Jason Falkner and XTC fans meet... Barry O'Brien and Slumberjet

This little known Irish band is a terrific find for lovers of Jason Falkner, Pugwash and XTC. For the last several years Barry O'Brien has made guest appearances with Pugwash. He is a kindred spirit producing top flight Power Pop. In 2004, Barry released a four song EP entitled "Spark" that name-checked Pugwash, XTC, Jason Falkner and Elliot Smith. Every track is a winner on that EP, shining with great playing and great hooks. These tracks were released pretty widely and are freely available on Garageband and Stumble. I've collected them here for convenience

When I recently checked Myspace to see what Barry had been up to, I found his new band Slumberjet and two new tracks and they are excellent! To my ears the track "The Letter" sounds like a lost track from a Jason Falkner album. Try it out and let me know if you agree. I've looked long and hard, but there are the only six finished tracks available from this band as yet. I added a couple of low quality acoustic recordings I found to round out the collection.

According to their Myspace site, Slumberjet has finished recording their new CD. I can't wait to hear the rest of the album.

Do not miss this great new band!

The Posies - Every Bitter Drop

For a band that has broken up more than a few times, the Posies have had a remarkably consistent and high quality output. I think that all of their albums feature creative melodies and great playing. The solo records from both Jon Auer and Ken Stringfellow are also well worth picking up.

Its been a while since the latest Posies release and of course it would be great to hear a new effort. Until then, here is a compilation of b-sides and tribute tracks . Its the first of a couple compilations that I'll post. I think this collection works pretty well in the order here. Be warned - it is heavy on cover songs. Auer and Stringfellow bring a lot in interpreting the work of others.

Many of these tracks were included in the long out of print Not Lame box set "At Least At Last" though I don't think all of them were included in that package.

Enjoy Every Bitter Drop

The Jon Brion Collection

Jon Brion has released precious little considering his influence in the Power Pop world. After his work with the Grays in 1994 it took seven years for his solo tour-de-force "Meaningless" to finally see the light of day. The rumors of that album preceded its actual release by several years. Individual tracks kept leaking out slowly on the Internet.

When it finally was officially released, Meaningless was indeed a masterpiece. A hand crafted set of originals and covers that showed how Jon's work been a critical part of the Gray's sound. In them, you also clearly heard his influence on the sound of Aimee Mann's first few solo
records.

Of course, Jon's career since that time has focused on high profile producing jobs (Fiona Apple, Rufus Wainwright, Kanye West...) as well as his extremely successful career in scoring films. In those films he has tantalized Power Pop fans by seeding a few great Jon Brion vocal tracks among the instrumental pieces. Great for faithful collectors, but frustrating for everyone else waiting for his next solo album.

As a stop gap, I've collected all of the vocal tracks so far from Jon's soundtrack efforts here along with a track each from a Queen Tribute album and a Hollies Tribute album. Please let me know if you know of something that I am missing. To pad out the collection, I've also included a solo performance that Jon did for KCRW.

Jon Brion - Strangest Times

This is great stuff and I think the collection hangs together well. For true Jon Brion collectors, there is very little new here. For the Power Pop fan new to Jon Brion's work, try these tunes and let me know what you think.

Peter Holsapple and Chris Stamey - Here and Now

In the 80s, the dB's were one of the best and most influential power pop groups on the scene. They released a round of classic CDs and then faded from view. They have made several attempts since then to rekindle the flame, each sputtering out after a few months.

Exciting news. Former dB's co-leaders Peter Holsapple and Chris Stamey are preparing a new album Here and Now and are performing a few dates in anticipation of its release.

Though I don't have much in the way of rare Stamey Holsapple material together, I did unearth a couple of rare compilations for each of them.

Chris Stamey - Alaska is a compilation of rare singles and an EP released during 1992 and 1993. I pulled these down from the Jeff Giles's classic Jefftoblog blog. As far as I can determine, these files are no longer available. Great stuff that I had not heard before. Highly recommended for Stamey lovers. Thanks Jeff!

After the dB's broke in the early 90s, Peter Holsapple joined the New Orleans based jangle rock super group, the Continental Drifters. Though Peter's then wife Susan Cowsill usually sang lead for the Drifters, Peter sang at least two or three songs on each of their three albums.

Peter Holsapple - Continental Drifter is a collection of the Continental Drifter songs that Peter sang lead on (with one ringer pulled from his solo album). Some great material here. I think "Too Little Too Late" is up there with the best of the later dB's material.

1981 Stands for Decibels

1982 Repercussion

1984 Like This

1987 The Sound of Music

1991 Mavericks (Holsapple and Stamey)

1993 Ride the Wild Tom Tom

1994 Paris Avenue

Millard Powers

This post is by request. It's the long out-of-print complete album by the co-leader of the Semantics, Millard Powers. I finally found the original way back in cold storage.

Initially issued as a virtual album on the original incantation of MP3.com, this album shows how critical Powers was to the sound of the Semantics - in addition to Will Owsley who we all know turned into a two hit Power Pop comet phenom. Both had classic (and somewhat similar) Power Pop voices

I've posted most of this before , intermixed with some of the demos for the Semantics album . Here is the complete posting with the original mp3s in the original order in all of their glory. This version includes Millard's solo redo of the Semantics classic "Jenny Won't Play Fair".

Enjoy.

...and Happy New Year!

Dada - Bonus Tracks and Rarities

I'm afraid I'm late with this one.... Here is a bonus track and rarities compilation from Dada. These LA based power poppers have released 8 CDs over the years. I'd describe their sound as slick California pop with a strong hint of electric blues. (They are often compared to the Police but I don't hear it). When they are great (and they often are), their hooks rank with the best. Their playing is loud, powerful with amazing harmonies. I recommend checking out each of their releases below. You can find used copies of most of them for cheap.

The tracks in this compilation were compiled from current Internet sources (Dada's website, and other bloggers...). I've also included some hard to find bonus tracks from the 2004 reissues of El Subliminoso and American Highway Flower. Those reissues had limited release and are hard to find now. I only came up with two of the seven extra tracks. (Trust me - you are going to want to hear Dada's version of California Dreamin' one of those extra tracks!) If anyone has the others, would you please enlighten the rest of us? I've also included several rare tracks from side project Butterfly Jones.

Several years ago, the Dada Enthusiast List did a better job on a rarities project like this - but the postings there appeared to have gone cold. Maybe one of you is out there...

Great band. Looking forward to their next release.

1992 Puzzle
1994 American Highway Flower
1996 El Subliminoso
1998 Dada
2001 Napalm Springs (Butterfly Jones - side project)
2004 How to Be Found
2005 Live: Official Bootleg
2006 A Friend of Pat Robertson (EP)

New Future Clouds and Radar

There is a new "Future Clouds and Radar" album scheduled for release in the upcoming weeks - and that's great news. Last year's self-titled album was a welcome return to form by Cotton Mather's lead singer Robert Harrison. In my opinion, it was a candidate for 2007's best release. Stellar Beatles influenced song filtered through a contemporary lens. What I've heard from the new album "Peoria" is just as great.

In honor of the upcoming release, I'm posting a collection of radio performances in support of the last album. Listen closely and hear Robert and the gang revision and repurpose some of the best material from the first release.

Can't wait to hear the new one....