De Novo Dahl

I know its been awhile since I recommended a musical ensemble. Frankly, I haven't had the opportunity to seek out new groups recently, much to my very distinct personal anguish - that said, last night I went with some pals to Barley's - a long time haunt of mine which I have, in the last year and a half or so, neglected. We went to hear music and drink yummy beverages. And did we ever.

Well, at one point during the evening several men and one red-headed woman climb up on stage. They calmly set up their instruments and then, well, they strip down. That's right. They take off their street clothes to reveal what I can only describe as 1920's-style swimsuits. You remember those, from all the Disney cartoons. Or from living in the 1920s. Yeah.

Come to find out, these people were a band, not roadies who had escaped early Twentieth Century Myrtle Beach through the manipulation of bicycle parts and a time-space interspersion. Not only that, but the Nashville rock band named De Novo Dahl, who seem to be going for the 1950s-1960s create-a-memorable-visual-impact-to-reiterate-the-auditory-impact-thing (their myspace page refers to the Beach Boys as a significant influence), kinda' rock. Okay, they don't kinda' rock. They friggin' straight up rock.

Let me describe the music. Hmmm. Well, for me, at least, they have the feeling of Modest Mouse or Franz Ferdinand blended with Weezer. No, no, that's not enough. Throw in pretty much everything awesome about the more poppy 1970s and 1980s super-groups, you know, when they were exploring what the synthesizer and electric keyboards could do without any self-restraint - energy over subtlety - not to say that they aren't capable of incredible subtlety, but their electric instrumentation has a kind of youthful exuberance, the feeling we all got when the synthesizer was new and warranted real experimentation, not just (sigh) sampling.

Okay, I'm not really getting where I want to get. Let me put this differently.

Listening to De Novo Dahl is like taking a class on the history of rock and roll. If you dig the Beach Boys, the Rolling Stones, the Beatles, Buddy Holly, the Doors, Queen, U2, Pink Floyd, Dire Straits, Nirvana, Everclear, Incubus, the Dave Matthews Band (circa Crash), Weezer, Franz Ferdinand, Modest Mouse, and OKGo all blended together with a hint of the blues and a little seasoning of Janis Joplin, well, get ready. Cause you will freak out and scream as soon as you hear De Novo Dahl. If you demand less cerebral musical experiences or rock that doesn't send your brain on a goosechase as you seek to pigeonhole them, well, tuff. Spelled with two "f"s on purpose.

Seriously though, this band is worth listening to - I personally have already ordered their first album, Cats & Kittens and I believe, without a single qualm, that De Novo Dahl is going to be huge. Their stage presence combined with the exemplary quality of their music and lyrics demand as much. I say, get in while the gettin's good, so you can brag to your friends about your music savvy once they start buying De Novo Dahl's albums in 2008. Listening to them play, especially live, is like opening your trick-or-treat bag as a kid - all bright colors and sugar rushes. So awesome.

But what am I saying? You don't want to read my blither-blather, you want want links. Well, let's see what we can do.

1. De Novo Dahl - Their homepage - it seems to be going through a renovation right now, but there is still a list of upcoming concerts and a small but downloadable collection of yummy mp3s.

2. MySpace.com - As with all myspace pages, the utility of this site lies largely in its music samples - all of which are, sadly, repeats of their homepage - except for "Be Your Man." Whichever of the above sites you hit, though, you should definitely lead this party off with "Subject of the Kill." Delicious.

3. theory 8 records - De Novo Dahl's publishers. Not the most dramatic site, by any means, but it has some stuff worth perusing.

4. WOXY Lounge Acts - A 23 minute interview/performance. Yummy.

As for reviews and interviews, well, I gott'm.

1. The Tennesseean
2. Rainydawg Radio
3. You Ain't No Picasso
4. MetroPulse
5. Dusted Magazine
6. Hybrid Magazine
7. Carrie Neumayer

Ahhhh. . . refreshing.