Walking in a Straight Line - CD

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You may think that a tune such as "I Won't Forget" bears some of the requisite elements of power pop--lighter-than-air harmonies, guitars that deftly balance crunch and melody--but the Mayflies USA don't want to be lumped in that genre. Instead, the North Carolina band prefers references to the likes of Big Star. This isn't so far out, for in a way the Mayflies USA bring us back to the early '70s, a simpler time in American rock. Proceeding at a leisurely pace, the band's new album has a pastoral veneer, an appealing sense that nothing is worth hurrying for, while at the same maintaining enough energy to prevent the listener from falling into torpor. It may have something to do with a change behind the board: The group traded producer Chris Stamey, who had worked on their first two albums (and had helped define Southern power pop with the dBs in the '80s), for Keith Cleversley, who's collaborated with the Flaming Lips and Mercury Rev. Cleversley helped craft a sound that's basic yet full, and songs such as "So Young" float by in a lovely manner. The Mayflies USA are as familiar and comfy as a pair of jeans that have acquired their creases the old-fashioned way--through wear and tear.