Music Reviews
The Dirtmitts
ÊThe Dirtmitts
(Sonic Unyon)
For the second time in the past two years, a meteor from the universe
of Chicks Who Rock has smashed into my decks. Praise be the lords of distortion.
Have I finally found something to rotate with Rainer Maria?
Formed in Vancouver in 1994, the Dirtmitts deliver tunes that flow between
alt-rock and power-pop with a surprising intelligence. Music like this
is deceptively simple, offering a rewarding complexity for those willing
to reap long-term benefits. This is not to say that The Dirtmitts isnt
immensely listenable from the gate; theres enough vocal melody in there
to satisfy the most pop-oriented listeners and a barrage of distortion
suitable enough to satisfy unreformed loud-boys like yours truly.
The addictive opening track, "In the Meantime," still fools me into
thinking that Miki Berenyi from Lush has come out of retirement. Singer/guitarist
Natasha Thirsks lithe, intelligent vocals border on the edge of the ethereal,
supported by rich, guitar-driven layers that pull the tune into focus.
More seductive tracks like "Fix and Destroy" use singular, gentle guitar
lines over distorted rhythms to pull the ear into a surprising apex. Notables
like the mid-tempo "Drives and Lakes" combine the dissonance and harmony
of the best indie-fare, sincerely avoiding the pretension and the wan imitativeness
that has plagued much of indie-rock for the past decade.
The Dirtmitts Dallas Kruszelnicki, Jen Deon, Jason Lajeunesse and (my
new love) Natasha Thirsk have so far built up a reasonable following within
and beyond their Canadian borders. With releases like this one, well be
seeing this quartet hyper-jump onto the regular indie-rotation lists. Im
already way ahead of them. - Jonathan Hanemann
