FORMER KZSU DJ! Perfect pop songs with strong eighties indie pop and post-punk leanings. This is the solo project of Corey Cunningham, also a member of Terry Malts. Breezy and full-sounding guitars, dense and bright synth textures, catchy moments every few seconds, understated vocals low in the mix, everything sounding smooth and effortless, but with bleak and mournful lyrical undercurrents. Immensely heartfelt in spite of the negativity, though. RIYL The Byrds, C86, The Jesus and Mary Chain, The Smiths, Sarah Records, The Go-Betweens, Kitchens of Distinction, Lotus Plaza. Give this some love, especially if your DJ tastes skew pop; it’ll love you back. All songs are well worth playing, but my favorites are: 1, 2, 6, 8, 9, 11. FCC WARNING: 7.

1. *(3:55)—Medium-fast post-punk pop. “Oh oh”s. Grand but steady and cool, with a chorus that could repeat for thirty minutes.
2. *(3:06)—Mid-tempo. Tight, driving rhythm with shaker and claves. Reminiscences of youth, a lament for a hometown made unrecognizable.
3. (3:04)—Medium-slow. Sunny, with tambourine claps and thick synths. Lyrics about leaving home, looking for anywhere else.
4. (3:01)—Mid-tempo. Hopped-up carnival keyboard melody. “Negativity rules everything around me.”
5. (3:26)—Medium-slow fingerpicking, no beat. Romantic, gentle, idyllic.
6. *(1:51)—Mid-tempo. Synth pulses. A moving apology letter to someone from childhood: “called you up in the middle of the night with a pitiful fight…you opened up my world, I never could tell you.”
7. (2:56)—FCC (sounds like “asshole” even though I’m pretty sure he’s singing “arse or”). Shimmering mid-tempo Sparklehorse cover.
8. *(4:23)–Mid-tempo. Wistful, nostalgic, big, with chiming dramatic synths.
9. *(2:50)—Mid-tempo, jangly and lush. Deceptively upbeat C-major Go-Betweens vibe.
10. (2:48)—Mid-tempo. Old-school college radio feel. Reminds me of The House of Love. Lyrics about singing along to Julian Cope.
11. *(3:57)—Fast, bouncy, reminiscent of “Just Like Heaven,” but with lyrics like “I owe my soul to the company store, live for the bank, live for the boss, six days on and one day off.”