Dead Amps create a swirling fusion of electronic pop, post-punk and a hint of experimentalism in their music. Jonathan & Erin Payne formed Dead Amps in 2007, releasing the four-song Ascension EP in January 2008. The duo’s full-length CD, Reloader, debuts August 5. Winner, “Best Electronic Rock” at 2008 Orange County Music Awards and the 2008 Inland Empire Music Awards Future Music Demo “hot pick” June 2008 Jon Hershfield of isgoodmusic says: Reloader employs a lot of imagery-inducing sounds, with dynamics reminiscent of the early records of The Shamen or 808 State. And Payne’s smooth, almost sedated vocals remind one of The Stone Roses or Jesus and Mary Chain. So the Dead Amps’ music resonates with the kid in me too young for the 80s new wave and too old for the stuff that passes on the radio “these days.” Reloader is not the sort of album to have “hit singles” with other songs grasping at coattails, but actually functions as an album (a bit of a lost artform in the age of digital downloads). The trip offers a little something for the ambient groovers, the technoheads, and the indie rockers. But if I had to pick one, the track Storms seems to capture the sentiment of all of these. Electronic music and rock have long been debating with one another over who’s more sentimental and who’s more macho, each occasionally switching sides. Dead Amps doesn’t bother with this debate. It’s just musicians doing good music. Jon Hershfield Isgoodmusic.com