The Power of Pop   MANNIX Pretty Strange by Kevin Mathews, Singapore (257KMAN) Americana, Shafter & thirteen more. May 1999   With their 1997 album Collisionville, New York quartet Oral Groove melded power pop and hard rock sensibilities succinctly. Joe Mannix, lead vocalist of that now sadly disbanded group has settled for a Neil Young-ish folk rock sound for his debut platter. And it is an undisputed winner. With heartfelt numbers like Don't Tell A Soul (about rape victims/refugees) & How Far You Fell (about Napoleon), Pretty Strange is a serious and mature work that deserves closer scrutiny.