hand. It sounds like a Classic already.

Matt Adams's The Blank Tapes have been around for a while now, but that hasn't stopped the Los Angeles' outfit from getting better and better. Candy is a splendid laid back affair from a band that sounds like it should contain Brent Rademaker. At times you can hear that West Coast influence, particularly on the title track, but it's a different West Coast comparison that strikes me. At the times, they sound very 90's Liverpool.

The band is never in one place too long though. You have the Blues of Everything Will Fall Into Place, Thinking About You is The La's brand of Merseybeat, Last Night is pure schmooze. It's In My Mind and She's Your Baby are Brit Pop shuffles, whilst Other Places is Psych Pop of the highest order.

The Blank Tapes have fashioned up an inspired calmness here and at the same time added to their growing reputation.

New York City Trio, The Hasbros reformed to finally record their debut album. It appears 26 years after they split up and it's a great listen. Beautifully played, it's very IRS, think Husker Du and the melodic side of that US Post Punk early 80's period.

However, the band shouldn't be pigeonholed, they reel off that angsty period well and chirpily, but they could equally be compared to Late 70's UK New Wave and Mod Pop and there's even many hints of Power Pop.

There's plenty of variation, from the angry yowl of Nothing At All to a Police like intro on For The Best which is an absolute gem, pure Pop and the all encompassing, Kenny that rocks like a good 'un. The band have even tagged on four songs from their earlier recordings, almost three decades before.

The album is available everywhere, Vinyl is available from CD Baby here.





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