Power Pop is a musical genre that still is going strong both on its own terms and as an influence on a wide variety of artists. You’re a power pop fan if you’ve worn out several vinyl 45s of Paperback Writer by The Beatles, or if you collect albums by Material Issue or The Plimsouls from the 80s and 90s, or if you’re listening to The Raspberries, Jellyfish, or Matthew Sweet, or even if you’re catching the latest artists in power pop, such as The Turnback or The Kik, at the annual International Pop Overthrow Festival shows. Power pop is a great genre that encompasses a fine range of sound and style. Here are the 12 most interesting websites where everyone can get their power pop fix.
Pop Geek Heaven is the mother ship of power pop websites. It’s worth signing up for the (free) membership in order to listen to the regular Surprise Boxes of new music and wander through the many pages of power pop info. The site is run by Bruce Brodeen, who ran the well-loved pop record label Not Lame Recordings [notlame.com has archival info] from 1995-2010. He knows his stuff, and he’s willing to share.
International Pop Overthrow (IPO) organizer David Bash is considered a guru in many power pop circles. If you are in, or near, a town that is featuring the live performances of the International Pop Overthrow Festival: Go. It’s a great way to hear power pop as it is being written and played today. Also, every year the festival results in a fantastic three-CD recording of the artists, and you may want that, too. The IPO website has all of the current show info (as well as some archival material). Be sure to visit the IPO MySpace page in order to listen to the artists featured in the festival.
Aaron Kupferberg is thoroughly knowledgeable and up-to-date, and his site has plenty of interviews with current artists as well as discerning record reviews. Power Popaholic also has a page devoted to power pop radio stations with links.
Australia’s addition to power pop coverage, Peter covers new and classic music, and does a good job with both. He also makes sure we know about hidden gems such as “Australia’s 1970s kings of satin shirts and platform boots, Sherbet.”
Authored by veteran journalist Steve Simels (Stereo Review magazine, among others), and bloggers with the handles NYMary and Kid Charlemagne, PowerPop features longer reviews and articles with plenty to say. The blog benefits from the strength of Simels’s writing, as well as his long memory of the music business (you’ll love his stories about The Rolling Stones). His colleagues are also well worth reading and offer new music reviews.
Fully titled Ice Cream Man Power Pop and More (Ding Ding!), this cheerful blog from Sweden (in English) offers a mix of reviews and interviews covering power pop, mod, new wave, and more. A clean links list with thumbnail images can lead you far and wide in the music blogosphere if you want to go wandering.
“We’re more interested in posting music than telling you what to think about it.” Yet the lively, clever posts and embedded tracks they discuss indicate you’d be wise to consider Powerpopulist’s opinion on the power pop music scene.
It’s all about the love. “The blog has no commercial purpose and all the albums talked about are out of print vinyl LPs or really hard to find CDs. If any of these LPs have been reissued on CD, just post a comment and the albums will be removed right away from the blog.” Be sure to try the Flipcard format on this blog as an attractive way to zoom through the album covers and reviews by blogger Angelo.
Making the most of an efficient format, Steve Ferra packs in what you need to enjoy power pop. He has a music player widget, new music roundups, well-written reviews, and a very organized links list.
A blog from Germany, in English, that is full of thoughtful reviews and links, including a well-curated top-10 list and info on The Beatles Museum in Germany!
Tantalizing bits of English on this all-Japanese site inspired some research. It’s apparently the all power pop offshoot of a Japanese record label called This Time Records. The web page translation gave me, well, amusing results – I only recommend this site if you’re fluent in Japanese. But the bands featured were fascinating! And I didn’t know that The Wellingtons toured Japan this year.
A Guide to America’s Power Pop Underground 1975—1985. The opening page is charming, and has a functional radio blog widget that will get you listening right away. It’s a little hard to read the small type on this packed-solid website past the entry page, but if you’re wondering about an historical point of fact on a power pop album (and yes, the true fanatics will pin these down enthusiastically) then you’ll find the answer here.
Part of the fun of power pop is that it’s so inclusive: it’s a feeling more than a genre, and there are all types of related “sounds” that fit the description. If you’re in the mood to explore these sites and their links, you’ll fill up a playlist (or several!) and have music to enjoy for a good, long while.
What power pop websites do you enjoy?
Featured image ©Howie Green Gallery.
http://www.storify.com/downpourblue
Marlene Lipson is a writer and editor in New York City. Her arts and entertainment work often carries the handle Downpourblue, and you can follow her on Twitter @downpourblue or check out her posts on Storify at www.storify.com/downpourblue (and just starting off with Google+).
Thrilled with this list, Marlene, thank you. It's a genre in which I've dabbled somewhat, over the years, but would like to broaden my knowledge. From here, to these blogs, then onto Spotify I go this weekend.... :-)
Latest blog post: Thriving Or Just Surviving? Nurturing "Sparks"
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Not too humbly I comment and highlight your most highly-tuned sense of 'good stuff' with all things power pop(and listing one of my sites, Pop Geek Heaven, in yr top spot here - righteous!), I, almost, have to passionately applaud you for your excellent curating skills with finding high-quality sites and saving your readers a lot of time.....so much great info here!
12 Most is now properly bookmarked and you have a fan in Northern Colorado....Keep up w/ the most appreciated and good work, Marlene!
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Thank you for adding my site to your "12 Most.." list. I have only been blogging a very short time, I wasn't even sure I could do it, so, it is really a great honour to be placed amongst the sites I have been visiting, and inspired by, for a long time and have great respect for.
Very kind regards.
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Thanks so much, Marlene. I was inspired by NYMary to start my blog, helped hugely by Aaron K. and Steve F. in the early days, visit various of these blogs on a regular basis, and look forward to disporting myself at the ones now new to me.
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Thanks, Marlene, for puttin' my blog on your list. I'm both surprised and humbled. (I was going to say "shocked and stunned", but that phrase has already been used elsewhere: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OciPC27WBPM&t=6m3s.)
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Marlene - What an awesome 12Most. I have been a fan of powerpop for MANY years. I just signed up for Pop Geek Heaven. The two bands The Stompers and The Fools that are featured on the home page are from Boston - my home town. The Fools song, "Psycho Chicken" is a great take off of the Talking Heads song "Psycho Killer."
Another great pop band (only 1 album) from Boston are The Paley Brothers. Andy Paley went on to work with Brian Wilson.
BTW - One of my all-time fave power pop bands are The Shoes
