Zumpano - 1996 - Goin' Through Changes

Vancouver-based quartet Zumpano had hinted at their soft pop roots on their 1995 debut, Look What the Rookie Did, covering Jimmy Webb's "Rosecrans Boulevard" and investing originals like "Oh That Atkinson Girl" with a definite Brian Wilson influence, but the overall sound of the disc was crunchy pop along the lines of late-period Redd Kross. The follow-up, Goin' Through Changes, largely dispenses with the power chords in favor of a sweet-natured, flowery strain of sunny pop tunes that un-self-consciously betray a deep fascination with the more ornate side of '60s songsmithery without sounding the least bit retro. Singer and primary songwriter Carl Newman is clearly a fan not only of Wilson and Webb, but Randy Newman, Harry Nilsson, and Todd Rundgren, but unlike many of their contemporaries, Zumpano maintains a freshness and enthusiasm that keeps even the more tributary tracks (like "Broca's Way," which sounds like it could have come off of Love's Forever Changes) from sounding like stiff, careful homages to past idols. Other tunes, like "Let's Fight" and the spirited opener "Behind the Beehive," recall the lighter side of Sloan, or even (dare one say it) the better moments of '70s bubble-rockers like the Sweet or the Bay City Rollers. Goin' Through Changes is a terrific album, which makes Zumpano's extended layoff following it that much more frustrating.

		1		Behind the Beehive	Ledwidge, Newman, Niemann ...	3:56
Composed by: Ledwidge, Newman, Niemann, Zumpano
		2		Broca's Ways	Ledwidge, Newman, Niemann ...	3:34
Composed by: Ledwidge, Newman, Niemann, Zumpano
		3		Throwing Stars	Ledwidge, Newman, Niemann ...	3:49
Composed by: Ledwidge, Newman, Niemann, Zumpano
		4		Here's the Plan	Ledwidge, Newman, Niemann ...	3:49
Composed by: Ledwidge, Newman, Niemann, Zumpano
		5		The Only Reason Under the Sun	Ledwidge, Newman, Niemann ...	3:37
Composed by: Ledwidge, Newman, Niemann, Zumpano
		6		The Millionaire Poets	Ledwidge, Newman, Niemann ...	3:16
Composed by: Ledwidge, Newman, Niemann, Zumpano
		7		Let's Fight	Ledwidge, Newman, Niemann ...	2:52
Composed by: Ledwidge, Newman, Niemann, Zumpano
		8		It Doesn't Take a Genius	Ledwidge, Newman, Niemann ...	3:29
Composed by: Ledwidge, Newman, Niemann, Zumpano
		9		The Sylvia Hotel	Ledwidge, Newman, Niemann ...	3:44
Composed by: Ledwidge, Newman, Niemann, Zumpano
		10		Momentum	Ledwidge, Newman, Niemann ...	2:38
Composed by: Ledwidge, Newman, Niemann, Zumpano
		11		The Angel With the Good News	Ledwidge, Newman, Niemann ...	4:52
Composed by: Ledwidge, Newman, Niemann, Zumpano
		12		Some Sun	Ledwidge, Newman, Niemann ...	4:17

¡Aquí!

Vanderslice, John - 2001 - Time Travel Is Lonely

After pulling the leg of the media with a clever hoax centered on a song from his previous album, skeptics may want to proceed with caution to John Vanderslice's second outing. But there's no sign of an elaborate prank on Time Travel Is Lonely. In fact, the lyrics here (some of which appear as scrawled letters to home inside the record sleeve) are sincerely solemn, suggesting isolation in the icy world of Antarctica. With production help from John Croslin (Spoon, Guided By Voices) and cameos by members of Beulah, For Stars, and Oranger, Vanderslice makes use of everything in his Tiny Telephone studio, applying indie rock standbys such as trumpet, Moog, drum machine, flute, and electric piano. Like his hoax that resulted from issues with technology, Vanderslice still has a bone to pick with computers, revealed when his isolated character loses use of a computer in the title track. And without email, time travel can be terribly lonely.

		1		You Were My Fuji	Vanderslice	2:10
		2		Keep the Dream Alive	Vanderslice	3:39
		3		Little Boy Lost	Blake	1:41
		4		Interlude I	Bach, Vanderslice	:35
		5		Everything Changed	Vanderslice	2:16
		6		My Old Flame	Lowell, Vanderslice	4:13
		7		Interlude 3	Vanderslice	:55
		8		Time Travel Is Lonely	Vanderslice	3:35
		9		If I Live or If I Die	Blake	2:30
		10		Emma Pearl	Vanderslice	3:09
		11		Interlude 2	Bach, Vanderslice	1:49
		12		Do You Remember ?	Vanderslice	3:39
		13		Gainesville, Fla	Vanderslice	4:08

¡Aquí!