It’s not like the Von Bondies hadn’t heard kind words before. They had read the critical praise, the reviews that called them the next guaranteed hit out of Detroit. They’d felt the positive vibes building around town, across the Midwest, throughout Europe.
But none of it meant more than a single salute from Detroit rock legend Iggy Pop, who approached band leader Jason Stollsteimer after an August show.
“You guys remind me of what the scene used to be here,” Pop told him. “You remind me of us.”
Stollsteimer, a gregarious 25-year-old unlikely to be described as wanting for words, was left speechless.
Now, America gets to hear what Iggy and Detroit already know. The Von Bondies’ debut for Sire Records, “Pawn Shoppe Heart,” hit stores Tuesday.
Those expecting a shot of grizzled garage rock may be startled by the new record. “Pawn Shoppe Heart” is unquestionably a polished–dare say pop-oriented–rendition of the Detroit rock sound. It’s got hooks. It’s got catchy breaks. It’s got choruses you hum along with.
“We wanted to grow,” bassist Carrie Smith says. “We didn’t sell out on ‘Pawn Shoppe Heart,’ but if we stayed pigeonholed as Detroit garage rock, we couldn’t have made this record.”
“This band has a distinct vibe to it,” Stollsteimer says, “and we think we captured that vibe.”
Warner Bros., the parent company of Sire, is banking on that vibe–which includes a signature two-guy, two-girl lineup–as it launches its Von Bondies push.
Few around Detroit knew the band’s name, much less its music, when Jack White quietly took the Von Bondies under his wing and tacked a song from the quartet onto his “Sympathetic Sounds of Detroit” compilation in 2001, then took them on tour and produced their stripped-down indie release, “Lack of Communication.”
The link with White would prove to be a different kind of linchpin in the Von Bondies tale.
The two bands made headlines in December when White allegedly punched Stollsteimer in the face several times while attending a show at Detroit’s Magic Stick. White pleaded guilty to assault Tuesday–the day the Von Bondies’ album dropped–and was ordered to pay a fine and attend anger management classes.
“There’s the old adage that any press is good press,” Smith says. “It got our name out there, yes. But it’s also personal. We’re moving on.”
Show stop
The Von Bondies play Friday at Double Door.
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Edited by Cara DiPasquale (cdipasquale@tribune.com) and Kris Karnopp (kkarnopp@tribune.com)
