John Maus may be inaccessible to some, but once you get past the lo-fi recording and manic tempos, Mr. Maus is pure pop. His 2007 album Love Is Real was one of the unsung triumphs of the year, featuring spangly power anthems with positive lyrics and surreal ( and creepy) motifs of joy and acceptance that bear comparison to both Ariel Pink and Andrew W.K. The latter comparison stretches into Maus' live performances as well: a hulking giant with hair in his face and supernatural physical energy, when Maus sings about "Rights for Gays" in your face you won't be able to suppress hope that it's coming from personal experience. Alas, Johnny's straight, but we'll keep pretending he's our jock boyfriend anyway.
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