For those uninitiated into the world of power pop cult hero JASON FALKNER, here's a bit of background on the man: Staring out as a member of psychedelic power pop band THE THREE O'CLOCK, JF went on to be a founding member of the legendary(to some of us) JELLYFISH, who utilized a whimsical and fresh approach to it's mixture of BEATLES, BEACH BOYS, QUEEN, ELO, CHEAP TRICK 70s campiness. The band quite frankly was brilliant, with tasty musical chops. stunning layered harmonies, and a deep appreciation for the nuances of 60s/70s pop that permeated their tunes. Due to creative differences(not enough room for more of his tunes), JF split after the tour supporting debut album Bellybutton ended and formed THE GRAYS, who's one and only album, Ro Sham Bo, is a minor power pop classic, and gave one of the best live gigs I've seen. THE GRAYS disbanded and JF started to work on his debut solo CD released on Elektra in 1996 called Author Unknown. The album was an exceptional work of what I would describe as "Progressive Pop", utilizing interesting sophisticated arrangements and moody atmospherics to compliment the melodies. The follow-up, Can You Still Feel, is also a tremendous album, definitely the 2 gems in the JF catalog. More albums and an EP followed, all excellent in one way or another, and definitely worth checking out. This dude is like the PHIL COLLINS of his genre, never sitting still, always working on outside projects, doing session work for the likes of PAUL McCARTNEY, WEEZER, BANGLE SUSANNA HOFFS, CHRIS CORNELL, TRAVIS, and BECK among others. The dude is everywhere.

Now onto his latest CD All Quiet On The Noise Floor, a Japanese only release as of today and released at the very end of 2009. Did I mention that he plays all of the instruments on his albums ala LENNY KRAVITZ and TODD RUNDGREN? Amazing. The album kicks off with my favorite track on it, "Princessa", a perfect little pop song with psychedelic guitars and keyboards, on par with his earlier material. I like the use of synths on this release as it adds a new wave-ish flavor to the tunes which is cool to hear these days as it's a well not tapped very often in a what's old is new again sort of way. "This Time" was on his last album, and it's on here as a bonus track in a re-wroked version and is an excellent song. "Emotion Machine" has great verses but loses something on the chorus in my opinion. JF also gets kudos for his good taste in cover tunes as he re-works "Jet Silver And The Dolls Of Venus" from BE BOP DELUXE's 1974 debut Axe Victim, another favorite band of mine. A faithful to the original version, with his production values added to it making it sound like one of his own. "Y.E.S" is a wasted opportunity, being an excellent instrumental track with the only vocals being a chorus...writer’s block?? "Maybe The Universe" is another standout track worthy of inclusion. "My Home Is Not A House" was originally released in demo form on Necessity: The 4-track Years and here it is in finished form and is another favorite of mine on this release.

The main issue I have with this album is that it sounds like JF is treading water a bit, mixing in some seemingly half realized ideas and leftovers mixed in with the top shelf stuff. "Some killer, some filler" would be my headline if I wrote this review for Creem Magazine in the 70s. As a fan of all of his work, I'm starting to have the desire to hear him break out of his box a bit, maybe crank up the guitars and beef up the drums and do a balls out rock record with his expert pop instincts driving the whole thing. I know he's got a corker of an album in him if he went down that road just a little bit. Do something to shake it up a bit, change the production values, use a buddy on drums to change the feel a bit, whatever. It's not that I want to hear a drastic shift in direction or an attempt to be "modern", ugh, God forbid LOL. I just feel he's in danger of getting stagnant, which is how I feel about LENNY KRAVITZ, who always has excellent stuff on every album, but they all tend to sound the same in feel and production. The fact that JF's 1st 2 albums had major label money behind the studio time may account for why those albums are a bit more sonically interesting and better developed. That being said, an average album from JASON FALKNER still beats any competent but faceless modern pop I hear today.... DAUGHTRY and that sort comes to mind if you catch my drift. 3 and half stars...close to 4, but All Quiet on the Noise Floor gets docked for what I consider to be a bit of going through the motions.