Gentleman Jesse is in the house.

Hey, kids! You like power pop at its finest? Dig on The Raspberries, Nick Lowe, Jonathan Richman, Big Star and other great melodic rock like that? Well, boy howdy, do we have a record recommendation for you. It's been a long time coming, following a handful of seven inches which we also stock, but Gentleman Jesse finally unleashed his proper full-length debut on the world. It's our favorite local jam in a long time, and we highly advise you to check it out.

But don't take our word for it. Jesse Smith has been written up kindly in Creative Loafing, Dry Ink (here again, too), the new Stomp and Stammer, and a number of other publications. He's been in numerous bands over the years, and currently plays bass for some other local faves of ours, Carbonas, but this project is all his, as he writes the songs, sings them and plays guitar. Oh, and did we mention he works at Brick Store? Bonus points right there.

But more than our words can explain, his music really does the talking. Check out his MySpace page, have a listen to "I Don't Wanna Know" (hint: it's the song on top with over 20,000 plays), and then just try to tell us you didn't love it. Although that particular track isn't on the new album, a baker's dozen other ones are, and they're in precisely the same vein.

Now, at the moment, it's only available on vinyl from our friends at local imprint Douchemaster Records. But it sounds fantastic in that format, so if you have a record player, do take advantage. We're told we'll have CDs in soon, so be sure to ask if you'd prefer a plastic disc. Oh, and if you'd like to hear it, we'll play it for you. It would be a real shame if you missed out on what is one of our favorite records of 2008.