Derin Dow is an independent rock artist based in Los Angeles. He sings, plays guitar and bass, and writes all the songs on his solo CD "Retroactive." Since its 2005 release, Derin and his band have performed at various locations around Los Angeles, including the House of Blues (Sunset), where they opened for British rockers ASIA ("Silent Nation" tour), and at the Key Club in Hollywood where they opened for SHAW-BLADES ("Influence" tour). More recently, Derin and the band have opened shows for AMBROSIA and ERIC JOHNSON at the Brixton South Bay in Redondo Beach.
A product of the 70's & 80's, Derin creates music inspired by many classic rock influences, such as Foreigner, Kansas, Triumph, and the Eagles. Originally from Madison, Indiana, Derin began playing the guitar at 13, honing his chops in garage bands, and performing at school dances and parties. In the years that followed, he found himself a part of various bands, the most notable being AURA (an 80's cover band) in which he played lead guitar and sang backups. He would later become the band's bassist. The band survived from 1981 to 1988, performing mostly in Indiana and Kentucky.
In 1989, Derin relocated to Los Angeles and began the struggle to make it in a music business that was rapidly changing. After dedicating himself as a sideman (bassist/vocalist) for several bands in L.A., Dow eventually focused on writing his own songs and began putting together projects like 4-Life, The Unknown, and finally the Derin Dow Band. Not one to jump on "modern" bandwagons, Derin has remained true to his classic rock roots. His recordings are straight-ahead and raw, espousing a sound that is nearly live.
These days, Derin is writing new songs for a follow-up album, and making himself available for other rock projects. By day, he works as a teacher in South Los Angeles.
He is currently seeking management.
Or purchase through iTunes here:
Review/Blogs of "RETROACTIVE" from the Village Voice (NYC):
(Chuck Eddy and George "the Animal" Steele)
Derin Dow's *Retroactive* is totally classic-sounding, kick-ass, melodic hard rock, AOR pop-prog (thanks to synth/Hammond/clavinet/rhodes parts). Think the Nuge side of early Foreigner, maybe? Knocking heads and riding stars. Dude sings like a slightly higher-pitched Lou Gramm, though whatever more accurate description comes to George's mind when he hears it will make me slap my head. Derringer? I dunno. Extremely catchy stuff, though, and I'm only through the first eight tracks. (Well, the third song "Door to Your Heart" starts a little slower than some others, but then it soars, and a swinging ripping guitar instrumental called "Lower the Boom" comes next.) My favorite chorus so far is in "Right Side of the Road" : "And now all that is left to me is that old 12-string and an '84 Caravan. And it's all I can do to keep it on the right side of the road." Came out in 2005, I kid you not.
Oops, turns out a guy called Chris Pinnick plays lead guitar on "Lower the Boom" and "Right Side of the Road", but Derin more than holds his own when Chris ain't there. Also, "Slave Train" is a protest about how all he sees when he looks around America is luxury next to misery in the tradition of say "Golden Country" by REO, at least when it speeds up, and its slow parts are um probably in the tradition of some Hendrix song or something.
The obvious alternate-universe car radio rock hit on Derin Dow's album is the opener, "Friday," a 5 pm end-of-week whistle blower blowout firmly in the "Working for the Weekend"/"Weekend Warrior" tradition. I still can't quite put my finger on who Derin sounds like -- Foreigner and Loverboy and Nugent aren't quite right. If anybody listens to the songs on his cdbaby.com page and figures it out, please let me know.
And the closing instrumental "Feelin' Free" (also with Pinnick on lead) is total smooth jazz (of the funky variety)!
-- xhuxk (xedd...), Chuck Eddy, January 22nd, 2006
Thanks to xhuxk (Chuck Eddy), Derin Dow of Culver City sent me his "Retroactive" and it certainly is more of the Eighties-influenced big hook classic heavy AOR that lit up this thread upstream. "Slave Train," "Highways," "Passage," and "I Do Love You" are my favorites so far and they come one after another near the end. The man's axe is all over the tunes and it has a very heavy, very modern (split diff between Marshall JCM800, revved up Marshall and Mesa-Boogie Recto) tone which sets it apart from direct Eighties quote which is mostly just the former in the parentheses. There is some hard Journey with Steve Perry in it -- mostly in the voice and the lyrical, skyscraping hookage. "Highways" is special in this regard because it wanders across many trails for seven plus minutes and never gets less than uplifting. Hard to do in songs that are essentially mid-tempo but Dow's good at bringing the drama.
It also has some in common with old LA AOR glam pomp act, Fortune, a record I dropped in here last week for a one-shot when it made it to CD digital land for the first time. Above all, the guitar mix and tone sets this out from the style as it's, it's....it's CRUNCH.
Anyway, "Friday" (by Derin Dow) is playing -- the first cut on the CD -- and the reason it sounds so Eighties and CRUNCHING is because the rhythm guitar is Eddie Van Halen-tone! And Lou Gramm is singing, so xhuxk's right on about him sounding like Foreigner dude for one tune. Third tune again gets a lot from Foreigner.
Lotta Y&T, another Eighties Cali-band, in Derin Dow's first instro, "Lower the Boom." He's showin' off his David Meniketti licks.
-- George the Animal Steele, February 24th, 2006.
Review of "RETROACTIVE" from Kweevak.com:
Derin Dow is a singer, songwriter and producer who also plays guitar and bass. Derin's musical influences include Boston, The Eagles and Styx. Dow's sound is classic yet contemporary. His thirteen-track CD spans the gamut from ballads to high octane rockers. Derin pens intelligent lyrics woven into musical tapestries that unfold in colorful guitar solos. Dow aims for a live sound on his record using few overdubs. Derin is a pro who surrounds himself with other veteran players, thus "Retroactive" is solid straight through. The CD opens strong with the energetic Friday. It has red-hot guitar leads and thoughts that any overworked person can relate to. Yet the hook and more sizzling guitar licks set Derin and the listener free. Derin describes Highways as an opus that came from two different songs (a ballad and an instrumental). The track is expansive as the story of loss flows into innovative instrumentation and the chorus filled with rich spiritual imagery. Derin Dow is a multi-talented artist and "Retroactive" is timeless!
• Recommended Tracks: (1,10)
(2006 Review by Laura Turner Lynch for Kweevak.com)
