I've seen Kelley Stoltz get pegged a power pop artist. And while there's some truth to that, his music has always had more variety than that. His new record, La Fleur expands Kelley's reach considerably. It's quite possibly his best work to date.
The superb "Victorian Box" throbs like something off the Drive (2011) soundtrack. The number recalls Lindsey Buckingham when he went a bit New Wave, and it segues nicely into the spry "Hide in a Song", a real highlight here. The appearance of the elusive (not reclusive) Jason Falkner (Jellyfish, The Grays) on guitar on this one is enough to raise an eyebrow, but the song itself is a catchy bit of business, one with muted verses and a soaring chorus. Kelley understands how to add flourish to a track, and the cleverness which abounds on each number here gives La Fleur variety and pep.
Kelley Stoltz has opened for Pavement, played with Robyn Hitchcock, and produced a spin-off record from a member of Thee Oh Sees so to say he's got a varied background is an understatement. That background can be heard here all thoroughout La Fleur. This is a record which never stops being interesting, and it's also fairly catchy. And while the melodies of the songs are strong enough, it's when Stoltz considers other settings -- like the faint Radiohead-isms of "Awake in a Dream", or the Pavement-meets-Britpop vibes of "Reni's Car" -- that this record really charms. I think given that there are multiple avenues of appeal of here, 2024 is looking up to be the year that Kelley Stoltz gets a whole lot of new fans.
La Fleur by Kelley Stoltz is out this week on Dandy Boy Records.
[Photo: Kelley Stoltz, Dandy Boy Records]