30 Amp Fuse was a

pop-punk Pop punk (or punk pop) is a rock music genre that combines elements of punk rock with power pop or pop. It is defined for its emphasis on classic pop songcraft, as well as adolescent and anti-suburbia themes, and is distinguished from other pu ...

band from

Knoxville, Tennessee Knoxville is a city in and the county seat of Knox County, Tennessee, Knox County in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of the 2020 United States census, Knoxville's population was 190,740, making it the largest city in the East Tennessee Grand Di ...

active in the 1990s and 2000s made up of Mike Smithers, Rodney Cash, Mike Knott, and formerly Don Coffey Jr. and John Davis. Smithers attended

Farragut High School Farragut High School, located at 11237 Kingston Pike, serves as a high school in Farragut, a suburb of Knoxville, Tennessee. Knox County Schools, the unified Knox County, Tennessee school district, operates the school. The school serves the ma ...

in nearby

Farragut, Tennessee Farragut is a suburban town located in Knox and Loudon counties in the State of Tennessee, United States. The town's population was 23,506 at the 2020 census. It is included in the Knoxville Metropolitan Area. The town is named in honor of Hispa ...

and was in various bands in Knoxville, playing with Coffey and Davis before forming 30 Amp Fuse. Their first album, 1995's ''Wind-Up'', was on

Darla Records Darla Records is an independent record label founded by James Agren in October 1993 while he was in New York. Darla's first release was a 7-inch by Grifters, an indie rock/lo-fi band from Memphis. Background The music of the artists on the ...

with a lineup of Smithers, Davis and Coffey, Jr.; the latter two were also members of Knoxville band

Superdrag Superdrag is an American alternative rock band from Knoxville, Tennessee, United States. They are best known for their 1996 single, " Sucked Out", off their album ''Regretfully Yours'', for which a video was played on MTV. The original lineup r ...

who found success in the 1990s. When Superdrag achieved success and signed to

Elektra Records Elektra Records (or Elektra Entertainment) is an American record label owned by Warner Music Group, founded in 1950 by Jac Holzman and Paul Rickolt. It played an important role in the development of contemporary folk and rock music between the 1 ...

, Coffey and Davis left 30 Amp Fuse and were replaced by Mike Knott and Rodney Cash.Back to the 'Speedway': 30 Amp Fuse reunites for record's 20th anniversary
, ''

The Daily Times (Blount County, Tennessee) ''The Daily Times'' is a newspaper based in Maryville, Tennessee, United States, which was founded in 1883. It serves the communities of Blount County, which lies in the foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains The Great Smoky Mountains (, ''Eq ...

'' They also released a single, "Punk Rock Virtuoso" in 1996 on Ché Trading. Their 1997 album ''Saturday Night at the Atomic Speedway'' on

Dedicated Records Dedicated was a British independent record label that released music between 1990 and 1998 by Spiritualized, Spacemen 3, Global Communication, Beth Orton (in the U.S.), Chapterhouse, Cranes and others. It was based in London and founded by D ...

was recorded in

Fort Collins A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere'' ...

Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of t ...

by Bill Stevenson and

Stephen Egerton Stephen Egerton may refer to: * Stephen Egerton (priest) (1555?–1621?), English clergyman * Stephen Egerton (diplomat) (1932–2006), British Ambassador to Iraq, Saudi Arabia and Italy *Stephen Egerton (guitarist) Stephen Patrick O'Reilly (bor ...

of punk band

Descendents The Descendents are an American punk rock band formed in 1977 in Manhattan Beach, California, by guitarist Frank Navetta, bassist Tony Lombardo and drummer Bill Stevenson. In 1979, they enlisted Stevenson's school friend Milo Aukerman as a s ...

and received positive reviews from ''

The A.V. Club ''The A.V. Club'' is an American online newspaper and entertainment website featuring reviews, interviews, and other articles that examine films, music, television, books, games, and other elements of pop-culture media. ''The A.V. Club'' was cre ...

'' and the

MetroPulse ''Metro Pulse'' was a weekly newspaper in Knoxville, Tennessee. It was founded in 1991 by Ashley Capps, Rand Pearson, Ian Blackburn, and Margaret Weston, and was a member of the Association of Alternative Newsweeklies. In 2007, ''Metro Pulse'' w ...

.Pop-Punk Fusion
, ''

'', July 5, 1996 The band split up in the late 1990s but played reunion shows for the 15th anniversary of ''Wind-Up'' in 2010 and the 20th anniversary of ''Saturday Night at the Atomic Speedway'' in 2017.

References

{{Reflist Alternative rock groups from Tennessee Musical groups from Knoxville, Tennessee American pop rock music groups Dedicated Records artists Darla Records artists