POW/WCSB King Khan is no newcomer to the garage psych revival, but his new release, Turkey Ride (Khannibalism / Ernest Jenning) is sleek peek into his auspicious origins. Turkey Ride is the work of then kid, King Khan, recorded some 18 years ago in Europe. But the kid King is not playing on Turkey Ride. This is a perfectly produced, 13-song gem, packed with wah-wah pedal rockers, punk ravers, and soul-soaked psych-outs. Think Black Lips versus Elephant Stone in a James Brown bareknuckle rockdown. In short, I dig it. King Khan is known for his stage-packed, clowning send-up revue, but Turkey Ride is a serious rocker, even if replete in madcap madness.…
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New Week, New Release: Omicron J Trauma
I’m a sucker for cute young guys making good music. Alright, mostly I’m just a sucker for good music, but cute guys are also a plus. As I absent-mindedly searched through new releases tagged “powerpop” on Bandcamp, I happened across a cool looking album cover by a band with a weird name, and well, here we are. Omicron J Trauma are 2 young guys from Dallas (plus a veteran drummer/producer) who have just released their first album, You Should Have Thought About That. Here’s why it’s worth your time The first track on the release, “Good Conversation”, has been stuck in my head for several weeks now. Catchy, straight forward…
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POW MAGAZINE GOES TO THE WATERFRONT BLUES FESTIVAL
On this Fourth of July weekend, POW MAGAZINE attended Portland, Oregon’s Waterfront Blues Festival for the very first time. The Blues is not POW’s regular music focus. However, in this instance POW MAGAZINE was invited to the Waterfront Blues Festival to provide media coverage of the Vintage Trouble Band. Vintage Trouble was scheduled to perform two shows, one on the main Beaverton Blues Stage and then in the Marriot Hotel Ballroom after hours venue. They also appeared at a meet and greet session at the Music Millennium tent where their devoted fans could meet them in person and purchase CD’s and LP’s and have them autographed. POW was able to…
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Discography Biography (Special BJM edition!): Jesse Valencia
It’s time for Discography Biography, POW’s monthly look into the mind, and the record collection of a various musician. For those who aren’t familiar with how it works, here’s a quick rundown: As any music lover knows, there’s a huge difference between “desert island discs”, favorite records, most influential records, etc. The ones that interest me the most are the ones that are the most personal- the albums that define who you are, the ones that could be called the soundtrack of your life. Every month here on POW, I’ll be talking to a different musician about the top 3 albums that make up what I’ve affectionately titled their “Discography…
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POW Book Review: Keep Music Evil: The Brian Jonestown Massacre Story
The Brian Jonestown Massacre are undeniably one of the most influential bands in the modern psych scene. However the brilliance and originality of the BJM’s music is often overshadowed by their notoriety, particularly that of Anton Necombe. Everyone I know who has seen the Jonestown live has a story about the show (usually involving Anton going off on an audience heckler or a bandmate). Remotely every piece of press about the band focuses heavily on Anton’s antics or the chaotic history of the band. Ondi Timoner’s 2004 documentary Dig! introduced a massive new audience to the BJM, but forevermore branded Anton as a violent junkie on the edge of his…