This week brings us 2 new releases from Hypnotic Bridge records. Devoted to the 7-inch, vinyl, 45-rpm format, the label specializes in bringing glorious psych-pop singles to fans, DJs, and collectors of psychedelic artifacts. Records are pressed in limited-edition quantities of 500 per single and often represent a band’s most psychedelic, 1960s-inspired sounds. The Black Watch: “Crying all The Time!” b/w “One Hundred Million Times Around The Sun” & “Much of Muchness” The Black Watch have been creating their unique blend of post-punk psychedelia for nearly 3 decades. This latest single from Hypnotic Bridge is a testament to their sound. The A side is “Crying All The Time!” (psych mix),…
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New Week, New Release: Redd Kross’ “Beyond The Door”
Redd Kross has been a part of my life for literally as long as I can remember- born in 1990 to extremely hip parents, my dad was a Redd Kross fan even before my time. My parents saw the band play with The Go-Go’s in Oakland a few months after my birth, and throughout my entire childhood the promotional poster for the Neurotica album was up on our living room wall and Redd Kross tunes were constantly on the stereo. In high school, my brothers and I covered “Annies Gone” in our band, though we were never quite as cool as brothers Jeff and Steven Mcdonald. Jeff and Steven Mcdonald…
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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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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…
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New Week, New Release Double Header: The Higher State & Davila 666
2 bands, 2 new singles out now for your listening pleasure! The first comes to us from The Higher State, whom POW has previously covered. The band’s newest single, “In the Morning I will Roam” b/w “Winter Is Blue”, was released Friday on LA’s Hypnotic Bridge records, and the 500 vinyl releases are already sold out on the band’s site so you KNOW it must be good! When I contacted the band about covering the release, here’s what they had to say about themselves as a band: “We formed in 2004..we have an undying love for US 60s garage band music. We have zero interest in trends, musical fashions going…