http://www.goldminemag.com/blogs/things-old-things-new-aka-ton-cd-reviews
The Music Collectors Magazine
GOLDMINE
April 14, 2014
By: John M. Borack
The Cherry Bluestorms – Bad Penny Opera
One of the more talented Los Angeles-area acts currently plying their trade under the pop umbrella, the Cherry Bluestorms have fashioned a rockin’, slightly psychedelic record that doesn’t sound quite like anything else out there, but at the same time feels very comfortable. Led by vocalist Deborah Gee and vocalist/multi-instrumentalist Glen Laughlin, the 13 songs on Bad Penny Opera are memorable, instrumentally varied (Laughlin’s guitar wizardry is supported by nicely placed keyboards, horns, and a touch of violin) and unique. The male/female vocal harmonies are cool, and Gee’s lead vocals manage to simultaneously exude sweetness and a sense of danger. The insistently driving “Bad” is a favorite, a spiky-yet-reverent cover of Donovan’s “Wear Your Love Like Heaven” is most welcomed, “Sunday Driving South” slips a bit of 1967 Beatles into the mix and “World Going Mad” manages to simultaneously bring to mind the Police and the Byrds. Groovy. Grade: A-