By Keith Walsh
From Lexington, Kentucky, the four-piece punk band Small Steps offers energetic and mostly constructive tunes on their debut record Breakthroughs/Breakdowns. The sound and messages on display prove the experience and skill of the members, both musically and lyrically and the influence of their time playing across guitar based genres. The 8 song set is on Blind Rage Records of Dayton, Ohio.

As the band’s name implies, the messages are about pain, growth and positive change. It’s melodic hardcore, with themes about strength through adversity (“One Man Wolf Pack”), the working life (“Means To An End”),  finding humor despite death’s immanence (“Death Card”) and comradery (“Rome Is Where The Heart Is.”)

“Three Button Sweater” is a catchy number about the power struggles in a romantic relationship. “Skip This Song” is from the perspective of a band of artists screaming to be heard through music industry noise.  “Mouse Trap” features some of the coolest punk guitar riffing I’ve heard in a while, in a tune about a suspicious mind “trying to find my way out.”

There’s blistering guitars pounding bass and thundering drums, and the vocals are raw and passionate. I’m told that Small Steps features ex-members of Treason and The Redemption Song. The vocals are raw and passionate.  Vocalist Jeremiah Duncan plays what looks like a Fender Tele, vocalist Jonathan Elliot has a Fender bass (possibly), guitarist John Endonino has a Les Paul type, while drummer Coty Whitt bashes away in the background.

I had the opportunity to ask a couple questions of Jeremiah Duncan.

Punk Rock Beat: What did you all bring from other bands and how did this impact the recording of the album?
Jeremiah Duncan: Everyone in Small Steps are well-seasoned musicians with a deep history in the punk and hardcore scene. Most of us have been playing or going to shows since the late 90s. Collectively, we’ve played in bands that hit just about every genre adjacent to punk – hardcore, pop punk, screamo, metal, indie rock, and more. Some of the notable bands we’ve come from are Treason (New Age Records) and The Redemption Song! (Strike First/Facedown Records).This diverse past really shaped our writing process when we were getting songs together for our album “Breakthroughs/Breakdowns”. We wanted to encompass our favorite aspects of our favorite genres, throw them in a blender and make them accessible to a wider audience. By taking all of our diverse musical influences, backgrounds and experiences from our previous bands, I feel it really helped enrich the recording process as well. Techniques we had learned playing heavier styles of music were transformed for use into more melodic transitions and catchy hooks. This contributed to a more dynamic and eclectic sound, creating a unique blend that sets Small Steps apart from a typical punk band. 

Punk Rock Beat: How did you all meet?
Jeremiah Duncan: Breakthroughs/Breakdowns is our debut album! It was released on November 2, 2023 on Blind Rage Records out of Dayton, Ohio. Me and Coty work at the same factory and started discussing about starting a band. We knew we wanted to play a style of punk that was midtempo, had catchy hooks, and that was fun for the listener as well as for us to play. We wrote two or three songs and reached out to Jon to see if he would be interested in playing second guitar. Thankfully he was and musically everyone just meshed instantly. The lead riffs and harmonies Jon was supplying matched the exact feel we were going for. We wrote one more song then headed to the studio at the very end of 2022 to record those four songs so we could share with everyone what we were writing. We knew this would also help us find a bass player that would be a match for the direction we were going as well as help us book shows. Jonathan listened to the demo, loved it, and joined us on bass. It was a perfect puzzle that came together. I had known Jon and Jonathan for a while from other bands they were in and knew what other types of music they were into so I’m glad I reached out to them and that they were into it! 

Small Steps Dot Com
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Blind Rage Records

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