Jiffipop -Demolicious - 1996

Essentially the one-man demo project of Rick Gallego, Jiffipop stirred up a major buzz amongst power pop circles in 1996 and 1997. Utilizing a distinctly lo-fi aesthetic, Gallego crafts what is meant to evoke memories of a box full of dusty, forgotten 45s from the '60s that are dragged out and tossed back on the turntable again. And it's true that these 14 tracks -- 12 originals and covers of Harry Nilsson and the Beach Boys -- do sound an awful lot like a hodgepodge of ringing, lo-fi '60s pop music. The problem is that at times they sound a bit too much like a throwback. It's true that those indebted to the style will probably find a lot to love here, particularly in the details, but the problem is that Gallego's hooks don't seem to fully gel into great songs most of the time, even if sonically everything is really groovy. A few tracks, such as "Fall Through You" and "Dreamland," stick out, but the album unfortunately feels more like a demo than a fully realized project. Gallego used the attention garnered from this release to form a full band, who then changed their name to Cloud Eleven and issued their debut in 1999. -AMG

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