#pell mell

5/20/25.

Dianogah were a Chicago band active between the 1990s and 2000s. "1995-2008" gathers their 4 LP output along with their early singles. Only 400 units have been created although there are plans to reissue each of the four full-length albums separately.

I'd never heard of this band, but one immediately thinks of fellow Chicagoans Tortoise (some of their work was produced by John McEntire). Their first album was produced by Steve Albini. Most of this is instrumental music. In that way it does recall the work of instrumental greats Pell Mell and Buick. And listening to this made me go back and listen to The Moles newish LP, "Composition Book".

What is unique about the band is the two bassist approach. There are guitars, but most of this noise is just the two basses. Amazing. Mike Watt, the original Thunderbroom, must be smiling in approval.

B-Side Magazine #50 May/June 95 - Geffen Records ad

Featuring

Elastica

Pell Mell

Nitzer Ebb

Hardvark

So Johnny

Pell Mell - Great American Music Hall, San Francisco, California, 1995

Something extremely cool for you today -- a previously uncirculated soundboard recording of the awesome instrumental rock group Pell Mell, live in San Francisco. Thanks a million to the band’s drummer Robert Beerman for passing it along for me to share with y’all. I’ve recommended them before, but if you’re not familiar, Pell Mell existed in various forms throughout the 1980s and 1990s, releasing albums on such labels as K Records, SST, DGC and Matador. Sadly, a fair amount of their work remains in limbo -- you can get this fantastic early live release via Bandcamp and Interstate from 1995 is available over on Amazon. Discogs is probably your best bet for the rest ... 

A recent Perfect Sound Forever feature by Dave Lang sums the Pell Mell vibe up nicely: “Pell Mell took the twang of Duane Eddy and the Ventures and mixed it up with a jagged, post-punk approach and a beautiful, evocative lyricism which has a wonderfully cinematic quality (no wonder they have had their music used on screen, notably on the HBO series Six Feet Under). A vocalist would only clutter things. The perfectly complimentary interplay between the bass/drums rhythm section and the expressive guitar lines possess a sublime beauty which few others have ever matched. Just imagine Tom Verlaine and Richard Lloyd playing the Dick Dale songbook... then imagine a music writer struggling to put in words what it is Pell Mell did exactly.”

Right on. This 1995 live show is fantastic, capturing Pell Mell on tour in support of Interstate, the band’s lone major label release. The guitars sparkle, the rhythm section crackles and Steve Fisk’s keyboards add layers of atmosphere and ambiance. The lineup here is Beerman, Fisk, bassist Greg Freeman and guitarists David Spalding and Mike Leahy, and they sound groovy from start to finish. I’m struck by how strong Pell Mell’s melodies were at this stage -- each tune is lovely, while still maintaining an edgy, restless quality. So good. In addition to a bunch of songs from Interstate and its predecessor Flow, we also get two great outtakes, which I don’t think are available anywhere else. For a visual add-on, check out a couple nostalgia-stoking videos from the day after down at LA’s Rhino Records. 

Also worth noting! The opening act on this night was Barbara Manning’s S.F. Seals. No recording of their set, but DB’s Repercussion Blog has some live recordings from around the same time ... 

Pell Mell - It Was A Live Cassette

For Bandcamp Monday, here’s the best $5 (or more) you’ll spend this week — Pell Mell’s totally classic 1982 live tape. It was a live cassette, then it was a CD reissue, now it’s a digital download, showcasing the propulsive instrumental prowess of drummer Bob Beerman, bassist Jon-Lars Sorenson and guitarist Bill Owen. Catchy/scratchy sounds abound: “all they were shooting for was music as cool PiL, Josef K, The Fire Engines, The Feelies, A Certain Ratio, Pere Ubu, The Contortions and others then-contemporary moondoggies.” And they succeeded, by god! 

Pell Mell just keeps sounding better and better as the years go by. I spent a good deal of drive time last year jamming their mid-90s Interstate album. And hey, Perfect Sound Forever just published an excellent expansive interview with the band ... let the Pell Mell revival commence! Actually, as the interview covers, much of the band’s catalog is in SST limbo, hindering any reissue attempts -- curse you, Greg Ginn!