Short Dogs Grow - Quit While You're Young 12"

 
Lil' Hunka Gold (2025)

Short Dogs Grow sent me this 12" of theirs which is the first release that the band has done since the late 1980s.  They were/are based out of San Francisco and put out a couple of LPs on Rough Trade once upon a time.  This new EP has two of the four original members, Tom Pitts and Carmela Thompson, joined by a new drummer.  

I wasn't super familiar with the band's original work, so I checked out a few songs and they were pretty fast, kind of fuzzy guitar rock that isn't really out of place in the mid to late 80s Bay Area scene.  This new EP leans on a lot more of an rootsy rock and roll sound, with songs that don't have the same sort of mph as the older ones I listened to.  These are decidedly mid tempo and while they lean towards that alt country sound a bit, have a little more aggression and punk influence.

Main singer Tom Pitts' vocals are definitely an acquired taste, and thus far, I have not acquired that taste.  They've got a warble to them that really jumps out from the music in a way that I personally find distracting, though others may find to be the highlight of the group.  I know a fair amount of people who can't get into Leatherface because they don't like Frankie Stubbs' vocals, yet for me, they are one of the main reasons I love that band so much.

This isn't bad, it's a solid EP with well written songs.  If you like some root in your music, might be up your alley more than mine.

Short Dogs Grow - Quit While You're Young:
https://shortdogsgrow.bandcamp.com/album/quit-while-youre-young