Fred Abbott - Serious Poke

The newest release of the London based label Lojinx is - and you can count this as an understatement - very VERY promising!
 
Serious Poke is the debut album from Fred Abbott:
The London based musician, until now best known as lead guitarist and keyboard player in the recently disbanded Noah And The Whale joined the band in 2009 and went on to huge success with that group, especially notable being his contribution to 2011‘s Platinum-selling and highly acclaimed Last Night On Earth. Abbott enlisted the help of his Noah And The Whale compadres and other friends for the recording of Serious Poke, with sessions taking place at West London’s British Grove Studios over the past year. The album was co-produced by Fred with Martin Hollis (Grinderman, The Rolling Stones and Take That). 

Abbott says, "If you attended a Noah And The Whale soundcheck at any time in the last five years then you probably heard me, Urby, Mike and Tom jamming some of these songs. Last year while the band was on hiatus I took the opportunity to record them properly, with the boys from NATW and some other talented friends. Now that Noah has officially split the time seems right to put this stuff out there. Enjoy!" 

Serious Poke is out now!

Listen here:

   

 

Marc Martel - Impersonator

Three years ago Marc Martel posted a video of a Queen cover on YouTube. I'm very sure he didn't expect at all what would happen after that:

10 million people watched the video.

He became the frontman at the official Queen Tribute Band (Queen Extravaganza) - chosen by Queen drummer Roger Taylor - and toured the world.

In 2013 he released his debut EP (Prelude EP), which was co-produced by Bleu and produced by John Fields.

Earlier in 2015 the full debut record was out (also produced by Fields):
Impersonator has become my personal best debut record in at least the last 5 years.
The record is filled with 12 songs and 47 minutes of pure intensity and passion for good music.

Yes, Freddie Mercury comparisons can't be denied. Listen to "Stalemate" or "Our Best" and get a picture of it. 
But please also listen to "Paradise" or "Say The Word". He is much more than a voice double. He is one of the most talented new artists out there.

Listen to the songs:

And yes - he does sound a whole lot like Freddie Mercury. But that's not bad at all! 

Official Website: marcmartelmusic.com

+ + + New Music - July 2015 + + +

Adam Levy - Naubinway

Naubinway - the first solo record of Minneapolis music legend Adam Levy (best known from The Honeydogs) - will be out in September 2015. 

Ben Folds - So There

Ben Folds teams uo with yMusic and will release his new album "So There" in September 2015. 
Interesting fact: there are only 8 tracks - and a 21 minute long orchestral piece ("Concerto For Piano and Orchestra").

 

Darwin Deez - Double Down

Darwin Deez is back. Yay! His third record "Double Down" is out September 18, 2015.
Listen to the first single "Kill your Attitude" here:


 
Fred Abbott - Serious Poke

The newest release of the London based label Lojinx looks - and you can count this as an understatement - very promising!
Serious Poke is the debut album from Fred Abbott (lead guitarist and keyboard player from Noah and the Whale). The record will be out July 24, 2015. Listen here:

   

Brandon Schott - Crayon & Angels

 

Brandon Schott's lateat record is out soon - a crowd funding campaign has started already:

Brandon says: "It was in a small two bedroom condo on Louise Street in Glendale, California that the story of Crayons & Angels began. In the healing shadow of a life changing illness I started writing and recording an album called Dandelion. That album featured music that ended up being little meditations, reflecting back on the immediate past of those years. 

But there were other songs that started to emerge at the same time. Songs that felt very different, that played through the darkness more like a celebration of spirit. They've been kicking around ever since, waiting for the right record to shine. These are the songs that inform the heart of Crayons & Angels. If Louise Street is where this album started, Kickstarter is where the record begins a new chapter. And this chapter is all yours. 

I'm so proud to be partnering with my dear friend Andrew Curry and our friends at Curry Cuts to bring this record to you. This is without question my most ambitious project to date, an 18 track record of songs that span the stylistic scope of my whole catalog. Working on this project was truly a celebration. 

And to get this one fully across the finish line we need YOUR help. Crayons & Angels is yours now. From the bottom of my heart, thank you SO much for all your support, love and friendship."

Bleu and Dennis "Eight Feet (Gabriel's Song)"

Mike Viola - Stairway To Paradise

Mike Viola is playing guitar in Ryan Adams’ band the Shining for almost a year now. 

In return the "Stairway To Paradise" 7″ (available on vinyl and digital) was produced and recorded by Adams. 

The title track is slightly different from what Mike has done before. It's darker, quite mysterious - but still with his well known ability for harmonies. "Roxxy Girl" and "Clink Glasses, Salud" prove he's again on top of his game. 

Side note: If you look at the song length you'll recognize that three of the four songs are just 60 to 100 seconds long. That's really short for a song, but regarding to Mikes' discography it's exactly the length of the best songs he's ever written.

Ryan Adams talks about Mike Vioa at Pax-AM: "Mike is a genius. His songs are pure genius. He records himself though sometimes and he ruins everything. So I made him come to my studio and just him and me made music under the name Defcon 4 ( which is a really funny story where I tried to be friends with him for 4 FUCKING YEARS and he never really wrote back so I wrote him a mean email and he asked if we could please bring it down to Defcon 4 please… now we are true bros )…. Anyway he is a genius and I basically make him make stuff really quickly and not think about it.

When you do that to him he breaks your heart. Fuck you, Mike. You’re so smart you asshole. I love you.

These tracks are assorted, a few from the first session we ever did together and a few from the concept record “I’m Going To Kill You” that Mike is making about going back in time and hunting his own self."

Buy it at Pax-AM or mikeviola.com

The One And Only ... PPL MVR (Update - EP out now - with stream)

Watch out, here they come: The One and Only PPL MVR.

Here are the facts:

Origin: unknown

Species: unknown

Intention: unknown

Trademarks: Yelp as loud as possible, karate kicks and Rock 'n' Roll!

There's very little known about them, but one thing is quite clear: they rock!

Buy the EP at iTunes HERE!

I will try to get an interview with them, but it MAY be quite difficult. We'll see!

www.pplmvr.co

+ + + New music - April 2015 (Nick Piunti, Ben Lee, Kelly Jones, Timmy Sean, Air Traffic Controller) + + +

Nick Piunti - Beyond The Static

This is the fantastic new record from Nick Piunti - out on Bandcamp (digital, CD) HERE.

 

Air Traffic Controller - People Watching

Air Traffic Controller are back with the new song "People Watching" - the full record is coming soon.

 

Timmy Sean - Songs of the week

From Timmy Sean: "52 NEW SONGS! Every week in 2015, I will be releasing a previously unheard Timmy Sean track! Expect brand new songs, songs that I've had half finished for years, some covers, some live recordings, and some new versions of old songs that I wrote for LUZER way back in the mid-00's. But they've all never seen the light of day until now."

Judging from what's already out - this is a great project!

 

Ben Lee - Big Love

 

Kelly Jones - Heaven's On Fire (Kiss Cover)

 

The Honeydogs - 10.000 Years

10.000 Years is a concept album. And it's one of those rare concept albums you won't just pretend to be impressed by its topic and its statements, listen to it once and put it in your shelf - where it will be covered by dust for years. 

No, it's one of these records you will play once, be really impressed - and next you'll recognize you have it in constant rotation and reading the lyrics in the booklet very carefully.

And 10.000 Years is also one of the best records of sophisticated pop music you will ever listen to.

The Honeydogs - which were founded about ten years before as a Country Rock band - convince with a musical width across many musical genres, e.g. Retro-Pop, Samba, Blues-Rock, Folk or Oriental - you have to be careful not to get dizzy.

10.000 Years tells two futuristic stories loosely bound together. Topics go from end time wars, genocide to genetic test-tube modification. The fact that these fictitious stories are not so different from what happened in World War II up to current events and evil in our world makes it so deeply immersive. 

Adam Levy (founder, songwriter and vocalist of the band) studied the Holocaust for years, was a cultural anthropology major and also a social worker. His research and experiences result in this record. 

The big difference of 10.000 Years to other concept records is that every song stands rightly on its own even without the concept and the lyrics. And that is where you should stop reading and start to listen to the record. Do yourself a favor and take the time to listen to it in its entirety:

 

P.S.: 10.000 Years will get a release on vinyl in June 2015.  Stay tuned!

+ + + New Music - March 2015 + + +

Tracy Bonham - Wax & Gold

The very successful pledge music campaign for the newest record of Mrs. Bonham is over. The album Wax & Gold will have an official release likely later this year.
More at pledgemusic.com

Ben Lee - Love Is The Great Rebellion

After many years being an independent artist Ben Lee got a major record deal and has signed to Warner Bros Records. The new record Love is the Great Rebellion is out June 2, 2015, the first single Big Love will be released on Record Store Day (April 18, 2015).

More HERE.

The Lilac Time - No Sad Songs

A prose-poem, which Stephen Duffy composed especially for the release of the new and ninth album by his band The Lilac Time, contains the lines: "I was a flower child, now I'm a flower man." It took a long time before one became the other. When viewed from space, Stephen Duffy's path may well appear labyrinthine, filled with loopholes and trapdoors. Yet a sober perspective reveals path of a musician and poet who is independent in the very best sense of the word.

No Sad Songs is out April 03, 2015 on Tapete Records.

The Darkness - Last Of Our Kind

I know, this is not Power Pop at all - but I love it: The Darkness will release their fourth album June 6, 2015.

“Last of Our Kind is a collection of 10 magnificent songs that The Darkness are extremely proud of. It is the best rock album you will hear this year. It is the best rock album you will hear until next time The Darkness makes an album. I should know. I’m the singer.” – Justin Hawkins

Preorder it HERE.

Aqualung - 10 Futures

10 Futures is the latest album by Matt Hales - also known as Aqualung - and it's out now.

I was very sceptic about this record. About half of the songs are performed by guest vocalists, which is quite new to Aqualung. And the first single Tape 2 Tape shocked me the first time I listen to it quite a bit.

The thing is: this record is a grower. A huge grower. The 10 songs combine a wide range of genres into a surprisingly homogenous result. 

Stand-out tracks are hard to name. I recommend to start with: Tape 2 Tape, Eggshells, Be Beautiful, New Low, Hearts, To The Wonder (every single one of these songs would be worth it alone to buy the album).

A Mixtape from Ben Lee

This is good stuff! Most compilations have fillers or a varying quality of songs. This hasn't.

Start to listen to tracks 1, 2, 6, 9.

Ben says: "This album began as an exploration of songwriting. I decided to write songs for different voices, and invite these singers to perform them. My dear friend Sam Spiegel offered to produced the record I had conceptualized, and we began working on the collaboration in earnest in 1998. 

Over the next 6 or 7 years we continued to record intermittently. All kinds of wonderful musicians came by and offered their help with recording. I should have kept better notes during the sessions but I know you can hear Eric Gardner, James Valentine, Rusty Logsdon and Alfredo Ortiz amongst many others. I am grateful to everyone who played a part in these recordings, large or small, remembered or forgotten."