Mummypowder: Centuries Later (Grandpop Records, 2011)
It’s soon time to select june’s album of the month and I still haven’t even written about the may’s album of the month, which is Mummypowder’s fourth album Centuries Later. Mummypowder is a huge favourite 0f mine, one of the best pop groups in the country and should be regarded as a national treasure.  They released three great albums between …

Chet O’Keefe: Game Bird
Another great singer-songwriter Otis Gibbs turned me to Nashville-based Chet O’Keefe with his guest post on the wonderful ninebullets blog. A big thank you goes to Otis for this. Chet O’Keefe is amazing country singer-songwriter and his album Game Bird is utterly wonderful. Listening to this album makes it pretty hard to understand why this man isn’t world famous. At the very least …

Snowbirds: Snowbirds (Self-released, 2011)
This was one of those instant love affairs. Great power pop blog Absolute Powerpop reviewed this the other week. I red the review, checked out a couple of song samples I found and instantly knew this is my kind of band and my kind of music.
Snowbirds comes from Wisconsin and just released their self-titled debut album. It’s a fabulous album full of …

Malcolm Holcombe: To Drink The Rain (Music Road Records, 2011)

To Drink The Rain is Malcolm Holcombe’s eight album, but the first one that I’ve heard. Well better late than never (if we start to celebrate the cliche), because this is pretty amazing stuff. Some of the rawest country-blues of the record might slide out of pop fan’s comfort zone, but this is only an issue …

Daniel Romano: Sleep Beneath The Willow (You’ve Changed Records, 2011)
I got Daniel Romano’s new album Sleep Beneath The Willow through reviewshine, but it’s such a fabulous album that I really should buy a physical copy as well. Daniel Romano is a country singer-songwriter from Welland, ON, Canada and he has written a wonderful traditional country & folk album. Press release namedrops Glen Campbell and Lee …

Samae Koskinen: Kuuluuko, kuuntelen (KHY Suomen Musiikki, 2011)
I’m totally in love with this album. I know I just got this eight days ago, but I think I already know all the songs by heart. This album instantly became a friend that entertains me, comforts me and takes care of me. Isn’t that what good friends are supposed to do.  Like all the regular readers know, …

Mirel Wagner: Mirel Wagner (Kioski Rec, 2011)
Mirel Wagner proves that pitch black can shine brightly. This young singer-songwriter has created something that you rarely or never hear on these shores. On the river banks of Mississippi in the late-twenties it might have been common, but not so much hundred years later in Finland. Maybe the greatest songwriter ever Townes Van Zandt once said that there …

Phil Wilson: God Bless Jim Kennedy (Yesboyicecream / Slumberland, 2010)

Phil Wilson was the frontman of the somewhat legendary mid-eighties indie pop group The June Brides and now, over 20 years later, Phil returns to this ball game  and shows that he can still handle the art of writing really good pop music. That’s also a small relief, because every now and then one has to …

Jonny: Jonny (Turnstile Records, 2011)

Euros Childs and Norman Blake working together sounds like a match made in harmonic pop heaven. Their collaborative project Jonny has an album out on Turnstile Records and it’s a really lovely pop album. These guys are such a fantastic pop tunesmiths that they could write good pop songs without even trying too hard. Maybe some of these songs even feel …

Jessica Lea Mayfield: Tell Me (Nonesuch, 2011)
The first 2011 album that I’ve completely fallen in love with. Jessica Lea Mayfield’s previous album With Blasphemy So Heartfelt was already a rather convincing effort and made it on my end of the year list back in 2008. The album showcased a huge amount of talent and now this 21-year-old songwriter from Kent, Ohio is totally ready to enter …