"Pop Does Not Mean Popular: A Polite Introduction to Hussalonia (2004-2014)" (Hussalonia)

[$9 to Download // $12 for CD // https://hussalonia.bandcamp.com/album/pop-does-not-mean-popular-a-polite-introduction-to-hussalonia-2004-2014]

I'm not really sure what I was thinking going into this album.   It's a collection of songs that span ten years and I'm still not really sure whether the term "Hussalonia" refers to the artist name or the label that these songs appear on or perhaps in some weird way both.   None of that matters though, and neither does my preconceived notions going into this.    The fact is it threw me for a curve because it isn't pop in the traditional sense of the radio sound (Ummm... Let's say One Direction for right now) but yet it does have elements of pop to it.

There are many kinds of music that can be tagged as "pop".    This has pieces of them with it being a cross between pop rock and bedroom pop, but as it likes to point out- and something that I really never think about- is that in these instances "pop" is never in reference to "popular", which is how it is traditionally used in music.    When was the last time you actually heard a bedroom pop album that was popular?    Even, for all of his many wonders and delights (and as he comes out in these songs also), Elliott Fucking Smith himself isn't really all that popular still.

I suppose I thought that this album might take sounds of a different variety and mix them around to sound like what is considered to be popular music.  (see: hiyohiyoipseniyo)  These are beautifully crafted songs that remind me of an acoustic Weezer, Buddy Holly, Bruce Springsteen, Lou Reed or something from Happy Happy Birthday To Me Records.   The fact that these songs can stay so off the radar for all of these years (and I'm just hearing about them now) does prove the title correct.

It's strange to think that your music can be catchy and all of the things you think of when you consider what the term "pop" represents musically, and yet they can just seemingly go by unnoticed.   And it's not just this-- there is so much more.    It's everything, man.    Should we be renaming bedroom pop to something else?   I'm not sure who to contact about that, but these songs are magnificent and I think we should spread them around so as to try and prove the title wrong: let's make them popular.

Hannah Epperson "BURN"

[$5 CAD to Download // $15 CAD for 7" Vinyl // https://hannahepperson.bandcamp.com/album/burn]

I've been trying as much as I can in recent months- and really it was most of my mantra for the end of 2014 going into 2015- to not compare artists with other artists in a negative way.   This is simply to say that I no longer wish to say: "This sounds like <fill in the blank> only better!" because it's kind of that belief of putting someone else down to pick yourself up.    (Though I'm technically not picking *myself* up, just the other artist who sounds how I would like the first, not as good artist to sound)

These two songs from Hannah Epperson begin with beats, strings and an overall mix of electronic pop rock that musically has the makings of something like Gotye.     As strings are delicately plucked in the second song you can hear this as well.    It's very easy to please the ears with these intricate wonders of music on both of these songs.   I've listened to this through at least once trying to focus only on the music and pretend that the vocals do not exist (I sometimes wish I had the technology to pull the vocals out in some sort of music program way) and it is just fascinating to hear the many layers at work here.

On one hand, you have earth-shattering beats that make you believe this could be some sort of hip hop, and yet the style and grace of something classical in the string sense.   Now just imagine the stereotypical person who you would think of as liking classical music (snooty) meeting the stereotypical person who you would think of as liking hip hop (gangsta)   They seem so different, but when these two sounds clash on "BURN" it creates an all new form of beauty.

As you stop picking apart the music, listening for the various levels on which it operates, you do realize that, yes, this does indeed have some beautiful female vocals singing over it as well.    It reminds me of the first time that I heard Polly Scattergood or Kimbra, but back to what I was saying in the first paragraph-- one song particularly stuck out to me when listening to this and that was the theme song to the Netflix original series "Orange Is The New Black".    Of course that song, easily searchable for the artist behind it, is a song that I do enjoy because it gets stuck in my head when I binge watch OITNB but I am not a fan otherwise of her music.

Now I'll say something tired and cliche about how if that other artist sounded more like Hannah Epperson then I would certainly be listening to her as well.    But it doesn't really get much better than these two songs right here and regardless of what other artists you happen to like or dislike or maybe have just not heard of yet, "BURN" should be in your playlist if not your vinyl collection.

Boom! Bap! Pow! "So Heavy"

[https://soundcloud.com/boombappow/sets/so-heavy]

Somewhere between the dreamy rock of something out of the 1940's or 1950's (Think Buddy Holly era, but not) and the more recent ska revival of a band such as Save Ferris comes the music of Boom! Bap! Pow!.   The multi-instrumental songs with vocals that would make Gwen Stefani herself blush could be the soundtrack to a great spy film or simply contest with Jessica Hernandez & the Deltas.

How do you describe something that borrows from genres but doesn't have one of its own?   You can only say what it isn't, rather than what it is.   This isn't Shannon and the Clams.   It's not Save Ferris or No Doubt.    It's not quite doo-wop and it's not any of the pop acts from when songs like "Teen Angel" were first tearing up the radio waves.  (Though sometimes, yes, this does sound like the soundtrack to "Cry Baby")

As strange as it may sound, a song like "My World" can also pull out those hints of The Jackson 5 and, wow, the fact that a band can stay true to their own sound and yet cross these various genres just shows you how incredibly talented they are musically.    This is just overly addicting.   I don't want to write about it.   I just want to listen to it.   You should be listening to it too.   Hear her belting that line out?   If that doesn't convince you then nothing will and you're not worth my time.

Crimson Calamity "All In The Cards"

[http://www.crimsoncalamitymusic.com/] 

Back when it was all the rage to sing songs about the President of the United States, there was a group called the Dixie Chicks who seemed to be rather outspoken and I do believe- though I'm not entirely sure why- I actually even watched their documentary "Shut Up and Sing".   Unlike those who took political sides with the Dixie Chicks, I chose not to like them because of their actual music because it just wasn't for me.    There was something that it seemed to lack and Crimson Calamity seems to find it on "All In The Cards".

The vocal patterns can remind of me Delta Dart, though this is more of a country feel overall.   It has some elements of pop mixed in as well because these songs both get stuck in my head and are fun to sing along with as they blast out of my speakers.  

These songs may or may not have a country comparison that I am simply unaware of due to my lack of country knowledge, but I don't like to think of it as sounding like anyone imparticular anyway.   These are songs that are delivered in enough harmony that they are easy on the ears.  Combine that with the fact that these ladies are singing about guns, playing cards and booze and you've got yourself a combination that I want to be a part of for sure.

You just have to imagine a time in the old west when a group of women would have walked into the saloon and asked to play cards.   The men would all have a good laugh, but when they flashed the cash they'd say deal 'em in.   When the men realized they'd been taken it'd be too late because the women are just quicker to draw their guns.   So then they all buy a beer and have a laugh together about it.  

That's one of the songs is about and maybe even the plot of that one movie about all the cowgirls (Was it called "Bad Girls"?)  Either way, even the most jaded of country fans would certainly find something to enjoy about this because it isn't as much country to me as it is a story being told in the old west.     If you can't appreciate that I don't know what to tell you because really it's just history.

Giant Claw "Soft Channel No. 1" [single] (Heligator Records)

[$1 to Download // https://heligatorrecords.bandcamp.com/album/soft-channel-no-1]

If you are not a fan of Giant Claw already then I feel rather badly for you because you must be missing out on some rather great music.   Most times, I like to put artists in genres that are general for any number of them.   Giant Claw, as proven on "Soft Channel No. 1", is just a genre within itself.    It's not "vaporwave" or "electronic" or "chillwave" or any of those things.    Giant Claw is its own genre.

Interestingly enough, the proceeds from this song will be donated to maintaining a library at the Malindza Refugee Camp in Swaziland, Africa.    You don't have to know anything else about that other than the fact that libraries are good and this music is good so show your support.   Most people within the United States have public libraries they can access for free so any way you can support a library- in my opinion- is a good cause.

      I would probably say you should put your money down for this even if the song was by a most horrible artist or at least someone I didn't enjoy.  But now you can hear great music while feeling like you're doing something good for humanity.    There is really no reason for you not to do this.

SBSR: Tape Runs Out "Friends / Flowers" (Ear to Ear Records)

[http://www.taperunsout.co.uk/ // http://www.eartoearrecords.com/]

<1> "Friends" -  We begin with quiet whirrs that seem to be building to something big.   Guitar notes like FNL now and we're going into full on dreampop/bliss mode.   There is a certain rhythm to this, as it is rock and post-punk and other sounds all combined.   The vocals are somewhat monotone and bass-filled.   They are complemented rather nicely by the backing of the female vocals, adding more of just sounds than words.    There is certainly a nice rhythm to this and I can't quite place what it sounds like in terms of other bands but that's okay.   It goes into this verse that ends with the line "I was not your friend" and the song just ends right there as well.   To say that it cuts off somewhat abruptly would be an understatement but I can pull out any number of cliches about leaving them wanting more and how less is more sometimes, etc. so I don't mind that it does that because then I usually just hit play again if I don't have it on repeat already.    I'm stuck between thinking of something from the 1980's or early 1990's to compare this with and then something more modern, like you would have heard on the radio within the past five or so years.    It's got me thinking Men Without Hats and The Killers, but neither of those seem fitting.   Perhaps the best compromise vocally at least is Interpol but even then you need to hear this song still.

<2> "Flowers" - Our second f-song begins with something like an audio clip and piano notes.  I can't tell if it's birds or people talking only sped up.    It's an interesting effect that Blue October might have used.   The drums come in next with the rest of the band but the drums still stick out the most here.    The words are a cross between singing and speaking, which brings my mind of musical influences back to Blue October again.    It's very solemn, very serious feeling.   When it kicks in I hear something between post-punk and shoegaze.   Is there a comparison point for this with another direct band?   Probably not.    The guitar note pattern cuts at me as the vocals hypnotize.   The background female vocals seem to be luring you to sleep, or at least furthering the hypnotic state this puts me in.    The music reminds me a bit of Thursday in that post-punk way but the vocals don't match it so it does create a rather unique sound.    It's slowing down, back to where we started and it has a definite FNL sound to it now.    I can't peg it down still, but these are two most excellent songs which will certainly lead to more awesomeness from Tape Runs Out.   I also feel like they might have been living up to their name at the end of this song here.

Pillow Talk "What We Should Have Said" (Animal Style Records)

[$4 to Download // https://pillowtalktn.bandcamp.com/album/what-we-should-have-said] 

"What We Should Have Said" begins with an instrumental song which is full of dreamy instrumental bliss and thundering bass.    The next four songs all have vocals and seem like traditional songs in that sense.    They at first reminded me of a cross between Blink 182 and The Beautiful Mistake, as I saw them as being somewhat post-rock, but I still couldn't quite put my finger on what this sounded like exactly.

I just knew that there was something in here that I was missing, that Pillow Talk had the sound of a band I had heard before but was simply overlooking for whatever reason.    And then as I played the name game it dawned on me.   I was drawn to The Early November for some reason, but this doesn't really sound like them but rather a band I saw play with them once-- Park.   Yeah, these songs pretty much sound like Park.   Is that good or bad?  I don't know, Park isn't making new music as far as I know and they could sound like something worse (like The Early November)

I enjoy how the song "Room" is about his bed being big enough for two, as it plays into that idea of the band name being Pillow Talk, but I'm not sure they're doing themselves any favors with the line "Everyone is the same and I am no exception".    While I agree with that on the whole of humanity too many other lazy writers will take it in reference to this music sounding like other music and they'll attribute it to a lack of originality. 

These aren't the worst five songs I've ever heard by a long shot and no matter how much I can hear Park coming through they're still not a complete clone of one of my all-time favorite bands.    Should Pillow Talk release a full length album one day (and I don't see why they wouldn't) I'd definitely be willing to listen to it as I feel that could be the push they need to really find their own sound and appear to me as something more than influences.

I overall just feel like Pillow Talk is a victim of circumstance.   Imagine you have a pet fish or something and when it's first born it's in a small fish bowl.   But as it grows, it needs a bigger fish bowl to accomedate it.   Well, I just feel like Pillow Talk has such a big and vast sound that five songs cannot do it justice and it needs to be spread out over maybe thirteen or fourteen songs to truly be appreciated.     Still, this isn't the worst EP I've ever heard and those maybe who don't share the same love/knowledge of Park as me will likely be blown away by it.