Ken Sharp – Miniatures

It’s hard to say whether Ken Sharp is most known for his book, Nothing To Lose: The Making of KISS or for his six power pop albums. However, one thing is clear. He gets it. The modern day attention span is shorter than ever. With thirty-two tracks in all (none exceeding two minutes in length), Miniatures is a tuneful exercise in brevity.

There’s a plethora of pleasing pop sounds from start to finish – harpsichord, mellotron, piano, glockenspiel and acoustic guitar throughout – all played by Ken himself. There’s baroque pop, folky pop and power pop. As if that weren’t enough to impress, producer and instrumentalist extraordinaire Fernando Permado and violist Kaitlin Wolfberg appear on a few tracks.

The album leads off with the universally relatable “Me and My Big Fat Mouth”. We’ve all done it – written a check with our mouth that we know we can’t cash. Clocking in at a lengthy 1:58, it’s a logical choice for the number one spot.  “Day In Night In” is a wonderfully catchy tune and “Stack O’ Records”, a sentimental gem, reminds me a bit of early Big Star. The harmonies are perfect – and there are 29 more!

Baroque Pop, Power Pop & More

There’s so much here to like – literally. You can get Ken Sharp’s latest, Miniatures, at his Bandcamp page.