Stream: That Dog., ‘If You Just Didn’t Do It’

S.Lo on August 23rd, 2019

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With a little help from their friends, That Dog (er, that dog., with the original core lineup of singer-guitarist Anna Waronker, drummer Tony Maxwell and bassist-singer Rachel Haden) unleash their first new single in 22 years, “If You Just Didn’t Do It.” It’s a raucous tune that marks the band’s evolution as musicians and people, building gracefully from a string arrangement into indie guitar dissonance into screeching loud fuzz. And it’s a reflexive song about singing in verse-chorus-verse when communications have broken down and you can’t just wag your finger at the other person about consequences. Complete with exasperation just past the three-minute mark, it’s the best way to hold a boombox outside someone’s bedroom window to say, “I told you so!” This may be from parent-to-child or friend-to-friend, flashing forward to today.

The band also announced that their new album, “Old LP,” will be released Oct. 4 via UMe. The 11-song long player is the result of new tunes that have been percolating since their reunion shows in 2011-12 and includes orchestral arrangements from Waronker, played by a wide circle of supportive musician friends. Guest turns include Maya Rudolph, Randy Newman, Graham Coxon (Blur), Josh Klinghoffer (Red Hot Chili Peppers), Charlotte Caffey (The Go-Go’s), Tanya Haden (The Haden Sisters), violinist Kaitlin Wolfberg, Andrew Dost (fun.) and Steven McDonald (Redd Kross).

With other projects such as film soundtracks (Waronker) and television production on the opposite coast (Maxwell), the group allowed the songs to mature as their lives allowed. “By the end of 2012 we had four songs done,” recalls Waronker. “In 2013, we had a few more. We needed time to let it grow into what it would become. Sometimes it’s hard to get there. Which is kind of the theme of the album.”

||| Stream: “If You Just Didn’t Do It”