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DIRTY MADAME
Reinventing Rock and Roll with Elegant Vulgarity
"Rock and roll still means revolution in the hands of those who know how to work it.” Profound words from Dirty Madame’s lead axe-man Pat Moley – summing up what this band is all about: period. Originally formed in San Diego, this newly transplanted Los Angeles quartet boasts a malicious blues-rock grind that oozes with arrogance and sexuality. And why wouldn’t they? After all, that’s the seasoning that makes rock so tasty. In spite of their youth as a collective, their swagger is not all together unwarranted: the Madame’s music is divine indeed. Now, in a new town and armed with a new EP, Dirty Madame is pounding the streets looking to turn some new tricks – and in the rock and roll brothel of Hollywood, they’re feeling right at home.
Dirty Madame’s sound is best described as the bastard offspring of a Wilco and The Doors one-night stand. Front-man Greg Davis’ voice lands somewhere between Jim Morrison and Ronnie Van Zant, while his keyboard’s muse is late Sixties pop rock. He has a knack for writing well-structured harmonies and catchy hooks that get even the naysayers singing along. For Davis, that’s one of the spoils of the trade, “One of the coolest things about music,” he elaborates, “is when you don’t even know who the hell is playing, but you walk away buying every record or demo they have.” His love for finding that diamond in the rough has thrust him and his band-mates into precisely that. The tempest within the structure is the improvisational electricity of Pat Moley’s lead guitar. Moley plays like a blues gunslinger: focused but free, fast yet precise -- a loose cannon that shoots well from the hip. For a man of few words he speaks volumes with his Les Paul. Says Pat, “I’ve never been able to communicate very well socially, but with my guitar I feel as though I can talk to anyone.” Together, he and his piece speak to the soulful and the raunchy in kind.
Though the musical dichotomy of Davis and Moley is beautifully symbiotic, the corset that holds the Madame together is the solid rhythm section of bassist Carl Turner and drummer Tyler Metz. Turner, a big man with a big sound, is the lone member left in San Diego. His dedication to the “B – plan” finds him taking 25 units at SDSU so that he can graduate in December and join the boys up north. Though he dwarfs the others on stage, his size and his energy are truly a compliment to his talent. Band-mate Moley articulates, “Carl is a great musician. He’s a big guy, but that’s what you want in a bass player – a guy that looks like the sound he’s putting out. He’s a diesel – a madman.” Davis couldn’t agree more, citing Turner’s musicianship as a huge plus, “The great thing about Carl is he can play anything.” Davis continues, “When everybody else bails rehearsal, he’ll stick around and jump on the drums or guitars or whatever is needed to help finish a song.” Turner is complimented by Metz’ straightforward, backbeat approach to the drum kit. While Davis is the first to acknowledge Metz’ impact on their sound, it is Metz that finds the Dirty Madame experience leaving its imprint on him. Says Metz, “Playing with these guys has been great. Greg is constantly pushing us to be better, which makes the creative process frustrating at times. But at the end of the day, I’m a better drummer for it – we’re all better.”
Formed by members of several defunct local outfits, these musicians would endure a couple of years of trial and error before donning the Dirty Madame fishnets. The biggest step in that direction came from Davis realizing his calling as a front man. He explains, “We had a couple of different bands with some decent material, but dealing with drugs, egos and laziness prevented any of them from working out. In the meantime all along I was writing all the songs, and I knew they could be way better than they were. It just took me awhile to get up the courage to take the lead and be the front man.” With Davis at the headboard, Dirty Madame has been shaking the bed with a new sound that is both sardonic and sexy. While they teeter on the edge of being classified as a 70’s rock revival band, Davis insists that it’s not that cliché. “We’re not just another revival band. We’re the new architects of rock and roll.” Davis continues assertively, “We’re the guys that bought that old house that was owned by Jimi Hendrix, stripped it down and rebuilt it.” Cocky? Yes. But this haughtiness comes from a band that is rapidly becoming exemplary of rock and roll Darwinism: staying true to what they love, but pushing it to new extremes.
The band’s roguish moniker stems from their communal lust for English supermodel Kate Moss. To a man they all agree that she exemplifies the target market for their music. Davis explains, “She’s a woman who is sexy, dirty, free and down for whatever – but she’s also classy, manicured, clean and taken care of. Like the music, she’s a balance of freedom and restraint, improvisation and structure, naughty and nice. And she’s really hot.” For Davis, the importance of balance cannot be overstated. It’s a recurring theme in everything he does musically, professionally and socially. As he clarifies, “Success in music, in life, is all about balance. I have a degree in music business, but I’m also an artist. On one hand, if you understand the business – the sales, radio, hook song writing and marketing, you can really make a living in music. On the other, if what you’re playing is shit, you may have a hard time getting out of the cellar.”
For the time being, Dirty Madame is working hard to establish themselves in the sordid, competitive music scene of Los Angeles. Equipped with a portfolio of sleazy symmetry, the band is poised to take new fans on a ride they won’t soon forget. Catch the beginning of a new revolution at Hollywood’s Whiskey A Go Go on October 30. In the meantime, experience the elegant vulgarity of their new self-titled EP at www.myspace.com/dirtymadame.
Music Matters Magazine
POBox 9101 San Diego, CA 92169
November/December 2007 Issue
Published by Greg Passmore
Editor Jen Hilbert
Written by Joel York
- Written by Joel Yourk, Published by Greg Passmore
Discography
The Dirty Madame EP
Hum Dolly
Photos
Bio
So, legend has always proven that the stinging thrill of a life on the road is one that certain men just can not pass up. The lifeblood of rock n roll and the fire that has propelled the great geniuses of this genre to the world’s largest stages has always been the sheer high of creating predictable, explosive music before throngs of fellow believers. Dirty Madame is a band who have exuded this truth from the first note we ever played. It’s the same note that Mick and Keith found one day in 1962; it’s the same note that John and Paul used to change the world; it’s the same note that Hendrix sent rocketing into outer space; and it’s the same note that I’ve been in love with ever since I started playing guitar for this band of musical soul mates that we call Dirty Madame.
The guilty parties steering this road-tested locomotive along are some of the most creative, musically gifted mates I’ve ever had. There’s Greg Davis, the born songwriter whose muse brought him to my door, and whose natural talent made me powerless not to open it. Standing next to him every step of the way has been Jayme Davis, Dirty Madame’s co-lyricist and spiritual backbone. As the lyrical architect of songs like Jumble Jee, Michelangelo, and I Just Like the Sound, not to mention many more to come, Jayme has come to personify the modern-day notion of the “fourth” member in a three piece band; the absolutely crucial component whose passion for both her husband and her music has left the rest of us looking forward to what this songwriting duo is going to come up with next. Then there’s Carl Turner, a multi-instrumentalist since the age of five, whose mind blowing ability on drums, bass, piano, and harmonica has cemented his place as the rhythmic foundation of Dirty Madame. Finally there’s me, Pat, who has known since before I can remember that music was simply my destiny. Sometimes a kid just knows with the first record he hears, the first buzz that he’ll ever know, and the best one. I’m going to let our music do the rest of the talking, but before I go I will say one more thing. Dirty Madame knows full well that there has been a certain spark existing in this world since rock n roll came along, a sensation in the cosmos that has changed things for the better. After all, in this day and age of empty politics and soulless commercial culture, all we can hope for is a good feeling. And all hurtles aside, me and the boys hope to ride that good feeling all the way to those same stages where rock n roll has lived since its birth, and will remain forever. See you at the end of the road.
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