The Dirty Blonde
Glasgow, Scotland, United Kingdom | Established. Jan 01, 2015 | SELF
Music
Press
The Dirty Blonde cite influences as diverse as Belle & Sebastian, Pixies and Foo Fighters and whether this is reflected in their music or not, there is a diversity of musical styles on display this evening.
This gives the tracklist, mostly culled from the new album, that extra spark of interest in a number of the songs played tonight and elevate it from standard indie fare.
Launching into the first two tracks, ‘Sunshine A-OK’, an off kilter indie rock track which infuses wailing vocals with an almost psychedelic sound followed by the full on, punky driving guitar of ‘Messy Galavanter’ we then see evidence of the different styles at play.
‘Subject.Scientist.Angel.’ and ‘44,000’ are far more melodic pop driven guitar songs and show a mature side, which the audience clearly enjoys.
Then another gear change as ‘Red Fish’ delivers an edgy alt rock first half before moving into an instrumental second half with soaring guitar notes washing over the audience underlined by a dirty electro bass.
Finishing off tonight’s set is the infectious ‘Doing My Head In’ echoing The Hives and finally frenetic album closer ‘Oh Pear (Fuckeverything)’, the musical equivalent of kicking over the drums, smashing the guitar and walking off stage, delivering an added energy to the end of the evening. - RaveChild
With a name like the Dirty Blonde, you expect dirty, gritty, uncensored noise bleeding through the speakers- you wouldn’t be wrong in that assumption.
The Dirty Blonde’s sound toys with the roots of punk at its best with the release of their self-titled debut album The Dirty Blonde.
The band hailing from Glasgow is comprised of Dean Canale (Drums), Danny Gallagher (Guitar, vocals), Dom Hastie (Bass/vocals) David Rybacki (Guitar/vocals).
The opening track is the defining track for all albums; it’s the bands statement saying “this is my sound; don’t listen if you don’t like it.”
‘Subject.Scientist.Angel’ has a real early 70s vibe, with scratchy guitars and strong chord progressions powering the track.
It embraces new sounds and clever lyrics, expressing a softer side to the band. The Dirty Blonde has created a raw, experimental sound during the track.
Lyrically it is poignant, tackling blind consumerism and a need for materialistic goods.
It is vocally reminiscent of the Velvet Underground during the peak of their career.
‘Red Fish’ is a ferocious track, gnarling at the speakers with its cutthroat vocals, which could easily have come from the likes of Black Flag.
Lead vocalist Danny Gallagher, combined biting punk driven vocals with vocals that could be spoken word.
Punk tracks are notoriously short, snappy, chaotic walls of noise- the Dirty Blonde differ.
‘Red Fish’ is diverse, it has lungs which breathe, letting it grow and expand into different musical elements.
Each track explodes with velocity, snarling ravenously ready to devour the listener. The Dirty Blonde’s writing style is strangely unique.
“Messy Galavanter” begins with soft, whispered vocals lacing the track with a retro vibe before descending into crunching riffs and rapid drumming.
Pinning the Dirty Blonde to a set genre is a difficult task, as each track is a stand-alone wonder.
They embrace various styles and innovative production to piece together the best sounds from each musical decade.
‘Oh Pear (Fuck Everything)’ is two minutes of pure X-rated punk, brutally shouting about an exhaustion towards life before evolving into a solo driven rock track.
Slick guitar riffs become the bones of the track, pushing it in an experimental rock direction.
Lyrical honesty is defining in a track, ‘Only the Freaks are Free’ embodies just that. This is the stand out track on the album with brutal story of a lack of recognition.
The Dirty Blonde excels at their ability to create speaker blowing noise but they are also skilled musicians. Their sound suits the interweaving of intricate riffs and distorted chord progressions. - So, Music Huh?
Discography
The Dirty Blonde (2013)
Songs are currently streaming on soundcloud and have had radio play in the UK and Ireland.
Photos
Bio
The Dirty Blonde is a sixteen limbed, musically carnivorous cynic-acidic noise monster from deepest darkest Glasgow with a Franken-Rock sound and spirit perfectly fronted with energetic permformances around the city and beyond.
“Lyrically it is poignant, tackling blind consumerism and a need for materialistic goods and vocally it’s reminiscent of The Velvet Underground during the peak of their Career” (Rave Child)
The Dirty Blonde's energetic live performances and acerbic wit have earned the band a faithful following, along with positive reviews from local blogs and radio play.
“Each track explodes with velocity, snarling ravenously ready to devour the listener; The Dirty Blonde’s writing style is strangely unique.” (Rave Child)
The four friends grew up in the same neighborhood. Music was a big deal at home .Brothers Paddy and Danny come from a musically encouraged family, Dean cites R.E.M. as a musical gateway band, while David cut his teeth listening to local musicians playing folk standards at his grandparents' house. As was proper for future rockers, all four got kicked out of music classes at school, spurring them on to tinker with electronics, pedals and anything else that made a strange noise.
“Each track is a stand-alone wonder, they embrace various styles and innovative production to piece together the best sounds from each musical decade.” (Rave Child)
Playing most of Glasgow's prestigious venues and escaping home to perform in other major UK cities, it didn't take long for The Dirty Blonde to start selling out venues. With the proceeds they set up their own rehearsal/recording studio.
The Dirty Blonde are like a cross between Pavement, Dinosaur Jnr and Teenage Fanclub. If you can imagine a noise like that, you should check out The Dirty Blonde.
“The musical equivalent of kicking over the drums, smashing the guitar and walking off stage, delivering an added energy to the end of the evening” (Live Gig Review)
Band Members
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