Jetstream Pony
Bowerbirds and Blue Things
(Shelflife)
Similar artists: Alvvays, Velocity Girl, Lush, The Dentists
Since the 1990s, Jetstream Pony singer Beth Arzy - an American expat who attended Palm Desert High School – has spent time in such beloved indie pop/rock groups as Trembling Blue Stars, The Luxembourg Signal and Southern California’s Aberdeen.
Jetstream Pony, formed in 2017, also features guitarist/singer Shaun Charman (The Wedding Present), bassist Kerry Boettcher, drummer Tom Levesley and more recent recruit, guitarist Mark Matthews (The Dentists).
Bowerbirds and Blue Things, this Brighton-based alt-rock quintet’s first full-length album in five years is another winsome addition to its catalog. Arzy’s harmonic blend with guitarist/singer Shaun Charman is spot-on throughout the dozen tracks here.
Among the standouts: driving opener “Sit and Wonder,” bolstered by some chiming guitar; “Bubblegum Nothingness,” which name checks “Soul Train” TV host Don Cornelius and contains a tongue-in-cheek chorus, seemingly chastising a person who’s “a parasitic disco snail”; and the Mighty Lemon Drops-esque “Bonanza 2 Tango Sierra” with more exquisite harmonies. Elsewhere, denser shoegaze sounds turn up, Charman and Boettcher have a hand at lead vocals (the latter on a dark “Tendrils”), and The Fall keyboardist Eleni Puolou even turns up for guest spoken vocals, providing an edgier vibe on “The Relativity of Wrong.”
Info: bandcamp.com
The Loft
Everything Changes, Everything Stays the Same
(Tapete)
Similar artists: Nick Lowe, the Go-Betweens, Real Estate
During the mid-Eighties, The Loft was the first act on England’s vaunted Creation Records (later the label home for Oasis) to achieve notoriety with some single releases. Then the band quickly split up.
Singer/guitarist Pete Astor and drummer Dave Morgan moved onto the critically acclaimed Weather Prophets. The Loft briefly reformed in ’06, reappeared nearly a decade later and have sporadically played gigs in the interim.
All four original members finally entered a studio with current Dexy’s (Midnight Runners) member Sean Read as producer and made the debut album Everything Changes, Everything Stays the Same. The result is a delightful dose of jangle-pop.
Highlights include the character study “Dr. Clarke;” a bar singalong-worthy “Feel Good Now;” humorous dance craze-in-the-making “Do the Shut Up,” and pastoral ode to late summer, “Greensward Days.” (Side note: Loft fans should also check out Astor’s frequently charming, stripped-down 2024 solo effort Tall Stories and New Religions.)
Info: amazon.com.
George Paul
