TOMORROW ON THE MORNING JOLT: POWER POP

I'm sorry that I missed being on The Morning Jolt with Larry Flick last week, I had a family emergency.  I'm back this week, and I'll be talking about some new power pop records.

First off is Matthew Sweet's new album Modern Art. Matthew's Girlfriend, Altered Beast and 100% Fun are among my favorite albums, but I haven't enjoyed many of his albums since then.  I think he has to work with other artists: I enjoyed his album as a member of The Thorns and his collaborative albums with Susanna Hoffs.  Modern Art is fine, but none of it really sticks with me.

Speaking of Ms. Hoffs, Matthew Sweet worked on the new Bangles album, Sweetheart Of The Sun. I've listened to it a bit, I think it's a solid album.  It's not as good as Different Light or Everything, but it's good.  I do think that The Bangles could still put out a classic. I wish that former bassist Michael Steele would rejoin the band: even though she wasn't a founding member, they feel off-balence to me without her.  I know they would love her to return.  I don't think she quit the band so much as she quit the country during the reign of bu$h 2.  Come back Michael!

Adam Schlesinger has been busy lately: his main band, Fountains of Wayne returned with Sky Full Of Holes, their first album in four years, and the follow-up to their very underrated Traffic and Weather. "Someone's Gonna Break Your Heart" is a great single, but I don't know if it's as good as songs like "Stacy's Mom" or "Radiation Vibe." Adam's other band, Ivy, has just released it's first album in six years, All Hours.  They are more of an electronic band, not so much "power pop," but because Adam is in the band, it has a very classic pop sensibility.  One thing that took some of Adam's time in the past few years is his other band, Tinted Windows. That group, which features Taylor Hanson of Hanson on vocals, James Iha of Smashing Pumpkins and A Perfect Circle on guitar, and Bun E. Carlos of Cheap Trick on drums, sounds just like... Cheap Trick.  They're great. Their 2009 self-titled debut is super underrated.

We'll also talk about the former members of Oasis: Noel and Liam Gallagher both have their own projects.

MATTHEW SWEET - "MODERN ART" (WELL TITLED)

Matthew Sweet's new album Modern Art is, as I mention above, well titled.  It doesn't hit you immediately.  I wonder if it is a reaction to his two recent albums with Susanna Hoffs: 2006's Under The Covers Vol. 1 (covers of '60s classics) and 2009's Under The Covers Vol. 2 (the '70s). Those albums were packed with instantly recognizable songs filled with hooks.  Modern Art, on the other hand, is a bit more, well, abstract.

Matthew plays most of the instruments, with long time drummer Ric Menck accompanying him, and Dennis Taylor on lead guitar (he was a guitar tech for The Bangles: Matthew helped them on their latest album, Sweetheart Of The Sun).  It's kind of like the set up he used to record Girlfriend, which is celebrating its 20th anniversary.  On his current tour, he is playing that entire album, and I guess the problem is, next to that album, I know I wouldn't want to hear too many songs from Modern Art. Still I'm a loyal fan of Matthew's, his music has meant the world to me over the years, and I'll give this one a few more listens.  

LILITH FAIR ADDS THE BANGLES, THE GO-GOS, LORETTA, NORAH, HEART, KELLY CLARKSON

I have always been a fan of Sarah McLachlan's Lilith Fair. I went all three years, and saw some great artists, including Sarah herself, Tracy Chapman, The Indigo Girls, Missy Elliot, Morcheeba, Sheryl Crow and The Pretenders, among others. As I've mentioned, this year's lineup includes Sarah, Sheryl and The Indigo Girls, as well as Emmylou Harris, Mary J. Blige and Miranda Lambert.  Now they've also announced The Bangles, The Go-Gos, Loretta Lynn, Norah Jones, Heart, Kelly Clarkson, The Courtyard Hounds (aka Emily Robison and Martie Maguire of the The Dixie Chicks), Cat Power, Sia, The Gossip and Beth Orton, among others. Of course not every artist plays every city, but odds are that every show will have a great lineup.

MATTHEW SWEET TO PRODUCE THE BANGLES

A couple of years ago, VH1 Classic sent me to LA to interview

the ladies from The Bangles, and Susanna Hoffs mentioned to me that she was doing an album of covers with Matthew Sweet. The Bangles have been without a bassist since Michael Steele left the band (actually, I think she left the country when bush was re-elected). I thought, Matthew Sweet would be a great addition to the band - either as a bass player or a producer. Well, it looks like he is going to be doing both on their upcoming album. Matthew and Susanna are doing the second Sid and Susie album which comes out this month, and in the fall, he's going into the studio with the Bangles to produce their next album.