ANC4 – ANC4

In 2016, Roger Arvidson and company gave us Arvidson & Butterflies, a collection of delicious pop confections, some co-written with Wayne “Ice Cream Man” Ford. This go ‘round, Roger teams up with Tomas Nilsson of the Mop Tops to give us a diverse collection of bright, hummable pop tunes drawing on a variety of influences from The Beatles to The Byrds.

As different as these songs may be from one another, each starts with a great melody from which hangs the musical elements necessary to make one catchier than the last. “Easy Way Out” is a great choice for an opening track with its memorable guitar hook and spot on harmonies. The twangy “You Can Call Me Darling” is a departure of sorts with a slide guitar so dripping wet it could be in a Dali painting. And those bells – just lovely.

“The Chronicle” is an amazing track, with multi-layered textures created through some studio wizardry. “So Good to Me” keeps us in that good mood vibe and leads right into “Happy Again”, a bit of pure, uplifting power pop with very possibly the catchiest chorus I’ve heard this year.

“It Don’t Matter” is another earworm with the kind of guitar shimmer that may remind one of The La’s. And “No More Words” has that Byrds-ian jangle that never goes out of fashion.

With more hooks than a pirate convention, Roger Arvidson’s ANC4 is easily one of my favorite records of 2019. It’s available for pre-order through Kool Kat Musik. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.