About Me
We are The Orphans. So low, we're off the map. Real low class.
We're also dead. RIP, us. However, please check out these bands: Dirty Girls, Highschool, and Discreet Doll Band. They feature Brandon (Dirty Girls), Miss Jenny (Highschool), and Wade (Doll Band). Wade actually plays drums! I know, I know, how does he sit still? However, we keep our myspace in order for us to promote our own projects and for the reunion tour that will more than likely not happen. Well....maybe....
Here is a review of our seven inch on Vinyl Dog when we were still in our "prime"
"Electric S" 7"
(Vinyl Dog/TKO Records)(REVIEW BY LORD RUTLEDGE)California punk 2005 sounds an awful lot like California punk 1978!I hate to sound like one of those typically lazy-assed music reviewers who routinely substitute easy comparisons for genuine insights - but I can't help thinking that the latest Orphans 7" sounds like it could have come out on Dangerhouse Records 28 years ago. Surely the Dangerhouse comparison has already come up numerous times in previous Orphans reviews, and perhaps the band is sick of hearing it and liable to physically assault the next critic who drops the "D" word. But as they say: if the shoes fits...Exhibit A is "W.W.W.D.", the "back" cut on the record. If there's ever been a hotter amalgamation of Avengers-style vocals and X-ish punkabilly guitar, I sure haven't heard it. And the A-side is even better! But the Orphans are not imitators, diluters, copycats, or wannabes. They are throwbacks. Their "thing" is hard-hitting, kick-ass punk rock...and they do it well! Rather than sounding like they were influenced by all the great pre-hardcore California punk bands, the Orphans sound like they could have been one of those bands. And that makes all the difference in the world. When it comes to power & authenticity, this band's just got it. If someone had told me this record was actually recorded back in 1978, I would have believed 'em for sure.An awesome vocalist is often what separates a truly great punk band from a merely good one, and Orphans shouter Jenny Stiletto is exactly that kind of difference-maker. She sings with the conviction, toughness, and sheer force of personality that are integral to great punk rock. Her ballsy delivery is a perfect complement to her band's bruising, amps-on-11 attack. Dan's trebly guitar rips like a chainsaw tearing through your neighbors' overpriced furniture, and Brandon drums like he's trying to beat his kit to death. Overtop it all, Jenny belts it with style and grit, her voice reminiscent of a young Penelope Houston's (but not in a clone-ish sort of way). Both songs here are catchy, rockin', and oozing with attitude.This reviewer is left asking one two-part question:
Are the band's previous records also this good?
And if so, why don't I already own them? Fuck!Along with the Shop Fronts' "Don't Quit", this is one of the two best punk singles of 2005. Check it out.---Lord Rutledge, opinionated asshole
August 17, 2005
