Regular Einstein, Lazy Lions, Dots Will Echo

Regular Einstein's new album, Chimp Haven, puts a fresh face on the band's crunchy-twisty indie rock, informed by punk and power pop. The band was born in 1994 in NYC when songwriter/singer Paula Carino met guitarist Dave Benjoya (Admiral Porkbrain, Food on You) and Andy Mattina (Gregory's Funhouse, Solar Punch) at the venerable Fort at Sidewalk Cafe (where Paula was dubbed "Queen of Antifolk" for the autumn of '94). Over time, the kindred spirits went through a Spinal Tap-like succession of drummers. Paula eventually went solo in the '00s, but the musicians remained good friends and re-formed RegEin in 2010 with the addition of drummer extraordinaire Nancy Polstein (Cheri Knight, Will Rigby, Wirebirds).

Others have said:

"...clever and literate...fresh and intriguing..." All Music Guide

"...An inventive lyricist quick to turn a phrase upside down and inside out..." - American Songwriter

"...Carino’s songs are sardonic but intensely emotional, rich with symbolism, double entendres and laugh-out-loud clever puns." - Lucid Culture


When Dreaming Lets You Down… is Lazy Lions' debut album, but it didn't exactly arise from a tabula rasa. The band members have all been around the block enough to have plenty of past lives in their collective resume. Besides Robert Sorkin's stint with the Monterrey Symphony, Jim Allen recorded and toured as a solo singer/songwriter, Anne-Marie Stehn served time with major-label bound distaff rockers Antigone Rising, and Sean McMorris manned the kit for legendary Television axeman Richard Lloyd as well as cutting his own material.

But when they come together as Lazy Lions on When Dreaming Lets You Down… this foursome foments a singular spirit that encompasses all their influences and adds something new to the mix. "I Don't Think It's Going to Stop" moves like early Elvis Costello on a '60s British Invasion kick. "Let the Bad Times Roll" evokes a sort of sonic grudge match between The Police and The Smithereens. "Tiny Little Cracks" seems to suggest what would happen if Morrissey had fronted Crowded House. And the atmospheric "Creep Across the Night" suggests a collision course between The Church and a hung-over Chris Isaak. But playing Spot the Influence doesn't negate the impact of Lazy Lions' own aural identity. When Dreaming Lets You Down… overflows with sabertooth-sharp lyrical incisions and more hooks than a bait-and-tackle shop.


Nick Berry, whose elegantly twisted musical mindset defines Dots Will Echo, loves to tweak expectations and play with people's minds. We are, after all, talking about a man who has sung onstage from inside a plastic trash bag, performed minimalist keyboard instrumentals whilst wearing a gasmask, recorded under the artistic alias of Norton Anti-Virus, and given the world such song titles as "Gandhi Had Gorilla Balls Made of Finest Steel" and "Help! Gerard Cosloy Is Chasing Me With An Axe!" FYI, Gerard Cosloy runs Matador Records, but the usual indie-rock fare is far removed from what makes New Jersey duo Dots Will Echo tick.