“Skin” is the kind of song that sinks into your gut. Since their 2013 EP, Columbus, Ohio based rock-band All Dogs have been consistently making inventive, diaristic song-writing with brazen lyrics that will leave hearts aflutter. In each song, singer Maryn Jones’ voice airs a purging ballad that is confrontational, emotionally honest, and raw. “Skin,” the second single off their debut LP, Kicking Every Day, is a heartfelt ode to self-sabotaging relationships and deprivations of romance. Jones’ layered harmonies are filled with introspective songwriting that recalls the directness of Liz Phair or the Violent Femmes.
“Skin” tackles the contortions of the heart; of the familiar feeling in a relationship where you begin to distance yourself in fear of being hurt. Jones’ guttural voice recollects, “There is a quiet familiar feeling in it / I am always waiting for everything to fall just like I always make it so.” She acquires the confidence to admit to her self-sabotaging affair with an empowering, unnerving self-assurance. Tight-knit, unshakeable guitar hooks and a steady buildup of drums build to a chorus that soars like a power-pop song. Jones bittersweet vocals linger in your eardrums fluidly between brave and broken, resolute and gutsy, often within the same line. She yelps at the end of the verse, “I will find a way to justify my pain, I will cry, I will lie, I will not be satisfied.” In “Skin,” All Dogs wrestle an indifferent heart with an unresting, serene beauty.
Stream “Skin” below:
Kicking Every Day is out August 28 on Salinas Records.
All Dogs tour dates
August
18 Richmond, VA @ Strange Matter *
19 Baltimore, MD @ Metro Gallery *
20 Asbury Park, NJ @ Asbury Lanes *
21 Philadelphia, PA @ PhilaMOCA *
22 Brooklyn, NY @ Silent Barn *
23 Easthampton, MA @ Flywheel *
24 Allston, MA @ O’Briens Pub *
25 Danbury, CT @ Heirloom Arts Theatre *
26 Pittsburgh, PA @ Mr. Roboto Project *
27 Lakewood, OH @ Mahall’s *
29 Columbus, OH @ Carabar *
* w/ the Sidekicks
