"The Oohs" may be the perfect name for a power pop band.

And its members may have the perfect attitude for musicians.

The Springfield-based band celebrates the release of its second full-length album, "Saturday Morning Dream," with a pair of release parties in Springfield. One is tonight at the Trading Post Saloon, and another is scheduled for Dec. 13 at Break Time.

That "Saturday Morning Dream" is one of the best albums you'll hear anywhere this year isn't a surprise. The Oohs have been building a reputation in power pop (think Raspberries, Beatles, Badfinger), and they've shown the growth you'd expect with two years between releases.

From the start of the disc -- which includes an announcement starting a TV station's broadcast day and Arnold Horshack from "Welcome Back Kotter" introducing the band (remember his catch phrase, and think about it for a second) -- to the conclusion, it's evident these guys are having fun.

But having fun with music isn't the same as delivering quality music. And The Oohs deliver.

The album starts with a pair of songs that would fit easily onto an early Queen album. The second, the title cut, mixes a batch of influences. Included are Hudson Brothers-style vocals, what's credited as " 'Pet Sounds percussion' " (after the Beach Boys album -- if you've heard it, when you hear the percussion work at the end, it'll be impossible to not grin), and what might as well be a guitar solo by Queen's Brian May.

One trait held by the best bands from the 1960s and 1970s was that they featured more than one vocalist. It's a delight we don't often miss now, even  in an age of groups featuring one lead singer.

Well, we don't miss it until we hear otherwise. The Oohs feature four lead singers. The fewest leads taken by any member on the 13-cut album is three.

The band also refuses to fall back on the easy out of 14 similar songs. There are mixes of tempo, from ballads like "Paper" to the upbeat, power pop-perfect "That's No Lie" to album-closer "Quality Time," which is like Steely Dan with poppier vocals.

Equally engaging is the frank and comic conversation from keyboard player Brian Curtis and guitar player Frank Huston, the members of the band who lived through those 1970s influences. Curtis bluntly admits the band plays the music for the love of it -- "We realize we're not going to be pop stars now," he says, matter-of-factly -- but there's still a fierce pride in what they're doing.

When talk turns to how Curtis' keyboard work is less a gathering of showpieces and more an organic outgrowth of the song, Huston refers to the keyboard as "a  power drill," and he means it as a compliment.

The best thing about the band is its sense of humor. You can find that in some of the shadings of its songs. If you've heard The Beatles, Queen or Electric Light Orchestra, you're familiar with the music to which they're paying tribute -- and perhaps taking to another level.

"It's an homage to Queen and the people who have ripped them off," Curtis says of one song.

"I was doing some Harrison-Clapton-type slide," Huston says of another song, "and our bass player went out and bought a glass slide for me. Which I promptly broke. I recorded the solo, and broke the slide. I'll probably never be able to play it again."

If the music gig doesn't work out, maybe they can become a comedy team.

- Tim Cain, H&R Entertainment Editor

"Ear Candy by The Oohs just hit this week, and I gotta tell ya--it"s a BIG WINNER! If you heard The Oohs' ELO-meets-QUEEN track on the compilation disc Burnt Marshmallows & Teeny Bikinis, you are already acquainted with their array cascading harmonies, crunchy backing, and sublime melodicism. Ear Candy, their new debut disc, offers more of the same In Spades! 13 tracks of hooky power pop with a breadth of songwriting skill that recalls Jellyfish, with unexpected musical changes that allow you to savor the breathtaking 4-part harmonies. This is CLEVER music that's still catchy as hell!"

- Rich Horton, Optional Art