Young Guv: Guv I (2019)

Another one of my favorite albums of 2019, Young Guv is one of those under-the-radar bedroom projects you randomly stumble across online that throws you for a loop, in this case some dude in Brooklyn (Ben Cook) who managed to come up with one of the finest power pop records of recent years.  It's jangly, buzzing, lo-fi pop straight out of the early Teenage Fanclub songbook, infectious hooks and shiny happy vocals and shimmering guitars.  It's pure smiles from start to finish.

It's hard to pick a favorite song here, as nearly every track on this brief EP/LP (8 songs hovering in that 2:30-3:00 sweet spot) is the sort of thing that would be Top 40 radio fodder in the alternate universe where Big Star was the biggest band ever.  "High On My Mind" is the one I'm playing right now, insanely hook-laden pop that would've fit right in on Teenage Fanclub's Bandwagonesque, Cook adorning the track with lovely multi-tracked harmonies.  But lead-off track "Patterns Prevail" is another contender, a sick hook that you'll hum to yourself all day and probably into the night.  Damn it's great.

Just a couple months later, the guy released, yes, Guv II.  It's a bit more varied that the first one, a bit more of a 70s soft pop crossed with new wave vibe, but still excellent (albeit more of a slow burner than the in-your-face pop immediacy of part one).

You can buy both of them as downloads or on CD courtesy of Bandcamp.

Here's the video for "Patterns Prevail," which is your new favorite song:

...and "Every Flower I See":

 Here's the combined Guv I & Guv II: