Music Review: Emitt Rhodes, Rainbow Ends

By Melissa Bratcher

Where do we begin with Emitt Rhodes? He began gaining notoriety as the leader of 1960s band the Merry Go Round, who had the hits “Live” and “You’re A Very Lovely Woman.” In 1971, he released his critically acclaimed eponymous debut and the reputation as a “one-man Beatles,” so pure were his power pop hooks (and the fact that he wrote, produced, and recorded his album in his studio). He released Farewell To Paradise in 1973 and then… radio silence. Bad deals, shady contracts, it’s not a new story.

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Music Review: Jellyfish, Bellybutton and Spilt Milk (Deluxe Reissues)

By Less Lee Moore

Like Big Star before them, Jellyfish developed a cult-like fandom that’s far exceeded not only their rather limited output, but also their impact on music charts. Omnivore Recordings, who recently released the soundtrack to the Big Star documentary Nothing Can Hurt Me, has now given the same loving treatment to the Jellyfish legacy with two new reissues of their studio albums—1990’s Bellybutton and 1993’s Spilt Milk—that include a ton of sensational extras, like 51 bonus tracks, full color gatefold sleeves with rare photos, two essays by Ken Sharp, and song-by-song commentary on the original albums from Andy Sturmer, Roger Manning, and Jason Falkner.

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Music Review: Brian Reitzell, Auto Music

By Less Lee Moore

While Fannibals will know about Brian Reitzell because of his spectacular and spooky music for NBC’s Hannibal, he’s so much more than that. Besides serving as the music supervisor on several Sofia Coppola films (Lost In Translation, Marie Antoinette), scoring film and television (30 Days of Night, Peacock, Red Riding Hood, Friday Night Lights, Boss), and video games (Watch Dogs), Reitzell also recorded and performed with both Redd Kross and Air and was a member of terrific one-off projects like TV Eyes and Logan’s Sanctuary.

The genesis for this album was literally just Brian Reitzell messing around in the studio, exploring ideas for his soundtrack work. Even though Auto Music was about a decade in the making, it doesn’t sound either too studied or haphazardly slapped together. It’s subtle yet self-assured, even on the more bombastic tracks. Despite what you might think about instrumental albums, it’s anything but boring. Inspired by films and filmmakers themselves, it creates a perhaps unsurprising visual world.

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Way Out Sounds: Roger Joseph Manning, Jr. and Synths That Defined The Seventies

By Ayan Farah

Multi-instrumentalist, singer, and songwriter Roger Joseph Manning Jr. is renowned for the melody-rich, intricately arranged compositions his fans have latched onto throughout his nearly 25-year musical career. In each of his diverse band projects (Jellyfish, Imperial Drag, The Moog Cookbook, TV Eyes, Malibu), his ongoing collaborations with Beck, as well as his stellar solo efforts (2006’s The Land of Pure Imagination and 2008’s Catnip Dynamite), what remains constant is Manning’s unshakable ability to create very complex yet highly enjoyable music that is punctuated by his keyboard wizardry.

His indelible mark in the world of keyboards is embodied by his innovative use of vintage analog synthesizers, while his vast collection of those instruments over the years has cultivated a greater proficiency, intimacy, and almost encyclopedic knowledge of his primary instrument of choice. ” I did a lot of treasure hunting”, explains Manning. “I spent a lot of time in the early Nineties looking for stuff. I was quite the addict for those antique keyboards.”
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The Best Albums Of My Decade: By Less Lee Moore

In an editorial called “An Argument Against Year End Lists” Dusted‘s Ben Tausig calls them both “viscerally disgusting” and “overdone” and accuses those critics who write them of being lazy.

Point taken, Mr. Tausig.
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Top Five Cover Versions That Will Never Happen

By Less Lee Moore

5. INXS, “Some Kind Of Wonderful” by Grand Funk Railroad

I grew weary of the Hutchence/Geldof/Yates love triangle drama in the ’90s, so I wasn’t completely shocked by Michael Hutchence’s death. But when the remaining band members subsequently devised a reality show to find a new lead singer, I was offended on behalf of Hutchence as well as my own ’80s INXS fandom. His voice was sensual and bluesy, yet perfectly poised for pop songs. I didn’t realize how much I missed it until he was gone. Which is why the fact that he’ll never be able to cover “Some Kind Of Wonderful” (or sing and perform ever again, for that matter). makes me so very sad. In addition, INXS was one of the rare bands who utilized saxophone judiciously rather than embarrassingly and that would have been a great asset in a reimagining of this song.
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Popshifter‘s Best Of Lists

Pete Best

Most publications give you their “Best Of” and “Top Ten” lists in their December issues. But what about giving props to of all the great things you embraced in the penultimate month of the year?

That’s why Popshifter has decided to provide you with our favorites now, so that you can add them to your list of “Things To Check Out In 2009.”

In addition to the lists our staff compiled, we’ve also posted the lists from some very special guest contributors.

Enjoy!
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Roger Joseph Manning, Jr., Catnip Dynamite

By Less Lee Moore

It’s difficult to be objective in an album review when your gut feeling tells you that the musician in question is an all-around righteous guy. Fortunately, Roger Joseph Manning, Jr.’s latest album, Catnip Dynamite, is so amazing that I won’t have to compromise my principles; this review will be completely guilt-free.
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The First Synthpop Song, Part One

By Less Lee Moore

Read Part Two here.
Read Part Three here.

Although I usually consider the search for the Pop Culture Holy Grail to be a quest for a tangible object, this time around it was something more esoteric.
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Speaking The Language Of Pop: An Interview with Roger Joseph Manning, Jr.

Interviewed by Less Lee Moore

Even if you have never heard of Roger Joseph Manning, Jr., you’ve probably heard him. You might know him best from Jellyfish, Imperial Drag, Malibu, Moog Cookbook, or TV Eyes. But he’s worked with dozens of other bands and musicians: from Air, to Beck, to Cheap Trick, to pretty much every other letter in the alphabet. Except Q and X (I checked).

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