Dum Dum Girls, Ex Cops, Roses live at Pappy & Harriet's

When Dee Dee Penny announced that for the third leg of their "Too True" tour, Dum Dum Girls were going to perform the album from top to bottom in chronological order I kind of knew that I just had to get a ticket for a show - and so, oblivious to the fact that the tour's final gig was actually in the City of Angels (sponsored by a well-known Austrian energy drink company) - the closest option seemed to be somewhere in darkest San Bernardino County.

So you're asking yourself. What type of Eejit then goes on the best part of a near-400 mile road trip from Ventura County to the high desert to see a band play in the middle of nowhere? Er, this one...

Tonight's gig was being held at Pappy & Harriet's Pioneertown Palace in the Yucca Valley's Pioneertown - built as part of a fifties movie set. I've already intimated that the place is a little off the beaten track(!) but the atmosphere generated within this iconic venue was totally infectious.

And in a stroke of almost perfect symmetry tonight's opening act for Dum Dum Girls' penultimate gig are the very same one that opened for the "Too True" album launch at the Echo back in January... Ten months on and the band have released a mini-album through Bandcamp, "It's Over"; 5-tracks that perfectly capture the spirit and soul of the LA-based trio. Their short and sweet set was packed full of memorable eighties-tinged tunes - all swirling keyboards, rhythmic synth-drums, reverbed guitar and punchy bass - if you like your pop intelligent then you could do a lot worse than check Roses out. If I lived in LA (rather than having to fight my way down the freeway from hell every time I want to see a gig), Roses would be the kind of band I'd quite happily take a punt-on and catch more often - let's hope our paths cross next year...

Here's a taster of the band, with my favourite track from their EP, "Florence Girls".

I was particularly looking forward to catching support Ex Cops and I wasn't disappointed. Over the course of a criminally short set the duo of Amalie Bruun and Brian Harding, augmented by touring  drummer, certainly convinced those of us present that we were witnessing a band on the cusp of a breakout. This is a band that plays shoegazey indie-rock with a definite pop edge and who introduce a song as "White noise" that is arguably anything but - instead the tune turns out to be an incredibly enthusiastic and melodic straight-up pop tune with a hook that burns in your skull (check it out below). But what is about Scandinavian singers? Apart from the fact that that not only does Amalie speak better English than me, similar to Lykke Li and Highasakite's Ingrid Helene Håvik, she also possess a voice of such frightening crystal clarity and dynamic range (one that could easily span the Øresund Bridge) - take it from me, this girl can sing. And lest you excuse me of doing the whole 'jangly guitar and female vocals' thing (again) - the duets, harmonies and vocal sparring of the pair add extra depth to their set. Take it from me, this is a band you are going to want to see the next time they're playing in your town. I certainly intend to.

I got the opportunity to catch a few words with Amalie and Brian post-gig and promised that I'd check out their new album "Daggers" when I got home (unfortunately they didn't have any merch available on the night). And wow, yes. Let's just say that since I only write about music I like and buy...

And you, dear reader, already know how much I lurve Dum Dum Girls and  how highly I rate "Too True", it's arguably the most complete indie-rock album of the year and I really wanted to see and hear how Dee Dee and the band would play and interpret the album through in its chronological entirety - the way (at least how I'd like to imagine) Dee Dee wanted it to sound. I said at the time how the album demonstrated how as an artist Dee Dee was constantly evolving both as a songwriter and musician - adapting, experimenting, pushing  the limits of her musical boundaries - yet remaining true to her guiding beliefs. Performed live and sans interruption, I really got to appreciate the heart and soul that was put into this album - how consistent and seamless it sounds. How tight the band were; Jules and Andrew setting the pace on guitar, Malia and Sandra's metronomic precision on the bass and drums. Most of all though, for all the obvious focus both on and off the stage, how much fun everyone appeared to be having.

Effectively I'm listening to the album live and all those nuances that attracted me are immediately amplified; the defining statement of "Cult of love" (I love opening tracks that effectively set out an album's manifesto); the stunning eruption of guitars that is the refrain of "Little minx"; the totally fuzzed, metal-to-the-pedal guitar work of "Lost boys and girls club"; the subversiveness of "Evil Blooms"; the guitar hook on "Rimbaud eyes"... It's all there and more. And on an album chock-full of great guitar-fuelled indie songs are two absolutely gorgeous, straight-up, heart-tugging slower numbers; "Trouble is My Name" - bitter-sweet, self-reflective, pessimistic, and the sublime "Are You OK?" This is the most hauntingly poignant love song (and of being in love - "I'm looking for you through a lavender haze"). The more I listen, the more I'm convinced that this is the best song that Dee Dee has written.

Ultimately though,  the one thought that truly strikes home - and I touched on this point in my original album review - is the added emphasis the album placed on the vocals. It highlighted the fact that although sometimes overlooked (guilty as charged),  Dee Dee Penny actually has the most beautifully natural and warming of voice (there, said it...) which truly shines through on the songs performed both in the studio and live here.
 

I have this wild, fleeting thought. Just how cool would it be if the band were to have recorded one of these shows and put out a live version on album?

For a band that has only released three albums and the same number of EPs, Dee Dee has recorded a back catalogue that would put many to shame and so after a short breather the band re-emerge for - depending how you look at it - either an extended encore or their second set, as Dum Dum Girls pick selected vignettes from their own musical legacy.

Ever since Strawberry Switchblade's "Trees and Flowers" was covered on the "End of Daze" EP I'd yearned to hear the band perform this live (disclaimer: Strawberry Switchblade feature high on my list of memorable eighties bands - and although they seemed to fade as quickly as they emerged - they left two absolute gems of new-wave pop behind; the bouncy, upbeat synth pop of "Since Yesterday" and in "Trees and Flowers", it's complete opposite - an ultimately sombre song all  about the fears of open spaces  - Jill Bryson actually suffered from agoraphobia). Dee Dee just seems to have the habit of catching the right vibe with her covers (Pale Saint's "Sight of you", The Smith's "There is a light that never goes out" and from the video posted from said energy drink-sponsored show, The Cranberries "Zombie") and tonight  this song got nailed. The interpretation (delivered at a slower pace than the original and with a lot of emphasis on Dee Dee's delivery) would have done both Jill and Rose McDowall proud and got the rousing reception it deserved.

And after an all to brief whistle stop tour of the back catalogue proper, Dee Dee brings the house down with a stunning rendition of "Coming down" - try as I might I have no chance of holding that note as long as she can - it's just the perfect song to close out the night's proceedings...

I'm still amazed that I've had the opportunity to get up close and personal with Dum Dum Girls again - The Echo, The Roxy and now Pappy & Harriet's - but I can't believe that they aren't selling out much larger venues. I'd love to see them at a packed-out El Rey (arguably the best venue in L.A.), The Fonda and one day at The Wiltern.

The intimacy might be lost, but Dee Dee's more than paid her dues...