Cool Hunting

Dr. Dog, a retro-psychedelic rock band out of Philadelphia, is currently touring throughout much of the U.S making a stop at the Bowery Ballroom in New York this Thursday, 5 April 2007. Playing songs from their recent release, We All Belong, their neo-60's sound is authentic, new and should not be missed.

Many bands fail to successfully reproduce the psychedelic pop sound, but Dr. Dog has made it their own with a modern indie twist. Old fashioned, We All Belong was recorded on a 24 track, 2-inch tape machine—a modern step forward from previous releases which were recorded on an 8-track.

Allowing the band to introduce new layers of vocal harmonies and textured instrumentation, the new recording method also maintains their lo-fi throwback sound. Loose chords sound clean and match the rhythmic piano and organ riffs while muffled drums wail away with steady and simple beats. Bouncing strong bass lines nudge songs forward in a style not unlike Paul McCartney's.

The highlight, however, are the melodic vocals. Stripped down three-part harmonies allow idiosyncracies and imperfections to come out, creating warmer, more full harmonies reminiscent of the Beach Boys. It's a refreshing antidote to the over-digitized, bland harmonies of today.

We All Belong is out on Park the Van Records and is available here, from Amazon or iTunes. Listen to tracks on Dr. Dog's MySpace.