The sign over the bar bills Mum's Grille's current Tuesday night musical fare, by the rock & roll trio dc Motors, as "party music," and it's a pretty accurate description as far as it goes. But actually, there's more to these three talented and capable musicians than simply a good time.
Guitarist Tom Ross, bassist Art Fox, and drummer Mike Dimmick have obviously been working together for a long time and clearly enjoy it. Each man shows himself, during the course of a couple of sets, as an extremely competent solo and ensemble instrumentalist as well as quite a showman, and the fun which goes along with the virtually non-stop, rapid-fire music is a key ingredient to the trio's popularity.
After their own sound check when they took over the tiny improvised stage at Mum's to start
their first set at 9:30 on a recent Tuesday evening, opening with a classic, upbeat rendition of "Wake Up Little Susie" complete with tight vocal harmonies from Dimmick, Ross and Fox. Dimmick made the unusual and welcome request that the audience let him know if the music was too loud. It wasn't, despite the fact that the crowd was still a little light (things didn't crank up to full-boogie capacity until about an hour later), but his request was refreshing. On this job we have had to sit through too many evenings of ear- and brain-assaulting ultra-mega-decibel levels so loud it's actually hard to hear what is being played and sung.
Packing about 20 great songs into a set which maintains such a high energy level throughout is another unusual feature of this band, but dc Motors seems to breeze through it effortlessly, often barely pausing between songs segued together.
The material in their enormous repertoire [see our online song list] ranges from all eras of rock and R&B, classic as well as alternative, a little bit of country, and a number of originals, but virtually every number in their
seemingly randomly stacked--and tightly packed--sets is a winner in terms of technique, energy and contagion level.
Sure some of the old '50s and '60s songs are pretty basic, but hey, when they're done this well, with this much enthusiasm and electricity, so what? The point is, this is fun music, well crafted and
highly interactive. It's hard to avoid getting involved in the lively, insistent beat, especially when the bass player goes out dancing in the aisles without missing a note or the drummer's suddenly standing next to you wailing on his snare drum and offering you a turn with the sticks.
Ross has a tendency to throw away the last syllable of many of the phrases he sings, but his energy and spirit and his skill as a guitarist more than make up for that minor failing, however, the tone of his voice is excellent, he has a good ear for harmonies, and we heard some exquisite and exciting solo riffs from his guitar.
With slightly clearer tone, Dimmick also sings both lead and backup well, and the
insistence of his driving drum lines propel the music strongly and make one wish for a dance floor downstairs--close to the band--in the narrow restaurant.
Fox's bass is the framework which supports and enhances Ross's guitar, and helps Dimmick's drums drive the music, contributing to the overall high intensity and vigor of what quickly becomes a virtual orgy of down and dirty rock and roll.
In sum, this is fun music, well performed, and perfect for summer evenings. The audience the other night was definitely charged up by these three guys' work. dc Motors has been packing them in for about six weeks now, and will be appearing at Mum's on Tuesdays through July. They can also be found the weekend of July 29-30 upstairs at Armadillo's. If you haven't had the chance to hear these guys and get in on the fun, make sure to catch their act. It's a winner.
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