Tony Molina
SONGS FROM SAN MATEO COUNTY
Release Date: Jul 19, 2019
Genre(s): Pop/Rock, Alternative/Indie Rock, Indie Rock, Indie Pop, Noise Pop
Record label: Smoking Room
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Album Review: SONGS FROM SAN MATEO COUNTY by Tony Molina
Excellent, Based on 2 Critics
Based on rating 8/10
Though he first broke through to a larger audience with his 2014 album Dissed and Dismissed, Tony Molina had already been making similarly noisy and weird pop records for a long time as a member of Ovens and Violent Change, to name just two bands. SONGS FROM SAN MATEO COUNTY is a collection of unreleased tracks recorded over the previous decade, some when he was recording as Ovens, some while he was a member of Violent Change, and some as a solo act, both pre- and post-Dismissed. For the most part, it forgoes the gentle, acoustic side of his approach in favor of the kind of blown-out power pop he made his name on.
Based on rating 8/10
To be a fan of Tony Molina's work to-date means having a true understanding of "short but sweet": his 2013 solo debut Dissed and Dismissed spanned a little over ten minutes and 2018's Kill the Lights barely passed the quarter-hour mark, yet both these records felt complete in their brevity, like a well-written haiku. Upholding this tradition with his latest release, Songs From San Mateo County, Molina presents a compilation of bite-sized pop rock tracks that leave an everlasting impression to please both new and ardent fans' palettes ….