Stream: Dorothy, ‘Flawless’

Kevin Bronson on January 22nd, 2018

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First impression of the new direction of L.A. rockers Dorothy? Less metal, more mental. The band, fronted by Dorothy Martin, came out of hard rock’s shadows in mid-2014, playing the heavy blues sung by a rafter-rattling diva embracing a bad-girl image. Besides boot-stomping singles that were perfect to sync in the testosterone-charged world of sports-related commercials, Dorothy’s brashness extended to thumbing the nose (or placing tongue in cheek) by titling their debut album “ROCKISDEAD.” The band’s live spectacle strongly suggested otherwise.

This month, Dorothy announced that their sophomore album “28 Days in the Valley” would be out March 9. With it came the lead track “Flawless,” which casts Martin and her new crew — guitarists Nick Maybury and Leroy Wulfmeier, bassist Eliot Lorango and drummer Jason Ganberg — in a different light. While still singing like a woman on a mission, Martin is less Joan Jett and more a heavy-duty Sheryl Crow, and the single’s guitars are full-bodied West Coast rock, not vintage blues riffs. Dorothy worked on the album with the inimitable Linda Perry, who says “‘Flawless’ is the best song ever and if you don’t think so, you can fuck off.”

For her part, Martin says the song “is about an ex who really did a number on me. This one came fast to me. It was very subconscious … like I’m channeling them. Linda Perry pulled the lightness out of me, both personally and musically. This record is definitely still bold, but it’s happier. It’s kind of like the butterfly coming out of the cocoon.”

||| Stream: “Flawless”