Song Spotlight: The Dollyrots' Get On This Ride (a night at The Echo)

I believe the first time I came across The Dollyrots was at the now closed The Lava Lounge on January 27th, 2007. I was part of the Kiss or Kill scene though I arrived towards the tail end of it. In 2012, a documentary was made of the scene, which you can see the trailer for here. When I came onto the scene, everyone would mention The Dollyrots. Eventually, I asked, who are The Dollyrots. I was told they were one of the biggest bands in the Kiss or Kill scene, but were constantly on tour so they didn't get the chance to play Kiss or Kill that often. I finally got to catch them and the night has always stuck with me. It wasn't a Kiss or Kill night, but it was a night filled with Kiss or Kill fans. I still remember guitarist Luis Cabezas leaping off the stage and right at me. Who can forget something like that. Oh mercy, I was sold on the band from that point onwards. 

The Dollyrots at The Echo

Last year, the opportunity came up to cover The Dollyrots for US Rocker Music, but unfortunately, I was covering Child Seat's album release show that same night, which you can read here. Anyways, I remembered that unfortunately conflict. This year rolled around and I noticed that they were playing a July 3rd show at The Echo. I was like, hey US Rocker Music, let's cover The Dollyrots this year. You can read the article here.

The Dollyrots at The Echo

The Dollyrots dedicated their song "Jackie Chan" to the Kiss or Kill scene. I do wonder how many people in the audience were scratching their heads about that one, but it does indicate what a close knit scene it was and how fondly people remember that era of music. During their brief intermission before the three song encore, The Dollyrots brought up their kids to the stage: River (age 11) and Daisy (age 8). River went to the front of the stage, while Daisy hung out by the drum set. River is a big fan of the yo-yo (interestingly, per Wikipedia the yo-yo has been around since the Greeks). A long time member of Kiss or Kill, Mark McBride -- a yo-yo master who wrote the book The Yonomicon: An Enlightened Tome of Yoyo Tricks -- was invited to the stage where he performed yo-yo tricks with River that delighted the crowd. 

The Dollyrots at The Echo

"Get On This Ride" is their most recent release. The song is about not knowing what's going to happen, but going for it. The song hits all the right beats of their punk "bubblegum" rock. It'll please the hearts of long time fans (like myself) who grew up with "Because I'm Awesome" and haven't stopped having faith in this band to deliver the hooks. The song ends with: 

You know, you know, you know you're going to miss me.

The Dollyrots setlist: My Best Friend’s Hot. Everything. Night Owl. Feed Me, Pet Me. I Know How to Party. Alligator. City of Angels. Brand New Key. I Just Wanna Play Dead. Dance Like a Maniac. Get On This Ride. Jackie Chan. Encores: Satellite. Twist Me to the Left. Because I’m Awesome.