The Come Ons emerged in 1999 featuring ex-
Gore Gore Girl Deanne Iovan on bass, vocals, and vintage organ, guitarist
Jim Johnson, and
Dirtbombs drummer Patrick Pantano doing double duty behind
the Come Ons' kit. While their dance-y, soul-inspired grooves were an immediate sensation in Detroit, the band didn't debut on wax immediately. First there was 2000's "Watcha Got?" 7" for Sympathy for the Record Industry, followed soon after by an eponymous full-length for the label. A year later, the trio contributed to
Jack White's famous (and famously lo-fi) Sympathetic Sounds of Detroit comp, and followed that up with the
Hip Check! LP. The group's popularity in Detroit wasn't surprising; after all,
the Come Ons drew liberally from the classic D-Town style guide of punk, girl group, and rave-up revivalist R&B. The group continued to tear things up in 2002 and 2003, releasing the "Don't Tell Me" 7" for the U.K.'s Sweet Nothing imprint, and recording their third full-length at Jim Diamond's Ghetto Recorders. ~ Johnny Loftus