Hows My Pop

ON THE HOP - RELEASED 3/7/2009



Digital copy available via ITUNES.



CD available via BARNBOX



Track Listing



1. Soil



2. Mr Sunshine



3. Potential Energy



4. Bomber Boy



5. Fire in my Soul



6. Hazel



7. Jack



8. Heavyhead



9. September in Paris



10. Square Circles



11. All That I Have



12. On the Hop



Some things people have said



“On the Hop” ranges all over, from the gloomy ‘Bomber Boy’ to the uplifting ‘Fire in My Soul,’ from the introspective, minimalist ‘Hazel’ to the broad and clever ‘Jack.’ How’s My Pop displays a remarkable talent for arrangement. Songs flow nicely and each musician picks moments to add flourishes that sparkle in the moment while setting up the next musical turn of phrase.



The subject matter of the songs add another dimension to the music. No silly songs of benders, fashion, or trawling for women. Instead, we’re treated to examinations of consumerism, crumbling infrastructure, and the search for meaning. Of course, they still write the occasional love song, but the way in which the ideas are expressed is fresh and interesting.



Altsounds.com (69%)



How's My Pop - 'On The Hop' (Barnbox)



Opener 'Soil' is a welter of percussive trickery and innovative guitar runs, seemingly flying off in around half a dozen different directions simultaneously, managing to contain a fearsome number of elements - jazz keyboard, a flute, one or two expansive guitar solos, and its one very effective introduction to a talented bunch of musicians. But the big question with highly effective intros is always 'is this sustainable'? Have How's My Pop used up all their best ideas in their albums first four minutes?



Of course they haven't. It's a few tracks into 'On The Hop' before the four piece present us with anything quite so lively though. These aren't in any sense garage muckabouts, there's a palpable air of serious musicianship about this one, and it's with the slightly slower midtempo numbers that How's My Pop want to show us their songwriting and arranging skills, and given that around half the album was recorded in various impromptu home settings, these are in many ways considerable, with string and brass backing up some already attention grabbing songs at various moments.



'On The Hop' is a quite excellent album, easily the most assured debut release I've heard since I began writing for Tasty, and that's over a year ago.



Tastyfanzine



Hows My Pop - 'On The Hop'



From swirling Wurlitzers, the band would positively fill a bar with love and happiness, from the aforementioned Hammond of the superb "Potential Energy", through the warm glow of Andrew Raven's guitar on "Fire In My Soul" right through to the beautiful, folksy, House Of Freaks style finale of the title track. This is a wonderfully self assured second effort that proves the band are not content with just being unable to pigeonhole, and instead make it impossible to cuckooditch them as well.



Atomicduster.com (9/10)



How’s My Pop are a likeable quartet of lads from Lancaster whose insightful lyrics, about consumerism and the general state of the nation, are delivered with an earnest youthfulness that is pretty damn refreshing. In possession of one of the most enthusiastic drummers witnessed all weekend, their pop-centric delivery makes for exciting stuff.



XFM



Headliners for tonight, How’s My Pop really are something special. They are purveyors of intelligent pop music. Quality purveyors at that. The lyrics to their songs are sharp and perceptive and this band must surely be compared to the likes of Blur and even the Kinks. As musicians they also impress with the star of keyboard player Tom Diffenthal shining brightest. Clearly popular with the crowd, it wasn’t hard to see why as the best was – as is often the case – saved to last. How’s My Pop deserve success.

'Blues Bunny' - BARNBOX ALL DAYER 10/10/09



They are obviously influenced by the likes of Oasis and Pulp, and I'd imagine many other bands that were a part of the Britpop movement, but it's refreshing to see a band move this sound forward and not merely mimic what has been done before. Unique and riveting.

Mid Wales Music Scene



A Hammond organ turns everything all Cold War Kids but the lead singer/guitarist simply refuses to let the music to lull into anything remotely resembling constant; scattering the keyboards and percussion with short, sharp solos and wrapping his excellent playing around a sound that in a strange juxtaposed way feels as much as though it belongs to the past as much as it portrays a gateway into the future. Lyrically they’re excellent; laments about “the red stain on the English flag” rub shoulders comfortably with more typical lovelorn efforts. The small but appreciative crowd will them on and as the final chords crash down on a forty minute set that takes in summery pop, 60’s rock’n’roll, country-ish tendencies and a whole lot more in between, it’s clear that How’s My Pop? have successfully managed to steal the show. And coming on top of what was a pleasantly surprising bill that’s no mean feat.

'AudioScribbler.co.uk - MAPS Festival' - Simon Jay Catling



The Wagon and Horses. It's a bar. Just a bar by the river in Lancaster on a Saturday night. Quite crowded for 9pm. You can get a very decent pint of Guinness. Squeezed against the back wall is the entertainment for the evening. Ladies and gentlemen, may we present How's My Pop - a fine confection comprised of Andy Raven, Tom Diffenthal, Chris MacNeil and Matt Canty. read the rest of this review!

'Blues Bunny' - Handsome



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