Fear not: although many of the favored indie rock bands of yesteryearhave either folded, made disappointing returns, or just flatdisappeared, some are restructuring and returning all the better forit. Holiday Flyer, the pop group founded by brother and sister John andKatie Conley, have split into two groups, with each sibling recordingtheir songs with the same backing band, just under two differentmonikers. California Oranges is John's project, with Verna Brock fromlater Holiday Flyer albums serving as the vocal partner and bassist.Twins Matt and Ross Levine round out the group, and the sound is notwhat you'd expect from Conley, but that's exactly the point. He'sturned up the volume on the guitars to blow you off of your couch, but,luckily, he's decided that the harmonies need to stay. I must saythat's one of the things I still enjoy most about indie power popbands: where the prevailing wisdom of today's singers is to trill andwarble their way through songs in some apparent impressive display ofvocal control, power pop just lets it slide and speak for itself.There's no remarkable vocal skill being shown here, and no need forhistrionics. It's just powerful feel-good music. "Broken Typewriter"starts the album off with a bang, and it doesn't let up once, hardlygiving you time to catch your breath. Occasionally, the tempo slows, ason "Come Back Now," but throughout Conley and Brock reveal lovelyinterplay, though Brock's vocals could have used more volume in the mixhere and there. Clean guitar tones and a solid rhythm section make forsmooth sailing, too, so there's hardly a misstep. California Orangesjust rock, and Oranges and Pineapples is a solid debut with plenty worth a repeat listen.Read More
