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Live: The Donnas Are More Than Boy Toys
Four-piece, all-gal rock band transcends gimmickry at Coney Island High.
Addicted To Noise Contributing Editor Jim Glauner reports:
NEW YORK -- Based solely on appearances, the Donnas would make a great toy doll set -- a sort of anti-Barbie. Like the plastic figurines you might find on a shelf at Toys 'R' Us, they are known to dress in similarly styled pastel T-shirts, just as they did for their show on Saturday night at New York City's Coney Island High. Adding to their marketability, each member of the band has her stage name written on her shirt in neat script -- Donna A. (Brett Anderson), Donna F. (Maya Ford), Donna R. (Allison Robertson) and Donna C. (Torry Castellano). You could imagine the teen-age Donnas -- fresh-faced suburban girls who graduated from high school in Northern California less than a year ago and who do everything possible to break the stereotype of wholesome femininity -- as Barbie's impish, adopted kid sisters.
It's in their sound, their sexuality and their stage presence. From the first snarling power chord of the Donnas' opener, the riotous "Rock 'n' Roll Machine", it was clear that the quartet would be more likely to trash Barbie's Dream House than live there.
In 30 minutes, the Donnas underwent a transformation of sorts, stepping onstage as cartoonish, gimmicky mannequins and leaving as serious rockers -- seriously fun rockers, that is. And while their image would probably not make it far with parents and toddlers, it apparently is selling itself with teen-agers and young adults. There was still a long line of them outside the small club when the band began to play. Opening for fellow post-punkers the Pee Chees and Groovie Ghoulies, the Donnas reeled off a half-hour set of tough, punk-rock-Ramones-meets-glam-metal-Kiss tunes from their second album, American Teenage Rock 'n' Roll Machine.
A half-hour set leaves little time for idle talk, so the Donnas dove headlong into each song -- distorted blasts of music that extolled the pleasures of adolescent hedonism. Singer Donna A. jerked her head forcefully toward the mic, as if trying to shout it down or shame it into submission. All the while, she belted out more than merely suggestive lyrics such as "I've been waitin' all night long, so come on and stick it in" from "Outta My Mind."
Meanwhile, guitarist Donna R. rocked back and forth and then bent over her guitar as she fired up short, tasty solos on songs such as "Shake In The Action." Those close to the stage, many who likely graduated from high school the same year as the Donnas, didn't take long to get hooked by these punked-up dolls. But this was no occasion for slam-dancing. Rather, the Donnas, in all their brashness and vulgarity, created an atmosphere that's less punk and more of a loud, underage beer bash -- one that's bound to be busted up by the fuzz. From their joyous, grinding songs about teen-age lust to tunes lost in a haze of smokin' cheeba, a sweaty Donna C. flayed her drums like a rhythmic toddler beating pots and pans for the sheer pleasure of the exertion. Meanwhile, a glowering Donna F. created a constant rumble on bass, moving the beat along and building a solid backbone.
Together, they charged through "Gimme My Radio" with hair flying in a whirl as if caught in a windstorm. As short as the set was and as wild as they were, the Donnas left a few disappointed fans still waiting outside in line. It was over too soon for anyone's good. The group left the stage quietly that night, amid scattered cries for more.
Some fans only got to see three or four songs, but 21-year-old New Brunswick, N.J., resident Sue Duram -- who came just for the Donnas -- saw it all. "Why do I like the Donnas?" Duram said. "Because they're fun, and they're young. That's it."
Over the course of its short set, the band whose look is fit for packaging proved itself worthy of comparison to another group of famous rock dolls. "They were like the New York Dolls, if the Dolls were women and played better," said Telstar Records owner and Hoboken, N.J., resident Todd Abramson after the show. And while the comparison may be valid, there is one more important difference between the two groups. The Dolls -- the '70s pre-punk glam-rock innovators that featured singer David Johansen and guitarist Johnny Thunders -- are history.
The Donnas are just getting started.