ONCE AGAIN, POP EXPLODES : NEW RADIO FORMATS EMBRACE WELL-CRAFTED, INTELLIGENT SONGS IN MIDST OF GRUNGE BACKLASH.

Byline: Fred Shuster Daily News Music Writer

Pop is back.

Whether you call it alternative punk, pop-rock, active rock, modern rock or simply Top 40, what was once considered renegade is now rampant on at least five radio formats and high in the charts.

Out of the scorched-earth policy of punk and grunge has come a new crop of songwriters and musicians who believe hits don't have to be novelty songs, disco fodder or vapid fluff. Some even trace their roots to the bright, uplifting tunes of the Beatles, the Who and the Kinks.

Today's upbeat new music encompasses the lively all-ages fun of the Presidents of the United States of America, the energetic guttersnipe wit of Oasis, and the seductive, crafted concoctions of the ironically named Garbage.

Look at this week's Top 40: ``Ironic,'' Alanis Morissette; ``Missing,'' Everything But the Girl; ``Follow You Down/Til I Hear It From You,'' Gin Blossoms; ``1979,'' Smashing Pumpkins; ``One of Us,'' Joan Osborne; ``Wonderwall,'' Oasis; ``Name,'' Goo Goo Dolls; ``Closer to Free'' (from ``Party of Five''), BoDeans; ``Time,'' Hootie & the Blowfish; ``Peaches,'' Presidents of the United States of America; and ``Breakfast at Tiffany's,'' Deep Blue Something.

Welcome to the new mainstream: pop with a twist. Despair and alienation might still be cool, but the grunge guitar firestorm is as moldy as Flock of Seagulls' winged hairstyle.

``I think people have realized a hit can sound good and still have a lot of energy,'' said Butch Vig, producer of Nirvana's breakthrough ``Nevermind'' album and a member of Garbage. ``The aim is to write good, catchy, concise songs.''

What gives? How did the three-minute pop song work its way back into our lives and onto our car radios?

``It's a backlash against urban r&b and grunge,'' reckons Angela Perelli, music director at the newly revamped KYSR-FM (98.7) - Star 98. ``The new pop is positive and upbeat. Look at how massive Hootie is. They're the kings of the simple riff and down-home feeling.''

Peter Stuart of Dog's Eye View, currently climbing the charts with the ultra-catchy single ``Everything Falls Apart,'' said the switch back to the simple pleasures of a chorus hook, a strong bridge and shimmering guitar chords was predictable.

``With all the alienation and misery in music by, say, Nine Inch Nails, the only way to counteract that is to embrace something positive and life-affirming,'' he said. ``To me, music's always been about feeling less alone in the world.''

Fans of the new pop aren't alone. When concert dates for Oasis, Everclear, Osborne, Morissette and Bush were announced in the last few weeks, the venues sold out within minutes. And Hootie's debut album, at 12 million-plus copies sold, is fast on its way to becoming the largest-selling debut album in history.

``I see it as an acceptance of a kind of pop music that's accessible to everybody,'' said Brian Cohen, vice president of marketing for Elektra Records. ``It's not so much about trends and fashion statements anymore as it is about the passion of the song and having a good time.''

The new pop acts share elements such as melody, a blend of acoustic and electric guitars, vocal harmonies, sparse production and a dislike for improvised solos. The song comes first.

Gin Blossoms singer-guitarist Jesse Valenzuela only hints at the formula for his ultra radio-friendly music: ``A little crunch and a little jangle.''

The back-to-pop movement isn't new, of course. Even in the midst of England's influential punk explosion of the late '70s, XTC made clever Beatle-esque singles with a clean, modernistic bent. In the United States, Talking Heads took a minimalist approach to pop, but was branded art-rock and spent years touring before radio warmed to their sound.

Good singles always existed in other genres before the current trend.

``I've always believed in the power of songs, even in the most fashion-driven pop environment,'' Cohen said. ``There were always great songs, if not in the rock world then in r&b or country.''

Insiders say the key to the success of many '90s bands is the fast-growing alternative-rock radio industry, which has fragmented into such subformats as pop-rock, active rock, adult album alternative and Americana. There are now more than 150 alt-rock stations across the country; five years ago there were 13 of them.

Burbank-based ``hot'' adult contemporary Star 98, for example, recently broadened its playlist to include Oasis, Gin Blossoms and Morissette, among others. A year ago, you could count on hearing Phil Collins, Michael Bolton and other soft-rock balladeers on the station.

``At first, we thought the shift was happening just in Los Angeles, but what we noticed is many of these new songs are national breakouts, where last year it was Coolio, Salt-N-Pepa and TLC,'' Perelli said. ``The whole country is leaning toward these clever, intelligent rock songs. I'm sure it'll shift back again, but right now we're riding the wave and enjoying it. Hopefully, the follow-up albums from these bands will be just as good.''

Peter Tork of the Monkees, which had 11 Top 40 hits in the '60s, is optimistic about some of the new bands' staying power.

``I hear the music I grew up with in these groups,'' Tork said. ``I hear crafted songs with clever ideas and thought behind them. It's not about raging guitars and screaming anymore. And I hear young folks singing and saying something. The new bands sound fine to me. As a style of music, this seems accessible.''

Coming up with a pop tune isn't as easy as it seems, said Christina (Tina) Schlieske, leader of Tina & the B-Side Movement, a smart Minneapolis-based pop quartet whose major-label debut is due this month.

``I've always admired anyone who can make a simple pop song interesting,'' Schlieske said. ``It's a lot more difficult than it looks. It's good to see pop songs coming back and getting the respect they deserve.''

Not everyone is thrilled with the new developments in pop. A backlash to the backlash may be coming.

``Some people are cynical about this kind of music precisely because it is so accessible,'' Elektra's Cohen said. ``But there have always been people who grumble about anything as soon as it becomes popular.''

Cowboy Junkies guitarist Michael Timmins takes a long-range view.

``It's cyclical,'' he said. ``Right now, pop is popular again. But something will come up from the streets, just as punk did, just as these pop-rock bands did, and tear it down and replace it with something else.

``That's just the way it's always worked.''

CAPTION(S):

Drawing, 2 Photos

Drawing: (Cover--Color) ROCK GOES POP

As grunge fades away, songwriters look to upbeat '60s tunes for inspiration

Jon Gerung/Daily News

Photo: (1) ``The aim is to write good, catchy, concise songs,'' says Butch Vig, right, with his band, Garbage.

(2) ``Wonderwall'' by Oasis is one of the new pop anthems to make a splash on Top 40 radio.