Dosch     Money to Burn       CD

This is a really good CD from Sheffield based rhythm rockers Dosch. Featuring the talents of Andy Hinkler, vocals, Ian Bartram, guitar, John E Cash, bass, and the highly rhythmic Dave Bickley on percussion. The CD was recorded live with only vocal overdubs.

The CD blasts off with Bar Room Bunny, an original song, as are all  of these on the CD. The style is rocking rhythm and blues, perhaps with a slight Doctor Feelgood flavour. It sets the pace for the rest of the CD and it’s great to hear this style for a change.

“I need a Jag-U-Are” sings Andy Hinkler and this 12 bar canters quickly on with amusing angst about buying a Caddy, a Chevy and a Ford, but he really wants a Jag-U-Are! It’s full of great rhythm and lyrics and some extremely nice rock and roll guitar from Mr Ian Bartrum.

The first song I ever heard from Dosch, is the next one on the CD which is Bonneville Rebuild Blues. It really struck a chord with me having rebuilt a Bonneville in my youth! The track starts off with a soundbite of a genuine Triumph Bonneville revving up as Ian Bartrum comes in with some minor key tinkling on his guitar. Boom and the drums are in and Andy’s vocals tell the tale of the rebuild blues! “The engine’s on the table, the frame is in the room, I gotta get it together real soon”….fantastic, it reminds me of my long suffering mother’s kitchen table and her oil-soaked son, (now a gin-soaked journo!)! It’s a great song and Ian Bartrum’s slide guitar is definitely in the George Thorogood school.

Fool Fool Fool starts with the menacing bass line which invites Andy’s vocals and the beautifully toned guitar riffs of Ian Bartrum. Dosch songs always tell a great story and this one is about being a fool for a lady, but this lady is then told she’s missed her time!

Another song about being mistreated by those foxy ladies is Crime the Way I’m Treated.This is another song with a story line, a great bass and drum progression, and Ian Bartrum’s perpetually superb guitar work.

This takes us into My Baby, She’s Rich, a well put together song, well-told and well-phrased by Andy Hinkler. It works well with the constant bass and drum rhythm and the melodic invention of Ian Bartrum’s guitar.

Mustang is another song I could relate to. The story of lusting after a 1967 Ford Mustang takes on a riff from Gary Moore/Jimmy Rodgers "Walking By Myself" and with the cymbals tinkling after the riff. The song, like the car, drives nicely and with another impressive mid-song guitar break, allowing Andy to continue with the amusing lyrics which include as the chorus, “When I get my Mustang, I’ll be in motor car heaven!” Good stuff!

The song entitled The Stopper commences with a John Mayall “Oh Pretty Woman” riff and the growling and menacing vocals of Andy Hinkler, who by the way is the brother of The Mission’s Simon Hinkler. It’s a strange song lyrically and has a slight Tom Waits feel about it. The riff carries it through and the strange lyric “Don’t say no to the man when he’s standing with a stopper in his hand” had me slightly puzzled. It’s a good song though!

The track which follows is a great rock and roller. Entitled My My My, it’s a 12 bar with a rocky feel to it which must guarantee dancers on the floor and contains a nice guitar break in the Chuck Berry/Keith Richards style.

The closing track to this CD is Moida, a story of murder and the electric chair! Ian Bartram’s guitar brings us in with a chord based riff. The rhythmic percussion and steady bass support the song throughout and very pleasantly whilst Andy Hinkler sings over Ian Bartram's consistent riffing. It’s another menacing but enjoyable song to fit well with the rest of this excellent album

This is a very enjoyable and lively CD in the old fashioned rock and roll, rhythm and blues style. The band is packed with talent and they have managed to bring a live and exciting feel to the recording. We recommend you play it with the volume on the high side, it’s great.

As a footnote, I asked a colleague in Mexborough if he had seen Dosch at The New Masons venue, and he said he had and they were probably the most enjoyable band that had performed there! Praise indeed!              

Steve Lally