_{By Sam Andersen}

One of my favorite things in the whole world is listening to local music and genuinely getting really excited. This was the case with Live and Intimate: An Evening With Molotov Dress. You ever listen to a live album/EP that makes you wish you were there? Yeah, this is one of those. Molotov Dress is a cocktail of post punk and garage rock with some disco salt on the rim for good measure. There’s a lot to be excited about here.

I’m not just excited about this music because it’s confident and well put together, but also because they don’t sound like they’re from SLC. To me, they sound as if they’re playing the last of a three-show residency at The Windmill in London. I feel like they’d fit into that scene so well. I’m also excited because of the sheer number of influences I can hear in each song. Inevitably, every local band is going to tell you that they are a mix of genres/influences (and they are to some degree), but I truly feel like Molotov Dress can say this with their chest.

After opening the EP with the hack-and-slash punk track “Great Commission,” the band transitions into “The Chaplain.” The track features a super sick, yet danceable drum beat and, like most of the other tracks, bears a heavy resemblance to the work of Gang of Four. The vocals are panicked and impassioned, almost like a p*ssed off David Byrne. In many cases on this EP, this nuanced vocal delivery really glues everything together and makes it shine.

The next track, “Bypass,” really made me think that the band was really Shame in disguise. Seriously this track reminded me so much of that band. You know how I mentioned earlier that I wished I was at this show? This is one of those tracks making me wish I was there. I personally loved how the fuzzed-out guitar died at the end. Thing sounded like a ZVEX Fuzz Factory with a bad power supply (in a good way of course).

My favorite track on the EP (the “Jetty” instrumental gets an honorable mention for the sample at the end) is “White Tile.” Everything about this song is energetic and catchy: the rowdy combination of the disco beat, the pounding guitar riff, the unison hits from the band, and most of all, the vocals. The singer delivers lines with such ferocity that he loses breath at one point. The hook for the song is sick: “it’s a nice house, take your shoes off.”

This EP is by no means perfect. The production isn’t the most amazing thing you’ve ever heard, and there are little mistakes here and there (I mean, it is a live recording). But I think this was a huge part of the appeal of this band for me, and why they have such huge potential. It’s evident right from the get-go that Molotov Dress are very unconcerned with how they are perceived. Most bands will have to tell you that, but Molotov Dress doesn’t have to say a word. By the time they start playing, you know it already. 

Make sure to follow Molotov Dress on Instagram. You can listen to “White Tile” below!