Dum Dum Girls / Only in Dreams - SP950

On several levels, Dum Dum Girls’ second full-length Only in Dreams is a great leap forward for a gifted songwriter and an equally gifted band—it’s heavy, deeply personal stuff and surely unprecedented for this style of music. “The first record was basically the first songs I’d ever written,” says band-leader Dee Dee, “and I was thinking nostalgically about being a teenager. This record, it was pretty much impossible not to write about very recent, very real things.” Very real things indeed: Dee Dee wrote “Hold Your Hand” immediately after her mother (the pretty lady on the cover of both the Dum Dum Girls’ self-titled 2009 debut EP and their 2010 debut album I Will Be) was diagnosed with what turned out to be a fatal illness, and it’s one of several songs on Only in Dreams that unsparingly trace her mom’s passing. Other songs spell out the emotional toll of separation from one’s lover, something Dee Dee had to deal with while she and her husband (Brandon Welchez of the acclaimed noise-pop band Crocodiles) pursued their own tour schedules.

Only in Dreams more than fulfills the promise of 2011’s acclaimed and fast-selling He Gets Me High EP. It retains Dum Dum Girls’ signature blend of the girl-gang eyeliner punk of the Shangri-Las, the trashy propulsion of the Cramps, and the moody atmospherics of Mazzy Star, but for the first time, all four Dum Dum Girls play and sing on the album. Now the harmonies have more depth, Jules plays her own distinctive guitar leads, and the Bambi (bass)/Sandy (drums) rhythm section powers the music like a vintage V-8 engine. Best of all, tons of time on the road—including two massively successful headlining tours—have molded Dum Dum Girls into a very formidable rock & roll band, giving the music an undeniable force.

And now that power and glory is showcased by full-on studio production—while I Will Be was recorded at home and modestly spiffed up in a studio by legendary pop maestro Richard Gottehrer (Blondie, Go-Go’s), Only in Dreams was recorded at Josh Homme’s Pink Duck Studios, and Gottehrer again produced, this time with Sune Rose Wagner from the Raveonettes.

Only in Dreams represents a musical evolution for Dum Dum Girls and a personal one for Dee Dee, and that’s no coincidence. “I’m for real,” she says. “We all are. I’m really passionate about this, it’s all I know. And maybe we’ve just grown up a bit-or grown out a bit. There’s some weight to what we do, and a pure intent, and I think that comes across on this album.”

If you pre-order Only in Dreams, you’ll receive a limited-edition seven-inch single featuring an edit of “Coming Down” b/w “Crystal Baby.” That’s not the only bit of good news—we pressed a whole bunch on black vinyl, but if you order through us, you get your seven-inch on white vinyl. -And more good news with the colored vinyl: if you pre-order through us, your copy of Only in Dreams will be on light pink vinyl!- (We are now out of pink vinyl.) Both of these things is a “while supplies last” sort of thing, so order now!

Released: September 27, 2011

Dum Dum Girls / Chickens in Love - 4084092

CHICKENS IN LOVE is a full-length album written by 826LA’s students and recorded by a variety of well known musicians.

Each song was written by 826LA students in Songwriting with The Submarines, a workshop led by singer/songwriters John Dragonetti and Blake Hazard of The Submarines. Not only that, but each student-written song has been covered by L.A. based artists such as Fiona Apple, She & Him, Cold War Kids, Tim & Eric, and many more!

Choose from student bands Hot Fudge, Pig Power, The Gummy Bears, The Peeps, The Shaking Churros, The Taco Shells, Kimi, Shizuku, and Xena, Jennifer Lopez, SLAP ENT., The 826LA Band 1, The 826LA Band 2, and The Weirdoz.

Help keep our free programs for L.A. youth strong by purchasing this unique album!

The artists involved are: She and Him, Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeroes, Fiona Apple with Jon Brion and The Punch Brothers, Dum Dum Girls, Cold War Kids, Tim and Eric, Crystal Antlers, Summer Darling, The Pity Party, The Growlers, Submarines, and The Happy Hollows.

Released: November 16, 2010

Dum Dum Girls / Blissed Out Cassette - 4084095

Limited Edition Blissed Out Cassette on Art Fag Records—blue cassette!

Released: July 13, 2010

Dum Dum Girls / I Will Be - SP840

I Will Be is the debut full-length by the Dum Dum Girls. Produced by Dee Dee and Richard Gottehrer (Strangeloves, Voidoids, Blondie, The Go-Gos and, more recently, The Raveonettes), I Will Be is neither lo-fi nor too polished. Just under thirty minutes with eleven songs, it’s a short tribute to love, fun and the classic pop form of the ’60s girl groups and early punk rockers.

Released: March 30, 2010