stepsonday

Here's some excellent indie pop
that puts melody before quirk or attitude. Think Nada Surf or The Shins, but a bit different. And all I can say is
that "1234" is one of my favorite songs of the year. - Absolute Powerpop

While there may only be two musicians in STEPSONDAY, the
duo certainly creates some moving music on their debut
record, Little Light. Brothers Jason Ford and Chad Ray
Turner play the guitar and drums, respectively, on the
album's eight classic pop songs. While the singing brother
Jason doesn't have a superbly commanding voice, his lead
is what makes STEPSONDAY's approach effective. Opener
"1234" is a mid-tempo number where Jason breathlessly
sings the line "1,2,3,4 sing it like you need more/ watch
life increase with the best melodies" above power-pop
strumming and a steady rhythm. This kind of WEEZER-meets-
DEATH CAB FOR CUTIE sound works wonderfully for the pair
throughout Little Light's twenty-seven minute running time.
Fortunately, that is plenty enough time as it leaves the
listener with a nice acquaintance rather than a bitter
annoyance. This record may have been self-released, but
the beautifully clean production job by Nick Rucker and
quality songwriting from the Turner brothers proves the
group is at the top of its game. I think this is the part
where one would normally write the band in question is
bound to get signed by a label soon, but what the heck,
bands can make it without a label these days, right?
In my mind, STEPSONDAY could and Little Light is physical
proof. Recommended if you dig simple and quality power-pop songs.

-Corey Schmidt - Pastepunk

Understated and slightly sludgy, Stepsonday’s two members venture into
the land of rock music that smacks of the best college rock from the 90s.
The record has a hint of pop that’s completely compelling, but the guitars
are perfectly produced for those of us who appreciate a bit of messiness
to our riffs. That’s not to say that the album is a mess, but it has that
perfect disheveled quality of broken up distortion (a la Pavement and Nada Surf)
bouncing under sweet,unforced vocals. The melodies are the kinds of melodies
that you don’t realize are irresistible until you walk away from the album
and find yourself humming them in the checkout at the local grocery. And then
there’s the drummer, straying at well-placed intervals from the standard 4/4
kick, snare, kick, snare, and into perfectly rhythmic territories that keep
the songs bubbling through their keenly poppy choruses. It’s a really pleasant,
and slightly nostalgic, rock record." - Pamela @ CD BABY - CDBaby - Editor's Pick