
What’s up for Power Pop in 20/20?
We’ve been incredibly busy preparing for the release of our new single, Infinity Girl (available now! https://soundcloud.com/pravdamusic/sunshine-boys-infinity-girl), the video for the song (out on 17 Jan.) and our new album, Work and Love (out 1 May)…and so, that actually describes what’s up for us in 2020. Releasing our new record and playing as much as possible — with a definite wish to play some European dates!
– Dag, Freda and Jackie (Sunshine Boys)
I’m currently in the middle of a delightful writing streak, thanks to my favorite nylon-string acoustic guitar, a modified Nick Drake guitar tuning, and lots of cozy fires in the fireplace. Songs are pouring out as I fumble around the fretboard, re-learning the instrument with odd new chord shapes and richer, more complex harmonic voicings. I also bought an Organelle (Critter & Guitari) synthesizer/sampler this year which is adding a very interesting contrast to the “thuddy” texture of the nylon-string acoustic.
As for inspiration, I’ve been listening to lots of Brian Eno, Enya, Michael McDonald, Marvin Gaye, Jenny Lewis, Mike Viola, Weyes Blood, Aldous Harding, George Winston, Bill Evans, and Norwegian Disco artist Todd Terje.
According to the iTunes Playlist entitled “LP5,” I currently have 12 strong contenders for the album, and about 10 more in the “LP5 Contenders” Playlist. I plan to write through the spring, go into the studio for my Birthday in late May (is there any better present one can give oneself than studio time?!?), and hopefully release the album around Fall 2021.
– Scott Gagner
I am going to hone my home recording skills and hopefully release 2 albums this year. I will also be doing more visual art. Looking forward to 2020!
– Jhohn Arlie
I’m really excited for 2020. I recorded some new songs over the past couple of months and will be releasing a new single in the next week or so. I’ll also be releasing a couple more singles with accompanying videos over the next couple of months. Including one that features Keith Slettedahl from The 88. In addition to that, I have about 5 more songs I’ll be recording that will be added to the current songs I have recorded and will release a full-length cd hopefully by the summer.
– Mike Collins (Rooftop Screamers)
In 2020 I’m planning on recording the 11 new songs I’ve got for a new LP as well as compiling the odds and sods I’ve got leftover from the last 20 years of songwriting that haven’t fitted on albums or singles into something. I’m not sure how or when any of this will be done though. At the moment everything is pie in the sky.
– Simon Love
Currently, the band and I are planning to play a bunch of gigs and continue to get the word out about the new album in 2020. We also hope to go back into the studio and record a couple of new singles that we are playing live but have yet to properly record.
– Dave Cope and the Sass
Which goals have been set for 2020?
My last release was a 31 song, 3 LP vinyl set accompanied by a novella. It was a large, stylistically diverse project. I’m thankful for the positive response it’s received.
This year my goal is to release a highly imaginative yet focused album.
I hope to conjure up dreamy, nostalgic songs that echo the past while simultaneously taking the listener on a new exciting adventure. I’m attempting to say more with less, using specific musical colors to paint a vivid picture; striving for creative and emotional depth while embracing minimalism. It’s my soundtrack to a moonlight drive or a magical summer day waiting in the future. The melodies, rhythms and chords are meant to warm the listener’s heart and to create musical sunshine, hopefully bringing comfort and light in dark challenging times.
What are your success criteria?
My definition of success is based on creative and personal happiness. Follow your bliss and inspiration, it will lead to wonderful things. Therefore, creating an album I love is very satisfying. At the same time, I’m always hopeful my music will reach a much wider audience. The past year has been an exhilarating roller-coaster ride; From beautiful highs to very serious health challenges. Luckily, I’ve successfully recovered.
I’ve become very mindful of small steps forward. Success is not just monetary;
I’m very hopeful that great music/art will result in good commerce, but love, health, friendship and art are on the top of my list.
Which ideas will finally become reality?
Seeing an abstract idea come to life is always thrilling.
I think of it as creating an imaginary jukebox, spinning “greatest hits” from a parallel dimension. I’m also attempting to illuminate my new songs in musical color corresponding with the changing seasons. From the psychedelic technicolor of spring to colder, stark reverberations of winter. The sounds I’ve dreamt up are slowly coming to life, becoming reality.
What’s up for 2020?
I’d love to play more live shows, especially in Europe. I hope to continue writing, recording, producing and collaborating. I plan to release the new album with plenty of creative visuals. That’s going to be a very important component of the project.
Audio visual experimentation in general. Overall, it’s so important to keep a sense of wonder alive and to continue to grow as an artist. I’m lucky to have a fantastic circle of creative people around me. I’m very optimistic about 2020 being a year of magical potential.
– Bill Majoros (The Foreign Films)
Yes, plans! West Coast solo tour with Tony Leventhal of The Mockers, French Solo Tour April, I Don’t Fit In book comes out on Hozac Books, Alive Records set to release ‘Another World: Best of the Archives’, details to follow! West Coast solo tour is in March.
– Paul Collins
The Resonars are gonna play Burgerama 5 in LA on March 14, touring Europe with Lenguas Largas in April/May, and hope to have a new LP out by summertime on Midtown Island Records. The Midtown Island and crew and I will continue to record the finest rock and roll music Tucson has to offer.
– Matt Rendon (The Resonars)
What do we see in 2020? Ah yes, whatever it is, The Bishop’s Daredevil Stunt Club should be seeing it clearly in the year of perfect vision. While we have lots of new jams in the works, we are not so quick to shed the old for the new, continuing to tour our latest effort, “End Over End”, an LP in which we take great pride. But, looking into that New Year crystal ball…yes it is fading out of the fog and into clarity…we foresee a trip to la la land! We have played some great places in the past, including New York, Liverpool and London, and this year the fortune-telling orb displays the letters “L. A.”! Stay tuned…
– William Giricz (The Bishop’s Daredevil Stunt Club)
Not sure about any new Well Wishers music on the horizon for 2020…but I’m looking forward to recording some new material with Trip Wire. I also just finished a new novel called “The Last Best Place”. Should be out shortly after the new year.
– Jeff Shelton
Futureman Records has a pretty packed slate coming up, with the XTC Tribute we’ve been working on for over a year finally seeing the light of day. Also have new stuff coming from Coke Belda, Tom Curless and the 46%, Pop Co-Op and Gretchen’s Wheel. And we have the honor of re-releasing one of our all-time favorite albums, King Radio’s “Are You The Sick Passenger?” Smart pop with lots of strings, our sweetest of sweet spots. Plus new The Legal Matters, 2020’s gonna rule!
– Keith Klingensmith (Futureman Records, The Legal Matters)
For 2020 we’ll be trying to promote our brand new 7-inch, “Hit the Floor.” We recorded it at Ardent Studios in Memphis, where Big Star, Gin Blossoms, and so many others made their great records. We then had it mixed and mastered by Perry Leenhouts of the Travoltas. The record came out great, and we just got them in here at the very end of the year. So those will start shipping next week. Vista Blue will likely slow down in 2020 for the first time in five years, but we will be starting a new project called Ralphie’s Red Ryders. All of our songs will be based on references to the film A Christmas Story, an idea that will probably be much funnier to your American readers! We’re planning our CD release for November, but we may do a digital single or two along the way as we write and record the tracks. Those are our only current plans for 2020. Thanks for the support as always!
– Mike Patton (Vista Blue)
My new album is being mastered late February/early March so I’m looking at a Spring release. I haven’t performed live shows for a while so if I could figure out a way to get back out there that could be fun. I’ll continue to write and record new material. Beyond that, I’ll just walk the earth lol!
– Ed Ryan
I’m currently working on my next album, which is approaching the halfway point of completion. So my immediate plans are to finish writing and recording the rest of the album. It will probably be finished by spring. My goal is to make something honest, challenging and not too easy to categorize…which is hopefully what people have come to expect by now! In addition to releasing the album, I hope to continue to participate in interesting projects and collaborations with other artists.
– Lindsay Murray (Gretchen’s Wheel)
I plan on new a The Junior League record for next year (an updated version of a record I put out under my own name years ago called “Fall Back”) as well as maybe an EP. Also planning to play shows in places I haven’t played or have never played next year!
– Joe Adragna (The Junior League)
The High Strung are in the midst of recording (in a couple of basement studios) a 30+ song double album tentatively titled “Southfield: The Center of It All.” We hope to have it completed and available by autumn of 2020. The five of us have very exciting personal, family, and creative things happening this year! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you and the readers of the Sweet Sweet Music Blog!
– The High Strung
The Newds will finally release the ‘Drawing a Line’ album as the money is in place to do so ha. Also, The Newds has already recorded 3 tracks for our Stripped (Acoustic album) which be a very simple album focusing on our songs. We are back in the Cavern in May for more live fun, hope to see some of you there.
– Paul Meagher (The Newds)
We’re finishing up the new album this Saturday (mixing notes etc.) and plan on releasing the new LP in early 2020. Same old me but a new band and of course new songs. We recorded this album with the band all playing together in the studio. Still some overdubs of course but I really dig the vibe we have on this batch of songs.
– Nick Piunti (Nick Piunti & The Complicated Men)
In 2020 I will be bringing my tour playing “Touched” and more to Spain, and back to the USA for more dates, and will be performing in Lebanon as well. But, even more significantly, we will be finishing up our work on the Posies ninth album, and hopefully, getting it out as well!
– Ken Stringfellow (The Posies)
For 2020, Peter Holsapple Combo heads to 30A Songwriters Festival in Florida this January, then the band goes on hold for most of the year while I restart my solo acoustic career as well. I put out four records in 3 years, and I feel like I could keep on doing this until I die. That’s good, right?
– Peter Holsapple
We actually JUST released something brand new, which is a cover of “Linus and Lucy” from the Peanuts cartoons. You can find that here.
Apart from that, my new album that came out this year was the biggest thing I’ve ever done, and a huge dream of mine for so long, that I haven’t really thought much what to do beyond that.
I think I’d like to release a few singles, so I don’t keep people waiting too long. I was happy to release one already, feels good to keep things going!
And since I have a live band now, I’d love to tour more.
Maybe another music video too. Who knows what the future holds?
– Juan Antonio Lopez (Sofa City SweetHeart)
The John Sally Ride just put out a new single called Far From Eaten Out. There will be another single or two, then an entire new album. Your blog had a lot to do with the new album. When you interviewed me, I mentioned hoping to play with a guitar player named Joe Pampel. He has joined the band and his guitar playing has truly added to the band. Thank you for making this happen!!
– John Dunbar (The John Sally Ride)
For 2020 I want to do something else with Caddy than recording a whole album and do everything all over again. So I decided to record a mini-album with covers that will hopefully be released in the spring. It will be 6 songs, hidden gems that I don’t think many have heard but totally fit into my Caddy sound. It should be a lot of fun and not so much pressure and time-consuming to write and record my own songs. But I will probably start doing that later in 2020 .
I’m also releasing the first Caddy album ‘Electric Hero’ digitally 17. January.
– Tom Dahl (Caddy)
I am releasing a covers album called “That’s All Folks” and a compilation of unreleased tracks called “Sad Balloons” under the Argentinian label Eternal Sunday. Also, I will be playing lots of solo gigs in Spain.
– Juan Pablo Mazzola (Baby Scream)
Lots of new products being recorded and released as The Toms and my alternate band HORIZONTAL LADIES CLUB!
– Tom Marolda (The Toms)
I’m releasing a new full-length record in February called ‘Kingdom of Sleep’. I’m playing two weeks’ worth of shows in Belgium in February. More music to follow hope you’re well.
– Jonny Polonsky
I was signed to Tender Loving Empire in Portland, which was a huge dream come true for me. I’ve always been a fan of the label’s roster and am really excited about all of it.I have a new record releasing on 2/14/2020, and will be going on tour for about five weeks in the spring. First a west coast leg, then an east coast.And maybe some international touring later in the year. It might be fun, it’ll surely also be a lot of work!
– Mo Troper
I have been working hard this year and a new record is coming in 2020. I finally found a dedicated band so this record will be billed as ‘Tom Curless and the 46%’. Mostly band tracks with a few solo tracks with me playing everything peppered in. I am excited as this is shaping up to be a strong record. Hopefully, a Futureman records release in the spring. Stay tuned more to come!!
– Tom Curless
2020 is going to be a fun one. From a producer standpoint, there is a record coming out from an artist named Amy Petty that I’m very excited for everyone to hear. We are also close to wrapping up ‘The Legal Matters’ third album which is coming along nicely. I have also assembled a Tom Petty tribute record that features a lot of the artists that I record and produce. It should be out in mid-2020 as well.
– Andy Reed
2020?…. working on the new Arthur Alexander album, the re-release of the second Sorrows album “Love Too Late”. Also hopping to finally break out of the LA club scene and take Arthur Alexander Band on the road and do some touring in the US as well as Europe. No rest for the wicked!
– Arthur Alexander (Arthur Alexander Band/Sorrows)
My plan for 2020 is to record a new album. I have always wanted to do a freeform album. I am not going to worry if one song is Country and others are Pop Rock or Swampy Blues. Usually, when I start an album I have a pretty clear idea of what I am trying to do. On this one, I will keep it loose. That is my plan for 2020.
– Eric Blakely (The Bottle Kids)
After releasing my last album early in 2019 I did not record any new music this year and only wrote one new song. I hope to get back on track in 2020. Also, I did a great full band show in August 2019 and hope to do another one in the spring.
– Eytan Mirsky
I’m looking forward to 2020. I’m going to start working on a new record over the winter. As of now, I’m not sure when it will be released, but it will be at some point in later 2020. I have a lot of new material written, so I’m looking forward to pushing myself a little bit during the recording process. I think it will take me in some new directions and build off of the last few records I’ve released. I don’t want to repeat myself, so I’m going to take my time with this one. I’m also starting to work on some new shows for the spring and beyond. I have some dates in the works and will start listing them over the winter. Other than that, that’s about it. 2019 was a great year for me musically and I feel my music reached a lot of new ears, so I hope to continue that trend in 2020!
– Johnny Stanec
In 2020 I will
1) work on a book I’m writing
2) tour with The Orchestra
3) tour my own music and compile songs for a new album
4) see my eldest daughter off to college
5) vote
6) learn something new.
– Parthenon Huxley
We’ve brought in a new bass player who is rapidly learning our catalog. You’ve not seen us live, Bill, Jeff and me all took a turn at the 4 string but we’ve decided to streamline the live show and cut the instrument switching. We’ve got a recording date in January for an already written next album and I’m booking us show after show.
– Marty Schneider (Trip Wire)
Hopefully more collaborations with other Indie Artists. Release more singles in 2020. Then take the 2019 singles and any 2020 songs and a few oldies from the archive, then post a downloadable compilation album on line. If any artists out there are interested in collaborating, please message me (Craig Carlstrom or Orbis 2.0 Facebook page). Looking to hear from lyric writers, singers, co-writers.
– Craig Carlstrom (Orbis Max)
For 2020 there will be a live album with the Mighty Sparrow (mixing now!), after that an exciting collaboration with Steve Burdick of The Wind which we’ve been working on for three years, and more songs with Dave Foster, more Murderers Row recordings, and possibly I’ll finally meet Alex from 8X8 and we’ll do something head-to-head.
– Lane Steinberg
The Lunar Laugh has a lot planned for 2020 already. We are concentrating doing more touring in the US (west coast, south, midwest and possibly east coast). We also are planning on a couple of new singles along with filming music videos. We have been readying our first-ever live album. Additionally, we will be working on our next studio album as well as prepping for individual solo projects.
– Jared Lekites (The Lunar Laugh)
Well, we will continue to play wherever and whenever we can with shows and festivals lined up already through the year in the UK, Belgium, Germany, and Norway. The big news though is that we have a new album out in May. Called “Don’t Blame Yourself” it’s our best one yet. Harder and more varied than the previous three, it has 13 songs of the highest genius? Our goal is that the entire world, apart from Uzbekistan (because you have to have a goal to improve next time!), will hum along!
– Duncan Reid (Duncan Reid and The Big Heads)
We released our debut mini-album, ‘Hipsters and Aeroplanes’ on the American, Kool Kat Musik label, in September 2019. It’s done well for us, making it into Kool Kat’s Top Sellers and picking up some great reviews.
And we have just released two brand new songs through the Big Stir Digital Single series ‘Wooden Buddha’ / ‘Ghosts of Rome’ – both tracks are taken from our forthcoming, full-length album, to be released early 2020 (once again on the Kool Kat Musik label) !! More info coming soon…
– James Stryring (It’s Karma It’s Cool)
In 2020 I will continue working on new music and hopefully release my new record, which will definitely be different from my records before. Though, there is no release date yet. Besides that, I’m working on other artists’ stuff.
– Kai Danzberg
Well, a bit of an 11th-hour effort. I wrote a new festive themed song on Friday which I hastily recorded and released on Saturday. I wish I’d released it earlier (say, 1st December!) but, as I say, I didn’t exist until Friday so that’s that. It features Christopher Walken!
… as for SUPER 8 musical plans for 2020. First off I’ll be picking up from my first single collaboration with America’s ‘Princess Of Power Pop’ Lisa Mychols. As you may (or may not) know, SUPER 8 released a single back in August entitled ‘Timebomb‘ featuring Lisa on guest vocals.
It was meant to be a one-off thing but we had so much fun with that one that we’ve decided to do an EP (scheduled for release early 2020) so keep an ear to the tracks for that – it’s going to be good. Following on from the SUPER 8 ‘Head Sounds – EP’ that was released in October 2019.
… I’ll also be looking to flesh this out into a full ‘Head Sounds’ album (the EP being the trailer as it were) and that’s penciled in for a Summer release. Behind the scenes, I’m also working on a brand new batch of songs for the new label ‘Subjangle’ that will probably end up as another album project. Here’s one of the shortlisted tracks for that.
As you can see then, another busy musical year ahead for SUPER 8!
– Trip (Super 8)
l’m working really hard on songs for a new album, which most likely will be recorded in June. I want to record something memorable, not just another record. I already have 9 songs which I really like. I’m aware of the league I play but I want to record a b-classic.
– Colman Gota
Looking back on this year I started the year with a couple of shows in Japan. But apart from that, it’s been a pretty calm year compared to last year when Lucky Day was released and promoted among other stuff with shows in Spain, on the American west coast, and in Sweden. But, there were indeed two small “signs of life” from me in the form of the film song single “Work of Love” and just recently my participation in a Tages tribute compilation where I’m featured with my version of “Every Raindrop Means A Lot”.
But the question was “what’s up for 2020” and the answer is that it will be very much focused on one (fantastic!) thing. The arrival of a new family member in the form of a baby girl! She’s expected in February and it will be our firstborn so I have no other plans for 2020 then becoming a father and take care of my little family.
So from a career perspective, I guess not much can be expected from the artist David Myhr for a while. But there are songs in the back of my head that I hope someday will find their way out and that I ultimately will be able to share with the world. Any year soon, but not 2020!
One thing that will happen though and which is kind of a nice surprise is a new release from my former band The Merrymakers. Sony Japan will release an album called “The Best of The Merrymakers” which is super cool and which I am really excited about. It will also contain two exclusive bonus tracks. The previously unreleased song “Everything Is Wrong” that was supposed to be on our third album that we never finished. As well as our Paul McCartney cover “No More Lonely Nights” which I remember we were really proud of.
– David Myhr
Extra Arms hope to play more shows in 2020 and work on a new album because CAN’T STOP WON’T STOP.
– Ryan Allen (Extra Arms)
Lots of new music coming out in 2020. The Quincy record has just been released digitally and CDs will be coming in February of 2020. The new full-length Rogers & Butler record (a follow up to this year’s EP ‘Diana Dors’) is scheduled for a May release on Zip Records and a new Smash Palace (Zip Records) record should come at the end of the year, just in time for Xmas. Hopefully, everything will go as planned.
– Stephen Butler (Quincy, Smash Palace, Rogers & Butler)
We’re planning on arranging some new work and hopefully hitting the studio in 2020, as well as touring full band as much as possible in the USA, and solo shows for me in the Spring!
– Johnny Leitera (Tuff Sunshine)
My plans for 2020?
- Continue to play live gigs on a weekly basis, including a trip to NYC in April, a week in Denver CO in September and all of the other towns and villages in the NW US, I’ve been performing on a regular basis for over 20 years.
- Continue to get behind my new album “Not Changing”, with radio, press, bloggers and events.
- Promote my seven earlier unique CD albums to the folks who have been playing “Not Changing”. I have more than that, but those eight albums have all of my published original material.
- Master and prepare for release an album of covers, which will include 23 tunes. 12 have never been released at all prior on CD, though two of them were released on vinyl, back in the mid-’80s. Four of them were on tribute albums but never released on one of my albums. Seven were already on one of my seven earlier CD’s but will be re-mastered. It is possible that I may record something else for it, once the time is right to move towards releasing a new album. Here is a tentative tracklisting, with little regard to the running order: “This Is Where I Belong” (Kinks) 2. “Rock and Roll Cowboy” (Cowboys) (same as “Makin’ Bacon”) 3. “You Showed Me” (Turtles/Byrds) (same as “Full Circle: A Tribute to Gene Clark”) 4. “Rebel Kind” (Modernettes) (same as “Seattle-New York-Los Angeles”) 5. “Red Light Moon” (Mike Czekaj) (same as “Jim Basnight Thing”) 6. “I Can See for Miles” (Who) (same as Who’s Not Forgotten”) 7. “Laser Love” (T-Rex) 8. “Happiness is a Warm Gun” (Beatles) (same as “It Was 40 Years Ago Today: A Tribute to the Beatles”) 9. “Cinderella” (Sonics) (same as, “Writes. Sings, Plays”) 10. “Prince Jones Davis Suite” (Medley of “April Snow” by Prince, “Win” by Bowie and “World Keeps Going Around” by the Kinks) 11. “Brother Louie” (Stories) (same as “A Tribute to the Left Banke”) 12. “Lonely Planet Boy” (NY Dolls) 13. “Midnight Mission Hit Parade” (Czekaj) (same as “Introducing Jim Basnight”) 14. “Shot Down” (Sonics) 15. “She Gives Me Everything I Want” (Hollies) (same as “Makin’ Bacon”) 16. “So Much in Love” (Rolling Stones) 17. “Just Like Darts” (Real Kids) (same as “I Wanna Be a Real Kid: A Tribute to the Real Kids”) 18. “New Guitar in Town” (Lurkers/Boys) 19. “It’s You Alone” (Wailers) (same as “Sexteen” 1985) 20. “Do Anything You Want to Do” (Eddie and the Hot Rods) 21. “Princess in Rags” (Czekaj) (same as “Recovery Room”)
- I am also preparing to release the original cast album of “Little Rock”, a musical I co-composed with Richard Gray. The show is based on the story of the “Little Rock Nine”, who integrated Little Rock Central High (AR) during the 1957-58 school year. It draws musically from early Rock and Roll, “Delta” Blues, 50’s Pop, R+B and Country. and Rockabilly.
- Continue to care for the people in my life who depend on me, like my 18-year-old kid, who is in her freshman year of college, my brother who is 53 and needs 24-hour care, my mom who is 88 and needs 24-hour care and my dog Clyde.
– Jim Basnight
“Our second ep “HEAVY HEART” was just released. Seems like people think it great. Fun times. We will release two great singles this spring and hopefully, make a music video or two. We also plan to do more shows and try to do our first shows outside of Sweden. Please get in touch if you wanna book us (citymazeisreal@gmail.com).
– City Maze