ATLANTICS

Where Boston’s the Real Kids approached power pop with a ramshackle attack steeped in ‘50s rock ‘n’ roll, the more musically disciplined Atlantics were less enamored with Beantown’s underground as these highly produced recordings suggest. Tracked between 1979 and 1982, Atlantics reveals a clean-coiffed and airtight guitar-pop quintet aspiring to the commercial success of the Cars, which they never came close to achieving (resulting in their 1983 break-up). “Back In the World” is a near-perfect gem on par with bands like the Records and Shoes. The bass-heavy single “Lonely Hearts” is another hit that never happened. With its sharp angularity and herky-jerky vocals, the song sounds like Lindsay Buckingham had he taken the Rickenbacker and skinny necktie route to pop music. As songs like “Perfect Stranger” and “Believe In Love” unsuccessfully imported post-punk’s complex arrangements, the Velcro-catchy “Pop Shivers” and a thoroughly enjoyable cover of Gary Glitter’s “Rock and Roll Parts I and II” kept things sounding fun, simple and sugar sweet.