Die Princess Die

The four members of Die Princess Die have backgrounds as varied as a drawer full of mismatched socks. A licensed stockbroker, a retired wedding dress salesman, an ex-Air Force man who did a stint in the brig, and a native of Slovakia smuggled out of the Iron Curtain as a child -- what they had in common was a love of altered tunings and big amplifiers. In 2003, a year after forming in San Diego, the band relocated to Los Angeles. A year later, they released their self-titled full-length on Cut Lips (CD) and Rococo (vinyl), as well as a split seven-inch on Kill Shaman and a contribution to GSL’s “Golden Grouper”compilation, in the process perfecting a sound described by the Austin Chronicle as “louder than highway construction and dirtier than Internet porn.” Another critic, upon seeing the band perform at SXSW, wrote, “[…] it was like watching a violent crime in progress. Maybe you know it's wrong, and you know somebody should do something, but you nonetheless stand there transfixed.” It’s true that DPD shows are sometimes frenzied -- one left a member with staples in the back of his head -- but their music has a subtle afterbite unsuggested by their name or reputation. Cuts on their second full-length, “Lions Eat Lions,” recorded by Alex Newport (the Mars Volta/the Locust) and released on GSL (CD) and Rococo (vinyl), are rich in layered atmosphere -- hot but cold, loose but tight, raw but sophisticated, all at the same time. A band with stage presence to burn in a scene that could use more of it, DPD is a wildfire waiting to happen. Stand back. No, come closer.