Kevin Lee / Celsi, Bragg & Maitland

Kevin Lee & The Kings-Sticks and Stones. Let it be known that Kevin Lee is a believer in truth in advertising. His site promises "big hooks & chunky guitars", and once again Lee delivers on his promise with Sticks & Stones. "To Tell the Truth", "How it Feels" is that you'll be "On Top of the World" by picking up this album, so you have "Nothing to Lose" by giving this one a listen. All of these tracks comprising the previous sentence have a strong classic rock DNA to them ("To Tell the Truth" is what you get when you look up "power ballad" in the dictionary), and if it had a cool video and came out in 1983, "Alone" would have been a megahit. So roll down the windows, crank up the stereo and let loose with Kevin Lee & The Kings.

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Celsi, Bragg & Maitland-The Road to Glasgow. To celebrate the 50th anniversary of the "Summer of Love" Anny Celsi, Nelson Bragg & Duncan Maitland, three artists well-known to the power pop community, decided to combine forces to tour the UK and record a few tracks on the side and The Road to Glasgow is the result. Celsi dominates the proceedings here, with her charming "The Second Summer of Love" opening the album and an excellent cover of Bob Dylan's "She Belongs to Me" both standouts. Maitland, whose Lullabies for the 21st Century was #2 on my best-of 2010 list, chimes in with "Heavenly Day", a track from his days in the band Picturehouse (as well as "Insect Under the Stone" from Lullabies for the 21st Century) and Bragg covers Paul Kelly's folk/rock classic "To Her Door". It's a fun collection from three high-quality artists and worth your listening time.

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Monday Roundup.

Kevin Lee & The Kings-Breakout. Kevin Lee is back. The classic rocker/power popper in the Cheap Trick mold has given his first full-length with his backing band after a 2010 EP and it - to put it simply - rocks. "Tell Me Why" is the kind of melodic rock with crunchy guitars that sold a lot of records in the 70s and 80s, and the title track has a Butch Walker kind of swagger to it. But while Lee can crank up the amps, he also has a way with the power ballad as "Outside Looking In" and "Hope in a Hopeless World" will have you holding up your metaphorical (or real) cigarette lighter. If those classic rock bands of the 70s and 80s still perk up your ears, you'll want to break out with Kevin Lee & company here.

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Hot Nun-Hot Hun. Also back is Jeff Shelton, whom you are accustomed to seeing release records as The Well Wishers. Hot Nun is a somewhat different project for Shelton, in which he teams up with Braden McGraw and the two (with help from the mysterious Nash T. Habit) put out a record that shows their shared love of 70s glam rock, not unlike what Valley Lodge did with 2009's Semester at Sea. Still whatever the genre, Shelton's irrepressible sense of melody comes through. Opening tracks "Brave New World" and "Thank You for That" will appeal to fans of Shelton's earlier band, Spinning Jennies, while "Spirit of 76" pays tribute to the type of music people like us love ("used to be on the radio/used to be on the stereo"). The topper here is their cover of David Bowie's "Queen Bitch", which is faithful down to Shelton's faux-English accent and is an enjoyable romp. Don't know if this is going to be a one-off for Shelton & Co., but I wouldn't mind seeing a Hot Nun II.

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EP Thursday.

After filibustering with lists and videos, it's time to break out some new music. Here are 3 EPs that recently came across my desk that are worth a listen:

Kevin Lee & The Kings-Dusk Till Dawn. Some of you may remember Lee from his 2006 solo effort Flip the Switch, and for those who don't, Lee is a classic rocker/power popper in the Cheap Trick mold and the new EP with his backing band gets us off to a nice 2010 start. Opener "The Other Side" takes no prisoners with its driving rock style and big hooks, "Next Best Thing" rocks with attitude, and if this were the 80s, the power ballad par excellence "Invisible" would launch a thousand cigarette lighters. Rock on!

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Dan Payson-Lewis-Hearts and Minds. Adam Merrin of The 88 brought this SoCal singer-songwriter to my attention and I'm glad he did. He does share a similar pop sensibility to Merrin and his band, and these four songs make quite an auspicious debut. I hear bits of everyone from David Mead to Coldplay in the mix, from the power poppin' opener "It's a Long Way Down" to the lovely title track ballad. It's always a cliche to include the phrase "can't wait for the full length" in an EP review, but it really applies for this one.

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Hearts And Minds

Michael Gross & The Statuettes-Impulse & Exports. Last summer Gross & his band put out the fine EP Dust & Daylight and together with this new EP, they've released the equivalent of one kick-ass full-length. If you liked Dust & Daylight, you'll love this one and Gross & Co. have further refined their heartland-rock-with-a-touch-of-Americana sound. The noirish "Keep Driving" sets the tone with its late-period Replacements rock style, and the moody yet urgent "On and On" is equally outstanding. And for those familiar with Gross and his earlier solo disc Tales From a Country Home, he offers up a full-band version of that disc's "No Good", and it's anything but. I can wait for a full-length if Gross & Co. are content to crank out a top-notch EP every six months or so.

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