Songwriter Marc Benning says 34 Satellite’s second album of guitar pop was born of heartbreak. But if Stop chronicles a domestic dissolution, perhaps it was Benning's automotive obsession that brought it on. “Charleston” is a perfect driving rocker. It has a town's name for a title and mentions the blue sky overhead, while a rhythm section comprised of a former Screaming Trees drummer and Whiskeytown bassist create a solid rhythmic chassis. On “There is Gonna Be a Problem,” the hot-rod references return. “I bought the car for you, because you’re moving way too fast,” Benning sings. “You always need your wheels when you’re trying to get away.” If Benning’s behind the wheel, though, there’s always vintage stuff in the dashboard stereo. His guitar intertwines with Mark Smith’s on “Your [sic] Coming in Clearer," which boasts a whining “Layla” coda, and the chugging power chords of “Longest Day” pull up short for a neat orchestral interlude a la the Beatles. A guy who spends as much time with his record collection as he does under the hood? Benning may be doomed to bachelorhood, but his music is the better for it.
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34 Satellite is, as one of their lyrics says, “closing in on something beautiful.” Vocalist and songwriter Marc Benning uses intricate instrumentation to translate moments of frustration, alienation, longing and humanity into songs that hit you deep but take you high. “Smoke From a Funeral” starts with a scream and decrescendos into introspection; the dizzying, distorted intro doesn’t prepare you for the quiet pain of the rest of the song, like a strong façade that hides an internal brokenness. In “Elijah St. Marie” and “Stop”, plaintive melodies escalate into sforzandos as repressed suffering explodes into expressions of powerful emotion. The lyrics are not so much poetry as colloquy. Benning says that “songwriting is like having a totally honest conversation with a stranger at a bar; you somehow feel better in the morning, more connected.” “Stop” recognizes that in this “great big world,” what we all need is “somebody to talk to” because “it’s hard when it hurts and it’s gonna hurt sometimes.” 34 Satellite shine truer and brighter than the trite bands and pop stars that falsely glitter and littler the musical universe. With a second album as well fashioned as their debut effort, there’s no stopping them now.
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It's a kick to watch the twang leak out of so many "alt-country" group's sounds as a new strain of great pop songwriting usurps hipster appeal. To be fair, 34 Satellite has never been a mandolin-pluckin', Merle-lovin' alt-country outfit, but an underlying twang on 1999's "Stars" was enough to brand them as such, at least until further examination (or another album, say, 200's transitional disc "Radar"). "Stop", the Colorado rockers' third effort, is free of hickster residue; it's a power-pop platter crammed with singer/guitarist/songwriter Marc Benning's vibrant, invigorating rockers (of which there are many: the 'Mats-y "Getting High With A Stranger", "Get Out Alive", "Caroline", plus the pumping "There Is Gonna Be A Problem" and a sprinkling of wistful ballads ("Smoke From A Funeral", "Spaceman"). Benning infuses these tunes with a blue-collar literacy and melodic finesse for accessibility. "Stop", as a title, is contradictory; 34 Satellite has just hit its stride.

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The grit of 34 Satellite's debut album carries over on Stop, but here it serves as the energizing ingredient in a welter of Wall of Sound, throwback grunge, and sharp-eared pop tunefulness. Marc Smith's guitar focuses and ultimately defines the band's sound, from the gentle arpeggiated intro and explosive follow-up on "Elijah St. Marie" to the carefully crafted lines that lace through "Charleston"; an Edge influence shows in Smith's pursuit of maximum effect through minimal gestures, but Smith isn't above throwing in the occasional screaming lick as well. Around this core the band builds their arrangements, at times with barely audible synth additions, as on "Charleston," but most dramatically in the string quartet that rises like a seductive apparition from Mark Boquist's no-nonsense backbeat on "Longest Day." Overall 34 Satellite plays with enthusiasm tempered only slightly by premonitions of maturity; Marc Benning shows a developing ability to write and deliver real-world lyrics, and the band's consistency at framing his performance suggests that this combination has real staying power. They know how to rock without blowing all their energy or overwhelming their material. Tom Petty and R.E.M. learned this same lesson early in their careers, a fact that confirms Stop as a solid second step. 

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