The Soda Pop Kids - Teen Bop Dream

The ears of the average music listener have been assaulted with every manner of sonic revivalism, as groups seek to strip mine the recent past. It seems everyone, from record executives to VJs, DJs, and reviewers, is quick to latch onto the notion that the best way to describe a contemporary band’s sound is to compare it to bands that are 20-50 years old.

But what happens when a band sets out to fully immerse themselves in the thick history of their influences, studiously absorbing every possible nuance, posture, pose, and aural tweak, not so that they might steal from their forebears, but that their music would be an homage to the past? Well, it just might sound a bit like Teen Bop Dream by The Soda Pop Kids. Hailing from Portland, OR, these five men have carved out a niche for themselves, one in which they can be as fun, energetic, and rambunctious as they desire. The record is brimming with pure pop goodness, creating an atmosphere in which the listener can’t help but get on their feet and dance.

With standout tracks that include the opener “Saturday Every Day,” “The Terrestrial Twists,” and “Six Gun Senorita,” Teen Bop Dream brings to mind music that The Fonz probably would have enjoyed (though he would have been too cool to admit it). This is a raw, organic, infectious blend of ’50s doo wop filtered through the lens of ’70s power punk. The album is, quite literally, a party thrown in honor of its influences, as the band takes pleasure in cranking up the volume on the fun. The Soda Pop Kids make it nearly impossible not to sing along, clap your hands, and shimmy your feet in time with the beat.

Nevertheless, the album’s strength is also its primary failing. While it’s understandable that The Soda Pop Kids want the listener to bask in the glow of the fun and excitement atmosphere they’re creating, they tend to play a bit too fast and loose with their instrumentation. It’s one thing to disdain the idea that everything has to be perfectly tuned and timed because you want to rock out, but it’s something else entirely when the sound suffers because a riff here and a harmony there needed to be tightened up a bit.

More than anything, it seems that The Soda Pop Kids have crafted a record that compels people to come out and have a good time with their music. They’re not interested in earning scene points or reinventing the musical wheel with old parts from the last 50 years of music history. Teen Bop Dream is all about five guys playing music that they love, not about what styles and trends might be cool and hip this week. Over and over again, their sound compels the listener to get out there and just have a good time with the band. And there’s never anything wrong with that.