 While primarily inspired by the music of the Beatles and other British Invasion bands , acknowledging too the jangle pop and power pop of the period , Big Star also incorporated dark , nihilistic themes to produce a striking blend of musical and lyrical styles . The body of work resulting from the first era was a precursor of the alternative rock of the 1980s and 1990s , at the same time yielding material today considered an outstanding example of power pop . The stylistic range is evident from modern day critiques . Bogdanov et al . , commenting on # 1 Record in their All Music Guide to Rock , perceive in " The Ballad of El Goodo " a " luminous , melancholy ballad " , whereas John Borack 's Ultimate Power Pop Guide singles out Radio City 's " September Gurls " as a " glorious , glittering jewel " of power pop . Borack notes too that Third / Sister Lovers is " slower , darker and a good deal weirder " than the first two albums , identifying " Holocaust " as " Alex Chilton at his haunting best " , yet finds " Thank You Friends " exemplifying " left @-@ field gems " also present in which " the hooks are every bit as undeniable " as before . Jovanovic writes that when recording what Peter Buckley in his Rough Guide to Rock terms the " snarling guitar rock " of the first album 's " Don 't Lie To Me " , the band , deeming conventional instruments inadequate for the task , wheeled two Norton Commando motorcycles into the studio and gunned the engines to intensify the song 's bridge . Bogdanov et al. reserve " snarl " for a Radio City song , " Mod Lang " ; here Buckley writes that " the power of the performance and the erratic mix gave a sense of chaos which only added to the thrill " . 
