Dash Rip Rock

Dash Rip Rock fuse punk, rockabilly, hard rock, country, and dirty boogie into an explosive sound that has kept the New Orleans outfit among the South’s most durable cowpunk outfits, sustaining raucous, perspiration-heavy gigs and defiant, high-volume albums more than twenty-five years after the group’s launch. The band took its name from a brief yet memorable figure on the sitcom The Beverly Hillbillies and was formed in 1984 by guitarist-vocalist Bill Davis, the lone member to remain throughout its existence. The original lineup paired Davis with bassist Ned “Hoaky” Hickel and drummer F. Clarke Martty, concentrating on rockabilly and brisk country material. Within twelve months Davis sought a tougher, more aggressive approach; Martty departed and Fred LeBlanc assumed the drum chair. The trio quickly earned a reputation for explosive live shows, and their relentless touring schedule built a devoted audience across New Orleans and numerous college towns in the South and Southwest. Frequent appearances at Atlanta’s 688 Club led the venue’s owners to sign Dash Rip Rock as the first act on their new label, resulting in the self-titled debut album released in 1987. Distribution through the North Carolina indie Mammoth Records prompted the band’s move to that roster for the 1989 follow-up Ace of Clubs. Following the Ace of Clubs tour, LeBlanc exited to help form the enduring country-rock group Cowboy Mouth, while drummer Chris Luckette joined in time to record the 1990 album Not of This World, produced by Jim Dickinson. Dash Rip Rock concluded their Mammoth period with the 1991 live recording Boiled Alive, then moved to the California indie Dr. Dream Records for the 1993 release Tiger Town. Subsequent shifts took them to the Ichiban-distributed Naked Language imprint for 1995’s Get You Some of Me, which featured the radio favorite “Let’s Go Smoke Some Pot,” and 1996’s Dash Rip Rock’s Gold Record, a collection heavy on fan staples. In 1998 Fred LeBlanc returned in a dual role as producer and sideman for Paydirt, an album that also introduced drummer Kyle Melancon. The 2002 release Sonic Boom briefly shortened the band’s name to Dash and introduced a glossier production sheen, yet the 2005 retrospective Recyclone reunited Dash Rip Rock with Alternative Tentacles, the label founded by former Dead Kennedys vocalist Jello Biafra, while surveying highlights from their catalog. Although the 2000s brought further turnover among drummers and bassists after Hickel and Melancon’s departures, the Alternative Tentacles association yielded a string of vigorous albums: the satirical concept set Hee Haw Hell (2007), the celebratory Call of the Wild (2010), and the darker, heavier Black Liquor (2012), which renewed interest in a band still averaging more than 150 shows annually. Dash Rip Rock entered the Louisiana Music Hall of Fame in 2012 and remain the sole act to have performed at the South by Southwest Music Conference every year since its 1986 debut.