Late April Roundup.

Sofa City Sweetheart-Super(b) Exitos. Since we last checked in on Juan Antonio Lopez's Sofa City Sweetheart (looks at calendar, keeps flipping) in 2008, he's had a couple of sporadic releases in that time but Super(b) Exitos, his latest, is clearly his best and most cohesive effort since the debut EP. The frame of reference for his sound remains to me Elliott Smith at his most Beatlesque, and opener "The Same Old Song (You Were Always on My Mind)" has the kind of bouncy melody and ethereal vocals as Smith circa XO and the "la-la-la" refrain coupled with a nice guitar solo makes this track one of 2019's best to date. "Stanley Waited" is the kind of character miniature that the Kinks specialized in, and "Gwen" is another midtempo number which evokes Smith. Other standouts include lead single "Stop the Thinking" which channels Apples in Stereo, the bright pop of "In This Lifetime" and the lovely "Song for Alex". Lopez says in the release notes that the album is "his life's work" and the overall quality here reflects that and makes it a year-end list contender.

iTunes



The Top Boost-Dreaming EP. These guys from Vancouver caught my ear with their 2016 debut EP, and they've followed that up with three new tracks here that I'm calling an EP since it's not a single from an album (for the pedantic, they call it an EP on their Bandcamp page but iTunes refers to it as a single). The title track is a wonderful, jangly tune that features background vocals from - you guessed it - Roger Joseph Manning Jr, the man who's everywhere these days. "I'll Be There" is an old-school pop tune with a waltz signature, and "She Will Stay" is the most "power pop" of the three tracks. With only seven total tracks released in three years, they apparently value quality over quantity and when the EPs are this good, who am I to argue?

iTunes



Oscar Tango-Choice Morsels EP. No, this isn't a release from a dude named Oscar Tango, nor is it someone with the initials "O.T." using the NATO phonetic alphabet. Instead, it's four rocking tracks from Toronto's Ryan Farley that have a classic power pop sound. "London Station" has a catchy "but you can't get over that" chorus that recalls fellow Canadians Sloan, and "Harbour Lights" has a chorus that reminds me of Jay Ferguson's "Thunder Island" for some reason.

iTunes

EP-alooza!

Three high-quality EPs to check out:

Sofa City Sweetheart-Sofa City Sweetheart. Sofa City Sweetheart is LA's J. Lopez, and his self-titled debut EP is a melodic marvel. The sound here is reminiscent of John Lennon, Elliott Smith, Jon Brion and independent poppers like Plasticsoul and Adrian Whitehead. "Good News for Jackie" is right out of the Brion playbook, and "Maria" is pure pop bliss with a bridge that sends the song to another level. "Julia (We Never Wanted You)" sounds like Elliott Smith in his Beatles phase (think "Baby Britain", and the breezy melody of "Sunflowers" begs for the whistling break about 2/3 of the way through. "The Magic Umbrella" completes the EP with its own magical mystery tour of sounds. Look for this one high up the year-end EP list.

CD Baby | MySpace | Listen at iLike

Justin Kline-Six Songs. Back in 2006, a group called The Heartstring Band put out a quality EP titled Aurora Songs Vol. 1, which to my surprise upon looking back at this site's archives was never mentioned here. I'll correct that oversight now, and note that the frontman of that band was Justin Kline, who now has an EP of his own out, and it's a leap forward for him. This is one of those EPs that jumps out of your speakers and grabs you by the lapels (or shirt collar) - as soon as you hear the chorus of "All I Need", you know you're in for a ride full of pop goodness. "Heart Attack" brings Roger Joseph Manning Jr. to mind (Kline has a somewhat similar voice), and "How I Became The Wind" recalls Manning's band (Jellyfish) as well as the aforementioned Adrian Whitehead. The influence of Jeff Lynne is at work in "Kaledioscope", while "Singing in the Air" and "Sunshine" close things out with more flawless power pop. An outstanding solo debut.

"Heart Attack" mp3 | MySpace | Listen at Lala

Paul Spencer & The Maxines-Either Sunset or Sunrise. Rounding out our trip of primo EPs is another artist that I've been remiss to mention on this site: Paul Spencer & The Maxines. They've put out a couple of no-nonsense, hard-poppin' garagey discs, most notably last year's Cut The Jive. Here they take a sonic left turn as the EP is largely acoustic and Americana-influenced. One of the bands they've been compared is to the Replacements, and they compare opener "Whatever Forever and Ever" to the Mats' "Answering Machine". It does have that same acoustic-punk quality to it, while "Sunny Town for Shady People" has a Tex-Mex feel to the proceedings. "Clara Bow" is a real stunner - an ode to a 1920s silent film star complete with a tasteful string section. Spencer breaks out the Rickenbacker on "Hurry Up & Wait", a Latin-tinged number, and the EP closes with "The Man With The 30 Second Memory" a 1:16 ditty that leaves you wanting more.

CD Baby | MySpace