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The Donnas - American Teenage Rock 'n' Roll Machine (Lookout!)
by Johnny Ray Huston
AS THE GREAT title of their second album suggests, the Donnas have teen rock and roll down to a science. After matching the Ramones on their debut, now they've moved on to the Runaways; in other words their lyrical vocabulary has expanded from "wanna" and "gonna" anthems to "chasin' the night" and "checkin' it out" on the hunt for "party action" and "instant satisfaction." The songs are so catchy they're memorable on first listen, and they create a world where sex and drugs and reckless driving are problem-free forms of fun, and fun is the only thing in life worth having. Listen to the Donnas and you'll wanna grow your hair long and wear tight pants.
Even though they boil rock and roll down to a perfectly simple essence, the Donnas wouldn't be special if they didn't have teen spirit and professional chops. But they do. Donna R's glam guitar work is liable to make anyone within earshot sprout a poodle perm. Donna A has a bunch of dynamics -- boy/girl, bratty kid/tough adult -- happening at once in the nicotine-stained grain of her voice. Rhythm section Donna F and Donna C punctuate with precision, stopping just in time for a vocal punch line or a flamethrowing guitar solo. You've probably heard the Donnas' songs before -- they're generically perfect -- but when they execute a familiar chord progression, it becomes an original.
No matter how tough they are, sexually aggressive women are a straight male fantasy, and a few moments on this album teeter on the brink of jailbait sleaze before confidence and power save them. Some people have tried to spoil the fun of my Donnas' fandom by saying that they were rich and popular in high school (this from an Eddie Vedder devotee) and that they don't write their own songs, but regardless of how true these gripes are, in the end I can only say that I don't care. When they play, they're the Donnas, and there isn't a better teenage rock 'n' roll machine in the world.