The new record from Minor Poet, The Good News, out today on Sub Pop, is the best power-pop release I've heard since the last album from Young Guv. Andrew Carter (Minor Poet) makes music that's lush and tuneful, and crunchy too, in all the right ways.
"Tabula Rasa" is a swoon-y bit of business, while the brighter still "Museum District" is like if Rufus Wainwright had decided he wanted to write something for Fountains of Wayne, or something like that. Elsewhere, the electronic sheen of "Tropic of Cancer" suggests mid-period numbers from O.M.D. and solo offerings from Jeff Lynne, a odd combination for sure, but one which works thanks to Carter's sure-hand at this sort of thing, while the gentle "Nude Descending Staircase" is pure elegance, flashes of Prefab Sprout classics coming to mind as it spools out. The Good News is a near-perfect little record, and one which should make other listeners new, fervent fans of Minor Poet the way I am now.
The Good News is out today via Sub Pop.
More details on Minor Poet via his official Facebook page.
[Photo: Joey Wharton]