Fall Singles Roundup.

Michael Carpenter-The Start of Being Alone. Michael Carpenter may have "retired" from straight-up power pop, but he remains busy writing, producing and collaborating and his sense of melody and songcraft isn't retired. He bills this new single as alt-country but to these ears it's more rock than twang and in the vein of Tom Petty.

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Dave Sheinin-The Lies of Summer. The debut album from longtime Washington Post sportswriter Dave Sheinin was perhaps the most pleasant surprise of 2018, finishing #8 on my year-end list, and he's back with this fine Andy Bopp-produced track.

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Andrew Stonehome-I Am King. Normally I don't seek out singles from artists I'm unfamiliar with, but this tune from Portland's Andrew Stonehome caught my ear and hasn't let go. Bright, crunchy power pop that sounds like Cheap Trick crossed with Big Star. This song is apparently a teaser for an upcoming full-length album due in 2020, and I for one can't wait for it.

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Peter Baldrachi-The Suffering. My last singles roundup several months back featured his great tune "Breathe", and Baldrachi continues to release new tunes in advance of his upcoming full-length next year as well. This is one is 2:19 of his usual ear candy, and despite the title no suffering is involved.

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The Hangabouts-Who Wants Cilla?/Mrs. Greene. One of our favorite Detroit pop bands returns with a double-sided single, which I'll let them describe for you: "A throwback to Phil Spector pop backed with a Kinks-ish ode to your favorite teacher". Can't go wrong there.

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Dave Hill-Parking the Moose. Comedian/author/rocker Dave Hill, best known around here as the frontman of Valley Lodge, has a new book out which provides his unique twisted perspective on Canada, and his promotional theme song for it is pretty much what you'd expect: a fun tune with goofy lyrics name-dropping everything Canadian.

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Valley Lodge and Mario Soutschka

Valley Lodge-Fog Machine. The Dave Hill musical assault continues with the fourth Valley Lodge album and first since 2013's Use Your Weapons. That album made Hill's music a household item as it spawned "Go", the theme to Last Week Tonight With John Oliver. And the band's self-titled 2005 debut remains one of my favorite power pop records of all time while Hill's Painted Doll project brought us some serious rawk earlier this year. So what does he do for an encore? He serves up 14 power-poppin', catchy-as-hell tracks is what he does. "Stars Won't Fall" kicks things off in classic VL form (melodies, call-and-response falsetto vocals and rocking guitars) just like "Go" and "If it Takes All Night" were the lynchpins of the previous efforts. "Stand" is a frenetic, almost danceable number in the manner of "Go" ready-made for another late-night talker to adopt, while "Come Back to Bed" is a rocker with attitude. Other standouts include the soulful "I'm Gone" (the chimes in the chorus give it a Philly soul feel), the Slade-esque glam rock of "It's Alright", which hearkens back to 2009's Semester at Sea, the mid-tempo power pop of "Fire", and "Days of Our Lives" which starts off with (gasp!) an acoustic guitar before settling into another of Hill's melodic numbers. So crank up the Fog Machine and get ready to rock (and pop).

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Mario Soutschka-Long Stories Short. While Dave Hill and Valley Lodge are undoubtedly familiar to AbPow readers, I'm quite certain German singer/songwriter Mario Soutschka isn't. His second full-length caught my ear with its bright tuneful power pop in the vein of Butch Walker and Cliff Hillis. "Right Back to Me" comes out of the blocks with guitars and melodies from the Badfinger playbook, and "Do" is a catchy number with a shuffling melody. "Facebook Mom" recalls Fountains of Wayne both spiritually and sonically, "Flying Away" is a lovely, largely acoustic duet with Melanie Hirsch, and "One in a Row" is a fine rocker.

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It's Dave Hill's world and we're all just living in it.

Seems like Dave Hill is everywhere these days. His comedy stylings are ubiquitous and if you've watched HBO's Late Night With John Oliver at all over the last few years you've heard Valley Lodge's "Go" from 2013's Use Your Weapons as the show's theme song. And now his all-out aural assault continues with two releases from different projects, both of which are worth your time.

Painted Doll-Painted Doll. Hill loves his different musical projects (going all the way back to Uptown Sinclair, one of my favorite all-time band names) and by looking at the cover of his latest effort you might be forgiven for thinking it's another heavy-metal outing like his band Witch Taint (one of my least-favorite all-time band names), especially when you learn that he's teamed up here with Chris Reifert of "extreme metal" bands such as Autopsy and Death. But Painted Doll is closer in spirit to Hill's power pop band, Valley Lodge, only without the bubblegum. It's a rock album that's more rock than rawk, drawing on Hill and Reifert's love of 60s/70s garage, psychedelic rock and stoner rock, and will appeal to power-poppers as well. Opener "Together Alone" owes a bit to "(Don't Fear) The Reaper" (and perhaps The Smithereens' "Blood and Roses"), while "Hidden Hand" has a bit of a glam rock vibe. Elsewhere both the title track and the catchy "She Talks to Mirrors" channel late 60s British mod rock and "Find Your Mind" is just straight-up raucous rock. And it all closes with the loudest, trippiest cover of "I Put a Spell on You" that you're ever likely to hear.

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Valley Lodge-Stand b/w Come Back to Bed. And fear not power poppers, Valley Lodge is back as well as Hill & Co. have released a two-sided single from what is believed to be a forthcoming album. "Stand" is another of the Lodge's infectious, almost-danceable tracks in the vein of the aforementioned "Go" while "Come Back to Bed" is straight-ahead, catchy rock.

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