Ryan White, music critic at The Oregonian came up with a funny description for Philadelphia’s Dr. Dog, which played The Wonder Ballroom last night as part of MusicFestNW.
Dr. Dog looks a little like a VW micro bus — with a Ferrari’s engine and other essential parts dropped inside. They accelerate and brake equally fast. They handle well in any kind of weather. They hug the road.
It’s also probably true, as a friend theorized, that Dr. Dog might be far more powerful live than on record.
Darby has her own way with words and an amazing grasp of popular music. After a few songs, she turned to me and said, “The Beatles and The Clash had a baby.”
I nodded my agreement and added that I didn’t realize how much Ska was in the mix–an aspect to the band that might be more visible than it is audible. These guys high step with the best of them.
This morning I’m reflecting on how good last night’s show was (Portland’s Helio Sequence followed Dr. Dog). It was good enough for me to want to know more, that’s for sure. Which leads me to this in-studio performance and interview care of KCRW in Santa Monica: