EP of the Day,7/18/10: Justin Kline-Triangle

A few months back, I related the tale of how Justin Kline's recordings were stolen and he needed help to finish his new EP. Many of you helped out, and your generosity has resulted in another fine release from the man who gave us our top EP of 2008.

Triangle boasts four new tracks, and it's a worthy successor to Six Songs. "Baby, You're a Mess" leads off with pure pop goodness, with a melody and backing track that could have come from a 70s Saturday morning cartoon, and I mean that in a good way. Word of warning: don't leave the house or car with this song being the last you heard because it will monopolize your brain. The lilting, waltz-like "Please Go Away" will be a highlight for Jellyfish fanatics, and "Allison, We Cannot Be Friends" is another power pop gem. The near-ballad "Coffee Song" closes the proceedings out in baroque fashion, providing you the FDA's minimum daily requirement of "ba ba ba" backing vocals.

The EP is available digitally, and it might just be the best $3.96 you spend this year.

Listen/buy at Bandcamp | iTunes

Justin Kline could use your help.

Normally I don't post these kind of things, but Justin Kline's EP was my favorite of 2008, and he's a good guy who could use some help. I'll give him the floor:

Hey there. This is Justin Kline. Recently, my new album was stolen when a robber broke into a nashville studio I was recording at. Totally sucks. They stole all the gear too. I had a rough mix of only 2 songs from the album...

It was a follow up release to my Six Songs EP. I have a kickstarter project to raise $1200 to release 2 songs on a 7" record. The rewards that go to donators are pretty entertaining...

Free Justin Kline EP!

It's getting to be that time of the year again as I compile the year-end CD and EP lists. So it's fitting that Absolute Powerpop's #1 EP of 2008, Justin Kline's Six Songs, is now available for free through Noisetrade. And in the more-good-news department, he should have a new EP available any week now, which will also be available free. Get Six Songs here:

EP-alooza!

Three high-quality EPs to check out:

Sofa City Sweetheart-Sofa City Sweetheart. Sofa City Sweetheart is LA's J. Lopez, and his self-titled debut EP is a melodic marvel. The sound here is reminiscent of John Lennon, Elliott Smith, Jon Brion and independent poppers like Plasticsoul and Adrian Whitehead. "Good News for Jackie" is right out of the Brion playbook, and "Maria" is pure pop bliss with a bridge that sends the song to another level. "Julia (We Never Wanted You)" sounds like Elliott Smith in his Beatles phase (think "Baby Britain", and the breezy melody of "Sunflowers" begs for the whistling break about 2/3 of the way through. "The Magic Umbrella" completes the EP with its own magical mystery tour of sounds. Look for this one high up the year-end EP list.

CD Baby | MySpace | Listen at iLike

Justin Kline-Six Songs. Back in 2006, a group called The Heartstring Band put out a quality EP titled Aurora Songs Vol. 1, which to my surprise upon looking back at this site's archives was never mentioned here. I'll correct that oversight now, and note that the frontman of that band was Justin Kline, who now has an EP of his own out, and it's a leap forward for him. This is one of those EPs that jumps out of your speakers and grabs you by the lapels (or shirt collar) - as soon as you hear the chorus of "All I Need", you know you're in for a ride full of pop goodness. "Heart Attack" brings Roger Joseph Manning Jr. to mind (Kline has a somewhat similar voice), and "How I Became The Wind" recalls Manning's band (Jellyfish) as well as the aforementioned Adrian Whitehead. The influence of Jeff Lynne is at work in "Kaledioscope", while "Singing in the Air" and "Sunshine" close things out with more flawless power pop. An outstanding solo debut.

"Heart Attack" mp3 | MySpace | Listen at Lala

Paul Spencer & The Maxines-Either Sunset or Sunrise. Rounding out our trip of primo EPs is another artist that I've been remiss to mention on this site: Paul Spencer & The Maxines. They've put out a couple of no-nonsense, hard-poppin' garagey discs, most notably last year's Cut The Jive. Here they take a sonic left turn as the EP is largely acoustic and Americana-influenced. One of the bands they've been compared is to the Replacements, and they compare opener "Whatever Forever and Ever" to the Mats' "Answering Machine". It does have that same acoustic-punk quality to it, while "Sunny Town for Shady People" has a Tex-Mex feel to the proceedings. "Clara Bow" is a real stunner - an ode to a 1920s silent film star complete with a tasteful string section. Spencer breaks out the Rickenbacker on "Hurry Up & Wait", a Latin-tinged number, and the EP closes with "The Man With The 30 Second Memory" a 1:16 ditty that leaves you wanting more.

CD Baby | MySpace