I became familiar with Dom Mariani when I discovered his Australian rock band The Stems. I later became an even bigger fan when he established power pop powerhouse DM3. Mr. Mariani has been in multiple other bands as well. The Someloves were very similar to DM3, albeit not as good in my opinion. He has also been part of some instrumental surf bands, he has some solo records, he fronts Datura4 which is kind of different and a little psychedelic and he made a great record in partnership with British punker Nick Sheppard under the moniker of The Domnicks. His career has been prolific to say the least. The following is far from comprehensive, but hits the highlights of Dom Mariani that you really have to check out if you are unfamiliar. You won’t be sorry, I promise.

I will start with the aforementioned Stems. There are a number of releases out there, but the availability of them is limited, even on the streaming services. The cd I bought many years ago, probably about 1988, is called “At First Sight, Violets Are Blue.” This record is really solid. The first track, “At First Sight” is infectiously catchy and has a power pop feel to it. Other stand-out tracks in the same vein are “For Always” and “Can’t Forget That Girl.” And another favorite track is “Mr. Misery” which has a distinct garage rock sound.

The Stems / “At First Sight”

Next up, The Someloves. To my knowledge they only had one proper full length LP release, called “Something or Other.” There are compilations and singles that can be found on your favorite streaming service. I believe that The Someloves preceded DM3 but were not around for long. The DM3 catalog includes a few songs from the original Someloves release. It’s a solid power pop record, but for me, it’s not DM3, so let’s move on to them.

The Someloves / “Know You Now”

DM3 is absolutely one of my favorite power pop bands, and they have given me plenty to love. There is a ton by these guys out there to explore, but let me boil it down. The first record is simply brilliant, and it’s called “One Time Two Times Three Red Light.” I love every track, so I’ll just mention my favorite, which is “1 Time, 2 Times Devastated.” The next studio full length is called “Road to Rome” and it is another gem. Check out “Can’t Get What You Want,” “Speed Freak” and “Something Heavy” but again, there are no clunkers. Finally, I would point you to the album “Rippled Soul.” The highlight for me on that one is “Big Bad World.” There are Ep’s and some large compilations of songs that didn’t make it onto any of the three records that I just mentioned. In particular, “Garage Sale” and “Garage Sale Vol. 2 Italian Style” are loaded with nuggets. Upon getting an email request from me, for a mere twenty bucks, Dom sent me the two Garage Sale cd’s, both signed, all the way from Australia.

DM3 / “1 Time, 2 Times Devastated”

DM3 / “Speed Freak”

Although DM3 is the Dom Mariani band for you to remember, I can’t end without throwing in The DomNicks. The band includes Dom of course, but also Nick Sheppard, whose claim to fame would be playing as Mick Jones’ replacement in The Clash from 1983-1986. The pair created a record called “Super Real” sometime around 2012. It was their second release, but the first is hard to come by. “Super Real” has some rock, some pop, and little bit of a blues and soul feel to it. The first track is called “Cool Runnings” and it is excellent. It’ll have you aching for a summertime drive with the windows down. For that one, Nick did the vocals. The other song I really dig is called “I Wonder What You’re Doing Now,” which has Dom singing.

The DomNicks “Cool Runnings”

You should definitely invest a few minutes to listen to some of these tunes if you are unfamiliar with Dom Mariani. I’ve really only just scratched the surface…….

JCE, or John to his friends, was born in 1963 in the Nation’s Capital. He grew up in the VA suburbs of D.C. His earliest musical memories are tied to a transistor radio with a single earphone that he carried everywhere listening to AM radio. He has a wife of 32 years, and a grown daughter. He leads a bit of a double life, working by day as the chief administrative officer of a VA county, and spending as many nights as possible listening to live rock n roll with his wife at any club that has a decent band within 100 miles or so of their house.

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