Stratocruiser - 'Suburban Contemporary'

I guess I belong to the school of thought that says writing about music is like dancing about architecture - I find it quite difficult to describe music using 'mere' words ... though it might be easier if I just used a list of adjectives, rather than trying to construct actual sentences! Having said that, I'm also finding it tricky to describe so many powerpop albums without over-using buzz-words like 'hooky', 'catchy', 'melodic' etc. Maybe the answer is to simply recommend each album and leave folks to go listen for themselves and decide what it sounds like!

Anyway, today's choice is, ah, yep, catchy stuff. I'd say it's a powerpop staple: if you collect the genre and don't have this album, you really do need it. There isn't a bad track on here. The mood is mostly uptempo and upbeat, ranging from the more gentle sound of 'Blue Sparkle Daydream' to the driving rock of 'J'aime Suis Mouvais'. I can hear elements of Crowded House on some tracks, Wondermints on others. If by chance you're still not convinced, I'll just add that Robbie Rist not only played on the album, he also did most of the mixing.

The official site is here, and the Myspace profile here. For my money 'Surburban Contemporary' is their best album, but their other recordings all have merit and get plenty of play in my house. Try all the usual suspects for buying choices: NotLame, CD Baby, Amazon, eBay etc.