We Americans may have elected Barack Obama for the job, but Canadian Michael Behm is Saving America as well - one power pop fan at a time. The Vancouver rocker's second disc is a great way to start off 2009, and its late 2008 release date means I have one slot on this year's top 125 list already filled.
Vocally, Behm sounds quite a bit like Tommy Keene, and a listen to the opening track "Don't Believe" will have you thinking you stumbled on a lost TK disc as he shares Keene's melodic ways as well. The title track follows, opening with a soundclip from JFK's inaugural address, and while its lyrical content may not please a certain (shrinking) segment of the US population, it's a tuneful number with a big chorus. Elsewhere, "If I Could Learn to Fly" is a fine 80s-influenced midtempo number, "The Art of Letting Go" would have fit in nicely on the recent Rob Bonfiglio album, and "Ticket to Heaven" has that Bleu/Mike Viola feel to it. Also of note is "Underground Epic" a nearly 5-minute song collage similar to those fancied by fellow countrymen Sloan on their last couple of discs, and closer "Take Me Down to the River", which in keeping with the Canadian comparisons has a Tal Bachman feel to it. While Behm may not end up Saving America, he will save you from listening to mediocre power pop.
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