To the faithful gathered at the El Rey Theatre for Tuesday's installment of International Pop Overthrow, an 11-day pop music festival featuring more than 140 acts, "pop" meant something more specific than what's on the radio right now.   It's a timeless blend of guitar dynamics, melodic songs, vocal harmonies and powerful hooks.
You'll find excellent examples in every rock era, as bands from the Beatles to Cheap Trick to the Posies have put distinctive flavorings into this deceptively simple recipe.   In 20- to 30-minute sets, each of the 10 acts at the El Rey also put its own spin on the parameters, demonstrating that while a good pop tune may sound effortless, it's not that easy to stand out.
Handily the most anticipated act on the bill, the Velvet Crush closed the evening with a rocking set that was the band's first gig in a couple of years.   A jewel of modern powerpop, the quintet had no trouble wringing variety out of the guitars-harmonies-hooks formula, crafting a range of moods from gritty and sexually tense to pensive and melancholy.
Every bit as passionate, though accompanied by only an electric guitarist, Philadelphia-based John Faye played acoustic guitar and sang jangling, brokenhearted ditties whose wry, lovelorn wordplay faintly recalled Elvis Costello and Jonathan Richman.   His songs had enough personality to make you wonder what they'd sound like with a full band, but even with minimal backing, Faye's was one of the evening's most arresting performances.
L.A. bands made a strong showing as veterans Wednesday Week effected a welcome change of pace with punchy, post-punk rock that shifted on a dime from commanding to vulnerable.   Other locals included Wonderboy--(featuring playfully manic frontman and former child actor Robbie Rist), the Tories (who exuded some sonic sexiness), the Hutchinsons (pleasant if undistinguished) and Jiffipop (a mannered and flaccid debut performance). Baltimore trio Starbelly's Stonesy, uptempo set had its charms.   The same couldn't be said for the Marlowes, whose colorless drone and tendency toward mid-song tempo changes proved mighty annoying.   Happily, Santa Barbara's the Tearaways swung the needle back toward boisterous, hammering at its swaggering grind so hard that the bassist broke a string, which he proudly displayed at set's end.
International Pop Overthrow continues through Sunday at various clubs and theaters in L.A. and Orange counties.

© Los Angeles Times / Natalie Nichols