Caught in the Carousel

Dime Box

By Alex Green

Dime Box

With her new country/folk band Dime Box, it seems Kristi Callan, who was the lead singer of the '80s pop band Wednesday Week, has left her pop roots behind and opted for something a little more rootsy.

Or has she?

Although Callan's new outfit plays an inspired blend of wistful and lilting roots music, her uncanny penchant for pop hooks isn't left out of her new band's sound.
As a matter of fact, "Live A Little" (which is the leadoff track from Dime Box's debut Five And Dime Waltz) has all the familiar pop punch of Wednesday Week's finest work. It may come as an acoustic fiddle-filled shuffle, but it's got the same big hooks that Callan's fans have grown to expect.

Dime Box

And who could blame them? As Wednesday Week, Callan and her sister Kelly put out two critically-acclaimed power pop albums (Betsy's House and What We Had), and on the strength of those two long players, the band played with folks like Oingo Boingo, appeared on MTV's "120 Minutes" and played live on the Arsenio Hall Show. However, in spite of Callan's winning pop CV, with Dime Box she's branched out and Five And Dime Waltz reveals her to be a singer/songwriter of considerable musical range.

Dime Box

Rounded out by fiddle/mandolin player Edie Murphy and guitarist Yolande Ng, Dime Box bring to mind Tammy Wynette, the Old 97's and Dolly Parton all at once. But what's so striking about their debut album is its almost anachronistic feel. In other words, whether it's the mandolin-soaked "Betsy" or the fiddle-fueled rave-up "Cotton Pickin'" these are songs that could have been written by everyone from The Carter Family to X. Elsewhere, the wistful "Do I Ever Cross Your Mind" summons the country finesse of Gram Parsons; "Bone To Pick" is instantly classic cowpunk and the shuffling Americana of "Nobody" is hard to resist.

Based in Los Angeles, Callan and Dime Box are spending the rest of the summer gigging all over their home turf.

Dime Box

Without further introduction, CITC would like you to meet the country girl with the big pop right hook:

FULL NAME: Kristi Callan

NICKNAME: "Miss!"

BAND MEMBERS: Yolande Ng & Edie Murphy

HOMETOWN: Dallas, TX

WEBSITE: dimeboxband.com

RECORD LABEL: Avebury

DESCRIBE YOUR SOUND IN ONE SENTENCE: Home-grown music in a store-bought world.

DESCRIBE YOUR SOUND IN ONE WORD: Omni-directional.

PROUDEST PROFESSIONAL MOMENT: I'm still waiting for it—it'll be to sing with Dolly one day!

STRANGEST PROFESSIONAL MOMENT: Being in a Cheap Trick tribute band (Cheap Chick).

THE SONG YOU WISH THAT YOU'D WRITTEN: "Keep On The Sunny Side" - The Carter Family

THE SONG YOU'RE PROUD AS HELL YOU DID WRITE: "Betsy"

FIVE BEST BANDS TO EVER ROAM THE EARTH: The Kinks, The Beatles, The Ramones, The Carter Family and Redd Kross.

WHAT WERE YOU LIKE AS A KID?: The quintessential kid sister.

LIFE CHANGING MOMENT: Giving birth.

MOST EMBARRASSING MOMENT: There are so many each and every day that I can't keep track.

BEST ALBUM TO PLAY AFTER A BREAK-UP AND YOU'RE HOLDING A BOTTLE OF VODKA AND SOMETHING SHARP: Rocket to Russia - The Ramones

INDULGENCE YOU REFUSE TO GIVE UP: Ice water

PERSONAL PHILOSOPHY: It is what it is.

Internet:
www.dimeboxband.com
www.myspace.com/dimeboxband
www.myspace.com/wednesdayweekband
www.myspace.com/kristicallan
www.kristicallan.com
www.aveburyrecords.com
www.myspace.com/cheapchick
www.cheapchick.com

Dime Box's Five And Dime Waltz is out now on Avebury Records