What's playing at AbPow 9/6/07

Time to start a new feature here which might strike some as lame, but what the heck, it's my blog.

I'm going to try to at least once a day (which will probably mean once in a while when I get around to it) list the last 10 songs played on my iPod. Rather than some look into what my favorites are, the way I use my iPod almost exclusively is as thus: I have a 1000-1100 song playlist set on shuffle. This playlist is comprised of 200 tracks picked from my 21000+ song iTunes library at random, with the remaining 800-900 being albums I've added in the last two months or so. The purpose of this exercise is multifold: to give everyone a peek into a sample of my daily listening (to the extent anyone cares), and to bring out comments on discs I'm enjoying but otherwise might not blog about (or that I plan to blog about soon). So without further ado, here are the last 10 tracks that popped up on the pod:

"Instead"-Paul Starling, Ghost Waltz. I grabbed this mp3 off his site or somewhere - don't have the whole album (if someone wants to send it to me, I won't complain). RIYL: The Now People, Nelson Bragg, The Wondermints, Brian Wilson, etc. MySpace

"Outerspace"-The Millions, Disrespectfully Yours. These guys rock hard but very melodically; they're probably about as "heavy" as I'm going to listen to on a regular basis. CD Baby | MySpace

"Believe In Me"-Rooney, Calling The World. These guys are major-label types I usually don't write about, which isn't to say they aren't any good. I've enjoyed several songs from this album, especially the ELO-ish "Don't Come Around Again".

"Nightfall at Electric Park"-Great Lakes Myth Society, Compass Rose Bouquet. I only just added this one to the rotation, so I'm not ready to offer up an informed opinion. Indie pop/rock that sounds quite melodic though - Pitchfork deigned to give it a 6.5. eMusic

"Another Losing Season"-John P. Strohm, Everyday Life.

"Getaway"-Ryan Calhoun, What Are We Doing Here.

"Rollerskaters In The Park"-The Afternoons, Baby, You Know The Deal. Melodic Welsh band whose Rocket Summer was a fine 2005 release. This "new" disc is kind of a combo of Rocket Summer and some other tracks. MySpace

"I've Got Love"-The Twilight, Tempest in a Teapot. A really good indie pop disc that warrants further investigation. CD Baby | MySpace

"Miss You CA"-Dean Owens, Whisky Hearts.

"My Friend Hates Me"-P.Hux, Kiss The Monster. The latest from the Huxster. This is another random mp3 I got off his myspace back before that myspace mp3 thingy was shut down. Again, if he wants to send me a copy, I'll review it. :)

Well, this took a bit longer than I thought it would. But I'll try it again tomorrow.

A few eMus.

Still getting my sea legs here, I plan on having another "blurb-o-rama" in the next day or two, and perhaps a CD of the Day or two. In the meantime, things remain pretty quiet on the power pop front at eMusic, but there are a few releases to note.

The latest from Aussie powerpopper Danny McDonald, Summer City, has been added. Sez Bruce at Not Lame: "As with the best of Australian Power Pop, Fans of DM3 and The Chevelles will want to check out McDonald closely. For fans of shimmery guitar pop, hooks and ringing chords...they are all here. Add some surf, garage and earthy country yearnings in the fully framed picture of what Australia Pop is all about, you have Danny McDonald".

Helpful reader Mike pointed out in comments to the last post that the John P. Strohm disc, Everyday Life, is on eMu as well, so in case you didn't see the comment, I figured I'd mention it in a post.

I also neglected to mention that the new Josh Rouse disc, Country Mouse City House, is on there too. While nobody was a bigger fan of Rouse through his 2005 release Nashville than myself, I found last year's Subtitulo to be a disappointment, and while the new one is better, it doesn't quite measure up to his brilliant run of Under Cold Blue Stars/1972/Nashville. But you can judge for yourself.

Finally, although he isn't power pop, I've always had a soft spot for Al Stewart, and his 2005 release A Beach Full of Shells is now on the site as well. Like new discs from many other artists who were big decades ago, it's a latter-day release that has its moments but doesn't rank with his best.

We're back!

Didn't plan on 2+ weeks of blogging inactivity, but things have been quite a bit chaotic for me recently, on many levels. Anyway, to play catch-up, I've going to mention a bunch of discs that caught my fancy in the meantime (or just before) in a "blurb-o-rama"-type fashion (apologies to the Power of Pop guys), along with some other tidbits.

First of all, one reason I haven't at least had an eMusic "filler"-type post up in this period is that they really haven't added anything compelling from a power pop perspective lately, save for the new Crowded House disc, Time on Earth.

Now, on to the discs:

Adam Bernstein-Dust Off The Timeless Night. Great singer-songwriter pop, with great melodies and thoughtful lyrics. Somewhere in between Mead/Rouse/Johnston, Ben Folds (more in the manner of sensibility rather than piano) Steven Mark, Paul Schneider and Joe Ongie. Highlight track: "The Poets of Avarice". This one has serious year-end list potential. CD Baby | iTunes

John P. Strohm-Everyday Life. The ex-Lemonheads guitarist/drummer and entertainment-lawyer-by-day has an excellent, midtempo batch of tunes here with hooks galore and a wry outlook on life. Highlight: "Waiting for the World to End". Kool Kat | MySpace

Knit Delicate-Pressed. I could make a joke about the fabric of their sound, or how they weave great tune after great tune, but I won't pull that thread. Instead, I'll just tell you that his Milwaukee band has come out of left field with a disc full of rocking, melodic tunes with a just a hint of poppier alt-country (think Summerteeth-era Wilco, or Fight Songs-era Old 97s) that fits just right. Highlight: "Redline". CD Baby | MySpace

Mark Norris & The Backpedalers-Stranded Between Stations. The Buffalo News described this disc as "The Basement Tapes recorded with Ray Davies instead of Bob Dylan", and they do have something there. To me, it's quality roots rock that will appeal to fans of Walter Clevenger, Brian Jay Cline, and Bill Lloyd. Highlight: "To Old Relations". CD Baby | MySpace

Stepsonday-Little Light. Here's some excellent indie pop that puts melody before quirk or attitude. Think Nada Surf or The Shins, but a bit different. And all I can say is that "1234" is one of my favorite songs of the year. CD Baby (only $8!) | MySpace | eMusic

Third of Never-Moodring. If I told you there was a new band featuring members of The Grip Weeds and The Smithereens, and asked you to imagine their sound in your head, then you'd come up with Third of Never. A mix of classic rock, jangle, psych and power pop that won't surprise you, but won't disappoint either. This one's been on my iPod for a while, and isn't wearing out its welcome. Highlight Track: "DJ". (also features a nice cover of "Let My Love Open The Door") CD Baby | MySpace

Tom Caufield-Mystic Chords of Memory. Bruce at Not Lame featured this one last time out, and with good reason. There's something here for everyone, which kind of makes sense as this is a sampling of songs he's written over the years rather than for a single album. So you get a mix of regular power pop, singer/songwriter material, soft pop and roots rock, all in one disc. Plus, Brad Jones produced the title track. What more can you ask for? Highlight: "First Girl on the Moon". CD Baby