First widely known in 2001 for his painstaking interpretation of Echo and the Bunnymen's Crocodiles album, Kelley Stoltz creates the kind of psychedelic-tinged pop rock that proudly embraces the pop as much as the rock-a style that's somewhat under the radar. Whether it was power-poppers in the '70s or polite alt-rockers in the '80s and beyond, it covered a roughly sweet (sweetly punchy, sweetly melancholy) approach to working with a guitar-bass-drums lineup that always wanted to land a hook without sounding too slick, a method that further found after-echoes in the lo-fi underground.
In a time when mall punk; choppy, jittery post-punk; and sprightly indie hold popular sway, Stoltz prefers working in these older paths, and Circulor Sounds demonstrates his ear for it hasn't weakened. His soft, often multitracked voice, as well as his gently tremolo-touched guitar lines and piano parts, evidences his love for the late Beatles as well as much that followed in their wake. Elegant moments like the descending melodies on “Mother Nature” and the killer verse/chorus combination on the calmly rollicking “When You Forget” are just two of many highlights.
Circulor Sounds is a triumph of self-recording—while a few guests appear throughout, nearly everything is played by Stoltz himself in one-man-band fashion. And if Stoltz's voice might be a bit too quiet for those who like their singers to project strongly, he's got a good way to work it in any event. Still, Circulor Sounds might almost live up to its title in a different way, reflecting an approach that's a fine fusion, but ultimately is a cul-de-sac of the familiar. Stoltz has made his home there, though, and has done so with appreciation and talent to spare.
