Dirtbombs

Dirtbombs

Ooey Gooey Chewy Ka-blooey!

In The Red

For about a decade now, Dirtbombs frontman Mick Collins has threatened that the band’s next release would be their “bubblegum album.” After a couple of records of mostly originals, a compilation of singles and an album of Detroit techno covers, one might have suspected that the concept either fell by the wayside or was a farce to begin with. Well, at long last, here is Ooey Gooey Chewy Ka-Blooey. It’s understandable to assume that a bubblegum record by The Dirtbombs would be cover versions by groups like the 1910 Fruitgum Company, The Ohio Express and The Archies. After all, the band already has two albums of cover songs under their belt which salute specific genres. That is not the case in this instance. Mick Collins wrote ten new tracks which pay homage to the sound and style originally popularized in the late ’60s / early ’70s by producers / exploiters like Kasenetz-Katz and Don Kirschner. While the usual Dirtbombs’ double-drums, fuzzy guitars and soulful swagger are present, Ooey Gooey is sugary, sunshiny pop rock that recalls Josie & the Pussycats, the Banana Splits and Lancelot Link & the Evolution Revolution, to name but three. It’s all sing-along choruses, childlike themes and a contrived innocence—not the kind of record one would’ve predicted from a guy who once fronted The Gories. The original bubblegum music was a cash-in produced on an assembly-line using studio musicians and hired songwriters, who dashed out the stuff as quickly as possible and most likely forgot about...

Dirtbombs

Consistency Is The Enemy

Cass

***Consistency Is The Enemy functions as the vinyl component of the Dirtbombs’ 2006 singles collection If You Don’t Already Have a Look. While that two disc, CD-only collection focused on the plethora of out-of-print vinyl singles the band had released up until that point, it also contained new songs and previously unreleased archival recordings. THOSE songs seemed to get lost in the shuffle and consequently, have never been released on vinyl until now. Highlights include tracks like “Here Comes That Sound Again” and “Candyass,” both consistent live favorites, or the quixotic cover of Yoko Ono’s “Kiss Kiss Kiss” not to mention the entirety of the Chariots of the Gods EP from 1999.

Dirtbombs

Party Store

In The Red

VINYL INCLUDES FREE DOWNLOAD COUPON!!! Nearly ten years after their critically-acclaimed album Ultraglide in Black helped kick-start a renewed interest in all things Detroit and rock ’n’ roll, The Dirtbombs release the de facto companion piece entitled Party Store. Where Ultraglide was a covers collection of ’60s and ’70s soul gems centered on the ideas of African-American identity and politics of the era that made an impression on a young, pre-musical Mick Collins as he listened to them on 45s in the family basement, Party Store is an assortment of live-band interpretations of classic Detroit techno music of the ’80s and early ’90s—songs Collins digested as they were originally released, when he was already making waves with garage-punk legends The Gories. The subject matter runs the gamut from materialistic future-disco braggadocio (“Sharevari,” originally by A Number of Names) to cold, post-industrial isolation (“Alleys of Your Mind,” originally by Cybotron) through the instrumental optimism of a worldwide house classic (“Strings of Life,” originally by Derrick May). All these themes encapsulate the climate of Detroit both now and at the time of their initial release. Let it be said clearly: this record addresses both the past and the future of Detroit. The players’ recreation of the sequenced, digital rhythms and melodies stems from an Oblique Strategies card pulled during the recordings: “Humanize something that is without error.” They do so with a crisp, krautrock-like precision on originals that all featured drum machines, sequencers and synthesizers. The two clear standout tracks are “Good...

Dirtbombs

Race To The Bottom

Cass Records

***“The record no one wants to hear! We took a poll of the Dirtbombs fan base on their likes and dislikes and cooked up the exact opposite of what they're looking for. Enjoy 23 excruciating minutes of aimless, meandering synthesizer noodling. You thought the six minutes of this song on We Have You Surrounded was painful? This 12-inch makes ear-bleeding seem like a blessing in comparison.”—Dirtbombs. Limited to 500 copies.

Dirtbombs

Play Sparks

In The Red

Talent is an asset and Detroit's Dirtbombs surely have it. To accompany their new album, We Have You Surrounded, is this brand new 7-inch single on which the band pays homage to label-mates (and one of their favorite bands) Sparks. Side A is "Sherlock Holmes" (a cut also featured on the new album) which was originally released on Sparks' Angst In My Pants. Side B, available exclusively on this single, is "Nothing To Do," a song originally released on the 1975 Big Beat LP.   This single comes in a handsome color picture sleeve, which also pays tribute to Sparks' record covers.

Dirtbombs

We Have You Surrounded

In The Red

The Dirtbombs' fourth full-length is jam-packed with more of their soulful, Detroit-style, fuzztone-fueled garage-punk-pop-rock 'n' roll that has made them a popular favorite with club-goers around the globe. Mick Collins and his merry band of miscreants' twelve slices of sonic thud kick the party into high gear and show off a vast array of unexpected influences. In fact, the opening track has been acknowledged by Collins as his tribute to Mark E. Smith and The Fall.  The Dirtbombs are as known for their tasteful selection of cover tunes as much their stunning originals, and this record carries on the tradition with fantastic takes on songs by comic artist Alan Moore, Portland, Oregon stalwarts Dead Moon, and labelmates Sparks. That said, the originals here are what you really want to write home about. From the Stooge-oid "Ever Lovin' Man" to the finger-poppin' "Indivisible" to the extendo free-form psych jam of "Race To The Bottom" to the Euro-pop of "La Fin Du Monde," The Dirtbombs prove once again they are a rock 'n' roll force to be reckoned with who will have no problem outliving the NME-sponsored hype of their hometown way after ten more trends and haircuts have been built up and torn down.

Dirtbombs

If You Don’t Already Have A Look

In The Red

*** In the nearly ten years The Dirtbombs have existed, a lot of bass players have come and gone, a lot of touring has been logged, and a lot of singles released. Because anybody who gets in touch with Mick Collins and can cough up a small fee for studio time can release a Dirtbombs single, some of the Dirtbombs’ very best tracks have seen the light of day only on seven inches pressed in small quantities (often released in foreign countries) that go out of print almost immediately. Hell, some singles were given to labels that never actually released the damn things. This 52-song double-CD collects Dirtbombs singles sides and comp tracks - including eight brand new songs and several previously unreleased older recordings, all re-mastered. A handsome 24-page booklet of photos and notes by the band augments this massive package. 

Dirtbombs

Dangerous Magical Noise

In The Red

***The third and most cohesive album to date by Detroit's Dirtbombs guarantees to get the party started. Thirteen ass-shaking rock'n'roll originals from Mick Collins (former Gories front man), Jim Diamond (legendary Detroit producer) and the gang. Following their breakthrough Ultraglide In Black album and nearly two years of solid global touring, Dangerous Magical Noise proves that this band will most definitely survive the current Detroit/Garage press hype. Fuzztone punkers, R&B stompers, soul ballads, and more than a couple of nods to '70s glam rock are all here. Tight, right and outta sight.

Dirtbombs

Ultraglide In Black

In The Red

Mick Collins and his merry band of Dirtbombs (which, this time around, features Bantam Rooster's Tom Potter and Detroit studio wiz Jim Diamond) bring the soul on their sophomore album Ultraglide In Black, named after Ultraglide in Blue, a cool late-nite flick from your youth. All the influences that helped shaped his sonic psyche are in the forefront here - Sly & the Family Stone, Marvin Gaye, Curtis Mayfield, Stevie Wonder, Parliament, the Miracles and host of others too obscure to mention all have their presence felt. If the Temptations owned fuzz pedals and read too many comic books they might've sounded something like this. There are a lot of young bands claiming to be creating "soul" music and "testifying" (we won't name names) but this here is the authentic item - accept no substitutes.  "The Dirtbombs' combination of squealing feedback-driven guitar, dual drumming and walloping bass presence rivals that of the Velvet Underground. Imagine the Velvets, Gories and Oblivians battling to the death inside a tuna fish can, their raw and ultra crude instrumentation blazing away with hell-bent fury. Led by Mick Collins (who spent time fronting the Gories and the rockabilly grunge outfit Blacktop), the Dirtbombs' distinctive Motown howl and wicked axe slingin' escapades shred like one of Dolemite's rapid-fire, X-rated monologues.… Collins executes some snarling, self-professed "cyclone" guitar riffs underneath the stomping, mummified mayhem. These Detroit cavemen have found their place in a fuzz-drenched, garage band sound reminiscent of Question Mark and the Mysterians fused with...

Dirtbombs

Horndog Fest

In The Red

***Mick (Gories) Collins sticks two drummers and two bassists into a dark, moist room, flasks some hybrid punk/noise/blues and incubates behind the bar fridge. Timeless, yet so very much of the moment.