By Alan Haber – Pure Pop Radio
And now, a few more melodic Christmas goodies to add to your gift lists (another 11 are reviewed here). There are only five more shopping days until the big day, so you’d better get clicking…
Have a very Merry Christmas and a happy New Year, everyone. We’ll see you again in January, with the kind of reviews and articles you expect from the premier website covering the many moods of melodic pop music.
Dana Countryman and Matt Tyson, featuring Scott Bennett | “It’s Christmas Time” (2019)
Pure Pop Radio favorites Dana Countryman and Matt Tyson stir up a cheery, upbeat, non-alcoholic cocktail echoing the sounds of the Beach Boys, Jan and Dean, and Jeffrey Foskett–a joyous two minutes and forty-five seconds worth of catchy musical magic. With a rocking guitar solo played with “I Get Around” aplomb by Scott Bennett, this is Southern California pop under sunny holiday skies.
Where to Hear It and Get It: Bandcamp
Bearkat | A Very Bearkat Christmas (2019)
Aka Katy Pearson (Anchor & Bear), Bearkat’s richly drawn holiday collection, bringing together a pair of previously-released EPs–2012’s It’s Christmas Time and 2013’s A Winter Suite–and two new recordings, is an endearing survey of vocal harmony pop painted atop spare instrumentation and a whole lot of holiday heart.
Pearson’s sweet voice quietly dazzles, whether as a strong solo instrument or as elements within rich harmony stacks. Her songs paint a snowy, emotional portrait of holiday feelings, each one alive with lovely melodies.
Here is just one example, the banjo-driven, folky, harmony-laden, wintry wonder, “Snow”:
And here is another, a breathtaking, a cappella version of “Auld Lang Syne,” sung passionately by Pearson and her husband, Brian Bringelson, also from Anchor and Bear:
Where to Hear It and Get It: Bandcamp, Apple Music. Listen on Spotify
Zach Jones | “I’ll Be Home (Xmas Day)” b/w “Joy to the World” (2019)
Zach Jones paints his pair of holiday tunes with a quite different, yet catchy, soulful brush. The emotionally-cast, mid-tempo ballad “I’ll Be Home (Xmas Day)” and the slightly funky instrumental take on perennial carol “Joy to the World” are soulful pop gems. A wonderful holiday listening experience.
Where to Get It: CD Baby, Apple Music
Alan Haber’s Pure Pop Radio is the premiere website covering the melodic pop scene with in-depth reviews of new and reissued recordings, and a wide variety of features. We’ve been around since the first weekly Pure Pop Radio shows, which began broadcasting in 1995, and the 24-hour Pure Pop Radio station, which ended last August.
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ig Stir Records, helmed by good guy Rex Broome and good gal Christina Bulbenko from the Armoires, have set into motion a series of delicious digital singles with this double-sided wonder from the Corner Laughers’ Karla Kane, whose 2017 folk-pop solo album, King’s Daughters Home for Incurables, was a big spinner on Pure Pop Radio.
Fireking | Double Trouble Pop and rock meet each other head on in the music of Fireking. The group’s double album bristles with energetic, windblown guitar power and commanding melodies for a can’t miss experience. You can just hear the sweat pouring off the band as they deliver song after song–they’re invested in their material, and it shows. We’ve chosen five numbers for our rotation: “Built to last,” “A Sentimental Education,” “Contagious,” “(Untitled),” “So You Say You Lost Your Baby,” and “Power Pop Chords,” the last of which really says it all as the band stakes their claim in their bid to keep the spirit of power pop alive. Great stuff.
Zach Jones | Love What You Love From the very first song on this terrific album, it’s obvious that Zach Jones is a master of the art of bringing together various influences. The result is a punchy, giddy love for melody in every song, which is why we have added every song to our playlist. There’s a loving attention to detail, as genres swirl around each other to great effect, like in the wonderfully addictive “Away from You,” which mixes pure pop and easy soul for a verse-chorus construct that’s awfully hard to resist. Save for drums, percussion and strings, Jones plays every instrument, which puts him in the pilot seat as he showers his songs with lots of love. In addition to “Away from You,” we’re playing, in rotation, “Everything’s Fine,” “Hate What You Hate,” “Song in the Sunshine,” “In Love,” “Lucky One,” “Nothing’s Changed,” “Some Other Day,” “Little Light,” and “Out On the Town.” Lovely.
The Big Believe | Illuminate and Various Tracks From the southeast of the United Kingdom comes Amanda Thompson’s recording project, which boasts some really great pop songs that we’re thrilled to be able to play in rotation on Pure Pop Radio. We’ve added to our playlist two songs from the forthcoming album, Illuminate: the pretty title cut, and the pop/new wave hybrid, “Creatures.” We’re also playing three additional songs you’re sure to love: “Let’s Pretend We’re Spies,” another mighty catchy new wave/pop confection; and the equally new-wavey “Eternal Youth.” We look forward to more from Amanda Thompson and the Big Believe.
Tiny Rhymes | A Kinder History Buffalo, New York’s Tiny Rhymes, led by guitarist Sharon Mok, packs a lovely chamber pop punch on this wonderful EP, released just a few weeks ago. Guitars, cello, violin, percussion and trombone meet up with beautifully rendered vocals to deliver warm, pastel-tinted, heartfelt songs. Tiny Rhymes is a collective to watch. We are now playing, in rotation, “Arrows,” “Oh, Amaranta!,” and “Gold Mountain.” Gorgeous.
Summer Fiction | Himalaya Summer Fiction’s second album, following on four years from the group’s self-titled debut in 2011, is teeming with pure pop treasures. Lovely melodies, lovely vocals, and lovely everything else abound. We’ve added six songs, all made for group hugs and big smiles: the made-for-radio, Todd Rundgren-esque bouncy confection,” Dirty Blonde”; the straight-ahead, poppy “On and On”; the gentle, pretty “Lauren Lorraine”; the acoustic, folky “By My Side”; the also-radio-friendly and jangly “Perfume Paper”; and the gliding, melodic charmer, “Religion of Mine.” A classic platter.
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