Dr. Dog performs self-surgery

Dr. Dog has come a long way since they first began recording back in 2001. The majority of their content consists of a slow-rock feel with evidence of jam session creations. After awhile, individual songs can become boring and borderline annoying if listened to in large doses. However, their latest album "Shame, Shame" proves otherwise.
Released April 6, "Shame, Shame" seems to be "pushing the envelope against the grain," as he states in the track "Shadow People." This seems to be contrary to being stuck in "My Old Ways" as mentioned on the 2007 album "We All Belong." Even though these are just meaningless words without their context, Dr. Dog has never had the most creative edge when it comes to lyrical content.
There appears to be a firm belief in the use of clichés, with little lines like, "We're all in it together now," "our broken little hearts" and "mirror, mirror on the wall." However, it is tough to avoid every cliché when it just flat out works with the rest of the song. Maybe the token cliché is acceptable once in awhile, but Dr. Dog likes to install about one per song.
Nevertheless, musically the talent is hard at work. Their vocal harmonizations have been compared to a Beatles-like effort, with all four members often contributing. "Shame, Shame" has definitely  "pushed the envelope" as far as Dr. Dog's typical pace goes. There are a lot of heavy guitar riffs with head rocking movements, opposed to the usual swaying techniques that often left listeners undecided on whether or not they could connect with the songs.
The opening to "Where'd All the Time Go?" could almost be mistaken for an Animal Collective track, with the psychedelic sounds and the plucking of a banjo to back it up. However, it quickly moves back into conventional Dr. Dog, but then returns for a short time to the psychedelic sounds with a substantial guitar solo that wraps the entire song.
Immediately following this track is "Later," opening with an upbeat piano riff that gets the blood pumping. What Dr. Dog does best on "Shame, Shame" is the transitioning from one track to the next. Every track is relatively unique in comparison to its surroundings. There are slower songs to create a calm ambience after an upbeat storm has finished. The album ends with the title track "Shame, Shame," an electric whammy that sounds like an island getaway tune. This seems to work as the song is about wanting to get away due to the shame the speaker has endured.
This album will most likely appeal to first time Dr. Dog listeners. As far as Dr. Dog followers go, "Shame, Shame" will easily become a favorite as this is definitely an album that proves that hard work and time do pay off when creating something that has been well planned and thought out.