Those Pretty Wrongs - Holiday Camp (2023) Hi Res

Having been a founding member of one of the most revered power pop bands of all time tends to be a footnote that follows you around. Yet Jody Stephens' contribution to the pop canon goes well beyond his beginnings in Big Star, helping to refine alt-country with Golden Smog and shaping the Ardent Records legacy well into the current era. Following the outpouring of love around the documentary, Big Star: Nothing Can Hurt Me, Jody reached out to his longtime friend, producer and songwriter Luther Russell to join him for some promotional appearances. A comfortability on stage became a kinship in the studio and eventually led to two albums as Those Pretty Wrongs. The comfort between the duo is key to what makes Those Pretty Wrongs work. Luther and Jody bounce ideas off of one another with the kind of natural symbiosis that all bands shoot to achieve. Heading into their third album, the band found themselves a new haven in the rising California outpost of Cosmic Americana, Roots, and Power Pop: Curation Records. Following the reissue of their two previous albums by the label in May, Holiday Camp finds Those Pretty Wrongs crafting a record that's autumnal, searching for solace, and yet unsettled. The title is a nod to both wistful summers at bygone British institutions, the favored gig fodder for their '60s heroes, and the more sinister implications of Tommy's Holiday Camp communal, but with a cost. There's a promise of hope in that turn of phrase, but there's a slightly dark undercurrent peeking out behind the wallpaper. Those cracks break through most prominently on the simmering frustrations of "Scream," and the disheartened pleas of "Paper Cup." Holiday Camp finds more than a few friends turning up to lace songs with their contributions. Recorded from their own home studios, string arrangements from Chris Stamey, moog from Wilco's Patrick Sansone, and glockenspiel from Mitch Easter all bolster the record's mercurial grace. The physical distance does little to dampen the sense of communal ease that holds tight at the album's core. With shades of home-grown Memphis power pop, nods to Apple Records alums, and an appeal that trickles down to fans of open-hearted pop from Emmit Rhodes to The Elephant 6, Those Pretty Wrongs draw the listener into an environment that's familiar and fragrant. Luther's arrangements have a timeless temperance that wraps around the listener. Jody's songwriting is as honest as ever. It's a hand reaching out in the darkness, and a shoulder cry on. From the sunset serentity of "New September Song," to the pastoral chamber folk of "Brother, My Brother," the songs blanket the listener in a bittersweet bliss. Jody and Luther's harmonies have taken on a sublime alchemy. Like lost brothers found once more, they weave wonder into the pensive meditations on "This Painted Sky," and the hopeful send-off of "The Way," With their full catalog in the steady hands of Curation, the band members find themselves poised to re-examine their past while excited to enter a new era with their most affecting album on the way.