POPBANG! RADIO
Kurt Baker
Rockin' For A Living
If somebody asks you "Hey... what is power pop?" just throw on this new album from Kurt Baker. "Rockin For A Living" consists of 8 brand new tracks along with two tracks from last year's awesome "Got It Covered".
Kurt writes early 80's inspired power pop that rocks with a current urgency that he and his band rock out. But it doesn't stop there... the Motownish "Think It Over" and the Stray Cats-like "Since You Been On My Mind" mix things up a bit.
Stand out tracks like "Don't Steal My Heart Away" and "Why You Gotta Lie" show a more mature but still rocking Mr. Baker from his days in The Leftovers. Plus, his cover of The Knack's "Let Me Out" quite possibly out kanck's the knack. Not an easy thing to do.
A sure thing at many folks Top 10 of 2012, do not let this album pass you buy. It especially sounds great on 12" Vinyl, which you can get here.
Awesome, awesome stuff."
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Popbang Radio's SINGLE OF THE WEEK...
Watershed "American Muscle/Sticky Bomb" Ohio's Watershed claims to be "Rock and Roll's Last Hope", and this may very well be the case. Their last album, "The Fifth Of July" is one of my favorite Top 20 albums of all time. It is killer to get some brand new music from the guys! The first single from the upcoming album, "American Muscle" is a bit of departure from their straight ahead melodic rock, and instead sounds more like a Ben Folds meets Jellyfish jam. Deep harmonies and a fun vibe lights up the songs semi-serious message. B-side "Sticky Bomb" is classic Watershed, with Colin Gawel's signature growl, and plenty of "Oh Yeah"s. A big time return for Watershed!
More new music on Popbang Radio...
The Original 7ven "Strawberry Lake" The band formally known as THE TIME has released the first album of new material in 21 years, and they haven't missed a beat. Why is this on Popbang Radio, you say? You thought The Time was a MPLS funk band from the 80's? One listen to "Strawberry Lake" will show you that this band gets melody, knows how to rock, and loves to party. Morris Day is at his coolest, and this goes down as one of the bands many high points in their 30+ year career. Very worth checking out!
Glen Campbell "There's No Me... Without You" Glen's follow up to the awesome "Meet Glen Campbell", "Ghost on the Canvas" is an awesome LP of power pop to finish off Glen's incredible career. Produced by one of the best producers today, Julian Raymond (Cheap Trick, Fastball), and guests like Rick Nielson (Cheap Trick), Jason Falkner and Roger Manning Jr (Jellyfish), Wendy Melvoin (The Revolution) and Brian Setzer (Stray Cats), Glen finishes off his recording career with this incredible track that begins with something that could have been a track on his former band, The Beach Boy's "Pet Sounds". Glen is an incredible guitar player, singer, and song writer. What a way to go out ... on top! Easily a Top 10 LP of the year.
The Dollyrots vs Bowling For Soup "High School Never Ends"/"Because I'm Awesome" These two bands have been touring for a while now, and obviously have a mutual admiration for each other. Understandable, because both bands are way above average in the rock dept. BFS takes a killer rock track and turns it up to 11, and The Dollyrot's make "High School Never Ends" sounds like a hit all over again. Expertly produced by Linus of Hollywood, and packaged with an autographed 7" vinyl makes this the coolest sing of the summer! You can get it here.
The Smithereens "Sorry" I have always appreciated The Smithereens. They have had some classic rock songs that have always had a melodic power pop tinge. I just never got super huge into them. I was always glad when they came on the radio because it was a lot better than most of the crap that radio played, but with this first single from their first album of all original material in years, "Sorry" makes me think I really should have gotten into them a LOT MORE! This track has simple lyrics (that is a good thing), and killer hook, and not only does it rock, but you KNOW it is The Smithereens! Probably one of their best singles ever, and unfortunately it will be ignored by almost everybody other than hardcore fans. That is a shame, because this is a HIT! Don't deny yourself from rocking out to a killer song from what is now a deeply under rated band. Long live The Smithereens!!
The Cars "Blue Tip" YES YES YES! The Cars are back, and sound awesome. I grew up diggin The Cars. They were one of those bands that I would be at the record store the day (morning) that their new record came out. The first single "Blue Tip" has a feeling of something that could have been on "Panorama", quirky... hooky. Ric Ocasek sounds great, Greg Hawkes has taken over bass while doing the keyboards, and Elliot Easton's signature guitar sound are all intact. What a huge welcome back to one of the greatest bands of all time!
Popfilter "Back Again" PAY ATTENTION good music fans. Popfilter is a band that you need to put on your radar! Wow, does this band get it! There hasn't been as impressive of a debut since perhaps Sugarbomb or The Argument. Bleu, Scott Simons (of The Argument) and the late Will Owsley kick in production efforts and play all over the album. Sound like an all star cast? It is! But what really shines is Popfilter's Chris Anderson and the seriously incredible songwriting and playing. The entire recipe for greatness is here... perfect songs, crisp professional production, and a passion for wonderful melody and hooks. This absolutely, 100%, positively does not suck! Awesome stuff, and a MUST HEAR for 2010!
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