I’m stoked to be reviewing this new single, especially since I’m getting to hear a rad band for the first time. So who and what are Doll Riot?

Yes, some might presume that Doll Riot are an all-female band, but in our non-binary world, I’m not going to make that assumption. Others might want to make mention of their age–i.e. high school age-ish, but seeing as how my favorite bands from the DC area: Minor Threat, Scream, Void, Fath, etc. were all in high school, I’m not going to focus on that either. I’ve found that when reviews focus on age or gender it’s usually accompanied with an implicit unspoken phrase, “good for being ________”. This band doesn’t deserve or need such a qualifier. They are just fucking good!

So the music:

1st - It starts with a dope ass guitar lick that would work for any great punk or rock band whether it’s the MC5, The Dicks or the New York Dolls. 

2nd - The vocals are “clean” in that they are not growled or gritty, but they are sung with a melodic sneer that is the perfect mix of disdain and care-free fuck off.

3rd - The drummer is newish to the band, but plays with precision. I appreciate how the drumming mostly just enhances the song with no unneeded flourish until the bridge where the flourish was needed and thus provided. As a fellow drummer who subscribes to the less is more, I appreciated the choices the drummer made.

4th - Guitar and bass tones were solid and mixed well with tight playing that showed a relationship built on hours of practice.

5th - Clocking in at just over 2 minutes, this is longer and a little slower than the hardcore punk that I tend to gravitate to, but I enjoyed every additional millisecond of it.

I couldn’t stop at just this single, so I dug back into their back catalog:

The first song was “300 Years” which perked up the ears of this former history teacher since it was clear after a couple of listens that this was about the Salem Witch Trials. If the subject weren’t enough, I dug the groovy and danceable verse that leads into the driving chorus. Good song writing.

The next one was “Fuck You” ‘cause yeah I may be 47 years old, but I can’t resist a good fuck you song, and this definitely falls into that category. “A douchebag of your magnitude could cleanse a whale’s vagina” LMFAO! The bartender at Bacchus in New Paltz where I’m writing this review laughed out loud and agreed with me that this was funny indeed.

I’d certainly be curious to hear about how the pandemic shaped their formation as a band, and where and how they consumed music because they draw on backgrounds well enough to pay homage to some great bands without being a pale copy or cheap imitation of any of them which is no mean feat.

The band is based in San Diego, and there don’t seem to be any upcoming plans to tour beyond the shows listed below, but I’d love to have them come to the east coast. Maybe do a live album?

It’d be killer to see them do a show with the three DCxPC Live bands out that way: Year of the Fist, Middle-Aged Queers, and Some Kind of Nightmare!

Speaking of live, check out this video of their live performance of “Those Days”

If you can’t make it to a show, check out their tunes on streaming services follow them on their social media using this link: https://linktr.ee/dollriot

**** Sorry boomers, no Facebook for this band. LOL!

You can also listen to them and other dope punk bands on this DCxPC Live playlist: 

Dope Punk Bands to See Live

Catch them at the following shows:

05.26.2023

PUNK ROCK BOWLING - LAS VEGAS

THE USUAL PLACE - (SOLD OUT) - DOWNTOWN LAS VEGAS

8:00 PM

LAS VEGAS, NV

05.28.2023

HUMBLE HEART 4873 Newport Ave

Orlan | Outmind | Datson | SAWD 

7:00 PM

SAN DIEGO

05.30.2023

THE CASBAH 21+

W/  DEAD BOYS

8:30 PM

SAN DIEGO

06.03.2023

ERIS VEGAN FOOD - 302 Wisconsin Ave

W/  DEAD ROSETTA

5:30 PM

OCEANSIDE

06.10.2023

SOMA - 3350 SPORTS ARENA BLVD ALL AGES

W/  DEAD ROSETTA - Revitalize - Seconds Ago

6:30 PM

SAN DIEGO

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Keep in mind, I only review you if I generally like you to the point where I’d be willing to release a live album by you.