If you hang around the indie scene long enough, you’re bound to see a few bands break through. As a Philly Native, I witnessed the War On Drugs rise to stardom, and it wasn’t pretty. Like most, TWOD had to persevere through years of half empty shows before they finally started getting the recognition and attention they deserved. Most bands in this situation quit, but TWOD pulled through and actually freaking made it. For others though, like The Districts, it almost looked like their ascension was destined from day one. The Districts, unlike TWOD, connected with a passionate young local manager who advised some informed decisions, and the band as a whole made a lot of smart choices.
Dummy, much like the Districts, appear to have the same affinity for smart choices. Their debut single “Suddenly,” a radio worthy indie rock anthem, was accompanied by a full scale production music video worthy of the prime slot on MTVU, a bold move for an unsigned indie starting from scratch. The move paid off, Dummy’s video shot to 10k plus, and their Spotify also got heavy attention. The comments are packed with adoration and love. They basically got overnight attention that bands fight years for. How’d they do it? We think the answer is simple. They had a good marketing plan, and they are actually totally awesome.
With Covid woes continuing to cripple touring and live performance opportunities, instead of following up with a full album, Dummy recently dropped another single called “Afterthought,” a more melodic indie pop extension of their first single. The two songs together give you a good impression of what Dummy might be capable of. Fans of Surf Curse, Enjoy, HUNNY, Bad Suns, and the 1975 will absolutely love Dummy, but we think ultimately Dummy will be recognized for their own sound.
The best indie rock is rooted in punk, hardcore, emo, and the like. Dummy is no exception. Their members grew out of that scene, and Dummy is their more polished art project. Much like The Talking Heads, Dummy could be the more artistic derivative of their own scene. Their writing is really clever and smart, their movements pull at your emotions, their arrangements are unconventional but they make sense. They are insanely catchy, so much so that you don’t even realize they didn’t return to the part of the song that you adopted as your traditional idea of a chorus. Best of all, their music is made with guitars, and when they start playing live, that is going to pay dividends.
Dummy hasn’t played live yet, but I have a good feeling that they are going to blow the roof off. Their recordings are tight, and you get a strong live feel from their warm dirty tube toned guitars. Electronic music has been taking over. Dummy does have an appropriate well balanced hint of soft pad keys that set some atmosphere in their music, but overall Dummy is bringing rock back in the best way.
Their single “Suddenly” has heavy distraught youth vibes that made rock an international sensation when it first took hold of the world in the 1950’s. Rock was inherently rebellious but the labels made it soft prompting the real rockers to create punk. Dummy doesn’t appear to be playing by any rules, and their disregard for convention makes them exciting and real… and smart. Dummy is clever, and we hope their career takes off.
Checkout the video for “Suddenly.” You can also hear Dummy and all of our favorite up and coming artists on our Best New Indie playlist.
The Wild Is Calling 