Dentist: Making A Scene (2022)

Anyone who's stopped by these parts before knows I'm an absolute sucker for women-fronted punk-pop bands. Some of my favorite records from recent years have come from acts like the Beths, Alvvays, and Charly Bliss. So the new one from New Jersey trio Dentist falls right in my sweet spot.

I'm not as familiar with their prior records, which sounded a little more lo-fi and K Records-like to my ears. Making A Scene is much more polished and punchy, frothy little guitar-driven pop songs designed for volume-up, windows-down drives around the neighborhood. There are a couple amped-up, punk-tinged tracks, but I like the catchy pop stuff, which kinda takes me back to 80s/90s indie acts like the Primitives and Darling Buds. Some twangy surf rock guitars and subtle atmospherics give the record a more well-rounded feel than the rougher-edged sound of other indie pop bands.

Check it out on Bandcamp; you're gonna like it.

Here's the video for the terrific single "Don't Let Me Catch You":