Jeff Rosenstock - Worry

Jeff Rosenstock has been around a while now. The move from Brooklyn to Hollywood may have seemed to mellow him, but his following won't believe that. He's the Ska Punk Icon that was one of the first in with the Pay What You Want album.

He's also a great lyricist and that has got lost in his shouty past. So it's easy to accept his third solo album as going for a bigger market, but if you've paid attention to what's gone before, Worry is a national progression.




So he may come across as Jim Carroll fronting Green Day and there is some of that, but this album, more than any in his past, probably represents his influences more than any other. There is the odd bit of shouting at times, but the melody and the riffs shine through any of that.

Long term fans will love Bang On The Door and Planret Luxury plus the ska of Rainbow, but it's when he gets into New Wave and Power Pop that it gets more interesting. Then you note the lyrics more and more.




There's more here about Indie Pop than Emo, loads of singalong stuff like While You're Alive. Staring Out The Window Of Your Old Apartment could be the ballad on a UK 70's Glam Rock album. It's an ace song.

This is a great album. Some will say Jeff Rosenstock has sold out, others will say he's grown up. As an outsider, I look at what's in front of me and Worry is a fine affair. There's enough to interest the old and much more to gather up the new.




One of the better albums that I've heard this year. 17 songs is a lot to get through, but at 38 minutes, the album is just the right length. You can listen to and buy the album here.

Thorcraft Cobra - The Distance

I have only one problem with Thorncraft Cobra and that's the name. It conjures up images of Melodic Metal and long and loud guitar solos, not the note perfect Pop Rock that they actually offer up. Their second album follows on beautifully from the debut, Count It In.

It's hardly surprising because the duo consist of ex Brown Eyed Susan, Billy Zimmer and Tammy Glover, known more for her time in my beloved Sparks. The Distance comes across somewhere between  a more melodic The Eagles and the mid 70's UK bands that we know and love.




They are their best when the melody and harmonies meet and Fade To White is a perfect example of that. No One Believes her sounds so Jason Falkner whilst Caught In Between could easily appear on a Stealers Wheel album.


Serenade The Silence is one of those epics that used to end Brit Pop albums from say Embrace and the closer, Pretty Dilemma reminds me a bit of Teenage Fanclub. The Distance is a really accomplished Pop Rock album. it has everything that you need from the genre and that's the way I like it.





You can find out more details about Thorcraft Cobra and listen to and buy the album here.

Bonny Doon - Bonny Doon

We're back In Michigan, Detroit to be exact. So you'd expect something chiming with riffs and harmonies.Bonny Doon are not from that school. I've seen them labelled as Garage and Punk, they are neither of those things.

Bill Lennox's lazy vocals are a cross between Lou Reed and Tom Petty and there is a Velvet Underground on the likes of Lost My Way. His almost spoken drawl on I See You is Reed to a tee. But the band's arrangements make them stand far away from the Stooges and Strokes wannabes.




At times there's almost a country feel, but Relieved has a Motown feel to the arrangement, Summertime Friends is in Summer Pop mode. You Can't Hide is pure Big Sur, Never Been To California is almost a jam with everyone wearing their cowboy hats.

Evening All Day is again very Lou Reed like with a country twang or imagine him backed by The Heartbreakers. The vocal will not be to everyone's taste, but if you like your songs laid back and chilled, you'll love them.




It's a refreshing change at the moment to hear something grown up, less harmonies, less riffs, more of a vibe and feel. The arrangements are great, sometimes jam like, sometimes more complex. But my overriding thought after two or three listens to the album is one of contentment in hearing something that others aren't doing at the moment.




You can listen to and buy the album here. You can get the band's two EPs as free downloads there too.

Suzy And Los Quattro - Faster And Louder

Barcelona's Suzy And Los Quattro are back with album number four and after a slight departure with the previous pensive album, Hank, it's back to what they are best at. Faster And Louder is in Holly And The Italians territory and there is no greater compliment.

Suzy And Los Quattro are like a rocked up Rubinoos and that's no surprise as they've supported the power pop greats, plus Tommy Dunbar co-writes Matilda here. The riff quota is high here and when you note Robbie Rist adding Guitar on five of the ten songs, that's to be expected.





Here We Go Again comes across as early Blondie, PMS is almost thrash metal. Walk Away is also sped up. Everybody is more New Wave than Power Pop whilst Be With You rocks like a good 'un.

The band are at their best though when the concentration is on the melody, the riffs shine through and whilst these songs won't translate as well as Be With You in a live setting, they showcase what the band is best at.





Matilda is pure Rubinoos, Tommy Dunbar and Robbie Rist's involvement ensures that. You suspect with all the band members having Quattro surnames that they want to be The Ramones. There's nothing wrong with that at all, don't we all, but there is far more to them than that.

This is classic New Wave Power Pop comparable to the likes of The Knack and The Records and that is where they shine. I don't hear many sounding as good with original songs. This is a cracking album. Just over 25 minutes of hooks and choruses. What's not to like?




You can listen to and buy the album here. You should, at 7 Euros it's an absolute snip.

Paul McCann - The Magician EP

I've been meaning to review this for a while. I'd planned to post it as part of a I Do Hear A Single thing, but I haven't done one for a while and the EP deserves stand alone attention. Cavan's Paul McCann has spent time around the likes of Duncan Maitland and it shows.

The stand out song is the Power Pop Gem, Keep The Devil Within. It has all the hooks and jangles required and it's testament to Paul that the rest of the EP isn't from the same mould.





Widow Maker Blues features Majella O'Reilly and is storytelling Folk Country with banjo and all the twangs. All The Words You Say is a big ballad, very 70's, very good with a fine guitar solo. The Magician is like Jefferson Airplane in singalong mode. It's a sweeping five and a half minutes with a late 60's West coast solo.

All in all, The Magician is a really varied four track EP. Although it shows off Paul's obvious talent, the variance may confuse people as to what he's about. It's a splendid introduction, but I can't help feeling that the strength of Keep The Devil Within means that Power Pop is his true way forward.




You can buy the EP here, there and everywhere.

Captain Wilberforce - Black Sky Thinking

Leeds's Captain Wilberforce are another band that should be far far bigger than they are. There are so many Neil Finn and Crowded House fans around and you wonder why they are not also buying Captain Wilberforce too.

It's been six years since the magnificent Ghost Written Confessions and for album Number Four, Black Sky Thinking, Simon Bristoll has lost none of his songwriting excellence. The album is a perfect example of how great Pop should be made.





There seems a little more of a mellow feel on songs like Couples and You Can't Have Me which ramp up the Finn comparisons, there's a particularly great piano accompaniment on the latter. King Of Decision is McCartney Beatles Pop of the highest order.


There are hints of Psych Pop too, especially on the opener, the splendid, The Johnny Depp Memorial Cafe. Stickleback Toffee could be a soundtrack to those old Saturday Morning Cartoons. The Closing title track is pure psych and reveals a side of the band that I love, pre 60's Strawberry Psych.





Black Sky Thinking sounds much more like a band album than previous albums which you sense have been Simon Bristoll and others. The 12 songs make up a proper album, none of this download one song rubbish.

If there is any justice in the world, this album will be massive. The support of Kool Kat in the States should assist this. This is one of the most pleasant listens that I've had in a long while. I expected nothing less.




The fantastic news is that for a limited period, the album is available as a Name Your Price on Bandcamp here. You have no excuse but to head over there now.

The Verve Pipe - Parachute

The Verve Pipe are back with their second Long Player in three years and Parachute is as expected, great. The Verve Pipe are largely Brian Van Der Ark and others now, particularly since Donny Brown hasn't been around since Are We There Yet? Brown has gone on to be a session drummer of choice and seems to have appeared on most of the best Power Pop albums of the last 12 months.

Van Der Ark hasn't been loitering in the interim though. Apart from The Verve Pipe, there's house concerts, his motivational speaking appearances, solo albums, even working with Jeff Daniels. I seem to remember a time when he was a sort of internet marketing guru.




The Verve Pipe are not the only band to have been involved in recording albums for children, but their two, A Family Album and Are We There Yet? are amongst the best in that field and the merchandising opportunities for artists involved in these releases are excellent.

Known to many as one hit wonders for The Freshmen, there has always been far more to them that and rather than the lazy writing from the unconverted about the rise and fall, the album quality has rarely dropped. I can only think of one iffy one, 1999's patchy self titled affair. The band are also responsible for one of the best albums that few have ever bothered to hear, 2001's Underneath.




Parachute consists of eight songs that have been digital only releases from the past year or so with two new songs available across all platforms. It's a really coherent album. Van Der Ark sounds more like Peter Gabriel these days and songs like Nothing Like Your Love and The Favourite Son could be Big Big Train.

Songs like the epic Grieve For The Girl are very different, that is a sort of Prog Americana. Fear not though, there's plenty of classic Verve Pipe present on the likes of I Can't Get You Off My Mind and The Fine Line. All in all, a splendid effort and there is far more to come from the band.




The album can be bought from the band's website here. It's also available everywhere else.

The Bordellos - Introducing The Bordellos

The Bordellos hail from the same town that I do. A town that once made things and offered hope, but there's little of both these days. To give you a feeling of the town, on the drive in during the lead up to Christmas, the billboards advertise the town centres of other towns.

Whereas, I am known for all things Power Pop, particularly in the UK, The Bordellos are the type of band that I listen to away from the madding crowd. They are never going to be massive, but they are always going to be inventive and that matters far more to me.




It's really hard to pigeon hole the band and I would never try to do that. Suffice to say they are in the mould of Half Man Half Biscuit or any Martin Newell creation. Deliciously lo-fi and as you'd expect they have appeared on the Fruits De Mer label. The Megadodo label is another place that you'd hope to find them.

It's not all Indie doodling though. The three piece can venture into the Prog Rock territory of the likes of Todd Dillingham and The Bevis Frond, yet could easily be The Fall. The best example of what they can do is the wonderful Ronco Revival Sound album which can still be bought here.




The band release a great deal of their archive on their Bandcamp Page. A mix of demos, outtakes and rarities recorded over their nigh on 15 year existence can be downloaded FREE there. My suggestion would be to download everything to realise how varied and ace that they can be.

It is so out there, that not everything will appeal, but there is something for everyone and that's part of the joy of discovering great music. You can then head off and buy their commercial releases now or in the future.

The three songs here show the band's versatility. From my own favourite, a 4 Track Demo of the wonderful, Arthur Lee to the Prog Out of The Left Hand (God Complex).




You can download and listen to their archive here.