DO ME BAD THINGS

Simon Reynolds recently posted a few entries in memoriam of Tony Ogden, the late singer of early 90s group, World of Twist. Among many interesting comments, Reynolds describes WoT as "monumental," "saccharine," "lavish," "cosmic," "an Ecstasy-addled vision of pop
utopia. Bubblegum sitar, corny horn flourishes, Northern soul beats, Dave Gilmour/Loop guitar curlicues, mucoid spurts of synth, aciiied frenzy - it ought to be a mess, but the absurdly motley inputs come together like a dream." Sounds like a lot of fun. Add WoT to the "must check out" list.

His descriptions of such over-the-top, multi-appendaged, polymorphously perverse pop remind me of a disc I picked up last year called Yes! by a group called Do Me Bad Things. The album title feels most appropriate since the bands seems to have said "yes" to every musical idea that anyone in the nine-piece band brought to the table. This is bubblegum r&b, hard rock pure pop by a bunch of people who "like heavy rock. We like riffs. We like sludgy rock. But we like pop harmonies and hooks...and power ballads."

So what the heck does that mean when the disc is spinning? It means Beyonce backed by AC/DC, with a Spice Girls harmony chorus frolicking in the middle, chased by a bar of heavy rifferama on one side and funky drumming on the other and through the middle with a guitar solo that wouldn't be out of place on a Boston record, only to be doubled-up by a noisy, meaty sax solo to take the whole thing over the top.

DMBT are on the same label as The Darkness, so that explains some of the "no fear of being ridiculous" aesthetic. The Scissor Sisters' hyperbolic sense of fun with their many influences is a decent reference point. Jellyfish's Alice in Candyland sunspray pop is also a good refernce point. The Go! Team's cheerleader enthusiasm definitely applies, as well. But before you think that this music must float in the air, the sometimes crunching guitars and sometimes wailing vocals are there to give it some heft.

This is shoot-the-moon pop. Stuff that figures, if you're gonna do it, why not go all the way? No "drab realism" here, no forced earnestness, and certainly no self-seriousness. As Reynolds said of World of Twist, this ought to be a mess and it kind of is, prompting no small amount of head scratching and exclamations of "are you kidding me?" But it does come together. I wouldn't say "like a dream" with all of the fleeting ephemerality that implies. It comes together more like a carnival. Maybe you just got a spiral lollipop that's wider than your head, or a five scoop banana split, or a foot long chili-covered corn dog. Maybe you ate them all at once, but you're with your honey, you're doing every ride, life's got magic and it's good.


DO ME BAD THINGS -- What's Hideous
The track I had in mind when i described their sound above.

DO ME BAD THINGS -- Time For Deliverance
Opening track and probably the most riff-centric track of theirs.

DO ME BAD THINGS -- Move In Stereo (Liv Ullman on Drums)
One of their more bubblegummy tracks, but expertly so.