Jason Zumpano thinks in terms of how his songs will be orchestrated, not just accompanied. This means trumpets as well as the usual guitars, basses and drums. Zumpano first gained attention with the band Zumpano, which excelled at upbeat, tune-filled pop. As leader of Sparrow, he hasn’t changed much. An EP was darker and more […]
Because it’s raining and cold outside and it’s kinda feelin’ like England, I find myself in a Sixties ‘retro’ mindset. Who better to spend time with than Jason Zumpano, the man who created some great bubblegum-pop records in the mid 1990s? True, The New Pornographers’ Carl Newman was in the band, and he gets a […]
The whimsical, wound-up chamber pop of Vancouver’s Sparrow magically cranks out sunny melodies like cotton candy. Strings swell as horns soar while rambunctious jingles of charmed sincerity suggests vaudeville operettas and choirboy carnivals. Subverting cliches and distorting formulas, “Early,” fills itself with rollicking waltzes, radiant harmonies, bouncy arrangements and bemused self-reflection.
Sparrow’s aptly titled “The Early Years” is a tuneful throwback to naive pop from decades ago, when production values were iffy by today’s standards, though charm was more abundant.
Independent pop hasn’t found the sturdy foothold currently enjoyed by indie rock, but lively acts like Sparrow could make a difference: The band from Vancouver, Canada, […]
Pubblicato da Absolutely Kosher Records, il secondo atto di Sparrow sfoggia sorprendenti corpi pop rock vestiti in tessuti orchestrali. In questo suo progetto “laterale”, Jason Zumpano ordisce con polso fermo un piccolo e verosimile reame di poco più di mezz’ora di vita, in nove piccoli mosaici sgargianti e scaltri.
Come nulla fosse, fa vestire […]
Being a drummer in a mid-1990’s seminal band that sounded like the Zombies might leave you with a nice resume and not much else, which is where Jason Zumpano stood a few years ago. Now, with Sparrow’s second record, The Early Years, (Absolutely Kosher), Zumpano proves that drummers can also front bands (”Photograph” by Ringo […]
My musical tastes tend towards a darker sound, so my first impression of the bouncy, retro-flavoured tunes on Sparrow’s The Early Years was that they were just too light and breezy to leave much of a mark on me. But sometimes music only becomes interesting when you spin it again and again, leaving first impressions […]
Sparrow are destined to be compared to the New Pornagraphers. And no wonder. Both bands are from Vancouver. Both are led by ex-members of Zumpano (the Pornos byCarl Newman; Sparrow by Jason Zumpano). Both are semi-super groups with members from other West Coast outfits. And, most importantly, both deal in indie-pop […]
Sparrow
The Early Years (Absolutely Kosher)
Vancouver’s Sparrow may lack the rock punch and emotional zeal of its leader James Zumpano’s previous bands—classic Canadian Sub Poppers Zumpano and Dan Bejar’s Destroyer, both from the New Pornographers’ family tree—but their sunny, slightly overcast pop stands up in its own right. Jangly guitars, analog keys and supporting strings and […]
When The Early Years ends just nine songs and 31 minutes after the laser hits it, you’ll probably find yourself thinking, “That’s it?” More flower pop than power pop, it wafts by breezily and all too swiftly, lightening air that’s customarily more leaden and leaving in its wake a serious hankering for more of its […]