Dawn of the Dopes (WDOP) 1994
Kramer produced this rawly entertaining slab of energetic New York brat-rock that has its sonic roots in the raucous glory days of the Dead Boys, Pistols and Heartbreakers - and, intriguingly, the New York Dolls. The Dopes - a quintet plus utility infielder - sling hash like "Skeet Girl," "Copsucker," "W.D.O.P." ("White Dopes on Punk") and "Turnip Blue" with rude, merry abandon, backing their surly attitude with equally churlish smears of guitar aggro (by Pollen Dope and Toastie McDope) and the vocal posturing of singer Trick Fall. A couple of the tunes come dangerously close to aping '70s canon classics (and, in the case of "Amsterdam," the Jesus and Mary Chain), but the Dopes mess around too much to be efficient thieves, and the result is an enjoyably stupid jukebox that keeps mixing up the sounds of old records.
[Ira Robbins]
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