Review
Steve Adamyk Band
Dial Tone

This is Dirtnap Records.

Not to pigeonhole anybody, but man does Steve Adamyk Band hit on that pop structure, garage chaos element that defines the label.

Dial Tone is the fourth full-length out of Canada’s Steve Adamyk Band and I reviewed Third a while back. This time around, the band continues their well-crafted, energetic and generally positive vibes in the same fashion. It’s quick and punchy, memorable and full of both nice hooks and singalong refrains. On Dial Tone there’s a strong power-pop element that drives the songs, with the chorus repeated a la Ramones, but without mining that repetition nearly as heavily—well evidenced by the fact that the song titles aren’t the same thing the band sings over and over again. “Last in Town” also brought to mind labelmates Bad Sports.

While there are definitely punkier elements across the record, as in “Crash Course in Therapy,” the majority of the songs are steady paced and focused on a clean melody. “Crash Course” has a bit of a High Tension Wires feel. As for the cleaner elements, “Cover Me Up,” is the best example, with back-up vocals and a strong bridge, and “Careless” is a tightly crafted song that really ramps up the toe-tapping, pogo fever. The guitars are clean and crisp and it’s well produced. The pace on this record is a tad slower and cleaner as a whole and, when there is extra energy, it’s got an anxious uncertainty that fuels the tempo, as in “Anne,” which also throws in a couple of handclaps. The pop presence really culminates in the build-up “Oh oh oh” chorus in “Mirror Ball.”

The 13 songs come and go in just 28 minutes, meaning that while there’s not a lot of tonal variety, it plays fast enough that sameness isn’t a detriment. Add another 10 minutes and the record might lose some effectiveness but, here, it’s a caffeinated run from start to finish. There’s no reinvention of a sound here, just solid rock ‘n’ roll as it’s meant to be: fast, danceable, and a touch of the familiar.