Artist description Born in Flint, Michigan, this former Fussbudgets and Malcontent member rose to prominent semi-obscurity while living in San Francisco. Now Chicago-based, he divides his loyalties between the Anglo-pop combo, Post Office, and his own solo acoustic and full band shows with The Me Decade. Back-up includes a two piece string section (violin & viola), bass, drums, and guitar.

Music Style singer-songwriter hard-edged melodic pop

Musical Influences The Go-Betweens, Tommy Keene, Jules Shear, The Only Ones, Nick Lowe, Dwight Twilley, Alex Chilton, Gene Clark

Similar Artists Bob Dylan, Violent Femmes, dB's, Yo La Tengo, Byrds, Big Star, Robyn Hitchcock, Lou Reed, Jonathan Richman, Wilco, Silos, Replacements, REM, Flying Burrito Bros., Faces, Teenage Fanclub, Kinks

Artist History Solo singer-songwriter and bandmember since the 1980's, beginning in Ann Arbor, Michigan with Stress Babies. Next popped up in San Francisco, playing with avant-pop stalwarts The Fussbudgets and Malcontent, two groups greeted with indifference by hipper-than-thou No'Californians. Weary of the west coast, returned to the midwest (Chicago) to lay the foundation for both his solo projects and the bands, The Me Decade and Post Office.

Group Members Larry O. Dean: guitar & vocals. Tim Ferguson: bass & vocals. Chad Gifford: violin. Jeff Greaves: drums & vocals. Pam Richardson: guitar & vocals. Derek Walvoord: viola.

Albums Throw the Lions to the Christians, Sir Slob, Gentrification is Theft

Press Reviews Chicagoan Larry O. Dean has gathered together another talented Windy City bunch - the Me Decade. This band's disc, Gentrification is Theft, should be released soon. From a contemporary perspective, the band's songs sound like Russ Tolman and Girls Say Yes. On a more dated basis, one can also hear wisps of the mid-'60s San Francisco mixed gender bands, Jefferson Airplane and It's A Beautiful Day. Whether the tunes feature strummy pop, straight-ahead rock, fuzzy amplification, psych/pop or guitar pop with strings, the twelve songs are all catchy enough to make this disc a worthy addition to your pop music library. FUFKIN.COM. Sir Slob is the latest effort by indie pop veteran Larry O. Dean, and it's another excellent addition to his discography. As a solo artist, Larry plays melodic folk rock that is strongly influenced by Bob Dylan and Neil Young. (Larry also plays in the pop band Post Office, whose wonderful 1998 album, Public Displays of Affection, is an overlooked gem.) In comparison to Larry's previous solo album (Throw the Lions to the Christians), Sir Slob has a harder-edged and more cohesive band sound. Larry receives strong and sympathetic support from his band, The Me Decade, who are equally adept at handling slow ballads and aggressive rockers. Things start off in strong form with "Time to Kill," a melodic, mid-tempo number with ringing guitar and nice background harmonies. "Lies Return" is a haunting, piano-based ballad. "King of Close Enough" is a hard-driving rocker with punkish guitar. The unexpected entry of a string section part way through the song is a nice touch. The heavy guitar rocker "For the Best" makes similarly effective use of a horn section. Perhaps the highlight of the album is "Cuts Both Ways," a wonderful ballad with chiming guitar and a shimmering string section. Sir Slob may never be a hit, but it's records like this that keep the music scene interesting and vibrant. Give it a listen. ROCK BEAT INTERNATIONAL. Lyrically sharp, and big in a musical sense -- think a poppier Lou Reed -- Dean's second album proper provides a powerful and immediate aural rush. It is distanced from the standard singer-songwriter fare by a sound that is fleshed out by a full band, mixing open twangy Americana with a dense and more complex instrumentation. Add sterling assistance from friend of the underground pop glitterati Matt Allison, and it's a real force to be reckoned with. Songs like the brash and upbeat "Time to Kill," the New Wavey "King of Close Enough," the epic nine minutes-plus ballad "Panning for Gold in the Litterbox" and the more strung-out (and familiar sounding) "God Owes Us Nothing" tell strong enough stories to stand, and benefit from, repeat listening. If he can just write a few more memorable choruses who knows what might happen! Arise Sir Slob. BUCKETFULL OF BRAINS. R.E.M. meets Bob Dylan, the two meet have some beer, or at least that’s where it sounds like Larry O. Dean's strange mix of alt. country, folk, and 1960s rock and roll originated from. Larry O. Dean's unique mixture of American cultural music on Sir Slob is quite nice. For those of you that enjoy good old fashioned classic rock-based music, Larry O. Dean's Sir Slob seems to hit the mark. This is a decisive and cohesive recording that seems to bring to life the landscape of America. One can almost picture a guitar player and his back up band singing away the blues of life on some bar's stage somewhere in Middle America. Larry O. Dean's work is quite evocative and paints pictures of the world all around us. Larry O. Dean's work is unique, warm and brings together the best of a roots and an emotionally conscious musical recording. Truly though, Larry O. Dean's music is most reminiscent of Neil Young's collection of 1970's recordings and in a lot of ways their styles are very similar, there's grit, and truth paired with guitars and low, almost pleading vocals. Larry O. Dean has crafted a fine recording, and one that is certainly worthy of attention. ALL MUSIC GUIDE. Larry O. Dean's Sir Slob also has its share of not-unwelcome psych-tinged power-pop damage; you'll detect everything from Shoes to Ray Davies to Love. MAGNET. Dean is known for his Dylan-esque half-sung/half-spoken delivery of literate folk tunes with a rock backing. He can come off like Lou Reed or Matthew Sweet, depending on the tune. NASHVILLE CITY PAPER. Sir Slob has all sorts of nifty touchstones. You can hear bits of Lou Reed, Steve Wynn and Jonathan Richman, but he takes those influences, churns them around and makes something new. He's good at sonic texturing, often blending classical strings with buzzing, alterna-nerd rock guitars. THE (NASHVILLE) TENNESSEAN. Exhibiting the kind of deft self-mockery that made Paul Westerberg a disciple of Alex Chilton, Larry O. Dean puts the 'writer' back in singer-songwriter with his appealing pop dossiers and laconic wit. MOUNTAIN XPRESS (ASHEVILLE, NC). Like most songwriters, Chicagoan Larry O. Dean was turned on by the Velvets and Modern Lovers. Since leaving behind the pop ramblings of San Francisco (which found him fronting The Fussbudgets and Malcontent), Dean has taken his songwriting to a tapered perfection, crafting lyrics from blocks of ideas that would have been lost with lesser writers. A published poet and freelance writer, Dean's music is pulled out of any heaviness by his words, sounding a little like a young Robyn Hitchcock. BLOOMINFTON (IN) INDEPENDENT. With vocal stylings that hover somewhere between Jeff Heiskell (of the Judybats) and Lou Reed, Chicago-based singer-songwriter Larry O. Dean's most recent solo effort is a nice blending of pop, Americana, and folk. Dean is currently performing with Post Office as well as The Me Decade, the latter more of a solo project than a group effort; some of his primary influences are the Go-Betweens, Nick Lowe, Dwight Twilley, Alex Chilton, and Gene Clark. When "Time To Kill" begins Sir Slob with its chiming, jangly guitar, one might at first think they're listening to William Pears' self-titled album on Permanent Press, or perhaps a recent Teenage Fanclub record. Ultimately, the most instantly-accessible nugget on the album is the two-minute wonder known as "King of Close Enough," where Dean lets all of his pop leanings hang out. The flip side of this, however, is "Panning for Gold in the Litterbox," which tops out at over nine-and-a-half minutes; strings wind the song down slowly, however, so the track doesn't wear out its welcome. Dean's unique vocals mixed with memorable lyrical couplets and a variety of musical styles keep Sir Slob consistently interesting and entertaining. NINEVOLT. Add Sir Slob to that list of topnotch indie power pop releases. It's not quite as produced or processed and that gives it a rootsier, harder edge. Dean has a rockier edge than most power poppers -- for every Badfinger or Big Star influenced moment you can hear one equally driven by The Jam or Pixies. "King of Close Enough" is a tasty combination of Kinks and Buzzcocks with an unexpected string-driven bridge. You can also hear Cheap Trick and Lloyd Cole in there. His voice is a bit reedy and adenoidal, but fits his songs extremely well, further distancing him from the power pop pack. As do the sometimes unconventional song structures that recall The Loud Family and Let's Active. Sir Slob stumbles just a bit near the end but remains an overall worthwhile LP. TOAST. Upbeat tunes like "King of Close Enough," with its amalgam of The Plimsouls and R.E.M. and lead off track "Time to Kill" that could be a close cousin of The dB’s and The Replacements spark this CD with an energy that is not seen too often . Deeper subject matter is touched on in "God Owes Us Nothing," which covers conflicts of faith and trying to come to grips with it. "Lies Return" is about trust betrayed and what goes on when you try to get it back. And "Tail Wagging the Dog" details the lives of two people and how they deal with the more mundane aspects of their relationship. Just about something for everyone on Sir Slob. Tuneful introspection the Midwestern way, courtesy of a truly talented artist with vision. Very good, indeed. UP THE JUNCTION. Dean and band deliver a tight primarily folk-rocking set, songs like "Time to Kill," "King of Close Enough," "Tail Wagging the Dog," "Panning for Gold in the Litterbox" and "Cuts Both Ways" suggest a strong influence of the melodic country-folk rock of Buffalo Springfield, the latter-day Byrds, Neil Young and Tom Petty (albeit sung by Lou Reed!). Poetry and rock n roll, a combination of the sacred and the profane finds its balance in Sir Slob. Fans of singer-songwriter magic will relish every minute. AMPLIFIER. What can one expect from an album entitled Sir Slob? Something that's somewhat ragged around the edges no doubt and in fact that impression holds true, at least at the outset. However, names can be deceiving. Witness the monikers that its creator Larry O. Dean has employed in the past; his credits include work with the Fussbudgets, Malcontent, and his latest outfit bolding proclaim themselves The Me Decade. Given a listen to his sophomore solo set, Sir Slob proves anything but haphazard. On the other hand, Dean doesn't add a lot of polish in his production, at least not at first. The album's opener, "Time to Kill," is a rough-hewn roots-rocker that mines in equal portions of urgency and angst. Still, as the set progresses, the songs become as evocative as the cover photos (a city street, a rural snowscape, a lonely pier) and the emphasis on emotion steers the set into more melodic terrain. Songs such as "God Owes Us Nothing" and "Cuts Both Ways" make good use of hushed harmonies and subtle orchestration, giving them a kind of reverential tone. "Take You Away from Here" and "Lies Return" create an alluring and affecting ambiance that brings the listener in closer with a more personal perspective. By the time the ten tunes (and accompanying bonus track) have run their course, Dean's defined himself as a songwriter who’s both able and expressive, not to mention capable of creating some supple works. This Sir Slob is quite a tidy package. ENTERTAINMENT NEWS & VIEWS. Dean strikes gold when his songs balance the lyrics with more aggressive and interesting music. "Time to Kill," "Lies Return," and the epic approach to "Cuts Both Ways" are so sound that they need no wordy posturing. Dean likes his rasping guitar, which is a damn good thing; the melodic noise helps shape the pseudo ballad "Panning for Gold in the Litterbox." It's no writerly surprise that Dean likes lyrics, and he's always intriguing, if not always spot on. In what may amount to the highest sort of compliment, Sir Slob sounds less and less like a writer making a record than it does a musician's record who also happens to write. Go figure. BANGSHEET. The hallmarks of this post-Dylan sound are all intact: literate lyrics, often in a narrative style, sung in a half-spoken manner; understated, but somehow stately, heartland trad-rock backing; and a relaxed pace that allows Dean's compositions to breathe and get to where they are going in due time. Dean puts his own stamp on the material with subtle melodic touches and splendid arrangements. Throughout the album, Dean gets great backing from his band The Me Decade and a variety of talented guest musicians. This is good music for smart people. FUFKIN.COM. Larry O. Dean plays wonderful indie pop/rock music. This album is different from his last however, the songs are all quite a bit longer and slightly darker, both lyrically and musically. But the hooks are still, whether it be gliding through "Lies Return" or rocking out during "King of Close Enough," which, along with the next track, "Tail Wagging the Dog," are severely radio ready. Even if the latter is a tad longer than conventional radio pop songs, it's one of those tracks you don't notice the length. It's got a great chorus, very memorable, and a brooding almost alt-country feel to it. The only thing I kinda miss is that the album has so few songs, even if I am getting more of each one. But that just proves Larry is taking his music up a few steps, and he's succeeding happily at it. Check this one out! Oh, best song-title -- "Panning for Gold in the Litterbox." Four ½ stars. INDIECATOR. Refreshing, frisky, and full of more hooks than Jayne Mansfield’s bra. LISTEN.COM. Larry O. Dean has been around on the pop scene since the late '80s, recording with a succession of bands -- The Fussbudgets, Malcontent, Post Office -- and simultaneously following his own path as a published poet and solo singer-songwriter. Sir Slob is his sixth record release under his own name, and it's an enjoyable collection of rockin' pop songs which showcases Dean's talent as a writer of clever lyrics. It took several listens to realize that his voice reminds me, just a little, of Lou Reed's deadpan New York drawl, crossed with the chap out of Luna whose name escapes me. Fortunately, Dean is a lot more animated in his delivery, and it suits the material just fine. Standout tracks are "Lies Return", the ballsy "Tail Wagging The Dog" and the string laden "Cuts Both Ways", a song where everything seems to come together just right. LEICESTER BANGS.

Location Chicago, Illinois - USA

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