The Dolly Rocker Movement: Tyme is on Their Side
If 1964 was 1968, if Sydney, Australia, was San Francisco, CA and if life was half scored by Strawberry Alarm Clock and half scored by Ennio Morricone, Aussie five-piece outfit The Dolly Rocker Movement would fit right in. However, since none of those conditions are met by existence as we know it (the former being impossible according to the laws of physics), the band’s unique blend of pop rock, bright-hued psychedelia and occasional flourishes of spaghetti western atmospherics is individual enough to make their third album, Our Days Mind the Tyme (Bad Afro), memorable beyond its songs.
I say “if 1964 was 1968” because tunes like “Our Brave New World” and the acoustic-led waltz “A Sound for Two” have an innocent sweetness to them prevalent in A Hard Days Night-era British invasion rock that was lost by the time the sultry lysergisms of late-‘60s hippie rock took over, despite the fact that the keys of Martin Walters inevitably aligns The Dolly Rocker Movement with the latter musically. And although Our Days Mind the Tyme is unquestionably a work of psychedelic rock, its pop sensibility and lack of outward heaviness make it an accessible, friendly album that capitalizes on a retro ideology without overdoing any single aspect of the era it’s emulating. Guitarist Dandy Lyon’s vocals, in sometime trade-off with a female vocalist, as on “Coffin Love,” only enhance the retro atmosphere, calling to mind visions of orange bellbottoms and paisley bandannas the likes of which simply aren’t found in the world as we know it in the 21st Century.
Perhaps even more interesting than this, though, is The Dolly Rocker Movement’s knack for including the prior-alluded Western atmospheres. There’s no doubt that the snare-led march of “Borne with Gills” draws on the work of Morricone, and this can be heard even more on album closer “The Ecstacy Once Told” [sic] — also performed by Dandy Lyon’s one-man project, Los Sundowners — which is directly inspired by Morricone’s “The Ecstasy of Gold” from the score of 1966’s The Good, the Bad and the Ugly. What both tracks do, however, is blend this influence with infectious pop in a way and with an ease rarely done this well. Songs throughout Our Days Mind the Tyme feature acoustic and electric guitar, heavy use of keys and a variety of styles, but the unhinged creativity of the band is reined in by the structured songcraft, and a balance is struck that results in a flow only complemented and enhanced by (relatively) short track lengths. Even though it isn’t necessarily, Our Days Mind the Tyme feels like a quick listen.
And with the stylistic depth The Dolly Rocker Movement has on offer, that quick feeling will only lead to repeat listens. Our Days Mind the Tyme certainly isn’t for those vehemently opposed to retro anything and retro everything, but anyone appreciative of classic underground psych-pop or just looking for something different than straightforward riff after riff might find themselves taken by surprise by the ease with which Walter, Lyon, guitarist Jak Housden, bassist Ricky Drabsch and drummer Chris Rudge seem able to amass cohesion from seemingly disparate sounds. This one is much richer than it initially lets on, so don’t be afraid to give it the multiple sessions you’ll soon find it deserves.
Tags: Australia, Bad Afro, Sydney, The Dolly Rocker Movement
