Dust Jacket Dispatch

Paul Pfau & The Dimestore Band - 7

I fell out of the Maryland/DC local music scene at the end of college. My favorite bands all dissolved over time, mostly due to the band members all trading the uncertainty of a music career for a degree (which is one hell of a sensible decision to make, by the way). The ones who stuck around tended to stall out and fall apart for all the usual reasons a band calls it quits. It wasn’t until I caught a funk-filled performance from Paul Pfau & The Dimestore Band that I decided that local music still has life left in it. Their new release, 7, showcases—you guessed it—seven rolling, grooving tracks that deserve some of that coveted space still remaining on your iPod.

The opener, Mad at Love, will walk you through the basics of a PPDB tune. The smoke-tinged, sometimes growling sound of Paul Pfau’s voice, a recurring lead-guitar jam that you’ll find yourself humming throughout the day, and a tightly connected bass and drums section. It’s a song that’s easy to get lost in as it floats through its opening verse, until the band kindly kicks things up and reminds you that they still know how to rock, too.

Water Into Wine has some nice, splashy notes from the keys and a lively bass line that surfaces in all the right places. It’s an even-keeled, head bobbing number. The chorus, a call and response of “Can’t turn water into wine”, is one of those songs that is destined to be a crowd-pleaser as their fan base continues to expand.

For those of you who might be asking, “Does this album have any grooves specifically for a candlelit night?” the answer is “yes.” Track five, Cheat, takes a few cues from the smooth sounds of the R&B greats and presents a track full of hot guitar licks, sultry vocals, and rolling drums. Mr. Barry White himself would approve.

The two end tracks, Bad Little Girl and Senses, move things back out of the bedroom and back into more dance floor friendly territory. They still bring the funk but add a little more fire to the mix. Senses has a ripping guitar solo at the end, one that undoubtedly gets a few extra bars (if not minutes) during a live show.

The 7 album gives you some potent, portable Paul Pfau & The Dimestore Band. That being said, they’re a band that absolutely thrives in a live environment. They know how to jam and they know how to entertain a crowd. Catch them next on October 21st at Dante’s Bar out in Frostburg, MD.

—Written by Grant Goodman