Luckydog

Here's a review from Dash Rip Rock guitarist Bill Davis:
LUCKY DOG - "SUPER CHARGED FLASH CRACKERS" (Spunout Records)I received this record in the mail from my old friend Lex van den Berge. I first met him back in 1989 when his band The Frontier Wives opened up for Dash Rip Rock on Haight St. in SFCA. We hit it off with those guys - they were like a mellow west coast version of our band. Lex went on to work at Adobe and Apple during the Tech Boom and now he's semi-retired. I hadn't heard from him in about three years when last fall my wife hollered up to me to come down and see who's on the TV. Well - it was Lex. He had been chosen to be on "Survivor: Africa." Once the shock wore off - I enjoyed tuning in and watching his travails - he was the tattooed surfer dude that actually made it to the top four. But alas - he missed out on the cool mil but instead got some great press and got to see some wildlife. Upon speaking to him after his adventure, I found out he had survived 12 parasites from the fonky drinking water and dropped 35 lbs. Now - his band has a new record and it's really a good one. "SCFC" is a collection of laid back pop hits. It's reminds me at first listen of Counting Crows or Wallflowers. "Dawn" chugs along like a Badfinger song, there are some catchy "na na na's" at the kickoff and the feelgood vibe courses throughout. There are a lot of pop twists similar to the Beatles and Todd Rundgren ("Burden,"" Speaking in Tongues")- all filtered through engaging (but not overpowering) guitar-driven music. Towards the middle, the songs feature a lot of tinkling piano - brit-pop ala Elton John. My favorite song is "Tonight Your Dreams Arrive." It features subtle harmonies and trippy choruses (sort of like the post -pot, pre-LSD Brian Wilson). Lex may not have made a million shedding pounds on the dark continent, and he may not make millions off his cool little band - but Lucky Dog is a classic west coast rock band that can stand proud among it's peers (Toad the Wet Sprocket, Dishwalla, and Third Eye Blind).