Midweek roundup.

The Seldon Plan-Lost and Found and Lost. These tuneful Baltimore indie poppers are back with their third disc, and it may be their best yet. Calling to mind Nada Surf, The Happies and Matt Pond PA, The Seldon Plan is never short on melody, and "Fire in Day's Field" and the title track will demonstrate that for you right off the bat. Perhaps the track name that best encapsulates their upbeat pop sound is "Run, Go!", but they can also slow things down a bit and still come out with flying colors; the acoustic-based "Philadelphia and a Moment" and the moody "French Cinema" attest to this. Also make sure you check out the catchy "See a Word". Be glad you "found" this one.

CD Baby | MySpace | iTunes

Secret Pop Band-Pardon the Solar Interruption. We head down I-95 a short distance for our next band, Washington DC's Secret Pop Band. Given their name, I can't tell you (unless you have a security clearance) whether they've played Dick Cheney's undisclosed location, but I can let you in on the pop goodness of their debut disc, Pardon the Solar Interruption. Secret Pop Band is the newest outlet for the irrepressible J. Forte, whom many of you may know as the frontman of Ape House and who put out a solo disc of his own a couple of years back (titled - what else? - Secret Pop), and as Forte decided to form a band with the backing musicians from that disc, Secret Pop Band was formed. If you liked either of those discs, you'll want this one, and if you never heard of them (or him), you'll probably want it as well as they belt out one catchy number after another. "Your New England Winter", the breezy "Solar Interruption", and the Kinksian "Week Old Beer" are the highlights, but close behind is the rocking "Sunday's Hard Rock Falls" and the amusingly titled "Rachel Harmony". Give it a listen below.

CD Baby | MySpace | iTunes

New Seldon Plan on the way.

Baltimore's indie pop/rockers The Seldon Plan, a favorite on these pages, are getting ready to release their third disc next month. Titled Lost and Found and Lost, its title track is now available as a free download from their official site, and they also have a great deal ($5) on the new CD for a limited time.

Get it here.

What's playing at AbPow 9/18/07

If you notice to the left, I've changed the ipod picture to reflect my pickup of a new Nano. It's a great little player, but I just wish there were cases available for it already given my track record of manhandling iPods (I've broken 2 hard drive-based iPods by dropping them, so I vowed to go flash from here on out). Anyway, here are the last several played:

"Never Leave"-Dave Derby, Dave Derby and the Norfolk Downs. Outstanding singer-songwriter record from the one-time Dambuilder and current "musical director" for comedienne Sarah Silverman. MySpace | CD Baby

"Seraphim", "Poem for the Middle Class"-The Seldon Plan, The Collective Now. As you can maybe judge from those two titles (which came up consecutively on the iPod), The Seldon Plan is an indie pop band. A very good one, though - I really enjoyed their 2005 release Making Circles, and this one is sounding quite good, too, in a Nada Surf kind of way. MySpace | CD Baby

"Abilene"-Knit Delicate, Pressed. I've already mentioned this disc, but I want to reiterate that it's really, really good.

"Hallelujah Chorus"-The Nobility, The Mezzanine. I really love this track, and this is another disc I've come to enjoy immensely; think The Decembrists if Colin Meloy could sing and if they didn't go for baroque, or David Grahame if he were less Beatle-obsessed. Formerly known as Jetpack UK. MySpace | CD Baby

"Zzzzz...."-The Twilight, Tempest in a Teapot. It's funny that this came back-to-back with The Nobility, since The Twilight is a very similar indie pop band that has released an irresistible disc. MySpace | CD Baby

"Heart of Stone"-Cyclones, Walk Fast Head Down. After all of those indie poppers, it was a nice change of pace to hear a more straightforward power pop band, and the Cyclones deliver on that score. From 2005. CD Baby | Official Site