We Just Want to Play (Yeah!)

D.I.Y. It's a term that you've probably seen throughout your life applied to various ventures from home improvement, to film making, to music. In fact, you've probably seen the term applied to music quite a bit in recent times. This is with good reason of course, as there is quite an impressive crop of bands employing lo-fi recording techniques, fuzzy guitars, effects pedals, and all manner of other wonderful things that help create interesting pop songs.

Puppy Dog play no electric instruments. They play stand up drums, glockenspiel, and tambourine. They shriek lyrics about mythical beings. I'm fairly certain that they don't have a single song that reaches the two minute mark. They are a breath of fresh air.

I have a soft spot for watching bands in the process of developing their sound, and the way that Puppy Dog seem to be going about it is pretty charming. For instance, they added the glockenspiel to their repertoire after watching the Tartans use the instrument in their songs. They also enlisted the help of Tartans' drummer Lon to mic their instruments, and record their songs - So, o.k., not entirely D.I.Y., but certainly D.I.Y. in spirit - I'm quite intrigued to see what shape Puppy Dog's music will take in the future. Perhaps they will flesh out their songs with a bit more structure, melody, and length. Perhaps they will continue to create the ultra breif, and beautifully odd song sketches that they are offering now. Either way, I think this is a band to keep an eye on...