Dot Dash - Madman in the Rain

by Kimberly Bright

published: 26 / 5 / 2023

Label: Jansen Platerproduksj
Format: CD

Washington, D.C.'s Dot Dash channel expertly crafted early New Wave and power pop on seventh album.

Review

Despite being named after a Wire song, which in turn was named after a nautical code for "Steer clear," and coming from a scrappy Washington, D.C. music scene, Dot Dash's music is fully realised guitar-driven pop. On ‘Madman in the Rain’, their seventh album, the trio's music is more on the cusp of power pop and "college radio" circa 1989 than post punk. The songs are also suffused with smoothly produced, hook-filled late '70s and '80s British and American indie rock and New Wave: Orange Juice, Echo and The Bunnymen, The Jam, Psychedelic Furs, and The Flamin' Groovies. I will go ahead and add the Dukes of the Stratosphear for the light psychedelic touches. Bassist Hunter Bennett recently described their sound to music writer Kevin Alexander for his ‘On Repeat’ column as "middle-aged punk." If that's true, it's by way of The Jam and Materialissue. Banks may teasingly name drop other bands throughout (Devo, for instance), and Dylan Thomas on opener ‘Forever Far Out’, but the Anglophile love of a good chunk of all the best music pre-2000 is proudly evident. Singer and guitarist Terry Banks even talks about the weather several times! (It rains a lot.) ‘Trip Over Clouds’ was inspired by The Go-Betweens, according to Banks, who spent enough time in England in the late '80s-early '90s to briefly end up playing in St. Christopher. Added keyboards/organ/piano by producer Geoff Sanoff, who produced their also ace 2018 album ‘Proto Retro’, round out the sound nicely and sound like what Mike Garson would have played if he'd been hired for these sessions. Prior to casually forming almost thirteen years ago with extra guitarist Bill Crandall, all three (Terry Banks, Hunter Bennett, and Danny Ingram) had extensive experience playing in other bands, like Tree Fort Angst, Julie Ocean, Modest Proposal, The Saturday People, Glo-Worm, Youth Brigade, and Swervedriver. Drummer Danny Ingram, who was a first-generation D.C. hardcore punk veteran -- the same scene that gave the world Henry Rollins, Bad Brains, and Ian MacKaye -- is responsible for the last few. Dot Dash's Canadian label, The Beautiful Music, is owned by friend of Pennyblackmusic Wally Salem. It says a lot about the importance of forging respectful relationships between labels and artists that Dot Dash has so far released all of their music through The Beautiful Music rather than a dozen different labels. Behind the sweet melodies, Stranglers bassline grooves, and jangly guitar, Banks actually grapples with some heavy subjects like the meaning of life, loss (‘Everything = Dust’), and what to do with the time left to all of us.

Track Listing:-

1 Forever Far Out
2 Space Junk, Satellites
3 Tense & Nervous
4 Animal Stone
5 Madman in the Rain
6 Airwaves
7 Trip Over Clouds
8 Saints/Pharaohs
9 Lonesome Sound
10 Everything = Dust
11 Wokeupdreaming
12 Dead Gone