Club Wow - Nowhere Fast

Cleveland's Club Wow are one of the great lost Power Pop Bands. Jimmy Zero had been in The Dead Boys and The Stiv Bators Band. He'd formed a trio with Jeff West From Testors and Billy Sullivan, who is currently in the Peter Noone version of Herman's Hermits. In January 1982, Frank Secich from the legendary Blue Ash joined.

Between 1982 and 1985, the band released one single, but in the search for a major deal, 20 or so songs were recorded in Studios at Paul Pope's Studio in Elyria and all in all 28 were recorded whilst they searched for a deal, came close, but the songs remained unreleased until now.





It's a real shame that these songs didn't get a release, because there is plenty of great Power Pop present. the title track and Terminal Town. There's also a mix of styles as the band developed. Reptile House is a bit darker as a lot of early to mid 80's material was. Whilst, Norman Green is wonderful Psych Pop.

On What's With You, there's a real update of The Who's 60's sound. There's also that New Wave Keyboard sound on In The Night and There's A Fire, almost Devo. Yet It's A Lie is a sweeping ballad, Liverpool Express like.






There are two live performances, Wild Ride Of Vera Jane is great UK Power Pop and may be the best song here, the other a cover of Strawberry Fields Forever. For a band that only released two songs, these recordings are a revelation. I suppose Club Wow suffered from not being IRS like, Post Punk or New Romantic at the time, Many did.

So 18 of these 20 recordings have never been released. I'm delighted that Zero Hour have got hold of them. You can buy the CD with a DVD for the bargain price of 12 Australian Dollars from Zero Hour here.






You can also listen to and buy the album for download here,

The Blood Rush Hour - Who Folds First

The Blood Rush Hour's third album develops Robert DeStefano's brand of Pop Rock further. And Then.... The Unthinkable Happened, the previous album. was great. This trumps it. There will be obvious Jellyfish and Beatles comparisons, but there should be greater thought in these comparisons.

The stock feel is very much Mid 70's Pop Rock and if there is a Beatles tinge, it may be more Rutles, because DeStefano's way with a song is far more Neil Innes than Paul McCartney. His vocals are a bit Colin Moulding, particularly post XTC and there is also a modern Prog overtone. It's a bit like 10CC playing a bit of Prog though.

This is a really clever melodic album and it's nice to see Christian Phillips involved on the album, someone who seems to sprinkle a bit of gold dust on everything he touches. That Beach Boys like Wall Of Sound is very similar to The Explorers Club, particularly on The Space That We Have.

The album could have fallen in to the trap of a lot of Pop Rock albums in descending into an easy listening vibe. but Who Folds First is so damn tuneful and clever that it avoids that. God's Wall could be Buggles Era Yes,

There's also real wit, New Country is just that, but more like Costello does Country. Find Another Russian Dancer could be Alan Parsons Project or John John Miles. In Between Time could have been on ELO's Secret Messages. What Does It Take reminds me a lot of The Legal Matters.

Even allowing for the clever Doo Wop Harmonies on No More Excuses which lead into a real Pilot like riff, my favourite song is I'm The One, a wonderfully jaunty affair with it's piano solo. I Do Hear A Single (ha ha) there. There's some great great Pop and Rock coming out of South Wales lately. It must be something in the water.



There aren't a lot of songs from the album around the net to listen to. The You Tube links are also removed. You can take my word for what a great album it is and if I get any links, I will update the post. In the meantime you can listen to 30 Second Samples on Amazon here. You can also buy the album here.

Screamfeeder - Pop Guilt

There seems to be a theme recently of bands offering up albums after long absences. Brisbane's Screamfeeder are the latest. Pop Guilt is the trio's first album in 12 years and although it soesn't move massively away from their template, there's more than enough to gather a new breed of followers.

The same influences are there, The Pixies and Husker Du spring to mind. However, Tim Steward's voice has always leant itself to other comparisons. I think Tim Wheeler of Ash, even Norman Blake of Teenage Fanclub.




Bassist, Kellie Lloyd takes over vocals on five of the songs and this changes the dynamic allowing them to explore a different territory, almost Brit Pop Girl or Shoegazing. If Screamfeeder had been a Brit Pop band, they would probably have been Ride.

When I think Brisbane or Australia, I think Power Pop or Garage Rock, there's far more to Screamfeeder than that. Sometimes they can be a heavier version of fellow Brisbane band, Custard, but they don't want to be a lighter version of Garbage. There's some great arrangements here and unusual tempo changes that reveal an intelligence not always revealed in the comparisons.




You sense the pop sensibilities in the background, particularly on the Lloyd vocals, but what grabs you is the guitar breakouts. This mix of pop and nose makes for an intriguing listen, much more than the few bands around who'd tackle this sort of album.

Karen Trust Me is great Power Pop, I Might Have Some Regrets is Gallagher like, Sciatic Heart has a real psych pop backdrop to that sweet female vocal. That mix of boy / girl vocals and the variance in songs like Half Life that make this a fine album. There's enough to keep the older fans happy, but plenty of chances taken to gather a new breed, Pop Guilt is a fine album, there's not too much around that sounds like this. I love it.




You can listen to the album and find out more about the band here.

Tigers Jaw - Spin

I've always liked Tigers Jaw. In the past, how the Emo / American Punk scene label can be off putting for listeners. At best they expect bands to be Green Day, at worst they associate them with "dudes" on skateboards. That whole scene was wrecked by the majors who wanted the next Dookie and left to suffocate.

Tigers Jaw's last album, Charmer, was a great listen, if a little dark. It coincided with the band splitting with three of the five members moving to pastures new, leaving Ben Walsh and Brianna Collins to pick up the pieces. I was intrigued to hear how Spin would pan out as Adam McIlwee had been a big part of the band.

I'm delighted to say that the outcome is delightful. Collins stepping up as songwriter and co vocalist has brought out all those pop sensibilities that threatened to break out, but previously seemed stifled. Spin is a great Pop Rock, chirpy and optimistic. I'm sure signing to Atlantic Off-Shoot, Black Cement Records will help them forge a much bigger following.

Brianna's vocals on the likes of Brass Ring and Same Stone add a real poptastic feel. FM Girl Rock like on the former, more like Beth Orton on the latter. When Walsh takes over vocals, the songs seem more riff led and feel more Alt Rock. There are Pop Punk overtones on the odd track, particularly Window, but overall Spin sounds far more mainstream.

I suspect that Will Yip's continued involvement has enforced this slight change of direction. I wouldn't want to give the impression that there has been major changes because there haven't. It just seems that Collins's songwriting has emphasised the pop in place of the retrospection of previous releases.

All in all, this is a fine album and one that caught me a little by surprise. It's the best of the past and a real nod to the future. Well done Tigers Jaw!

You can buy the album here and everywhere.

Boo Hewerdine - Swimming In Mercury

As one of the great UK Singer Songwriters and being as active as he is, it's somewhat surprising to realise that this is his first outing of new material for eight years. I was a massive fan of his band, The Bible, who offered up really intelligent pop and Hewerdine's standing as the 90's progressed was akin to the likes of Neil Finn and Difford and Tilbrook.

More recently, he's been viewed more as a Folk Troubadour, an Acoustic Warrior, and although I can see this, it hasn't necessarily been the case. Although his solo stuff has been more rustic, the pop has always been there on the sidelines, particularly in songs like The Girl Who Fell In Love With The Moon.

The great news is that Swimming In Mercury is unashamedly melodic pop, That melody encompasses all before it. American TV is like Jackson Browne fronting The Beach Boys, a UK Version of The Explorers Club. Satellite Town is pure Village Pop, the comparison this time would be Andrew Gold fronting XTC.

Sleep is McCartney Beatle Pop, Gemini has a wonderful Brass arrangement, This is a really reflective album, a real nod to the past, lyrically and arrangement wise. For all the Pop, the atmospheric, The Year That I Was Born is stripped down and John Howard like, ditto An Athiest In A Foxhole. Only Drinking Alone really points to that Folk label.


Although, Hewerdine's Production Work is always a mark of quality, it really is splendid to hear him back in the realms of pop. This is a joyous reflective album. If the magic of Hewerdine has passed you by thus far, this is a great place to start. It's 40 minutes of heart opening and nodding to the past, but in an optimistic way. Boo has never been one to rest on his laurels and heaven forbid that he should. But this is a pause button and a time for reflection and as such the album works beautifully.


You can buy the album everywhere and you should.

The Smallest Creature - Million

People seem to think that I am on the hunt for new artists 24 /7 and spend every hour listening to new stuff in a sort of Music Foreverland. Whilst this is partly true, the success of IDHAS means that as well as receiving a lot of stuff, I'm also recommended plenty too. The Blog naturally generates this and it's wonderful. The policy of only reviewing things that I truly like means I listen to a lot of albums and the majority are mediocre.

I mention the above because I discovered The Smallest Creature via Music Submit. This is a US Internet Music Promotion site. I've been a member for quite a while and there has been the odd thing that has really perked my interest. The music that was submitted to me was generally not my forte, I do mine a Power Pop / Pop Rock department that isn't really the mainstream. However lately, there has been some fantastic stuff, I don't know if Music Submit has latched on to my tastes through the years or that it's drawing in a new set of fantastic artists. Whatever it is, it's working for me.






The other joy about I Don't Hear A Single is that it's like a worldwide tour and today it's Cyprus. The Smallest Creature are Cypriots and Millions is an absolutely stunning. It's really unusual to hear an album that isn't like everything else around. It's fair to say that there has been a spell where so many wanted to be Teenage Fanclub or Nada Surf. The band are neither.

The beauty of this album is that it encompasses so many of the influences that make up my music collection. The trio will get compared to Muse and Radiohead, but it's the better earlier elements of those bands not where they are now. The latter without the disappearing up it's own backside, think The Bends and the former when they hit a melodic riff without all of the space age nonsense. This is most prevalent on the magnificent, Copenhagen, a real brooding gem of a song.






There are moody prog overtones on the album, particularly on the opener, High Low You, but they are really melodic, Porcupine Tree melodic. There's a real groove to the whole album, the melody tends to be in the lyrics. Solos are kept to a minimum, when songs do break out, it's in an understated way. Very mid 90's ish and nods to the likes of Mansun and Stone Temple Pilots.


It's really hard to pick out a favourite song here because Million is very much an album. I suppose that the three tracks that I've selected here are what I consider the best. Vanity Vote is my overall choice, it contains a gripping riff. I feel the same about The Smallest Creature as I did when I first heard Porcupine Tree and my hope is that the band provide has much enjoyment over coming years.





The album is a corking listen. One that has completely caught me by surprise. Not too many are mining this territory at the moment and that's just one of the reasons that I love this so much. Considering this is a debut album, it's stunning, beautifully produced and incredibly worthwhile.


You can listen to Million here and then buy it.

Bread & Butter - Bread & Butter

Seattle's Bread & Butter are not what you would expect from Seattle. The foursome purvey a brand of laid back good time Pop Rock that is virtually impossible not too like. As with all good Pop Rock, the comparisons are easy to make, but with this lot the mix is a little different to those easily made.

There are always nods to the UK with the genre and there are some here. Cool In The Water could be prime time Mungo Jerry, Keys To The City sounds like it treads the boards of mid 70's UK Pub Rock. Stole This sounds so 60's UK, think The Equals' Baby Come Back.




Yet the American influences are here, I'm reminded of The Spin Doctors and early 80's US Wave, particularly in the rhythm. There's also slight Reggae overtones and an atmosphere of melodic Stoner Rock.

Dying To Know hits a groove like The Doobie Brothers. The album is at it's best when it jangles a little and it certainly does that on Good Lines and Got Myself A Sweet Heart which has a galloping back beat. The vocals overall are a bit Chris Martin sometimes. Here's a recent KEXP Session.

There's loads to like about the album. You'd imagine the songs being played outside the bar developing from jams. It's a real chilled out album and that is the really enjoyable thing about it. You can buy the album here.