Bruce's NEW AT NOT LAME Update for March 2008!!!

Straight from the boss, here's Bruce's list of what's new at NOT LAME...

Here are the Top New Releases on the Not Lame web site for March. There are many new releases on da 'ole home page, but for the time starved, these are the ones worth of your precious time. Click on the links for full mini-reviews on each CD and listen 'n sample lots of soundbites, as well. Have Fun!

THE GENERAL STORE - "Mountain Rescue"
The gorgeous strains and influences of World Party, "Harvest"-era Neil Young, early 70s Elton John(well, he’s the son of Davey Johnstone, Elton’s guitarist and he grew up around the band!), C,S,N & Y, Quiver and The Travelling Wilburys are present but filtered purely through Tam Johnstone`s immense talents. The music is multi-varied and soul stirring.

THE LACKLOVES - "Cathedral Square Park"
Over the course of four well received releases, The Lackloves have exhibited a talent for reworking the lighter side of pop`s lineage, with The Kinks, The Hollies, Big Star, and Squeeze among those referenced in the "sounds like" column. Here, they have pushed beyond the spiked punch bowl and dipped into the Everclear.
While still embracing some of the classic sounds they`ve proven themselves with, this one blazes with a more muscular feel, polished with swirling psychedelia and a sonic edge. Not to mention what you`ve come to expect from these slick popsters - jangly tones, sheer melody and harmonies to boot.
He’s delivered the ‘tour-de-force’, his large body of work has overtly hinted and tapped on our collective shoulders. It’s a release I can confidently recommend to a vast majority of folks who are reading these words!

BRYAN SCARY - "Flight Of The Knife"
Hate to sound coy, flippant, but it will be hard to top this one in 2008 for my ears. It will be impossible for this one to fall out of a Top 3 spot and, yes, it’s March as I type this. It’s everything you want in release – it’s fresh, it challenges convention yet still remains wholly accessible and with every listen, something new *experienced*. There’s a word we don’t’ get drop that often with music, in general. ‘Experience’. Think about it.
"We all know what an ear worm is. It’s a tune you get in your head and can’t get out. There are good ear worms and bad ear worms. Bad ear worm: theme to The Munsters. Good ear worm: the new Bryan Scary record. Yes, the whole freakin’ record. Rare is the song that grabs you on the first listen and won’t let go. Such is the power of every song on Bryan Scary and the Shredding Tears: Flight of the Knife.’ Baron goes onto to give his erudite evaluation on every song and finishes with the flourish – ‘every song looms large against the Liliputian landscape. Flight of the Knife is an instant classic"-Mike Baron, NotLameBlog.com

FREDDY - "Doublespeak"
Freddy is an artist who has spent some quality time listening to the Jeff Lynne/ELO catalog, God bless him!
There’s strong influences of British Pop bands like The Feeling, Keane and Stereophonics – Freddy goes for big sounds and huge anthemic chorus-builds, all elements that make our knees weak and ears yearning for more. Yes, I am pretty sure he’s spent some time with Jellyfish records, as well as The New Radicals.
The entire album is *exactly* a representation of power pop that, if played on radio, would appeal to a large audience and actually *sell* records.

BRENT CASH - "How Will I Know If I'm Awake"
GERMAN only import and a MUST for fans of Wondermints’ styled Beach Boy baroque pop but it’s even more than that - please listen below, let the tunes shine into your life a bit! GERMAN only import and a MUST for fans of Wondermints’ styled Beach Boy baroque pop.
Sounding like a lost sunshine pop classic from the '60s, How Will I Know If I'm Awake is overflowing with hook-laden choruses, multi-layered vocal harmonies and lush, sophisticated arrangements. It's the sound of endless summers and good vibrations.
Rooted deeply in 60s songwriting, think Bacharach, Wilson, McCartney and even a bit of The Monkees but in the modern day sense, this exploratory music that the Wondermints have staked out so well and we miss not hearing enough of. Solution: Brent Cash.

JOHN DAVIS (Superdrag) - "Arigato!"
2008 solo record from Superdrag leader and he’s most certainly back and rocking here and in fine, fine Superdrag-mode!

TED LUKAS - "Misled "
Delicious Modern Day Power Pop Flavored with Americana Influence from Ex-Barely Pink member. Very much a record that should appeal to most folks who spend time with Not Lame! ed Lukas returns to his power pop roots, mixing in Americana soul for a new recipe that’s all his own.
The 10-songs recorded for this self-produced, self-released CD captures the dynamic guitars, catchy melodies, and heartfelt vocals that were once made popular by classic artists such as Tommy Keene, Big Star, Nick Lowe, and Badfinger. We said this was a Not Lame-styled slab of excellent power pop, right? Well, we meant it!

CLINT SUTTON - "Clint Sutton"
A great find here for Not Lamers, especially ones with a ‘jones’ for Matthew Sweet-styled power pop.
"Honest, big guitar-pop smothered in mellow harmonies.“Grade: A. The record does not seem to be a statement about music, after all. It’s more of an example of what can be done than what no one else is doing. Fans of the record will surely be at least a little disappointed by not having more tracks for their listening pleasure. Though it may take another few years to hear more out of this project, most of us would be happy to wait.” - Daily Athenaeum. The result is Sutton's self-titled debut record, 11 songs of big-guitar pop with lots of harmonies, kinda-sloppy solos and melodies strong enough to force their way in, but sweet enough not to wear out their welcome. Fans of Matthew Sweet, Superdrag, the Posies and Teenage Fanclub will understand.

SCOT SAX(ex-Wanderlust, Feel) - "While She Was Working"
2008 6 song EP of new studio material from ex-Wanderlust and Feel frontman Scot Sax, one of the most under-rated songwriters of the last 10 years, a fact well known to many reading spending time with us at Not Lame.
His solo albums, his work w/ Wanderlust and Feel document this well. “While She Was Working” finds Sax stretching himself, exploring new vistas while remaining grounded in what he does best – crafting highly seductive, nuanced melodies amidst lyrics that strike human-soul resonance. Well, Well Done, mate!