Kai Danzberg - Pop-Up Radio

Curtain opens, spotlights THIS gentleman named Kai Danzberg.
He makes Sublime Power Pop.
Kai's attention to detail is unmatched. He wears his influences like a badge of honor.
This album makes me feel so serene, and I Wanna Stay Home so I can listen to it.
All I Want Is Everything he's released, and That Is Why I'm Joining A Fan Club.
It's going to be a Brighter Day now.

Kai's latest work finally made it on vinyl! For fans of lush power pop, this is easily some of the best news in a long time.
He had a crowdfunding for a while, during which time I was unable to join in the fun. Thankfully, he got everything he needed to see this through.

RIYL: Jellyfish, The Beatles, paste & Plato, and everything in between.


Here We Go!

Drop in on his Facebook to say hello.

 

The Suir - Experiments With Animals

I heard a thunderous noise in the distance. I looked to the west of me, and could faintly make out the source. In Ames, Iowa, there exists a mighty beast who goes by the name of The Suir. 

Be warned.

I once thought about going to school in Ames. It was being tossed around for a while. I had this desire to become a veterinarian, and Ames is well-known for that. Like most young people, I poked at the idea so long, it never happened. I'm glad that I didn't fully pursue that, but I spent so much time on the campus, I became somewhat of a squatter for a bit. While hanging out on the fringe with the students least likely to become vets, I noticed that the music scene in that city was rippling like mad.

Flash forward to 2018. Ames still has a bustling scene. Along comes The Suir. They've got an EP.  It has 4 songs on it. Each of these 4 songs is worth checking out. You like riff-heavy alt-rock? I'm sure this will go over well. As of this writing, they were on tour in Europe. They've got a now-classic sound, bringing to mind heavy rock from the '90s, while twisting in their own brand of stoner-ish grooves. If Tool were to go on tour with Alice In Chains, The Suir would be a great fit in the lineup. These days, stoner rock bands are everywhere. The Suir seems to be working their way around that, bringing a certain percentage of alt-rock, slightly-70s retro vibes, and epic tunes, with a storehouse of heavy riffs and air raid siren vocals.

Experiments With Animals

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The Boxcar Suite - Further In And Father Out

Dayton, Ohio: The birthplace of modern aviation. When checking the facts in history, you'll see that the Wright Flyer was built and tested in Dayton, and the first actual flight was in North Carolina. The Wright Bros. bought some land in Dayton, and played around with stuff until they got the desired result. Things have been flying around for a while.

Dayton also hosts a number of high-soaring musical things. We've got a few Pixies being born, and while Guided By Voices, they turned up The Amps and started Swearing At Motorists from atop of Morella's Forest.

If we wanted to write a history lesson of the Dayton scene, it could be done.. another time...

Fast forward to 2018. The Boxcar Suite gets sniffed out from the Power Pop cauldron. They brewed up a concoction in the form of a new album called Further In And Farther Out. Their alt-sound remains, but it's more refined, less jangly, more twangly. Tim Pritchard and Co. receive transmissions from the past, while channeling some modern high-decibels. If we took a few parts Replacements, a large amount of '80s Paisley Underground, a few parts early Wilco, a little Jellyfish, some '90s alt-rock, throw in a few Burrito Bros. seasoning packets, all of the aforementioned's influences, mixed it all up into a slurry, and cooked it into a fine distillate, we've got an inkling of what The Boxcar Suite might be about.

In the grand scheme of things, Power Pop bands of this caliber are what all Power Pop bands should be when they use the tag Power Pop. The lighter tunes are nicely thought-out structures with intention of having a concise beginning, middle, and end. The harder rocking tunes are arena-shaking blasters with intention of getting you a speeding ticket when listening while driving.  

Things of note:

1. The guitar sound rules. Pritchard & crew's amp/pedal set-up is pretty good. It's nice and crispity crunchity with enough warmth to keep it just a few notches above the "standard temps".

2. When the whole band sings together, fuckin' magic happens. More tunes like this, please! Those big harmonies need to happen more often on one album.

3. The songwriting is the king of the band.

4. Previous albums are great, too, and share the same overall feel, although Further In And Farther Out has a nicely-aged patina to it.

You like your Power Pop a little tangy and twangy? 

Don't be a square this Summer. Scoop this up.

Oh hi, Ohio. Nice to see you again.

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