Sincere apologies for the complete lack of updation within the past couple of months. Being a working musician, I have been a bit preoccupied with getting my first full length album recorded and mixed. Wanting to focus every last bit of creative energy into that pretty much meant that I did not have much thought about this blog during that time. However, I don’t want this baby to disappear into the black hole of cyber space. Therefore, ATKA? is back!
In honor of our (hopefully) welcome return, I would like to take an opportunity to talk about one of the better live bands I have ever had the pleasure to see. If you are into rock that doesn’t take it self far too seriously and have a flare for Zappa-esque ideology and They Might Be Giants-esque morals being preached by Weezer, there’s a chance you would love the hell out of Dr. Pants.
My introduction to the world of Dr. Pants happened as I was traveling around Oklahoma City in my (now totaled) white Chevy Aveo listening to the (now defunct) Spy FM station. A song came on that caught my attention right away. It was the kind of rock that I didn’t hear too much of in recent years. The lyrics were cute and poppy but were delivered with what seemed like a lot of heart. The riff was relentless and by the last chorus, I was singing along with the window rolled down for everyone to hear. The song was “Sarsaparilla Girl” by Dr. Pants. The lead-off track from their 2006 album, Gardening in A Tornado was enough to make me drive home as fast as legally possible in order to find out as much about the band as I could about this band.
Check out the "Sarsaparilla Girl" video here:
I was pleasantly surprised to discover that they were a local Oklahoma City band and had been around off and on since the early 2000s. Their brand of “nerd power groove rock” has earned them a rather devoted following, myself now included.
Somewhere along the way, lead singer/songwriter/guitarist David Broyles and I became friends (coincidentally, David co-wrote one of the songs on my newly completed album) and, as the host of The Mixtape Jones Radio Show on JiveWired.com, he has shown a great deal of support for my music.
Therefore, I feel inclined to brag on Dr. Pants a little bit. Having recently been awarded the People's Choice Woody award by the Oklahoma Gazette, it seems I'm not alone.
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| Gardening In A Tornado released 2006 on Little Weasel Records |
Since I have discovered them, I have made an effort to include at least one of their songs on each and every mix CD I have made for someone (and I make quite a few). In addition to “Sarsaparilla Girl”, the ‘Gardening...’ album also offers such tasty rock treats as “Doppelganger Rock” and “Away From This” to the delightful white boy rap about “Donuts”.
With each album and EP release, their musical growth becomes more and more evident. 2008‘s Cusack/Loggins EP has taken up a lot of space in their current live setlists with crowd favorites “If I Were John Cusack”, “Bootyfest”, and the irresistible “Kenny Loggins” (a song actually centered around a somewhat inside joke regarding the title of a long lost Loggins album).
Most recently, Broyles and company have taken on the task of releasing a complete album as four separate EPs, the first of which is appearing within the following months. Already, insiders are claiming that this shall be the best work that the band has done yet. Having heard some of the new material in demo and live form, I can vouch for them.
Rock on, indeed.
For more info on Dr. Pants or to join their mailing list, just CLICK HERE!
EDIT:
I feel obligated to inform the readers that when I said The Spy FM was defunct, I only meant the actual FM station. The Spy is still available on the world wide web and they still play Dr. Pants religiously. Check it out HERE.
Great article!
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