Everything Feels Alright: The Promise Ring’s ‘Very Emergency’
The Promise Ring’s Very Emergency succeeds by subverting expectations but delivering ten nuggets of power pop and a rebuke of the emerging emo tropes.
power pop
Nada Surf Have a Good Time on ‘Moon Mirror’
Moon Mirror finds long-running power poppers Nada Surf relaxed and having fun with the same strong, catchy songs they’ve written for nearly 30 years.
New Album Takes the Lemon Twigs Into Pop’s Golden Years
The Lemon Twigs’ A Dream Is All We Know displays scholarly mastery of the complex techniques their forbears invented. The sheer musicality is prodigious.
Extra Arms Set Out to Own Summer with ‘Radar’
Detroit’s Extra Arms make power pop look easy on their catchy, energetic new record, Radar. It’s a half-hour of no-skips, life-affirming, and no-frills rock.
I Get So Mean Around This Scene: Joe Jackson’s ‘Look Sharp!’ at 45
With his 1979 debut album Look Sharp!, Joe Jackson joined the league of UK artists who fused sophisticated pop songwriting with a punk snarl.
American 1970s Power Poppers Go ‘Looking For the Magic’
Power pop has to have some punch. This can be manifested in different ways but is frequently through a hook-laden electric guitar line.
Pugwash’s Thomas Walsh Goes Solo in Beatlesque Pop Fashion
Pugwash mastermind Thomas Walsh excels at Beatlesque power pop, sounding like a cross between ELO and baroque-era Trash Can Sinatras.
Little Realities: Flat Mary Road’s Power Pop Breakthrough
Flat Mary Road break through with Little Realities and deliver jangly, hook-laden power-pop with a touch of Harry Chapin thrown in for good measure.
Charlie Kaplan’s ‘Country Life in America’ Is Delightful, Breezy Power Pop
The sophistication of Charlie Kaplan’s gorgeous LP is impressive and a reminder that sometimes the simplest, sincere gestures are the warmest and longest-lasting.
Teenage Fanclub on Life, Death, and Remaining Seated
The simple joys of writing songs and sharing them remain the driving forces for indie pop veterans Teenage Fanclub. Norman Blake and Raymond McGinley discuss.
Garage Popsters Bark Get ‘Loud’
Mississippi husband-and-wife duo Bark offer up power pop filtered through a hazy lens of distortion on Loud, their most fully realized work yet.
Man on Man Rock Out with Gay Love on ‘Provincetown’
Man on Man excel at delivering pop hooks in various ways across rock genres, and with ten tracks at 42 minutes, there’s plenty of playful joy on Provincetown.