OT: The next great Ann Arbor/Detroit band?

Local band Dogleg released their new album Melee last week and it was just awarded Pitchfork's Best New Music and has received acclaim from publications like NPR and Paste Magazine.

Pulling from this Get Alternative feature, here are some of the local connections that Dogleg has:

The current Dogleg lineup hasn’t been together all that long, though you wouldn’t know it from their easy intimacy. What began as a solo project in his parents’ basement followed Stoitsiadis to college at the University of Michigan, and the Dogleg self-titled EP (2016) is a real-time time capsule of that transition. (“Modern Language” is named after the Modern Language building at Michigan.) The band name itself is borrowed from “the greatest band to ever come from Michigan,” Bear Vs. Shark, and their song “Broken Dog Leg.”

After moving to Ann Arbor, Stoitsiadis played the songs from the EP at a handful of solo shows. For some, he invited Grissom, who also grew up in Rochester Hills, to join him on drums. Macinski grew up there, too; the three met when they took after-school music classes concurrently at School of Rock. “So it was just me and Parker playing,” Stoitsiadis says. “I had to drag him out really late because the only shows we could get were these late-night, Thursday-night shows at The Blind Pig in Ann Arbor.” “I had school at like, 5 a.m.,” Grissom adds. “They would kick him out immediately, because he’s a high-schooler, and they’d be like, ‘You’re under 21, you’ve got to get out of here.’ So he would just race up, help me out, and get back home,” Stoitsiadis says. “Thank you, Parker,” he adds, laughing. 

The second iteration of Dogleg formed at Metal Frat, or Sigma Phi, a Michigan fraternity known for its DIY basement shows that have produced bands like Brave Bird, La Dispute, and Pity Sex. For awhile, Stoitsiadis put on shows at Metal Frat and eventually asked his friends Zac (now Dogleg’s manager) and Rory to play with him. When the spring semester ended, however, everyone scattered, and Dogleg was once again facing a personnel shuffle. 

With CO-VID19 dominating the headlines and shutting down venues, bars, and restaurants, it has made touring almost impossible which is how the majority of bands make most of their revenue these days. But if you can support a local band during your self-quarantine by giving Melee a spin and adding to their Billboard numbers via Spotify or Apple Music plays, I'm sure those dudes would appreciate it.