Montana:
Secret Powers
CITY: Missoula
SONGS THAT GOT US: "One Less Star [mp3]", “Orange Trees”
ON THE TUBES: MySpace
RECORD LABEL: Square Tire Music
WHY THEM? Ryan “Schmed” Maynes arrived in Missoula from the cynical shores of LA with a single-minded aim: to create the most mind-frying power-pop/rock orchestra that ever was. The result of his collaboration with the na-tives is Secret Powers, a band dedicated to the pursuit of musical guilty pleasures. Sounding alternately like a theme song to a ’60s kids’ show and a joyride on Electric Light Orchestra’s spaceship, tracks like “Marry Ann” and “One Less Star” show this flamboyant collective overpowering any sense of cool detachment and ironic cynicism, as cascading and shimmering vocal waterfalls glide to unabashed choruses and mirror-ball guitar walk-arounds.
BONUS BIT! While in Hollywood, Schmed worked on soundtracks for such TV shows as Weeds and Third Rock from the Sun.
