Greg Pope - Wishing on a Dark Star (2020)

As good as 2018’s A Few Seconds of Fame was, Greg Pope‘s Wishing On a Dark Star is even better. In fact, it’s his best album to date.

Co-written with son Asher, “Gone” is an immediate thumbs-up with a vibe reminiscent of The Beatles Sgt. Pepper era. The harmonies are perfect and the brief Brian May-ish guitar solo is a blast. And the telegraph tap that leads into the track is pretty cool, too.

“Morning Sunshine” will give you the same ethereal feeling one gets while listening to XTC’s Skylarking – or even an old Yes record. “Wildest Dreams” is the kind of first rate guitar pop GP is known for while “I Need a Vacation from My Vacation” adds a bit of humor (and a short but neat guitar solo) to the proceedings. I love everything about this song from the lyrics to the vocals at the end.

My favorite track is probably “Jump Back from the Light”, an incredibly catchy bit of guitar pop that’s super on first listen and manages to get even better with repeated listens. It’s got an uber-catchy chorus and all the pop accoutrements that make for a great single. Basically, it’s a 2:25 hook.