DUMBELLS - Up Late With LP

Mind Meld Records (a Total Punk Subsidiary)

Back with our fifth release on the slow moving always grooving Mind Meld Records. I thought about releasing this on Total Punk just to get a rise out of all you dunderheads who complain about the Retail Simps punk quotient but this a truly fantastic album and don't want it to get lost in the "what is punk discussion" rather than being taken for what it is. An infectious pop album full of quirky changes, interesting instrumentation, and beautiful harmonies. An album I find more to love in with each listen. I'll leave the rest of the gushing to Nic...

"Dumbells are my favourite new band to see live in Sydney since, well, when live music started happening again. They embody a quality apparent in many of my favourite Sydney groups, where pre-existing music scenes blur and new alignments form. Whatever forces brought Sam Wilkinson (Shrapnel, Sachet) , Jen May(Tee Vee Repairmann), Ben Schattner (Shrapnel, VIPP) and Ishka Edmeades (Tee Vee Repairmann, Satanic Togas....) together has unlocked a certain hard-to-describe quality of rock ‘n’ roll I personally yearn for.

It’s hard to quantify this particular quality of r’n’r without a long list of nerdish reference points, but I think it’s how non-aligned with any particular sub-genre, or era, or tacked on caricature-ish style they are in their approach to amateur rock music that makes them not just another band in the endless sea of music. 

On one hand, a child, or even a Pavement fan could immediately be wooed by the immediacy of the hooks, melodies and charismatic group dynamic expertly, but not too expertly, captured on ‘Up Late With Dumbells’. On the other hand, cold hearted cynics will have their record collector cockles warmed by a feeling akin to discovering Big Star’s Radio City or Thomas Jefferson Slave Apartment’s Bait & Switch. 

Dumbells cross examine the classic / independent rock dialectic in a manner that’s musically informed, but more importantly intuitive. They aren’t in reaction to, or embracement of, any micro-trend but embrace the big picture of being in a humble rock band.  Dumbells do shit with their guitars, bass, drums and voices that we all know feel good, natural and exciting, but maybe in a world rife with self consciousness and cynicism, often get lost in the sauce." - Nic Warnock (Repressed Records, R.I.P Society)

cassette version available from
chruesimuesi-records.bandcamp.com