An Attempt At A Power Pop Biography: Introduction

As I've been a poor correspondent of late I'm going to try something a little bit different. Indulge me.

One of the hallmarks of any discussion of power pop as a genre of music stumbles upon the definition of just what the hell power pop is. Some have chosen an appeal to authority, usually invoking Pete Townshend and early Who. Others have performed a bit of audio vivisection and determined The Beatles brought together all of the elements of the genre. Still others have followed an archaeological approach going back to the 50's tracing the rock and pop influences of artists like Buddy Holly. Further evolutionary thinkers eschew the neanderthal or cro-magnon predecessors in favor of the 1970's emergence of homo power popus, otherwise know as Badfinger, Big Star and The Raspberries. It turns out it is possible to trot out as many different definitions of power pop as there are people listening to it. Power pop, as such, turns out to be a little like obscenity; we cannot define it but we know it when we hear it.

What I propose to do here is give in to the idiosyncratic nature of it all and sketch out a listening life that led this individual to Power Pop in all of its weird glory. In doing this I'm not suggesting the previous attempts and approaches to defining the genre were wrong as such, but I am suggesting it is the emotional attachment of the individual which is inseparable from the listening experience. Somewhere out there exists a person who vividly remembers being a teenager and putting on their copy of The Flamin' Groovies "Shake Some Action" and being transported away from whatever was making life less than palatable for them at that time. That experience, however, isn't mine. It is in fact inaccessible to someone like myself who didn't really come to know the Groovies until he was in his 30's. (Sad but true.) As a result of this any definition of the genre which jibes with that emotional component will probably feel right for the Groovies' fan, at the same time it doesn't do anything for someone like me. Now, the subjective nature of all this doesn't make it wrong. Deciding we like some music and dislike other music is inherently a subjective enterprise, but it is only human to want to share what we know and feel, thus we seek out a common vocabulary in order to talk about this stuff. So, we search for definitions, however partial or inadequate they may be.

The biographical approach I am taking is meant to flesh out exactly what these definitions mean to me. How did I come to find the music I love so much and that I choose to make available to anyone in the world who wants to listen to The Pure Pop Pub? When you think about it, just putting this radio station on the air is an act of almost unimaginable egotism only made palatable (some could argue) by the fact it is free. But these days most every committed music fan is in may ways a disc jockey. Sure they may be spinning tunes for only themselves or a few friends for whom they make mix discs, but that is every bit as much an expression of their personal musical biography as my scribblings here.

So, in writing this I'm making no special claim of privilege. Hundreds of thousands of others could do the same if they took the time. What I hope this reveals is my take on this multi-dimensional beast we call Power Pop. Some of it could resonate with your own experiences, or may seem quite alien. Generational differences could loom large for some, while for others they are transcended.

As far as I can see all such reactions are to the good...but I promise you the soundtrack is better.

[I reserve the right to edit the ever living shit out of this thing as this first part came out almost in a stream of consciousness.]

Pilot

Once upon a time this band was underrated. Thankfully times are different.

Review: The Smithereens - 2011

Evidently, The Smithereens are not content to be a reverse Spongetones (i.e. a originals band that becomes a Beatles cover band).

With over a decade passing since their last non-covers effort, I was a bit skeptical of 2011 despite the positive buzz I'd heard. After all, I was completely jazzed about 1999's God Save The Smithereens after hearing the killer "She's Got a Way" but the rest of the album fizzled. Would history repeat itself?

Luckily for all of us the answer to that question is a resounding NO! 2011 turns out to be the best collection of Smithereen tunes since at least Blow Up!, and may be the best since 11. "Sorry" kicks things off in vintage Smithereens style, easily the equal of earlier Smithereens classics. And this just begins a run of strong numbers: "One Look at You," "Keep on Running," and "Rings on Her Fingers" all hit exactly the right balance. It all sounds the way you would want a Smithereens album to sound.

The stately ballad "As Long As You Are Near Me" makes a serious claim to being the best one the band has ever recorded. Pat DiNizio's voice carries the tune along with a certain gravity, which is somehow enhanced by background "na na na na na na"s. Great stuff.

"Nobody Lives Forever" is a wonderfully understated rocker, one part personal philosophy, one part hand clapping sing-a-long, and all together fun. "All the Same" shows how recording all those early Beatles tunes has been rubbing off on the boys. Ringo's gonna demand a cut for the drum work alone.

All in all it has to be said this album works. There is less experimentation here, but that has to be expected for a band that has been at this as long as these guys have. The thing here is the songs and those kick ass.

Grade: A-/A

I Promise... I'm Just Resting

I'm not dead, and neither is this blog.

Older Music

One of the great things about being obsessed with power pop music is it is so large a genre of music that there is always something to discover. Oh, it might be an artist you have heard something of before, but you might not be aware of the depth involved in their catalog. That is the phase I'm in at the moment with a couple of artists. The first is the Lolas. I'd heard their "Little Deedra" a couple of years ago. I loved it at first listen, but I didn't follow up on the band until recently. I'm in the process of rectifying that glaring error right now. You can too (if they are not already in heavy rotation at your house that is): I've also been enjoying the Parallax Project album I Hate Girls (from 2009). It's a little too old to write a full blown review for but you will certainly be hearing cuts from this record, as well as Lolas tracks, on the Pub. Keep poppin' in a powered fashion!

Cotton Mather - Kontiki

Great news emerging about one of the best records of the 1990's and one of the best power pop albums ever:

In 1997 my band Cotton Mather recorded our second record, Kontiki, on 4 track cassette and ADAT in an old house about 30 minutes outside of Austin. It was released in the US without much fanfare on a little label called Copper. But when the record made its way to the UK a year later on the Rainbow Quartz label Kontiki was quite the hit with the press and music fans.

Now Kontiki, the "lost classic" has been out of print for years. I (Robert Harrison) have been busy readying a re-release of Kontiki which will include an entire second disc of bonus tracks. Not just a few out-takes but an entire discs worth of extras because when I dug back into the archives I found some real treasure...

The money we raise will pay for mixing an 11 track bonus CD (the first one will remain as it was), mastering, new artwork with extensive liner notes about the making of Kontiki and the history of Cotton Mather, manufacturing, publicity and and if we go past the target a good ways- a vinyl pressing.

Kontiki has been a staple on the Pub from day one so I am thrilled at the prospect of an expanded edition release. Follow the link over to Kickstarter to watch the amusing promotional video Robert Harrison and friends put together.

Who knows, you may find yourself hitting the pledge button.

To my mind that would be the best money you could spend today... (unless you are buying medicine for a sick child or something... but in regards to spending on music this would be tops.)

Cheers!

Linus of Hollywood - A Girl That I Like

This is not really a review as much as it is a simple heads-up to folks. Linus of Hollywood has a new single out on ITunes. It is everything one could hope for from a LoH tune. Listen for it here on the Pub, and then go drop the 99 cents on it.

It's worth every penny and then some.