Sub Pop released a real feel-good record this week. The title Hoopla gives that away, though maybe you would not expect it from a band called Weird Nightmare.
Fronted by Alex Edkins of METZ, Hoopla is packed with alt power pop goodness. Instead of burying the hooks under layers of noise, Edkins, together with co-producer Jim Eno of Spoon, puts them right out front. The whole record is built around getting to the good parts fast and often, then making them sound huge. Roll-the-windows-down, drive-around-for-no-reason, let-the-chorus-do-the-work kind of stuff. In-your-face catchy.
While the first half comes out swinging, the second half opens things up a bit more. There’s jangle, a little psych, a little Britpop, and a few deeper dips into the pop archive, including that Needles and Pins nod at the start of If You Should Turn Away.
This is way too easy to like. Maybe Sub Pop should slap a Sun Pop logo on this one.