my power pop addiction, no. 97 (169)

A little while back, I observed that Todd Rundgren might be the closest thing America has to David Bowie. Now it’s time for an equally inexact and pointless comparison: Julian Cope is the closest thing England has to Todd Rundgren. Both cut their teeth in semi-psychedelic pop bands that became cult favorites if not chart toppers, and then both went on to pursue solo careers marked by creative restlessness as an end in itself, lurching from pop to progressive rock to the utterly undefinable, and then back again. And yet, in both cases – and perhaps with Bowie as well, though less so – a small semblance of a core identity has remained intact through all the shape shifting. …Being a fan of Julian Cope takes work. His avowed love of psychedelia and progressive rock, particularly Krautrock, has imbued him with a taste for wild experimentation and a degree of artistic indulgence that’s not everybody’s cup of tea. But if you wade through Cope’s entire body of work from the Teardrop Explodes onward, I reckon you can put together 90 minutes of highly engrossing music. You can’t say this about too many artists, and while I’m less interested in being engrossed these days than I am in experiencing immediate pleasure, Cope is, at his best, both heady and pleasing. …Tonight’s song isn’t power pop, but it is pop with a melody line that’s no less satisfying for being so simple, with a few curves thrown in to keep the listener from slipping into total passivity – check out the oboe, the psychedelic flanging effects, and Cope’s trademark nonsensical/acidic lyrics. I’ve always loved the Englishness of his singing voice as well. …In an era of simulation, Cope's work is at once heavily referential and completely unique sounding. It’s a strange and contradictory balance that comes out of his daring approach to making music. He’s not afraid to fall on his face, but when he stays at least somewhat focused and uses his great instincts and massive storehouse of musical knowledge coherently, what results is an elegant chaos that more than makes up for those times when he misses the mark…

PS - Add J.C. to the list pantheon of those who harmonize with themselves!