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Power Pop of Preference...

The Tuesday Suits
Your Silver Lining
(Independent)
by Darren Paltrowitz

Just as easily as hipsters poke use the word “emo” to describe any form of emotionally-centered rock music that they see as being “suburban,” publicists and the folks who write press bios for recording artists seem to label any piece of rock music with a chorus as being “power-pop.”

While the genre of power-pop is not easily definable – is its prime model band Cheap Trick as heard at Budokan? Elvis Costello in the late 1970’s with Nick Lowe and Pete Thomas in the rhythm section? The Cars in the 1980’s? Weezer’s work in the 1990’s? – many of the bands attempting to fall into that classification seem to have more influence from blink-182, Green Day and other melodic punk rock acts than The Raspberries, The Smithereens, Dramarama, and a lot of the groups that had a witty edge along with the hooks, passion, and musicianship. Fortunately, The Tuesday Suits lie closer to the latter part of that last sentence, and are ultimately a power-pop group of this writer’s preference.

As this disc – the quartet’s third overall release – was recorded over the span of 2 days that were several months apart, the lo-fi vibe of Your Silver Lining works to the advantage of The Tuesday Suits, who showcase a pleasantly-raw and underproduced sound. Despite the aforementioned classic influences, this group has the gritty and spirited vocals of songwriter Ryan Gannon, who may remind you at times of Alkaline Trio frontman Matt Skiba, above feedback-drenched guitars and a guitar-bass-drums combination that has the spirit of Fastball – who really are just a more successful version of The Figgs – at their peak. Or perhaps Cool Noise UK said it better when they proclaimed The Tuesday Suits to be “charming, stylish and mature” blend of “80’s post-punk and Brit-Pop.” However, you choose to look at it, this is melodic rock and roll with real instruments and heartfelt lyrics, and what’s not to love about that?

< Top: The Fork Studio EP (2003)
< Bottom: The Tuesday Suits LP (2002)

Those looking to check out some MP3’s from The Tuesday Suits at no cost can visit the link below, where recordings from a recent
show at The Knitting Factory are available.
http://www.thetuesdaysuits.com/vault.htm
And The Tuesday Suits Website: www.thetuesdaysuits.com

You Dig, You'll Dig:
Dramarama-
18 Big Ones (The Hits)
The Figgs-
Lo-Fi At High Society High
Alkaline Trio-
Alkaline Trio
The Smithereens-
Blown To Smithereens
The Cars-
Complete Greatest Hits

Alkaline Trio-
Maybe I'll Catch Fire
The Figgs-
Sucking In Stereo
From Amazon.com