Johnny Monaco & The Happy Misnomer

Far be it from me to accuse an artist of excessive self-effacement. If, however, the two downloadables on Chicagoan Johnny Monaco's new album are any indication, the Enuff Z'Nuff guitarist/vocalist is at least flirting therewith. Overrated it is, overrated it is not. This pop is primo hooch. Is he perhaps merely affecting modesty? This intro is getting entirely too deep and philosophical and stuff, so let's let the ears have it. Listen and see/hear/feel/touch/taste for yourself. Thanks to Aaron at Powerpopaholic for the alert, insightful review, and additional sample.

Johnny Monaco - Overrated
The Wrong Crowd mp3
Overrated mp3

Around the Blogosphere: Shins, Jesus and Mary Chain, They Might Be Giants, Lucky Soul, Avril Lavigne, Neosupervital

The following are hosted items in which you might be interested. Thanks to the hosts.

The Shins - Taste Of Cindy (Jesus & Mary Chain cover) - extrawack!
The Jesus & Mary Chain - Taste Of Cindy - extrawack!
They Might Be Giants - Take Out The Trash - You Aint No Picasso
Lucky Soul - Get Outta Town! - Fluxblog
Avril Lavigne - Runaway - Fluxblog
Neosupervital - Rachel - mp3hugger

Ka-Twang!: Southern Bitch, Freebooting Profiteers, The Boggs, Bad Religion

I'm pretty much always happy to profit from enlightenment by noble Athenians and/or swashbuckling powerpoppers from the Leeds/Wakefield/Doncaster fleet, hence the first two twangerplunkers below. ("Supernatural" comes as a bit of free booty over at the FP MySpace site, so get yours over there post-haste and check out what I left behind.) Brooklyn's The Boggs I just stumbled onto at the generous AOL Spinner.com, while I came across the Bad Religion over at the superb Kingblind. Yassss, we're feeling a little raucous this early Saturday morn, but come on, it ain't exactly Lizzy Borden. Do I need to say that I like these songs very much? BTW, I apologize to any LB fans who Google their way here. This is not a bait and switch, so please don't ax my little thing, okley dokley? Thanks muchly.

Southern Bitch - Free Man Now mp3 (pic)
Freebooting Profiteers - Supernatural mp3
The Boggs - Little Windows mp3
Bad Religion - Stranger than Fiction mp3

Frifun: Like Young, Radio Dept., Go Find, Hudson Bell

Once again I must simply post the songs and run. As for keeping the intro to a minimum, I can say either "Sorry" or "You're welcome." Onward to the weekend. . .

The Like Young - Dead Eyes mp3
The Radio Dept. - A Window mp3
The Go Find - Dictionary mp3
Hudson Bell - Atlantis Nights mp3

Thanking Thor: Comas, My Teenage Stride, Love Dance, Ideal Free Distribution, Lucky Soul

Intimations have been given of my ardor for NY/NC's trippy The Comas a couple of times, and this song, just discovered at AOL's excellent Spinner.com, only makes the heart grow warmer. I like these other artists very much as well and have provided links to information and more songs by them. This might be a good time to say I try and provide such links for all artists I post.

The Comas - Come My Sunshine mp3
My Teenage Stride—To Live and Die In the Airport Lounge mp3
Love Dance - Stay Handsome! mp3 – Thanks to For the Eardrums, which has another by Love Dance.
Ideal Free Distribution - Apples And Oranges mp3
Lucky Soul – The Great Unwanted mp3 - Thanks to Pitchfork

Happy Humptag: People Noise, Deerhunter, Mother Hips, Fall-Outs, Veruca Salt

May this midweek experience bring you at least some of what you want.

People Noise - The Killing Fields mp3
Deerhunter - Like New mp3 - Thanks to the 'fork.
The Mother Hips - Time-Sick Son of a Grizzly Bear mp3
The Fall-Outs - Scarecrow mp3
Veruca Salt - So Weird mp3 (pic)

Around the Blogosphere: Shins, House of Love, Mary Timony Band, Golden Dogs

Snap 'em up quickly. Thanks, hosts!

The Shins – New Slang - Sixeyes
The House Of Love - Shine On - Chromewaves
The Mary Timony Band - Sharpshooter - You Aint No Picasso
The Golden Dogs - Construction Worker - Zeon’s Music Blog

Tunesday: Coco B's, Minders, My Orchard, Conversation Heart, Urge Overkill

Four highly pleasing new-to-me's and an old favorite from the early 90s. Sure, Urge Overkill knew they were cool, but come on, admit it, you did, too. Didn't you, hmmmm? Apos for the most egregious puntitle yet. (Sure, I could take it down, but wherefore?)

Coco B's - Sister Cold Caller mp3 - Thanks to 3hive, who have five (5) more by Coco B's.
The Minders - Accidental Joy mp3
My Orchard - A List of Things mp3
The Conversation Heart – Misery is Flattery mp3– Thanks to Gary at Seattle-Powerpop.
Urge Overkill - Sister Havana mp3 – Thanks to Chromewaves for the headsup.

Monday Mix: The Sounds, Ladytron, Emma Burgess, Maritime, Palomar

Let us kickstart the travailing part of the week with a mix of past and present. (Right, technically it's all past, good point, you.) I've been seeking links to the first couple for quite some time now and am almost incontinent with pleasure. The first three might not be chipper enough a beginning, but then, phoenix-like, we don garb and ascend in triumph, yada-yada, etc.

The Sounds - Song with a Mission mp3 (pic)
Ladytron - Destroy Everything You Touch mp3
Emma Burgess - Big Break mp3 - Thanks to AOL's Spin.com.
Maritime - Parade of Punk Rock T Shirts mp3
Palomar - You’re Keeping Us Up mp3

Cloudberry's Jingle Jangle Morning. . .

. . .noon, afternoon, night, whatever, promises satisfying sonics. The excellent Roque at the excellent Mira el Péndulo has started up a small label called Cloudberry, which is in the process of issuing nine 3-inch cd-r's from a multinational cast of jangleurs. Jangle, fuzz, power chords, Farfisa fun, voices ranging from hebetic to munchkinesque, deeply philosophical lyrics, all the standard stuff of le twee are here in delightful abundance. I'm posting five of my favorites, plus one by Liechtenstein I found by clicking links at the Cloudberry website. I left some behind in case you are in a mood adventurous. Tweest and sigh, people.

Slow Down Tallahassee - Candy mp3 - Sheffield, UK
Princess Niko - The Broken Paper-Heart Club mp3 - Kopervik, Rogaland, Norway
Zipper - Former Friends mp3 - Madrid, Spain
Horowitz - Popkids of the World Unite! mp3 - Stoke-on-Trent, UK
Stars in Coma - Revanche mp3 - Skåne, Sweden

Liechtenstein - Stalking Skills mp3 - Göteborg, Sweden

Great Northern, Coffinberrry, Sinister Turns, Ringo Deathstarr, Sister Vanilla

Please forgive if I just post these. I like them all very much, and you can find more information and songs by clicking the artists' names. Rightly doth Jesus neither know nor love me. I mean, look at this intro. (He might like the tunes, though.)

Great Northern - The Middle mp3 (pic)
Coffinberry - Cruise Control Psycho mp3
The Sinister Turns - The Last Time mp3
Ringo Deathstarr - Some Kind of Sad mp3
Sister Vanilla - Can't Stop the Rock mp3

Little Hits Faves - Part Dix

Well, well, here we are at the tenth installment of Little Hits Faves. I hope you’re enjoying the series. If so/not, please let me know. Comments and suggestions are always welcome and appreciated. Clicking below takes you to Little Hits. Clicking the blue Artist/Song Title there plays the tune. Onward to the weekend, and may it be a good one for you.

The Fall-Outs - Zombie
The Plunderers – I Didn’t Even See Them At All
The Wolfhounds – The Anti-Midas Touch
Dolly Mixture – Everything and More
The Tunes – She’s Mad

Parasol's Latest Scandifaves: Diamonds in the Rough, Motorpsycho, Shout Out Louds, Skywriter, Wired for Mono

Parasol's Jim Kelly comes through again with some mighty fine Scandifaves. These are my faves of his faves. You might find more of your own by clicking the word "Parasol."

Diamonds in the Rough - Spiders wma
Motorpsycho - Hyena wma

Shout Out Louds - Tonight I Have To Leave It wma
Skywriter - New York wma
Wired for Mono - No Straight Story wma - Four more dl's are at their MySpace site.

Around the Blogosphere: Superdrag, Fleetwood Mac, Jesus and Mary Chain, Seabear, Ladybug Transistor, Still Flyin'

As noted earlier this week, I'm determined to become less dilatory in pointing you toward songs I like that are hosted by other blogs. Why? Most of them don't stay linkably hosted/posted longer than one to two weeks, so time is of the essence. Therefore. . .

Superdrag - Relocate My Satellites - I Am Fuel You Are Friends
Fleetwood Mac - What Makes You Think You're The One - The Cropper - You might just want to stay there and get the next one.
Fleetwood Mac - Farmer's Daughter (Beach Boys cover) - The Cropper
The Jesus and Mary Chain - Upside Down (Demo Version) – Worthless Trash
Seabear - Libraries - mp3hugger
The Ladybug Transistor - Always on the Telephone - Optical Atlas
Still Flyin’ - Sticking My Head in Ice Water (Almost for Too Long) - Optical Atlas

Lab Partners

Ah, that special bond that exists between lab partners. How could I ever forget such partners as. . .the ones I had? And, oh, the sights, the sounds, the sulphuric acid splashing holes into new jeans (and young legs), the invigorating smell of hydrogen sulfide, I think it was called. All-in-all, I definitely prefer these proper-nouned Lab Partners. They hail from Dayton, Ohio, none has a two-word name longer than nine letters (proof: Mike Smith, Amy Smith, Mike Volk, Todd Carll), and Michael over at Reverb Records rightly surmised that because I had previously posted their song "Love Don't Care," I like them. He graciously sent and gave consent for me to post the title song from their forthcoming Keep Quiet EP, and guess what, I like it, too, very much. I hope you do, too, and if so, we become partners of a sort in a shared experience. Chemistry, man. . .And now, a few minutes later, excitement surges after finding the above pic at LP's MySpace site. Which are the LPs, which is Michael, and most importantly, which are the interns? Just kidding, although the interns are very important indeed. (I hope you don't mind my having fun with my blog because I kind of am.) I'm using my Secret Decoder to try and deconstruct the picture.

Lab Partners
Keep Quiet mp3
Love Don't Care mp3

Walker Kong Their Third

Minneapolis’s Walker Kong were one of my earliest posts. I’d gathered and loved “Battleship of Thieves” and “Executioner Song” from some favorite blog and was glad to be able to give them an early berth at mine. So inane is the intro I wrote back then that I’m not even going to link to it. Let us begin anew. They’ve been at it since 1998, first as a quintet (one man, four “musically untrained female friends” - their words, not mine) and gradually evolved into today’s septet. (I would like to congratulate myself on going back and excising several inanities. Except that one.) They rose to the top of the Twin Cities pop ladder and last month released their third full-length, the hitting-all-too-close-to-home,-well,-not-home-but-life-in-general-I-guess-titled Deliver Us From People. (I’m not a misanthrope, but, you know, dayum.) Okay, I give up. I love their music. (I bought a bunch more at eMusic.) They make me happy, and I get silly. The former’s their fault, the latter’s mine. And unlike in October, I now get to work every day with a guy from Two Harbors, so I’m just grooving and smiling with pleasure when he speaks. Just please listen. Walker Kong, I apologize. I cannot do you justice, but you can and do. (Thanks to Curt at Magic Marker Records for alerting me to the link to the newly available song.)

Walker Kong
Deliver Us From People - Andy Warhol & the Honey Bees mp3
Transparent Life - Battleship of Thieves mp3
There Goes the Sun - Executioner Song mp3

Monday Miscellany: Shins, Mason Proper, Coach and Four, Sprites, Monster Movie

And now a few available to all, from label sites, band sites, etc. Here's hoping your week is starting well.

The Shins - Australia mp3
Mason Proper - Miss Marylou Carreau mp3
The Coach and Four - Hello Destroyer mp3
Sprites - George Romero mp3
Monster Movie - Letting You Know mp3

Promise Kept: Saturna Burns

The word "excited" has been popping up here with regularity of late, and who's complaining? That's how I felt back in December when I first heard from Portland psych/pop/gazers Saturna, and it's enhanced by this promise kept. I grooved heartily to their EP . . .All Night, and lead vocalist/rhythm guitarist Ryan Carroll said he'd let me know when the full album was ready. It is and he has. And Some Delicious Enemy is a most tasty burner. Some groups come out blasting, lasering cortices with abandon. Saturna can do that but they also have that rare power of imperceptibly touching the kindling, gradually clouding you into slackjaw pleasure until you eventually realize, "Hmmm, I'm baking. Yo, foe, I got something for you here. Over easy, please." Delicious ain't just for the tongue.

Saturna - Some Delicious Enemy
Roll Down mp3
Fall mp3
Chasing the Unpredictable mp3

Seattle Standouts: Capillaries, Young Sportsmen, Upskirts, Cantona, Central Services

At a recent visit to the excellent Seattle-Powerpop, blogmeister Gary was previewing an upcoming Elvis Costello Cover Night, with several area bands topping the bill. Tracking them to their website and MySpace lairs turned up a raft of excellent songs. I'm posting one song each by several of the bands and suggest you check out what I left behind. You won't be disappointed. Just click on the band names to travel. An excellent song I recently posted by Central Services can be found here.

The Capillaries - Love Conquers Some mp3 (pic)
Young Sportsmen - Under the Rocks and Stars mp3
The Upskirts - Swallow mp3
Cantona - Black Light Picture mp3

Little Hits Faves - Part Neuf

Soooo, yeh, Friday, Little Hits Faves , let's do it. Great set this week, all personal faves for quite some time now. That's The Cavedogs song that first blew me away, or sucked me in, however you want to put it. (Sorry, Candyskins, no offense.) The one I posted earlier probably sounded suspect- great, but suspect- to you keen-eared ones because it was the single and this is the real deal, from the album. Oh, my God, Scruffy the Cat. What can I say except, I love you and miss you and repeatedly kick myself new ones for not buying all your stuff on CD (as I previously said about Game Theory's superb Lolita Nation as well). Plasticland I did get in CD but The Candyskins I've got on, gasp, cassette. Must transcend that soon. No pics, I can't deal with scruffy jealousy catfights right now. New to Little Hits Faves? Click each item below and then at Little Hits, click the blue Artist/Song Title. Complicated, but worth the challenge. Previous Little Hits Faves can be accessed by clicking that Labels thing down there. I don't because I can't say it enough: Thank you, Little Hits, for your incredible work.

The Cavedogs – Tayter Country
Scruffy the Cat – You Dirty Rat
Plasticland – In My Black and White
Game Theory – Like A Girl Jesus (Might as well grab The Loud Family while you're there.)
The Candyskins – She Blew Me Away

Fanatic Makes Nice in The Basement. . .Kind of Thing

Yeah, yeah, yeah, it's Friday, and Little Hits Faves are burnin' a hole in my queue, but the following just came in and I've gotta post them. Once A-GAIN, it's Mark Davis at Fanatic Promotion slingin' hot digitals my way, and who am I to say "no?" Right, nobody. The previously posted "Candy Wrapper," by San Francisco's The Makes Nice, is one of my very favorite songs of the year so far. The just received "Enough is Enough" is a bit more poppy but just as engaging, so am I complaining? Nnnno. Should I just send you to that earlier post or post "Candy Wrapper" again? (Fascinating, these internal Powerpopulist staff wrangles, yes?) Okay, both, because Heet has turned me on to some great stuff you might not have heard already and you should go to him anyway for some Dutch treat. For good measure, let's add another by The Makes Nice and a nice one by Irish band The Basement, also compliments of Fanatic. Phreakin' Chatty Cathy City here.

The Makes Nice
Enough is Enough mp3
Candy Wrapper mp3
California Sun mp3
The Basement - Close the Door mp3

The Sky Drops

Neither is wincing, but they're no lightweights. Not at all. There's a lode of magic here, and when The Sky Drops, I mine it. (Mixing metaphors is way fun, too.) TSD were one of my early posts and more than ever psych me good. I'm awfully glad I got on their emailing list because the first two below were waiting for me today. "Million" gets me very, very excited, and "Sentimental" steps close behind. I'll also repost a favorite from earlier and encourage you to follow links hither, thither, and yon. Thanks, Monika and Rob!

The Sky Drops
Million mp3
Sentimental mp3
Now Would Be mp3

The Saps'll Cure It

For some time now, The Blog Formerly Known As Team Clermont Comes a Cropper, and now simply as The Cropper, has been one of my favorites. Not only do they consistently post excellent music, but they've created a warm communal spirit I find quite groovy. I pointed visitors their way back in January to lend ear to "Hospital," a song by Chicagoans The Saps that really plunked my twanger. Now Jon of the Team has generously allowed me to link to it. If you've already got it, groovy, if you don't, you might check it out. BTW, I just learned the word "groovy" today. I like it a lot and apologize if I'm overusing it. Thank you, Team Clermont, very, very much.

The Saps - Hospital mp3

FanoFanatic 2: Bang Gang & Sleeping in the Aviary

It's a bit of a dodge calling this "FanoFanatic 2" because Mark Davis over at Fanatic Promotion has been sending highly listenable product to me and other bloggers on a steady basis of late, and I've repeatedly indulged. I've been a fan of Iceland's Bang Gang (weird how one little word reversal and we're into entirely different territory) since posting "Find What You Get" on the SXSW Big Bloc 4 extravagonzo back in February. I'm reposting that song, plus two recent arrivals. Sleeping in the Aviary hail from one of my favorite cities I've never been to, Madison, WI. Clever name, although I instinctively reach for protective gear, particularly if the birds are awake. "Pop Song" describes itself, and at this blog, that's good. "Another Girl" was good if iffy until that Kinksy riff at the 1:30 mark canceled reservations. Aha! I just noticed the FP blurb on SITA actually uses the word "spastic!" I knew it wasn't just me.

Bang Gang

Find What You Get mp3 - Thanks to spin.com.
Something Wrong mp3
It's Alright mp3

Sleeping in the Aviary

Pop Song mp3
Another Girl mp3

The Trolleyvox

Quite happy I was last week to hear from a representative of Philadelphia's The Trolleyvox, who sent me their third and latest full-length, The Trolleyvox Present The Karaoke Meltdowns. I had included some Trolleyvox songs downloaded from "some blog" last year on a faves cd and have enjoyed them hugely. The Trolleyvox make clever powerpop that, like Von Robinson and His Own Universe (featured here last Thursday) challenges the brain while soothing/stimulating the, um, soul? Anyway, I've got permish to post two Trolleyvox songs for up to a year, and it's high time we get with it. Clicking on the band and cd names will take you places you might want to go.

The Trolleyvox - The Trolleyvox Present The Karaoke Meltdowns
Just You Wait mp3
Whisper Down the Lane mp3

Ash Kicks

Many thanks to visitor "John" (hope I'm not blowing your cover, man/woman) for pointing me towards Downpatrick, Ireland's incredible Ash. I confess to having gone through a kind of dry spell in the mid-90s, when various obligations precluded the kind of intensive bandtracking necessary to bona fide musical obsession. Yes, I sinned, but fortunately old friends and new are constantly redirecting my ears to the paths of righteousness. Anyway, "John" sent me to Ash's MySpace site, where I found four superb downloadables, plus one streamer. I then checked out eMusic, where, alas, nada, but then hit the jackpot at iTunes Music Store. I only bought 16 right off, but I'll be going back for more. Ye who already know them know why; ye who don't are about to. I'll post two from the MySpace site, encourage you to go check out the rest, and then go buy.

Ash
Meltdown - Out of the Blue mp3
Trailer - Jack Names the Planets mp3

We're Back - Blonde Redhead, Elk City, Buffalo Tom, Louis

SNOW/APRIL/TEXAS-->BLACKOUT-->NO SUNDAY BLOGPOST<--SORRY

Barely operating again, hope you enjoy.

Blonde Redhead - Misery is a Butterfly mp3 (pic)
Elk City – Once And For All mp3
Buffalo Tom - Never Noticed mp3
Louis - Freak Show Revenge mp3

Baskervilles, Bellavista, Midnight Movies, Havana Guns, Idlewild, The Lines

You’ll find below recent encounters I very much like. Thanks especially to Peter at Coast is Clear and Morten at Hits in the Car. I’m indicating which items I found through them, along with links to hear and download more. As always, Peter and Morten have treasure troves of great music.

Baskervilles – Have You Seen Them? - Click on song title. Hear and download at site. (pic)
Bellavista – Temptation By Your Side mp3
Midnight Movies - Coral Den mp3- CIC
Havana Guns - The Snake (Demo) mp3- CIC
Idlewild - In Competition for the Worst Time mp3 - HITC
The Lines - Feeling Perfect mp3 – HITC

Little Hits Faves - Part Huit

It's Friday! Little Hits Faves Day! Hip, hip. . .well, maybe not hip, as such, but definitely cause for quickening of at least one pulse. Clicking the artist/song names below will take you to the appropriate Little Hits post where you can then hear/download the song by clicking on the blue Artist Name/Song Title. To check out all previous Little Hits Faves posts, click the "Labels: Little Hits Faves" thingy below.

The Moss Poles – One Summer
The Castells – Save a Chance
The Finders – Which Way
Zen – Bye Bye Heart
The Nelsons – I Don’t Mind

Von Robinson and His Own Universe

I do not pretend to omniscience when it comes to powerpop, indie, or any other life force. I’m learning all the time and trying to pass on the thimbleful I know to whomever wants to partake thereof. No doubt the cogniscenti could name several dozen artists who seamlessly combine “powerpop” with “ulism,” but this is one of the few I’ve come across who pull it off so well. Von Robinson suggested in an email that my blog and his music – which he characterizes as “socio-poli-indie-pop” - are more or less made for each other. One listen convinced me he’s right. True, I haven’t been particularly political here so far, nor do I plan to anytime soon. I am content to seduce and get you hooked on the hot tuneage before we begin to explore our vision of world conquest-cum-domination - of, by, and for the people, of course. These are the early days. There is time and plenty of it. Where was I? Oh, yes. They/he are called “Von Robinson and His Own Universe,” and he/they combine irresistible lyricism with thought-provoking lyrics (check the latter here). Thought-provoking powerpop. What a concept.

Von Robinson and His Own Universe - JOSTLE IT!#¢ EP
XXXtraordinary Rendition mp3
Satellites and Totem Poles mp3
Polaroid Lenses mp3

The Eames Era: "Could Be Anything" (video)

Love 'em. (Oops, emoting again. Note to self: Change blogname to "Poweremotist?")

Maunday Thursday: Dinosaur Jr, Peel, Lovekevins, Marlboro Chorus, Thrushes

Yeppers, very happy indeed to find another Dinosaur Jr. These others I like, too, otherwise, they wouldn't be here. Oops, there I go, emoting again.

Dinosaur Jr – We’re Not Alone mp3
Peel – Navy Waves mp3
The Lovekevins - Tamagotchi Freestyle mp3
The Marlboro Chorus - Love is in Love mp3
Thrushes - Heartbeats mp3

Pretense: Criteria, Asobi Seksu, CSS, All Girl Summer Fun Band, PAS/CAL

An incredibly dull intro was devolving and eventually got out of hand. Let's just listen, shall we? Retro Day. Oh, yeh, the picture: test your Indie Cred by distinguishing Criteria from Russian Circles. Clues provided.

Criteria - It Happens mp3
Asobi Seksu: Thursday mp3
CSS – Pretend We’re Dead (L7 Cover) mp3
All Girl Summer Fun Band - Video Game Heart mp3
PAS/CAL - What Happened To The Sands mp3

Tall Dwarfs, Of Montreal, Fields, Screaming Tea Party, Page France

Here are a few recent finds and one "oldie" I've been wanting to post ("Meet the Beatle"). Click the artist names for more, more, more. Happy Sunday, everybody.

Tall Dwarfs - Meet the Beatle mp3 (pic)
Of Montreal – No Conclusion mp3 - Thanks to the mighty Pitchfork.
Fields - If You Fail, We All Fail mp3
Screaming Tea Party - Death Egg mp3
Page France - Hat and Rabbit mp3 - Thanks to AOL's Spinner.com.

The Corner Laughers - Update

You could probably tell I was pretty darned excited Thursday to post a link to seven excellent downloadable songs by San Francisco's The Corner Laughers. In the meantime they've kindly sent me mp3s of two of my favorites and permission to post them. So here we go, and thanks again, Laughers. The original post is here, where you can still link to the other songs. You can also stream two additional songs at their MySpace site and purchase some here.

The Corner Laughers
Everybody Knows mp3
You Two Are The Ones mp3