Red Dons and The Estranged are featured together in an interview published in the December issue of Maximum RockNRoll #355.
Red Dons Interview in Maximum RockNRoll
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Category Archives: Reviews
Razorcake reviews Ausländer
RAZORCAKE ISSUE #71
I’m of the opinion that Red Dons are the best band walking the planet today. I fuggin’ love this band! They have this way of making music that causes everything else around you to melt away and all that is left is the music. You are completely in that moment. It’s a great feeling. The songs soar, race, and have undeniable soul. Catchy without being corny. Insightful without being overwrought. Just fucking great music. The title track is godhead! I’ve listened to it over and over so many times, and have yet to tire of it. Is that even possible? It’s such a great song. A nice, quick tempo and the vocals float over, pulling you into the song, and the chorus burns into your mind. I like how the guitar comes in at the end and builds and closes out with a noisy swirl. The kind of song that makes you want to start a band and take over the world. On the B side is “Mauvaise Foi,” which slows down a little bit with a jerky and bouncy rhythm here and there. When the melody comes in, nothing else matters. I really like the line, “Anointed one, where did I go wrong,” as it leads into the verse. This single is a classic. –Matt Average (Dirtnap, dirtnaprecs.com)
Ausländer
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The New Post Punk
Here is a link to a very cool article by Oliver Sheppard about contemporary post-punk.
Pariah Review
Pariah
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Reviewed by Mickeyslim at KFJC 89.7 FM in California
Red Dons is the primary band from what’s called the Vagabond Sound Music Collective based in Portland, started by Doug Burns (lead vocals/guitar) and Hajji Husayn (bass/vocals). While many folks have been in and out of the band, this collection is Burns, Husayn, Richard Joachim (drums/vocals) and Will Kinser (lead guitar) of Born/Dead (see A library).
Pariah is a very fast, in yo’ face punk track with a flat, repetetive guitar melody in the background. These guys know how to rock out.
It’s Your Right is a GEM! It changes tempo a couple times in the song, and switches from what sounds like three different tracks. They fit together very well. PLAY THIS SONG!
Very versatile for a punk group, these guys are pro.
A Forced Turning Point – MMR Review
By this point, most of you probably already know and / or love RED DONS. For those of you who don’t, this band is comprised of members of the OBSERVERS, CLOROX GIRLS, and BORN/DEAD. As for influences, I can hear X and WIPERS the most, and maybe even some MISSION OF BURMA here and there, but not as artsy. Their overall northwest sound brings it all together nicely. Highly recommended! (BD)
A Forced Turning Point
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Se Foi: Mastered
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Check out these Blogs
Razorcake Podcast
Photo by Mateus Mondini
Check out the new Razorcake Podcast. It features the Red Dons, Tranzmitors, Mean Jeans, Defect Defect, Crusades and a bunch of other great bands.
http://www.razorcake.org/site/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=24577
RED DONS: Fake Meets Failure: LP
Lightning. Pure, white-hot, hot-streaking, sizzling, punk lightning. It’s punk that people who’ve “given up,” “don’t get,” or “moved on” from punk have the highest percentage of liking. It’s just so obviously scorching, beautiful, and crackling music, regardless of genre. And I was reluctant to admit that lightning could strike twice. One of the driving forces behind Red Dons is Doug Burns, the lead singer and guitarist of the untouchable every-member-made-it-greater band, The Observers. The Red Dons first LP, Death to Idealism, while it had its bright spots, sounded covered in blankets, a little restricted and restrained, a little awkward, a little tentative. Getting used to new skin. Not so with Fake Meets Failure. The burka’s ripped off, faces are revealed, and those faces are screaming. Analogous to the transformation of the Vicious to Masshysteri or Sexy to Future Virgins, it took a little time from the dusk of one band to the dawn of another, but the newer band, exhibiting similar genetic code to its predecessor, has developed its own personality, its own habits, and has accomplished what many, including myself, didn’t think was possible: release more music that stands shoulder-to-shoulder with some of their own legacy’s finest work. One of the best punk records of 2010, hands down. –Todd (Deranged)
Fake Meets Failure Review in Razorcake
Photo by Mateus Mondini
Okay… so this is the new Red Dons LP. I should start by saying that Red Dons could very well be the best punk rock band on Earth. Death to Idealism is without question one of my favorite records of the modern era, due in no small part to its unique (and not universally loved) production. But mostly it is the songs—logical extensions of The Observers melancholic take on ‘80s East Coast punk rock, with a deeper injection of the East Bay Ray or Mike Palm lead style—that seat Red Dons atop the heap, and Fake Meets Failure boasts the band’s best songs to date. The production on the record is noticeably more aggressive than that of its predecessor, and the songs themselves are both catchier and angrier. Whether intentional or not, Doug even channels Jello on a few spoken lines on the record, perfectly complimenting the ominous, middle-eastern scale leads found throughout. Lyrically, Red Dons remain painfully jarring, both in- and outwardly, and Doug’s vocals are more haunting and pure than ever. In a year already full of great punk rock records, this is by far the best I’ve heard so far, and it’s going to be incredibly difficult to surpass. Phenomenal. –Dave Williams (Deranged)