I’ve been hooked on Bimbology, the debut EP from Bimbo, since it was first shared with me1. “Lobotomy”, above, was the gateway drug – it’s melodic, tense, a bit off-kilter but would be at home on almost any alt-rock playlist. The vocal lands somewhere between Emily Haines and 90s era Liz Phair, and some foreboding lyrics add to the intensity. It’s a surprisingly full sound coming from only guitar and drums.
Bimbo is a duo—siblings Gretchen and Dawson McKenzie are both jazz musicians, and it shows. The EP’s fuzzy, psychedelic, lo-fi sound nods to alt-rock giants like Pavement and Sonic Youth, layered witn head-spinning polyrhythms and grungy, jazzy instrumental digressions.
It’s not alienating, though, and I can be pretty finicky about these things. Of the 6 tracks on the EP, only two of them, “Lobotomy” and “Gutter Girl” maintain a traditional time signature throughout their runtime. Even then, just barely:
Bimbology is an impressive debut, especially since Gretchen was still transitioning from bass to guitar when they started recording. The Bimbo formula, if there is one, is front-loading songs with strong melodies and lyrics before leading into hypnotic, challenging jams. EP opener “XOXO” is a prime example: it starts out like a Guyville-era Liz Phair track and lands in a very different place entirely:
The McKenzies take the music seriously, but there’s still room for silliness. The last track on the EP takes a juvenile singing game and turns it into a fuzzy lesson in 7/8 time. In case there’s any confusion the lyrics are posted on Bandcamp:
They’re playing a bunch of shows not far from home in the next couple of months, and Gretchen tells me they’re about to record their second EP with a tentative May release.
