ANSWERING YOUR CALL: DITZY DOG

words: graciella clark

photography: elise abotomey

Hailing from Eora/Dharawal land, Ditzy Dog is a band formed from passion that promises a good show filled with pure rock, punk and rage. Drawing inspiration from rock legends such as The Runaway’s and Suzi Quatro, this group is carving its own way into the local scene with their gritty and raw sound. 

Temper: How did you all come together and where did the name Ditzy Dog come from?

Ditzy Dog: We came together from a common dissatisfaction with the lack of feminine representation in the local scene, especially within the “classic” and “glam” rock genre. The name, Ditzy Dog is meant to be our ironic rebuttal of misogynistic rhetoric around all girl bands.

T: How would you describe your music to new listeners?

DD: The foundations of early 70s glam rock with a mix of Riotgrrrl’s grit and spirit. Basically, if Robert Plant was possessed by Kathleen Hanna then transported to the land of Rocky Horror.

T: What are some of your influences as a band collectively?

DD: When speaking music, we all have similarities and differences in who we draw inspiration from, the main ones being; The Runaway’s, Suzi Quatro, X-Ray-Spex, Led Zeppelin, ZZ Top, New York Dolls, B-52s, T-Rex with a bit of Amy Taylor, Sonic Youth, Babes in Toyland, The Gits, Le Tigre, Veruca Salt and Bratmobile. We would say that this manifests in both our sound and our look as a band.

When it comes to our performance, we are very much influenced by musical theatre, as well as elements of drag and ballroom, putting on a show for both the audience’s eyes and ears. According to Alice (our drummer), another influence is the Muppets…

T: What has your experience been like navigating the music industry as young women so far?

DD: Straight off the bat, we have been given many amazing opportunities and met some great people who all share a similar ethos and passion for music. With that being said, though, we feel that as a feminine presenting band, we are often underestimated, and shock some people that haven’t heard of us. There are common assumptions that we don’t know what we are doing, or that we are taking everything at aesthetic value, not fully understanding the genre that we play in. We have even had instances where we have been declined gigs that end up having an all male lineup.

T: Can you describe the feeling around your first headline gig? and how did you prepare for this?

DD: This gig, initially had us feeling quite uneasy, being pretty much thrown in the deep end for our fourth ever gig. It was really stressful for us managing all the BTS and promo, but seeing all the enthusiasm and support from our friends, family and supporters on the night quickly soothed our nerves, and we all ended up having a great ass evening! Definitely a show to remember.

T: What can we expect from you guys in the coming year?

DD: We are quite an ambitious bunch, so we are hoping to have an EP within the next year…and maybe even a music video.

T: How do you all typically approach song-writing and recording?

DD: Usually one of us comes in with an idea/vision, and we all share our ideas with an open mind and allow the song to unfold into something unplanned and super cool (if we don’t say so ourselves)

T: What does music mean to you all?

Music is the greatest way to bring people together, creating community across divides and helps us share abstract experiences, emotions and stories in a concrete way.

“Music is an escape” - Dayna

“Music is a language that doesn’t need words to be celebrated” - Cass

“Music lets you experience all things in life that you may never get to live” - Charli

“Music is the most grounding human experience but also the closest thing we have to divinity” - Alice

“#life” - Ava

And finally, to quote ABBA,

“Thank you for the music, the songs I'm singing”

T: Do you think creative expression is important in today’s world?

DD: Yes, creative expression and art has been an outlet for as long as time. In today’s climate especially, creative expression is vital for optimism, as well as integral change in the world.

T: Do you guys have any other creative outlets that you do together or individually?

DD: Obviously, music is very much a sound-based creative outlet, and as creative people, we also have a range of other interests in which we are able to express ourselves. All of us have our own individual outlets of external creative expression: for Ava, this is visual arts and fashion; for Charli, this is baking, fashion and literature; for Dayna, this is in makeup and candle making; for Alice, it’s metal making, reading, visual arts and “sims 4 architecture”; and for Cass, it’s photography/film and being a part time theatre kid.

T: Do you ever face creative differences within the band and if so, how do you overcome and compromise on things?

DD: As we all respect each other as creatives, we all listen to each other’s ideas openly, while also having a no-bullshit approach when it comes to voicing our opinions, which ultimately makes compromise easy and fulfilling for everyone.

T: If you could pick a random object to represent Ditzy Dog, what would it be?

DD: You might think dog bone… but disco ball!