John J. Callahan, PhD July 6, 2020 – Back in 2006, Jim McHugh convinced a Cleveland concert promoter to allow members of his band to ascend the shuttered belfry of St. Mary’s Romanian Orthodox Church. In the hours earlier, McHugh’s 12-piece freakout band from Athens, Georgia, had played Parish Hall, the repurposed church-property turned avant rock venue. Ever the rule breaker, McHugh rang the retired church bell. “The entire tower shook” with frightening percussive strength, recalls McHugh. https://wemustresistcontrol.bandcamp.com/ That was the heady days of Dark Meat, McHugh’s former band. Now he is the guitarist of the Sunwatchers. McHugh also backs Thee Oh Sees’ Brigid Dawson on her latest release, Ballet…
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Neu! Wave Interpreters: Holy Wave’s “Interloper”
June 29, 2020 – This week, Austin psychedelic dream-pop band, Holy Wave release their fifth LP ‘Interloper.’ The record’s blueprint reveals a heady brew of synth-heavy, psyched-out harmonies perfect for your next kite flying adventure. Holy Wave’s unorthodox compositions defy the verse-chorus-verse conventions of everyday pop, unless you subscribe to the Brian Wilson school of dude-groovery. Shrewd listeners may hear swirling reverberations of Atlas Sound and Pink Floyd. Wash that down with a gulp of Neu!-tinged cough syrup and you have Holy Wave’s ‘Interloper’, available on splatter or white vinyl. Your choice, Daddio. Choose wisely. Holy Wave’s unorthodox compositions defy the verse-chorus-verse conventions of everyday pop, unless you subscribe to…
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The Love Dimension “Tree In The Seed” is a new six-cut EP
“Tree In The Seed” is a new six-cut EP from amorphous San Francisco psych-collective The Love Dimension. A loosely-defined amalgamation of musicians, (they say they can appear with any configuration from ‘solo-acoustic’ to a full 11-member ‘expanded lineup’) this release finds The Love Dimension appearing in our cosmos as a septet. Since it’s just an EP, we’ll do a track-by-track review. “I Promise You” features The Love Dimension’s usual arrangement of male vocals with female harmonies, plus a buzzing-guitar line that darts around the track like a wasp at a picnic. Sometimes it’s buried in the background, sometimes it’s buzzing menacingly right in your face. “Find A Way” kicks off with…
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Quarantine Listening Selections: 3 New Releases From Hypnotic Bridge Records
Hypnotic Bridge is really what’s happening. Continually putting out some of the grooviest new music in their signature small batch singles, Stu and the gang have become a go-to for great new releases. Here, we feature their 3 newest, from The Flower Machine, The Asteroid No. 4 and Sacred Orange. The Flower Machine: “Through A London Window” b/w “One In A Million” Inspired in part by the 1966 film Blow Up and recorded in a warehouse in San Luis Obisbo on a vintage 8 track machine, The Flower Machine’s A Side “Through A London Window” is part Syd Barrett, part Paisley Underground. There’s also something about the prominent tambourine, the…
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Byrd Up! Asteroid Strikes North
"In advance of the 2020 release of "Northern Songs", the Asteroid No. 4 have released their first single, aptly titled, “Northern Song”."
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Inside the Dream Syndicate Universe
On March 13, 2020, Steve Wynn conducted an exclusive interview with Cleveland-based, POW Magazine contributor, John J. Callahan. Steve Wynn, founding member of Dream Syndicate, called to discuss their new release, The Universe Inside. Steve was a guest of 89.3, WCSB, during Friday Night Rock Rotation. Steve announced his commitment to perform a solo show at the Blue Arrow Records in Cleveland to celebrate its April 10 release The COVID-19 pandemic had other plans. Here is a portion of their conversation: JC: Steve Wynn, can you here me? Steve Wynn: I do! Success! All it took was for you to hang up on me! JC: Ha! This…
