Siss are a new band — they’ve got their first demo up and are about to make their live debut; yup, that’s new-band stuff — but you might recall vocalist Laura Dolan and guitarist Ross Dolan from Cincinnati-based classic heavy rockers Electric Citizen. That band’s own debut full-length, Sateen (review here), came out a decade ago (wow.) through RidingEasy Records, who would also stand behind their two subsequent LPs, 2016’s Higher Time (review here) and 2018’s Helltown (review here), the latter of which remains their most recent offering.

In addition to their Dolan contingent, Electric Citizen was a full four-piece featuring bassist Nicholas Vogelpohl and drummer Nathan Wagner, while you’ll notice that with Siss, the configuration is… a full four-piece featuring bassist Nicholas Vogelpohl and drummer Nathan Wagner! Yeah, it’s the same band in terms of the players involved, and obviously some things will have carried over from one band to the next in no small part as a result of that. But at least based on the two streaming tracks “New Drag” and “Prospector,” the vibe I get is more like a reset. Helltown was a bold stepout stylistically, so maybe they thought it was better to leave the progression of Electric Citizen where it was and start over with a new name and new, rawer, more garage-style ideas. I’ll be interested to hear where doing so takes them.

If you’re in town and also curious, the first Siss show takes place this weekend in Cincinnati — info is below. Get video if you go. In the meantime, I don’t know what the band’s plans are as regards touring or making albums or what their preferred deli order is or any of it, but at least in my head, you don’t just drop an established name for no reason, so Siss‘ emergence out of Electric Citizen is notable even before you get to the songs sounding cool.

And speaking of that, here’s this:

Demos are live on bandcamp! More streaming platforms coming soon. Demos Recorded, Mixed, and Mastered by Brian Niesz.

Tracklisting:
1. New Drag 03:22
2. Prospector 03:38

First Show Saturday, Aug 31 at MOTR Pub Cincinnati with The Harlequins.

Siss are:
Ross Dolan: guitar
Laura Dolan: vocals
Nicholas Vogelpohl: bass
Nathan Wagner: drums

https://www.facebook.com/sisstheband
https://www.instagram.com/sissband
https://siss.bandcamp.com/

Siss, Demo (2024)