Dragonette is a sexy, dynamic electro-pop band and their new album GALORE, is what you will want and need to put on under these circumstances:
1. You are tearing a part your closet viciously trying to put an outfit together whilst revving your engine for a night to remember
2. You have brought ½ the bar back to your house and you need to keep the party going.
3. You are attempting a sexy dance in the kitchen to showcase your new undies to significant other

Last Friday, while I was on the phone taking notes, Martina Sorbara, lead singer of Dragonette, and bewitching beauty, was on the other side of receiver cutting her hair. Not at a salon but with a pair of scissors in the mirror. Not a minor bang chop – but re-working her head of hair. A most fitting image for this daring and creative femme fatale who’s growing talent will soon be garnering major international attention. Starting off as a solo singer that would fit in at Lilth Fair, she’s taken huge risks and done a full 180 and now storms the stage with electro pop gems that propel crowds of young scenesters into sweaty excited dancing.

Although based in London England , three of the four band members are from the T-dot, including husband Dan Kurtz. Just like Yo La Tengo and Sonic Youth – there’s something utterly enchanting and sexy about a husband and wife who write songs and rock out together.

Nothing makes marriage look cooler – especially when husband and wife are singing about screwing, and acting out racy roles in their videos….hot.

Yeah, we all wish we could be like them, but the reality of a music career is very volatile and with the highs and fame also come melancholy days. Martina put it quite bluntly, “The reason you do it can also make you want to quit”. Frankly, I believe that the up and down drama is often what attributes the taste and smell of fucking to music…and this is one amazing quality that Dragonette has nailed.

I asked Sorbara what she’s most proud of, her band garnering tons of attention these days. Her response was concise and sincere:
“I’m making songs that hot hipsters are dancing to, the kind of people I wanna meet”. Dead on, it’s a happy and lively audience – and we want more!

It’s hard to draw a comparison with Dragonette, as their music is unique – a real mix of pop, rock and electro. GALORE’s strong variety is a mix of tunes that make you want to get up and tear your clothes off while others set the mood while you delicately assemble a floral arrangement by candlelight in a vintage dress. I’m going to say that Dragonette has the energy similar to Metric and The Dandy Warhols with the playfulness of YELLE mixed with a JUSTICE style pulsating dance floor.

So what influences help create such an eclectic album? It was difficult for Sorbara to attribute anyone or thing specific to creating GALORE, but she did relay that her current influences include Phoenix and Beck. She wants to experiment with organic sounds, meshing acoustic with electronic. As soon as she said Beck, my eyes lit up as I could only imagine how cool Dragonette would sound with the kind of infusion of Beck’s complicated variety of sound. Exciting.

Nearing the end of the conversation, we started to rant about Toronto radio stations, and how they predominantly play classic rock and mainstream pop. Funny enough, that very evening when I left the Varsity theatre and hoped into the cab, “I GET AROUND” was playing on the radio, the cab driver turned the volume up and I asked him if he liked the song:

“Yeah, it’s really good”, he responded with a smile.

Dragonette, get ready for your onslaught of fame.

So if she wasn’t living in London getting more famous by the minute making new music, what would Sorbara opt for on a regular Toronto Saturday night? Her game plan would be Chinese food, beer and late in the evening a visit to College St. rock den, Tiger Bar. See…just like you and me.

Dragonette will be playing a show at THE MOD CLUB, Thursday October 25th.