Baltimore-based quartet
Dope Body eventually took their brooding, muscular blasts of noise rock from scuzzy basement shows to the world at large, slowly gaining international renown for their messy riffs, barely hanging together rhythms, and aggressive live shows. 2012’s Natural History was the band’s second album and first for indie mainstay Drag City. Third album Lifer continues that album’s gnarled tendencies, offering up blurry washes of ghastly rock that have more in common with '90s metal-leaning grunge acts than the sometimes artsy punk undercurrents that wander in and out of
Dope Body's sound. While hints of
Bad Seeds-era
Nick Cave come through in vocalist Andrew Laumann's tormented howls, the band’s early fascination with '90s radio rockers like
Red Hot Chili Peppers and
Rage Against the Machine has turned somewhat toward a more
Alice in Chains feeling on tunes like “Hired Gun” or the
Soundgarden-esque downtuned riffery on “Nu Sensation.” There’s still a little bit of
Anthony Kiedis-like vocal stylizations peeking through, however, especially on slower, swaggering tunes like the blues rock of “Echo.” ~ Fred Thomas