Pussywillows

  • Pussywillows
  • Spring Fever! (Telstar) 1988 

New York’s Pussywillows have an obvious mania for ’60s girl groups like the Shangri-Las — the seven songs on their brief debut (recorded before the band had ever performed live) mix Lisa, Lisa and Elinor’s heavily reverbed three-part harmonies with surfy guitar power-pop. All the tracks are covers, borrowed from such relevant obscuros as the Coupons, the Cinderellas and the Short-Cuts. Although some of the lead vocals are shaky and the concept is shamelessly derivative, Spring Fever! is nonetheless a goodnatured homage.

[Karen Schoemer]