There seems to be a burgeoning movement of early 60s garage-inspired neo-surf rock developing around us of late. Locally with Sonny and the Sunsets, Hunx and his Punx, and the Royal Baths, and nationally with acts like Harlem and Vivian Girls, there is a wave of kitschy low-fi rock innocence crashing upon the music community. Riding high on this wave, and taking the best traditions of The Kinks, The Dashing Suns debut album Really Like You is an exciting jovial explosion of good old-fashioned rock and roll.
Ripped right from the Smiley Smile playbook, "Good Bad Vibrations" opens the album in a psychedelic swirl that would make Brian Wilson proud. By far the odd ball out on the album, “Good Bad Vibrations” (interesting and exciting as it is) differs greatly in style from the rest of the songs. Perhaps its strangeness is its purpose; quizzically opening the listener for the explosion of gritty rock that follows.
Taking off like a rocket, “Sally Moore” fires away from the eerie loops that proceeded it and really sets the mood of the album: youthful exuberance in brief volatile intervals rarely exceeding three minutes. The grittiest song on the album, and one of my favorites, “Sally Moore” is a thunderous wall of distorted guitar with a fabulous, mostly two-note solo that really highlights potential for perfection in pure simplicity.
Along with its high level of energy, Really Like You’s simplicity is one of it great strengths. Lyrically, the themes don’t extend much farther than adolescent notions of love and relationships, simple rhymes, and straightforward metaphors. This could seem incredibly superficial but in a world of such weight, unassuming levity is something of a breath of fresh air.
There is a particularly unique sort of depth to what can otherwise be termed shallow music. Shifting focus from technical aspects towards the expressive often better highlights the basic emotive value of a song; rawness that can be as deep as a magnum opus. Think of the depth in the pure expression of punk rock. Achieving greater accessibility to the fundamental feeling of the music by stripping the pretense of the form can codify a system of complex ideas that is expressed intangibly. For The Dashing Suns the energetic sound of fun can be just as loaded and invigorating as the most complex of soundscapes.
Catchy and exciting, Really Like You is highly recommended. Firmly rooted in the traditions of Herman’s Hermits and The Troggs, Really Like You is a twelve track adventure into some fantastic rock and roll. Rising with the tide of like-minded 60s garage inspired groups,The Dashing Suns Really Like You should have no problem reaching the crest of this wave.
–Ada Lann