Saturday, November 19, 2011

Pugwash - In My Own Time (Rare Tracks #2)

Today's rare Power Pop gem comes to us courtesy of the ever creative Mr. Thomas Walsh of Pugwash. This collection is the second of several compilations of rare demos and acoustic tracks recently posted by Thomas on YouTube. How many of these terrific rare tracks will we get? Only Thomas knows. He's been publishing one or two tracks every day for the last month of so. I've loved checking every morning for unreleased Pugwash tracks. I particularly treasure the two unreleased out takes that never made official Pugwash albums. (Any more of these laying around Thomas?). There are also a handful of live radio show performances as well. One of them is a cover of the early Bee Gee's tune "In My Own Time" - a dead ringer for Revolver-era Beatles if every there was one. Great Version!

If you haven't purchased this years Pugwash release "The Olympus Sound", you better go ahead and do so. It's Pugwash so every track is filled with sweet Beatlesque melodic hooks. Along with Fountain's of Wayne's "Sky Full of Holes", this one is in the running for Power Pop release of the year! Enjoy this collection of rare tracks:

1 Heal Me - B-side of "Answers on a Postcard"
2 In My Own Time - Live Bee Gees cover
3 It Doesn't Matter - Out take from "The Olympus Sound"
4 Pedalo - Bonus track from "The Duckworth Lewis Method"
5 Low - Out take from "Eleven Modern Antiquities"
6 Take Me Away - Acoustic version
7 Sunrise Sunset - Demo
8 Home to Me - Alternate mix
9 Telephone Line - Acoustic ELO cover
10 Finer Things in Life - Demo
11 The Canon and the Bell - Early mix
12 This Could be Good - Acoustic version
13 Anchor - Dub mix
14 Song For You - Demo
15 15 Kilocycle Tone - Demo
16 Ram On - Acoustic Paul McCartney cover
17 Answers On a Postcard - Demo
18 There You Are - Acapella
19 Four Days - Demo
20 Inside the Gullet of the Pelican King - Unreleased instrumental
21 Mr. Blue Sky - Live ELO cover from "The Duckworth Lewis Method"
22 Fall Down - Acoustic version

Sunday, November 6, 2011

Mike Viola - Live Set from Boston

Mike Viola is touring in support of his new album "Electro de Perfecto". I'm really looking forward to catching his set - but the good news is that we have a sneak peek of the show courtesy of one of the readers of our blog. Its a high quality audience recording of Mike's recent show in Boston. Thanks so much for sending it on for everyone to enjoy. A great description of the set follows:

"I caught Mike Viola and band opening for Rachael Yamagata at the Brighton Music Hall, (formerly Harper’s Ferry) in Alston, Mass. on Oct.30. Great sound and a tight band (just MV with a bass player and drummer). Mike played most of the new album, Electro de Perfecto that night, though looking at the setlists posted on his blog he’s been mixing in more older songs at other gigs. With only a 45-50 minute opening slot he still found room to be himself….casually improvising here, encouraging a sing-along there, joking with the audience. Every band today, young or old, could learn a thing or two from Mike about how to entertain an audience-it's as if he walks into your living room, plugs in and asks what you want to hear! If you’re a MV fan and haven’t yet, definitely purchase his new album/cd…it’s vintage Mike, stripped down to a power trio format with the same quality songwriting MV fans have come to expect!"

1. Soundtrack of My Summer
2. El Mundo de Perfecto
3. Me and My Drinking
4. Field of Guns and Roses
5. Maybe, Maybe Not
6. Here's The Rub
7. Girly Worm
8. Let's Have a Baby
9. Chemical Night
10. Get You Back