The Bangles - Sweetheart of the Sun

The Bangles - L.A. folk/pop and garage/rock with 60's flair have collided for some memorable hits from this pioneering female band ("Manic Monday" and "Eternal Flame" still sound wicked good)...Matthew Sweet, a recent collaborator with Bangle Susannah Hoffs and an expert in SoCal, "Nugget"-era retro pop, is the trio's "fourth Bangle" on their first studio recordings in eight years, an album with a "paradise lost in Southern California" theme // Release: Sweetheart of the Sun (September 13, Model Music Group) // Sounds like: the Sweet production (with a Jim Scott (Wilco) mix) is as remarkably pure and bright as it is restrained and true to the band's original sound -- even more so actually...guitars don't just jangle, they jangle in oversized, widescreen Technicolor glory...the voices, mellowed over the past 25 years, are still loose and soaring in perfect harmony // Quote: “I think it’s important for all of us to keep moving on and creating. Because that’s why we got into this in the first place.” - Debbi Peterson // What we like: Lead track "Anna Lee" is a remarkably vibrant, exquisitely rendered slice of surf n' sun nostalgia that belies its dated references with a fresh one-two punch..."Lay Yourself" has a killer Beatle-ish bass line, classic Shindig tambourine rhythms and a Byrdsian Rickenbacker riff-fest...

The Bangles - "Anna Lee" (from Sweetheart of the Sun)

The Bangles - Sweetheart of the Sun Sampler ("Lay Yourself Down", "Mesmerized")