Pela are a very melodic band from Brooklyn whose lead singer, Billy McCarthy, kind of has a Steve Perry thing going on. A good thing, since Steve Perry rules. This band on Brassland seems to have all the makings for a sizeable following -- catchy power hooks, a singer who can actually sing, and well-written words of desperation.

Pela has been compared to U2 and Modest Mouse (U2's distortion-free guitars I can see... but I have no idea where the Modest Mouse thing comes in). I think they sound more like Clap Your Hands Say Yeah and Crystal Skulls meets James (remember that band?). They've recently played shows with Sleater-Kinney, The Decemberists, The National, Rainer Maria and Earlimart and are good enough to headline themselves very, very soon.

Pela plays East River Bar this Sunday, May 29th (get show details).