L.A. Explosion

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Perhaps the least known of the late-'70s L.A. pop acts, the Last rose from the ashes of the Los Angeles club scene alongside bands like 20/20, the Knack, the Nerves, and the Plimsouls. Releasing their debut album on a small, albeit influential, indie label didn't help them gain exposure outside of California, but the music contained on this platter is as brilliant as anything that came from that era. Led by Joe Nolte and featuring his brothers Mike and David among its members, the Last's secret weapon was the keyboard/flute-playing Vitus Mataré, who added extra texture and flair to Joe's engaging songs. Heavily influenced by '60s pop, this album has it all: pure pop ("This Kind of Feeling," "Someone's Laughing"), sunny beach pop ("Every Summer Day"), punk-pop ("I Don't Wanna Be in Love," "Slavedriver"), psych-pop ("She Don't Know Why I'm Here"), and more. Thinly produced, L.A. Explosion has a charm and innocence to it that not many other artists have been able to match. [The 2003 reissue on Bomp adds six bonus tracks: "She Don't Know Why I'm Here" and "Bombing of London" from their first single, "Every Summer Day" and "Hitler's Brother" from their second single, "L.A. Explosion" from their third single, and "We're in Control" from a 1979 Bomp compilation Anthology of New Music, Vol. 1: January 1979.] ~ Steve "Spaz" Schnee, Rovi