Doug Powell

Doug Powell is a protégé of Todd Rundgren, and his fourth solo album, 2002's The Lost Chord, sounds like his version of over-the-top '70s epics like A Wizard, a True Star. Much more ornate than his earlier records, The Lost Chord is so top-heavy with tape effects, excessive instrumentation, and overdubbed vocals that the whole thing threatens to topple at any second. That it doesn't is testament to Powell's gift for meaty melodies and quirky lyrics; only a chorus as memorable as that of the pounding "Queen of Hurts" could withstand the onslaught of over-driven guitar amps, Gary Glitter drums, and extraneous noises Powell throws at it. Then there's the title track, a sensitive piano ballad with noise-guitar backing that sounds like Eric Carmen dueting with Sonic Youth's Lee Ranaldo. The whole thing is more than a little odd - especially on the two-part "Nietzsche Is Dead," a play on the old philosophy school joke that sounds like one of Ian Whitcomb's music hall ditties - but The Lost Chord has considerably more charm and personality than any of Powell's more pedestrian earlier efforts. Four albums in, Doug Powell has finally found his niche. - Stewart Mason

This has the usual Powell virtues - sparkling production, Powell's beautiful powerpop perfect voice, and songs that build a bridge between The Beatles and Jellyfish. - Mike Bennet

For his third outing, Doug Powell follows much the same formula as with his first two albums: straight-ahead rock songs with a definite, pronounced pop leaning. Powell's influences are plastered all over this, from Jellyfish-like vocal harmonies to Todd Rundgren's brand of smooth pop and Cheap Trick-style guitar crunch. But thankfully, Powell does manage to mold the record into more than just a sum of its parts. The album's best songs- the uppity rock of "Dinah Might," the soulful pop of "The Scent of a Rose," and the hard rock of "Empty V," amongst a few others - are extremely well-crafted modern pop. While not exceedingly commercial or adventurous, the devotees of verse-chorus-verse song structures and gooey background vocals will agree that not only is More catchy and memorable, but it manages to steer clear of potholes of derivation. With that being said, there are a few flaws that keep More from being a classic. The production is appropriately crisp but strangely tinny, and on the requisite mainstream music rant "Empty V," Powell appropriately gives the musical finger to MTV and their ilk. But the problem is that the listener is torn between believing whether it's appropriate commentary or a cranky old man who is upset that he never got his commercial due. Maybe it's a little of both, but that assessment is probably a bit too harsh given the songwriting expertise displayed by Powell here and with his band, SWAG. And something does seem wrong if a song as infectious as "Rise" isn't all over mainstream rock radio. The true assessment, then, is that More is very much music by a pop fan who hates MTV, for pop fans who hate MTV. It can't be fairer than that. - Jason Damas

Power pop is fundamentally music written for the radio that nowadays plays nowhere near the radio. The talented Doug Powell handles multiple instruments and technical aspects, but more importantly writes simple pop songs. For Curiouser, Powell recorded "flaws and warts" onto an eight track and released the raw product in an attempt to emulate the freshness and excitement of spontaneity and creation. Surprisingly, Curiouser is not raucous or noisy, but a solid pop record. The sound is fine and the songs are well-structured enough to avoid that demo rip-off feeling. If the liner notes didn't indicate the rudiments of this experiment, none would be the wiser. Of course the project reeks of evil-genius Todd Rundgren, but the tunes are unmistakably Powell's. "Just Like Montgomery Clift" shares a strange celebrity fascination with the Clash. Powell's former Nashville neighbor, Cheap Trick's Tom Petersson, helps out on "When She Awoke" (later laid down with the rest of Swag). The great piece "Torn" also graces the excellent Nashpop collection. "Cross My Heart" exudes pure obsessive romanticism: paralyzing and fascinating. Sometimes Powell's forlorn feeling recalls Freedy Johnston, but with better vocals. Curiouser actually gets better as it rolls. Don't see Doug Powell shooting up the charts, and of course he deserves much more credit than he'll ever get, but, in a perfect world, he rides the top of the pops. - Doug Stone A limited amount of "Curiouser" CDs have been signed by Doug Powell exclusively for TR BAZAAR.COM. Get yours while they last!

From the opening guitar riff of Return to Sender (not the Elvis song), it's evident that Ballad of the Tin Men, the debut from Oklahoman Doug Powell, is the work of a promising young tunesmith. Powell is a fetching melodist who, like his mentor Jules Shear, fills his tunes with smart lyrics which are always quite musical. He's at his best when dishing out pure pop/rock, as on "My Sweet Revolver," "Unmutual" and the record's best cut, "Return to Sender." On the other hand, a good portion of Tin Men suffers from cumbersome production which occassionally betrays some of the better songs and does absolutely nothing to redeem the lesser material. Even though he doesn't consistently connect, Powell with his sense of history (he tips his hat musically and lyrically to the likes of Elvis, Badfinger and the Kinks), intelligence and knack for melody and hooks is worth watching. - Brett Hartenbach