Before the '90s expanded the subgenre to include more indie influenced acts like Weezer or Fountains of Wayne, "power pop" mostly referred to the '70s and '80s jangley guitar groups that favored '60s British invasion recordings. Along with The Records, Shoes and The Toms, The Spongetones were such a band. This thorough comp reveals them powering from 1980 through 2005 and what's most impressive is that they never changed their unapologetically retrospective sound to fit in with commercial radio of an era. The first eight cuts come from 1982's Beat Music and 1984's Torn Apart. The latter found them flirting with synthy hints of new wave, but songs like "(My Girl) Maryanne" and "Lana-Nana" still sound deeply rooted in the hair-shaking, hip-swaying Merseybeat of the early '60s. The catchy and melodic "Skinny" from 1995's Textural Drone Thing sounds so vintage that you have to wonder how hard it was for The Spongetones to thrive when grunge ran the game. Jump to 2005's Kinks inspired "Alayna" for further proof of their unbending vision. Always Carry On: The Best of the Spongetones 1980 – 2005 shows that when songs are this good, the word "retro" is hardly a derogatory adjective.