Oh Dang
Big Dogs
***and1/2 out of *****
The five piece New Orleans based outfit Oh Dang's new release, Big Dogs, mixes 90's alt-rock with alt-country, all supporting the engaging male/female lead vocals that draw the listener in. The groups second full length effort finds them expanding, evolving the the band's sound.
The trio of singer/guitarist Tyler Ryan, vocalist Harper Browman and multi-instrumentalist Eric Anduha brought onboard drummer Eric Martinez and bassist Dylan Grove to push their alt-country offerings from their 2024 self-titled debut in a more rock direction for Big Dogs.
The opening single "OKC" kicks off the album with fuzzy guitars and poppy alt-rock in the vein of the Soup Dragons while "No Worries If Not" has touches of Weezer flowing throughout. Oh Dang are also clearly influenced by the Nirvana/Pixies as "Harddown" starts easy then rocks hard while the bass rumbling "Homewreckers" feels very inspired by the Seattle based legends.
"Never Enough" fits in this same mold, but adds in a violin as Oh Dang manages to incorporate their alt-country roots. The acoustic "Fires" uses great vocals and a country tinge to float along while "Wrong Size Shoes" is very solid, harmonica influenced, heartland rock. With recent success of groups like Wednesday and Ratboys, Oh Dang are in good company with this genre blurring.
While lyrically the songs don't dig too deep, the dreamy and echoing "Give Me Love" is haunting and it is the vocal pairing of Ryan and Browman which elevates things on the excellently swaying/yearning "Year After Year". Album closer "Pendulum" may be the best of the bunch as the group stretches out a bit and let's all of their influences color the majestic track.
This vocal combination and willingness to blend genres makes Oh Dang an engaging listen as the recently expanded band start to come into their own on Big Dogs.
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