Friday, March 23, 2007

Friday's Power-Pop Half-Dozen

It started, at the end of last week, with these guys:

[mp3 - 3MB] The Lemonheads - Down About It
(from 1993's Come On Feel the Lemonheads)

I picked up that album cheap as chips from Goldmine and it jolted me into some sort of melodic guitar-bass-drums place. (Haven't heard the newest one yet but I'm sure it's decent.) This started me on a pile of more-or-less recent releases including

[mp3 - 4MB] Little Athletics - Run Run Faster
(from the Little Athletics EP)

It's a gorgeous clean Yeah Yeah Yeahs-style bit of rock-pop from Melbourne's own Little Athletics, who happen to be bouncing around tonight at the Blue Tile Lounge and Saturday night at The Tote. That polished sound led me to

[mp3 - 5MB] The Wellingtons - Goodbye Heartbreaker
(from For Friends in Far Away Places)

Another smooth piece of pop with harmonies and great riffs and energy, and a pretty fair trucker's key change. Both Little Athletics and The Wellingtons are just waiting for JJJ to grab them and propel them into the mainstream. As maybe has already happened to

[mp3 - 3MB] Motor Vehicle Sundown - At the Beach
(from the Motor Vehicle Sundown EP)

Distinctly Oz female-fronted guitar-pop from the fun Motor Vehicle Sundown. Which is only a little similar to

[mp3 - 6MB] The Vandas - Hours Away
(from the Didn't Come Here To Be Alone EP)

This is more country-tinged but they've still got the riffs and hooks - not to mention harmonies - of their powerish-poppy peers. That's the wonderful Vandas. And last, but not at all least is

[mp3 - 3MB] New Estate - Herge
(from Is It Real?)

If you only download one track today, make it this one. The new New Estate album, Is It Real? seems, after just a few listens, to be an absolute corker. This is power-pop done the Sonic Youth way and while that sounds like a big compliment for a young band, they do a great facsimile. It moves, it shakes, it spins, the lyrics mean nothing but no matter because the band are shouting "if I was you/ I wouldn't go there" and the dance floor in my head is telling me it's Friday.

Phew! That was my week. How was yours?

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