The Droogs were an

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rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

group from

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

, United States, initially active between 1972 and 1992, with the majority of releases from the mid-1980s onwards.

History

The Droogs was formed in 1972, by Ric Albin (vocals), Roger Clay (guitar), Paul Motter (bass), and Kyle Raven (drums).Strong, Martin C. (1999) "The Great Alternative & Indie Discography", Canongate, Inspired by 1960s

garage rock Garage rock (sometimes called garage punk or 60s punk) is a raw and energetic style of rock and roll that flourished in the mid-1960s, most notably in the United States and Canada, and has experienced a series of subsequent revivals. The sty ...

and with their early sound later categorized by

Trouser Press ''Trouser Press'' was a rock and roll magazine started in New York in 1974 as a mimeographed fanzine by editor/publisher Ira Robbins, fellow fan of the Who Dave Schulps and Karen Rose under the name "Trans-Oceanic Trouser Press" (a reference to ...

as "protopunk", they released six singles during the 1970s (later collected on the ''Anthology'' album), with several changes of personnel in the rhythm section.Larkin, Colin (1992), ''The Guinness Who's Who of Indie & New Wave Music'', Guinness Publishing, The line-up stabilized in the early 1980s with David Provost (formerly of

Dream Syndicate A dream is a succession of images, ideas, emotions, and sensations that usually occur involuntarily in the mind during certain stages of sleep. Humans spend about two hours dreaming per night, and each dream lasts around 5 to 20 minutes, alth ...

) on bass/keyboards and Jon Gerlach on drums. In the mid-1980s, the band was considered part of the ''

Paisley Underground Paisley Underground is a musical genre that originated in California. It was particularly popular in Los Angeles, reaching a peak in the mid-1980s. Paisley Underground bands incorporated psychedelia, rich vocal harmonies and guitar interplay, owin ...

'' scene, but found greatest success in

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, and in 1987 signed to the

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label, Music Maniac. 1996's release of ''Atomic Garage'' led to the band's dual performances at the 1997

Roskilde Festival The Roskilde Festival is a Danish music festival held annually south of Roskilde. It is one of the largest music festivals in Europe and the largest in the Nordic countries. It was created in 1971 by two high school students and a promoter. In 1 ...

, one of which was broadcast on Danish National Radio. The group was included on

Rhino Record A rhinoceros (; ; ), commonly abbreviated to rhino, is a member of any of the five extant species (or numerous extinct species) of odd-toed ungulates in the family Rhinocerotidae. (It can also refer to a member of any of the extinct species o ...

's boxed set, ''Children Of Nuggets'' in 2005. The following year saw the CD release of ''Collection'', select album tracks to reach digital platforms. In 2013, the Droogs contributed to ''Conspiracy A-Go-Go'', a themed compilation on JFK's post mortem. 2017 marks the release of ''Young Gun'', featuring ten new songs and a cover of

the Seeds The Seeds were an American psychedelic garage rock band formed in Los Angeles, California in 1965, best known for their highest charting single "Pushin' Too Hard". The band's classic line-up featured frontman Sky Saxon, guitarist Jan Savage (b ...

, "Out of the Question". The line-up on the album is Ric Albin (vocals), Roger Clay (guitar), Dave Provost (bass), Dave Klein (drums) and as co-producer/engineer.

Discography

Singles, EPs

* "He's Waiting"/"Light Bulb Blues" (former credited to Gerry Roslie) (1973) * "Set My Love on You" (1974) * "Ahead of my Time" (1974) * "Overnite Success/Last Laugh" (1975) * "As Much As I Want" (1979) * ''Heads Examined'' (1983) P/mini-album* "Change Is Gonna Come" (1984) * "Only Game In Town/Garden Of My Mind" (1984) * "Collector's Item" (1986) * "TV Man" (1993) * "Come Heaven or Hell" (1993)

Albums

* ''Stone Cold World'' (1984) Passport * ''Kingdom Day'' (1987) PVC * ''Mad Dog Dreams'' (1990) Music Maniac * ''Live in Europe'' (1990) Music Maniac * ''Want Something'' (1991) * ''Guerrilla Love-In'' (1991) Music Maniac * ''Atomic Garage'' (1997) Impossible Records * ''Young Gun'' (2017) Plug N Socket

Compilations

* ''Anthology'' (1987) Music Maniac * ''Collection'' (2006) Plug N Socket

References

External links

* Alternative rock groups from California Musical groups established in 1972 Musical groups disestablished in 1992 Musical groups from Los Angeles Garage rock groups from California Protopunk groups {{US-rock-band-stub