pop music

I just learned about this video on the forums over at Macidol.



I love it. It's so simple and catchy and much less pretentious than Led Zeppelin's original version. All due respect to Zeppelin, but sometimes this sugary pop stuff is just what the doctor ordered.

Watching this got me thinking about how much I love power pop. It's simple really. It's all the energy and independence of punk rock without the politics and anger. It's as if The Sex Pistols were fronted by Buddy Holly.

There's so much incredible music out there that just goes undiscovered.

Like this one by Adorable.



It's hard to get a better shoegazer song than this. I mean listen to it. It's got the great pop lyrics, simple melody and wall of blurry guitars. It's brilliant. This is a genre that never really got it's due in the states. I blame Nirvana and that whole Seattle thing that happened in the early 90's. There were all these great bands coming out all over the place that had this incredible neo-psychedelia to them and they were drowned in a sea of flannel.

Take this one by The Pale Saints



It's simple and epic all at once. I remember the first time I heard it. I was with my friends driving to a Cure concert in 1992. It came on the radio and it just stopped me. This song still just does something to me. We stopped at the first record store we saw (which was probably a Pegasus records) and I bought the album.

Of course there are the masters of this blurry sound, The Jesus and Mary Chain.



These guys were from Scotland and there was another band from Scotland that was a huge deal to me. The Trashcan Sinatras.



This is one of the most lighthearted-relaxed-in-a-good-way songs I've ever heard. Granted, it's little more than wuss rock. The video is absolutley laughable now. Why are they in the rain? But let me tell you, if you were a kid into good music just for the sake of it being good music, when the Sinatras came out in 1990 you knew who they were. They were heir apparent to The Smiths, but of course they fizzled in the wake of grunge. Their third album wasn't even released in the states. It was a real shame. Another band that seemed posed to take the place of the Smiths stateside was James.



This is the first thing I ever heard by them. Their style of pop music mixed with lyrics that dealt largely with the singers struggles to come to some kind of reconciliation with god really mattered to me. It was easy for me to relate to the songs and I found a certain solace in that. I always did though. I always found things in music that I didn't find elsewhere. I suppose that is why music has always been such a big part of my life.

And lastly, how can I talk about the music of this time and not put this one on here. It's timeless. Lee Mavers is a genius. Have you heard this entire album? It's incredible. No two ways about it.