Extra Credit Price: $11.00 Artist: Brad Marino Description: Totally rockin’ solo debut full-length from the frontman/guitarist for The Connection and member of The New Trocaderos! Brad has spent the past year writing, recording, playing every instrument, and producing “Extra Credit” with a little “extra” help from his friend Kris Rodgers on the keys and mixing board. What you have is an album filled with tried and true rock n’ roll with hints of country, stabs of punk, and jolts of power pop, created in the garage. Featuring tunes like the power pop punk sweetness of “Broken Record Baby”, head boppin’ and fist raising of “Fit To Be Tied”, Mick Jagger swagger of “No One Else Tried It”, and the country hearted barroom twang of “What Comes Naturally”. “Pure, untainted, top shelf rock n’ roll.” – Audio Ammunition.com “Marino serves up a dynamic and breathless 11-song rock, pop and roll romp on his beat-driven solo album that finds him paying homage to a group once dubbed ‘England's Newest Hit Makers,’ Nick Lowe, Dave Edmunds, Elvis Costello and, well, Rockpile with the gloves on. The guitars are plugged in and raving, and, oh yeah, the guitars are plugged in and raving. It's that kind of album, about a minute and a half shy of a half-hour long, with most songs dressed in tight-fitting get-in-and get-out-before-they-overstay-their-welcome ensembles, which is as it should be. These songs take no prisoners and make no apologies. From the hit-the-road-running ‘Broken Clocks,’ a breakup song in which the girl's the bad guy and the breakneck-paced solo channels Chuck Berry, to ‘C'mon, C'mon, C'mon,’ about a girl who plays hard to get, Marino hits the mark with rockin' and rollin' spirited performances (he plays all of the instruments other than the keyboards, which were essayed by sometime Connectioner Kris Rodgers). The album comes to a close with a four-on-the-floor, there's-a-speed-limit? cover of Berry's ‘Bye Bye Johnny’. The record is this season's breathless hit platter. Cue the guitars and get that snare a-drummin'...Brad Marino's pumped and ready to rock, pop and roll.” – Alan Haber/Pure Pop Radio It’s all Rockpile meets the Ramones, Mick and Keef get into a tussle with the Flamin’ Groovies, The Knack gets all tangled up in blue… get the picture? We do, and we like it! ... read more » Quantity in Basket: none

Wild Heart Price: $13.00 Artist: Cassettes Description: Philadelphia’s Cassettes have described their debut album “Wild Heart” as their love letter to the FM era. “You know what, their ‘love letter’ description is absolutely spot on. This is great pop rock and I'm in far more familiar territory here. If Cassettes want to bring FM Power Pop back to the masses, I'm happy to carry a banner. ‘Wild Heart’ is beautifully produced and although I'm reminded of more current affairs like Somerdale and Vegas With Randolph, most will think more of Kenny Loggins and Rick Springfield. However this isn't straight AOR, it leans more towards Power Pop and the great pop rock albums of the mid-70's. The likes of John Miles, Pilot and Jigsaw spring more to mind. ‘The One’ is 100% Power Pop and wonderfully so and it's the Power Pop here that is most engaging. Songs like ‘She Get's What She Wants’, ‘I Wanna Know’ and ‘Mother Teresa’ stand up withanything in the genre, past or present. ‘One Million Guitars’ sounds like something off the ‘Footloose’ soundtrack, ‘Born In The 90's’ is great American teen and ‘American Movie’ reminds me of a popped up Tom Petty And The Heartbreakers. There's even a fantastic semi instrumental closer, ‘Huey Lewis And The Blues’ which rocks out like a good 'un, a sort of ‘Now 70's’. There's so much to like here and it's refreshing to hear Power Pop done so well by a band under the age of 50. The beauty is that this isn't pastiche, the songs are stand alone great. I can't recommend this record highly enough. It's poptastic!” – IDontHearASingle.com It sure is! GREAT!! ... read more » Quantity in Basket: none

Footnote Price: $8.00 Artist: Cloud Eleven Description: The master of gorgeous sonic landscapes is back!! “Footnote” is the new album by Cloud Eleven. “I guess you could say it's another dose of mid-fi, bedroom-psych-pop. I did everything myself on this one, only because I could. Footnote doesn't sound like a big studio production because it's not. It sounds like it was recorded at home in a spare bedroom with minimal acoustics, and that suits me fine. Cloud Eleven rarely perform live in concert. Cloud Eleven don't have hit records or a fan club. Cloud Eleven doesn't rock, and probably doesn't even roll. Cloud Eleven aren't hip or cool. Cloud Eleven doesn't make beats, but some of the lyrics do rhyme. Cloud Eleven have never been a buzz band of the month. Cloud Eleven records can't be found in most record stores, and rarely ever sell out of their first pressings. Cloud Eleven will most likely be remembered as a Footnote in musical history, and that's okay. I don't view the things above as negative, because Cloud Eleven is what it is. Cloud Eleven is my life's work and it's who I am as an artist. I make music for myself first, and if other people dig it, that's great. So, if you enjoy music that is gentle, melodic, poetic, psychedelic with a dash of melancholy and lots of harmonies, ‘Footnote’ might be your thing. ‘Footnote’ is my thing, and I stand by it. They way I see it, Cloud Eleven rules!” – Rick Gallego/Cloud Eleven You’re being way too modest Rick! Keep doing what you’re doing, because the true pop fans will always dig it!!! We’ll take a new Cloud Eleven release any day! GREAT!! ... read more » Quantity in Basket: none

And The Losers Choir Sings Price: $13.00 Artist: Colman Gota Description: A few years back, Colman Gota traveled to Kernersville NC to record with producer Mitch Easter and engineer John Pfiffner. The resulting album, 2017’s “Fear the Summer”, was an engaging record with catchy melodies and guitar hooks galore. Last year he was back in Kernersville cutting a new record with the same team. “Hey – if it ain’t broken, don’t fix it. Right? With ‘And The Loser’s Choir Sings’, Gota gives us another helping of really tasty guitar pop directly from the cornfields of Kernersville to your (turn) table. He wrote material for the album right up until the last minute, and it’s some of these final compositions that stand out most. The super catchy guitar line in ‘Catholic School’ and memorable chorus make this track a great start to the album. Similarly ‘Practice Room’ is an instant winner with its hooky chorus and ringing guitars. This one’s a lyrical gem, too. ‘Nothing lasts forever no matter how hard you try’. Indeed. That said, my favorite track here is ‘Victim of Society’. A slightly disjointed guitar intro catapults into the kind of totally infectious chorus that we’ve become accustomed to from Gota, and the backing vocals are perfect. This track reminds a little bit of the solo work of Chris Mars. For my money, this former Replacement recorded four records that were far more interesting than anything the legendary band ever did. ‘Victim of Society’ has a similar vibe.” – Rich Rossi/PowerPopNews GREAT!! ... read more » Quantity in Basket: none

Blessed Is The Boogie Price: $15.00 Artist: Datura4 Description: Fronted by Aussie legend Dom Mariani, who came to prominence on the music scene in the 80’s with legendary garage rock combo The Stems, and later went on to form revered power pop outfits DM3 and The Someloves, Datura4 is Mariani’s return to his blues and heads-down, full-tilt boogie roots. “Blessed Is The Boogie” is ten new songs that build on Datura4's guitars to infinity approach of 2016’s “Hairy Mountain” and the hard rocking, progressive blues and psychedelic stylings of 2015’s “Demon Blues”. “While the first two records had their feet stubbornly wedged in the mud of a rain-soaked Sunbury Festival paddock, ‘Blessed Is The Boogie’ dives into the back of a van and posts a ‘If it's rocking, don't bother knocking’ sign on the curtained back window and goes about its business. It's like the 1970’s grew up, started shaving and finally got some action. Welcome to Riff City, kid. Opener ‘Black Dog Keep Running’ is a money shot and it keeps going from there. A muscular riff, an off-in-the-distance vocal and a sure-footed beat nails this to the floor. Then it takes off on a flight of fancy dual lead guitars. The title track sums up things even better: A relentless boogie feel, greasy harmonica and guitars that roar. Blues rock par excellence. Greg Hitchcock was absent for the recordings, so Dom handled everything with six strings, but there's no diminution of crunch. He and bassist Stu Loabsby co-wrote the songs and they're keepers. This is stoner rock for people who aren't stoners. The psychedelic element is still there but it's less pronounced. This music gets down in the dirt, not up in the clouds. Some songs meander in the finest mid-70's tradition but never lose their way. The cool ‘Evil People Pt 2’, with its sultry organ rolls out underneath the mid-tempo feel and a singalong chorus chant while stabbing guitar licks punctuate the outro is a case in point. ‘Not For Me’ initially sounds like the son of a Died Pretty song - shades of ‘Nevermore’ - before finding its own feet on the back of some spritely guitar. It's a reminder that when great Aussie guitarists are mentioned, Dom is sorely underrated. The traded left-and-right channel guitar lines on ‘City Of Lights’ will tell you as much. If you're an Australian of a certain vintage (you grew up in the '60s and '70s) you'll recognize what's going on. It's Oz Rock. Blues-based, aggressively played stuff, hardened by exposure to beer barns full of three-sheets-to-the-wind punters. Datura4 deliver it without the fat or filler that many of the LPs back then used to pad things out. Boogie was the music punk was supposed to kill when it belatedly landed in Australia at the turn of the '70s. This record proves it dodged most of the bullets. The result is pleasurable. Feeling guilty? I am.” – i94Bar.com GREAT!! ... read more » Quantity in Basket: none

Scorpio Monologue Price: $12.00 Artist: David Brookings & the Average Lookings Description: David Brookings has been a part of the indie pop scene since releasing his first record in 2000 at the tender age of 21. “While David Brooking’s catalog contains several fine albums, ‘Scorpio Monologue’ stands head and shoulders above the rest. It deftly mixes his boyish voice with an often-powerful instrumental attack - a bit more ‘rock’ in places without any of the stereotypical wanking that term implies. This vibe is on full display on the leadoff cut, ‘And it Feels Like…’, which marries a jangly lead guitar riff to some insistent drums and a smokin’ lead guitar break. His cover of Bob Dylan’s ‘Girl From the North Country’ features more tasty, fluid lead guitar lines. David also channels his inner Chuck Berry on the pop-rockin’ raver ‘[She’s Mad at Me Again,’ while ‘That Girl’s Not Right’ gets its juice from some almost surf-styled guitar. Elsewhere: ‘I Grew Up Fast’ is pure power pop perfection; ‘Time Takes You By’ is very nearly a power ballad without any of the stereotypical ickiness that term implies; ‘Big Gun’ miscasts him as badass, albeit with a memorable melody attached; and the hilarious ‘Silicon Valley’ lampoons the denizens of that Northern California area in the most melodically pleasant manner possible. (‘Mortgages are outrageous/Don’t go to Oakland, it’s dangerous…People get in a panic/if you don’t eat organic.’) Brimming with many charms, ‘Scorpio Monologue’ is certain to occupy a place on my year-end top 10 list. Grade: A.” – John Borack/Goldmine Magazine GREAT!! ... read more » Quantity in Basket: none

It's Real Price: $15.00 Artist: Ex Hex Description: On their sophomore outing, Ex Hex's commitment to larger-than-life riffs and unforgettable hooks remains intact, but the garage, post-punk approach that defined their debut album “Rips” has grown in scale and ambition. What started as a reaction to the blown-out aesthetic of “Rips” would test the sonic limits of the power trio and lead the band on a quest for a more immersive and three-dimensional sound. Vocal harmonies are layered ten tracks deep, solos shimmer and modulate atop heaving power chords, and the codas linger and stretch toward new frontiers of sound. On first listen, you might think you've unearthed a long-lost LP carved from the space where crunch-minded art rock and glitter-covered hard rock converge, an event horizon at the intersection of towering choruses and swaggering guitars, resulting in an album that's ready to be played at maximum volume. “These DC punks edge into glam territory, as if their low-ceilinged dive bar is located on a space shuttle. Don your glittery outfits and get ready to mosh.; Like its predecessor, chorus lines are still written to be yelped at ear-splitting volumes, with the stereo cranked up to breaking point; lyrics are punchy, pointed and effective. Nods to psychedelic rock are numerous. ‘You’re like a rainbow/But not the same though,’ quips vocalist Mary Timony on ‘Rainbow Shiner’ – perhaps making a sly nod towards The Rolling Stones’ multi-coloured metaphors at the height of their trippy successes. While ‘Rips’ went in hard with a single mission – to push the potential of a guitar as far as possible – ‘It’s Real’ is happier to widen the experimental perimeters. Her vocals on swaying closer ‘Talk to Me’ have been ‘flanged’, and ‘Cosmic Cave’ is a slab of galactic garage rock - adding a playful new layer to their ultra-distinctive sound. This could’ve been an entirely different record without these diversions. Their sound is so distinctive that it’s also very tough to escape, but luckily the girls avoid stumbling into the trap of picking up where they left off – resulting instead, in a record that’s a bundle of collaborative fun.” – NME.com Imagine an edgier Bangles…. EXCELLENT!! ... read more » Quantity in Basket: none

Rips Price: $15.00 Artist: Ex Hex Description: The 2014 debut from this power trio from Washington, DC. Drums, bass, guitar, P90s, searing leads this is unapologetic rock 'n' roll spat out in the discipline's mother tongue. With Wild Flag on hiatus, Mary Timony (Autoclave, Helium) needed a new outlet, so she retreated to her basement and started writing. Mary found Laura Harris (The Aquarium, Benjy Ferree) and they hit it off immediately. In walked Betsy Wright from the wilds of Virginia. Betsy is a performer and an ace piano player, and before long, she was slinging a cherry Gibson SG as the band’s third member. To prepare for the occasion, Mary even got a new axe to shred - a 1977 Les Paul Special. The lead singer puts her retro instrument to great use throughout, which leans heavily - and mostly succeeds - on the merits of its rip-roaring riffs, huge hooks, and classic rock vibes. “It’s the record of the summer, albeit one that's arrived two months too late—a collection of perfectly lean power-pop tunes that evoke Tom Petty and the Runaways while conjuring the unruly energy of contemporary mid-fi bashers like Thee Oh Sees. This sounds fine on headphones or at home, but best enjoyed in the car where it’s possible to feel more perfectly tuned into the music’s steady velocity. The production is clean, but not polished, the performances are tight, and it doesn't sound like it was made in a hurry.” – Pitchfork.com “The simple lyrics, for the most part, deal with bad boys: cheaters, equivocators, and players. The record is the most fun and engaging when it’s calling out douchey guys on their shitty behavior. For fans of huge riffs - don’t be surprised to find yourself putting in some serious air guitar work!” – ConsequenceOfSound.net EXCELLENT!! ... read more » Quantity in Basket: none

If Not Now... Later Price: $10.00 Artist: Eytan Mirsky Description: Eytan’s seventh album has just arrived! “Since Eytan’s ‘Funny Money’ made the top 4 on this website’s best powerpop albums of 2016 list, the anticipation has been building for his new one. Here’s the good news. ‘If Not Now….Later’ is every bit as catchy, clever and engaging as its predecessor. ‘Lay Down Your Weapons’ works on so many levels I’m not sure where to start. It could be about disarmament, gun control or a personal nemesis. Whatever your perspective, it’s lyrically eloquent and melodic as hell. The uptempo bounce of ‘Discreet’ is just right for a song about a wannabe back door man. Little touches like the Motown riffs during the final verse make this one extra special. Fans of late career Nick Lowe will dig the mood of ‘When the Ship is Sinking’. The bluesy ‘Me In My Natural State’ has it all – with a Pat DiNizio-like croon and an arrangement that’s very Smithereens, this one’s a home run. And speaking of big hits, fans of baseball themed songs will dig ‘Last Game of the Season’. With ‘Funny Money’, he gave us what was perhaps the best feel good song of that year. In a similar vein he offers up the delightful ‘Lingerie Pillow Fight’. This one’s so catchy, and it puts the pop in power pop. Throw in a double entendre and it could pass for a Brill Building piece. Where I come from, that’s a compliment of the highest order. This is an OUTSTANDING record and my favorite listen of the year so far.” – Rich Rossi/PowerPopNews GREAT!! ... read more » Quantity in Basket: none

Moth To A Lamplight: A Tribute To Nada Surf Price: $11.00 Artist: Gretchen's Wheel Description: “Listening to this new collection, a tribute to rockers Nada Surf, with less-than-zero knowledge of the band or its songs, turns out to be the smartest move I've made in awhile. Going in blind, I was able to judge the songs on their own merits and I didn't have to play the ‘Which Version is Better?’ game. These are the only versions of eight of Nada Surf's songs I know. But as good as the songs are, and they are very good, I was mostly taken with Lindsay Murray's vocals and musicianship. Her ability to weave together harmony lines into living, breathing stacks of joy would be hard to beat under any circumstance. Throughout all of the songs she's tackled on this album, her vocals, lead and otherwise, shine like the brightest objects in the sky (and quite happily recall the vocal timbre of Aimee Mann). Her musicianship is stellar; her bass playing, especially, is inventive and serves the songs to a tee (she also plays the guitars and keyboards with aplomb). Nick Bertling plays the drums and provides the solid bottom end in his usual, top-flight way. These mostly upbeat songs live and breathe and come alive through a steady, deliberate mix of guitars, bass, drums and a smattering of keyboard flourishes. Top contenders for favedom here at Pure Pop Radio headquarters are the mid-to-fast-paced "See These Bones," sporting a mix of tempting rhythms and a tremendous vocal harmony performance, and the closing, acoustic "Rushing," in which Lindsay's lush harmony vocals and acoustic guitar take center stage to phenomenal effect; she ought to make this track her audio business card - sing to impress and all that. So, being new to Nada Surf, but not new to Gretchen's Wheel and the magic that Lindsay Murray employs to dazzle her listeners, turns out to be a recipe for time well spent.” – Alan Haber/PurePopRadio EXCELLENT!! ... read more » Quantity in Basket: none