Four parts extraordinary musical presence, two parts rampant, long hair and one part electronic addiction completes the recipe for Dom. The Hadley, Mass. band took the stage of the Iron Horse for the third time Saturday night after a suitable opening from two other modern groups, Expensive Looks and Bobby.
Built around powerhouse strumming and an infusion of computerized sounds, Dom executed an unforgettable set in Northampton. The music hall tried to contain the sound, but it was beyond the scope of present time and place.
Dom offered a pop-powered feeling of decades past, but made us of electronic elements that send the music into a futuristic frenzy. Their songs often ended at the climax and thus thoroughly hooked the audience and this brevity made time fly even faster. Dom has mastered the art of gaining listeners’ full attention in a way that exudes more experience on stage than Dom actually has.
The band, named after guitarist/vocalist/keyboardist Dom, entered the scene in January, 2010. Early formations began in 2009, when the 23-year-old Dom met drummer Bobby in Worcester. The two discovered they had a knack for making electronic music when their first song, “Jesus,” gained popularity. Shortly after, Dom found himself in a “real band” for the first time, as bassist Erik and guitarist Cosmo were added to round out the group.
Once a solid foursome, Dom hit the ground running and released a seven track EP titled “Sun Bronzed Greek Gods.” The album proved to be irresistible, as it triggered several offers from major record labels. However, like true artists, Dom was disinterested in the “fancy dinners, airplanes, and hotels” the labels had to offer and repelled their bids. They eventually signed a short contract with EMI/Astralwerks, but have retained their integrity as a band.
Dom possesses a rare ability to create music which can please many but is impossible to place in a genre or style. Most of their tunes are rhythm – not lyrically – based. They ingeniously make music that would typically be for hipsters but express it in such a way that anyone can love it. It could easily play in the background of a trendy, West Coast TV show.
Dom is a sonic eruption when performing live. The music is a communal experience requiring both the energy of the band members and the electrified audience. By the time they got to their hit “Living in America” Saturday, the entire crowd was jumping. The audience went even wilder when guitarist Cosmo dove backwards into the crowd and continued to play as they supported his weight.
Bassist Erik got equally excited on stage and nearly whacked several girls dancing in the front row with his bass as he got as close to the edge as possible to jam. Drummer Bobby provided the power supply for all of this action as he smashed out quick beats and made use of a Mac laptop to produce electronic sounds. Singer Dom belted with his high-pitched, unique voice, which was entrancing, though it was not the focus of the music. At times he set his guitar down to focus on just his singing, which was equally forceful. Dom’s solidarity gave the group the muscles to play such a fast-paced set.
As they sang about cats and danced fluidly on stage as if they were at their own party, it became clear that Dom was cool because they just did whatever they wanted. The young band claimed to be inspired by the Carpenters and Nirvana, and even – according to Dom – his cat, as they performed their popular track, “Bochita.” Singer Dom went further in his boldness as he donned a pink guitar and metallic nail polish for the show.
These four Massachusetts 20-somethings are the type to have fun anywhere, anytime; the type many young people would hope to receive a party invite from. And on Saturday night, everyone in the crowd actually did get an invite to Dom’s “party house” in Hadley.
Transcending the walls of the Iron Horse, Dom left its audience craving more of their fresh music and hoping to be able to have as good of a time as the young band does all the time.
Amy Larson can be reached at [email protected].
