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When it comes to my favorite new bands I've discovered in 2025, The Jive is #1 with a bullet. And it's not just because they're from PA. The Delco-based duo released its debut EP on the streaming platforms earlier this year. Today, Extended Play gets a compact disc release on the mighty Rum Bar Records, and people ought to be dancing in the streets.
The first time I heard this mini-album in full, I had to retrieve my jaw from the floor. So what is it that I like so much about these guys? I think it's that they embody what power pop as a style of music ought to be. Co-songwriters and singers Robbie Dixon and Joey Edwards aren't afraid to write massive, arena-sized pop hits. They don't take themselves too seriously, but they are quite serious about crafting earworm choruses and melodies that'll have you humming all week. When almost every other power pop band out there wants to be The Nerves or Big Star, these two sound like the sons of Rick Springfield. This record gives major early '80s rock radio vibes, yet at the same time it possesses an undeniable contemporary freshness. If you love early '80s power pop but are also glad to live in a world where Kurt Baker and Biters exist, this EP is for you.
"Good Time Call," the first advance single, wowed me in a big way. But then I had to wonder: was this a great band or just a band with one great song? Extended Play answers that question emphatically. "Sherry Shakes," "Shoulda Known Better," and "The Song You Can't Forget" all could have just as easily been "the hit." And then on "Heart of Gold," the band goes full-on .38 Special with a chorus that explodes out of your speakers and enough guitar power to light up a small nation! The band's lyrics don't aim to be rocket science, but they're relatable and clever in a way that's highly enjoyable. You might learn a new pickup line or two from listening to this EP, so don't dismiss the educational potential of power pop. "Good Time Call" is one of my favorite things: a song that tells a story! Who can deny that "I found your number on the elevator wall/of the Taj Mahal" is a million dollar line? Spending the last minute of the song repeating the lyric "I found your number" over and over sounds like a corny idea on paper. But on record, it's pure gold. "Sherry Shakes" is a master class on how to build an entire song around a simple (but utterly perfect) guitar hook. And how can I not love a band that uses the lyric "cherry cake" in a song called "Sherry Shakes"? "Shoulda Known Better" is a timeless ode to lost love. You feel the sting in the lyrics, but the music is positively intoxicating. Another tune that tells a story, "The Song You Can't Forget," practically packs an entire rom-com into three minutes and 17 seconds. When these guys sing, "I'm the one who got that melody stuck in your head/I'm the one who gets you dancing around," they might as well be talking to you. That whole chorus needs to be on a t-shirt!
There's a part in the new Billy Joel documentary where he refers to the songs he wrote for Glass Houses as "power pop" in the sense that they were intended to sound awesome in the large venues he was playing. I imagined all the power pop purists and gatekeepers becoming infuriated as he spoke those words. But if you think of "power pop" purely as a way to describe music, it kind of does describe Glass Houses (which might explain why it's an all-time top ten album for me). The Jive appeals to me because it's a power pop band in both the traditional sense and in that broader sense. Somehow Robbie Dixon and Joey Edwards have managed to make an EP that reminds me of sitting by the pool at ten years old and hearing The Cars and Cheap Trick playing on the radio without having it come off as consciously retro. There's something eternal and magical about a perfect three-minute pop song, and these guys get that. Major credit also goes to producer Dan Dixon and session drummer Takashi Takemura for their incredible work on this release. The obvious reaction to hearing an EP this good is to ask, "But can they do it for a full album?" Well, if you bet against The Jive, you shoulda known better. This is the best new power pop band I've heard in a damn long time.
