Review & photos by Rachel Jablonski
Despite the indescribable music and wild and crazy antics of Dog Fashion Disco, one aspect of the band has consistently remained. Line-up changes galore throughout the band’s career, the constant typically has been that, in addition to rock solid frontman Todd Smith, at any given time there has been at least one other original DFD member in the band as well. Smith and keyboardist Jeff Siegel are the two that have stuck with and most heavily carried the band over the years. WIth this in mind, walking up the old, creaky wooden stairs leading to the tiny, tiny setup of the Reverb, I was surprised to immediately see the DFD guys huddling in a small corner serving as a merch booth without the presence of Siegel. But still two originals remained, the extremely dedicated Todd Smith now accompanied by original Dog Fashion Disco drummer, John Ensminger.
A
small stage, seemingly about as big as a handicapped parking space, faced
a weathered room filled 3/4ths full of small tables, chairs, a bar, and
an off balance pool table. The remaining space was slight for standing
room. The stage setup was not optimal for the Dog Fashion Disco energy
I have seen live multiple times, however, the band sufficed. With the
amount of room allotted, Smith was cramped on stage and about the only
movement he could accomplish was texting on his cell phone, which he did
during a guitar solo. Yet, the performance was enjoyable as I bobbed my
head from side to side like a little school girl to classic songs off Anarchists of Good Taste, “Baby Satan,” and a handful
of tracks from the band’s latest release, Adultery. Keyboardist
Tim Swanson from Chicago was a more than adequate fill-in for Siegel with
his funny faces and energetic, unceasing motion. “Cedar Rapids!
Uh, Cedar Falls… wherever we are!” Smith exclaimed, unintentionally
referring to the wrong Cedar city. But it doesn’t really matter
because, wherever they may be, Dog Fashion Disco is always a surprising,
unique listen.