Dollyrots live at Atlas Brew Works review: Even the sound mix was charming

Dollyrots shows were different back before singer/bassist Kelly Ogden began hosting her popular morning show on Little Steven’s Underground Garage. Well, maybe the shows weren’t all that different, but the audience certainly was. Before 2019, Dollyrots audiences were mostly younger – teens and 20-somethings looking to bounce around to some high-energy pop-punk for an hour or two. To – in the words of one Dollyrots tune – “dance like a maniac.”

With the success of her radio show (produced by her husband and guitar player Luis Cabezas), the band now attracts a somewhat older crowd. They may still want to dance, but the maniac now has iffy knees and a touch of lumbago.

That was driven home to me at Washington DC’s Atlas Brew Works on Wednesday night when Kelly, Luis, and drummer Simon Hancock blistered through 14 songs in a little over an hour. I was grooving to the final encore, their best-known song “Because I’m Awesome,” but the young man next to me – I’m guessing he was about half my age – was bouncing up and down like a punked-out version of Mac McClung.

Dollyrots live at Atlas Brew Works review

I think we both had fun.

Fun is the essence of a Dollyrots show. From the dorky/cool on-stage banter of Kelly and Luis to the non-stop explosion of short ultra-catchy tunes, you are virtually guaranteed a good time. The band is wrapping up their annual Summer tour of the East Coast, making their way back down to their home in Florida.

A week ago, they were in nearby Baltimore, before heading to New England. They double-dipped the DC metro area on their way back south and hit the relatively new Atlas Brew Works, where the performance space is literally the same room in which the beer is brewed.

“We’re all gonna be hot together,” Kelly said as they took the stage. And indeed, it was hot. But no one seemed to mind very much as they tore into “Everything” from Daydream Explosion, the Dollyrots 2019 pop-punk gem. They followed it with “My Best Friend’s Hot,” from the 2007 album that launched the wave of success Kelly and Luis have been riding for more than fifteen years now.

Throughout the show, they hit on several old crowd favs. Along with “Because I’m Awesome,” they played their cover of “Brand New Key,” a song perfectly suited to Kelly’s unique vocal blend of Disney Princess and Riot Grrl. Other older tunes like “Twist Me to the Left” and “Satellite” joined up with new tracks like “Night Owl,” “Alligator,” and their latest single "Wrapped in Sunshine,” to offer a tour of almost twenty years of up-tempo earworms.

One of the highlights of a Dollyrots show is “Jackie Chan,” from their debut album in 2004. In recent years, it has become a showcase for the Dollytots, Kelly and Luis’ two kids River and Daisy. The kids have been accompanying their parents on the road as much as possible over the past five years or so. When they started, Daisy, somewhere around three years old, would hide behind Kelly when she came out on stage. Now, all of eight, she takes a seat behind the drum kit, giving Simon a brief rest.

Meanwhile, River, who has been comfortable in the spotlight since he was about five, takes the mike to tell a few jokes and do some yo-yo tricks. Daisy provides well-timed rim shots (for the jokes -  not the tricks.) The two banter just like mom and dad. After several minutes, the grown-ups return to finish “Jackie Chan,” though River and Daisy stay on-stage, providing more yo-yo and a twin drummer sound.

The only thing – aside from the heat – that marred Wednesday’s show was a mix that left Kelly’s vocals buried. The three instruments were bright as can be, but on some of the softer numbers, like “I Just Wanna Play Dead,” Kelly’s vocals were completely swallowed. That can be frustrating at times, but in a sense, it’s also kind of what makes the Dollyrots such a special band.

At a show last week in Cambridge, they tried to connect with their kids (who had yet to join them on the road) back home in Florida. But a mini-crisis involving the family dog seemed to throw the band for a loop. Kelly had to leave the stage briefly to regroup, before regaining her mojo.

Kelly and Luis are a real family of rockers who let audiences in on their quirks and blemishes, and that is one of the things that endears them to their fans. That and the kick-ass music. I don’t think they want the mix to be off, but with the Dollyrots, it almost comes off as charming.

Philly-based Soraia has been providing support on this tour. Another first-rate member of Little Steven’s Wicked Cool Records stable, the five-piece outfit plays a bluesier brand of punk, powered by Travis Smith’s bass and frontwoman ZouZou Mansour’s high-voltage vocals, which filter Joan Jett hard rock through a Janis Joplin blues lens.

The results are impressive. DC locals Curse Words opened Wednesday’s show, tearing through nine tunes in under 25 minutes. All three bands, like the room they played in, were hot.

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