The Stan Laurels

There Is No Light Without The Dark

Big Stir

The fourth album, and Big Stir debut, from John Lathrop, who records under the Stan Laurels name, is very 90s influenced power pop--think Fountains of Wayne or Juliana Hatfield--and very good, a really nice updating, with a bit of the 70s thrown in for good measure. 

The lyrics are about dark and light states of mind, his wife and son, and Trump. “Florida Man,” is both about the state and it being a state of mind. Lots of good wordplay, especially on the anti-Trump “Red Handed Puppet,” as in “What do we do about Elmo...” 

This is the kind of power pop I like the best: impure, creative, with expert guitar playing and smart lyrics. 

Andrea Weiss