Power Pop News: Frayed Nerves Collins & Case, New Smash Palace CD, Throwback Suburbia’s new one a winner

Regarding some recent power pop news, here’s a couple of quick notes with links to find out more info:

Nerves Come Apart

If you’ve read this blog with any kind of regularity then you know I’m a fan of New Yorkers Paul Collins and Peter Case. You also know how excited I was at the prospect of seeing the two perform together as 2/3 of America’s greatest DIY band ever, The Nerves.

Then the news via Peter Case’s facebook page:

Paul Collins has been dismissed from the tour we were doing together. He was continually abusive to the band and others supporting the tour, and when I stuck up for them, he repeatedly showered me with loud abuse. That road doesn’t go through anymore. This is a problem that went back to day 1 of the tour and never improved for long but got worse. It’s amazing that we were able to get through as many shows as we did. Believe me, it was difficult. He is misrepresenting on fb how he was left: the fact is he was paid off in full, and had more than enough resources to fly anywhere on the US, and in fact had more than me and the band put together. I’m still on tour to pay off some of the debts the tour accrued, and I think he was more than fairly dealt with given the facts if the situation. The Nerves didn’t work out in the seventies and they couldn’t now. I wish him well in all things, but we have to be on separate paths. Onward and upward.

Wow. What a shame. Read what you will into the above Facebook excerpt but there’s always more to these things then meets the eye. No sense in jumping to conclusions or assigning any blame as both these guys are very honorable people. That’s one thing I can state without reservation as I can attest to it through personal experience. The bottom line is, we all lose on this one.

New Smash Palace CD

The New Smash Palace CD, “Do It Again” is due for release on April 24th. Their previous release entitled “7” was one of the best of 2010 and, judging by the video for the single “Living It Lonely”, it sounds like the new release is a very worthy follow-up. They’ll be playing the Ritz Theater (NY?) on April 29th as a CD release show. Check out the new video here. We’ll have more on the release after we get our hands on it.

Quick Review: Throwback Suburbia – Shot Glass Souvenir

Throwback indeed, but not retro. The opening cut, “Give and Take” throws us right into the hook-filled deep end with those wonderfully jangly guitars. “Setting Sun” will have you humming along in no time with an irresistible chorus. The great Steve Nieve-esque keyboards on “Sinking Feeling” had me wanting more, And “Side Effects” sounds like the perfect Dave Edmunds record. Gotta love those harmonies. “Caroline” will be a treat to any Jellyfish fans as well as a number of other cuts on the disc. Throwback, yes. But refreshing, different, and not at all derivative. My favorite release of 2012 so far. Go get it now! You can get it at CD baby I couldn’t find any new video from the new album but here’s an old one for you to check out in the meantime…