What do you get when you mix a 13-year veteran of the Wareham Police Department, an IT guy, a retail stock person, and a milk salesman?

With their musical alter egos, they make up Sound Tower, lovingly referred to by George Dionne -- the police officer and lead singer -- as "Wareham's hottest cover band."

Dionne, a 1994 graduate of Wareham High School, has been a fixture in the band since it formed two to three years ago. A few of the band's members have changed, but in it's current form, Sound Tower has taken Wareham and the surrounding area by storm over the past year.

Playing everyone's "favorite radio and party hits from back-in-the-day to yesterday," as Dionne puts it, the guys have gone from playing one or two gigs per month to playing every week, sometimes twice weekly.

Jack Crowley is the guitar player (IT guy), Tim Bossie plays the bass (retail stock person), and Greg Humberd is the drummer (and milk salesman). All have been playing music in the Cape Cod area for decades.

The band aims to make each show an experience for the audience.

"I want to be different than all the other bands," said Dionne, who books shows and serves as the band's unofficial spokesman. "It's all about the fun. We're having a blast, and if we're having fun, the crowd will have fun."

Crowd interaction is key, he says.

For example, after the first chorus of Rick Springfield's "Jessie's Girl," the silent pause will continue until the crowd screams loud enough.

But it doesn't end there. The crowd is in charge of singing the chorus to several of the band's songs, including The J. Giels Band's "Love Stinks," "Rock and Roll All Nite" by Kiss, Green Day's "When I Come Around," and Blur's "Song 2."

And, if you're feeling brave, you can join the band on stage during the third set. Crowley's and Bossie's mics are open to anyone during that time. (Hankering to get up there and show off your skills? During a two-set or four-set night, the sing-along is during the last 45 minutes of the show.)

Not a singer? No problem. Dionne awards anyone who dances with colorful Sound Tower "dance beads."

Dionne credits the band's success with building its fan base in Wareham, which he avoided doing during the band's early stages.

"I always said I didn't want to play Wareham because I didn't want to mix work and play," Dionne said.

But he realized that he had to go where he knew people. In town, Sound Tower is currently a regular act at Piper Beau's.

"Piper Beau's has really gotten behind us," Dionne said.

At most gigs at the Main Street restaurant, Sound Tower brings in around 75 people, sometimes maxing out capacity at 100 people.

Dionne credits The Fan Club and now-shuttered Shooters with also getting the band in front of local people.

"I kicked myself in the pants by not coming to Wareham sooner," he said.

The police officer thing hasn't been an issue, Dionne said. He checked with the state Ethics Commission to see if there would be any problem with him performing in Wareham bars. He got the green light. His coworkers have been supportive, and oddly enough, so have some of the people he's had run-ins with while working as a police officer, he said.

"I've had plenty of people come up to me and say, 'You wrote me a ticket,'" Dionne said with a laugh. But, he added, they don't hold grudges.

Sound Tower performed at the town's first National Night Out celebration in July, 2010. The event focuses on crime prevention by encouraging communities and local police departments to work together as partners.

National Night Out "was the first time I publicly revealed that I was a police officer in a band," Dionne said. "At least it shows that police aren't programmed robots."

There is now a core group of at least ten people who travel to nearly every Sound Tower show, from Wareham to Plymouth to New Bedford and Norwell. Those people are called the Sound Tower Faithful.

"People follow us to every gig and we play the same songs," said Dionne, expressing his gratitude. "They're a huge part of our success. Our success is contingent on their existence and we want them to be a part of it."

Dionne and the band members are excited for 2012. Sound Tower already has more than three-dozen gigs booked, and, though Dionne vows the band will be sticking to playing covers, an original song co-written by him and Crowley is on the horizon.

"Wareham's has their championship basketball team," Dionne said. "I want to be their championship rock band!"

Sound Tower will be playing at The Tinker's Son in Norwell at 9 p.m. on Dec. 30. The band is back in Wareham on Dec. 31 for a New Year's Eve bash at Piper Beau's beginning at 9:30 p.m.

For more information about Sound Tower, check out Dionne's blog at WarehamVillageSoup.com, visit www.soundtowerrocks.com, or search for "Sound Tower" on Facebook.