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January 2002's Best New CDs

© Chad Bowar

Welcome to the first CD reviews of 2002! Here's how the CDs listed here are selected. Each month we listen to dozens of new CDs in all genres, since "pop music" is short for "popular music", which means it can be anything from rock to dance to electronica to metal to emo and anything in between. We choose what we think are the best new CDs each month, and feature them here. This month's best of are a combination of December and January releases, because we did a best of 2001 in December.

Astroblast - This Will Help You On Your Way

The Austin, Texas band Astroblast calls their style of music "noise pop". It's an apt description, because their songs are polished and melodic, but still feature plenty of jangly, fuzzy guitar. Lead singer Jenn Kellough's sweet sounding voice provides an interesting contrast to the sometimes cynical lyrics she's singing. Astroblast has elements of early 80's new wave bands like the Bangles or the Go-Gos combined with late 90's alt rock/grunge groups like the Breeders, Letter to Cleo, or the Pixies. It's an effective combination, and This Will Help You On Your Way is a blast of great indie pop music.

Web Link: http://www.astroblast.com

Bad Religion - Process of Belief

Punk rock has enjoyed a resurgence in the past couple of years, with groups like Blink 182 and Sum 41 hitting the top of the charts. L.A. punk pioneers Bad Religion have been doing it for 21 years, longer than some of today's popular punk rockers have been alive. Process of Belief marks the return of original guitarist Brett Gurewitz, and the return of the band to the label he started and still runs, Epitaph Records. Bad Religion's music is truly a wall of guitars, since the band now has 3, yes 3, guitarists! The songs on Process of Belief range from raw punk to rock opera, and show that these old geezers can still show those young punks a thing or do about great music.

Web Link: http://www.badreligion.com/

Honeymoon Suite - Lemon Tongue

Eighties rock band Honeymoon Suite is back. They had many hit singles in their native Canada, and a few in the United States, such as "New Girl Now" and "What Does It Take." The 2002 version of the group includes the original lead singer and guitarist along with 3 new members. Lemon Tongue is a nice combination of old and new. Honeymoon Suite still has a hint of the 80's arena rock sound, but they also incorporate many elements of today's modern/alternative rock bands. It's nice to see a quality band evolve and remain contemporary, but still have that unique sound. Honeymoon Suite has done just that with Lemon Tongue.

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