Oregon is awash in musical talent. It is literally on fire. How many fantastic bands are going to come out of the Pacific Northwest? Is it the incessant rain? The dark grey isolation? The fact that it's more or less Canada? Menomena, The Decemberists, The Thermals, and Sleater-Kinney. The Shins moved there for gods sakes, and the list goes on! It's as if some great billowing energy emanates from the wild mountains, gigantic trees, and storm-whipped ocean and somehow channels itself right into mind of anyone in the region with half a brain that thinks about picking up an instrument.

The Blow consists of beat-master Jona Bechtolt and beautiful voice Khaela Maricich. Their latest album, Paper Television, is all heartfelt, home-brewed pop, packed with intriguing beats and clever lyrical content about love, heartbreak, and sex. They have been, according to their myspace page, working tirelessly to create "an essential pop music formula" and damn if they haven't gotten pretty close.

Album opener "Pile of Gold" starts the show with a frantic beat Missy would kill Beyonce for. On the doo-wop-ish "Parenthesis," Khaela puts forward the most lovely, brash statements on the album, like "When you're holding me / We make a pair of parenthesis."

"Fists Up" is the highlight of the album. It seriously must be one of the most appealing pop tunes released all year. The last minute and a half is a climax of heartache and synthy waves and layers of Kheala's wonderful voice that, even in the album's longest song, is just simply not long enough.

"My love is a fortress / My love is the Louvre / But it can't ever thrive / If I'm forced to keep proving (it)." Who would go and break a heart like that?

[mp3 - Fists Up]