Press/Reviews
SWEET
SINSATIONS - Lisa Mychols (Rev-Ola)
Since the '80s, the definition of "good pop" has been dumbed down from
that which is catchy and memorable to that which is atmospheric and somehow
"hip". Call me a traditionalist, but I much prefer 
strong
songwriting, which is why this new Lisa Mychols CD is such a breath of fresh air
in a seemingly smog-ridden pop climate.
If that makes this California songstress the giant fan that blows the air
pollution out of Pop City and sets the standards straight, then so be it. With
well over a decade of writing and performing under her belt, Mychols takes a
fresh approach to songwriting, seamlessly blending Brill Building romanticism,
mid-’60s innocence, and occasionally even the edge of more pop-oriented
Ramones and/or Buzzcocks for something that, in spite of its inspirations,
defies comparisons.
Mainly, "Sweet Sinsations" lives up to its title with a string of
hooky anthems that would be hit singles in a perfect world. "Rocket to
Mars" is a bouncy, buoyant ditty combining childlike space fantasies with a
poppy arrangement, while the playful drum machine (read: not loud and obnoxious
like hip hop or dance music) on "Turn the Radio On" complements the
sing-songy verses rather than impeding them. The title track, “Rock in the
City (Tonight)” and “Gonna Get That Boy” show her rocking tendencies with
a youthful verve that harks back to the British Invasion. Similarly, the
infectious, breezy "Oh! To Be In Love" recalls Bones Howe’s
production values, while “Hit Big” revisits the riff from "Come On Down
to My Boat" in harder-edged, pop punk fashion.
Whatever thorny path Lisa travels, it seems, she leaves behind roses - and ones
that only continue to bloom the more you play this CD. Believe it: Unless a few
classic punk or grunge records with pop tendencies count, "Sweet Sinsations"
is the best American pop record since the late ’70s power pop explosion. And
the fact that it hasn’t found a U.S. label only shows how stupid the record
industry is. But we already knew that. -
Doug Sheppard
Lisa Mychols,"Sweet Sinsations" (Rev-Ola)
Lisa Mychols combines the guitar crunch of the Muffs, the vocal allure/sensuality of Susanna Hoffs (Bangles not solo) and the power-pop sensibilities of the early Bangles & Go Go's. Mychols combination of all these in the package of a one-woman powerhouse of pop! From the first few notes of the kick-off song, “Living Doll” (not the Cliff Richard song!) you know that this is not your average power-pop album. You get the psychedelic feel of “Gonna Get That Boy” with its classic-Who ending. “Turn the Radio On” is the best power-pop song about the radio since the 1978 Cheap Trick song (“On the Radio”). The title song, “Sweet Sinsations” could have been a Bangles hit back in the ‘80s! “Take a Ride” is reminiscent of classic Cheap Trick. “Rock In the City (Tonight)” can easily replace “Kids in America” as a modern rock anthem. These songs alone prove that Lisa is a force to be reckoned with in power-pop.
I don’t really like the title of “Diva” and its negative connotations, so I’ll just call Lisa a “power-pop princess”. This CD is a Sweet Sinsation indeed, and it ultimately leaves you wanting more!
and 1/2
Review by Ronnie - Ear Candy Magazine
Lisa Mychols
Sweet Sinsations
(Rev-Ola)
Lisa Mychols has an AM radio in her heart. The
winsome Californian has delighted fans of the great pop sounds of the ‘60s,
‘70s and ‘80s, both on her holiday solo album from years ago, and her
recordings with The Masticators. Prolific, she ain't. However, the quality of
what's in the grooves here shows that patience with Ms. Mychols is an ample
reward.
Right now, I'm grooving to "Turn the Radio On". It has a swaying
melody, with a danceable mid-tempo groove. Actually, there's something about the
melody in the verse that reminds me of a Schoolhouse Rock song. However,
those songs never had such a terrific middle eight. On this track, Mychols sings
in the high end of her range which is insinuating in a wholesome yet sexy way,
kind of like Diana Ross in her Supremes days.
On "Take a Ride", Mychols adds a modern polish on a rock number that
could have been number 10 with a bullet on the Cashbox chart in 1978. The verses
and chirpy chorus make it sound tailor-made to be plopped between Steve Miller
Band, The Cars and Brothers Johnson. Heck, there are even handclaps. Yet, what
makes this song rule above all is another incredible middle eight. It takes the
song from a good timing silly willy shimmy shuffle smile into another dimension.
The song becomes panoramic, with Mychols opening up to the skies with jaw
dropping melody. Oh my.
While Mychols is a rock and roll girl (the type that Paul Collins wanted to be
with, by the way), she is also terrific on softer material. "Oh! To Be in
Love" is a breezy soft pop song which conjures up a ‘60s romantic warmth,
a bit Bacharach, a bit Jimmy Webb, a little Brazilian jazz-pop. This song is in
love with both love and the music, and Mychols's singing is intoxicating. She is
equally captivating (and quite convincing) as a balladeer on the lovely
"Las Brisas Sun". This is a winning bid for a standard -- you know,
the type of song that a Barbra Streisand or a k.d. lang could sing. Of course,
the performance here is so strong, they might stay away. Mychols shows off a
much more sophisticated singing technique than you hear on the average pop
record. This is probably the most ambitious track on the disc and it's an
unqualified success.
Now, don't forget that she still can rock (I just mentioned that in the last
paragraph). "Rock in the City (Tonight)" and "Rocket to
Mars" are superb power pop numbers that will satisfy the cravings of
Masticators fans. Really, there are only two missteps on this album. One is the
cover of The dB's "Cycles Per Second". This is a dB's debut album
track that exemplifies Chris Stamey's mastery of rubbery second album Big Star
wackiness, and Mychols tries to straighten out the wobbliness and make it a bit
more of a straightforward song. But the dissonant melody of the song can't quite
be tamed, and so this remake never really catches fire (though she gets bonus
points for excellent taste). The other misstep is the cover. Grainy color photos
of Mychols in some pink thrift store get up? Normally, this wouldn't be too big
of a deal, except for the fact that the cover of Lost Winter's Dream is
so outstanding.
Yes, I'm picking nits. The more I listen to this disc, the more I realize that
this is pretty much everything I hoped for from a Lisa Mychols album. A
versatile disc that effortlessly moves from one style to another while evincing
a cohesive sensibility. It's the sound of promise fulfilled.
Mike Bennett
LISA MYCHOLS
Sweet Sinsations (Rev-Ola; CD)
Fans of Ms. Mychols have been waiting with baited
breath for the release of this, the follow-up to her much acclaimed Christmas
album, Lost Winter’s Dream…and it was well
worth the wait. Sweet Sinsations is packed with
fun, upbeat tunes which greatly echo the hip, unpretentious images of “go-go
bands” playing at ‘60s Los Angeles venues like Pandoras Box, with the groovy
keyboards of Tom Richards (singer/songwriter of the great L.A. band The Waking
Hours, in which Mychols plays bass) neatly emphasizing the point.
Songs like “Living Doll,” “Gonna Get That Boy,” “Hit Big,” and
“Rock In The City (Tonight)” are exemplars of this style.
“Rocket To Mars” would fit perfectly on the soundtrack to a children’s
fantasy film, “Oh! To Be In Love” is soft pop at its finest, “Las Brisas
Sun” is a beautiful, spare ballad showcasing the richness of Mychols’ voice
and recalling the best moments on Lost Winters Dream,
and “Fun Fair/Old Memories” puts a new spin on the melodies of the classic Billy
Jack theme, “One Tin Soldier”. It’s almost a
shame that the supporting cast on Sweet Sinsations (essentially the
aforementioned Richards, Waking Hours drummer Ricky Tubb, and bassist Steve
Kobashagawa) are men. Otherwise, Mychols and her band
could have been The Carrie Nations of the New Millennium.
Shindig Magazine
Entertainment
Today
David Bash
Lisa Mychols - Sweet Sinsations | 20-09-2004 12:00 | Rev-Ola/Cherry Red
Effortlessly throwing away any notions that Lisa Mychols can only deliver us warm, anaemic pop courtesy of Lost Winter's Dream, the singer-songwriter unleashes upon us Sweet Sinsations, a rocking, powerpop album chock full of hooks that are virtually impossible to resist. There's no denying that Mychols demonstrates a powerful 'rock chick' attitude on her latest record, and it certainly springs from the same resonating sound that spewed Joan Jett and even Transvision Vamp. Not that Sweet Sinsations sounds very eighties in tone, but rather it borrows from the large, stadium rock-styled fills and chord-transitions and is coated in slick, radio sheen.
It's the sort of album that was ten-a-penny around ten years ago, but very rare in today's market. The hooks are immediate, and Mychols delivers them with primary-coloured attitude. Living Doll is magnified power-rock, whilst Gonna Get That Boy and Take A Ride should grab most radio stations by the throat. You could name most of the songs featured on Sweet Sinsations and they'd all match each other in terms of quality and adrenaline. Rocket To Mars sounds like it's a soaring missile fired directly through a sixties-rock haze towards orbit, whilst closer Waiting For Me Out There is deliberately derivative.
At times, the musical proceedings are overwhelmingly happy; take for instance the summer-drenched tribute to happiness Oh! To Be In Love or the stark Las Brisas Sun, but mostly, this is smile-rendering, jump-up-and-down power-pop-rock-attitude played out at a pace that never drifts off the fun radar. Lisa Mychols wants to entertain you, it's time you let her.
Raphael Pour-Hashemi
CD Times
Lisa Mychols
Sweet Sinsations
Rev-Ola/Cherry Red
The long awaited Lisa Mychols' solo album, Sweet Sinsations, is finally
here. It was well worth the wait too.
With a bang, "Living Doll" kicks the album off and keeps it rolling with 12
other hook-filled pop gems. Even softer songs, like "Las Brisas Sun," have the
same charm that you can always expect from Lisa Mychols.
Highlights include the title track, the brilliant "Oh! To Be in Love," the
super-fun "Take a Ride" and the perfect album closer, "Waiting for Me Out
There."
The listener will surely be instantly drawn in by Lisa's magnificent vocals.
Whether she is singing solo, double-tracked, or surrounded by a sea of beautiful
harmonies, her voice is what takes each song to great heights. It's easy to get
lost in a voice like Lisa's, and that's a very good thing.
Lisa has a great knack for really creative lyrics too. With lines like "Follow
thru the sky Galileo / Making escaping historical lore /
Thru the great meteor" (from "Rocket to Mars") and "Tidal waves and a rush feel
it's now contagious / Covet your own oasis a place to come for free / For real
Sweet Sinsations" (from "Sweet Sinsations") Lisa proves that she really knows
how to write a song that really keeps the listener on their toes. Throughout the
album, the lyrics come off as so much more than just average pop lyrics.
After listening to the entire album, one thing stands clear: Lisa Mychols is so
much more than just a great vocalist and songwriter. She's the real deal.
Track-by-track:
Living Doll: Bang!!! Welcome to the album. Here's a little attitude for ya to
start things off. A nice, tasty guitar riff and a thumping bass line keep this
track moving along.
Rocket to Mars: This song will leave an impression. You'll discover something
new each time that you listen to it. Here's a hint: Listen with headphones on.
Gonna Get That Boy: Like an old friend that you'll never get tired of, Gonna Get
That Boy always comes across fresh and fun. The a capella break followed by the
swirling 'ahhs' will get you every time.
Turn the Radio On: One of the happiest songs that you'll ever hear, and you'll
never get sick of it. The melody is very catchy and will stick with you. You'll
be humming this one long after the song has finished. The funky drum loop that
opens this track helps add an extra groove to the song.
Sweet Sinsations: This song should be a hit. If it's not, that would be a real
shame. Very playful lyrics. The backing vocals in the chorus are arranged
perfectly. The song opens with guitar and shaker and quickly builds up. Add the
vocals and bass, and you've got a recipe for a hit. An excellent guitar solo as
well.
Oh! To Be in Love: Here is a song that would have fit perfectly on the
Wondermints' Mind if We Make Love You album. This song is filled with luscious
harmonies going in many different directions. Incredible. If there ever was a
song that would be suited for a Summer movie soundtrack, this is it.
Hit Big: Now here's a monster of a song. Nice crunchy guitars and all kinds of
groovy keyboards/organs. The double-tracked lead vocals really add a lot of
atmosphere to this song. In front of all of that keyboard power, there is a
screaming guitar that really makes a mark.
Take a Ride: If Matthew Sweet and Liz Phair recorded a song together, it would
sound exactly like "Take a Ride." I dare anyone to just listen to this track
once and walk away from it. You can't do it. You'll go right back and hit
repeat, over and over again. "With the moon shining above us /
There's a sun that's setting below / The air is fresh and alive and cool let's go,
Let's go!" Sounds like an invitation to me.
Las Brisas Sun: The pretty song. I say that not to slight the other songs, but
this song is just really pretty. It starts off with a piano and Lisa's voice. It
builds with some nice percussion and strings. If you listen closely, you'll even
hear sea gulls flying over the ocean. Beautiful!
Cycle Per Second: A cover of a great dB's song. Lots of cool noises going on
here, and that's always a good thing. A few surprises here and there too.
Fun Fair/Old Memories: A pure power-pop classic. A great punk-style opening that quickly
turns into a pop jangle-guitar fest. What more can you ask for? Oh, you want a
super-catchy melody too? Well look no further than "Fun Fair."
Rock in the City: A balls to the wall rocker. Wait! Does that phrase apply here?
I mean, this is still a girl singing, so you can't really use that phrase, can
you? Listen to "Rock in the City" and decide for yourself. Excellent guitars,
superb drums, and rock anthem-like lyrics ("And the sound cries way up high /
Where the lights shine in our eyes / We'll be playin' all night..."). This song would
make an excellent show opener on any given night.
Waiting for Me Out There: As the strings open this track, and let the drums roll
in, you'll find yourself with perhaps a sense of deja vu. Have you heard this
song before? Probably not. Is this a cover version? Nope. You'll hear all kinds
of influences, but you'll soon realize that this is the best type of song to end
a Lisa Mychols album. Very retro, but every bit as modern. The lyrics tell a
story that in one way or another, we have all lived. You don't have to be a rock
star to feel lonely.
Adam Waltemire
UnderGround Radio
www.ugr.us
Lisa Mychols
Lost Winter's Dream
Rev-Ola/Cherry Red
More than any other time of the year, winter is the season for
broken-hearted lovers-while the extended stretches of darkness and
sub-freezing temperatures encourage introspection, the fragile beauty of the
season, whether in the form of glistening icicles or a walk through a
snow-covered wood, is inescapable. At the same time, the promise of
spring'
s inevitable return hangs overhead, offering even the most desolate a reason
to go on. In 1990, Lisa Mychols harnessed the pain of a failed
relationship
to the winter season to create Lost Winter's Dream, a long-lost
mini-masterpiece as much about love and the human condition as Christmas and
snowfall. Then a virtual unknown, Mychols (who has subsequently crafted an
impressive body of work, both as a member of the Masticators and Waking
Hours, and on her own) teamed with future Wondermints Darian Sahanaja and
Nick Walusko to concoct a Wall of Sound/girl group for the 21st century
sound that was simultaneously fresh and familiar. More than a decade
later,
Britain's Cherry Red Records has done discerning pop lovers everywhere a
great service by reissuing Lost Winter's Dream, again making its pop
splendor available to the masses. The album opens with a nod to Mr.
Spector
via "Listen to the Bells Ring," whose kitchen-sink production may have
seemed pleasantly startling a dozen years ago, but is now pleasantly
familiar to Wondermints' fans. The trippy "X-Mass = Tyme2"
recalls the
post-surf Beach Boys (I can't be the only one who can hear Carl Wilson
dueting with Mychols here-can I?), while the Petula Clark-meets-Lou Christie
title track's upbeat demeanor belies its heart-breaking lyrics. The
frothily irresistible "Blizzad of Aahs" is just that, and adds the
cherry
atop this aural parfait. With Lost Winter's Dream, Lisa Mychols has
crafted
the ultimate guilt-free frozen confection.
Lisa Mychols
Lost Winter Dream and Demo CD (Rev-Ola and self-released, respectively)
By: Ronald Vaughan
Two fine recorded efforts here, from a new name in the music business: LISA
MYCHOLS.
Hailing from Los Angeles (though her band hails from Richmond, Virginia), she'd
been in some lesser-known bands (such as "The Masticators") but now works the
L.A. club scene and plays guitar and bass.
Lost Winter Dream is a very nice Christmas record. It's smack dab in the middle
of Sixties pop-rock joy; but with some Eighties musical sensibilities thrown in
for good measure (not to mention being co-produced and arranged by two of
music's finest, The Wondermints; also, Lisa is backed up by some session
musician friends of hers.)
This is the kind of party-Christmas atmosphere music that's just right for this
season. It's excellent mood music.
Examples of this sound are all over: the quasi-Phil Spector production of
"Listen to the Bells Ring", "Lost Winter's Dream" (a good favorite on the
"Rodney on the 'Roq" show on Los Angeles' KROQ-FM, what with its Four Seasons
"Big Man In Town" classic sound); "Blizzard of Ooh's" dizzying sound effects;
"Jack Frost" sung in a foreign tongue (Russian?); "Shows A Lot" with its
outstanding 3-part overdubbed harmony, Lisa singing with herself; a cover tune
"Pure and Simple"; and the title track reprised as an instrumental (bonus
track).
The demo is a great disc, too! Bubbly fresh, 60's Bangles-type sounds,
intertwining,fanciful melodies and vocals, clever sound effects, and an
old-style (Vox?) electric organ...
Tracks include the upbeat "Rocket To Mars" (again, a favorite on the "Rodney on
the 'ROQ" show in Los Angeles); "Gonna Get That Boy" [almost an answer song to
the Bangles' "Gotta Get That Girl"]; "I'll Be Your Mirror", a fine cover of the
old Lou Reed/Velvet Underground song; "You" (a George Harrison cover song); and,
summing up her attitude, "Pop Rules".
This reviewer says: Lisa Mychols CD's rule!
Review of
Lost Winter's Dream
from www.fufkin.com
"Lisa Mychols -- Lost Winter's Dream (Rev-Ola):
It may seem the wrong time
to review this reissue of a record that is devoted to the season just
passed, but not more than a day or two after I received this disc in the
mail, we had a heavy March snow in Chicago. This disc shows that Mychols,
best known for fronting the L.A. power pop band The Masticators, has been a
major league singer and song writer for more than a decade. In keeping with
the outstanding cover shot (Mychols writing out Christmas cards in an early-
living room -- even her clothes are perfect), a lot of the music has a
girl-group feel, though not as cutesy. Her mastery of Spectorian songwriting
is evident on numerous tracks, and she could not have found a better set of
collaborators than Darian and Nick of The Wondermints, not just because of
their love of music and playing skill, but due to their ability to make
this sound like a big budget recording. Songs like the title cut, "We Will
Look Away" and "Pure and Simple" are fine examples of drawing
upon classic
inspiration and making something that is just as good. Lisa rocks out on
"Bernie's 3rd Christmas", with a nifty Shangri-Las middle-eight part.
"Closer to Jerusalem" is one of the least retro tunes on the record is
song has a funky edge that makes for a nice change of pace. 2003 should see,
finally, a second Mychols solo disc, and this reissue is a strong reminder
of what brilliance she is capable of. rev-ola.co.uk"
more reviews to be added soon! :)