Music Reviews: Dot Dash - "Spark>Flame>Ember>Ash"

Dot Dash, who hail from Washington D.C., can best be described as an alternative band who play jangly pop blasts in the vein of The Cure and The Smiths. Now, normally I wouldn't touch a band like this with a ten foot pole. But something just caught me off guard with this band. Maybe it's the infectious style of playing? Maybe it's the rolling backbeat? Maybe it's the smooth vocal styling's? The quality of the songwriting? ALL of the above? It's hard to pinpoint when they took hold of my attention span and refused to let go.

Dot Dash are a fierce 4 piece that consist of singer/guitarist/main songwriter Terry Banks, guitarist Bill Crandall, bassist Hunter Bennett and drummer Danny Ingram. These 4 gentlemen are seasoned professionals and it shows on tracks like "The Color And The Sound" and "That Was Now, This Is Then" from their latest album Spark>Flame>Ember>Ash (The Beautiful Music). The album has an almost English feel to it and is very much 1984 in it's approach. And that's not necessarily a bad thing. I mean hey, if you have a knack for something different and tasteful, go for it!

 "Alright, Alright" has hit record written all over it with it's soft vocal's going into falsetto towards the end, it just makes you feel good. It's a short tune, but great none the less. Being a music lover I find so much good in this album. If you grew up loving 180 Minutes on MTV this is a great album to pick up. Some music just don't go out of style. And, like I said before, this particular style isn't really my cup of tea...but this band just has SOMETHING that will make you take notice and listen. The records pop sensibility and fine execution make this a must have for any 80s alternative music lover who still love to be different and wanna stand out in a crowd of hipsters and phonies. Be yourself and let it ride. That's what I get from Dot Dash. Well, that AND some really great music.

4 / 5 stars