DAKOTA / DAKOTA - Shoot In The Dark LP (Blue Vinyl)

Label: Forge Again

Dakota/Dakota was an instrumental band from Chicago. It featured ex-members of Wolfie & The Like Young. Guitarist Mike Sullivan and bassist Colin DeKuiper went on to play in the band Russian Circles. This is their only album and what an album it was.

While it's hard to really praise an all-instrumental band due to the obvious lack of lyrics and singing [two things which do take a significant amount of skill], Dakota/Dakota has enough musical chops and a good sense of melody to make up for the lost words. This Chicago trio has fused together elements of chaotic discord found in their more math-rocky counterparts along with the sticky-sweet guitar and bass melodies that frequent many a Pele song. It makes for a surprisingly cohesive listen that hints of what is to come for the band.