Fountains Of Wayne (LP)

Every so often, a band comes along that digs back into what pop music is all about – good, fun tunes. Fountains of Wayne is one such band. Their self-titled debut studio album was released in 1996 and contains the hits “Sink To The Bottom” and “Radiation Vibe”. Recorded when the band was just a duo, Chris Collingwood and Adam Schlesinger provided almost all the instrumentation during the recording. Schlesinger and Porter had also been members of The Belltower, and bassist Danny Weinkauf later played with Lincoln before joining They Might Be Giants. Written over a period of years as outlets to make each other laugh through inside jokes and references to suburban life in New York and New Jersey, the songs on the album were recorded in five days. The songwriting is straightforward and wonderful; nearly every song is a Pop gem. The result is an innovative album – very few albums released in the '90s have been this pleasant, charming, and all-round likeable.