Winter Garden Light

With their 2011 debut Spark>Flame>Ember>Ash, Washington D.C. outfit Dot Dash compacted the youthful energy of mid-'90s punk and the carefree style of '60s mod groups into a bright synthesis of jangly, uptempo pop. With their follow-up album Winter Garden Light, they present a slightly more refined take on their sound without forfeiting any of their energy. The group's heavy pedigree boasts long-time contributors to the D.C. scene, with members having done time in groups ranging from teenage hardcore punks Youth Brigade to indie darlings Glo-Worm. The seasoned players are in top form on the brief album's ten songs. Where the recording process for their debut was a rushed affair, taking place over three breakneck afternoon sessions, Winter Garden Light feels a little more considered. The production is more developed but never feels overwrought, while the songs themselves seem to have a new sense of confidence replacing the fresh-faced wonderment of the debut. Lead vocalist/guitarist Terry Banks' voice sounds more refined on the Jets to Brazil-esque existential poetics of "Lateral/Vertical," and taps into shouty punk melodicism on upbeat tracks like "Countdown" and "The Past Is Another Country." Dot Dash lean a lot less on the mod-inspired sounds that saturated their first album, with a decided step closer to the post-punk sound that sprang from D.C. bands in the mid-'90s following the first waves of hardcore. The melancholic long walk down an empty street of "Live to Tell" wanders through desolate imagery and haunting chord progressions that recall the moodiness of unsung groups like Hoover or Sense Field. Album-closer "The Devil's Road" hints at further shifts from the band in the future, riffing on relaxed, melodic pop with all the fuzzy guitar tones and sauntering emotion of early Yo La Tengo. Dot Dash's commitment to tuneful pop reigns throughout Winter Garden Light, and more than the amalgam of influences that could be pointed out, what we hear louder than anything is the band coming into their own, sonically. Slightly less scrappy, a little more comfortable, and more focused than before, Winter Garden Light suggests that Dot Dash's work will continue to grow more intricate and exciting as they march on.