Beginning as early as any other band that might be considered a part of the first wave of punk, DMZ jumped out from a few of the other original acts from the period due to their intricate knowledge of aggressive rock music. Whereas the Ramones and the Cramps mined confectionary pop and rockabilly to inform their sound, DMZ had an in depth knowledge of northwestern rock bands. Utilizing the Sonics and the Wailers seemed to inject these Boston area dudes with some other sort of musical aptitude. That's not to say the Ramones were slouches, but DMZ bounced differently than anyone else. They were a rock band in a pretty strict sense.
The inclusion of keyboards, while ostracizing them from some folks buoyed their sound, made the band sound more muscular and added some tripped out '60s garage style to their music. Mono man, though, could have yelled atop of any sort of din and come out sounding alright.
Needing a home to record on, Sire Records signed the group in the same feeding frenzy that lent all of the New York punkers contracts. Of course, DMZ was different. But even when paired with producers that were once associated with the Mothers of Invention, the Bostonians turned out a curious self titled disc.
Leading the disc off with a '60s style sing along track that recalls the Trashmen and the Sonics at once, was tempered by some odd guitar production and weird levels. As disconcerting as that first track was, the following number - while still a stomper - worked poorly in the rave up mode. It seems that the sequencing of the disc pushed some of the more metallic sounding guitar tracks up front in an attempt to portray DMZ as something that they weren't.
As soon as the band gets around to "Cinderella" - from the Sonics catalog - it sounds as if the production's going to remain pretty consistent throughout the remainder of the disc. Counting another two covers - one each from the Troggs and the Wailers - an overwhelming majority of this disc is as garage as work from fellow Bostonians the Real Kids, but with some keys tossed in for good measure.
Some have decried this disc as a Frankenstein affected by the music industry resulting in some second rate schlock. And while there are arguments to be made for that point of view, it's probably just as sensible to figure that DMZ just hadn't figured out how to balance the Nuggets style garage that they were so clearly proponents of and whatever punk was becoming.
As this disc is the summation of the album work from DMZ, some of the singles might do to sate the curious. But as genuine as these dudes were as a band, the studio wasn't the place for them. Bomp! released a few live gigs from these folks that would probably contribute to defining DMZ in a different way - much recommended in light of this studio disc.