"I / well I slumped down in the past / then you came into my world and woke me up..."
The chunky shoutabout garage rock jubilation of "Wall" by Camas, Washington based Dew Claw, and from their upcoming "E.L.F" album dropping on May 9th (2025) on Dromedary Records, has that pure indie rock sound that screams medium sized sweaty venues and gentle moshing while holding up your beer. I couldn't help but think of 80's / 90's alt indie seeds like Dinosaur Jr and Hüsker Dü or 2000's indie rock / power pop distillations like Good Shoes or Tokyo Police Club. I feel the same kinetic energy and Americana rock underpinnings and punchy power pop swings while keeping the distortions in that jangle pop vein. Really enjoying Stephen Hunking's lead guitar lines that feel like double leads, that have the spirited almost punk bubblegum / glam tones of 70's power pop bands. I am thinking of the amazing Steven Hufsteter, the iconic lead guitarist for 70's killer power pop band The Quick (reference Pretty Please) or Pezband's vocalist guitar shredder Mimi Betinis. Chris Xefos (with penis firmly attached) provides throttling basslines. Check out the LINER NOTES to find out about these guys musical leans and history.
LINER NOTES (bracketed):
[Stephen and Chris have been good friends since high school, discovering and playing music together over this entire time. During their NY/NJ fertile alt-rock period, the King Missile-Hypnolovewheel mafia was STRONG. The 2 bands shared a member for a time and Chris lent a hand with production duties on the first Hypno/Alias release.]
[Since 2004, Dew Claw has been the music project for which Stephen Hunking has released his meditations on life, love, parenting, personal themes, and other abstract musings. Stephen has created 4 full-length releases plus various singles and EPs under the Dew Claw umbrella over the last 20 years, while also being a member of the NY combo, XL Kings during the ‘10s and their 2 full-length and 1 single releases. Also, during that time, Stephen was a creative force behind the intercontinental band Grand Union, a collaborative venture with Frode Strømstad (I Was A King), which vetted 3 single releases. Stephen initially honed his musical skills and songwriting chops as a member of the group Hypnolovewheel (1987-1994), with 2 albums independently released and another 3 albums on Alias Records, along with assorted singles and compilation appearances.]
[Chris Xefos is best known as a member of King Missile during their 1989-1994 era. This indie-to-major label period for KM brought about the college-rock smash “Jesus Was Way Cool” and alt-rock hit “Detachable Penis”. Post-KM, Chris settled into San Francisco as a producer, engineer, and musician, working on solo albums for former Camper Van Beethoven members: Victor Krummenacher, Jonathan Segel and Greg Lisher amongst other projects. Chris was also a performing member of guitar instrumental groups Flotation Device and Rattletrap, the latter featuring Bruce Anderson of art-punk legends MX-80 Sound. In 2019, Bruce drafted Chris into MX-80 Sound and Chris played an expanded role as both band and recording engineering team member for their 2024 (and swan song) release, Better Than Life on Byron Coley’s Feeding Tube Records.]
[In 2025, Dew Claw is set to release their latest full length, titled E.L.F. The album contains 10 songs, ranging from Stephen’s personal recordings to full-band arrangements, realized by enlisting generous contributions from: Arne Kjelsrud Mathisen (Rural Tapes/I Was A King), Frode Strømstad, Dave Rick (King Missile), Kurt Bloch (Fastbacks), Gary Olson (Ladybug Transistor), Alison Faith Levy (Loud Family) bolstering DCs own instrumental talents in bringing these songs to life. For this record, Dew Claw formulated their initial musical inspiration from the transition period of classic English rockers The Move into Electric Light Orchestra. The Dew Claw team dabbles in traditional orchestral instrumentation in a very studio-built affair. However, when called upon by the song, they still can’t help but get back to their roots and (alt) rocking out. Like traditional Dew Claw material, these songs come from a very personal place for Stephen. However, on E.L.F., Stephen has allowed himself to be more open to collaboration, to open up his perspective and allow these songs to breathe freer and grow in a new light. Farmer power!]
-Robb Donker Curtius
https://dedewclaw.bandcamp.com/album/mouse-trap-b-w-fantastic-voyage
https://www.instagram.com/dewclaw2.0/
THE FACTS AS WE KNOW THEM
https://dedewclaw.bandcamp.com/album/mouse-trap-b-w-fantastic-voyage
https://www.instagram.com/dewclaw2.0/
Stephen and Chris have been good friends since high school, discovering and playing music together over this entire time. During their NY/NJ fertile alt-rock period, the King Missile-Hypnolovewheel mafia was STRONG. The 2 bands shared a member for a time and Chris lent a hand with production duties on the first Hypno/Alias release.
Dew Claw, Camas Washington, indie rock, post punk, garage rock, jam rock, power pop / glam, new album "E.L.F" via Dromedary Records, songwriter / guitarist Stephen Hunking, bassist Chris Xefos (King Missile),
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