States - Picture Me With You

Name: States
Album: Picture Me With You
Year: 1981
Style: Power Pop
Similar Bands: Hawks, Loverboy, Pezband, Records, Shoes, Sparks
"One-Word" Review: Pure Harmonic Powerpop
Based Out Of: Norfolk / Hampton Roads,VA
Label: Boardwalk Records/Entertainment Co.

Cover, Record

Record, Back

Picture Me With You (1981)

1. Picture Me With You (single) 3:00
2. Angel of the Morning 4:39
3. Saturday Night (single) 2:50
4. Love on the Line 4:27
5. Tell Me It's Love 3:27 /
6. Love You Girl (single) 3:11
7. Let's Roll 3:42
8. Jenny 3:00
9. Just A Dream 2:30
10. Get It 4:28

Album Rating (1-10): 7.5

Members & Other Bands:

• Dominic "Butch" Germano - Bass 
• Morgan Hampton - Vox, Drums, Percussion (Mason, Vandy)
• Barry Scott - Vox, Guitar (The Barrys)
• Jimmy McDonnell - Vox (Zooch)
• Robert Schindler - Keys (Zooch)
• Steve Chandler - Guitars, Backing Vox 
• John Ryan - Producer
• Bill Drescher - Recording & Mixing
• Tori Swenson - Asst. Engineer
• Nicky Hopkins - Grand Piano (Zooch, Cliff Bennett, Rebel Rousers, Climax Blues Band, Cyril Davies, Jeff Beck Group, Lord Sutch & Heavy Friends, Neil Christian & Crusaders, Night Quicksilver Messenger Service, Screaming Lord Sutch & Savages, Soul Survival, Sweet Thursday, Terry & the Pirates, Immediate All-Stars, Jerry Garcia Band, Sessions, NH Caravan, Rolling Stones, Kinks, Easybeats, Steve Miller Band, Jefferson Airplane, Quicksilver, The Who, John Lennon, Jerry Williams, Nilsson, John & Yoko, Carly Simon, New Riders of the Purple Sage, Cheece & Chong, Donovan, Andy Williams, George Harrison, Ringo Starr, Strawbs, Mark Almond, Martha Reeves, Joe Cocker, Peter Frampton, David Soul, Art Garfunkel, Rod Stewart, Bay City Rollers, Eddie Money, Badfinger, Pointer Sisters, Graham Parker, Meat Loaf, Marc Bolan, Nils Lofgren, Pure Prarie League more)
• Jerry Jurmonville - Sax (Delaney&Bonnie&Friends, Les Getrex & Creole Cooking, Dr. John, Ry Cooder, Duane Allman, Doobie Brothers, Maria Muldaur, Mike Bloomfield, Dave Mason, Bonnie Raitt, Iron Butterfly, Rod Stewart, Gap Band, Van Morrison, Johnny Rivers, Dusty Springfield, David Soul, Little Feat, Leo Sayer, Brooklyn Dreams, Albert Lee, Bette Midler, Harry Nilsson, Doobie Brothers, Ringo Starr, Jules and the Polar Bears, Eikichi Yazawa, Tommy Tutone, Michael Bolton, Smokey Robinson, Captain Beefheart,   some more)
• Doug Thaler - Mgmt, Direction
• Mickey Watts - Crew
• Eddie Zapata - Crew
• David Harwood - Crew
• Tommy Steele - Design
• Jeff Fey - Design
• Phil Fewsmith - Photos
• Ron Larson - Hand Coloring
• Mike Donaldson - Hand Coloring

Unknown-ness: Never heard of States. I get a sense of easy listening yacht rock from the coloring choices, mixed with 70's power pop, based on their ages, hair and style

Album Review: It is definitely pure powerpop. They take turns with lead vocals, and it looks like there are a bunch of covers, as many of the songs have writing credits that are not the members. At least im familiar with "Angel of the Morning." And "Get It" has a harmony similar to Difford/Tilbrook of Squeeze. "Jenny" feels like it belongs somewhere Meatloaf's Rocky Horror Picture Show songs and Buddy Holly, with an 80's power pop update in production.

They were a locally popular band in the Virginia Beach nightclub scene in the late 70's early 80's, with their biggest moment coming as an opener for Hall & Oates (aside from their first album being on a major label: Chrysalis). Only recorded this and a previous self titled album in their 7 year career 77-84.

Stand Out Track: Jenny

Links:

Discogs

Allmusic
Rate Your Music
Spirit of Metal
Butch Memorial
Forgotton 80's Podcast
F-Measure

DNA - Party Tested

Name: DNA
Album: Party Tested
Year: 1983
Style: 80's Arena Pop, Metal
Similar Bands: Huey Lewis, Robert Palmer, Rick Springfield, Foriegner, Squeeze, Twisted Sister
"One-Word" Review: "redneck dance party"
Based Out Of: LA or NY, probably
Label: Pasha Productions, Boardwalk Records,

Party Tested: Cover & Sleeve

Party Tested - Back & Sleeve

Party Tested - Record

Party Tested (1983)

1. Doctors of the Universe 4:10
2. Intellectual Freedom for the Masses 3:58
3. Rock & Roll pt 2 5:30 /
4. The Song That Wrote Itself 4:02
5. Party Tested 4:53
6. The Recipe for Life 3:55
7. What About 4:25

Album Rating (1-10): 7.0

Members & Other Bands:

Carmine Appice - Drums, Percussion, Synth, Vox (Vanilla Fudge, Cactus)

Rick Derringer - Bass, Vox, Synth, Guitar (Steely Dan, Johnny Winters, Weird Al, The McCoys, Cyndi Lauper, KISS)

Duane Baron -Engineer

Spencer Proffer - Producer

Jimmy Johnson - Bass
Duane Hitchings - Synthesizer, Keyboards
Alan Miller - Management
Jake Hooker - Management
Mikey Davis - Engineering Asst
Karen Chamberlain - Engineering Asst
George Marino - Mastering
Carol Peters - Coordination
Lyn Corey -Benson - Coordination
Ann Sumner-Davis - Admin Asst
Randy Bishop - Backing Vox
Danny Spanos - Backing Vox
Tommy Faragher - Backing Vox
Bart Bishop - Backing Vox
Danny Johnson - Backing Vox
Nigel Bauer - Backing Vox
Jay Vigon - Art Direction & Design
Kathy Gerrity - Art Coordination
Ed Goldstein - Photography
Debbie Thomasina - Stylist
Ronn St Pierre - Stylist

Unknown-ness: I’ve never heard of this band, but I was very interested in it with the Party vibe of the cover, and the pseudo scientist lab coats researching…rock! Or so it seems, with the Hall & Oats look, and a 1983 date, I was hoping for some sort of party rock music. Covering Gary Glitter’s Rock & Roll pt 2 is probably the best example of what I would be looking for, and there is a cover of it here. This seems silly, rock driven, and an overall fun atmosphere. I hope it translates that way in the music too.

Album Review:“Doctors of the Universe” starts out powerful, driving and aggressive. Like a song you’d listen to, in order to pump yourself up for a big sporting event. It has revving, building guitars, and an 80’s stylized tinkling keys that you’d expect to be in some training montage in a Rocky film (actually the keyboard alone reminds me of the Goonies). The vocals are dual layered giving it an urgent, crisp, and harmonic delivery. Its an overall fun song, with somewhat ridiculous lyrics.“Intellectual Freedom for the Masses” had a guitar hook that gives me the image of elementary school bully mockery. It’s hard and cutting, but it is still playful, and with a make-fun-of tone. The rhythm of the song, as it is based on the guitar hook, has a start stop feel to it, and the whole song feels stripped down. The dual vocals remind me of what Squeeze does, but it is not backed by incredible music
“Rock & Roll pt 2” is the Gary Glitter cover. It is pretty straight forward, with the only changes being a little heavier guitar, and a bigger, echoing vocals. It comes off as a little more sinister, darker. Also, thanks to Appice, bigger drums.

“The Song That Wrote Itself” introduces itself with drums, then adds down & dirty guitar and equally scraggily echoing, layered vocals. It does not feel like it was crafted especially caringly, it has the feel of a short drum and bass looped with repetitive shout/chanting vocals.
“Party Tested” has a nice stomp drum beginning. Synth keys are added in this side to side sway/stomp. The Goonies synth sound is utilized again, and it just sounds so familiar like it’s been sampled in other songs, or has such a specific sound / time period, that it is very familiar. This sound has more of the shout/chant vocals. Altogether, it feels like Twisted Sister, if they decided to write less catchy sports arena pep songs and redneck dance party jams, and only used background vocals. “The Recipe for Life” has more of a Robert Palmer feel to it with the use of the synth. We revisit the urgent vocals from the first track, and adds that feeling of a poor man’s Difford & Tillbrook. It’s just heavier than Squeeze.
“What About” begins with a fun dancy bass beat, that brings feels a tinge of disco. The chorus, as repetitive as it is, has the most uplifting and positive mood on the album. It is paralleled & bolstered by a fun bursting guitar hook solo. The vocals are still that shout/chant. Some of the verse sections have juxtaposing dark, militaristic tones. But the chorus breaks free of the darkness, like the power that only comes from rebelling mass mob.

Stand-Out Track: Doctors Of The Universe

Links:

Discogs

Party tested audio, You Tube

Wax fm

Allmusic