Studiotone
Digital Radio
(ST Records)

Local favorites Studiotone know what tones to hit on their latest, “Digital Radio.”

“Alien” is blanketed with a strong guitar presence and a solid rhythm section to guide it along, while “Instant Relativity” has a tricky drum line and shows offBrent Nuffer’s amazing voice box.

“A Crush” is a guitar-effects based track with strong influences fromSemisonic and even some vocals that lead headway toSteven Malkmus (formerly of Pavement), especially when he reaches some of his higher notes. The song also features some nice harmonization.

The bass work throughout is hidden beneath layers of laid-back rock ‘n’ roll which unfortunately is pretty common in modern rock these days, but the word patterns are what distinguish this band from the status quo.

“She’s on the Machine” and “Studio 54” both display a harder edge to the band and the instrumentalization on “Hello (How Are You?)” could easily be mistaken for a B-side by The Cars, complete with a sticky-sweet chorus.

The title track messes around with some samples and slaps hands with Bono from U2 while cordially inviting the listener to sing along and have a good time.

This album is a solid portrait of one band’s core, but unfortunately they don’t show much diversity on the record as a whole.

The solos are perfectly placed and the fills save the day when trouble calls, but the record needs something else to compliment the band’s already rockin’ sound - a great effort by a multi-talented band, just nothing that really stands out in a crowd.