Editor's note: We were unable to find a picture of the cover for Hershel Savage & The American Flag. In its stead is a picture of NASCAR legend Dale Earnhardt.
Just one more example of how strange music is these days is what's become of genres like bubblegum rock. Originally conceived to sell armloads of 45s to indiscriminate teens, and produced to sound good on any radio, this stuff was strictly business, available anywhere and dumber than a bag of rubber doughnuts.
But Guided by Voices and four-track culture have changed all that, which leads us to Hershel Savage & The American Flag: underground, pop without being popular. (The track "I'm Pop", with the line "I'm pop/I write the songs that no one hears" says it best.) Dealing in grinny, miniature stadium anthems that cut out the fat in favor of one sugar-rush hook after another, these guys are the new teen music. And if Evan Weisblott's helium-high vocals are any indication, the Canadian duo (Weisblott drums and sings lead, Ayal Senior does everything else) may barely qualify for learner's permits.
Not to take away from the group's obvious gifts. There's definitely a healthy knack for melody here, and the abrupt stylistic shift in "We've Finally Found Me" (from rock to moody psychedelia) belies the "beginner" tag. From there it only gets better. The 1-2-3 punch of "Come Along If You Catch Me", "The 3 On 1 Experiment" and "Send Me Away" mid-album are as strong as any other triumrivate of ebuillent pop you can name. Matter of fact, every one of these 18 tracks is totally charming.
The debt to the aforementioned GbV is pretty heavy. It's hard to imagine that Hershel Savage's enigmatically titled, brief pop aesthetic could've come from anywhere but a slavish devotion to the Dayton gods. (They're even on Bob Pollard's label, and get to cover the unreleased Bobtrack "Tropical Robots".) The influence is especially apparent on melancholy acoustic numbers like "I Died In 1972" and "Giant Giraffes". Which is fine - you could pick a lot worse people to emulate. And if you listen closely, the vibe is different - Hershel Savage flesh out their songs with sun-drenched pop hooks in a manner mostly foreign to GbV ("Who Knows Where The Robots Are Hidden?").
Maybe the best thing Weisblott and Senior have going for them is sheer enthusiasm. They sound like they had so much fun doing the record that you can't help joining in. If they continue along the same track, there's no reason they can't take a place among the lo-fi pop elite.
--Lane Hewitt