Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
Los Angeles's Silverlake district (and its vaunted power-pop renaissance) had its turn in the spotlight as the 1990s closed, with Tsar among the big-label signings, even if the "scene" seemed to largely evaporate. To their credit, this band of ex-Santa Barbara college misfits take their pop calling with an effervescent urgency--and a glammy/bubblegum sass that wears its Starwood '78-era pedigree proudly. Tsar may deliver a quotient of hooks, harmonies, and screaming, as well as mercifully efficient fret fireworks worthy of early Cheap Trick, but that's hardly the least of their Velvet Goldmine-era fetishism. Opening with the potent one-two punch of "Calling All Destroyers" and "I Don't Wanna Break Up," the 10 tracks here bound breathlessly from one anthemic, bigger-than-life pop conceit to the next with joyful abandon.. Jeff Whalen's sweet, infectious vocals belie the songs' wry, acerbic wit, fairly daring listeners to join in their often loopy sing-along choruses. Shoe-gazers beware--there's nary a dirge in sight. --Jerry McCulley
Tsar,Tsar,Hollywood Records,Alternative Pop/Rock,Pop,Pop Underground,Punk-Pop,Rock,Rock/Pop
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