30 Amp Fuse: Saturday Night At The Atomic Speedway

Tons of bands play souped-up power-pop, but finding one that does it really well isn't easy. But listen to Saturday Night At The Atomic Speedway, the 16-song debut CD by Knoxville's 30 Amp Fuse, and it doesn't take more than a minute or two to recognize the spark: Each track is brisk and compact, with mile-wide hooks and lovesick vocals that recall a less bitter cross-pollination of Husker Du, The Wedding Present, and Ned's Atomic Dustbin. Sound like a record worth hearing It sure is: The guys in 30 Amp Fuse don't come close to reinventing the wheel on Saturday Night, but that's not what they're trying to do anyway. Instead, they stick to deceptively simple, supercharged pop-rock music, and what they wind up with sounds fresher than just about anything.