At the bottom of the bill of the massive Hold Steady New Year's Eve concert at The Riverside Theater is a tiny band you probably haven't heard of but whose giant sound could very well steal the show.
With nowhere to play and no one to play to in their hometown of Janesville, the power pop trio So So Radio have essentially adopted Milwaukee as their home base. Having played roughly a dozen shows here since their 2009 inception where they also recorded and mastered their excellent debut full length "Dust Covers", So So Radio bares the power and polish of a band whose not about to waste time and gas by not wowing their Brew City crowds.
"Milwaukee has kind of been our home away from home. There's just a really good reception there always," said singer and guitarist Ryan Dwheat.
The new record blends the straight forward power pop sounds of Big Star and Replacements with indie rock acts like Spoon and the Walkmen. They're at their best on big wide open tunes like "Streets In Perfect Patterns", "Moenjodaro", and "Moving Pictures" which explode in bursts of semi-polished timeless midwestern rock.
"Even though we recorded a lot of it live in the studio there is just something to playing in front of people," said Dwheat about his excitement about he Dec. 31 show, which is sure to be the band's biggest to date.
Not surprisingly, Dwheat said the band gets some funny looks when they tell people they are from Janesville. In fact, while Dwheat lives in Janesville, bass player Nick Elandime is attending school in Madison, and drummer Sam Anella lives and works in Fort Atkinson.
"We are either really ambiguous about it when we play, or we lie flat out. We'll tell them we are from Massachusetts or something," said Dwheat, "We don't know anybody. We aren't involved in anybody's scene, so we are outsiders anyways. We might as well be from another planet."
Dwheat and Anella started writing music together in 2009, almost 20 years after playing together in bands in high school. Being spread out geographically makes practicing and playing shows a bit of a production. By necessity, Dwheat said the band approaches playing with a professionalism that is reflected in their ambitious sound.
"It would be nice to be more like a unit in some ways, like a gang. We are very business like now. We are all close friends, but Nick is a full time student, I have a full time career, Sam runs his own business...So when we get together it's like 'Let's get down to business'," said Dwheat, "We have a real vision and a focus for the band."
The band hopes to remaster and release "Dust Covers" on vinyl later in the year with additional tracks. In the meantime it's available on CD or as a download. Dwheat said they plan to tour the midwest in the spring to promote the album.
In the meantime Dwheat said he's excited to play with one of Milwaukee's finest acts Jaill and Minneapolis by way of Brooklyn bar rockers The Hold Steady.
"This is totally the biggest deal we have ever done," said Dwheat. "We're excited."
