Trick-or-Treat, Dirty Sweet!

East Village hot spot El Dorado Cocktail Lounge played host to Dirty Sweet’s sold-out Halloween bash. The band was ghouled and tuxed-up for the evening and kicked off an 11-song set at 11 p.m.

The quintet stormed their way through songs such as “Crimson,” “Beware,” and “Sixteen,” each one sounding like a potential single – hooky, tuneful, sexy. Their sound is hard to nail down because on one level they hit like good time, balls-out Southern rockers, but there's also a British influence that hints at the Stones, the Beatles, and Marc Bolan. It’s blues played by white boys with dirty fingernails who were born in the wrong era. DS belong to a world of seven-inch vinyl and analogue studios.

Singer Ryan Koontz fronts the band without trying to play “the star,” just doing what comes naturally to him — singing rock songs. He couldn't steal the limelight, as the entire group was outstanding. The bass and drums were locked in that night.

With a new album in the pipeline and after this Halloween performance, it appears that it won't be long before Dirty Sweet takes the world stage.

Artist: Dirty Sweet
Venue: El Dorado Cocktail Lounge
Show date: October 31, 2009
Seats: General admission