Today we're featuring another new release from the always excellent La Escalera Records. Today I'm reviewing San Diego based four piece The Dodges new EP Roll With. The Dodges, who consist of Mike Hertel (guitar and vocals), Kyle Porter (drums), Alex Snyder (guitar) and Donnie Cardenas (bass), play a great mix of indie and infectious pop punk music. Enough intro now, let's check out Roll With.
First up is the song Chasing Amy. This is by far the shortest song on the album and I must admit I found it kind of strange that they'd open with such a short song. Then the opening guitars and those pounding drums bring the song to a crashing opening and I know exactly why this was picked as the opener. There's an immediate energy in the song that has you wanting to hear more and more. Mike Hertel's vocals really stand out. They're quite clean in sound with just a hint of the punk gruff about it. This little hint of gruff really helps add the emotion into the track. The second track is titled Old Habits. Old Habits is about trying not to let yourself slip and go back to your old bad ways. This song is indie pop punk at its absolute finest. The jangly guitars stood out quickly as do some more pounding drums. Midway through, the band really show off some great musicianship with an extended instrumental sections which include a kick-ass guitar solo. It's superbly catchy as well and you'll pick up on the lyrics at a great speed so you'll be singing along with the band before the song has even finished its first run through.
Dilemmas is quick in getting started. When listening to the song I was really reminded of long running rock act The Goo Goo Dolls. The song is about making bad decisions constantly and becoming known for it. The song features yet another fantastic guitar solo that helps to break the song up a bit. This really helps given its lengthy running time of over four minutes. The next song, Ordinary Joke, is another that goes past the four minute mark. This one is just fantastic. Everything about it seems much harder than its predecessor. The guitars are strummed harder, the drums are hit harder and there is a great amount of attitude in Hertel's vocal. There is also a great amount of energy in the song that keeps you into the song and by its ending you are almost breathless.
The fifth song on the EP is titled The Hits You Dodge. It begins with a great rolling drumbeat and honestly superb drumming throughout by Kyle Porter. He provides an strong back beat to a high tempo pop punk song about happily being different from the crowd. Something that really does set The Dodges apart from their many of their contemporaries is the amazing skill that they show with their instruments. So far on the EP it's like they're trying to outdo the guitar solo from the previous song. The penultimate song on the EP is Get Serious. That Goo Goo Dolls similarity returns here with more high energy indie pop punk. There is also quite an upbeat feeling to the song that adds to its infectious charm. Then we have the final song Thrive which actually begins with a bit of a dark tone. It's about taking your chance for excellence and not being held back. I love this message and I love this song. The song does feel more restrained than the other songs on Roll With but of course it finishes with another great solo.
Roll With is a lovely slice of indie pop punk. It shows excellent musicianship and some great songwriting. It also doesn't really sound much like anything else in its genre so there is a great freshness to it that really makes it stand out. Looking forward to big things from The Dodges.
Stream and download Roll With here: https://laescalerarecords.bandcamp.com/album/roll-with
Like The Dodges here: https://www.facebook.com/Thedodgesband/
This review was written by Colin Clark.
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