danny & the darleans: bug out

As one-third of The Gories, singer/guitarist Danny Kroha cemented himself in rock history for his contributions to a groundbreaking and influential band. In between the Gories' 1992 breakup and their soft return in 2009, Kroha fronted Danny & the Darleans (amongst other projects), centering around his feral howls and masterful guitar clanging. Bug Out, their sophomore album, refines some of the savage bombast of the Gories while ditching almost all of the glam camp of Kroha's other long-running act, the Demolition Doll Rods. Backed by fireball drummer Richie Wohlfeil (Detroit Cobras, Mother Whale, Saturday Looks Good to Me, and many others) and bassist Colleen Burke (once keyboardist for Chicago art-punks We Regazzi), they're something of a party band. The tunes are often lighthearted, fun, and rowdy, but there is also an undercurrent of science fiction dread. Apocalyptic party rock makes sense from a trio of Detroit shadow dwellers, and the good times are never too far from the hard times over the course of this mono masterpiece.