The Dentists - Dressed - Cassette

If you really liked the kind of breezy post-punk/indie British sound typified by the Smiths or XTC but couldn't stand Morrissey and wished Andy Partridge wouldn't try so hard, the solution is the Dentists' Dressed. It's no knock against the Dentists' abilities to describe them in such a way -- anything but. What makes the group so enjoyable, and the focus of a low-key but persistent enough cult (consider Lida Husik, who covered one of their songs in later years), is its knack for the kind of sweet guitar catchiness beloved by power pop fanatics worldwide. But unlike any number of Beatles wannabes, the Dentists are not merely actually from the U.K., and aren't concerned with sounding straitjacketed in a sound defined by Rubber Soul or the like. There's an amiable roughness and elegant chiming both at the heart of the band's sound, bespeaking everything from the ghost of the Byrds to polite but effective rave-ups, not to mention just enough energy from punk. Dressed, collecting the cream of the band's slew of '80s releases, makes for a fine introduction to a band unafraid of upbeat feelings but not without portraits of melancholy and edginess when desired (check out "Dawn Overdone" for a fine example). Not to mention quirkiness -- what else are song titles like "Tony Bastable v. John Noakes" and "Just Like Oliver Reed" meant to suggest? Michael Murphy's singing is clean and clear, not sticky, held back in the mix just enough but not buried in it, while his guitar work and Robert Collins' work carries everything along song for song. Add in the spare but sharp work of bassist Mark Matthews and, on most tracks, Ian Smith's drumming, and the result is perfection. If the very first song, "Strawberries Are Growing in My Garden (And It's Wintertime)," connects, then Dressed will be worth every note.

Song List
1. Strawberries Are Growing In My Garden (And It's Wintertime)
2. She Dazzled Me With Basil
3. I Had An Excellent Dream
4. Strange Way To Go About Things, A
5. Chainsaw The Horse
6. Peppermint Dreams
7. Just Like Oliver Reed
8. Turquoise Castle, The
9. I Can See Your House From Up Here
10. Pallino
11. Dawn Overdone
12. Writhing On The Shagpile
13. Flowers Around Me
14. I'm Not The Devil
15. Tony Bastable V Joan Noakes
16. You Make Me Say It Somehow
17. Mary Won't Come Out To Play
18. Kinder Still
19. Little Engineers Set, The
20. Tangerine
21. Arrow Points To The Spot, The
22. One Of Our Psychedelic Beakers Is Missing


The Dentists' 1992 release, DRESSED, is a compilation of the band's mid-to-late-'80s singles and EPs (which had previously been collected on the vinyl-only SOME PEOPLE ARE ON THE PITCH and BEER BOTTLE AND BANISTER SYMPHONIES). It's also the belated American debut of the quartet, which hails from Kent, England. Over the course of these 22 tracks, which begin with the classic "Strawberries Are Growing in My Garden (And It's Wintertime)," singer Mick Murphy, guitarist Bob Collins, bassist Mark Matthews, and drummer Rob Grigg perfect a brilliant synthesis of '60s-inspired psych-pop and '80s-style indie guitar jangle. The results include playful gems like "Just Like Oliver Reed," "You Took Me By Surprise," and the swirling "She Dazzled Me With Basil."