The Dollyrots first burst onto the music scene back in 2004 with their blend of pop/punk on their first studio album Eat My Heart Out. Here we are eight years later and the singer/bassist Kelly Ogden and guitarist Luis Cabeza have delivered another solid album. When it comes to The Dollyrots, you pretty much know what to expect and that’s a good thing. You’re not going to get a song about saving the rainforest or the political unrest in the Middle East. A Dollyrots album is an escape from all of the negativity that can suck the life out of you. It’s like an inflatable jump house with the best music playing while you bounce away!
The album has a short intro with “Starting Over,” but the true fun starts with the second track “I Wanna Go.” It’s poppy, catchy and infectious. It also has a great sing-a-long breakdown mid-way through that screams audience participation. Up next is the first single “Hyperactive” and it’s textbook Dollyrots. You have Kelly’s thumping bass driving the song along, Luis and his crunchy guitar parts, and a big catchy chorus. Plus, how can you not like a song with lyrics like “It’s our duty to shake our booties?”
“Time Will Stop” is great track on the album. It flows a little differently than the other tracks. That bouncy, poppy edge is gone and it flows really smoothly. It kicks into another gear when the song reaches the chorus, which is bigger and louder. I think this song showcases another side of the band and shows growth on their part. “F U Famous” is more classic Dollyrots. This one if full of attitude and spunk and showcases why we all fell in love with Kelly to begin with.
I did a double take when the song “South of the Border” began to play. It has a Latin or salsa feel to it. This is yet another song that surprised me and showed me continued growth by the band. Again, it’s fun and infectious and if you allow yourself, you can actually feel the breeze from the ocean as you sit in the sand sipping coconut drinks with Kelly. Are you ready for a love song Dollyrots style? Well, that’s what “After 2012” is, complete with a zombie apocalypse and Martians.
As the CD ended and I started to gather my notes on it, another song suddenly started playing. It seems as if there is a hidden bonus track #21. Do you guys remember “Because I’m Awesome” from their album of the same name? Well, it’s on here and I think it’s a re-recorded version of that song. Well, at least it smells that way because it’s naturally deodorized. That was a tricky little bonus that you threw in there, kids. I’m just curious as to how many people have caught it already?
Overall, it’s a solid release by the band. I think a lot of the pop/punk sound is gone and it leans more towards pop than in the past. Don’t despair fans; just because the songs may be less punk than before doesn’t mean that Kelly’s going soft on us. She’s still a little spitfire. She and Luis have such a great partnership going and they mesh together so well.
This new album is pretty much a “do it yourself” project of theirs completed by a phenomenal response by their fans to their Kickstarter project. I love that the album is self-titled. People usually associate self-titled albums with debut albums and I almost feel as if this is like a starting over or re-birth for the band. It’s still the band that we know and love, but they are back stronger than ever thanks to that reassurance and push from their fans.
~ Johnny Price
