"Another quality late 2005 release cam..." more

"Another quality late 2005 release came from LA's Big Kid, with their sophomore effort All Kidding Aside. Big Kid likes to cite Jellyfish and Jason Falkner as influences, and it's not just idle name-dropping on their part.

After a cute sub 2-minute intro, Big Kid wastes no time getting down to business with nearly perfect "When I Met The Girl". Starting with a piano intro a la Ben Folds, it settles into a great, bouncy melody that compares favorably with the best of Jellyfish. Other highlights include the TSAR/Waltham-influenced "She Won't See Me", the Weezerific "What Can I Do", and I even hear a little Jon Brion on "With a Smile"." less

"Probably the best Jellyfish album tha..." more

"Probably the best Jellyfish album that Jason Falkner & Co. never recorded." less

"Quite possibly one of the best EPs ev..." more

"Quite possibly one of the best EPs ever released, Wherever You Are is the distillation of an unreleased album Mead recorded for RCA in 2001-2002. It was RCA's loss, as perfect tracks like "Make It Right", "Only a Dream" and the title track could have been huge AAA hits with the proper promotion. If Mead had released this in the 80s, he would have been giving Phil Collins and Hall & Oates a run for their money at the top of the charts." less

"My #1 disc of 2005. Beatlesque, Ellio..." more

"My #1 disc of 2005. Beatlesque, Elliott Smith-esque, Brendon Bensonesque, just flat-out great. Key tracks: "Qualities", "Pay No Mind", "Sunk a Few"." less

"This one flew under the power pop rad..." more

"This one flew under the power pop radar when it was released last June, which was a shame. Hailing from Minneapolis, Divorcee has drawn from various pop and rock influences to craft a consistently engaging album. The first thing you'll notice after listening to them is that lead singer Ryan Seitz sounds more like he's from Manchester than Minneapolis. His voice is something of a mix between Colin Meloy, Liam Gallagher and Cotton Mather's Robert Harrison, and there is a real BritPop feel to this one. I even hear some solo Jeff Lynne and Jason Falkner in the mix as well.

Opener "Brand New" sounds at times like Bends-era Radiohead, "Say" is a midtempo number in the vein of Oasis' "Don't Go Away", and they crank it up Sloan-style on the stomping "Blow Me to Pieces". Even the finale, "Outro" (which one would think is 30 seconds of instrumental noodling based on other songs with the title) is a 5-minute anthemic masterpiece." less

"I'm not big into the "acoustic" genre..." more

"I'm not big into the "acoustic" genre, but this is a big exception. Graham Cousens' Living Room Sessions is pretty much Graham and his guitar, and the whole thing was recorded on his PowerBook.

What sets Cousens apart from your garden variety coffeehouse performer? A keen sense of melody, a warm and inviting voice, and some great tunes. I've seen it written that Cousens sounds like a happier Eric Matthews, and I'll buy that. He also sounds like early solo McCartney, Emmitt Rhodes, with some Matthew Sweet and Tom Petty included for good measure. The opener "Julia" sets the tone well, a jaunty number in the mode of "I've Just Seen a Face". "Comfort Me" jangles along reminiscent of Petty's "Wildflowers", and two of the slower numbers, "When I Was Around" and "Emily", are so pitch-perfect that I could listen to them on a continuous loop all day long." less

"Philly session man Boggia has come up..." more

"Philly session man Boggia has come up with a gem here, even enlisting the legendary Emmitt Rhodes to contribute with the co-written track "Evan's Lament (Let Me Believe)". #12 in my top 20 of 2005." less

"Power pop in the vein of Jellyfish, C..." more

"Power pop in the vein of Jellyfish, Checkpoint Charley and Sparkwood. Out of nowhere today, the song "Willow" popped into my head even though I hadn't listened to the album in several weeks. That must mean something." less

"It might seem strange a non-power pop..." more

"It might seem strange a non-power pop release holds down my lofty #2 position, but Okkervil River's Black Sheep Boy was that good. It's a tough album to categorize neatly: one part Indie, one part Americana and one part Emo. In a similar vein, Conor Oberst a/k/a Bright Eyes broke through last year with this formula, but he sounds like a relative lightweight compared to Okkervil River on this one. In fact, the musicianship and vibe here makes this album sound like a less self-indulgent and less cloying Oberst backed by The Band. Key tracks: "For Real", "A Stone", "So Come Back, I am Waiting"." less

"As stated elsewhere: "Although his te..." more

"As stated elsewhere: "Although his tent has been pitched in the Americana camp he's a very British songwriter who on the evidence of this latest album and especially on tracks such as Fear Of Lightning has more in common with Teenage Fanclub than the likes of usual comparisons Neil Young and Evan Dando. Lyrically he's never been tempted to stray from matters close to home and as a result he's been praised for the sucinct authenticity of his past five albums and Ghost In A Spitfire is no exception - its very title betraying a theme rarely found amongst his western peers."" less

"Philly's Smash Palace is a veteran ba..." more

"Philly's Smash Palace is a veteran band that keeps cranking out great albums over the years. Once signed to Epic back in the late 80s, Palace has hit its stride over the past seven years with three quality self-released cd's, capped by the very late 2004 release (close enough for me to count it as '05), Over The Top.

Over The Top was pretty much the best jangle-rock album of the year. Standouts on this one abound, from the opener, "Steal Her Thunder" to my favorite "Juliet to Me". The level of consistency from track-to-track on this one is what makes it a true keeper. If you're a fan of the classic janglers, from The Byrds to Tom Petty, this one is a must-buy." less

"Great laid-back Americana-influenced ..." more

"Great laid-back Americana-influenced pop, including the standout track "Amelia"." less

"An interesting note about this disc i..." more

"An interesting note about this disc is that Castillo likes to name his tracks after more famous ones; there are songs called "Independence Day" and "Backstreets" (Springsteen), "God Only Knows" (Beach Boys), and "This Is Love" and "Brainwashed" (George Harrison) on the album. There are some elements of all of these artists here, but it's mostly a mix of power pop and singer/songwriter pop.

Comparisons for Castillo to Jeff Tweedy, Ryan Adams and Tom Petty have abounded, but to me he sounds more like a Texas version of Ron Sexsmith. My favorites are the rockers: "I'm Gonna Change", "Brainwashed" and "Politics" are as good as any pure power pop you're going to hear, and among the slower numbers, "Not That Kind of Girl" is a delight, almost sounding like a lost Elliott Smith track. Castillo is definitely a major talent, and this disc definitely won't disappoint." less