Airport 77s * Don't Let Go [New CD]

"Don't Let Go," the third release from The Airport 77S, finds the DC trio stretching further beyond their power pop roots with a collection of songs that veers from wistful to exuberant. For this record, guitarist Andy Sullivan and drummer John Kelly have recruited veteran bassist Cal Everett, who brings a McCartney-esque sophstication to the group's bottom end. You'll find the 77's signature eighth-note chug married to a robotic groove on "Like Falling in Love"; full-throated AM AOR on "1999 (Take Me Back)" and "Anyone But You"; and "Make 'Em Pay (Don't Make It Easy), an outlaw ballad in the tradition of Robert Earl Keene and Townes Van Zandt.