Under Review: Dum Dum Girls – I Will Be – Sub Pop

Dum Dum Girls – Jail La La
Dum Dum Girls – Blank Girl

It might be easy to dismiss Dum Dum Girls as late-comers to the recent “Girls In The Garage” revival including Brooklynites, the Vivian Girls and Golden Triangle and Cali based groups like Best Coast. A quick buzz-through of the 11 tracks that make up their full-length debut “I Will Be” might not inspire much in the “I-tunes” preview trained ears of many listeners, they play fast, they play slow…there’s lots of fuzzy guitars. But if you ignore this record and this band, you are missing one of the absolute best albums of the year.

As far as I can tell, from articles and interviews, Dum Dum Girls appears to have started as more of a conceptual, bedroom project for lead singer/guitarist Dee Dee. In time she found the rest of her girls, including Frankie Rose, former drummer for Vivian Girls and began to perform live in addition to recording cassettes and 7″‘s. I first heard Dum Dum Girls on Michael Stock’s excellent “Part-Time Punks” weekly radio show on KXLU. Stock is often excited, but he was extra-excited to play music from a 7″ from the group, and with good reason.

For me, what separates this band from other similar sounding acts are the melodies and harmonies at work in the exceptional instrument that is Dee Dee’s voice. In the midst of those post-punky/surf rock drums and the mountains of guitar fuzz there is a unbelievable strength and sweetness. Dee Dee’s vocals sometimes insistently cut through the noise, sometimes they float over it, other times they’re front and center and just plain lovely, as on the slower tracks “Rest Of Our Lives” and “Baby Don’t Go.” Dee Dee is the vocalist that back in the 1990s I’d always hoped Kathleen Hanna of Bikini Kill would be, committed to an aesthetic and a sound, but she never makes the mistake of sounding too girly or cutesy just for effect. She sings like a woman of extreme confidence, powerful and strong at times, but aware of the beauty that comes from a subtle change in phrasing and tone.

As good a singer as she is, she’s also a great songwriter with a real knack for hooks and harmony. “I Will Be,” and the single “Jail La La” are definite standouts, but virtually ever song has a moment of borderline pop genius from the “Someone Tell My Baby, Or Else He Won’t Go Out And Save Me” of “Jail La La” or the “My Baby’s Better Than You (Yes He Is!)” line that takes over 1/2 way through “Everybody’s Out,” to the way “It Only Takes One Night” shifts from the singing of the title to Dee Dee’s pleading “Don’t Forget Me” and especially the little mini song cycle of everlasting loving, “Rest Of Our Lives,” “Yours Alone” and “Blank Girl” with the last one actually featuring Dee Dee’s husband Brandon Welchez from the Crocodiles in a duet.

“I Will Be” is a really exceptional debut full-length. A rare underground rock record that begs to be listened to completely and repeatedly so that the full subtleties of the songs can present themselves to the listener. Everytime I hear it there’s some new element I hadn’t noticed before and that’s rare for an album that doesn’t feature a single song longer than 4 minutes and is less than 30 minutes in total length. It is also only one of the many qualities that have made this record one of my favorites of 2010.

As an extra treat, here’s a couple of videos of the group performing live at South By Southwest (via Pitchfork TV). As good as the album was, I’m really excited to see what this band will record in the next year or so…

Dum Dum Girls – Catholicked

Dum Dum Girls – Play With Fire (Rolling Stones Cover)