A Pair of Jersey Releases I've Been Listening To All Week from Joseph Black and Fascinations Grand Chorus

Retromania

I wanted to call your attention to a pair of releases from artists I've supported around here for a few years.

Joseph Black, Wildest Dreams EP

Way, way back in the infancy of CoolDad Music, I came across New Brunswick lo-fi pop band Honeydrum. With hints of Ariel Pink and early-80s R.E.M., I felt like Honeydrum were destined for bigger things. That materialized in two albums for Captured Tracks under the new name Donovan Blanc.

Last year, Joseph Black of Honeydrum / Donovan Blanc released his debut, solo LP, Northern Exposure. That album further solidified Black as one of the most unsung, underrated heroes of retro-inspired pop. Last month, Black released Wildest Dreams, the first of three, three-song cassingles in a project set to span the end of 2019 into 2020.

Black recorded, mixed, and mastered Wildest Dreams in Highland Park, NJ. The three songs on the EP are breezy, dreamy pop that draw on some sounds of the 80s that are soothingly familiar to my Gen X ears. There isn't a weak moment on Wildest Dreams, and closer "Lonelier Than Heaven Knows" is a standout. It's a short, romantic track reminiscent of Psychedelic Furs and John Hughes films.

Wildest Dreams is available as a super-limited 25 cassette run. It's also downloadable over at Joseph Black's Bandcamp page and streamable everywhere.



Fascinations Grand Chorus, Presentations of Electrical Confectionery

Speaking of bands I've been supporting for a while who have a bit of a retro vibe, Fascinations Grand Chorus -- the Jersey City duo of Stephanie Cupo and Andrew Pierce -- released Presentations of Electrical Confectionery last week.

I've always loved Fascinations Grand Chorus's commitment to their aesthetic. Presentations of Electrical Confectionery is ten songs showcasing the band's love of the timeless pop of Brian Wilson, Jersey forebears like The Shirelles, early AM radio, even the punk of The Ramones or The Misfits. The band also throw in a few tinges of psychedelia which results in some of the best sounds they've produced to date.

I've been playing Presentations... on repeat all week, and it's honestly difficult to single anything out. All the songs work seamlessly together. From bopping opener "Can't Let Go" to the mellow, Carpenters-esque "Echoes" to the surfily-tinged three-and-a-half-minute pop epic that is "Would It Be," there is something infectiously engaging about every song here. The spaced-out intro to "Cry Over You" gives way to an earworm embellished with some more spacey keys. Closer "Back Again" is a soulful bop that takes the album out on a vibe as upbeat as what kicked things off.

For me, though, "Future World" is the standout track here. Combining guitars and horns with Cupo's vocals and keys, the song represents a single confection that has all of Fascinations Grand Chorus's disparate electrical and analog influences as ingredients.

Presentations of Electrical Confectionery is available now. You can order a special limited-run CD over at the Fascinations Grand Chorus Bandcamp page, and you can stream the album pretty much everywhere.

Joseph Black, Northern Exposure, 2018

Album Review

I've been telling you about the work of New Jersey's Joseph Black for about five years now. It started when I stumbled upon his work as part of lo-fi pop duo Honeydrum. Black and Honeydrum collaborator, Ray Schwab, scaled their formula up a bit as Donovan Blanc and released a pair of LPs under that moniker with Captured Tracks (Mac DeMarco, DIIV, EZTV, Wild Nothing, more). For the past year or so, Black has been working on his solo debut. He released Northern Exposure last week digitally and on cassette via Chill Mega Chill Records, and the entirely solo effort is another showcase of Black's facility with retro-inspired, infectious pop.

Black wrote, played, recorded, mixed, and mastered everything on Northern Exposure in his New Jersey home. The result is a polished collection of songs steeped in the feel of 80s synth pop. Opener "Lonesome Dreams" is upbeat and ethereal, featuring handclaps and bright synths. The title track is a dreamy earworm that could soundtrack a montage in a coming of age film. Single "What If It's All Wrong?" brings in the sound of horns and is an absolute pop gem. The album drifts out on atmospheric closer "Cold Calling," with its piano and acoustic guitar.

Northern Exposure flows along seamlessly and without a single low point. As far as I can tell, Joseph Black has been one of the most under-the-radar artists and pop songsmiths from New Jersey or anywhere for a lot of years now. With Northern Exposure, he'll hopefully get his due.

Northern Exposure is out now on Chill Mega Chill Records.

Donovan Blanc Are Back with a New Album

The Color of Hearts

From the early days of CoolDad Music -- since our very first year five years ago, as a matter of fact -- I've been telling you about NJ band Honeydrum. The band specialized in lo-fi, retro-inspired pop reminiscent of something like Ariel Pink. Short, infectious pop songs about lots of those things that pop songs are about: love, obsession. Honeydrum put out music at furious clip, releasing something like 9 EPs over the course of two years.

In 2014, frontman Joe Black and bassist Ray Schwab released a full-length as Donovan Blanc. Their self-titled debut brought many of the ideas in Honeydrum to a fuller more polished realization. Now, Donovan Blanc are back with The Color of Hearts. On their latest release, the band play with the sounds of 70s disco. There's a definite Bee Gees vibe that comes through on opener "Never Let You Down" as well as "I've Never Loved Someone (Like You)." The title track feels like soulful 70s AM radio pop. There's a hint of country twang on "You Made a Fool of Me" (which also sounds like it's played over one of the built in tracks on an electric piano you'd buy at the mall back when I was a kid) and "Breanna," but both still exude a disco vibe.

What shines throughout the album is the fact that Donovan Blanc know how to write a damn good pop song, whether that song is a disco bop or a country waltz.

The Color of Hearts is available now over at Donovan Blanc's Bandcamp page as either a download or a limited run of gold cassettes. Cassettes are also available via the Captured Tracks store.

Northside Festival, Night 2: Donovan Blanc, Sharkmuffin, Tweens, Marnie Stern

Tweens were impressive during their set at Rough Trade NYC on Friday night.

Warsaw / Bar Matchless / Rough Trade NYC

Yesterday was a typically busy Saturday for us. CoolDaughter #1 had her 7:30-9 AM swim practice. CoolDaughter #2 had her 9:30-10:15 AM swim lesson and a softball game at 11. Their summer camp had its annual pre-camp "Day of Fun" yesterday afternoon, and CD1 had a birthday party from 6-8 PM.

I had some driving / breakfast-getting duties for CD1's swimming, and I like to help out at CD2's games. I love pitching and coaching at the softball games, and CD2 is definitely getting better. There was no way that I'd miss it so that I could wander around Brooklyn alone in the early part of the day. I did want to get there in time for The Blind Shake, though. That meant squeezing in some photo editing before I had to leave and no writing about the events of Friday night at Northside.

So, I'm doing this thing today where I'm writing about two nights ago. Then, one day from now, I'll write about two nights before that. Let's see if I can keep things straight.

Just as I pulled up to my parking spot next to McCarren Park on Friday night, the skies let loose with a biblical downpour. Little kids playing baseball and soccer in the park scattered, along with their parents, to their own cars; and the gutter quickly flooded with several inches of water. Scary thunder and lightning, too.

Never good at preparation, I hadn't brought an umbrella or a camera bag; so I moved the car closer to Warsaw where I'd spend the first part of the night at the Captured Tracks showcase. Things let up enough that it wasn't so bad standing out front in the drizzle with all the mindie kids there to see Craft Spells and Beach Fossils in about three or four hours. I'd come to see openers Donovan Blanc (pronounced "blahnk"), the new-fangled version of New Brunswick's Honeydrum, who will be releasing their debut LP for Captured Tracks on June 24th.

Warsaw is a big performance space in Greenpoint's Polish National Home: "Where pierogies meet punk." You can get pierogies, kielbasa, and bottles of Żywiec from a lady behind a plastic, checkered tablecloth-covered folding table in the "Warsaw Bistro." The venue holds about 800.

Donovan Blanc did a set of easy-going, laid back, quiet pop. As with Honeydrum, there were similarities to the hook-filled, lo-fi pop of Ariel Pink; but things weren't lo-fi anymore. Frontman Joseph Black put out kind of a chill and lounge-y vibe. The group concocted a drink for the evening called "Summerly Heaven," which should give you an idea of their whole schtick.

I left after the set -- to the incredulous "No Re-entry!" exclamations from the door people -- so that I could head down the block to catch Sharkmuffin at Bar Matchless. Fronted by Holmdel native Tarra Thiessen, Brooklyn's Sharkmuffin are a band I've been following for a while. Their short set of garage pop provided a nice jolt of energy following all the chill vibes from up the block. The band room at Matchless is a wonderfully small and tomblike space where no phone reception shall enter; and Thiessen's coffin-shaped, rose-topped guitar case at the foot of the stage was just right.

It is my new mission to bridge the divide that exists between our own local scene and the other thriving metropolitan area scenes like Jersey City and Brooklyn. As I'd been doing at every show where I got the chance, I told Thiessen that we'd love to see her and her band down in Asbury Park soon. She was more than receptive. Baby steps.

From there it was off to Williamsburg to catch Tweens and Marnie Stern at Rough Trade NYC. After a bit of an ordeal trying to find parking, I made it into the really nice performance space at the back of the huge record store just in time for Tweens. I loved them.

Featuring Peyton Copes (bass) and Jerri Queen (drums) of Vacation and fronted by Bridget Battle (guitar / vocals), the Cincinnati trio play high-energy, snotty, 60s girl group-inspired pop punk. Single "Be Mean" had the whole place screaming the chorus.

Guitar shredder extraordinaire, Marnie Stern, followed. She played solo, accompanied only by backing tracks from her Mac. Stern said the performance was a first for her; but after a few initial hiccups, she got into the groove and mesmerized those who remained with her unique combination of experimental guitar riffage and pop rock.

When it was done, I headed back to my car and drove home to get what rest I could for the full day that would start early the next morning. Words and pics on that one on Monday, I guess.

I won't be heading back up to the festival today. That means I'll miss some bands like Ovlov, Creepoid, Alvvays, and Hey Anna. But in order to be a cooldad, you've first gotta be a dad. I'll be reveling in that with my lovely girls today.

Here are some shots from Friday. Flickr for more... blah, blah...